Princess Mi Amore Cadenza sighed as she listened to the pony in front of her prattle on his proposal for his ‘new’ tax code. The Crystal Empire was, unfortunately, a bit behind on the times—an unfortunate side effect from being essentially thrown a thousand years into the future. Because of this, the new laws and regulations that Princess Cadenza and her husband had brought to the ancient city had been met with… resistance.

They had been more than happy to put the new alicorn and her husband on the throne, especially since they had been the ones to remove its previous ruler. In general, the new freedoms and privileges enjoyed by all were almost loved by all.

That, in and of itself, was the problem. Before the rule of King Sombra, the Crystal Empire had had a very strict caste system. Many ponies had expected the empire to quickly revert back to said system, and for everypony to quickly know their place.

It had come to quite a few nobles’ shock, then, when they found out that they were noble in title alone.

Many still had authority to help govern, but they found that they had no real weight to order around the ‘lesser’ ponies, as these ponies now found that they had rights that were equal to even the highest born duke. Essentially, the old guard felt like glorified scribes, especially after the crown had dismissed several of them and stripped them of their titles when they had tried to swing their weight around.

There was very little they could do but petition for things to return to how they had always been. The only obstacle to that, of course, was the royal couple, and they had the support of thousands of crystal pony commoners and common soldiers, so they didn’t even have the voice of the people or the army to back them.

Oh, and of course there were the two demigods that Princess Cadenza called kin living in Canterlot. That alone made things far more complicated than any of the Crystal Empire’s old nobility wanted to even think about.

All in all, the only thing they could really do was waste the princess’s time, and hope that she signed something just to get them to go away.

Princess Cadenza’s counter-strategy was quite simple: she refused to sign anything that they gave her.

Yes, she did sign a few things, but each and every thing that she did sign had been drafted or triple-checked by Cadenza’s chamberlain: a shrewd old bat pony by the name of Balanced Ledger, whom the royal couple had brought up with them to the Crystal Empire to help bring the old place into the fifteenth century, kicking and screaming if they had to.

This didn’t stop the old guard from trying, though. Especially since Prince Shining Armor had been summoned to Canterlot to help with the looming invasion.

Unbidden, Princess Cadenza, or rather, Cadence, glanced to her left.

She felt a stab of longing in her heart when she had to remind herself why Shining Armor wasn't there, sitting in his throne at her left. She knew that what he was doing was important, but that didn’t set her heart at ease in the slightest.

Something bad was going to happen, and soon. She was absolutely certain of that.

“Your Highness? Is there something wrong?”

Princess Cadence looked up in surprise, having temporarily forgotten what she had been doing at the time. “I’m sorry, I have been feeling a little under the weather lately. If you could please continue?”

The stuffy old noble cleared his throat a little, somewhat put out that he did not have the princess’s full attention. “Very well, Your Highness. It is very important that we… What is-?”

Before the pony could finish his question, a cloud of ash materialized in front of the Princess of Love, which quickly condensed in a flash of orange flame, forming a rolled up scroll in front of the now worried-looking princess. Before the parchment could fall, she deftly caught it in her magic and unrolled it.

“I apologize, Silver Sword, but it is from Princess Celestia. Our meeting will have to wait until another date,” Princess Cadence said, her eyes quickly scanning over the letter.

Silver Sword seemed annoyed that his presentation had been brought to a halt, but he hid it well. “Very well, Your Highness. Perhaps some other time, then…” He then gave an overly polite bow, then quickly retreated from the throne room, muttering darkly to himself as he left.

Princess Cadence ignored him, her attention riveted to the letter as she quickly devoured the information contained there. Once she had finished, she rose to her hooves, levitated another piece of paper, a quill, and an inkwell towards herself, and penned an answer to her aunt. She then rolled it up and incinerated it. The moment she was certain that it was on its way, she turned to the guards that lined the throne room. “Flash Sentry!”

A light orange pegasus in Solar Guard armor stepped forward, his hoof making a slight ding as he cut a crisp salute. “Your Highness?”

“I am leaving for Canterlot soon. Have one of your soldiers ready the train, while you and Battlement follow me. We have something… extremely sensitive to retrieve.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” the pegasus said, falling into line behind his princess as she quickly swept out of the room. Solid Battlement was close behind, the crystal pony’s face an inscrutable mask as he followed the two out of the throne room, and up higher into the Crystal Palace.

It didn’t take them long to reach the room they were searching for, and Battlement felt his composure crack ever so slightly when he recognized the door that Cadence had led them to. “This is Master Starswirl’s room…”

Cadence looked back at the crystal earth pony, a single eyebrow raised. “Did you know Starswirl?”

Battlement gave a slight nod. “Not as well as I would have liked. During the Age of Chaos, when this place was the only remaining haven of Order against Discord, the noble wizard stumbled into the shield, bearing two foals on his back.” The crystal pony looked down at the floor, apparently ashamed of himself. “I admit that I was one of the ponies who had originally wanted to turn him away. Our empire was small, and the Crystal Heart could only protect so many from the mad Draconequus’s reign. We had many laws at the time that would have been seen as barbaric today, simply to protect our sovereignty from Discord’s influence.”

Princess Cadence nodded in understanding, then turned and pushed the door open. “Who was it that allowed him to stay?” she asked, somewhat curious.

“Back then, the fate of all was decided by the King,” Battlement said, as he almost reverently followed the princess into the hallowed, if somewhat musty, room.

The room looked like it hadn’t seen the touch of a single pony in ages, which, if the three ponies were being honest with themselves, was the absolute truth. The walls themselves seemed to have been nothing more than large bookcases, upon which rested thousands of books. To the right, there was a small alcove which contained a lone bed, while to the left was another, similar alcove, though this one contained two beds, one a white, sun-themed affair, while the other had dark, night-time themed sheets.

Near the back of the room was a large dais, upon which sat a writing desk, a basket which contained a select few very old and worn toys, and a waste basket. In one corner, seemingly as if put there by accident and forgotten about, was a large, beautiful mirror. It was framed by a purple horseshoe of unknown material, with purple gems inlaid into its frame, while along the outside was a weave of curly flairs that were made of the same material. On the very top was another horseshoe, inside which was the image of a stylized, rearing earth pony.

Battlement shook his head, trying to get back on track, despite the awe he felt towards the one-time occupants of this room. “King Noche was strict, could even be called cruel at times, but his rule saw to our continued survival. He was not cruel because he wanted to be, but because he had to be. However, he seemed to see wisdom in the old one’s eyes, since he let Starswirl and his two young charges in the castle for a time.”

“He didn’t stay?” Flash asked, somewhat shocked by that.

“No, he did stay. For quite some time, I might add. I was not privy to all the conversations between him and the king, so I could not say why he stayed with us for so long.” The stallion rubbed the back of his neck somewhat wistfully as his gaze swept over the long-abandoned room. “I do know that Princess Celestia and Princess Luna practically grew up in this room.”

Princess Cadence and Flash Sentry quickly turned towards the guard, shock on their faces. “Wait, those two foals were-”

Battlement nodded his head. “Yes, they were the Princesses of the Sun and Moon.” Battlement’s face then grew dark, as if an unpleasant memory had surfaced. “The then-Prince Sombra was quite upset to see Princess Luna go. He had become quite infatuated with her; feelings that the alicorn did not reciprocate.”

Flash Sentry scrunched his muzzle in confusion. “I thought you had to ascend to Alicornhood. Were they-?”

Battlement shook his head. “They were but unicorns when they first arrived here. They became alicorns during Starswirl’s tutelage and left the empire with the odd one soon afterwards.”

Cadence looked at Battlement, a question in her eyes. “Why do you call Starswirl odd?”

Battlement shrugged, then waved his hoof a little. “The stallion hid from the Chaos of Discord, yet seemed to be immune to the madness the draconequus caused. He also spent much of his time muttering to himself while locked away in his study, and there were a few times when his eyes would glow, and he would speak in a deep voice in an unknown tongue. Calling the great wizard odd is a kindness, considering these facets of his character.”

“I suppose you would call that odd…” Princess Cadence said as she approached the mirror in the corner. Her hoof slowly traced the frame, before she let it fall. “I am taking Starswirl’s mirror with me to Canterlot. Apparently something has come up.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Captain Sentry said with a bow. “I shall have some unicorns bring it down right away. Is there anything else you need from here before we go?”

Cadence shook her head. “No. And I want you to stay here, in case the matter from eight months ago comes here. I need you to plan our defenses; am I clear?”

Both guards knew instantly what she was alluding to, and cut crisp salutes. “As you wish, Your Highness.”

Princess Cadence took one last look at the mirror before turning away and making her way to her room. She had a lot to prepare before she left and not a whole lot of time left in the day. She had to hurry if she was going to make it in time.

Celestia nodded to herself as a cloud of ash floated into the throne room, which resolved itself into a scroll. She quickly unrolled and read it before turning back to Queen Titania. “It is on its way. It will take a couple of days for Cadence to arrive with the mirror; in the meantime- Oh!” At that precise moment, the door to the throne room opened, revealing Star Blaze. In his magic he carried a very particular book; one that Celestia had sent him to get in the middle of Queen Titania’s story. She waved at the stallion, and he quickly brought the book to her. “There are a few things I need to ask ~Alex,~ and I’m sure you have some questions for him as well.”

“I could not agree more,” Queen Titania said with a bow. “There are many things I wish to hear from him, not the least being what happened to the ancient Prometheans who came to our aid.”

“However, I believe that both our questions, and yours, will have to wait,” Princess Luna said, pointing to the wounded ~human.~ At some point during the queen’s tale, the exhausted ~human~ had fallen into a deep, deep sleep.

Celestia pouted in frustration. “When did he fall asleep? Did he at least hear what happened to the mirror?”

Luna nodded. “He did indeed. His dreams are full of hopes of returning home, though there is a dark undercurrent of what the reaction from his friends and family might be.” Luna shook her head as her horn began to glow. Instantly, ~Alex’s~ sleep seemed to deepen, and the ~human~ soon wore a peaceful smile on his lips. “I suggest we let him sleep for now, and to take this time to treat his wounds, as well as the wounds of Titania’s people. There is much we have to do still, before this day is done.”

“I… I still do not believe that this is truly happening…” Titania said, rubbing her forehead right underneath her horn. “It feels like a dream, that any moment I will wake up, and things will return to how they were before…”

Celestia shook her head. “While I can understand the sentiment, let me assure you, this is very real. We will work out the issues between our peoples, but for now, it would be best if you return to your hive and contact the others. We will send an escort with you, to ensure that Chrysalis does not try anything in the meantime.”

Titania gave a small smile at that. “Thank you, but I will not need one. We have a spell that uses beacons for quick travel, and it would be quite impossible for Chrysalis to attack me during transit.” She bowed her head towards the two princesses. “I would share with you a beacon of your own, as well as the secrets of this magic, but I am afraid that you have caught me quite unprepared.”

“It is fine, we will have plenty of time for that sort of thing later.” Celestia’s radiant smile swiftly turned to a worried frown. “After all, we have plenty of problems to worry about in the months to come. Any ally is a welcome one.”

Titania gave the solar princess a thankful smile before igniting her horn one last time. She was immediately surrounded by purple fire and seemed to sink into the ground before disappearing entirely.

“Sister, do you think she was telling the truth?” Luna asked as the purple flames disappeared from the throne room. “About how our master wasn't the real Starswirl?”

“She had no reason to lie to us,” Celestia said calmly as she watched her troops collect ~Alex~ and remove him from the throne room for treatment. “Despite her calling Starswirl an imposter, it was quite clear that she held that pony in high regard, whoever he was. Besides, it was he who set us on the path to discovering the Tree of Harmony in the first place. Whoever he was, it was clear that he was a friend of Equestria, regardless of his deception. I find it harder to believe that we have had a gateway to ~Alex’s~ home world right under our noses all this time.”

“We saw Starswirl use it several times. He always said it was his secret study,” Luna pointed out.

“True, but that does not explain why ~Alex’s~ people came here in the first place,” Celestia countered.

“That it does not. Just who was this 'Gaea' that the ~humans~ were so bent on saving?” Luna said, her gaze locked on the door that ~Alex~ had just disappeared through. “I will attempt to question him as he sleeps. It was over a thousand years ago, but myths have a tendancy to endure. perhaps he knows something that might provide a clue.”

“And I will-” Celestia started to say, holding up ‘Starswirl’s’ last journal, but was interrupted as her prized student charged into the room, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy and Spike close behind.

“Princess Celestia!! There are changelings in Canterlot!!” Twilight shouted, clearly upset.

“And I will leave you with this,” Luna said, an impish grin on her face. “After all, she is your student.”

Without another word, the Princess of the Night disappeared in a flash of light, leaving Celestia to deal with a hysterical Twilight Sparkle and her friends.

“Good grief…” Celestia said, a wistful smile on her face. Sometimes you can be quite the hoof-ful, sister, she thought as she turned to deal with her student and her friends.

The black van pulled up to the sleepy Portland street, its engine humming as several others quickly followed suit. It was unnerving how silent the streets were, the only noises coming from the engines of the three vehicles, as well as the sound of two cats (probably) fighting a few streets down from the current one.

Franky, the whole thing was making Sergeant Moore uncomfortable.

“Okay, and you’re sure about this, right?” the sergeant asked as he checked his M4 one last time.

Agent Vale gave a weary sigh. “To be honest, I really don’t know what to believe about this thing. All I know is that it could have killed us at any moment, and it didn’t. Not only that, but it let us go. My gut says to trust it, but there really are too many things we don’t know about this.”

“Cool your heels, Sarge. The lady told you everything she knows, no sense getting cold feet now,” Colonel Conners said, nodding to the soldier closest to the door. The corporal gave a short nod in reply, and pulled open the door to the van.

With practiced ease, the soldiers poured out of the vehicle, the other two vans quickly following suit, causing the sleepy Portland street to suddenly come alive with the presence of armed troops. However, despite the sudden influx of troops, they were all surprisingly quiet, the only real sounds being the engines of their transports.

“Alright, Vale, where is this thing?” Colonel Conners asked as he swept the streets for any signs of movement.

“It’s probably hiding,” Vale said, taking a few steps away from the soldiers and holding her empty hands up. “I told you that it told me that it only had the one probe left. It’s probably trying its best to not become stranded.”

“That is correct,” a mild voice echoed through the alleyway. The soldiers immediately brought their weapons up, ready for whatever horrors were about to come barreling down towards them.

“Please, put your weapons away. I mean you no harm.”

The colonel waved his hand to his troops, signaling them to do as the voice asked. “I’m Colonel Sam Conners of the United States Army. I understand that you require assistance?” Colonel Conners asked, a bit wary of the alien.

“I do indeed. Am I to assume that you have been given authority to speak for your nation?” the voice asked, its voice sounding strangely puzzled.

The colonel straightened up a bit. “I have, though I cannot agree to anything until you’ve returned our people.”

“Of course. I have not been holding them prisoner, though, by any stretch of the imagination.”

From the far alley, there was a flash of light from just around the corner, followed almost immediately by the sounds of two men swearing. “Come on, Yavaar! Give us a little more warning when you do that!” There was some sounds of scuffling, then without any warning, the two missing agents appeared from around the corner, holding their hands up in a clear sign that they were not dangerous.

“I would like to point out that, up to this point, I have done nothing to harm you or your people. I would request that you refrain from discharging your weapons,” the voice said as the two agents drew closer. “If it makes you feel any better, you may take my remaining, functioning probe back with you for study, provided that you do not destroy it. It is my only remaining link to the world outside my damaged base, after all.”

The colonel turned to his men, then nodded, signaling that they should keep their weapons lowered. He then turned back to the location of the voice, a slight frown on his face. “That would probably be best. I’m sure there is much we can learn from each other.”

There was an odd humming sound, before the probe finally came around the corner. It was basically exactly as Agent Vale had described:; small, silvery, and having very little distinguishing markings other than the ‘eye’ on the front. “While that may be true, there is much, much more that I can, and should, teach you. And quickly; the Krin could be back at any moment, and we really do not have much time to delay.”

The probe slowly approached them, before stopping a few feet in front of the soldiers. “As you have already introduced yourself, Colonel, allow me to do the same. I am Yavaar, and I have been assigned the honor of watching your species develop.”

Colonel Conners felt the corners of his lips turn up into a smile. While obviously alien, there was something extremely earnest and trusting about the strange computer. Odd. I always figured that artificial intelligence would turn out something like the Terminator… he thought to himself. What he said, though, was, “If what you’ve told us about you and these... ‘Krin’ is true, and you really did have nothing to do with the abductions, then allow me to be the first to welcome you to Earth, though I wish the circumstances were different.”

“As do I. As far as first contact with your species goes, this is hardly ideal. Nevertheless, we must work with what the Creator has given us,” the orb said, before giving a quick, three-sixty spin, almost as if it were nervously checking to see if someone was coming. “Now, if you would be so kind? We have much to discuss, and time is not on our side.”

“Of course. If you could please join us in the van, we can get out from the open and you can let us know just how deep we are in alien crap,” Colonel Conners said, gesturing towards the van. His soldiers looked a bit nervous about this, but they kept their cool.

“To borrow a phrase from your popular culture, ‘I thought you would never ask...’” the small silver probe said as it swooped into the open door of the van.

Sergeant Moore looked at his commanding officer, worry in his gaze. "Sir, do you think this is wise?"

"By all that is good and holy, I hope so..." the colonel said right before he followed the odd machine into the van, shaking his head in disbelief.

Author's Notes:

Well, here's the next chapter! That one took me some time to complete, but I finally got through it. Personally, the bit between Yavaar and the soldiers was the hardest part, and I still do not think I did that scene justice.

Well, whatever. As long as it's on paper, I can move on and come back here later when I know what I did wrong, am I right?

Edit: Upon talking with a few people that know a LOT more about military units and the who's who of the united states armed forces, I've decided to change the Marines here into Rangers, since they'd be the most likely called in in an unknown situation like this.