Days had passed, all of them the same: Breakfast, fields, bath, dinner, sleep and repeat. Valkardian was nowhere to be seen and despite having days to calm her nerves Shadow still made certain to poke her head into the bath and call his name before going in. Still on edge over it, especially with him just laughing it off and leaving. Today would be another day of dull drudgery, after breakfast though she was escorted by a servent in the opposite direction she was expecting. Twisting and turning, passing through a giant set of double doors and continuing down a grand hallway that she had never been in Shadow was curious as to where it was taking her.

Stopping in front of two silvery doors with depictions of all manner of creature and plant the servant stepped aside and motioned her forward. Looking up at the door which stood a good six feet taller than her and pushing Shadow had to admit, this door would make even Celestia rather jealous. The door swung in easily, not a sound despite its obviously immense weight. What she saw took her breath away: it was a library and not JUST any old library. The room was immense, polished black granite walls and floors, stone shelves that stood a full nine feet tall, stuffed with books and tomes. The far wall must have been over three hundred yards away and another set of double doors, was there another room just like this one?

Walking around since no servant was in sight Shadow took her time, each shelf was numbered and marked in alien script but below it was Equish. Apparently this room housed general information on history, biology, magic, engineering, flora, fauna and so it kept going. Each towering shelf held what must be thousands and thousands of years of carefully collected material. One thing that was missing however was a FICTION section, maybe it was somewhere farther in or beyond the other set of doors.

Shadow kept walking and examining for a time before finally calling out, no response. Maybe he was rewarding her? Giving her a day off? Never take a gift mango for granted, she decided to pick a book to read. Browsing was hard but she finally settled on history, Valkardian had asked at great length about the history of the world above only to scoff. If that was the case, he MUST have some books showing the OTHER side of the coin. Sure enough, the history section was set up by date, from the oldest to the most recent which was strangely up to date... Stranger still was it ended and there was so much space stretching off that Valkardian must be expecting many, many thousands of years MORE to be added.

He had scoffed at her telling of Celestia and Luna's history... Which meant the year must be... Yes! The heavy book slipped free easily and making her way over to the center of the room she took a seat at one of the several tables she had seen earlier. Lighting was no issue, crystals gave off a strong, bright white light that made it easy to read. The idea of looking up Rubies history had crossed her mind first, but then again she had no idea what year that would have been. Curiosity grew and grew however as to the "true" history of Celestia and Luna and quickly opening the book she began to read.

Time slipped by as Shadow continued to read, rivetted to the book, slowly, chapter by chapter she continued on. Story after story, event after event... Impossible things, impossible meetings, discussions, decisions... This was just not possible, never had she HEARD of such things let alone that CELESTIA or LUNA was behind it! To make matters worse Shadow checked the book and found it was just the FIRST volume of what must have been fifty-five on the shelf all marked similarly.

"This cant be right, they could never have done that, WHY would they have done that?" Valkardian must be a liar, there is just NO WAY IN TARTARUS that the regal, kind, generous and motherly sisters would ever do such things!

A simple invisibility spell was all it took followed by silence and with that he was able to walk along with her quietly observing her every move. These books were precious and he was not about to let her harm them not that she would, had he suspected she might he would NEVER have allowed her into the library to begin with. So far the test was going well, she had taken advantage of her situation and made a decision for herself without his having to tell her anything. Even better was she had picked a book from the Equestrian section, namely the Celestia-Luna timeline and began reading immediately.

Smiling as he stood to one side of the small circular room in the middle of the shelves Valkardian felt rather proud of her, she was trying to find out the truth. Not only had she NOT gone looking into the flora and fauna which was suspected, no, instead Shadow had looked at almost everything before settling on THIS particular book series. The true, unedited history of Equestria, written by none other than Valkardian, with lots of servant help of course; writing all of this was not easy let alone organizing each book chronologically.

When his little slave began mumbling about impossibilities the smile only grew and grew, not once did she stop reading, instead continuing on and on, one chapter after another. Never did Shadow toss the book aside, laugh or berate what was written. Instead she just kept reading and the look on her face became more intent, looking for any little error that might tell her what was written was a lie. Deciding to leave her alone to her own thoughts and reading material he silently left, Shadow never noticed one of the doors mysteriously open and close silents, too absorbed in her reading to notice.

One of the servants walked up to her and led her away for the day though "led" was a bit of a stretch. Shadow had fought with it to stay and keep reading which resulted in more showing up and carrying her out like a basket case. Bathing and eating in record time she rushed back to the library to find the doors barred with servants armed with brooms, apparently she would have to wait for another day.

Day after day she was led back, her meals were downed faster and faster in her rush to get more reading done. Not once did Valkardian call for her or show his face, apparently he was content to leave her there to read so she did just that. Some books were quite a bit smaller that others, apparently little had happened for some years then trouble would start all over again. Deals made and broken, backstabbing, insidious betrayals some deserved others not. A sneaking suspicion began to fill her that considering how the books never blamed anyone, simply stating who did what, when, where and how that what was written here... WAS the truth. Each book what perfectly written in chronological order, devoid of any personal opinion or insights. She simply had to keep reading to learn more. Once in a while a note was made to see another book for further details and now her table turned desk was piled high with books and tomes.

One day Shadow had found a servant and asked it for parchment and quill, sure enough it brought it to her and only after did she realize that this was probably a set up. "Oh well, too late for that" she thought and continued on, she was intent to learn as much as she could. By far the bloodiest and most gruesome of her reading though was the history of the three tribes. Every battle was laid out, assassinations, poisoning, it was all there but not in the books she had read growing up. Never was there a mention as to how a pony as ignorant, backwards, inbred and retarded as Chancellor Puddinghead in any of Equestrias history books, it was simply glossed over.

Here, on the other hand it was laid out in perfect detail, the previous Chancellor dying via poisoning by Celestia. Luna using her dream warping ability to convince the Earth Ponies to choose the most inferior candidate or the world would end, she learned a new word that day: Subliminal Messaging. Luna had kept up with it for months before hand, dropping little hints here and there, building them up and when the day arrived it hit the tribe like a freight train. Sure enough, they unanimously decided to put the village idiot in charge and their spiral to collapse began.

The same could be said of the other two tribes as well: careful control of breeding and pampering to result in the most snobbish princes taking over. An "accident" that left only Commander Hurricane left to take power, so hot headed and egotistical that she is the LAST you want leading a nation. All three of them poisoned slowly night after night with dreams and visions and so it went on, every grisly detail of their rise to power and fall. What made Shadow stop however was the windigo's, how they came to be and then released... It was the first time she had stopped reading just to sit back and sob quietly.

If Shadow was sobbing while reading that particular book then it must be time to drive the nail into the coffin. Valkardian had watched her via a servant for over three weeks, he doubted she had any idea that much time had passed. It was rather funny, just about every other day his servants had to cart her out, one day she had even gone down kicking and screaming not wanting to leave. Curiosity and the desire to know the truth FAR outweighed any personal bias or brainwashing, this endeared her to him greatly.

Walking up to her she never once looked up, continuing to scan the pages with a glare, occasionally making a note but never noticing his presence. Clearing his throat loudly had not worked either and not wanting to wait all day for his slave to snap out of it he floated her quill and ink away as a precaution before laying a hand on her head. The reaction was instantaneous, she tried to jump from her seat, wings flared out but nothing was knocked over. Her big eyes slowly traced up his form before looking him in the eyes.

"Enjoying your reading?" Removing his hand Valkardian glanced down at the book, she was coming along nicely in her reading. "Yes Master, I am reading about the aftermath of the tribes uniting now." Shadow stared at him, was he going to end her time here? Was she going back out to the gardens or fields?

"Master... May I ask a question?" A chair floated over and he took a seat beside and silently stared at her a minute.

"You mean can you ask MANY questions" he corrected her.

"Yes, many, many questions, but first... The Wendigo's, those are a creation of Celestia and Luna?"

A smirk came to his face, rather than ask if what he wrote was the truth, she was instead seeking clarity, good, very good. "Yes, they did, the three tribes had resisted their attempts to rule over them for about... What does the book say? Two centuries? Three? Been too long for me to remember the dates anymore... The whole plan was concocted by Celestia herself, to put the tribes in such a state that they could no longer resist their attempts to command them. This (motioning to the book) was just the first phase of her plan. ORIGINALLY she had planned to drive them down, scare them, make them desperate for a neutral party to lead them but then... Well, instead they formed a COUNCIL that would rule the three tribes. Her plan BACKFIRED. Still, she is no fool and had backup plans, just keep reading you will see how it worked out. I am rambling again... Wendigo's, yes... They were to drive the final nail in the coffin, the feud was set, the fuse lit and now she only had to watch. When the fighting reached it's peak the wheels ground forward, snow and ice blanketed the land, thousands began to die from the cold or starvation as the years wore on and supplies depleted. Again, the two came forward to "aid them" but instead of bowing down they left to find a new homeland. They did but again the feuding destroyed the land. To make a long story short, Celestia's plan did not put her in power but provided a permanent reminder as to WHY the pony tribes must embrace harmony."

Leaning back and watching her reaction he continued "Now if you doubt what is written is the truth lets apply some logic: First of all why is it that the flag the three tribes chose on that auspicious day was of the TWO SISTERS and not a combination of the three tribes?" He let that sink in a moment before continuing "Also, why did the sisters not just intervene from the START? If they are indeed "saints" they would have nipped it in the bud or at least pressured them to unite sooner than later. Instead thousands died from the cold and thousands more from starvation. Their only attempt was AFTER the fact not before." Shadow's eyes focused quickly "Wait, how do you KNOW what they were planning?"

"A damn fine question" he thought. "Simple, I stole their plans and copied them, the two have never been very good at keeping secrets, their plans were carefully written out and I simply nicked them, made copies magically and they were none the wiser. They are stored away in one of the other wings if you wish to see them." It looked as if a sledgehammer had struck Shadow, her face was contorted in rage and then it looked like she was going to cry.

"Why would they do something so cruel?" Her voice was beginning to break.

"Power, greed, lust for what others have, at the time the two were petty, self proclaimed "princesses" without a kingdom, only one castle. Now mind you, as you keep reading you will find they "softened" in time. This is where Celestia and Luna began to DEEPLY regret their actions and change their ways but unfortunately for many... It would be a few more centuries. The last great act Celestia made as tyrant was the fall of the Griffon Kingdom by denying them aid when they needed it to stay unified. Still, as she grew older I guess the weight of countless lives weighed heavily on her and broke her at some point. Now you simply know her as the kind, loving motherly ruler you all adore. I am one of the last who knows the truth, she on the other hand buried it or had all the books and scrolls burned to prevent any disharmony coming from this should it ever come to light."

Looking at him a minute before speaking a further question "So its not ALL a lie? Her personality, who she is... She really has become a better pony?" Shadow struggled with her words. "Correct, today she is a paramount of virtue but not so in her younger days, all that blood and terror tempered her. Back then I did try to talk her out of a great deal of her decisions but they were both so hard headed..." Ears snapping up Shadow perked up "You tried to talk them OUT of it? Why? Arnt you... Unspeakably evil or trying to be?"

Valkardian's eyes narrowed at this jab "Yes, because back then, before all... THIS!" He gestured angrily to the pile of books. "Began I was quite smitten with them, in fact I sought their hands. Now by pony logic and by MOST logic I am evil and shall make no attempt to DENY that FACT... Almost never have I TOYED with others like they did, if I am going to kill... I will, the end. I will not play cat and mouse, scheme, poison or anything of the sort unless it is most dire. Ruby is your best example that you know of when I go against basic principles, choosing to snare, trap, enslave and then toy with my enemy for millennia. My being close to them at times made it all the easier to steal their plans as well." Shadow could not believe her ears, Valkardian just admitted to seeking BOTH Celestia and Luna's hand in marriage? Curiosity wormed its way up but she crushed it, best leave that one be, then again, what would Equestria look like today HAD he succeeded?

"Master Valkardian... If you sought their hands in marriage and are not married to them now and instead live down here... What happened?" Looking at her he had no intention of telling her that, at least not yet at any rate, there was so much more to do and teach her, things were progressing wonderfully. "That is for another day. Now then, YOU have a letter to write." Giving her a piece of parchment, quill and inkwell he stood. "Write your letter home and address it, I will make certain it is delivered promptly."

Watching him leave she glanced back down at the writing materials; her family... Already forgotten in the rush of current events and now these revelations. This would be an interesting letter home, but remembering that her master would probably read it before sending it Shadow decided to be more cautious in her approach. The letter home turned out to be quite simple, she was fine, had found a world undreamed of and would tell them all about it when she got back one day and that might be some time. Standing from her seat a servant approached and held its hand out. Giving it the letter it in return gave her a note. She was to pick out a book or two from either the non-fiction or fiction (east wing) and take them with her, she would be back in the gardens for a short time and upon completion she would be allowed back into the library. Since she would be allowed back in she left the history books behind, deciding to read something more relaxing, another pair of silver double doors lead her off into the fiction part of the library. It was surprisingly well stocked, grabbing two that got her interest she left with the servant.

How many days, months or even years would it be before what she learned today would not plague her mind? Valkardian had no reason to lie, even offering her clarity and admitting to things she had not asked about. No, it was the truth, she hardly knew him but one thing stood out about his character: he was hopelessly honest.