Celestia continues to speak with the six liberated p0nies, two of whom had wings, two with horns, and two without. You remain wary, hand on the hilt of your sword, ready to defend if the changelings launched a counter-attack. Not a moment later, the same two p0nies from the cathedral earlier reach Celestia.

”Is she gone Celestia? Was she-“ the pink pony is cut off as Celestia silently points a hoof towards Chrysalis’ body, or rather what was left of it. The wings were still twitching erratically and the pink pony holds a hoof up to its mouth, presumably holding back vomit. ”Are you ok?” asks the male pony beside her, a shield emblem emblazoned on his flank.

”Yeah… I’m fine. She had it coming, that’s for sure” the pink pony mutters. Celestia nods, before standing upright. “Attention, citizens of Canterlot! The changelings have been dealt with! There is no cause for alarm!” As she proclaims the message of safety, winged p0nies hesitantly fill the air and others empty their abodes, eyeing you with understandable mistrust. Celestia walks over to you, motioning for you to kneel down. You comply and she whispers in your ear. ”I shall speak with you later. I understand you must be questioning, but I have a wedding to preside over, and my royal guards must be spoken too. I will also request that you do not speak with the six p0nies who I talked to, at least not yet.” “I understand.” You reply. “Do as you may and I shall not press on matters that do not concern me, but nonetheless I shall accompany you, lest the foul beings make fools out of us and ambush us.” Celestia nods, before turning to the two earlier p0nies.

”Cadence, Shining Armour. Today has been soiled by misfortune and bloodshed. Do you still wish to marry today?” she asks hesitantly. The po… Cadence and Shining Armour share a look before nodding in unison.

”Very well then. The wedding shall proceed!” P0nies all around cheer on and you get a flash of inspiration. You reach into your bottomless box, and after a few seconds of fishing around in its mysterious depths, you pull out a large, solid gold coin. You stride over to the to-be married couple and present the coin.

“I do not have much, and what I do have is of no use to you. But perchance, take this as a token of my pity, that such a marvellous day was hijacked.”

Shining Armour gapes at your sudden gift. “But… do you have any idea how much that is worth?” You laugh at his innocence. “Where I come from, the currencies of norm are useless. Please, accept it.”

Shining Armour nods and the coin floats out of your hands, before he turns back to his bride-to-be. ”C’mon Cadence, let’s get back to the church.” They share a brief kiss before walking in tandem back to where it all began, Celestia and the six mystery p0nies following suit. You march behind them, constantly on the lookout, and when you all reach the church you stay at the very back. P0nies had continued to give you looks, understandable given that you had not even revealed your face yet. For all they knew, you were a golem of some sort.

The wedding proceeds without hitch, although concern and anxiety permeated through the crowd and the ceremony. You could tell through the slight hesitation the bride and groom had when reciting the various oaths and vows. After the wedding, most of the attendees migrated to a large party outside. Celestia pauses to speak to you as guests begin to leave. ”Do you wish to join us, Solaire?” she asks.

“I do not. I require a place of peace and calm for a moment or two.”

Celestia nods, before directing you to the palace gardens. You stride into it, find a corner, and assume a kneeling position. You pull out your talisman and begin praying silently.

It certainly has been a strange turn of events… To go from sacrificing yourself in Lordran, to saving a pony Princess in an unknown land? You certainly could not have predicted such an outcome… So what now? What purpose do you fulfil? You were still pledged to the warriors of sunlight, but now that you could not allow yourself to be summoned, how were you meant to assist those in need? Of course, you could help others in your corporeal form as well… And what would happen in the case of your untimely death? Would you revive as normal? Did this land even have bonfires? So many questions and nary an answer in sight…

”So, it is thou who one must thank.” Says a royal-sounding voice from behind you. You immediately unsheathe your sword and wheel round. ”Thou will do well to put away thy sword.” Says the ebony black pony, as dark as the night sky above, as she emerges from the shadows in front of you.

“And who might you be?”

”I am Princess Luna.”

“You are a sister to Celestia?”

”You are quick indeed, sunlight warrior.”

“If I was not quick, neither of us would be alive at this moment.”

”That would be a shame indeed.” Silence descends between the two of you as Luna stares at you. You slowly sheath your sword, your gaze still locked with Luna’s. “So… Princess Luna. What does one’s marking mean?”

”I beg your pardon?”

“That marking yonder.” You point to her flank with your sword.

”My cutie mark? It show’s one’s true talent. In my instance, it correlates with my affinity with the night.”

“Spirit of the night, eh? I for one am an adherent of the sun.”

”One is not surprised, given your attire.”

You look down at your sun-emblazoned chest-plate, and chuckle.

“Well, I suppose it is obvious… So Celestia is associated with the sun? A most fitting name indeed.” Luna eyes you silently, before stepping forward. ”I must ask you. What… what art thou?”

“I am but a man.”

”And what is a man?”

“A man… a man is many things. Hopeful. Aspiring. Vengeful. Lusting. A man is upstanding, holding all that he believes to be right and fighting for it, and also weak and cowardly, mercilessly crushing those below him so that he my rise further still.”

Luna stares at you coldly. ”And what about you? Is thou an enemy or friend?”

“My actions of earlier should speak volumes, Luna. I would have defended Celestia if my intentions were malicious. You are welcome to call me a friend.” Your reasoning is met with a snort. ”We shall see, “human.” I do not trust you completely, yet. But one thanks you regardless for the brave intervention. I will not press to why you chose to do it, for Celestia wishes to speak with you.”

“Then lead me to her, princess of the night.”

You follow Luna out of the garden, past the remnants of the party, and back into the castle. You follow her through moonlit corridors, winding deeper and deeper into the palace. Finally, you come to a stop outside a grand pair of double doors. Luna pauses for a moment, before opening the door. Before stood Celestia and the six p0nies from earlier, all of whom had a downcast look on their faces. “Am I interfering in business that does not require me?” you ask pre-emptively.

”Oh, Solaire. You are welcome here, hence why I sent for you. I was just talking to my subjects.” The six p0nies look at you and you offer a small wave, while Celestia continues. ”The reason I asked you not to speak with them before was simply to keep things running smoothly, and not to trip everyone up with social conversing.”

You nod. “I understand. May I have the pleasure of meeting them now?”

”Of course.”

Suddenly, a pink blur is obstructing your view and you curse in surprise. ”Hiya I’m Pinkie Pie and I’ve just been bursting to meet you and I think we all need to thank you and we should probably hold a party and-“

”Pinkie!” exclaims the purple pony and the pink pony backs off, a comically large smile adorned on her face.

“Well… I can see you’re pleased to meet me… oh where are my manners. I am Solaire of Astora, happy to make your acquaintance.” You hold a hand out and the six p0nies shake it, one by one, each giving you their name as they shake it.

”I’m Twilight Sparkle.”

”Applejack.”

”Rarity.”

”Rainbow Dash!”

”I’m Pinkie Pie, obviously!”

”I’m, um… my name is Fluttershy…” whispered the last one reluctantly.

You blink in surprise. “Well, your names are certainly unusual… indeed, this whole land is unusual… Might I ask, are there names for the different forms of p0nies?”

”P0nies with horns are called unicorns, darling.” Says Rarity, her tone of speaking most unusual. ”P0nies with wings are pegasi!” exclaims Rainbow Dash, who begins swooping around the room, much to your discomfort. You didn’t trust flying creatures, they had a tendency to pick you up and drag to places unknown.

”An’ finally, us simple p0nies are just Earth P0nies” says Applejack, tipping her hat to you in a signal of respect. The purple unicorn suddenly raps a hoof on your armour and you jump, causing everyone to flinch. “Was there a need?” you yell.

”Sorry.” Says the pony sheepishly. “I was just checking if you were hollow inside.”

You puff your chest out. “I am no hollow, young lady. My mind is perfectly intact, thank you very much.” The pony offers a confused look and you realise she meant the other definition of hollow. “Oh, are you talking about my armour? Well, of course I’m not hollow.”

”Well… do you mind taking the armour off?”

You shrug. “Very well. It is due for a repair, anyways.” You quickly strip yourself of your armour, laying your sword, shield and essentials to one side, and stand there in your undergarments. The six p0nies, Celestia and even Luna stare at you.

“I take it my form is unconventional?”

Celestia nods. ”Indeed. I have never laid eyes on a creature quite like you, Solaire.” The blue winged pony, Rainbow Dash, attempts to lift the pile of armour off the ground. ”Grrr…ow! Dude! How the hay do you run around in that stuff for hours at a time.”

You smile at Rainbow Dash’s inability. “Strength of arm and strength of mind. It is purely the manifestation of intense training. Nothing more, nothing less.”

”You better get me in touch with your trainer bro, it’s awesome that you can do that!”

“Well, I um… I am not sure how I am your brother, but thank you…? And besides, there is no trainer to contact. Even if there was, it is far too late for that.”

”Why?” asks Twilight in curiosity.

“I doubt the notion that I am in the same world as I came from… have any of you heard of Lordran?” Your question is met by a unanimous, ”No.”

“Astora?”

”No…”

“Then that confirms it.” Suddenly you are bombarded with questions from every pony at once. ”Enough!” exclaims Celestia, wading into the fray. ”My little p0nies, you are all dismissed. I shall debrief you on our savoir here tomorrow. Now go.” The six p0nies grumble and leave the room, leaving you with Celestia and Luna alone.

“I think a wise course of action would be to inform you of who I am, what I am and where I’m from, yes?” you ask.

”That would be the best start, Solaire.” Celestia replies. You walk over to your armour and equip it all save for your helm.

“I am a human. I take it they are unknown in this land, yes? You already know my name is Solaire. I hail from a country known as Astora, which neighboured the land of Lordran, and it was there that I last battled before your summoning.”

”Lordran? What was there?”

“Lordran is the birthplace of the Gods, and the origin of the undead outbreak.”

”Undead?”

“Human who are marked with the darksign.” You pull off a gauntlet and show Celestia the faint ring on your left hand. “Upon death it triggers, returning undead to the nearest bonfire. However, this causes them to lose their soul and humanity, along with their sanity.”

”Upon death you will return to a bonfire? But why?”

“They act as focal points for humanity.”

”I do not understand, what does one mean by humanity?”

“The essence of being human. It’s what keeps up from going hollow.”

Celestia sighs. “Your land is confusing indeed.”

“Confusing and unforgiving. I have had to fight many demons before the one I slew today.” Celestia nods. “Enough about your land, though I shall inquire more tomorrow. You said you were a warrior of sunlight? What does that entail?”

“Ah, the warriors of sunlight. We are dedicated to helping those in need, engaging in jolly co-operation and overcoming adversity together.”

”It sounds like a noble role to undertake.”

“Indeed. There are those who prey on the weak and merciless. But me? I could never do such a thing. It’s why I… it’s why I sacrificed myself.” Celestia cocks her head. “You… you sacrificed yourself?”

“It was at the end of my quest. I had defeated a fallen God, Gwyn, the lord of cinder. He had set out long ago to let him be consumed by the flame… the flame that keeps the world lit, the flame that binds reality. I defeated him, and then followed the same fate. I could not walk away and let the flame die out. It would cause unimaginable chaos in the world, a world in which the helpless would suffer.”

Celestia gapes at you. ”My… that’s… you were willing to give up your life like that? You are most pure of heart, Solaire, and your actions earlier displayed that.”

“I was doing my duty as a sunlight warrior, Celestia. That, and I felt a strange connection to you… is it mere coincidence that Celestia, with an affinity for the sun, summoned the sunlight warrior as he transcended the ethereal plane?”

Celestia remains silent for a moment. ”I do not know… I simply cast a spell in desperation, praying that it would bring help…”

“Your prayers were answered, Celestia. Have faith, and they always shall be.”

”You sound like you’re speaking from experience.”

“I am indeed. It was my faith that prevented my mind from cracking, and it was my faith that allowed me to defeat that hole-legged demon… I have a question, if I may. Your sister, Princess Luna-“

Luna stares on silently, staring at you impassively.

“Princess Luna mentioned your “cutie marks” were representative of your special talents. However, how can one’s special talent be related to the sun?”

”That’s rather simple, Solaire. I raise and lower the sun each day, and my sister does the same with the moon.

“You… you control the sun? You are a sun Goddess?” you splutter.

”Yes, I am. Does that hold any sort of significance to you?”

“I… I did it!” you yell, causing Celestia to recoil in surprise. “I did it! I knew if I had faith, if I persevered, I would find it!”

”Solaire, please calm down!” Celestia yelps.

“Oh, my apologies Celestia… you do not understand. I have been searching for far too long. Searching for my own sun that is.”

”Son as in your kin?”

“No my lady, sun as in the wondrous body above!”

”You were searching for your own sun? For what purpose?”

“I have always been enraptured by the sun. I thought that if I could find one of my own, then maybe I would satiate the thirst, maybe even find enlightenment… I thought it was a fool’s quest, but I found it… I found you…”

Celestia cocks her head. ”I am confused by you Solaire, but let us resume this conversation tomorrow morning. I require rest, after all that has happened today.”

“Of course, Celestia. Do you wish for me to accompany you to your bedroom to serve as your guard?”

”Um… no Solaire. I will lead you to your quarters now. Luna will take care of your equipment.” You nod and follow Celestia out of the room, down a few more corridors, and into a well lit bedroom.

”And now we must parts ways for tonight at least. I have just one more question, Solaire. Do you wish to return back to the land from which you came?”

“I would rather suffer death a hundreds times over than return to Lordran.”

”Then goodnight Solaire. And again, thank you.” Celestia departs from your new quarters, and you strip off your armour. You climb into the bed, relishing the comfort that the mattress provided. How long had it been since you’d enjoyed the luxury of a bed? Even with Lordran’s convoluted time flow, you knew it had been an age, and so sleep came quickly to your exhausted form.

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