Upon the news of Frost’s return reaching Aldus and Rigel in the city, both of them had raced back to Pythia to question the colt. Polaris however was informed by the guard he was requested at the Citadel.

Polaris trotted through the silver halls and past several normal guards and honor guards. Each of them bowed deeply in respect as he walked past. Eventually reaching Desalia’s chambers. The two honor guard positioned at the doors bowed. Polaris returned the gesture as one of the ponies approached him.

“I’m sorry Polaris, sir. The princess is busy at the moment.”

Polaris wondered what was keeping her when screaming was heard on the other side. The guards winced as Polaris chuckled.

“How were we supposed to know she was going to disappear like that?!”

“You were the ones supposed to be watching her! The guard didn’t do anything?!”

“She slipped away! You know how she is about helping other ponies!”

“Agh, I don’t need this, not after Concordia and NOT before your sister’s wedding. Get out of here. I’ll deal with you all later.”

The door opened as three fillies trotted out of the room. Polaris bowed his head to them but only one returned his gesture. The small filly looked up at him and smiled before rejoining her sisters. Polaris returned her smile as he watched them trot away.

“Come in, Polaris.” Desalia said in a stern tone.

Polaris entered her large chambers and stood at the center while the princess was sitting in front of three large mirrors examining her mane.

“It’s been a long time,” the princess said without turning around, “You did well at Darkmire Moors, unfortunately our prize escaped...”

“Yes, I’ve heard.” Polaris replied.

“So you know of the evidence concerning a unicorn colt involved in her escape?”

“I heard the same time Aldus and Rigel did, yes. They are no doubt questioning him about it now.”

Princess Desalia stood to her full height and turned around to face Polaris, “I wish to speak with the colt. When you return you will bring him here.”

“As you wish,” Polaris said.

Princess Desalia stared at the silver unicorn for a moment before shaking her head. “What went wrong, Polaris?”

“What went wrong? I’m sorry, I don’t know what you mean.” he replied.

“I sent you to Equestria so you could serve as an extra pair of eyes and ears. I also did it so you might have a better life. It was something your father would have wanted for you. Then, when the the civil war broke out, you were in a position to help Luna overthrow her arrogant sister.”

“She ceased to be Luna at that point.”

“Yet you still served her along with Aldus and Rigel. Despite all your victories, despite all the ponies you and your armies killed, you still lost.”

“If we had won, what then?” Polaris asked. “You would live under eternal night?”

Desalia smirked and sat down in front of the unicorn, “There are ways we could have... adjusted. The archives hold many secrets. I’m curious to know what she told you about that, though. Surely you questioned her?”

“I recall her saying that we needn’t worry, that she would take care of us and all subjects who were faithful to her. She said something about a certain magic, but that is all I remember.”

“It would have taken some time, but I could have talked her into bringing the light back to the world. I could have guided her, better than her sister who allowed the situation to happen in the first place. Ultimately, things would have returned to normal for the ponies. If not in one or two generations, then later. The world would have changed, true. But nature has a way of righting itself eventually. And with the guidance of the alicorns and our magic, the world and its inhabitants would have survived. Well, most of them would have. The only difference would have been one less alicorn.”

“You’re thinking into the future, far into the future. Potentially thousands of years.” Polaris said, “Are we all just pawns to you?”

“It’s a perspective gained with the long lives alicorn's possess.” Desalia said while looking at the ocean through her window, “I do what do because I have to, it is my destiny. I have had many children, and loved each of them. And I’ve loved all the stallions I’ve been with. That never will change.”

Polaris looked over to the far side of the room where several portraits of stallions hung on the wall. “I’m sorry I failed you, mother.”

--------------

“So... that’s what happened?” Frost asked while sitting on the bed.

Ciaran nodded, “That’s it, if I didn’t enlist the help of Aldus my colony would have been destroyed.”

“How have you been gaining the energy you need to sustain yourself?”

Ciaran let out a long sigh, “It hasn’t been easy, Aldus has forbidden me to feed on anypony. So far, the only thing sustaining me is the energy of affection I receive from you foals.”

“Really?” Frost asked, “That can’t be much compared to feeding on a pony directly.”

“It’s not,” Ciaran stated plainly, “At first it was barely anything, but I’ve grown accustomed to it, and with time it’s increased.” she said with a small smile. “Was I-  good as ‘Willow?’ I mean, did I take good care you and your friends? Did you appreciate me?”

Frost laughed at that, “Appreciate you? Ciaran, most of us have been on the streets for our whole lives. Having you take care of us as a nanny and foalsitter might as well be a dream.”

Ciaran smiled at that, “Oh Frosty, that’s sweet.”

The door to the room cracked open as Pyrite stepped in shaking his head. It looked like he had just stepped out of a bath. He looked up to behold an enormous black pony with holes in its long slender limbs. It was staring at Pyrite with piercing purple eyes and long sharp fangs.

Pyrite shrieked in horror and bolted out the door. Horror played across Ciaran’s face as she realized she failed to lock the door after bringing Frost his food. She was about to go after him but Frost stopped her and teleported out of the room.

The silver earth colt ran as fast as his legs could carry him and screamed out for Andromeda. Suddenly a flash of light blue appeared in front of him and he crashed into Frost.

“What is that thing?!” Pyrite wailed, “We have to tell the others!”

“Pyrite calm down, I’m here. It’s alright.” Frost said in a soothing tone. “She looks scary but she won’t hurt you.”

Andromeda appeared beside Pyrite and scowled at Frost, “What’s going on? When did you get back? Why is he scared?”

Pyrite jumped into Andromeda’s forehooves as she hovered slightly above the floor, “Theres a monster in there Andromeda!”

“She’s not a monster. Well, maybe she is. But she’s friendly, she won’t hurt us. C'mon I’ll show you.”

Frost led them back into the room where sat behind one of the bookcases, “I didn’t mean to scare anypony.” she said with what sounded like a sniffle. “I’ll change into my disguise, you won’t be scared then.”

“No,” Frost said, “Come out, you won’t scare us.” he said with a resolute calm. “We’re too brave to be scared so easily, aren’t we Pyrite?” Frost whispered to the colt with a smile.

Pyrite nodded and turned around in Andromeda’s embrace. Ciaran slowly walked to the center of the room and sat on her haunches.

“A changeling!” Andromeda snarled, her eyes beginning to glow.

“She’s a friend,” Frost said while moving between Ciaran and Andromeda.

“So...” a voice said from outside, “You’re a changeling?” The ponies and changeling looked at the door to see Iris leaning around the corner. “I thought I heard yelling so I came to investigate, “I certainly wasn’t expecting this.”

The gryphon flew into the room and landed next to Frost. An enormous shadow followed her in and materialized as a large threatening pegasus, ready to destroy anything that threatened Iris. Iris, who appeared more amused than anything, smiled at Black Star and motioned for him to stand down. He nodded and returned to the form of a small colt.

Frost used his magic to shut the door so they could finally have some privacy, only to hear two sets of hoofsteps entering the cottage. They could hear a set of muffled voices which became clearer as they got close.

“Let’s not be hasty, I’m sure there is a good explanation for all of this.”

Aldus burst into the room and locked his eyes on Fost. After a few seconds, he saw Ciaran wasn’t in her disguise and both Pyrite and Iris were in the room as well. Rigel couldn’t stifle a chuckle at the situation.

“Shut up, Rigel!” Aldus snapped.

“Don’t tell him to shut up,” Frost said, in open defiance of his master.

Aldus turned to him, staring him down with blazing green eyes. “What did you say to me?”

“I said don’t tell him to shut up!” Frost repeated, still standing tall despite his master now towering over him. “I can’t believe what you’ve done.”

“What I’ve done?” Aldus asked through gritted teeth, “What about what you’ve done? Answer this, and don’t you dare lie. Was it you who somehow managed to free Silth?”

“Yes.” Frost replied. Before he had time to say anything else he was sailing into the wall next to the bed.

His vision blurred from the impact causing Aldus’ eyes to appear larger and more menacing.

“Aldus!” Rigel shouted while stepping toward him.

“You stay out of this!” Aldus snapped. “Stupid child. You have no idea what you’ve done. This is why I’ve never taken on a student. You’ve barely finished learning elemental magic and already you’re interfering in my plans!”

“You don’t care.” Frost said.

“What?” Aldus asked.

“You don’t care!” Frost shouted while firing an ice spike directly at Aldus’ head.

Aldus swatted it away with a hoof but was startled enough to release Frost from the wall. “How dare you...”

“No!” Frost screamed. “How dare YOU!”

Aldus took a step forward but was halted by Rigel, who shook his head and would not let go.

“Don’t you even care about what happened to me?” he asked, tears starting to form in his eyes, “I almost died!” Frost stepped toward Aldus, now shaking in anger. “My saddlebags were stolen by some street rat. Ironic, right? I’ve stolen plenty of things myself. I chased after him because I didn’t want to lose your money. I didn’t want to disappoint you! So what happens? I hear crying and end up falling into a torture chamber! What kind of screwed up kingdom is this?! The guards catch me, doesn’t matter that I told them I was with you, they broke my legs! The only way out was to free the changeling, her sister!” Frost shouted flailing a forehoof at Ciaran. With tears now streaming down his face, he continued. “Silth took me hostage and explained where you were those past weeks. Then she told me that you had her sister watching us! Deceiving us! Were you ever going to tell us?”

“Frost...” Aldus said, but was cut off.

“NO! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!” Frost screamed at the top of his lungs, “Just who do you think you are?! Silth told me about you... I know you’re not from our time. You may be powerful, but you’re not the goddess. What are you some kind of master manipulator? We’re all just pieces on a game board to you? You’re just like the rich noble ponies of Manehattan. Stepping all over others because you can, manipulating events because you can. You can’t treat ponies like that! We barely know a thing about you. What kind of family is that? I don’t know how that unicorn mare ever fell in love with a stallion like you. It doesn’t matter, I won’t be a part of this. I don’t need you. I don’t want your magic. I’m moving myself off the game board. Goodbye.”

Frost stomped around Aldus and headed for the door. Iris stood in his way and stretched her wings out, not wanting him to go. He simply teleported behind her and continued walking. However, he was stopped again when Ciaran teleported into the doorway blocking it.

“Get outta my way, bug!” Frost shouted. Ciaran shook her head and planted herself on her haunches. Frost ran into her as hard as he could, trying to force her out of the way. He slammed his hooves against her stomach, “Let me go!”

Ciaran simply took the beating and wrapped her forehooves around Frost. He looked up at her and noticed she also had tears in her eyes. “No, you’re staying right here with us.”

“Please,” Frost pleaded, “Let me go.”

He continued to resist, but Ciaran only held him tighter. Frost rested his forehead against her when soft feathers touched against his side. Iris wrapped her arms around him in a comforting embrace, also refusing to let go. Soon Frost felt something forcing its way between Iris and himself. He looked down to see Pyrite hugging one of his legs. None of them were letting him go. Frost lost all willpower to do anything and crumpled in the embrace of the ones holding him.

Meanwhile, Aldus was staring into space hearing a vivid voice from the past. He slumped onto the bed and stared at the floor.

------------

“I can make them see reason, they’ll listen to me.”

“There you go again,” a playful voice chimed from behind him, “You’ll make them see reason, not let them come to it by themselves.”

“You know what I mean, stop teasing me.”

A green unicorn mare trotted up behind a grey unicorn stallion, who was making marks on star charts. The mare decorated her mane with flowers that she picked today. She sat down next to the stallion and leaned against him.

“I do know what you mean. Aldus, you can’t make ponies do things all the time. You can’t lie and play mind games with everypony.”

“True, mind games don’t seem to work on you.” Aldus said while nuzzling the mare’s cheek. “You see right through me, Seabreeze.”

Seabreeze giggled and playfully shoved him away, “I’m serious Aldus, not everything is politics.”

“You don’t know how things are becoming in Equestria.” Aldus said while standing up and walking to the cliff edge. They were on Jadeth near Seabreeze’s local fishing town. The view across the ocean was breathtaking, but it did nothing to calm Aldus’ nerves. “Our court continues to be disrespected. Just last week several of Luna’s favorite tapestries were vandalized during the daytime when the night guard were off duty. There have been conflicts with the lower courtiers and Celestia’s own courtiers. One time I had to step in myself to settle the matter. And Luna... Luna is not acting herself as of late. We’re all beginning to worry.”

“Can’t you appeal to Celestia?” Seabreeze asked.

“Luna claims she’ll address her sister on the matters. The last time I went to Celestia myself Luna completely lost her temper and reprimanded me. She’s all but forbidden me to do it again.” Aldus said with a frown, “I don’t know Seabreeze, I see storm clouds on the horizon.”

“Well yeah magic brain... you’re staring right at them.” Seabreeze deadpanned.

“Huh?” Aldus asked, then realized that a storm was rolling in off the ocean. “Oh, heh... yeah. But that’s not-”

“I know what you meant,” Seabreeze said while joining him near the cliff, “Just remember what I said. You need to respect other pony’s wishes and not treat them like inanimate objects. You’re better than that.”

Aldus turned to Seabreeze and placed his forehead against her own, “I love you, Breezey. But I’ll do whatever it takes to protect my friends and Luna.”

-------------

“You’re better than that...” She was right, she was always right.

“Frost,” Aldus said, turning around to see his student embraced by Ciaran, Iris, and Pyrite. “You’re right. You’re right about everything.”

“What?” Frost said with a sniffle. Iris picked up Pyrite with a claw and backed away. The light blue colt hugged one of Ciaran’s legs as Aldus turned around to face him.

“You’re right, I should have told you. All of you. You deserve more respect than that.”

Frost remained close to Ciaran wiped his snout with a hoof. The changeling levitated some tissues and presented them to the colt. “So what now?” Frost asked.

“Now I’m going to apologize to all of you. I’m sorry.” Aldus said while lowering his head. “Rigel I shouldn’t have shouted at you, that was out of line.”

The red pegasus simply smiled and clasped him on the shoulder, “It’s fine buddy, don’t worry about it.”

“And you Frost, I’ve wronged you as a guardian and as a teacher. I should’ve been more concerned for your safety. I understand if you wish to leave, but I hope you’ll stay and give me a chance to make it up to you.”

Frost chuckled while wiping more tears away, “Yeah, well... I don’t think they’ll let me leave. So here I stay.” he looked up at Ciaran and saw her fanged smile, then at Iris and Pyrite.

“Bring the rest of the children here, we’re going to have a family meeting.” Rigel nodded and flew out of the room as Ciaran picked up Frost and stepped out of the way. Once everypony was present, Aldus stood at the center of the room and levitated over a chair. He sat down facing them and smiled, “Lets start from the beginning.”

---------------

Lord Thest stalked the hallways of his mansion in the Grey Wing Kingdom. After a meeting with Jena’s father, the king of the Golden Nest, he was starting to become fatigued. Ziraal was blithering idiot, but he always seemed energetic despite the responsibilities of ruling. That was at least one thing Thest could respect.

A day ago he had received word that the sun princess wished to speak with the leader of the Grey Wing Kingdom. Apparently there was an incident regarding an attack on her citizens. One of the units he sent to Equestria must have found Iris. At least now he knew where the brat was hiding. That put his mind at ease, knowing she was so far away meant dealing with her could wait. Having taken the role of regent, he would be the one to address the princess. Thest wondered if her sister would be present as well. It would be amusing to see how much she differed from Celestia when dealing with a matter such as this. But he was in no hurry to speak with her, she could wait.

Thest entered his room and locked the door after nodding to the guards outside. He carefully pulled the windows shut and discarded his cloak and tunic. He placed his belt on the dresser and stretched. Most of his family was away on business, so he had the place mostly to himself.

“Things are moving too slowly Thest,” a low voice rumbled from the other side of the room.

The gryphon assassin smirked and stretched on his bed, “I would’ve thought you’d learned patience by now. It’s not like you can do anything but be patient anyway.”

“Insolent pile of feathers, I really hate your kind.”

Thest’s smile widened, there were fewer simple joys in life than antagonizing ponies. He got up and poured himself some wine. “You shouldn’t say that, where would you be without me?”

No response.

Thest moved to a large painting of his grandfather and clicked a button behind it. With the sound of gears turning, the painting collapsed backward and slid to the side, revealing a small dark room.

“The longer you wait, the more in danger you are. You have no idea what you’re dealing with.”

Within the room a red light flickered with each spoken syllable. A small tube stood at the center containing a horn and several of its shattered fragments. A few tubes connected it  to dim power crystals. Lord Thest still didn’t know if bringing this thing here was such a good idea. One of the small towns located in his family's lands began acting strangely not too long ago. They started to become irritable and angry with each other and outsiders. They murdered the few guards stationed there and attempted to kill a merchant before he got away. The merchant told Thest of their strange behavior and violent nature, something he had never seen before. The gryphon assassin organized a platoon and pacified the town. Many of the male gryphon’s died upon attacking his men, but Thest managed to subdue a few himself for questioning. One finally said something about a red horn landing in the outskirts of his farm. It contained some sort of magic and spoke into his mind. The villagers didn’t survive, Thest considered it merciful that they died, knowing what they’d been through.

The horn was the remains of the ancient tyrant of the Crystal Empire, blown to pieces by the new alicorn princess. Thest had learned much from the ancient king. New crystals that could revolutionize the gryphon war machine, crystals that could negate or even destroy magic, rendering the unicorns helpless. But the old king spoke of something else, something that concerned Thest. The reason behind his rise to rule and control of the Empire. There was a terrible power buried deep in the north, something that the old king even feared. From the times when Equus itself was an entirely different place, before the gryphons had arrived. Whatever it was, it was enough to make him afraid, and that was good enough for Thest.

“I might have an idea if you told me more,” Thest said, stopping in front of the tube. “The army is north, if there is a threat they’ll take care of it.”

“Take care of it?” The horn flickered with laughter, “The wards and restrictions I placed there one thousand years ago have withered away by now. That meddling pink alicorn stopped me from regaining my power and restoring them.”

Thest tipped his glass over the top of the tube and dripped some wine inside, “Would you like some wine? I think it’s time you told me more about what’s up there and stopped being so cryptic. I’ve taken control of the kingdom to do what you’ve said because I believe it will be for the good of all gryphons.”

“You arrogant little- Thest... you fool! We’re not alone!”

The king was right. Thest whirled around and saw a cloaked figure standing in the middle of the room. He cautiously approached the doorway without making any sudden moves. The figure tracked him with dim golden eyes and tilted it’s head.

“I came here to investigate a power, looks like I found it.” the intruder said with a hint of amusement.

“I recognize your magic, it was you who placed wards around our lands and kept us in slumber. We would have emerged eventually, but you sought to delay it for as long as possible. What a futile waste of effort.”

The intruder removed their hood, revealing a pegasus mare. Thest observed several scars on her face, all appeared to be from close calls with blades. Her mane was short and disheveled while a golden liquid seeped from her left eye and the left corner of her mouth. She coughed briefly before smiling at Thest.

The gryphon cursed under his breath, his belt and daggers were across the room. He and his adversary were the same distance away from them. She traced his eyes to the belt and smiled. “Go ahead, the others would rather you join the glimmer. But I’d rather just kill you.”

“Thest.!” the old king shouted.

Thest used that moment and made a break for the daggers. The pony was on top of him almost instantly. Jumping into the air revealed she was a pegasus, explaining her nimble movement. Thest flipped and retracted his tail as a dagger sailed by, taking off a few hairs at the tuft. He spun around to block her next attack. She lashed out with a claw and grabbed Thest’s left arm. He twisted around and kicked her away, wincing as the claw took some flash with it.

The pony landed near the door to the old king and glanced at him. She produced another dagger and attempted to throw it at the container. Thest grabbed two throwing knives and hurled them at the pony, causing her to keep attention on him. Thest was a blur of motion as he spun into the air and clashed blades with the pony. He had never fought an opponent like this before. She was trained in arts similar to his own, but much older and refined. At least that was what he guessed. No movement was wasted, it was like a dance. Several times she swiped at him with her claw, giving Thest brief moments to observe it. It looked like a small dragon claw, green and sewn onto the pony’s limb.

Just when Thest parried a blow and gained his first attack of opportunity, the pony produced something from her cloak and grasped it in her offhoof. It lit up instantly and she disappeared, only to reappear behind and attempt to bury a dagger in his spine. Thest whirled around and kicked the pony in the stomach, sending her staggering backward. It was then that he got a look at what she was holding. It appeared to be a wand of some sort.

The pegasus cracked her neck and leapt at him again, just as she closed the distance she teleported again, this time appearing at Thest’s side. He flapped his wings and vaulted over her, parrying another strike from her dagger. With her mobility, she seemed to gain the upper hand. But Thest had fought unicorns before, and was familiar with magic. Thest purposefully turned to his left just a little too much, exposing a weakness. He parried more blows while doing this, and eventually the pegasus teleported to that position to attack him. Thest was prepared and grabbed the mare by the forehoof. He glanced at the wand and was shocked. The shape, the tip, the spiraled inlay, it was a unicorn horn. Still able to conjure magic? Using the horn of another pony and a claw, what was this mare?

The pegasus backed off as the two combatants circled each other. The mare coughed up gold liquid and flexed her wings. “A formidable opponent... I hate those.”

Thest chuckled, “Don’t like challenges?”

“It doesn’t matter, you’ll not survive what is to come.” the mare said while coughing up even more liquid. “Didn't you know? Your general Ghrast will be coming home soon.” The pegasus stopped with her back to the window and smirked, “Unfortunately, you seem cunning enough to survive. So I’m sure we’ll meet again, and when we do, I’m going to carve your heart out.”

The pegasus dropped two pellets onto the floor and vaulted out the window. Thest shielded his eyes from an explosion of bright light and smoke. He took to the air and saw the pegasus flying low between the buildings before disappearing completely.

Thest landed in the courtyard as guards ran over to him. “What was that explosion?” The captain asked.

“I had a visitor, a rather rude visitor.” Thest said while clicking his beak, “Wake Jena immediately, we have a situation.”

“Yes, sir... but... what happened to the guards? How did the intruder get it?”

“That’s what I’m going to find out. Captain, summon new guards. All the ones upstairs are dead.”

“Yes sir,” the captain said while running off and turning the lights on around the grounds.

Thest sat down near a fountain and stared into the water. He didn’t like what he saw, his reflection, and a look of genuine fear.

---------------

“You destroyed an entire army with a comet?” Ruby asked in awe, “I’ve never heard of such a thing.”

“Can you do it again? Bring a small one down so we can keep its gemstones!” Blue Bell exclaimed.

Firebrand lifted his head and snickered at the filly cuddling him. “They’ll all be burnt up when the thing hits the ground. Ow!”

“Shut up! It’ll be exciting!” Blue Bell said after bopping him on the snout.

“Girls, that was kind of a one time thing.” Aldus said with a laugh.

“You can’t do it again?” Frost asked.

“No, back then there were two conditions that allowed me to pull the comet into the army. First, the comets were already in the sky. A side effect of the chaos Nightmare Moon created when forcing night time over a long period. Second, Selene and I used all our power to do it, and even then it almost killed me.” Aldus said while looking at Rigel. “I regret it now, I never should have done it. But I was so consumed with anger and hate. I didn’t know if you or Polaris were dead, Rigel. I thought they killed you... and I wasn’t going to let them get away with it.”

Rigel rubbed Aldus’ shoulder and smiled, “It doesn’t matter now, we all served our time. What’s in the past is in the past.”

“So you can’t summon a comet?” Iris queried.

“Summon it? Goodness no. I’m no alicorn, Princess Luna is the only one that can do that.” Aldus said with a laugh.

The story about the war and their return took considerable time to tell, and their recent involvement at Darkmire Moors left the children wanting to know more. Most of them were curled up on the bed struggling to stay awake. Aldus and Rigel were surprised how fast the children adapted to seeing Ciaran in her true form. She was laying on her bed with Ruby and Antares resting against her back. Frost was on his stomach next to her listening attentively while Pyrite struggled to stay awake atop her head.

“Well...” Aldus said with a stretch, “I’m happy you’re home safe, Frost. It’s the middle of the night now, I think we should all get some rest.”

“I agree,” Rigel said with a yawn, “Lets go children, time for bed.”

The children groaned and yawned at Rigel’s request. Ciaran chuckled and waved the courtiers away, “They’re already half asleep. I don’t mind them staying here for the rest of the night.”

“You’re sure?” Aldus asked.

“I am. Frost came back safe and sound. Let them be together.” she said while smiling at Pyrite’s yawns.

Aldus and Rigel shrugged and left the room, closing the door softly behind them. Iris was shutting her eyes along with the three fillies as their guardians remained awake to watch over them. Pyrite lolled to one side and slid off Ciaran’s head, only to be caught in a magical field. Ciaran gently spun him around and sat him between her forehooves.

“How much magic do you know, Ciaran?” Frost whispered.

Ciaran looked over at him, “What?”

“How much magic do you know compared to Silth?”

“Oh... you want me to teach you, do you?” Ciaran queried with a slight giggle, “I know as much as my sister, and maybe a few tricks that even she doesn’t know.”

Frost sighed and rolled over so he was facing Pyrite, “Good, so you’ll teach me about changeling magic...”

Ciaran remained silent as Frost went to sleep and wondered just what ideas Silth put in his head. It was apparent to her now more than ever that Frost wouldn’t have just one teacher. She would be guiding him as well.

--------------

The next went by relatively quickly as Frost began more advanced lessons from Aldus. He was attempting to boost his magic reserves by absorbing power from special crystals. As they day neared it’s end. Aldus was sitting Rigel’s room reading the paper when a knock came at the door. Rigel flew over and opened it find all the children and Ciaran.

“They all wanted to hear more stories,” Ciaran said with a smile, “Do either of you object?”

Rigel looked over at Aldus, who put away the newspaper and nodded. The children sat down and Ruby was the first to raise her hoof. “Yes, Ruby?” Aldus said.

“Aldus, we’d to know about the former princess of the Silver Isles, Seabreeze.”

Rigel’s eyes widened and he shot Aldus a worried glance. The grey unicorn chuckled and waved a hoof at his friend, “It’s okay, Rigel.”

“You married a princess? That’s incredible!” Blue Bell said, “You’re royalty here!”

Aldus laughed along with Rigel, “No, I wasn’t married to her. And she wasn’t a princess when I met her, that happened later.”

“How did you meet her?” Ruby asked.

“When I was young we would travel among the lesser islands on our breaks from school in Canterlot. It was Polaris’ idea to spend summers here, that’s when I met her. She was just a pretty filly from a fishing village.”

“Why did she like you?” Pyrite asked innocently.

“Pyrite! That’s a rude question!” Ruby admonished.

“Yeah, but it’s something I’ve been wondering.” Ciaran said with a playful smile to the colt.

Aldus began to speak but Rigel cut him off, “Way I remember it, she recognized instantly that he no skill with fillies. She thought it was hilarious.”

“Yeah... hilarious,” Aldus grumbled.

“I think it started out as a game for her,” Rigel mused, “She genuinely liked spending time with him, she’d teach him do’s and don’ts when being around mares. It really was perfect, she loved teaching and Aldus loved learning.”

“Oh she’d teach me things alright,” Aldus said with a laugh, “Like that one time she dropped a fish in robes, or the other when she froze a waterfall while I was meditating under it.”

Rigel guffawed, causing the children to laugh as well. “I remember that! You had spent all your magic earlier and were trying to recover it. She did that and left you there because you were twenty minutes late for a date the previous night. It took Polaris and I forever to get you out of that.”

“I was so angry,” Aldus said, “But the next time I saw her it all melted away.”

“She was always playing tricks on you, reminds me of somepony else I know.” Rigel said while slipping a playful wink to Iris. The gryphon grinned and tickled Frost’s neck with her tail.

“So the statue we passed near the middle of the city was her?” Frost asked.

Aldus closed his eyes and remembered the statue. It was cast in the image of her sitting at the edge of a fortress, watching over the seas. “Yes, that was her.”

“How did she become a princess?” Iris asked.

Aldus smiled and stood up. “Come with me children, I’ll explain on the way.”

The foals got up and murmured to each other in confusion. “Where are we going?” Frost asked.

“You’ll see,” Aldus said. “Lets just say in some instances showing is better than telling. But you wanted to know how she became a princess? Well, Seabreeze always lived in a fishing village with a sizable port. Fishing was the main source of income for many of the small towns and villages located on the smaller isles. She would use her magic to help boats come in and out of port by subtly changing the currents and tide. In some situations she would even alter the weather, if only slightly.”

“Why did she do all that?” Ruby wondered aloud.

“Her father was a fisherpony, and many other children had parents who were out at sea for extended periods of time. Seabreeze wanted to be a teacher, and acted as a foalsitter to many of the younger foals in her village. She would take them to the docks and watch the ships come and go, and to welcome back their mothers and fathers when they returned.”

“What does that have to do with being a princess?” Blue Bell asked.

“Well,” Aldus began, “One evening there was a terrible storm, and a group of ponies forgot about the notice from the weather pegasi. They were trying to make it back home ,but were in danger of being crushed against the rocks near the mouth of the bay. Seabreeze calmed the storm and suppressed the waves all by herself, saving the ponies. The next thing everypony knew, Seabreeze was swept up in a vast cloud of light and vanished, only to reappear near the outskirts of the village with wings, and Princess Desalia herself by her side. Seabreeze finally understood her cutie mark on that day. Three waves cresting with three gusts of wind.”

“Wow...” Blue Bell said, “What then?”

“Princess Desalia announced the new princess and commanded the villagers to bow, despite Seabreeze’s instance of it not being necessary.”

“Wait a second,” Iris said, “Aren’t pegasi supposed to constantly monitor the weather?”

“Yes, Iris.” Rigel replied, “There is always a weather team on standby in the pony kingdoms.”

“Then why did Seabreeze need to watch the tides and manipulate the weather at all? Don’t storms only form when the pegasi want them to?”

Aldus stopped and knelt down to the gryphon, smiling at her. “Normally, that would be correct. And Seabreeze herself asked the same question to Princess Desalia. She wondered why she was made a princess. Desalia, cryptic as always, stated that it was simply her destiny. However, she also alluded to magic emanating from the Silver Ocean, far beneath the waves. The Isles themselves are strong in magical energy, but there is a raw random force in that sea, and it can affect weather beyond the control of the pegasi. I think Desalia believed it was Seabreeze’s destiny to counteract this and protect the smaller Islands near the tip of the kingdom.”

“So what happened next?” Frost asked, “How did you react to finding out your marefriend sprouted wings?”

“At first I didn’t know what to think,” Aldus said, “I traveled to the Isles as fast as I could. When she finally saw me she was surrounded by guards with tears in her eyes. She wanted to know if I still loved her. Of course I did, she had nothing to worry about. I took a few weeks off to be with her during her transition to princess hood. There was a coronation and a few other events that we attended. After that, she returned to her village and explained what Desalia had in store for her.”

“What was that? Ruling alongside her?” Ruby asked, “This Princess Desalia doesn’t seem like the type of mare to share power.”

“What ever gave you that impression?” Rigel asked sarcastically while tickling Ruby with a feather.

“Princess Desalia is the true ruler of the Silver Isles, and always has been. But throughout its history several mares have risen to become alicorns in the Isles. Each time Desalia did the proper thing, it was no different with Seabreeze. She allotted whatever resources were necessary for Seabreeze to perform her duty and granted her a place in the royal court. Seabreeze was treated fairly and given all the benefits befitting a princess.”

“Oh! What benefits?” Blue asked excitedly, “Jewels? Gems? Money?”

“Power? Influence?” Frost added.

“Yes yes all of that. Desalia told her she needed a seat of power in the southern Islands and commissioned a fortress to be built. Seabreeze decided to place it near her home village so she could continue to be near those she loved. But the thing she really loved was painting.”

“Painting?” the children asked.

“That’s right, the southern tower of her fortress was an art gallery, complete with a large balcony on which she created dozens upon dozens of paintings.” Aldus said with a loving smile, “They were the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen, besides Seabreeze herself. When she wasn’t traveling around the islands seeing to the needs of the citizens, she was watching the children in the fortress, still able to be a teacher just like she wanted.”

Aldus unlocked the door to his room and motioned for the children to enter. Once they were all inside he winked at Rigel and chuckled along with him. “As a princess, Seabreeze was granted access to the archives that Princess Desalia protects and maintains. She discovered a special magic related to painting, a lost art that hadn’t been done in centuries.”

“I remember this,” Rigel said, staring at a large rectangular object as large as the room itself.

“During one of my visits to the Isles, Seabreeze was delighted over something she found in the archives and couldn’t wait to show me. When I saw her in the fortress she immediately sat me down and told me not to move. I knew what she was doing, or at least I thought I did. I hated it when she wanted to paint me, and she always complained I was too rigid or fidgety. She blindfolded me and said she required my magic to create this painting. I allowed her to use as much as she needed. For several hours I sat there patiently allowing her to draw upon my magic, and she used it all. I was exhausted by the time she was done, and I wasn’t even doing anything.” Aldus smiled as he unhooked the cloth covering, “When I first saw it, I can definitely say it wasn’t what I was expecting.”

Ciaran gasped along with all the children as the cloth fell away. The painting was massive, in fact it looked large enough to be a mural. It was a scenic depiction of an enchanted landscape. Rolling hills and meadows made up the foreground with a sunkissed horizon over an ocean. Trees blew in the wind and a winding path led up to mountains far in the distance. Atop the largest peak were the towers of a castle. Misty clouds obscured the neighboring peaks as the sky transitioned from day to night. It was magnificent.

Frost leaned closer and saw black spots dotted around the towers of the castle. Either his eyes were playing tricks on him, or he saw them move. Ruby nudged his shoulder and pointed at the trees. The leaves seemed to be moving as well. Was this one of those optical illusion paintings?

“Notice anything strange?” Aldus asked, grinning ear to ear.

“Are objects in that painting... moving?” Iris asked in awe.

“When Seabreeze became a princess, she was stressed with all the responsibilities. Eventually she became accustomed to her new life, but she yearned for a place to go away from all the work. She found a special magic in the archives, and infused it into this painting. After it was finished she embraced me and marveled at her creation. ‘Our own world’ she called it. Created using both our magic. For us and the children Seabreeze looked after. A place of safety and comfort to be shared with anypony we desired.”

Ciaran marveled at the painting and smiled, “I’ve never seen anything like this. Incredible.”

“So... does that mean...? Iris asked, leaning forward in excitement.

Aldus grinned and touched his hoof to the painting. It passed through creating slight ripples across the surface. “Are you ready for an adventure in a new world?”

A chorus of joy erupted from the children. Rigel whispered to Aldus, “What’s in that castle up there?”

Aldus shrugged knowingly, “Only one way to find out...”

The children watched the courtiers enter the painting and stepped forward as their guardians materialized beside them. Andromeda, Black Star, Firebrand and Stormcaller all smiled and readied themselves. “Let’s go!” Pyrite shouted and dove through the painting, followed by the rest.

Ciaran stepped toward the painting and chuckled, “An entire world stored in such a small thing. How useful... a clever princess might use such a place to hide secrets. What will we find, Aldus? What could be hidden here, even from you?”