Celestia stood atop the highest balcony of Canterlot Castle, watching as the city's weather pegasi went about their business patching together a multitude of murky grey rain clouds into one seemingly solid sheet above her. The few rays of sunlight that managed to pierce the veil rapidly faded from view as more layers were added to the cloudy covering, casting a dreary shadow over the city below.

"You aren't particularly fond of the rain, are you?"

Celestia glanced towards the source of the familiar voice and gave a small, sad smile before turning her attention back to the skies, "No, not really. It brings back the sadder memories." She closed her eyes momentarily as one of said memories made its way to the forefront of her thoughts, "If memory serves... The first time we brought you to the castle, it was like this, wasn't it?"

Blueblood trotted to her side, leaning forwards against the railing and taking a long pause for thought before speaking, "It was. Though in a way, I'm grateful for it."

Celestia diverted her attention from the heavens to him once again, "What do you mean?"

He didn't take his eyes off the clouds above, though his voice fell noticeably more flat as he continued, "Just given what happened that day... Even if I didn't understand what was happening at the time, I don't think I'd have been able to tolerate the light ever again had the sun been shining as if everything was fine." Slowly, he lowered his head so as to stare vacantly at the grounds below, "I'm sorry for interrupting whilst you were thinking, Auntie. Should I leave you to your thoughts?"

Celestia shook her head, "No, it's quite alright, Blueblood. In truth, I was just waiting for Luna's return. She's gone to investigate a possible lead on Twilight and the others." She joined Blueblood in staring down over the railing, "Two of her patrols have been found dead, apparently."

Blueblood gave Celestia a sideways glance, "Are you really all that surprised? The more you chase after those fools, the higher the body count will climb, Celestia. Surely you and Luna both know that."

Celestia frowned and sighed, "Perhaps, but we can't just allow them to walk free, either. Our hooves are tied until we can get a fix on their location."

A short period of silence elapsed, only to be broken by Blueblood stepping back from the railing with a huff, "My preparations are nigh complete, at least. The commoners will be here any day now, correct?"

Celestia felt her jaw clench tightly for a brief moment, and responded without moving from her position by the railing, "Bearers. And yes, they will. I'm not planning on keeping all three on the castle grounds for the whole period though-"

"Well, at least there's that small mercy."

She glared down at the city below, leaning her weight against the railing and grasping it tightly, causing the metal to give a quiet groan under the forces exerted upon it, "I've talked it over with Shining, and he's willing to share his expertise when he returns to the Crystal Empire."

"Commendable of him, certainly. It's liable to shave years off his lifespan. One would think-" He stopped as a droplet of moisture splashed onto his muzzle, prompting him to turn his head skywards. Surely enough, the rain had begun to fall, and was picking up its pace already, "Shall we continue this discussion inside, Auntie?"

Celestia was glad of the light rain that fell onto her coat, allowing her anger to cool off somewhat as she glanced back at her nephew and nodded. The two made their way inside just before the heaviest of the rain caught them. Celestia closed the doors to the balcony behind them with her magic and levelled Blueblood with a passive stare, "You were saying?"

Despite her calm expression, Blueblood caught the masked annoyance in Celestia's voice and relented immediately, "I... seem to have forgotten, Auntie."

"Oh?" she raised an eyebrow, but didn't push the matter further.

Quiet descended upon the room, save for the patter of rain on glass. After several moments of extended silence, Celestia made her way over to a small table, taking one of the four seats and gesturing for Blueblood to do the same. Once he had done so, Celestia took a deep, calming breath, focused her gaze upon him, and spoke, "When was the last time we just talked, Blueblood? Not about politics or responsibilities, just talked, like a family?"

Celestia knew she'd inadvertently struck a nerve as Blueblood briefly averted his gaze to the table, "A while, Celestia... A long while."

The Princess sighed, leaning back in her chair and tapping her hoof on the table as she thought. With little warning, a playful smile appeared on her face, "Well, I think it's about time we caught up, then. Any mares on the horizon yet?"

Despite her best attempts, her smile faltered and faded as he fixed her with the same flat, disapproving stare he always gave her in response to that particular question, "No."

Again, quiet tightened its firm grasp around the room's occupants. Celestia flicked her gaze between their surroundings and Blueblood awkwardly, whereas Blueblood simply focused his stare upon the table.

A loud sigh pierced the air, "I-I'm sorry, Blueblood. I didn't mean for..." she trailed off as wisps of smoke seeped from the corners of the room and congregated in the centre, taking the form of Luna within seconds.

Blueblood stood and bowed his head in Luna's direction as she manifested before him, "Auntie."

Luna did the same in response, though her own gesture was little more than a slight tip of the head in comparison as she curiously examined the somewhat pensive look on his face, "Blueblood."

He turned his head just enough to catch sight of Celestia, "I suppose I'd best be going. I imagine the two of you will want some time alone to discuss your findings."

Celestia stood from her seat and opened her mouth to speak, but Luna cut in first, "I believe you're right, Blueblood. Thank you for your understanding."

He nodded wordlessly and, without missing a beat, made his way towards the door, stopping before it for a moment as he reached out with his magic and opened it.

Luna called after him as he stepped towards the threshold, "Oh, and would you inform the guards that we aren't to be disturbed? We might be here a while."

Again, he nodded, stepping outside and turning to close the door behind him. He looked between each princess, giving a short goodbye before pulling the door shut with a click.

Promptly, he turned and strode away from the guards stationed by the doors, stopping only to speak with one of the higher ranking officers in order to have Luna's message relayed throughout the castle. His task complete, he made his way towards the staircase that would take him down to the lower levels. Before reaching it, however, he found himself staring out through one of the larger, clear glass windows. Despite the entirety of Canterlot being laid out before him - or at least what he could see of it through the now lashing rain - he looked at nothing in particular, more absorbed in his own buzzing thoughts than the scenery as he eventually came to a decision.

He took a deep breath as he regained his clarity of thought and slowly descended the staircases of the castle, purposefully making his way through the deepest levels, and towards the entrance to the crystal caverns beneath.

As the door clicked shut, Luna turned her attention to Celestia and watched as she sank back into the seat she had been previously occupying, slumped forwards slightly, and hid her head behind a hoof, "Trouble with Blueblood?"

Celestia gave an exasperated sigh without moving her hoof, "Yes and no. He said some stupid things-"

"No surprise there." Luna took the seat opposite Celestia as she continued, "The usual, I imagine?"

Celestia finally moved her hoof away, looking her sister in the eye as she spoke, "Yes, but that's not the issue." She cast her eyes towards the door, as if expecting Blueblood to return, "I mentioned it again..."

Luna groaned and fixed Celestia with a slight frown, "I thought as much, he had that miserable look about him when I arrived. Honestly, I feel it's an area you should stop pursuing, Celestia. If he's content to wallow in self-pity, leave him to it for now; we have more important things to worry about."

Celestia said nothing for a moment, then nodded, her expression becoming all business, "You're right. What's the situation?"

"Bad. Very bad."

Celestia's eyes widened a fraction at Luna's slightly fearful tone, "What do you mean?"

Luna chewed her lip momentarily, mulling over her thoughts for a moment before looking Celestia dead in the eye, "I think he wants war, Celestia..."

"I see." Celestia's tone had swapped almost instantaneously from inquisitive to measured and carefully controlled, "Tell me everything you know, Luna."

For nearly twenty minutes, Luna meticulously recounted all the findings of her guards, as well as her own discoveries at the site. As she finished, Celestia shook her head in bewilderment, "None of it adds up, though... Why stick the armour to them? Why draw us to him when he knows he's at a disadvantage if we surround him?"

Luna's horn shone, causing several pieces of paper to pop into existence upon the table between them. Celestia regarded the top one - a roster of active guards - as Luna spoke, "He's up to something, Celestia." She waited until Celestia put down the document, "See what I mean?"

Celestia nodded, the authority in her voice once again lost to confusion, "All present and accounted for? The dead weren't any of ours?"

Luna mimicked Celestia, "Exactly, and nopony has been reported missing recently, either." She stood from her seat and began pacing, "They're probably his work. He wanted our attention, wanted us to see the bodies and panic..."

"He's getting more aggressive, and confident. Still, do you honestly think he's ready for a war? Surely he couldn't have rallied enough followers to his cause, especially not in Equestria?"

Luna scowled and kicked at the floor in frustration, "I don't know, but even alone he's dangerous enough. And then there's this..." She trotted over to the pile of papers she had summoned, withdrawing one in particular and passing it to Celestia, "This is the note I was talking about, I get the feeling it's aimed at you."

Celestia held up the note in question, reading it aloud with deepening confusion evident on her face, "To this very day, not even the dead, despite their shady abodes, are removed from the flames and the sins of the blazing sun.”

No sooner had she finished reading the note than it disappeared in a bright flash of flame. Celestia and Luna glanced at each other, having both erected defensive shields instantaneously, and slowly lowered their guard as the ashes of the note drifted to the floor.

Luna gave a grunt of mild surprise, "It certainly seems it was intended for you. What do you think it meant?"

Celestia stared intensely at the small pile of ash as she willed herself to find the answer, repeating the words constantly in her head as she did so. After several repetitions, she shook her head frustratedly, summoning a blank piece of paper and hastily scrawling down the words before responding, "I don't know... It has to mean something, doesn't it?"

"I imagine so. I doubt he'd go to the effort of preserving it if it didn't. Then again, he might be counting on us thinking just that, in which case we're wasting our time trying to find out."

With a groan of defeat, Celestia turned towards the window, placing a forehoof against it and looking at her own reflection for a moment before shifting her focus to the world beyond the pane, "Even so, we don't exactly have that many options. Even if we're walking into a trap, Discord's little spectacle is more or less our only decent lead on their whereabouts now."

Luna stepped up beside Celestia, mirroring her as she too stared out into the pouring rain, "I thought you might say something like that. I've already organised for my guards to increase search and patrol operations around the area; I did the same with any solar guards I came across, I hope you don't mind. Time was of the essence."

"Not at all." Celestia took a step back and stretched her wings as she hummed to herself in thought, "I'll deploy the remainder of mine as soon as I can."

Luna nodded in agreement but frowned momentarily, "We should seriously consider diverting more patrols to the North West. It seems pointless spreading our forces thin elsewhere when we know they're still in the general area."

Celestia closed her eyes in thought, "You're right. We should divert some, especially from the areas furthest away from Smokey Mountain, but I don't think it's a good idea to leave any other areas unguarded. We can't rule out the possibility that this is some sort of trick; moving our troops might be exactly what he wants us to do."

Luna gave her a slight frown, "I've already considered that, Celestia, but we're running out of options!" She paused to take a breath, lowering her voice somewhat as she continued, "We've been far too cautious so far, and Discord has capitalised on it at every given opportunity. We can't allow them to keep running circles around us like this, especially not after what's just happened. What if I'm right, Celestia? What if Discord wants another war? If he slips away again, how long will it take for him to raise an army? To turn nations against one another? To turn us against ourselves?"

Celestia opened her mouth to speak, but Luna stomped a hoof, cracking the tiles beneath her hooves and silencing her before she even began, "Look at what he's done already, Celestia. Between Calamity's return and Discord's crusade, our citizens can't feel safe within our own borders! Twilight, Pinkie, and Fluttershy went with him of their own volition! The Elements have been scattered, Fluttershy murdered one your guards, and Spike is dead! If we let them get away this time, who knows what will happen? Caution isn't a luxury we can afford any more, Celestia. We can't let them escape again!"

To Celestia's great surprise, tears were beginning to well in her sister's eyes, "Luna..."

Luna shook her head vigorously, her ethereal mane swaying in all directions as conviction entered her voice, "There won't be another war, Celestia. I won't allow it. Discord - and anyone working with him - has to be stopped, now. Not 'when the time is right', not 'when they'll be at their most vulnerable', now!" She turned away from Celestia, staring out of the window with a hollow look in her eye, allowing silence to reign supreme.

"Y-You're right, Luna... You're right." Celestia watched as Luna hung her head and visibly tried to calm herself. Without a word, she trotted to her side and draped a wing over her back, waiting patiently as her younger sister dispelled the haunting memories of a war that ended dozens of lifetimes ago.

When Luna finally raised her head, she fixed her sister with an apologetic glance that occasionally shifted to the smashed tiles, "I'm sorry, Celestia, it's just... Even now..."

Celestia shook her head, an understanding look on her face, "Don't apologise, Luna. I don't wish to see history repeated, either, and I think you might be right."

"About diverting the patrols?"

"Yes." Celestia pondered over the issue for a moment before moving away from her sister, taking the note she had scrawled down from the table she had left it on, "So far, my judgement has been poor at every turn. Every little success we have had has been mostly down to luck, and we're in agreement that we're running out of options. Even if we end up walking into some kind of trap, I suppose we'll still stand a better chance of finding them than we've had so far." She gave a tired sigh as her horn began to glow.

Luna raised an eyebrow, "Where are you going?"

She gave Luna a small smile, "To start redeploying our troops. Hopefully we'll have better luck doing things your way, though I'd suggest drawing up some plans for exactly where you'll have them stationed once I've got an idea of how many we'll be moving. In the mean time..." A sizeable stack of documents appeared on the table beside Celestia, and her small smile grew into a somewhat cheeky grin, "That's your half of the work you left me with, have fun."

She disappeared before Luna could protest, leaving her to stare at the mountain of documents with hatred in her eyes, “Thanks a lot, Celestia..."

Rarity and Applejack waited beside the fountain near the centre of Ponyville, shivering in the cold autumn wind and watching as the weather team brought in the last of the rain clouds from Canterlot. From somewhere within the murky sky, a multicoloured flash heralded Rainbow's approach, and in little under three seconds the mare in question stood before them, though she lacked the usual cocky grin she might otherwise have worn, "That's about everything." She turned to admire her work and gave a sigh, "I think I'm gonna miss it though."

Applejack grabbed the saddlebags that Rainbow had left on the ground before she had taken flight a few minutes beforehand, tossing them to the mare as she turned around, "You don't seem to be packin' much there, Sugarcube."

Rainbow shrugged as she secured the bags to her back, "The message said to pack only what we'll need. We're going to train, not on holiday."

They both turned to Rarity at the statement, inspecting her saddlebags expectantly before realising that she herself was facing in another direction, prompting Applejack to speak up, "Rarity?" She followed Rarity's line of sight to a small group of ponies, "Somethin' caught your eye?"

Rarity shook her head and turned to face her friend, a look of mild irritation souring her expression, "Not my so much eye as my ears, Darling. They're at it again."

All three turned their attention back to the group in unison, remaining quiet so as to catch what they were saying.

"-urely the guards realise they could be dangerous?"

"Well I certainly don't feel safe with-"

"-tial accessories to murder?"

"Well they have been acting suspiciously since-"

Applejack and Rarity turned to the sound of heavy breathing beside them, and didn't hesitate to extend their forelegs in order to block the mare from attempting a high-velocity tackle. Applejack spoke slowly and evenly, though her eyes turned back to the group, "Easy there, Dash. Last thing we want to be doin' here is makin' a scene. I don't like it either, but there's no need to prove 'em right. They don't know nothin' anyway."

After a few more tense seconds, Rainbow relented, turning on the spot and stomping her way towards the train station, leaving the others to catch up. As they did, the mare growled under her breath, "Unbelievable! After everything we've done for them, all the times we've put ourselves in harm's way for them, this is what we get!? We get the blame pinned on us for something that wasn't even our fault!? Are you fucking kidding me!?"

Applejack promptly clamped a hoof over Rainbow's mouth, wary of the glares the mare had earned from passers-by and somewhat relieved that no foals seemed to be in the vicinity, "Watch it. You're not exactly doin' us any favours here, Dash."

Rainbow pushed the hoof away, giving a single powerful flap of her wings so as to propel herself upwards before landing with a scowl, "Yeah, yeah. Let's just keep moving, I'm just about sick of this place right now." Despite being somewhat justified in saying such, the statement still prompted Applejack and Rarity to share a brief but nonetheless concerned look.

The rest of the trip proceeded in silence. Upon their arrival at the nearly empty station, each purchased a ticket and took a seat, grateful for the lack of suspicious glances and conspiratorial whispers that had trailed behind them thus far. "Ah wonder what's gonna happen when we get there."

Rarity hummed distantly as she examined the countryside around them, "So do I..."

"We'll be fine." Rainbow stated confidently, leaning forwards on her seat so as to glance between the two, "I mean, it's probably going to be tough, but after everything we've had to deal with I think we're more than cut out for it." She met each of their eyes in turn and smirked assuredly, "Besides, even if we're up against the whole world, we'll always have each other's backs when things get dangerous, right?"

Applejack returned the smile and nodded, "Right."

Rarity didn't respond with the same enthusiasm as the other two, but gave a small smile nonetheless, "Always."

"Then we've got nothing to worry about!" Rainbow chuckled to herself giddily, "It might actually be pretty awesome!"

The air promptly became filled with the patter of rain upon earth. The three immediately glanced upwards, relieved to find that the seats they were currently occupying were sheltered by the overhanging station roof. Rarity gave a brief laugh of her own before gazing back out at the scenery, "Well, that certainly seems to have killed the mood."

Rainbow stood and gave Rarity a nudge, maintaining her grin as she did so, "Hey, I worked hard hauling that over here!"

"Leave it to you to brew up the perfect storm, alright." Applejack adjusted the brim of her hat whilst giving Rainbow a mischievous look, "Got any more ideas on how to make this trip more miserable?"

Without pause or change in expression, Rainbow responded casually, "Yeah, we're bringing you." Her grin grew slightly wider at Applejack's resultant frown before the mare hung her head in defeat, "Dash one, Applejack zero."

Rarity shook her head, speaking amusedly whilst examining the back of her hoof, "Alright, Dear, we get it. I would suggest that you sit down though; we don't want her flattening you again."

The shocked look Rainbow shot back at her didn't go unnoticed by the others, and Applejack promptly capitalised on the opportunity for retribution, "Dash, take a seat. Rarity's taken the lead."

Rainbow turned back to Rarity - who continued examining her hoof nonchalantly - before dejectedly returning to her seat, "Way to knock me off my pedestal, Rarity."

Rarity winked back, "Any time, Dear."

Despite Applejack's best attempts to suppress it, a bout of uproarious laughter on her part drew the attention of the few other ponies in the station, and eventually elicited laughter from Rainbow too. Upon calming down, the farmer gave Rarity a proud pat on the back, "All Ah can say is Ah'm glad to have you on our side, Rares. That precision verbal strike of yours is pretty lethal."

Rainbow leaned her head back and spoke flatly, "I'll say. Just when did you develop a sense of humour, anyways?"

Rarity smiled and rubbed the back of her neck, "Well, since I'm going to be around the two of you for a good while, I might as well try to fit in. Besides, it's far better than being perpetually miserable."

An unmistakable whistle from somewhere in the distance briefly cut through the constant sound of the rain, signalling the gradual approach of the train that would take them to Canterlot.

Despite the amount of train journeys that the three had made between Ponyville and Canterlot in the past few months, they had never heard the whistle of the Canterlot Express sound as forlorn as it did at that very moment. Perhaps it was purely a psychological product of their imaginations, or perhaps the sound was simply distorted somewhat as it travelled through the now pouring rain, but the noise that reached their ears was hardly what any would have considered to be a whistle; to each of them, it more closely resembled a cut-off, mournful wail.

All three sat stock still as a collective, inexplicable chill ran down their spines, leaving Applejack to twiddle with her hat nervously as she stared in the direction the sound had originated from, "Well ain't that just forebodin'? Anyone else hear that?"

"Yeah, creepy..."

"Y-Yes..."

"Great." She sighed, replacing her hat and electing to stand as the train came into view, "Why do Ah get the feelin' this trip ain't gonna go so well any more?"

"Okay, Rarity, now's when you say the mood's been killed."

Applejack rolled her eyes without turning around, "Shut up, Dash."

"What's up, Discy?"

Discord fought the urge to groan at the nickname as Pinkie addressed him, "I hate to be the bearer of bad news, Pinkie, but we have something of dire importance to discuss."

The ears of everyone in the vicinity pricked up at Discord's tone and choice of words, and Twilight dropped her magical focus almost instantaneously as she turned to face him, "Dire importance? What's happened, exactly?"

Discord snapped his fingers, and promptly held in his grasp an odd-looking lavender object that Twilight realised was her nose as she nearly choked when trying to breathe through an airway that was no longer open, "Nosey, aren't we? I believe I was talking to Pinkie."

Fluttershy gave him a disapproving glance, "Discord, give Twilight her nose back."

He sighed, returning the appendage without incident, "A world of nose-related puns, wasted!" He folded his arms and frowned, "Well this stinks..."

Whilst Twilight said nothing in response - being too busy checking that her face was still proportioned the way she was used to - Pinkie reached up and gave Discord a playful bump with a hoof, "Oh, you."

Discord chuckled, but lowered his arms and stood with a strangely disconcerting neutralness on his face as he regarded her once again, "Really, though, what I'm about to tell you is no joke." Again, all eyes in the room were on him, and even the collective breathing of the room's occupants seemed somewhat subdued by the sudden change in atmosphere. After waiting for Twilight to send some complaints in his direction, only to be disappointed, Discord pinched the bridge of his nose and spoke, "It involves your family, Pinkie. If it wasn't already obvious, I was hoping to keep this conversation a little more private."

Pinkie's eyes widened noticeably, the small, cheerful smile she'd had on her face beforehand quickly disappearing, "M-My family? What's happened to them?"

Discord caught her worry and waved his hands with an emphatic shake of his head, "Not your living relatives, don't worry. I'm talking about your distant ancestors."

"Oh, that's a relief."

"I trust you remember my gripping recollection of King Reginald's rule? How I had to cut the tale short due to the circumstances?"

Pinkie nodded, "Yeah, you said it was a story for another time, right?"

"Indeed, and it's about time I picked up where I left off." He glanced around at the others, noticing that Twilight and Fluttershy were still staring at him silently, and that Twilight in particular was paying rapt attention, unconsciously leaning towards him. He turned back to Pinkie, an expression of utmost seriousness upon his face, "I've never been one for overt sensitivity, Pinkie, but what I'm about to tell you isn't nice; at all. It might be best if we discuss it somewhere a little more private." He flicked his gaze towards the others for emphasis.

Pinkie held her expression passive, but looked him in the eye in order to signal that she had understood, "It's fine, Discord. I trust everyone here no matter what. Whatever it is you've got to tell me, we'll hear it together." She turned and gave each of the others a smile that was promptly returned.

Discord stared at her for a moment longer before nodding contentedly, "Alright then, that's good enough for me." He snapped his fingers and hopped onto his cloud, "You're all going to want to take a seat for this..."

Blueblood trotted wordlessly through the heart of the mountain, his way illuminated by the crystals that lined the walls around him, lighting up one by one as he moved towards his destination. His hooffalls echoed continuously through the cavernous depths, and every so often a loose chunk of rock could be heard clacking against both crystal and stone as it dislodged and tumbled down into the unseen depths below; the result of mining attempts that had been abandoned long ago, with good reason.

Despite the many hazards that the caverns posed, Blueblood marched on purposefully, undeterred. He came to a stop at a small opening in the wall ahead, ducking so as to make his way inside and trotting to the centre of the crystalline rotunda within. Though visitors were few and far between in recent years - a given, considering that the caverns were strictly off-limits to the majority of the population - those that had entered had a nasty habit of ruining the natural beauty of the place. Blueblood reached out to touch a nearby crystal that protruded high from the floor, closing his eyes as he made contact with it. After a few moments, he grimaced, scanning around the room and noticing an assortment of what appeared to be cutlery scattered against one wall, "What even?"

He pondered over the sight for almost a minute before shaking his head and gathering together the items. As he quickly came to realise, some of the cutlery appeared charred, as did some of the surrounding walls and floor, "A fire too?" He stopped his hoof from reaching towards the nearest item as he raised his head just in time to realise that it was, in fact, a small bundle of dynamite, "Explosives." The remark came out not as a question, nor a startled yelp, but a simple disapproving acknowledgement.

After eyeing the charge in order to affirm that it wasn't about to exclude him from the rather sizeable segment of the population that still had their heads attached to their necks, Blueblood withdrew his hoof. Carefully, he placed what cutlery he had already gathered together down onto the floor, unwilling to run the risk of creating a spark by dropping any. Once he had done so, he looked around at his surroundings in bewilderment once again before giving up on trying to understand, resolving to mention the issue to Celestia when he returned to the surface.

He gave the crystal he had previously touched what could only be described as a reassuring pat before heading through an opening opposite the one he had entered through. Following the familiar soothing light of the crystals, Blueblood slowly descended further into the depths of the mountain, re-treading a path he had taken countless times before. As he went, he felt a small measure of his sadness and frustration leave him, though a great deal still remained, the memory of his short exchange with Celestia constantly replaying in his mind.

A rare, sincere smile found its way onto his face as he heard the sounds of a nigh-inaudible melody drift up to meet him from the caverns below. Regardless of his eagerness to complete his journey he did not speed up, rather, he slowed down, taking his time and allowing the gentle songs to soothe him as he continued his descent.

Many of those who were often around Blueblood knew of his semi-regular trips to the caverns, and - despite speculative rumours from palace staff on the whole - they considered them to be simply habitual, some sort of personal ritual that, although odd, seemed both perfectly benign and adequately fitting for the rather eccentric Prince. Most of the very select few that had heard him recount songs in the depths had written them off as echoes in the dark, of both the caverns and Blueblood's own mind.

But Blueblood knew better.

He had questioned himself in the past, of course, even doubting his sanity at times, given that no one other than he seemed to hear the otherworldly voices, no matter how far down they ventured, even when he himself could clearly hear them.

But the gifts he had received from them always served to remind him that their existence was indeed a reality, not simply a figment of his imagination, or the perpetuated hallucinations of a distraught young prince, as others would have had him believe.

Besides, even if those he trusted the most were to eventually turn their backs on his evidence, Blueblood knew in his heart that he would never abandon his faith in what he had found buried deep beneath the mountainside city. Or perhaps, more appropriately, what had found him.

They had protected him. Guided him.

When he was most alone, they were with him.

When he was most vulnerable, they lent him their strength.

They had saved him from himself.

And they sung to him. For him.

They called his name.

As he always had, and always would, he answered the call.

He descended further.

Author's Notes:

Apologies for the lateness of this chapter. A relative of mine passed away recently, and I've been thrown off a little. I've tried to keep this chapter up to par with the others, but I honestly don't know whether I've managed. Even despite how long this chapter has taken me, the scenes almost feel rushed to read...

Any feedback from you guys would be much appreciated.