StarShine
By Loss Thief
Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape, and she will bring about everlasting night.
Thus the story goes, and thus they believe it ends.
But another prophecy exists.
The stars shall fall with the night, and darkness reign supreme in the light; as harmony fails so shall the day, so that their brilliance may never fade.
Chapter One
All Fun and Games
"I felt your sickness brush against my arm as I walked by you…" La Dispute, "The Last Lost Continent"
I
Apple Bloom was looking on at the meteor shower with rapt wonder, and she wasn't alone. It was rare for there to be two meteor showers within the same year in Equestria, let alone within just a few months of each other. So when Princess Celestia herself announced there were shooting stars on the way that night, the ponies of Ponyville had spread the news like wildfire.
The short notice meant most ponies weren't as prepared as they had been for the last shower, but the Apple family had managed to arrange a small viewing party on their farm. All of Applejack and Apple Bloom's friends had made it there in time, with Twilight Sparkle and Spike even having brought a big plate of cookies with them.
As the sun set over the horizon, the light of day gave way to a beautiful night sky and the group of ponies caught site of the first shooting star. Soon it was joined by another, and another, and a dozen more, until the sky was filled with bright streaks of light.
"Hey sis," Apple Bloom said from her perch on Applejacks back. "What exactly are shooting stars, anyway? They can't be stars really coming down here, can they?"
"Of course not, Apple Bloom," Twilight Sparkle answered. The purple unicorn had been standing beside them, looking up at the brilliant spectacle with Spike standing on her back. "It's just that, in space, there's tons of rocks and ice that float around, and when they get close enough to Equestria, they start to heat up as they fall down to the ground. When they get hot enough, they light up like what we see here."
"You mean to tell me that all those big lights up in the sky are just rocks?" Applejack interjected.
"Mm Hmm. In fact, all the stars we see in the sky are just big balls of fire and gas, a lot like the sun. They seem small because they're so far off from us, but some of them are even larger and hotter than the sun."
"But I remember in a bed time story once, that there was something about the stars talking," Apple Bloom said.
"Ah, that was just an old mare's tale Granny Smith would always tell to get us to sleep," said Applejack. "Big Macintosh and I both heard it a bunch of times too."
Their conversation was interrupted as one of the shooting stars began glowing extra bright. Much to the awe of the ponies watching, one of the far off shooting stars began radiating an almost blinding light, growing in intensity every second. Within moments, it overshadowed even Princess Luna's full moon.
And then, just as fast as it had come, the light was extinguished.
The group of ponies stood upon the hill top, staring at the dwindling lights of the stars, perplexed and amazed by what they'd just seen.
"I don't guess you'd know what caused that, would you Twilight?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"I…honestly have no idea."
Star Saturn knew his landing was the most graceful and dignified. He'd have been proud of this, had it been anything resembling a close contest.
As he descended to the ground, the great black Pegasus opened his wings, slowing his fall until he was able to swoop effortlessly onto the ground without so much as disturbing a blade of grass. Looking over himself, the Stallion was pleased to find his pitch black coat was spotless, and the same was true for his mane and tail. The small bits of starlight sprinkled across his wings were as brilliant as ever, twinkling divinely in the dark of the night.
The stallion's sparkling feathers soon paled though, as one of his partners joined him.
But perhaps "joining" was not a wholly appropriate way to describe it.
Shine Brite crashed into the ground with a thunderous bang. Dust, dirt, and rock erupted into the air around where she landed, and moments later the unicorn stumbled out of the deep crater she'd created.
"Woohoohoohoo!" she shouted, her pale blue eyes spinning in their sockets before finally coming to rest.
The unicorn was very much the opposite of Star Saturn in appearance. Where his coat was a deep black, Shine Brite's was a sparkling, luminescent white that glowed like a small beacon in the night. While Star Saturn's mane and tail were a deep purple that subtly complemented his coat, Shine Brite's were an eye-catching red.
"Congratulations," Star hissed sarcastically. "Our mission is less than an hour old and you've managed to compromise it not once, but twice. What were you thinking with that light show?"
"Oh come off it, Dull Dark. I was just having fun! This is the first time we've ever been to this planet, and I wanted to make an appearance! For a Star Pony you don't have much sense for spectacle."
"And you call that garish and gratuitous gaudiness something worth looking at? If you weren't so absorbed in broadcasting our entrance to the entirety of the countryside, you'd have noticed that I was moving in a pleasingly gentle arc formation. It's the type of grace that draws the eye without blinding it, something you would have no knowledge of!"
"Ooh, yes, not being able to fly straight is just so beautiful. And that landing? So stuck up! How can you come to visit a new planet for the first time and not even make an attempt to get acquainted with the soil?"
"I live a very comfortable life far away from soil, and I intend to return to it when this mission is complete. It's bad enough I have to come into contact with it at all, let alone that we may have to spend several days upon this dirt-clod of a planet!"
"Would you pair please give it a rest?"
Tinsel emerged from behind a row of bushes next to the bickering duo. He was the smallest of the group, barely as large as a young colt. His pale blue coat shimmered with a strange, inconsistent sheen in the moonlight, with light glancing off of his body at erratic intervals. His snow white mane and tail, on the other hoof, were free of the shine, but seemed almost unnaturally stiff.
"Oh, party pooper," Shine Brite huffed, not looking the least bit upset. "I was just playing around with Dull Dark. It always amazed me how he can manage to get that rod wedged so unbelievably deep in his-"
"As I was saying," Tinsel interrupted. "Give it a rest. You both know this is an important mission, and if I have to sew your mouths shut in order to reach our goal, I will relish the opportunity."
"Hrmph," was Star Saturn's only response. The Pegasus turned from the others, and looked up into the sky, searching for the promised sign. Sure enough, far off to what he could only assume was the west, was a star that just barely moved. The little glimmer moved from left to right so subtly that one would only notice if they were looking for it.
"That's the signal," he announced, point his hoof towards the sky. "Canterlot is that way."
"Then let's get going," Tinsel ordered.
The three ponies began their trek, Tinsel walking with an almost military precision to his steps, Star Saturn stepping carefully around any patches of grass that looked particularly unruly, and Shine Brite bounding ahead of the pair, giggling as she chased stray fireflies.
Applebloom had always really hated Mondays, but she especially hated this Monday.
She'd liked seeing the meteor shower, especially the bizarre flaring shooting star that had amazed and confused everypony there, but the late night was kicking her in the flank the next morning. After Applejack had yanked her out of bed and into the bath tub, the filly had washed up and groggily gotten ready for school.
Applejack had insisted on walking her to school, too, which meant Apple Bloom was out of luck trying to find a place along the way to curl up and sleep. She hated when her sister babied her like this. She was nearly 12 years old and yet Applejack still acted like she'd learned to walk just last week.
Apple Bloom was so grumpy about her sister's coddling and her lack of sleep, she was too busy grumbling under her breath to look out for the white pony that came bounding straight into her path. The collision of her nose with the pony's flank, on the other hand, woke her right up. She stumbled backwards, then collapsed to the ground, her eyes rolling in her head.
"Apple Bloom, are you alright?" Applejack exclaimed.
"Did I just walk into a moving marshmallow?"
"Nope, just me! Sorry about that, by the way," said an unfamiliar voice.
With her eyes back in focus, Apple Bloom was able to see the pony she'd walked into. She was kind of tall, maybe just a bit bigger than Applejack, and was a shade of white so pale, Sweetie Belle would have looked grey by comparison. And while the mare's coat was eye-catching on its own, her deep red, flowing mane and tail completed her appearance with a look that demanded attention. Her cutie mark was a bright red spiral that drew the eye to its center.
"Um…It's alright," Apple Bloom mumbled to the unicorn. Despite the collision, the strange pony had an enormous, infectious grin on her face that reminded Apple Bloom a little of Pinkie Pie. "I wasn't lookin' where I was going anyway."
"Oh, I never look where I'm going. That's part of the fun of life! You get to be surprised."
"Er, yeah, that sure does sound fun," Applejack responded awkwardly. Apple Bloom couldn't think of anything better to answer something like that. The unicorn was bopping up and down in place while she talked to them, and neither of the earth ponies were sure how to react.
"Oh it's quite fun, except when you end up knocking down little fillies! Ooh, how rude of me, I haven't even introduced myself. Like my parents always said, it's best to know the name of a pony if you're going to get acquainted with their flank!"
This comment elicited little more than a confused look from the two ponies. Apple Bloom wasn't sure if the pony was joking, or just insane. Maybe it was both.
"My name is Shine Brite," the unicorn said, dipping forward into a low bow. "What're your names?"
"I'm Applejack, and this here is my little sister, Apple Bloom. Beg your pardon Miss, but I've gotta get this little filly to school," Applejack insisted, ushering her little sister past Shine Brite.
"Ooh, school?" the white pony exclaimed as she cantered after them. "That sounds like fun! Can I come with you?"
"Tell ya what," Apple Bloom offered as her sister stubbornly pushed her forward. "You can go instead of me. Just tell everypony who asks that your name is Apple Bloom!"
"Uh uh, lil missy. You're going to school whether you like it or not," Applejack objected.
"'Or not' is right."
"Aww, but I wanted to have some fun!" Shine Brite pouted.
"Um, Shine Brite, was it?" Applejack asked. "Wasn't there somethin' else you were doing before you ran into us?"
"Oh, you're right! I have to find that blue and yellow butterfly before it gets away! Thanks for reminding me. See you later!"
And without a second look, Shine Brite bounded off into the field to their left, unsettling a family of rabbits in the process. They heard her loud giggling ringing over the hills as they trotted off, Applejack keeping hot on her sister's heels.
"Well, that was…weird."
"I swear, that pony was like Pinkie Pie after dessert. She's loopier than a barrel knot."
"Do I still have to go to school? I don't think I'm in the right mental state to learn anything right now."
"Nice try."
Apple Bloom groaned, but trudged on at her sister's order, deciding to put the strange, random encounter with the bizarre unicorn out of her mind. After all, they ran into strange ponies all the time in Ponyville, why would this one be any different?
Rarity's first thought concerning the stranger was that he looked slightly odd. It was rare to see a pony with such a dark coat, and even more so to have a mane nearly as dark. The stallion's cutie mark was less unusual; a set of golden laurels, pointing down. But perhaps what was most striking about the pony was the way his eyes seemed to glow ever so slightly in the noon-day sunlight as he admired the material.
Rarity's second thought concerning the stranger was that he could be a customer. It wasn't often that newcomers arrived in Ponyville, and the designer always jumped at the chance to get new clients from other areas of Equestria. What was more; the stallion carried himself with a certain demeanor of properness that was often a sign of high class.
A possibly rich new customer was nothing to sneeze at, and Rarity quickly made her way out the door and into her front yard. She had several different rolls of fabric airing out on the laundry line, and one of them in particular seemed to have grabbed the attention of the Pegasus in question, as he was studying it intently.
"Good afternoon, and welcome to Carousel Boutique," Rarity announced. "My name is Rarity, the purveyor of this establishment. Is there anything I can help you with, sir?"
"Oh, um, I…" the stallion mumbled, taken aback. It seemed he'd been concentrating on the fabric in front of him and hadn't noticed her approach. Rarity saw that the piece that had captured his attention was in fact a bolt of the fabric she'd designed for Twilight's Gala dress, speckled with stars of all kinds and colors.
"I'm, uh, afraid I was just looking. In fact, I really should be going soon. Shouldn't have let myself get distracted from business," the Pegasus said altogether too quickly, making to leave.
Rarity had seen the type before. The kind of customer that has an interest in something, but is too skittish around the pressure of a salespony to admit it. Never one to give up quickly on a sale, she decided to change tactics.
"Business? Oh but I can't imagine there's much business to attend to in Ponyville."
"Well, you see, I was travelling with a two companions of mine," the stranger responded, stopping just as Rarity had expected him too. Once you took their mind off of buying, and onto themselves, these types of ponies couldn't help but start talking. "We meant to simply pass through but, I'm afraid, one of my compatriots is a bit…flighty, and wandered off. Now I've got to find her quickly before she gets us off schedule."
"Oh my. I can most certainly understand flaky friends. The stories I could tell you about Pinkie Pie, mister…?"
"Star Saturn. And I believe you said your name was Rarity?"
"Indeed I did, and you know I couldn't help but notice you were interested in this fabric."
"Yes, I found the pattern absolutely fascinating, and while I'm not much with a needle, I can't help but think that the construction is wonderful. You said that you're the owner of this boutique, so I imagine that means you made this?"
"Why yes I did, Mr. Saturn, and you do flatter me. I made this fabric a few months ago for a project, and I just recently rediscovered it amongst my collections. I felt I should air it out before thinking of what to do with it."
"Well it's absolutely marvelous miss. You do a credit to your art."
"Oh, do go on! But if you really think it's that nice, perhaps you'd be interested in commissioning something made from it?"
"Oh, ah, well," Saturn stammered. "Not that I wouldn't love to, but you see, at the moment I'm rather low on funds, and I'm sure I couldn't afford anything you have…"
"Hmm, that is unfortunate," Rarity tried not to show her disappointment. Though it seemed she wouldn't be able to make a sale, Saturn seemed nice, and she didn't want to make him feel unwelcome.
"So, I really should get going-"
"But I can't let you leave so suddenly without a gift," Rarity interrupted, her horn glowing. Magically levitating, a pair of sewing scissors floated out of the high window of the Boutique. "It's so rare that we get visitors to come through Ponyville, I simply can't let you pass through without a souvenir."
Generally, the designer liked to take her time when creating accessories, but she could still manage something on the fly. She snipped a strip from the bottom of the fabric, and soon the floating scissors were joined by a needle and a spool of thread. Rarity took a bit of pride in the impresses look on Saturn's face as she worked. In just a few minutes (and with only a few magical touch ups) she presented the Pegasus with a thin, purple scarf, stars or varying sizes decorating the fabric.
"I…uh…I don't know what to say…"
"It's nothing, really. I wish I could have spent more time on it, but it's the best I can do on such short notice." Rarity, seeing Saturn was still apprehensive, took the offensive and used her magic to stylishly wrap the scarf around his neck.
"Er…I…thank you."
And with that mumbled reply and an awkward unfurling of wings, the Pegasus ascended into the sky. Rarity wasn't entirely sure what to make of the stallion's uneasy exit, but decided it was best to pass it up as shyness. Putting the encounter to the back of her mind for the moment, she began examining the rest of the bolts.
Now, what to do with the rest of this fabric?
Sweetie Belle was hanging onto Scootaloo like her life depended on it, and with the way the orange Pegasus was steering the scooter, that was likely the case. Scootaloo was determined to practice her new tricks before school started, which meant they were racing down the roads of Ponyville at speeds Sweetie Belle didn't want to think about.
The tiny driver jerked the handles of the scooter to the left, turning a sharp corner into the town square near Sugar Cube Corner.
And ran directly into a pale blue colt.
The three ponies were jettisoned in separate directions. Sweetie Belle felt the scooter lurch upwards beneath her, and the next thing she knew, the tiny unicorn was tumbling through the front doors of Sugar Cube corner. She landed with loud, painful thud that sent her eyes spinning in their sockets. As her vision slowly stopped spinning and blurring, she saw a familiar, pink face hovering above her.
"Oh my gosh, are you okay?" Pinkie Pie asked the woozy filly.
"Um…I'll tell you when the room stops spinning."
"Sweetie Belle, where'd you go?" Scootaloo's voice rang out.
"In here!"
A few moments later, the orange Pegasus stumbled in through the doorway, a blue colt with a white-blue mane and tail leaning on her for support. Sweetie Belle, uneasy on her hooves, gingerly tried standing up. The strange colt's eyes were unfocussed and he looked like he was about to collapse.
"Are you all okay? I heard a big crash and then poof, Sweetie came flying through the door!" Pinkie Pie asked, bouncing nervously around the trio of foals.
"We kinda had a little…er...crash while riding my scooter," Scootaloo answered, steadying her legs and trying to support the weight of the colt. "I'm alright, but this guy didn't have a helmet, and he isn't looking too good right now."
As if to punctuate this, the blue foal's legs fell out from under him and he fell, sprawled out against the floor, eye lids fluttering and legs twitching. For a moment, the 3 still-conscious ponies gawked at him, unsure of what to do.
"Who is this guy, anyway?" Scootaloo broke the silence.
"I don't know. I've never seen him before. I guess he's new to Ponyville?" Sweetie Belle answered.
"Well whoever he is, we need to get him some help," Pinkie Pie said, gently prodding the colt with her nose. "You girls help put him over my back, and we can take him to the doctor's office down the street."
Tinsel's head ached.
The blue colt slowly began to open his eyes, trying to remember what was going on. He had been looking around the village they had come across on their way to Canterlot, because Shine Brite had wandered off. He had been trying to find the flaky unicorn when he'd heard some strange screaming. All that he could remember after that was a blur of orange and white, a crashing sound, and a splitting pain in his everything.
Eyes open, Tinsel surveyed what little of his surroundings he could see. The ceiling was wood, decorated with multicolored stickers. There was a lamp that hung from the ceiling, the bulbs inside it dim in the bright light of the…come to think of it, what time was it? How long had he been out?
Tinsel groaned as he tried to rise from the bed. His head was throbbing painfully in time with his heart, but everything else seemed to be in working order. He tried massaging his forehead with a hoof, and found that the crown of his head had been wrapped in bandages.
Just what in Nova's name happened to me?
Feeling shaky, he lifted himself up. He found himself in a bright pink bed, the sheets decorated with various balloons and other party decorations. Being careful not to move too fast, he lowered himself out of the bed and onto the floor. He wobbled only slightly before gaining steady footing, and pointed himself towards the door. Tinsel slowly began to approach it, slightly unsure of his legs. But with careful steps he made his way to the door, gripped the knob in his mouth, and swung it open
And then a cannon went off in his face.
Tinsel fell onto his back, legs kicking wildly in the air. There was smoke in the air above him, soot in his eyes and nose. The world spun around him, and he swore he was back in Nova's court. There were warm stringy bits of something all over him. He was covered in viscera, or intestines, or…confetti?
"Hooray! You're awake!"
The blue colt shook the soot from his eyes, and was treated to a rather bizarre sight. Creating a path of sorts from the doorway to where he was sprawled on the floor were tiny, colorful ribbons of confetti. On the other side of the door was a blue cannon. Standing with her front hooves planted atop said cannon was bright pink pony with an enormous smile on her face.
How hard did I hit my head?
"Um…hello?"
"Hi there! So are you feeling alright?" asked the pink pony, who was suddenly standing next to him. Tinsel decided to chalk up the sudden movement up to the headache messing with his perception.
"Not to be rude but…who are you, where am I, what am I doing here, and why does my head feel like it was struck by a meteor?"
"I'm Pinkie Pie, and you're in my room! You got hit in the head when Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle crashed into you on their scooter. So I took you to see nurse Redheart at the hospital. She said you just had a bit of a bruise, and that you'd be alright. So then I took you here to rest, and I was getting my party cannon ready for when you woke up, but then you woke up too early, and opened the door while I was getting it ready and I accidentally set it off. Then you rolled around on the floor for a little bit and now you're listening to me answer your question!"
"…I can't tell if that was an answer or I have a concussion."
"Oh don't worry about your head," Pinkie Pie reassured him, the same unwavering grin on her face. "Nurse Redheart checked you out and said you'd be fine with some rest. Oh!"
Pinkie let out a loud gasp, and before Tinsel even knew what was happening, the strange pony had grabbed him, thrown him back onto the bed, and nearly mummified him under various bed sheets.
"You shouldn't be out of bed, you need your rest!"
"Hrk…guh…cruh…fah!"
"Are you alright?
"C…can't…breath…"
"Oh!"
Tinsel sighed in relief as Pinkie loosened the covers, and drank in the air with heavy gulps.
"Sorry about that. I'm new to this."
"It's…it's okay…just…could you tell me how long I was knocked out for?"
"Not too long, maybe an hour."
"Good, that means there's still time to find her before we need to leave," Tinsel said to himself.
"Ooh, find who? I know just about everypony in Ponyville, even if they're not ponies! Though I don't think I know you…Omigosh! I totally forgot to ask you for your name!"
"It's Tinsel," he answered, easing back into the padding of the mattress beneath him. The more he talked with Pinkie Pie, the more he was convinced he'd found Shine Brite's long lost sister. "And I doubt you know the pony I'm looking for. My two, er, companions and I were passing through town when she got distracted and ran off. I was looking for her when the, uh, accident happened."
"Oh, well maybe I can find your friend for you while you rest!"
"That's…really nice to offer…but I don't think it'd go well. She's, um, uh, really really shy!" Tinsel fumbled, surprised by Pinkie's offer and terrified of the possibility of her and Shine Brite in the same room for even a moment. The world might explode from the combined giddiness. "If anyone but me and by other, um, friend, were to approach she'd, uh, totally spaz out."
"I can understand that. Like my friend Fluttershy, she gets scared by stuff all the time. Like one time, when we threw her a surprise party. We had everypony hiding inside her chicken coop to surprise her, but then, when she got there, Rainbow Dash got stuck…"
Tinsel's attention faded from the prancing positively pink pony's prattling as he tried to think through his options. He could simply tell Pinkie he was fine, and hope she'd let him leave to continue searching for Shine Brite. Or he could ask her to get something and try to slip quietly out of…wherever he was, while she was distracted. But with as much energy as she seemed to have, he didn't doubt that she'd be gone and back before he could free himself from the bed sheets.
The only other option would be to kill her here and hope nopony would find her until he and the others had made it out of Ponyville and had arrived in Canterlot. But that would be...distasteful. They hadn't been ordered to avoid bloodshed on their mission, but a sudden death would raise alarm, and make their mission in Canterlot all the more difficult. Besides, Pinkie seemed harmless. She'd even made sure he was cared for after he was hurt.
"Um, Pinkie," Tinsel murmured, realizing that Pinkie was still talking.
"…and it took weeks to get all of the pudding out of her mane, let alone the tabasco sauce!"
"Pinkie!"
"Yes?"
"Like I was saying, my friend's lost and I'm one of two ponies that can find her. We're kind of, um, under a time limit to get where we need to, as well. So I really should be going," Tinsel concluded, trying the direct approach.
"Are you sure you're alright? Your head doesn't hurt too much?"
"Not any more than it does talking to Shine," he mumbled to himself, contemplating the dull but still present throbbing in his skull.
"Huh?"
"Er, Yes. I'm sure. The old noggin's still working fine." Tinsel tapped his hoof lightly against his forehead for emphasis, trying his best to seem nonchalant. "Really. Thank you very much for taking care of me, but now I need to take care of my friend."
"Well, I suppose if you're alright…" Pinkie contemplated, squinting at him.
"I am, I am!" Tinsel insisted as he finally unbundled himself from the bedclothes and hopped down to the floor. He began to trot towards the door. "Now, if you wouldn't mind guiding me out of here?"
Still looking skeptical, Pinkie led the tiny colt down the stairs into the ground floor of Sugar Cube Corner. Tinsel was tempted to ask for something to eat when he saw he was in a bakery, but decided against it. After all, Pinkie Pie would probably load him up with more food than he could carry.
"Um…thank you, Pinkie, for taking me in out of the blue like this," he said as they neared the front door. "I know it must be strange to take in some random pony off the street."
"You kidding? I love meeting new ponies! After all, that's how I got to know everypony in Ponyville! Ooh, that reminds me!"
Without further explanation, the pink pony shot off into what Tinsel presumed was the kitchen. Perplexed, he tried to call after her.
"Reminded you about wh-"
He could no longer continue his sentence, as his mouth was full of cake.
"I don't want you just leave without something to eat first! And here's a bag with some for your friends once you find them!"
As Pinkie Pie looped the bag's handle over his neck, Tinsel tried not to choke on the pastry she'd just jammed in his mouth. After making sure he wasn't going to die, he quickly considered what he should do. Thank her? Just take the cake and leave? And what was he supposed to do once he left? Should he throw them away?
"Um…thank you," he mumbled through a mouth of confectionary, and awkwardly stepped out the door with a quick wave goodbye, making a note to take the bandages off his head before he met with the others.
Saturn was very nearly convinced there was an otherworldly force mocking him. After wasting precious time searching for the flighty Shine Brite, he'd finally managed to find the unicorn in, where else, the middle of a field of flowers. While having to suffer through some explanation about "experiencing the colors and smells of the ground world" he had managed to frog march her out of the tulips and to the pre-arranged meeting spot he and Tinsel had agreed upon. Not to mention having to dodge questions about his scarf.
The strange forest of earth-trees (If you could call them trees at all, without any gems growing from the limbs) was far enough from the town of ponies that they wouldn't attract any attention by waiting near its edge. Unfortunately, the isolation came with a downside. Shine Brite was enamored with the various bizarre plants that inhabited the forest and Saturn had to keep telling her to keep in check. The Pegasus had expected for Tinsel to arrive at the meeting spot soon. They had said that every 2 hours they would come back to the spot and discuss where to look next but, as this seemed to be a day of interminable frustrations and awkward meetings with strangers, not only did the colt not show up at the agreed-upon time, a strange pony was now making her way towards the pair.
"Oh good lord," Saturn hissed under his breath at Shine. "What is a pony doing this far near the woods?"
"Hey! I know her!" Shine shouted, taking her attention away from the red vine she'd been sniffing for the past few seconds (truly an eternity with her attention span). The unicorn sprung forward to meet the approaching orange earth pony. "Hi hi hi! How are you? Long time no see, huh? Where's Apple Bloom?"
"Er, she's at school…" the orange pony said, looking almost as uncomfortable as Saturn felt.
I've already had a run-in with one local already, and that was dangerous enough. Granted she was nice, but the whole "secret" part of our mission is getting kicked in the face with silver horse shoes at the moment.
"Oh, that's right. School. That thing she said she didn't want to go to," Shine Brite responded. "That reminds me! I never did catch that butterfly. But then I found a little yellow bee to follow, and then there was a lady bug, and it buzzed and landed on me and-"
"Glad to hear you're enjoying your visit to Ponyville," the pony interrupted. "I was walking by when I saw you out here. Figured I should give you a proper welcome now that I wasn't in a hurry."
"That's so nice of you! Well then I should give you a proper greeting! I'm Shine Brite and this is Star Saturn. He's a bit of a grump, so he's sulking right now."
"Howdy there," the pony waved at Saturn, looking slightly uneasy. "I'm Applejack. My sister and I ran into Shine earlier."
Sighing internally, Saturn decided it was best to try and be polite, so as to avoid suspicion. It was bad enough they were interacting with anypony at all, but being rude would just exacerbate the situation.
"Nice to meet you, Applejack. Please pardon Shine, she has a tendency to be overly excitable when meeting new ponies."
"I noticed."
"Psh, don't listen to Dull Dark over there," Shine said. "He's just grumpy because Tinsel still hasn't showed up. He won't even let me go into those woods to explore!"
"Probably a good idea to be honest," Applejack retorted as Shine giddily bounced in front of her. "That there's the Everfree Forest, and all types of dangerous critters live in there. Anypony who goes in without knowing what they're doing, they'd run into a whole mess of trouble."
"Ooh! That sounds like fun! Can we go Saturn? Please oh please oh please?"
"…No. No, we will not go into the place we were just told was filled with dangerous animals."
"Aw, but it would be such a new experience!"
Just as Saturn was about to reach the end of his patience, he caught sight of a tiny blue colt making his way slowly towards them. Tinsel had finally arrived.
Only an hour late. I'm working with idiots.
Rising from where he'd been sitting, the Pegasus moved swiftly to intercept Tinsel.
"What is another pony doing here?" the colt asked under his breath.
"She's just talking with Shine for the moment. Now where have you been? We were supposed to meet here an hour ago!"
"I got…preoccupied with something. It's not important. Wait…where did you get that scarf?"
"Nowhere…is that cake frosting on your cheek?"
"No. Let's drop the subject and just get going."
Thankfully, it seemed that Shine Brite had finally gotten the message, and was bidding adieu to Applejack. Saturn could only hope that she hadn't let on too much information about them while she was talking to the orange pony.
"I'm really sorry, but now that Tinsel's here, we should probably get going," the unicorn was saying. "Thank you so much for stopping to talk. It gets so boring when it's just Dull Dark and me."
"Well, I'm glad I could help livin' up your day some. I'd best be heading back to the farm myself. Just be careful around the woods and all."
"Oh, I will, don't worry! Ta-ta for now!"
As the unicorn and earth pony parted ways, Saturn and Tinsel were already making their way due west. Saturn was certain they still had enough time to reach their destination before sunset, but he still hated having lost the time that they had. As the frustrated Pegasus went over the time-table they had been given, Shine Brite caught up with the pair.
"Well, that sure was a nice little pit stop. A bunch of pretty new animals to play with, and some rather nice ponies too!"
"I just hope you didn't let on anything about why we were here. Even the most innocuous phrase could leave behind incriminating evidence."
"Oh psh, Dull Dark. Just because I'm excited to be here doesn't mean I've forgotten why we're here in the first place."
The unicorn bounded ahead of her companions, a literal spring in her step so jovial it made Saturn cringe.
"Now, onward to Canterlot!"
As the last rays of sunlight faded from the sky, Princess Celestia breathed a sigh of relief. A thousand years and yet the sun still felt as heavy as ever. But now she could rest. Standing at the edge of her bed chamber's balcony, she watched as the silver sliver of the crescent moon peeked up over the horizon. Luna was at work now.
Smiling to herself, the Alicorn slowly walked back into her room. Her horn shone with a pale yellow aura, and the stained glass doors of the balcony slowly closed behind her. She stopped for a moment, and gently lifted her legs one by one as she used her magic to remove her golden slippers.
Celestia glanced towards her bed as she levitated her tiara off her head and onto the stone bust on her dresser. She had been longing for sleep for the last half of the day. She'd had to suffer through an exhausting 3 hour meeting with the Captain of the Guard concerning the meteor shower. The Pegasus had spent the entire meeting trying to convince her that there had been something strange about the stars that had fallen and that they might pose some form of danger. After intense negotiations, she'd managed to placate him by sending a letter to her student.
She disliked having to ask Twilight Sparkle to look into the matter, especially since she knew the guards were simply being overprotective. They'd been on edge ever since Discord had temporarily escaped his confinement. The higher-ups in the Equestrian military had been jittery in the months following that near cataclysm, and she couldn't blame them.
Princess Celestia's thoughts weighed heavily upon her as she nestled down into the pillows of her bed. It occurred to her for a moment that she'd forgotten to take off her necklace, but she was too comfortable and too tired to bother with taking it off. She closed her eyes and almost instantly, drifted off to sleep.
A soft, swishing sound by her left ear woke Celestia from her sleep. As the white alicorn opened her eyes, her first though was that he left eye was still closed. Though she could make out the dark interior of her bed chamber on her right, her left field of vision was nothing but blackness.
Just as she realized something was wrong, she saw them
Dark, impossibly black tendrils were creeping across her right foreleg, twining themselves around her body. She saw them, and then she felt them. They had already wrapped themselves tightly around most of her body. Her hind-legs and wings were crushed against her torso along with her tail, and Celestia could feel more of the dark appendages encircling her throat.
The princess opened her mouth to call for the guards, but the darkness seemed to have anticipated it. Before she could make a sound, the dark tendrils that were slowly creeping along her face sprang into action, wrapping themselves around her nose and lower jaw, and forced her mouth closed. She cried out, but her muffled screams barely reached her own ears.
Thin lines on darkness encroached on her vision, as slowly, methodically, the darkness surrounded her. Encased her. Trapped her.
Scared, desperate, the solar Princess cried out feebly into the darkness around her.