Queen's Note: (whispers) I did a thing...
"This is a story is from a time before the time you know as your history youngling," The old stallion chuckled, "When even the Equestrian lands were smaller, before the Sun and Moon were known as the princesses you see. When Alacorns were as strong and ~wild~ in their hearts and passions as the elements themselves. Before even Star Swirl was widely known and young himself.
"This is the story of a far off queen, the kelpies and snowy Windigos of the past. But more, it is the story of the first Outcast Queen. The forbidden love she came from and that she had that brought around those that feed off the love of others."
Reina
It was the giggling that drew attention of the group that night. The sound was that of someone young, sweet and from an innocent spirit, something that should have attracted the predators of this strange land. The tone wasn't that of a timber wolf cub, or dragonet, but... it sounded much like- no it was that of a pony child. A little filly that was soon laughing as there was a splashing sound that accompanied the joyous laughter.
With hat and cloak aside, the pale unicorn rose, glancing at his darker colored complain who was also awake on the other side of the warm enchanted embers, all that remained of their fire. The earth pony was from the desert lands far off, colored tan and rusty red tones in his short cropped main and tail.
"What is that Star?" The foreign stallion asked, his voice more whisper, and soft, orange ears pricked up to listen as he started out into the dark of the wild forest.
"I'm not sure Jafar," Star said in a just a turned to the third member of their small traveling group. "Alac old friend, what are the chances of other travelers out this far from Equestrian lands?"
The black scaly form had his long head extended all the way up, the angler head looking from the direction of the child sounded like she was and behind them. The faintly glowing red and purple eyes were looking for a possible threat coming from another direction. Alac had far better night vision then his best friend and complain did. "Not likely Star, possible though...it could be someone who survived an attack in the wild, or something using a child as bait." An eye ridge was arched, knowing there were many who would like to be rid of his friend.
"The filly sounds real," Jafar muttered, worried as he looked at the other two at last, though an ear was aimed at the sounds of splashing. "If it is a survivor from an attack, a child surely will not last long in these wilds."
"If alone no..." Star shook his head then ducked it to pull the plan dark blanket over his neck with a small amount of telekinetic power. The edge of the blanket brushed the back of the unicorn's horn, his vision would be blocked a bit, yet he was the only one who was stark white. It was times like these that the stallion wasn't fond of having the 'classic pure' coat of his breed, it made traveling at night…hazardous. "Alac, please make sure nothing comes up behind us."
"Of course my friend," the darkly colored dragon nodded, shifting folded wings as he looked around again, the glow of his eyes dimming a bit more.
Jafar had slowly gotten up, quietly planting his fore-hooves into the earth, copper colored eyes closed as he sensed the vibrations around them, "I don't think there's anything big here." He pulled his hooves up and walked over to Star, fallowing the unicorn out of their resisted camp and through the sheltering thorn bushes.
Beyond was the forest, and the small river, more stream that they picked to camp near for the clean water. It was a slow moving thing, shallow in this part of the forest and with moon-ferns growing in the middle that hadn't been there before. Casting a soft glow of silver-blue light along the curl of the water way.
The two stallions stopped, hesitating at what they saw, not just what they were expecting but what they weren't. In the shallows, only hoof deep was indeed a filly that was splashing around. She was mostly a blue-purple shade in her coat, her mane was black was short as it was with many youths, a small nub of a paler grey horn reflected in the fern light. The filly gigged as she ran into water weeds, prancing in place and waving an oddly shaped tail.
Not a hippogryph, Star though automatically as he looked at the delicate leathery like wings, and the arch of the thin, long and hairless tail that waved in the air. Not a Longma or a... a... "Kelpie." Star said in the barest of whispers as he realized what the second pony shape was as it stood in the water.
Blacker then the starless night in the great ocean, with water weeds in the main and a thick, flat tail to help with swimming. No furred feathering on its thin hooves but webbing that moved with each sigh lent step. It had a broken looking horn that if one looked closer would see there was a smaller horn above the first, both sharp and flat like a blade and that silver-grey color of metal, though dull and not reflecting the light.
The kelpie was regarding the comparatively tiny filly with an amused expression, the solid red glowing eyes watching. He chuckled and ducked his head, the end of the massive kelpie's nose brushed the water, nodding the surface and with a spark of alien magic pulsed before an illusion of a fish formed out of the water. The koi swam to the filly, around her and she laughed, running after it in the shallowed, prancing with the long finned illusion until she was getting deeper. Coming closer to the full grown kelpie, with the razor like hooves that were half as big as she, and the set of predatory fangs in the equine like face the drew near the filly.
Star flinched and was stepping forward, feeling icy fear coiling as he watched, ready to gallop the semi distance to intervene. He had heard of plenty of stories of those leading unwanted children, and unwanted hybrid children to the forest or known kelpie territories-
The massive predator dipped his head, nudging the filly back into the shallows with a kind of honest gentleness that made the two stallions stop in their tracks.
"You cannot swim yet Reina," the deep voice had an echoing reverb to it as the Kelpie nudge the child back into a few inches of water, spawning more illusion of brightly colored minions.
"You will have to teach her soon." Another voice said, and another pony came out of trees, a mare of desert pale colors. She was long legged, taller than normal ponies with folded elongated wings on her sides and a golden arching horn. A basket was balanced on her back with a bit telekinetic magic and filled with brightly colored, rare treats of the so called 'zap' apples.
"Maybe, but she has only ever lived in your desert my love," the Kelpie said looking over to the mare as she walked across the stream. The glowing red eyes seemed to soften at the sight of the Alacorn.
"Ma! Ma!" the filly called pranced over, tiny flickers of light forming where the filly was stepping in the water, "Lookit! Fisies! There be lotsa fishies!"
"There are a lot of pretty fish." The alacorn agreed smiling at the filling dancing around her, and then lifted her head to touch her nose to the Kelpie's, nuzzlings him with clear affection. Letting him move closer to grip one of the color shined apples that he bit in parks to land on a formed lilly pad for the filly, she camp over to sniff and nibble on the treat with a happy sound.
"She needs to grow some more, her tail isn't strong enough," the Kelpie said looking at the tiny filly and then the shorter mare who was giving him a flat look, "...but perhaps a ride in the waters would be good?" he offered.
The mare snored before pausing as she saw what her forbidden mate hadn't, catching sight of the pale form. She blinked, for a moment thinking she was seeing another illusion of the kelpie before recinizing the stallions and freezing. "Star Swirl?" the Alicorn gasped and swallowed thickly.
The kelpie's big head came up, angled ears pricking up and fangs flashing as he smelled the mare's fear. He stepped forward, so his bulk was over the filly and ready to defend, and the glow from the river dimming at the same time the predator saw the draconic form in the dark.
"What are you doing here?" the alacorn mare demanded, moving closer to the kelpie and her hybrid child.
"We have a camp near," Star said, keeping his voice soft and even, shaking his head so the blanket dropped back to his back and his pale form was exposed more. "We were looking for... well you Lady of the Sands."
"You went missing..." Jafar said lowering his head in a half bow to the alacorn, looking at the filly with apple sticking out of her moth as she peered around the large, razor hoof. "The priests said you were taken Mou, they sent the strongest of the Sand Guards to find you."
"They what?" Mau, the Alicron paused and then her eyes widened, wings half unfolding, "I told them I would be gone for several moon cycles, to introduce my child to her father."
Star hesitated and looked over at Alac, then back as he swallowed, "Lady, do they know who you have had time with?"
"I am not ashamed of my husband." Mou lifted her head high, though she had no crown the Lady of the Sands still had the same regale, if not royal air that the Sun and Moon had that Star and Alac knew.
"But those of your priests likely are." Star was coming closer as the light returned, the kelpie brightening the area as he sense not as much of a threat. Star glanced around, seeing the faint glow of red eyes, what he had expected to see on the edge of the light once he had a better look at the big kelpie stallion. "Nor all of your people King Solon."
"Many more kelpie are willing to mate with alacorns and ponies then the other way around." Solon said, not leaving the water, perhaps to keep the better horse like illusion so not to scare the filly.
"Ma?" the girl asked tilting her head, confused at the tension that came, then changed as well as the strangers. She had stopped eating, Start noting that the filly had no fangs, yet or at all.
"If they sent the strongest of the guards for the people out," Mou glanced down to nuzzle her daughter, before standing tall, her wings opening, "My people are exposed, the priests might be trying to change the rule of the Desert. They have not been satisfied with the change from the ancient ways."
"There is more freedom and peace for the civilians," Jafar said slowly, his ears are up, a not so slow grasp of a danger happening in his home land.
Solon was looking down at his daughter, staring into the middle distance before nuzzling her, then Mau, "Go to your people my love. We are immortal, I will see you both once again."
"We can help get you there faster Lady," Alac said coming out of the darkness, resting on all four legs as he pointed a wing at Star, "Having a wiser of Ponies and one of Dragons surly much help?"
"Yes," The alacorn hesitated and then nodded, using her magic to pick up her daughter to put on her back between the wings, wishing she could ignore the protesting cries betting as the filly waved her fore-hooves at the big kelpie as she walked out of the river. "Jafar, get your armor on, we are fetching the Guards and returning to the Great Desert of Time. I fear our people are in danger."
Star hesitated, looking back to the King of the Kelpies who could not leave far from water, could not send his people to help defend his hidden wife. "I will do everything I can to see the filly safe." It was all he could promise.
Red eyes looked into the unicorn's own eyes in the dark, "See her safe, and no Kelpie will ever hunt in Equestrian lands again." Solon said softly, staying in place to look after his wife and the whining filly, hearing 'da's being called. This was the first time Kelpie saw his daughter, and as time would prove, the last as well.