The Night's Tale, Part Two
This part has ten times as much spell check, fact check, and reality check then the first. That, and improved usage. I'm also going to cut minor details and rush it a bit, so deal with it.
Also, the version on was a bit... flawed. I don't have the time to go back and fix it though, sorry. Remember, it was transferred from Google Docs.
Crunch.
It was an awful sound to hear, no matter how many times you've heard it. Will landed on his back, smashing and splintering bones and vertebrae. He couldn't move. He couldn't breath. The adrenaline pumping through his body began to slow, until the pain hit him.
He was drowning in his own blood- his ribs had pierced the lungs. He was going to die, without a second chance- no magical object to imbue his mind with.
The world lost it's color as the night carried on. Staring up at the moon, he felt the heat pass through his body, into the cold mud. Pain ripped through his flesh, searing him to his core.
Closing his eyes, his mind passed, and his soul vanished.
Will, was truly dead.
The outcome was just as she had expected. The body hit the ground, and didn't move again. Truth be told, if she didn't kick him out of the window, she would have lost that battle.
Now, to deal with the other three.
Twilight Sparkle would have to be brain washed- there was probably a spell somewhere in the library for such an occasion. Celestia and Luna would have to be imprisoned for the rest of their days- until she could decide what to do with them. Until they could relinquish their abilities and pass them onto her, she would have to keep them under lock and key.
But it was easier said then done- because they immediately escaped through the open window on Luna's back.
Dispatching guards to Ponyville, Trixie began the process of making the trio fugitives, concocting stories and such to pass on to the media.
Celestia- or Trixie, is what she would tell the crowds, somehow managed to hypnotize Luna and use her to capture Twilight. Coming from their Princess, this was a totally believable story. They ran because Celestia found out. They're all a bunch of stupid, illiterate ponies anyway, so they'll believe just about anything, right?
Luna landed near Will's body, much to Twilight's distaste.
"He's dead, Luna. We can't do anything about it. Come on, the guards will be here shortly to collect the body-"
"No," She said, pawing the ground.
"Look, Luna. We can't do anything about it. The first magical law of healing states so clearly: Once the spirit has left this world, there's nothing you can do to bring it back. His corpse is cold. He's dead. There is no Spirit Stone to bring him back, either. Come on Luna, there isn't time!" Twilight said. Guards were being dispatched from the castle as she spoke.
"We're bringing him with us."
"What?"
"We're bringing him with us. He's going to get a proper burial, even if I have to go with him."
Picking up the corpse, she slung it on her back, grimacing at blood began to drip onto her clean coat.
"Looney, that wont work. You're going to leave a blood trail." Celestia said, trying to force reason on her. It didn't work.
"Well then, I guess I'll have to drag him with magic to prevent it from happening."
Picking him up again, she kept her promise- using magic, he floated along lifelessly, following behind Luna like a ghost.
"Enough! Come on, we have to make it to White Tail Wood before they catch us!" Twilight said, running in the direction of the woods. Following behind, the group managed to stay together and duck under the shadows of the trees, just as the guards made contact with the crime scene. Looking for the body, one of them peered into the forest.
"We forgot something, didn't we?" Twilight said, frowning. Suddenly, the guards began to line up, and head in their direction.
"I think so. That's just our luck, mud and hoof prints. We have to find hard ground, and fast. Come on." Leading the group, they vanished from sight as the guards followed increasing their pace as they approached the forest.
"Spread out and find them, we can't let them escape!"
Minutes passed. Hours. Still, no sign of the guards, or even the sound of them searching. They were safe for the moment, in the center of the forest.
"I'm not raising the sun." Celestia said, laying on the ground in her small pony body. Luna was laying next to Will's corpse, tears in her eyes as she looked upon his features. Twilight was nowhere to be found- she had left to contact her friends, before the guards and media could react. She would also return with supplies, enough for a few days.
"Tia... is there any hope?" Luna said, looking up from Will's pale face.
"I don't know, Sis... sometimes, things just happen, and there's nothing we can do to stop it... but we can't let his body stay out any longer. We have to bury him. Here, I'll help..."
Using her magic, she began to scoop away dirt, fatiguing herself rapidly in the process. Removing three feet of topsoil, she measured the grave next to Will's body. With a few more adjustments, it was large enough for the corpse.
"It is done. Do you want me to help you...?"
She sniffed, looking down into the hole.
"I'll do it."
Lifting his corpse up with magic, she set him down lightly in the center, crossing his arms. Trying to clean the blood off of his face with magic, it wouldn't come off.
"Sis..." Celestia said. Luna ignored her.
"Sis... it isn't coming off..." No response. She was still trying to clean off the blood.
"Looney... Looney... LUNA!"
She finally broke down, collapsing on the forest floor, crying. It was too much... too much...
Going to her side, she sat down next to her younger sister, giving her a shoulder to cry on. For a few minutes, she sobbed miserably, until...
"Hey," A familiar voice said. It was like a echo- reverberating heavily at the beginning, but coming into focus at the end.
"Will?"
"Yeah?" Same echo- same voice.
"Y-...You're-..."
"Dead? Yeah, I know that."
Suddenly, a shade appeared, forming into something resembling Will.
"Look, I'm a ghost now!"
"..."
"..."
"What?"
Luna fainted. Celestia went into shock.
"Why... how... WHY DON'T YOU DIE ALREADY?"
"But... I am dead..."
Obviously not amused by the ghostly joke, Celestia began to question him as Luna came too.
"How... how did you manage THIS?"
"I don't know. The light was too bright, so I walked away. But I'm dead, I know that. I'm thinking about haunting your castle..."
"How can you joke in a time like this? You're dead- our castle and lively hoods have been stolen by some crazy... crazy bitch, and you're laughing it up like it doesn't even matter! Really?"
"Yeah... sounds about right. Anyway, it's pretty cool being a ghost. I get to fly around... and I can walk through walls... oh, and I can't feel pain. That's a big bonus."
"That's because you're dead. Nopony can feel pain when they don't have a body to feel with. How did you... what can we... you've got to be kidding me..."
"Hey, look on the bright side! I can be with you, FOREVER!"
"Okay, I'm suddenly less attracted to you now," Luna said, finally speaking up. "...why can't you just let me have my sad moment in peace?"
"Because it's only a sad moment if I don't come back."
Stretching, he pretended to lay down next to his old body.
"Celestia... Tia, look..."
"What?"
"You know the number one rule of healing magic?" She said, standing up.
"Yeah...?"
"His spirit didn't leave. We still have his body..."
For a moment, Celestia looked between the two bodies, the soul and the corpse.
"It's so obvious... how come I didn't see it in the first place?"
"What are you two talking about?" Will said popping out of the hole. Luna lifted his lifeless body out of the grave, setting it down lightly.
"Do you think we can fix this?" She said, turning the body around and around.
"We'll have to strip it down to see exactly where he's injured at, but yeah, it's possible."
"What do you mean by, 'strip it down', exactly?" He said, looking between the two. They looked at him and smiled.
"Oh god..."
Sneaking quietly, Twilight walked over to Applejack's window. She had used her magic to warp there, saving time, and under the cover of darkness, she was really hard to spot. Tapping lightly on the glass, she waited.
Nothing.
Tapping again, harder, she waited for Applejack to open the window.
Still, no reaction.
Hitting the window hard, she almost cracked the glass as Applejack stumbled over.
"Twilight?" She said, bleary eyed and tired. Looking at her clock, she flinched.
"Eight in the morning? How come the sun hasn't come out? That would explain why the roosters haven't crowed... anyway, what's going on?"
"Look, you remember Trixie, right?"
"Er... that pony that kept boasting? Yeah, I wanted to chase her down and beat her with a stick..."
"...You know what, I don't even want to know. Anyway, she somehow managed to steal Celestia's body. Now she's after me, Luna, and the Real Celestia. And the problem is, we need help."
Applejack looked at Twilight for a moment. Then she began to laugh.
"Well darn it, this is the weirdest dream I've ever had! Saying Trixie could do that and all... heck, wait till Granny hears about this one!"
"Applejack, you're not dreaming. The real Celestia isn't going to raise the sun until she's back in her throne room, in her own body! Look, you know Will?"
"Yeah, that weird monkey thing from that ball?"
"Trixie killed him."
Applejack stopped smiling.
"Twilight..."
"Yes?"
"I'm not dreaming, am I?"
"That's what I've been trying to say! Poke yourself if you don't believe me!"
"You know what, I believe you. Come on, I have some stuff y'all can borrow in the barn. Let me get my hat... I'm coming with y'all."
Jumping out the window, she dashed to the old barn, swinging open the doors. Scavenging through old plows and such, she finally returned with a couple of old tents.
"This'll do us! Here, help me grab some apples for the road..."
"Why do you have tents at all?"
"Use to have to keep watch over our garden ya know? Keep out them critters at night. They're a bit old, but they'll do us kindly."
Setting up a wagon and filling it with supplies, Twilight made a quick decision.
"We could possibly use the Elements of Harmony on Trixie... it might actually work..."
"Well then what are ya waiting for? Go get the rest of them! I'll get my necklace doohickey right now."
Dropping the cart, Applejack jumped through her window, before reappearing moments later with the Element of Honesty hanging from her neck.
"Twilight?" She said, looking around. On the cart was a note...
"Going to get everyone else, be right back."
"Could have at least told me..."
Luna giggled as she viewed Will's naked body.
"Oh shut up!" He said, blushing (which is pretty hard for a ghost). "Besides, this isn't funny! My body has bones sticking out of it's back! Not to mention broken legs and arms!"
"Oh hush, Will. You're dead, remember? You don't feel pain."
"I feel emotional pain!"
"Being embarrassed isn't that painful." Celestia interrupted, laughing a bit herself.
"Why is this so funny, anyway?"
"Just a joke, that's all... between me and Celestia."
Will looked at the two. Celestia was sitting at his feet... and Luna was sitting at his head... and in the middle was his-
"HEY!"
And they fell down on the floor, laughing hard.
"It took him a minute, but he figured it out!"
"Come on, REALLY? That's WAY above average where I come from, not to mention that no blood is flowing there at the moment, and it IS pretty cold!"
Luna couldn't help herself.
"That's the oldest excuse in the book!"
"What? Being dead? Well that's a perfect excuse! What do you want me to do, huh? Do you want me to show you when I'm alive again?"
That cut her off. She quit laughing and resumed her position, blushing.
"Tia, that's enough. It's time to heal him."
"Fine... just give me a moment to breath..."
Calming down, she finally sat up straight and focused as her horn came to life, wrapping healing tendrils around the corpse. Luna added her own magic to the mix, slowly restoring the body to it's previous condition...
"Rarity!" Twilight said, banging on the Boutique's window. The white Unicorn finally answered, yawning as she lit a candle.
"What is it, darling? I was trying to get my beauty sleep."
"Grab the Element of Generosity and follow me, we have a problem."
Pinkie Pie bounced around excitedly with her Element hanging off of her neck.
"Is it a night time party?" She said, following Rarity and Twilight as they came to a alleyway, avoiding a group of guards.
"No Pinkie, it's much more serious then that. Prepare yourselves, we're about to teleport."
"What do you m-"
Zap!
Partially singed, they arrived at the Pegasus Pony's home. Quickly running to the door, Twilight knocked hard. A minute passed, before Fluttershy appeared in the doorway, shaking a bit.
"Uh... Twilight?" She said, trembling even harder.
"Fluttershy, you don't look so well. But there's no t-"
"I'm sorry."
"Uh oh..."
Fluttershy was shoved out of the way as a couple of guards jumped through the doorway, a Pegasus and a Unicorn. Crashing into Twilight, Rarity and Pinkie Pie stumbled as the Unicorn cast binding enchantment after binding enchantment at point blank range, tying Twilight in enough ropes to stop a bull.
"Help!" She yelped, just before she was gagged. Pinkie caught herself, and jumped to the rescue, bucking the unicorn in the face, cracking it's horn. It cried and backed up, as energy began to build up in the fractured appendage.
"That doesn't look good..." Pinkie said, suddenly sorry for what she did. Finally, the horn exploded, throwing back the guard ponies, knocking them out.
"Er... woopsy?"
Rarity, Twilight, and Fluttershy stared at her with wide eyes. She smiled.
"I like Karate."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"Twilight, I don't understand what you want us to do." Fluttershy said, looking down upon her element.
"I'd rather not repeat myself a hundred times, I'll tell you as soon as you can wake up Rainbow Dash and get her to come with me."
"Oh... okay then. I'll just go and get her..."
Flying slowly up to the cloud, Fluttershy began to ask Rainbow Dash nicely to wake up.
"Rainbow Dash..."
She continued to sleep.
"Rainbow Dash... wake up, please..."
No response. Still sleeping.
She considered poking her, but realized that was too intrusive. She would have to be delicate.
"Rainbow Dash, the Wonderbolts are here."
"Wonderbolts? Where?" She said, jumping to her hooves.
"I was kidding, Rainbow Dash... but um, Twilight needs you."
"Oh, hi Fluttershy... what are you doing in my home?"
"Um Rainbow Dash... Twilight-"
"I was having this weird dream about me and Applejack... then I remembered I had to go and help Pinkie make cupcakes, so I had to leave. But then she gave me this cupcake, and I fell asleep, so then I heard someone say Wonderbolts and I woke up... huh..."
"Rainbow Dash!"
"What?"
"Twilight needs us... I mean, if that's okay with you..."
"Oh, yeah, sure. Let's go."
"Now, we need one last thing..." Twilight said, waving them together. "I need to get the Crown of Magic. Oh, and before I forget, I should probably bring Spike along as well."
"You mean THIS Crown of Magic?" Spike said, coming from around the corner.
"Spike! How did you-?"
"I was watching Rarity's Boutique- er, to make sure nopony tried to rob the place, then you came along. I saw that she was wearing her Element, so I decided there must be some monster about to attack Ponyville or something."
"Er... why were you watching my home again?"
"Never mind that, so what's the plan?"
"Oh, how can I sum this up..."
Slipping on his armor, Will sighed.
"You know, next time you decide to resurrect me, how about I tell you where I'm hurt and you can just fix it then, huh?"
"Whatever you say... little guy." Luna said, laughing aloud with her sister.
"S-shut up! Who busted you out of prison?" He yelled, blushing.
"Oh come on, Will. We're just picking on you. It's just a little smaller then average here."
"Can we PLEASE change the topic from my body to something else? Like, I don't know, our PLAN?"
"Fine..."
Celestia began to trace a map in the dirt, outlining the castle.
"Here is my bed chambers, where Trixie is no doubt resting her head on my pillows."
"Don't you mean your head on your pillows?" Will said, smiling.
"Shut up! Anyway, and this," Celestia said, poking a dot into the sand, "is Will's size. It's a bit big, but you get the point."
"That's it, you bring it up again, and I'll tackle you to the ground and show youhow big it is!"
"I'd like to see you try!"
"Enough! Both of you. There's a time to play and a time to plan, right now's not the time to bicker and poke fun."
"...Ha, poke."
"Celestia!"
"I can't help it! I like to cause havoc time to time, keeps life interesting." Going back to the map, she began to trace again.
"Anyway, here's the courtyard. At night, this has pretty tight security, no doubt more since our recent escape. I'm pointing this out because if we're caught, this is our main escape route. The bells would signal intruders are in the castle, so any guard would be on alert. If we place a decoy over here, and drew one guards attention to it, we should be able to draw them all out of the yard. Now, the problem is the decoy- who's it going to be?"
"Ha... I'll do it. If I die, I'll go out with style. Might be fun to jump out of another building."
"Will, I hope you know that's really unhealthy for your soul. Every time you die, if we resurrect you, shards of your soul will be lost. Just keep that in mind next time you go and get kicked out of a window that's a few hundred feet in the air, okay?" Celestia said, returning to the map.
"Now, there are several entrances we can take, four of which are going to be heavily guarded. That leaves us with three- and two of these are almost impossible to do unless if you can fly. So, the final entrance is this one-"
Drawing a tall tower, she pointed to the roof.
"This used to be Twilight's home, with an observatory in the top. This section right here should be unlocked and the building unguarded, so Will should be able to sneak in without notice. We're going to need rope, of course, unless if you can climb a one hundred and fifty foot tower without it."
"Depends. How smooth is the tower?"
"It's painted Cobblestone."
"I think I can manage it without the rope."
"Good, because I doubt we'll be able to find a supply. Okay, once you're in, I need you to go this part of the castle- the royal kitchen. There is a small door in the back, used for supplies and such. If you can unlock this door without alerting the guards, I should be able to sneak in the back."
"What about me?" Luna said, wondering where she played a part in.
"Luna, you do realize this is one of the most dangerous things ever attempted in Equestrian history, and that we're only doing this so I can get my body back, right?"
"Well what about the entrances for a Pegasus?"
"You can fly straight into the Courtyard if you can avoid the guards, or you can fly up along the waterfall on the side, into the small pool in the back. Either of those are dangerous- fly too close to the water, and you may be hit, knocking you down into the river. Run into a guard Pegasus, and you're going down. But we wont need you, if Will can take Trixie alone.
"I doubt I'll be able to it this time around."
"Why do you say that?"
"Think about it, Celestia. She knows my combat style, and she'll be prepared this time. Not to mention she'll probably have at least twelve guards around her at all times. Don't you have battle armor or something? If you do, I can bet you she'll be sleeping in it. Not to mention enchanting it to repel damage. Heck, if I approached her, she could incinerate me with a new spell she's studying right now. I'd have to assassinate her, or just snipe her with an arrow. A direct assault would kill me, if not, capture me and throw me in a dungeon."
"...Good point. Then what will we do? All entrances to the room will be guarded beyond reason. The only way you could enter would be if you just busted down the door and took down the guards."
"Not exactly... magic."
"Magic. Yeah, like me and Luna can form a spell powerful enough to knock her off my throne."
"Maybe not alone, but if we could get Twilight to help... she's pretty strong. I bet all three of-"
At the mention of Twilight, she returned with her friends, Elements and supplies in tow.
"That's it! Twilight! The Elements of Harmony! I didn't even consider them!" Celestia said. Walking over to Twilight and her friends, she examined them.
"Twilight, I still don't believe this is real life." Applejack said, shaking her head to make sure she was awake. "I mean, HOW did Trixie manage to steal Celestia's body in the first place? That's about near impossible."
"Desperation, mixed with the need for power and respect, that and a few spells, I guess," Will said, standing up from the map. Twilight practically snapped.
"Zombie!" She yelled, throwing a bolt of lightning in his direction. Barely dodging, Celestia had to step in to avoid Twilight killing Will.
"He's alive, Twilight!" She laughed, Twilight didn't move. Well, most of her. Her eye was twitching.
"But... but... how..."
"I didn't leave. I haunted these two until they resurrected me."
"Yeah... he was a small ghost, that's for sure." Luna said, biting her lip in a attempt not to laugh.
"WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT THE SIZE JOKES?"
"Sorry, couldn't resist." She giggled. It took Spike a while, but he started to laugh too.
"I don't get it."
"Me neither."
"See... it's funny... because..."
They all looked at him with confusion.
"Er... never mind. You have to be a boy to get it."
"Next Pony, Dragon, Unicorn, Alicorn, Zebra, Horse, Pegasus, Turtle, Tree, Rock, Mustache- I DON'T CARE WHAT, mentions it, dies. Test me."
"Calm down Will, if you really want us to stop, we'll stop, okay?"
"You better, or I wont help this time. NOW, back to the map, before I start stabbing something."
"Okay, okay... now, we have to include the Elements of Harmony, so we'll have to start over. Will, you'll enter through the top of Twilight's old home. If you can avoid detection, unlock the door in the back. We'll enter through there. Now, because we have three sky-worthy ponies in our group, I suggest they set up a distraction in the courtyard, removing all of the guards from the castle. But for this part of the plan too work, we'll need an army... Fluttershy, I know you're great with animals, do you think you can convince them too help?"
"Well... um... I don't see why not..."
"Now, with the guards distracted with the onslaught of creatures and the promise of being able to capture Luna, you all will enter through the front, while they're busy. We'll meet up in the Grand Hall, and improvise from there. Is this agreeable?" Celestia said, looking around.
"Uh... sure, I guess."
"Don't see why not."
"I'm always ready for a fight!"
"I'll do my best, Celestia, though this plan will need refining eventually."
"Sounds like a party to me!"
"Under the cover of night? Sounds fair."
"You're all missing the point." Spike said, stepping forward. "I'm not in this plan!"
"That's because you're... er... going to be... the supervisor?" Will said. "You can make sure we're ready before we enter, and help chart multiple escape routes."
"Well... I was hoping for a part where I could kick some butt, but I guess that's even better."
"You really think that's a good idea?" Twilight whispered to Will as Spike viewed the map under the moonlight. Grunting, the small dragon dug through the supplies until he brought forth a candle, lighting it with his fire breath.
"Don't worry, we can always correct him. Besides, I don't see why not."
"Now, Spike, when do you think we will be ready?" Will said, smiling at the baby dragon.
"Well, from gathering animals to calculating guard routes... I'd say, two days, at the least." He said, concentrating hard.
"Sound about right. But right now, we'll rest... we have a really, really, long night to face..."
Resting was a understatement- If Celestia didn't wake Will up, he would have slept for three days. He was used to waking up when the sun would rise, even if it meant only a few hours of sleep. Stretching, he began to search around for his lantern, before realizing he didn't have it.
"Well, this is going to be harder then I thought."
Picking up a few sticks, he tied them down with some extra string in his left pocket, before bringing out a small flint. Cursing, he took out a arrow- he lost the tinder, so had to light it with steel- and struck it. Cursing again, he forgot the vital part of fire making, the small nest of kindling. Throwing down the sticks, he shrugged, putting away the arrows, settling to work in the dark.
"If you need a light, why not just ask?" Celestia said, lighting the area with the glow of her horn.
"Thanks. Hey- where's the other ponies?"
"Well Twilight has settled to sneak back into Ponyville to grab a few books and a ton of paper for maps, while Rarity went with her to grab a few things for camouflage. Applejack went home to grab a few tools, and Fluttershy is busy spreading the word around the animals. Rainbow Dash is sabotaging Canterlot, forcing a storm on her own. Pinkie Pie is getting a few things ready for our assault- some kind of smoke bomb she used to play with when she was younger. And I'm here to wake you up."
"Okay, but where's Luna?"
"She's maneuvering the moon to stay in the center of the sky. I guess she's pretty happy- night for a while, until I'm back in charge. It's taking a lot of her concentration, so try not to bother her until she's done, okay?"
"Fine fine fine... I might as well do something productive. I know a method of wood burning that creates minimal smoke, I'll start right away."
"Alright then. If you need me, I'll be out gathering Gems for Rarity... she said something about a heavily enchanted cloak for you, that requires magical storage. I'll also be supplying the barrier around the campsite with magic, to insure nopony finds us. Stray too far, and you'll become visible."
Walking away, Celestia vanished into the forest, along with the light. Selecting choice sticks, Will squinted in the darkness to make sure they were the right consistency. Coming across a large log, he set down the pile and lifted up the old tree, setting it between a bunched together duo of the same type. Pushing on one end, he snapped off a portion of it, picking up the sticks with his new yule log.
Next, he started to make kindling- tediously cutting fine hairs of wood apart, he swore as he cut his finger from the lack of light. Thirty minutes of stripping wood, he finally had a small nest of the stuff. And with a few strike from an arrow on his flint, he finally had a small campfire.
Now was the hard part- growing it without the smoke. The key to this was what you added to the fire- dry wood, without leaves, would minimize smoke, but with a few added ingredients thrown into the fire occasionally, only a small trail would appear, which would dissipate before it reached the sky. It was kind of an accident, really- throwing in a few herbs to keep the flame alive when he was younger, some of the more abundant ones. It turned out one of the more common and awkward looking flowers- purple, blue, and green, that he called 'Sourstrike' (for it's unique sour and bitter taste,) somehow absorbed smoke, allowing mesquites to run rampant, but also didn't draw as much attention. After a while, he began to keep a small supply in his medical pouch- it would burn whenever applied to a wound, but somehow kept it rid of infection. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that kind of plant shouldn't exist- he never even heard of one in his home world, with the ability to absorb smoke and clean wounds, but then again, it was right in front of him the whole time, growing in fields around his home.
Watching the fire, he smiled as small green flames erupted around the dried petals. Within moments, almost all of the smoke was gone. It would stay like this for ten minutes, before he would have to throw in more. Picking up the yule log, he began to cut it with his sword- it would dull the blade, but it was better then doing it by hand- until he had four large chunks, throwing one into the smokeless fire.
Feeling some security return, he began to mentally analyze Trixie's combat style...
Obviously she preferred to use her horn over normal magic on him. It was because of his armor- if he had known it was so resilient against magic (or if magic even existed) he would have gathered more off of the corpse- but it's too late now. So the only thing he had to worry was the horn finding a way past the scales... he would be completely vulnerable to a blast from the thing if it reached his skin. He shivered at the thought of a direct hit... going into his body, then a wave of energy rippling through his entire being until he exploded, leaving little Will chunks everywhere.
Ow.
Magic can't fix that.
Before he could ponder the idea any longer, Spike tapped him on the shoulder.
"Will."
"Yeah?"
"You're going against Celestia first, to take down all of the guards to make room for the Elements."
"Wait... w-"
"You have too. And you can't let them live, either. If you knock them out, they're just gonna keep coming until you prove you're a force to be reckoned with."
"...You've got to be kidding me..."
"No, I'm adulting you. Seriously though, I've seen these guards in action when me and Twilight used to live in Canterlot. The only time they flinch is when somepony fights back. And when they do... well, it usually doesn't end well."
"You're acting a bit mature, you know that, right?"
"Well I have too. It's a dragon trait, wild dragon-kin, whenever something bad happens, can kinda... snap into a different... what's the word... personality. We stop playing and focus. Great for planning, running, you know, anything that saves your hide from being eaten."
"Cool. The only self defense human babies have is to cry, which doesn't work unless if their parents are nearby. But to be useless for a few years actually helped develop us- we learned more from our parents then other species, and we developed more intellectually. Basically, if we weren't useless at birth, I probably wouldn't be alive right now." Feeding more pedals into the fire, he stuck in another log.
"What's the flower stuff for?"
"No smoke, see?" Waving his hand a few feet above the fire, he demonstrated his point. Nothing.
"Nice. Anyway, back to planning..." Waving goodbye, he disappeared behind a screen of foliage, probably to crawl into a tent and pour himself over a few basic maps Celestia drew.
He couldn't handle the thought of just killing all of the guards until they stopped coming. Who would be so stupid as to run straight into their death? Must be one hell of a good pay to risk your life like that. But then again, in their mind, they're protecting their Princess, the one who raises the sun, the one who's giving them their lively-hoods...
Well if you put it that way...
Then Will's the bad guy. He's killing people because they think they're protecting something holy. It's not their fault...
But... then that means...
"Spike!"
"Huh?"
"Come here. I have a plan."
The baby dragon stumbled out of the bushes, scratching his head as Will began.
"The guards think they're protecting Celestia, right?"
"Yeah. But I doubt they would believe that the real Celestia is a small blue pony who escaped from prison."
"They don't have to. We can prove the other's a fraud."
"Yeah, like they'll give you a chance to speak."
"Oh, they will. I'll be sure of that."
"So what? You're just going to waltz in, call their leader a fraud, and tell her to raise the sun?"
"No. The real Celestia is."
"And when Trixie can't... then-"
"The real Celestia will."
"So what? The only thing that will do is make Trixie kill all of the guards."
"Not all of them. And they're wearing magic resistant armor, remember? Plus, that will gain us plenty of allies for the battle."
For a moment, Spike was silent, thinking.
"Unless... if she hired mercenaries."
"Mercenaries? I doubt it."
"Think about it, Will. She's planning ahead, too. She knows Celestia is after her body, and that she can't prove she's not an imposter besides by what she looks like. And the guards are loyal to the real Celestia. Why not pay somepony who's loyal to gold? Dress them up to look like guards... tell the others that she wants to feel 'secure'... they could even be an entirely different species... like... Dragons."
"I doubt Dragons would be in her chambers."
"And I doubt she would be in there at all." Spike countered, thinking again.
"Why do you think that?"
"She'd expect us to think she's in Celestia's Room. So why not make it a trap?"
"Then where is she?"
"The dungeons."
"The dungeons..." I said, giving him the blank stare of "I don't get it."
"Yes, the dungeons. It's fortified walls and structure make it more secure then her room, not to mention a few cells are large enough to hold a pack of Dragons comfortably, and keep them from escaping. And some of them are impossible to enter without using the only door, like the cell I'm remembering... Magically fortified walls, two hundred feet by one hundred and fifty, with a forty foot ceiling... this thing is a hundred and fifty feet down into the ground, and between that is a passage large enough to fit it's guests. I don't know how many times it's been used- but I bet Twilight does."
"You're acting way to serious for me, can you give me the 'happy' version before I snap? This all seems like a bunch of work..."
"Er... well... there is no 'happy' version. Unless if you consider emergency lava tunnels 'happy', then you're a bit insane."
"Thanks Spike, that's really comforting. So you're telling me, that I have to fight through- how long is the tunnel to the dungeon?"
"About a mile."
"A mile's worth of enemies, traps, lava, and perpetual death, the whole time guarding a group of eight ponies, just so I can face about god knows how many dragons and a tyrannical ruler. Now tell me, exactly HOW am I going to do this?"
"Er... a bunch of good luck and magic?"
"Yeah, I like how you imply luck is on my side. What are the chances she would actually USE this dungeon?"
"About... a 95% chance. The thing's pretty well known, and they give tours on the weekend."
"Damn it, why didn't you mention this earlier?"
"Didn't cross my mind."
Sighing, Will began to pace.
"I'm going to find Celestia. We need to talk about this. Now."
"Sure, she should be south from here."
Checking his bow (which someone repaired for him magically,) he strung it and slung it over his back, latching onto his quiver, hanging where his left hand could reach. Checking his sword, he sheathed it, before setting it down.
"You're not taking that thing with you?"
"Don't need to. I have a dagger if it comes to melee combat."
"Can... can I er... check it to see if it's flawed?"
"... You want to play with it, don't you?"
"No no no no, I just... um..."
"Go ahead Spike. Just be careful, and don't hurt yourself."
Finding it ironic how a Dragon wants to play with a sword, he picked up a large stick and wrapped a large piece of spare cloth over it. Hanging it over the fire, he stopped himself. It would be better to stick with night-vision and to prowl cautiously through the woods then to be spotted from his light. Instead, he took the cloth and wrapped it around most of his pedals and threw in the rest. Sticking them inside of a fresh log, he made sure they would slowly burn until he got back.
Following Celestia's trail was one of the hardest tracking quests Will has ever attempted- she was very smart. And she even used magic to cover up most of her tracks- very rarely Will could find a very small part of a hoof print. After a while, he came to what appeared to be a battle scene- a bunch of hoof prints in different directions, hundreds, if not thousands.
Realizing it was a bunch of false trails, he continued south until he came to a rocky outcropping. Just barely within his vision was a light blue pony, using magic to pull out a gem or two.
Picking up a small rock, he threw it at her, almost hitting her in the head. It was better then walking up to her, probably scarring her half to death, or her using magic in a split second reaction that could be possibly fatal.
She jerked her head in his direction as the pebble hit her head. She looked in his direction, but was unable to see him.
Of course, my armor blends in well with the night. Great.
Throwing another rock, he waved his arms as Celestia looked in his direction again, a bit flustered over who was hitting her with rocks.
"Celestia!" Will whispered in a rough tone.
"Will? What are you doing out here?"
"We need to talk about the plan." Climbing up the rocky terrain, Will settled himself next to Celestia.
"What do you think about Trixie using a dungeon as her hide out?"
"I thought about that. I think she wouldn't remember it, but I'm not perfect. She could be stocking provisions in it right now, who knows?"
"Well, it's up to you on which place we choose first. If we go straight for the castle, we could either be walking into a trap or to Trixie. Which do you think is best?"
…
For a moment, she appeared to be thinking with her jaw agape a bit, but looking into her eyes, you could barely see fear.
Turning around slowly, he could see in the distance... a group of a dozen or so guards, obvious in the moonlight due to their armor. Looking down, Will realized they wouldn't be able to see Celestia or himself, due to their colors.
"They can't see us, Celestia. We'll just have to whisper. Move very slowly to that boulder, we'll continue there."
Crouching down, he kept an eye on the group and the Princess as they moved closer to the rocks. They were obviously tailing Will's trail- he didn't think to cover it up this far from the roads. Hiding behind the boulder, he waited for Celestia, who appeared moments later.
"Will, did you-"
"No, I forgot. But they shouldn't be able to find the campsite, the ground is too hard near the place. This may get ugly, they obviously know one of us is here. Just stay down- I'll handle this."
"I trust you, but I still think you're outmatched."
"I have a longer reach, and we're uphill. I definitely have the advantage in this fight. Plus, they wont know what hit them."
Drawing his bow, there was no way this group could live. They were too close to the camp, they would have to 'vanish'.
Sneaking away from where Celestia watched eagerly, the first guard pointed in his direction, catching the small movements he was making.
Stupid... MOVE with the WIND and the MOTION of the TREES, you did this a thousand times before!
A familiar voice echoed in his head. He had no recollection of ever meeting someone so... mentoring.
What the hell?
We've been through this, Will. The darkness is your friend- move in motion, and you'll live.
Who are you to tell me what to do?
And just like that, the voice went silent. Shaking his head, he finally made it to another outcropping, as a Unicorn from the guards sprang forward, launching lightning at his old position.
"That's odd... I could have sworn..."
"Stupid! You just gave us away! What if-"
A arrow bounced off his armor, and he stumbled.
"Enemy fire! Spread out and take cover!"
Cursing, Will took out another arrow as the mental voice returned, growing in strength.
No no no no NO! What did I say about aiming with a bow? You draw the string THEN aim, picking your target! You take everything into consideration- wind, height, draw of the bow, EVERYTHING. Then you fire. Simple mistakes like this can kill a Apprentice any time...
Apprentice? What do you mean, Apprentice?
What have I taught you, Will? Do you NOT remember what you are? What you've trained for your whole life? Have you forgotten?
I don't even know who you are!
Well obviously I'm talking to a great fool... well, that's what happens when you're reincarnated- you forget some things...
Reincarnated? What do you mean?
A archaic bolt exploded near him, and the conversation ceased. Listening, he could hear their commander giving orders...
"She said the human was dead, but I guess he somehow survived! Hoovesly, get in there and take him down!"
"You know, I REALLY don't want to kill you, but you wont stop and listen to reason."
Aiming an arrow, Will struck the Unicorn named 'Hoovesly" (VERY original!) In the upper right leg, easily bypassing a notch in the armor.
"I'm down I'm down!" He cried, rolling on his side. Another pony dragged him behind the a nearby rock, probably to give some in battle speech about bravery and such. You know, the average combat cliché.
"You're serving an imposter! She's not the real Celestia! She stole her body and locked her up in her own!"
"Lies! You, yes, you, shut him up magic!"
"What kind of magic?"
"I don't know, just... kill him with fire!"
A white Unicorn stood up in plain sight, slinging a Fireball out of his horn, striking the rock in a explosion.
"WHY is it ALWAYS fire? Can't you Wizards just, I don't know, throw ICE or something?"
"Great idea! And yes, I'm a wizard!"
"How did you even get into the guards..." The commander said aloud as the unicorn froze Will's shelter with a ice blast.
Firing another arrow, Will struck the pony just above the heart, somehow avoiding the mess of veins and the jugular there. The pony fell down, screaming (weakly) in pain.
Cursing, the commander began to signal with his hooves, telling nearby ponies a new set of tactics. Peaking around, he could see they were moving, changing position for...
A assault! They're going to charge you, and what do you do when they do that?
I don't... I don't know...
You switch places, idiot. What have I taught you? Only fight with your daggers as a last resort.
I only have one dagger.
Of course you do...
The sagely mentor sighed, and disappeared again. The ponies were about to spring from their hiding places, and now would be the best time.
Moving with the shadows and the wind, Will slowly made his way along the side of the hill as the ponies ran in full force, jumping his old position and crushing- nothing.
"Where did he-"
A arrow protruded from the ponies shoulder, and Will continued as the group helped their fallen comrade, taking shelter behind the rock. The still frozen rock.
Another arrow struck the boulder- and it cracked in half, before falling apart before the Guard's eyes.
"Surrender now, or you all die." Will said, another arrow drawn.
"Why would we ever surrender to-"
"I surrender! I surrender! Don't shoot!" Taking off his armor, a guard got down on his stomach, followed by another. And another. Soon, only their commander was left standing, mouth agape as Will approached, arrow still drawn.
"Do you surrender? Or do you die?"
The last pony standing just looked at his allies- his friends, and gave up. Throwing away his helmet, he sat down as Will held count over the group.
"Now, will you listen to REASON, or will you continue to live in bliss, ignoring evidence and the truth?"
"Reason, just don't kill us!"
"Good... good... because I don't want to kill you all because of a few lies on your 'Princess's' part. You see, Celestia, after the Gallah, was left unguarded. Were there any guards following her? Does any of you recall?"
"They were all on shift at the castle. We didn't think she would leave."
"Well, you were wrong. Immediately after the party, her body was stolen by- guess who? The only pony you've probably ever had in your dungeons."
"Trixie?"
"Yes, but the one you threw in the dungeons was actually Celestia, under a spell that prevented others from telling her real name, until someone called her it."
"Well... it does kinda make sense... the first thing Celestia asked for was a mirror when she returned, and her selection for food was a bit... odd."
"Yeah, not to mention she suddenly became a dick, if you don't recall that."
"And visiting the prisoner pretty often, too..."
"That's because she can't raise the sun. Only the real Celestia can, who's in..."
"Trixies body! It makes sense now- that's why she wont raise the damn thing, scaring us half to death saying she would let us die until she had her sister and the prisoner in her reach!"
"Yes! You get it now! Finally! Now, tell me, where is she?"
"Preparing herself for you, apparently. She's stocking up in the Excloper Dungeon," the commander said, standing up."
"Knew it. Anyway, who's side are you on?"
"Celestia's, of course!"
"Good, because she's here right now. In fact, she's right behind you."
Turning around, the guard met eyes with the real Celestia. A moment later, and it clicked.
"Celestia, my Princess!" He said, bowing his head. The others soon followed lead, bowing and neighing their praise to her.
"Thank you, Will, for the introduction. Charger, Spring, Brash, Kicker, Blake, Sting, you may all arise."
"See? She knows all of our names! It must be her!"
"Of course I know all of my Guard's names. They all aren't anonymous henchmen, are they?" She said, smiling. The guard ponies laugh.
"Anyway, bring me Hoovesly, Horston and... Derp so I can heal them."
"Derp? Really? That's that Unicorns name?"
"Yeah, he's another pony's brother, her name is Derpy because of their... mental condition. We gave him a job in the army so he wouldn't feel left out. But he's pretty decent with his magic, though a bit sloppy."
"That's Derp alright..." One of the guards said, picking up the confused pony from behind a boulder.
"Come on Derp, we're going to get Cupcakes."
"Cupcakes are good. I like cupcakes. But I hate muffins. My sister loves muffins and I love my sister. But I hate muffins. But it's okay because my sister likes them because she says they taste good and she really likes the purple ones."
"That's cool Derp, and we have Green cupcakes over here, your favorite."
"I like green cupcakes the best because they taste like funny!" He said, standing up, wincing in pain, but smiling nevertheless.
Healing Derp first, Celestia gave Will his arrow back. The second and third ponies stood the pain well, and with his Arrows fully stocked and nopony dead, he felt a bit relieved.
"I guess it's safe to trust them. And if they try anything funny, you can hit them with a solar flare like you did with that last guard who tried to kill you."
"...Solare flare?" She said, and Will winked.
"Oh, yes, of course! A blast of heat radiation from the sun! It took about thirty seconds for it to reach him, but he was begging for his life the whole time."
One of the guards stopped dead in his tracks, along with a few others who began to walk stiff. The chances of them betraying them were decreasing by the second.
"Yeah, or you could strip them of their magical powers, or their wings, leaving nothing but bare skin. But we don't have to do that, because I trust them. And if they try anything stupid, I'll just pump them full of steel arrow heads."
Twirling one of the arrows in his finger, a few of the guards gulped. Yup. They're smarter then that, they don't want to die to try and attack "Trixie", do they? Actually... why did he bring it up? Will didn't even think about it...
That's your training. You'll start to remember as time goes by.
Who ARE you?
Me? Nobody- just one of the King's men from your time. Well, your past time.
The voice went silent again, and Will pondered on it...
Who was he?
They reached the camp to find Twilight and the others setting up more tents. Rarity was busy stitching up a green patterned cloak, with a hood large enough to cover Will's face in the shadows.
"Ah, Will, you're back! Please be a darling and try this on for me, please. It's for our upcoming mission."
"What's it do?"
"Well, naturally, it makes you invisible in a forest environment, and that's without magic. Magically, a whole lot more. Did you get the gems I asked for, Celestia?"
"Yes, I managed to find quite a few. But I stumbled across a large Emerald, like you requested.
"Thank you! With a little bit of carving and enchantment, this will be beautiful when I'm finished! Now, to tell you a bit about it while I work..."
Pulling out a small, thick knife, she began to scrape small layers of dust off of the green Gem with magic, humming a song while she did so. She stopped for a moment to explain.
"Now, the first spell I'm putting on her gathers energy from the environment, specifically the forest. It's slow, but after a few minutes, you will have quite a lot. The second spell is for camouflage, like the cloak... except a bit more advanced. Invisibility, basically. But only when you choose too- it drains from your power extremely fast, and may only last for a few minutes."
Humming again, the knife plunged into the Emerald, removing a chunk from it, into a flatter shape. This continued for a while.
"Now, the next spell is a bit more difficult, but I've discussed it with Celestia earlier, who agreed to help me place it. It's a damage absorbing spell- everytime something makes contact with you, portions of the energy from the blow will be pulled into the gem, decreasing the power of the blow and filling the gem faster. But it wont stop a blow- you'll still be bleeding, of course, but there's another spell for that. This gem will heal you quickly, if you have the energy in your body to do so. It draws off your stamina if you are bleeding to death to fix the wound- a great trade off if you ask me. Of course, it wont remove the blood stains, but it never hurts to wash your clothes once in a while, hm?"
Playing around with the gem in the air, she examined it once more, carving a few fine and delicate lines into it.
"There are also some enchantments on the cloak itself... it will repair itself over time, like you, so you don't have to worry about large holes giving away your cover. How does this look to you?"
Using magic, she held the gem in front of my face- it was a fine Oak Leaf, strong but delicate looking. It was a fine cut gem- and beautiful.
"I love it! Do you do this for a living?"
"No, not really, but gems are part of my job. I use them in dress making all of the time."
"You make dresses... out of gems? How common are they here?"
"Why, if you know where to look, you can find thousands of them. But they are still pretty rare, I will not lie. You should come to my boutique some time! I'll make you a beautiful suit- you are a boy, aren't you?"
"Yeah, isn't it obvious?"
"Well, you're the first human I've met, so I had no clue. I was just assuming you were one- your voice is pretty deep."
"Er... thanks? By the way, do you know if Luna is busy?"
"Why sure, darling. At the moment, she's in her tent, resting. She's never had to use so much magic in quite a while, is what Celestia told me."
"Thanks. And thank you for making me this beautiful cloak-"
"Don't mention it, it's the least I can do." Turning back to her work, Will left to find Luna's tent, running into Spike along the way.
"Ah, Spike. Trixie is in the dungeons, you should plan for them."
Sighing, the dragon picked up a couple of maps and tore them up.
"Fine. I'll have to get more paper from Twilight later on..."
Leaving the dragon to his duties, Will got directions from Applejack.
"She's over there in them brambles I think. Don't know why she wanted her tent in there- I guess to protect herself from some of the wild creatures out here. Like lions and those coons- wouldn't be the first time a coon crawled into somepony's tent. Oh, and before ya go, what's it like to be dead?"
"A bit random, but I don't see why I shouldn't tell you. It's like being cold... and compressed, like your clothes are way to tight. And everything is darker then normal... really hard to see and remember things from your past. Not to mention that everything goes right through you... it's very scary in my opinion."
"So... do you think any of them would haunt your house for no reason?"
"Personally? I felt like staying where I was when I died. I didn't want to move. I just... wanted to stay there... I couldn't remember what happened, but I felt I should just... not leave. But... I think I remember hearing someone say something to me, and I started to remember things, like that I have unfinished business. So I followed Luna and Celestia, and when they were about to bury me... I just had to stop them. So I guess it's possible if you don't have someone to tell you to move it."
Applejack visibly shivered, then waved him off with a hoof and began to set out lanterns from a wagon.
Finding Luna's tent, it was kind of hard to knock... Instead he resorted to calling out her name.
"Luna?"
For a moment, no answer, until he heard a tired voice reply.
"Yes, Will?"
"Can I come in?"
The zipper to the tent slowly moved, and she lit a lantern.
"Please do. We need to talk, anyway."
Stepping in, he crossed his legs and zipped up the tent again. When he turned his head again, Luna was an inch away, starring into his blue eyes.
"I want you. Now."
"W-what?"
"Take me."
For a moment, Will didn't know how to react. And without that mentoring voice to guide him, he sat there in confusion for a moment.
"I- I don't understand."
"Do I have to spell it out for you? I want you. Isn't it obvious enough?"
Embarrassed, Will began to sweat. This was WAY past his level of knowledge. He knew what she meant- but... would he really do it? He's not a pony, and it would be kind of sick to do it, not to mention wrong.
"But... I'm... I'm not a pony..."
"Do you think I care? And I'm not a human."
"But... I don't know if I'm ready yet."
"Well then, we'll have to see. I want you to prove it."
"Prove what?"
"Prove your size to me."
Will gulped. Then began to analyze the situation.
A pony he's only spent a few days with wants him... in bed. With her. A pony. And a human.
The only logical thing to do was pass out before he had a panic attack, probably killing him... again. For the third time.
Of course, he had to fake it. He was an amazing actor- able to portray any accent, or fit into any persona he could possibly try.
Falling onto his side, he let his eyes roll back slightly and his mouth open. Completely limp, he looked close to dead. In fact, if he didn't have a pulse, you could say he was dead.
Luna looked at him for a moment, then giggled.
"Well, can't say I didn't try. You know Will, I'm surprised, really. You can stand up to anything- even a tyrannical ruler and a bunch of guards. Heck, you can even die with a smile on your face... But you can't face a girl and just smile, and nod dumbly..."
She laughed a bit more, then cuddled up to him a bit before falling asleep.
Oh god how am I going to escape from this...
Personally, I would have done the same thing, because I find it sick and immoral. But she's sentient, so it's different.
Who are YOU to decide my love life?
Your old mentor, that's if you remember me. Hell, wanna know why you're here?
For a moment, Will thought.
Think, boy... in your old age in your past life, what did your horse began to do?
A image of his horse flashed in his mind... a small, stocky horse with thick fur, and a odd expression on it's face... was that a smile?
It began to talk. Then so did the other horses- particularly our kind of horses. You know, the small, pony like ones. This was before the great war- days before it. Afterwords, humans began to fade from existence because of our dwindling numbers. Disease and corruption spread, and the fiefs fell... until Araulen, the capital of the known world, died as well. You were the last human. The last of your kind. And finally, age struck... and you died as well. You don't remember this?
I think I see... I think...
Images. Hundreds of them- so fast he could barely describe them. Fights. Battles. Wars. Death, famine, disease... his mentor's name... name...
It's okay. It will come to you over time. But this was thousands of years ago. As you died, you refused to pass on- so you left this world. You found a new host. At birth, you were destined to die... you, Will, not my apprentice, was doomed to die. He saved you. He combined part of his own soul with yours- and here you are now. You're connected with this land. It took Will, my Will, a thousand and five hundred years to find you. By the time this happened, ponies began to evolve. I watched them- I never left. I watched as they all learned to speak... as the sun began to slow down, and the days became longer. Then, it completely disappeared one day- it went out. And on that day, total darkness... all of the ponies were confused, scared, and soon it grew cold... but one day, Celestia and Luna were born, the ones you're helping now. Magically imbued with power, they took upon themselves the job of raising a new sun and moon. I watched them, Will.
So... I'm alive because...
Because my apprentice imbued his soul with yours, allowing you both to live. But you're connected with this world- a connection stronger then any magic could break. As long as you're here, Will, the Will inside of you, refuses to leave again. You can't die here, not completely. But your body can. If it perishes, the two of you will split, and so will the emotions and memories. Your soul will begin to diminish- without my apprentice to keep yours stable, you will disappear, and cease to exist.
You're meant to live here. You've survived because of Will- he's teaching you subconsciously, even as we speak. You will not age because of your bond with this world- your world, Araulen. Tell me, do you remember who you are now?
I think... I think I do... I'm...
Think! Think! It's there, you must remember!
"You're a Ranger, Will. We are both Rangers."
I'm a Ranger. My full name is Will Treaty. My horse's name was Tug. Your name... is Halt.
Yes! That's it! That's it!
Memories flooded his mind again of places he's never seen before- hundreds of people and buildings... but one building in particular struck his mind.
A small house, in familiar territory... it was where his home was, the old tree... where he was trained...
Araulen Castle was the abandoned feif past the river. Maps... geography of the area. Canterlot never existed in those days... Ponyville didn't either. Hell, most of the creatures didn't exist either, only a few of them was mythical enough to be considered one of the creatures of these days, like the Kalkara...
But other memories came- of far away places... the frozen lands of Skandia... Clonmel, Aridda... Macandaw... they all seemed so close... and yet so far...
That's it Will. You traveled the known world, fought many battles, killed many vile criminals and creatures. You're better suited with a bow and throwing knife then a sword, or a shield. Do you remember that cloak that pony was making? Or the Oak leaf? Do those seem familiar?
Yes... they do... a sign of the King's Rangers...
I implanted the idea into her head to help you remember.
But... why didn't you tell me earlier? Like when I first came to Equestria...
"Because I told him not too. Not yet."
That's right, Will. But that didn't mean we didn't influence your actions along the way. Like actually surviving...
"And avoiding poisonous plants..."
And how to create steel, to make glass...
"Everything you know about herbs, and how you 'found out' about the smokeless plant..."
The Observatory. We tried to teach you about stars and how to navigate by them, but I really don't know if you got that point from the Earth book.
"Oh, and not to mention archery. That's mostly me."
Okay okay! I get it! You've held my life in your hands since birth! God!
Will began to clutch his hand into a fist in anger... grabbing some of Luna's fur in the process.
You shouldn't have done that.
"Really, Will? Great, just when she thought you were unconscious. I hope you know I taught you everything you know about acting."
CAN'T YOU ALL JUST LEAVE ME ALONE?
"Will... stop thaaaaat..." Luna said, still asleep. She was obviously dreaming about him.
Check where your hand is, Will. While I laugh.
Oh god...
"I'm going to just ignore the following scene for my own safety."
Luna's eyes snapped open, and she turned her head to see Will's eyes open, starring at her lower body.
"Well well well..." She said, smiling.
"Er... I just remembered I had to help... uh... Twilight, with... uh... setting up her tent! I'll have to take a rain-check on the... you know..."
Quickly leaving a huffing Luna behind, Rarity stopped him.
"I have finished the cloak. Here, try it on."
Unbuttoning the green cloak, she slipped it around his neck. A perfect fit.
"Good! Good! Now here, try it with the hood."
Slipping it on, Will smiled. He felt safer and more mysterious when nobody could make eye contact with him.
"That's why you like to wear hoods so much."
"Now, try the invisibility spell. All you have to do is try to hide yourself, and the cloak will react. When you're trying to hide, so is the cloak, so it uses magic to do so!"
"I don't understand how that works, but okay," Crouching, the cloak covered his body, making him unnoticeable.
"Well if you want a official explanation, ask Twilight. It seems to be working well enough. Anyway, remember, this cloak doesn't make you immortal. Although enchanted to absorb damage, it will fatigue you if you go around and get... stabbed a lot. Just try to avoid falling on any spikes, or being kicked in the face, because I heavily doubt it could repair a fatal blow like that."
"Thanks. And I'll go see Twilight right away, this is rather confusing."
"Oh, and I need to work on the stitching a bit more. Here, give it back..."
Taking it off, he left the fancy pony to her business, and found Twilight studying maps with Spike.
"You know, even though you are very helpful like this, I really liked it when you were fun. And didn't wear glasses."
"But the glasses are essential for me to keep focus."
"And when did you become so... I don't know, intelligent?"
"When I started to read all of your books, of course."
"Twilight, it's just best to... let him do his thing. And I need to ask you a few things, in private."
"Uh... sure, if you ask."
Leading the purple pony outside, he found another clearing a few yards from the tent, clear of any ponies.
"First of all, how does this cloak work?"
"Well, the science behind the magic is a bit advanced... from what Celestia told me of the enchantments, it has a basic neuron reader compatible with the cloaking enchantment, that senses adrenaline and the basic reflex to be stealthy, so it uses energy gathered from the environment to bend light rays around you, making you invisible. As you know, everything has energy- and it's constantly flowing around you. It's absorbed into the Oak leaf through a conscious entity that only has a few purposes- this entity exists through combining electrons to form a small bit of matter that is inside of the Emerald. It's function, to live, is to absorb energy, and do anything to protect itself, by protecting it's bearer. Bending physical matter with gathered energy, it can heal you as well as itself in the event it's damaged."
Will's eye twitched.
"Er... okay then. Be sure to NEVER tell me how magic works again, okay? Now, my other question... what do you know about Equestrian history?"
"Everything. What do you want to know?"
"Well, before Equestria was Equestria, exactly."
"Er... a bit more specific, please?"
"What was this land before ponies inhabited it?"
"Well... from what I know, there are a few theories. The most basic one is that we slowly evolved from stupid creatures into talking beings... we found evidence of Humans like you, Will, so we probably stole your language."
"Uh huh... one last thing. What do you know about... er... how should I say this without you implying something very stupid? Well, pony and... not so pony, relations."
"Like... diplomacy between Dragons kind and Pony kind?"
"Like that... except a bit more... intimate."
"Oh... OH! You don't mean..."
"Yeah uh... don't ask why..."
"Well, I'm not an expert on the subject- and I'm an expert on every subject. But it's frowned upon in Equestria. Some want it outlawed completely, saying how it's wrong and such."
"Well... what about Royalty? What do you know about their history and this kind of thing?"
"Well... nothing like that has ever happened in the royal bedchambers, if you want to know. It could destroy one's political standing, unless if they were someone like Celestia, they could be thrown out of office."
Will breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thank you, Twilight. You've been very helpful."
"Yeah, don't mention it. Ever."
Walking away, Will almost collided into a bouncing Pinkie Pie.
"Whoa, hey there! I didn't see you! I'm Pinkie Pie" She giggled specifically at Will.
"Er... what are you doing?"
"I'm giggling at the ghostie! Get it?"
"Um... is this because I was a literal ghost at one point?"
"Of course, silly! Hey! We should have a coming back to life party!"
"Um... no thanks. I think I'll just... walk on over her, and... yeah..."
"Oke-dokie-lokey!" She said, bouncing over to the camp fire, before pulling a bag of marshmallows out of a sack nearby.
"Isn't she the same pony who sang me happy birthday?" Will said aloud. Oh well.
The campsite seemed overly crowded- with the guards watching Celestia like a hawk, helping her with every single task, and not to mention every other pony...
Rainbow Dash was back, she was resting from the storm over Canterlot.
Applejack was busy with what appeared to be a oven to bake something in.
Rarity was fretting over the damage's in some of the guard's armor, forcefully removing it from them to repair it.
Twilight was reading more books, eying him carefully to see what he was up too.
Pinkie Pie, was of course, being Pinkie Pie. She now had twelve marshmallows stacked on her head.
Fluttershy was in her tent, resting as well. She was tired from gathering a willing animal army who would help them retake the land.
Spike was in the clearing, now wearing a monocle, outlining a map to let it dry.
Derp was trying to place another marshmallow on Pinkie Pie's head.
And Luna was in her tent.
Counting out the tents, he realized they were one short, even if Spike stayed with Twilight and two guards kept night shifts, which would probably happen.
Of course.
Approaching Applejack, she asked her about it.
"Yeah, we didn't have enough tents. You're going to have to bunk with somepony, sorry Will. I would offer to share my tent with ya, but I buck in my sleep. But it's only for one night, right?"
"Yeah... right..."
Twilight said no, she and Spike were already bunking, Fluttershy was already in a dead sleep, Rainbow Dash wouldn't wake up to answer, Celestia said she couldn't because the guards might snap, every guard said no (and Derp said "Banana" so Will wasn't sure whether that was a yes or no,) Rarity said she didn't mind Will in the tent, as long as he wasn't allergic to cats (which she had to bring hers, and he's allergic to the house type) so that left...
Luna. Who wanted him. In bed. Now.
"I better get used to it... damn me and my obsession with the night..."
Calling out her name, he entered the tent. She was still awake, grooming herself in a small mirror.
"Hello, Will." She said, giving a bright and cheery smile.
"I have to sleep with you tonight, there aren't enough tents."
"Well I'll be glad to let you stay with me. There's plenty of room, as you can see."
The tent was pretty big. About ten feet wide and six feet long, the ceiling was four foot, so Will had to crouch. It appeared pretty ordinary besides the immense size, and there was more then enough blankets.
"Look, Luna... before you go off wild-"
"Wild? Oh, I do like to be a bit wild..."
"Wild assumptions, I'm not ready yet-"
"Oh come on. We both know you are."
"No, I'm not-"
"Yes... yes you are."
A bit forcefully, Luna stepped forward, pinning him to the side of the tent.
"You know, this reminds me of that time I killed a rapist..."
NOT HELPING! NOT HELPING!
Oh shut up, Will. He's doomed, you said so yourself the night of that party in Canterlot. He's going to have to face it- pick your girlfriends better.
"Don't you mean horse friend? Or pony friend?"
WILL YOU TWO SHUT UP AND HELP!
The only thing we can do is give you knowledge and push you in the right direction.
Kissing Will on the lips, Luna began to move to his cheek.
"Here, let me help you take off that heavy armor..."
"If you want our advice, don't let her take off the armor. After all, it IS protection, though not standard Ranger Gear..."
I DON'T CARE ABOUT RANGER GEAR I WANT OUT OF HERE!
Well, the only thing we can do is sit back, relax, and watch you struggle in this situation.
I hate you... both of you...
She was amazingly quick in slipping the armor off- but she only went as far as the hauberk before Will stopped her.
"I'm not ready, and I don't want to do this..."
"Why not? Am I too ugly for you or something?"
"No, it's just I'm not a pony. Nor am I ready to take the relationship this far. Not yet, at least."
"So I'm ugly."
"No, your beautiful. If I wanted to call you ugly, I'd have to find a definition of 'ugly' in the dictionary, and write, "as beautiful as a spring flower" underneath it, scratching out the rest."
"What kind of 'spring flower' huh? An ugly one?"
"Wow, you REALLY want to go there, huh? Look, it's a joint decision whether we do this or not. Ever heard of the term, "rape" before? Yeah, I know you have. Well, it can happen both ways."
"I... why... how... why don't you love me?"
Tell her she's lying.
"That's a lie if I ever heard one. It's obvious that I love you. I love your beauty, your voice, your body... there's nothing I CAN'T love about you. If you want drama, watch a play or something. But I just... don't... want to do this. I couldn't. Not yet."
Luna began to cry, turning away from Will.
Oh, she is GOOD. Haven't seen a girl so desperate in a while.
Mood killer.
Hey, you wanted advice. This is an obvious emotional trap. Careful what you say or do next, this happened to a friend of mine once...
Grabbing her by the chin, he made eye contact- a silent gesture, somehow comforting in her current mood. Leaning closer, he placed his forehead on hers, and they continued to stare into each others eyes. The lantern went out- and the tent was sent into darkness once more. But the moon was so large and bright, that it felt like the small glows were magnified, until the light penetrated the tent, filling it with the lunar rays.
"Luna... I..."
"I know..."
And they kissed, before falling onto the pillows and into their dreams.
This is the end of the chapter for now. Part three will be out, and for those who don't understand the whole 'Ranger' part, then you should know this...
My full name is William R. Treaty. An amazing coincidence if you read the "Ranger's Apprentice" series. I didn't think about tying the two worlds together until I saw a map of both worlds, and some of the art and such. It turns out they are quite similar, in some parts, that is.
Anyway, they are amazing books, and they influenced my hobbies. I like sword play and archery both equally, thanks to them.
Oh, and if you want to know why it took so long to write this chapter, it was because my dad died when I was near finished. I couldn't touch it until I recently... sorry about the wait.
Part three will be out whenever I feel like it. Don't ask when, because I don't know if I should start or not. Not for a few days, at least. So... maybe next week. It depends if I can get out of this depression or not.
Oh, and I'm not going to consider this a cross over... it only helps you get a little bit of past history on the OC if you want it. Reading those stories (or at least the Wiki) will help you understand the past history of this fic's Equestria. Anyway, if you want me to set this as a crossover (and I really don't) go ahead and complain in the reviews, so I can ignore you like about 10% of the Authors on this site. Seriously, next part, you will only see a few bits of dialogue from Will and Halt.