"What do you mean 'Princess Amore has been overthrown'!?" Yelled Celestia, who noticed immediately after. "I am sorry for screaming, general."
The general, Steel Wing, understood her frustration and kept calm himself. It had only been a few days after Tirek's defeat and to hear such news reach her would add on to her current stress. "All is forgiven, your highness," he replied, clearing his throat to continue speaking. "Yes, Princess Amore has been overthrown by a pony calling himself 'King Sombra'. Our scouts reported him coming far north having a mass army of ponies by his side before the change in powers."
"I see," she said, not knowing what else to say. This was more of a political revolution than an actual annexation from another nation. "Do you know if Princess Amore escaped unharmed?"
Steel Wing shook his head. "There is no indication of her escaping. Her whereabouts are unknown."
"I see," Celestia said, leaning back on her chair.
"Do you wish to send our forces to the Empire?" He asked.
The solar princess sat back up. "No, we cannot interfere with political uprisings. If the nation was under attack yes, but such thing never occurred." She paused, thinking of what to do about this 'King' Sombra. "Send a battalion near the border. We should be at least ready if this king decides to invade. Hopefully such thing never occurs."
Steel Wing nodded. "Yes, your highness."
The doors of the Solar Throne opened wide gaining both Celestia's and Steel's attention. There they saw a unicorn with dark armor walking towards them with two Royal Guards by him just in case. "Princess Celestia," asked the unicorn.
"May I help you?"
"I come from the Empire upon the request of King Sombra." With his magic he pulled out a scroll, unrolling it and read what it had. "He requests to meet with you and your sister, Princess Luna, in a meeting of negotiations," he announced, rolling it back up after.
Celestia was in deep thought, deciding whether or not to accept this meeting. If she does, she may get the answer of where Princess Amore has gone. "Where and when will this meeting take place?" She asked.
"Between the borders this twilight, princess."
Again, she thought, then nodded. "Very well, tell your king I accept and will meet him."
The messenger made a quick bow and made his way out of the throne, still escorted by the guards. Steel Wing turned to the princess. "I guess we will see how this king is early," he said.
"I suppose he wishes to negotiate peace between us as soon as possible."
"I hope so, your highness."
Aniketos awoke late into the afternoon, something he had never done before. He knew he couldn't do anything about it since he was more awake in the night than in the day. An altering of his sleeping cycle was nothing to worry about, rather it was beneficial as he can see Celestia for the rest of the day and Luna for most of her night. He slowly rose, sitting on the side of the bed with only his loincloth on and the white bandages wrapped around his body with a few bandages on his arms.
Injury was never a problem for him to handle as he had to push through many in the past. The battle with Tirek was actually satisfying for him. He was trained to fight battles and take on much damage to his body. The world here was peaceful, something he was not used to much but also seeing almost fatal battles occur was another occurrence of not being used to since this world was so peaceful. Seeing the two princesses armed up was eye-opening to see, letting his thoughts about them be more respectable. They fought for their land and for the ponies, as well as the guards giving their all into defeating Tirek. He couldn't wrap his head around that no damage was inflicted when all the ponies attack but once he threw his dory, now destroyed, the wound did not heal. Magic would have a place in the many possibilities, or it could be since he is not from here he is much more powerful. He did break Celestia's magical bond against him when he was about to strike Tirek down. If he was to bring that up to the solar princess, she would make the excuse of being exhausted at that time. With a mischievous grin of course.
His eyes turned to what remained in the aftermath of the battle. His chest armor dented with a large opening of the chest area of where he was slashed as well as other parts being either destroyed or not usable, what remained of his dory, and his shield dented beyond further use and repair. His helmet, his kopis, and his blood stained cloak is what remained and usable. In his thoughts, he made it an objective to find repairs and replacements for his spartan uniform. Thinking back to the battle, it was either returning with the shield or on it. Even though he couldn't use it for the rest of the battle, before returning to the castle he made sure to have the shield with him while carrying Luna. The picture of Luna in armor overtook his imagination, thinking of how she looked while in battle. If he had arrived sooner to watch to see how impressive, how deadly, how beautiful…
"Huh? Beautiful?" Aniketos spoke out, shaking his head. "Why have I created such thoughts to be in my head?"
He did not mean to say Luna was not captivating. She certainly was, especially under the night sky, but calling a horse beautiful like she was a woman would mark him crazy in his world. She acted like a woman and he treated her as such naturally, even if she was what she was, a horse, a pony.
His feet touched the floor as he stood, grabbing his newly made tunic when Celestia found out his old one was ripped. He tied the rope around the waist, holding down the tunic along with having his kopis on his waist as well. He tied on his leather boots firmly, jumping up and down to assure it fitted with no looseness. He marched towards the door, opening it but stopping as he saw Astra about to knock. Why she was awake confused him since she was a nocturnal bat pony. "Uh, hi," she spoke first.
Aniketos raised an eyebrow. "Hello Astra. Can I help you with something?"
"Actually you can," Astra replied, "I wanted to know if you were hungry?"
"Aye I am, but what about you?"
"I can eat but-"
"No, I mean why a pony such as yourself is awake in a time as such as this?"
"Oh," she mono-toned out. "Well I don't know, I guess I wanted to spend time with a friend."
"Friend?" Aniketos questioned.
"Yeah, friend!" Astra smiled, but then frowned, her ears drooping. "You wish to be my friend right?"
Aniketos saw this, a feeling of empathy breaking through his wall for a moment. Of course she was a friend to him. She had helped him back to good health during the past few nights before bed. Quickly thinking, he lifted the bat pony up onto his shoulders.
Astra squeaked as she was lifted. She soon felt him start walking as he pulled the door closed. Him doing such act assured her that he did want to be her friend. "So where we going?" She asked.
"To have morning supper, I think. Do you have a word for morning supper in the middle of the day?" asked Aniketos.
"Brunch!" She replied.
"Brunch?"
"Breakfast and lunch. Brunch!"
Aniketos was confused but accepted such odd combination of words. "Aye then, brunch it is."
Both, mostly Aniketos, walked along the hallways of the castle. Astra spoke to the Spartan while giving directions on where to go as he still did not know the entirety of the castle yet. He knew a few ways to reach Celestia's and Luna's bed chambers as well as their throne rooms, a way to the gardens outside of the castle, and of course how to reach the dungeon since he was there for a bit until he was recognized as nonthreatening; now known as a hero to the Lunar Guards since he saved Luna, thanks to Astra spreading the story around her companions in the barracks.
The second day of having to rest due to his injuries, and Celestia telling him to rest, many of Luna's guards went to his room to thank him for saving their princess and honoring him with what he didn't understand. Probably a ritual of praise was all he could think of. Aniketos never considered himself a hero, only a spartan fulfilling his role as is, a soldier defending those he needed to defend. Even though they were all ponies, them giving him a place to live, food to eat, and much more, being by their princesses' side was hopefully a repayment for all they've done for him since he could not offer anything back.
A spark of memory broke his thoughts, remembering the current dream he had before awaking minutes ago. He had returned back to the battle site where both Celestia and Luna were, fighting Tirek with their attacks not doing any damage. Both sisters had been stuck down, but Tirek had turned his attention to Luna. He remembered himself rushing to her, blocking Tirek's magical attack and repeating the battle he had, except in the end he had executed the beast. Soon he found himself being wrapped by her in what appeared to be a hugging embrace. It had turned romantic from what he could recall, something he knew was not normal for him to dream. What happened next made him suspicious as Luna spoke like she was aware of her dreaming and shutting off the dream into blackness before he awoke.
Aniketos pulled himself out of his thoughts, hearing Astra continue to speak about her days in the Lunar Guard. He had practically never listened as she finished speaking. "The door on the left is the dining hall, Aniketos," she said to him.
He turned left upon hearing her, opening the door to see where he was when he walked with Luna in the past. Putting the bat pony down, he let her motion ahead of him so she can find a seat in this large room. Any seat would do, he knew, but Astra was taking awhile to choose where to sit. She went up, back down to where Aniketos stood, flew a bit above the table, then returned to the middle of the table on the right. "Here!" She finally told him.
Aniketos nodded, walking over to the other chair next to hers. "I suppose these seats are special for you to take much of time."
"The ponies who clean here switch the seats every time. Finding my favorite is difficult sometimes to the point where I may not eat because I cannot find my chair," she said.
What she said sounded childish to him. He still kept his mouth silent from saying such words to her. For him back at Sparta there was no separate chairs, only long benches that he and his brothers would sit on, sharing the table while they ate, spoke, and sometimes make jokes to one another. Plus it was easier to move than moving what could possibly be dozens of chairs, if it's not broken from some 'playful' fighting.
He didn't notice Astra speaking to some pony for what would be his breakfast. No meat was a factor he would need to give up on seeing that the ponies do not consume any. All around him considered it forbidden from his understanding, no different from horses which doesn't eat meat as well. Alternatives given to him would be satisfying enough though he will surly miss a well cooked piece of meat. Rations were no longer needed at the moment since there was no need to do such thing. He would eat with a normal eating schedule, most of the time being accompanied by Celestia or Luna.
Thoughts of the princesses came forward to him, thinking of how they fair from recovery. Celestia was almost to full health, running the nation normally without assistance. Her sister is still recovering, but not close to being better. She would be able to move in a slow pace without assistance, but her duty of raising and lowering the moon was still not possible. Celestia had taken the roll temporarily until Luna was strong enough to take over.
A bowl of salad with much accessories in it was placed down in front of him. Aniketos stared down to the green and multicolored pieces of fruit and vegetables mixed in meal. I desire meat.
He looked over to Astra, seeing her with a basket of different varieties of fruits. However, she did not eat them as intended, instead she placed her fangs down onto the fruit of choice and sucked on it, the color dying down to a grayish color before she set the sucked up fruit down in the bucket next to her basket. She took notice of Aniketos staring at her in much curiosity and confusion. "What?" She asked.
"You don't…eat it…?" He spoke.
Astra shook her head. "Nope! Sucking on them is much better. And tastier!" She struck her fangs down onto her next choice of fruit with a happy expression. "It's a good alternative since they don't offer meat in almost all of Equestria."
Aniketos' ears only picked up a word that caught his attention. "Did you say meat?"
Astra lifted up a banana as a shield. "Don't hurt me!"
"Put that piece of fruit down! I will not harm thee for something I wish to have as well," he said, taking a bite of his salad after.
"You eat meat too?"
"Aye. It has been part of my life as a daily meal. Realizing all ponies do not offer such is something I am not used to yet. I would have thought my mental discipline would help me but it is not working."
"Well lucky for you, I'm a bat pony," she smiled.
"So there are five different races of ponies in this world."
"Probably. And from your world there are more than just your spartan race right?"
"Correct. Many more and further beyond that I cannot name of."
Their discussion of races and ethnic backgrounds continued as they ate, Astra asking the questions more than Aniketos can think of. It was a repeat of explaining his background, which he did not mind doing. Explaining those of his story was never a problem.
With his meal finished, he stole the last bright red apple from Astra's basket, which made her hiss at him. "That's mine!" She yelled.
"Oh well," was all Aniketos spoke out as he stood back up.
Astra grumbled to herself as she joined him walking out of the dining room, leaving some ponies to clean up. The two continued to speak, this time of her being able to take the Spartan to a place where they serve meat and much more. He, of course, gladly accepted the offer. He wouldn't know when they both would go to such place, but it let him breathe out in relief that he can still enjoy what he had back in his world.
The two soon stopped their tracks when Celestia started to walk in the hallway, along with two of her guards. "Good afternoon, Aniketos. I hope you slept fairly," Celestia spoke.
Aniketos watched the two royal guards give a suspicious stare towards Astra, who returned the stare back to them. Rivalry was something he never noticed since ponies are so friendly. There's a few exceptions, he guessed. "Aye I did. I do not prefer to sleep in so much in the day though."
All of them started to walk together, the two different guards on other sides."You have been staying up throughout the night checking on my sister the past few days. Maybe you are adjusting your sleeping pattern to accommodate her wakefulness," Celestia explained.
Aniketos nodded, remembering what he had thought when waking up. "I suppose. At least when my cycle is adjusted, I will be able to see you and Luna with no strain."
All had made their way to Luna's bedchamber, which was a place Aniketos wasn't planning on going to so soon. Luna would most likely be asleep, so for Celestia to come to her had to be important news.
She turned to her guards, telling them to wait out in the hallway while she was inside. The two eyed the bat pony still with suspicion of her planning on committing a crime before they saluted their princess and stood at attention. With her magic, she softly opened the door to Luna's bedchamber and walked in with both Aniketos and Astra behind her. The door closed shut quietly to not forcefully awake her sister. She would do her playful jokes another day.
Celestia walked to up to a sleeping Luna while both Aniketos and Astra stayed put. The bat pony knew about her attitude when awoken early, Aniketos only learning recently, remembering being shot and electrified before the night princess was fully awake.
"Luna..." Celestia softly spoke, shaking her a bit. "Luna wake up..."
Luna groaned as she turned the other direction. "Hmm...Ani..."
The Spartan's eye twitched while both Celestia and Astra tried to contain their laughter. "I do not see the humor of this!" He expressed quietly.
Celestia shook Luna more, this time finally awaking from whatever she dreamt of. "Hmm? Sister?" She softly spoke, looking over to the dim light bleeding through the curtains. "It is too early for me to be awake. Is there something wrong?" Soon she noticed Aniketos and Astra standing not too far from her bed. She went wide-eyed. "How long have you been here!?"
"Long enough for you to call Aniketos out loud from whatever you were dreaming of," giggled Celestia.
Luna turned red in embarrassment and hid under her bed sheets. "I-I do not know what you are speaking about!"
Her sister joined her on the bed. "Calm yourself, sister, I have awoken you for a reason I do not want to delay." She watched Luna pop out from her sheets, ready to listen to what she had to say. "Princess Amore has been overthrown."
Luna stood up in shock. "We must do something!"
"We...we cannot..."
"What do you mean by that? Princess Amore has been our friend for many years, keeping the peace between us and her Empire!"
"From what my general's scouts have explained, this was a political uprising instead of a nation attacking. Under the laws that our ancestors have placed, we cannot interfere with what happens to our allies and their politics."
Luna sat on her bed, her ears down. "And what about Amore?"
"There is no news of her yet. We can only hope for the best," said Celestia. "There is another reason for me to awake you."
Her sister looked to her. "What is it?"
"The new ruler named King Sombra wishes to have a meeting with both of us at dusk," she answered.
"This king makes no waste in meeting with neighboring nations. Do you believe it will be peaceful?"
"I can only hope so," Celestia wrapped a wing around Luna. She turned to Aniketos and Astra. "You two will be coming as well."
"Yes, your highness." Astra replied, knowing if she denied she would be punished.
"I am not sure how I will be able to attend your meeting. After all, I am without armor and also not one of your kind," said Aniketos.
"Do not fret Aniketos, you are more worthy to attend such meeting with us, as well as Astra. I will arrange-"
"Nay!" Luna interrupted, receiving all the attention. "I wish to be the one to offer him new armor."
Celestia smiled, not objecting to her sister. "Very well then."
Princess Luna walked back and forth in front of Aniketos' door as he was changing into the armor she had done for him. The custom made armor was rushed as well to accommodate the unexpected meeting request by this king she was told about. It angered her no one was to make action to save Amore and her empire, 'political uprising' her flank. Her subjects were fond of Princess Amore for keeping all in order, why would all of them overthrow her? It was an answer she would have to wait, an answer everypony had to wait for. At least Celestia had sent soldiers near the border in case of immediate invasion.
She knew if invasion was to happen, she would not be able to aid for a portion of it. Her recovery is almost complete, but it is not enough for her as she is not able to do her regular duties such as raising and lowering the moon. Once she recovered, she was going to create the most breathtaking night for all to see. Aniketos would be impressed as well since he praised the moon so much.
"Luna I am surprised you were able to have armor made so quickly, and in the correct size and shape as well," commented Aniketos.
"It would have been much quicker if you lent me what remained of your attire without objecting," Luna replied.
"I only reacted as such as there was no one that had knowledge to replicate what I fought with, until..."
"Yes, until you remembered we have magic to make a duplicate of your belongings," she spoke, not hearing the Spartan reply for a minute until he did, apologizing for his reaction. "It is nothing to apologize for, Ani, you had every right to react as such."
Luna pictured back to her lunar blacksmith, which she looked in confusion with Aniketos armor and weapons when presented with it. Having the mold done on it, the armor and weapons was melted down and was soon completed, the metal being placed on the mold to take shape. With the help of Luna's magic, the bronze armor and weapons was completed by Luna's standards, but the blacksmith denied the armor being taken just yet. She had said that it would not last long with how flimsy it was, so she had added a thin plate of iron to each part of the armor before being finally complete. The helmet being completed a few minutes after the hairs were put into place.
The door clicked open, interrupting Luna's memory as she saw the Spartan in full armor, holding his shield and having his kopis strapped onto his waist, the newly made dory lying against the wall near he old equipment. His helmet was new, but the cut along the right side of the eye remained due to the mold. The hair was no longer red, instead it represented Luna's color of her mane. She was in awe seeing him, which Aniketos took notice of. "I suppose you enjoy what you see," he spoke.
"My blacksmith did an excellent job on recreating your armor," said Luna.
"Aye I agree. I noticed there is another layer of metal on it as well."
"Iron. She had made your armor better to withstand more punishment against anything you come across."
Aniketos shuffled his shoulders, feeling the weight difference. "The weight will be something I'll adjust to in time."
Soon, a mare pony holding a blue cloak trotted up to Luna, bowing before speaking. "Your highness, your request has been completed," the mare announced.
Luna used her magic to take the cloak. "Thank you for completing it in such haste."
The mare bowed again. "You are welcome, your majesty." She then turned and made her way back to where she belonged.
"I suppose this is for me," asked Aniketos.
Luna nodded and levitated the cloak to him, which he grabbed and put around his body. Once on, she nodded again in approval. "Are you ready to depart? It is almost time."
"I'm ready," he said, walking out and closing the door behind him.
The two made way to where both Celestia and Astra would be waiting down through the hallways of the castle. Luna glanced to the Spartan walking by her side, seeing how much of a Lunar Guard he looked since her requests were automatically for lunar guards, with only a few adjustments. The same would have happened if her sister had done it, the helmet's hair and the cloak having to match Celestia's guard.
Once outside, the sunset was starting to begin, the sun slowly moving in the horizon. Seeing both Celestia and Astra waiting already in the flying chariot, Luna made her way to it along with Aniketos. The two hopped on, Aniketos catching Luna from suddenly falling. He helped her inside the chariot before he himself entered.
"We are ready to leave, my guards," Celestia said to her pegasus guards.
"So do you have an idea of how long our journey will be?" Asked Aniketos.
"In a few minutes. Ten at most," Celestia replied.
Aniketos raised an eyebrow. "You mean we will make it quickly?"
"Correct." She answered back. "Have you ever been on a flying chariot, Aniketos?"
"Can't say I have. Only the gods and goddesses have power to do such thing." He soon felt the chariot begin its movement, the soft amount of air hitting the back of his neck. Looking out to see how fast it was going, he surly regretted it as he saw the ground far from where they just were a few moments ago. A bit of fear rose in him, a feeling he knew was forbidden to have as a spartan. He calmed himself and looked back to Celestia. "A few minutes you say?"
He watched her nodded with a smile. The ride was silent but understandable to him, the two princesses do not know what is to happen once they meet this king. Any information he knew was only of the name, the pony he overthrew, and a new land he never heard of. His head retained the information he was receiving, seeing more villages from out the small window. The open spaces of grasslands and forests shined bright along the sunset, yellow and a dark shade of orange hiding their true colors from his eyes.
Only three minutes had passed as he saw one of the large mountains having a large village with much more advanced buildings than the others he saw from villages down below. The large population of ponies were visible as well, seeing most wave up to it knowing it was Celestia's chariot.
Dusk began to form in the sky as the sun was almost no longer in sight besides the light it produced, some stars being able to be seen throughout the occurring twilight. The chariot made its soft decent to the ground, coming into a halt after. Astra hoped out of the chariot first, followed by Celestia and Luna, Aniketos coming out last. He felt the change in temperature from where they were, seeing in the distance more mountains but with much snow on the top. Turning to where the three ponies, he joined behind them as they already were walking to where they needed to be. He saw a large tent with light coming from inside, probably due to the candles, and beside the entrance was two soldiers with similar armor like Celestia's guards but in a darker color. Turning behind him, he was able to see the soldiers Celestia had requested, all camped out.
"State your business," ordered one of Sombra's soldiers.
"I am Princess Celestia. My sister by me is Princess Luna. We have been invited by your king to meet here," answered Celestia.
The two guards looked at each other then back at the two princesses. They soon took notice of both Astra and Aniketos. "The two behind you must remain here," one of them spoke.
Luna immediately didn't like the request. "You must be absurd if we-"
"Very well," Celestia interrupted, receiving a shocked look from her sister.
The two guards nodded to the two princess, allowing them enter. Celestia entered first, followed by a concerned Luna. She turned back to both Astra and Aniketos. Astra looked concerned as well, knowing her guard would not be able to protect her. Aniketos had a different reaction. He gave her a small smile, a smile which looked genuine and not forced. It calmed her surprisingly, knowing that a battle-hardened soldier would not smile unless he knew everything was going to be okay. She smiled back to him before walking into the tent.
With the two princesses in the tent, the meeting was to begin shortly. Both princesses sat in silence, waiting for the king to appear before them. Celestia soon noticed the other side of the tent slowly opening. It was not long before the king presented himself. King Sombra was a dark gray unicorn, wearing a light blue crown with a yellow gem, matching shoes and collar like what both Celestia and Luna have in their royal attire, and a purple cape covering his body. His eyes looked to be the purest form of green, intoxicating as it was beautiful.
King Sombra cleared his throat, making Celestia escape her trance. She smiled to him. "My apologies, I was out in space with my head," she said.
Sombra chuckled, sitting down across from them. "Not to worry, your highness, you didn't miss anything important."
His voice is amazing. "Please, calling me by my name is enough," she said, making Luna raise an eyebrow in curiosity. Luna knew her sister only allowed a few to call her as such.
"Very well, Celestia." He started. "I am King Sombra, new ruler of the Crystal Empire. You may call me Sombra if you wish."
"A pleasure to meet you," smiled Celestia.
"The pleasure's all mine," Sombra smiled back.
Luna sat idly, confused and unaware to what was occurring between the two ponies of power. She ignored it, staying focused to why she and her sister came. "I am Princess Luna, co-ruler along with my sister," she spoke.
"Ah yes, Princess Luna, it is so nice to see you." He spoke, clearing his throat again before going back to business. "Now I shall not waste your time being here for I have much to talk about, and answers for your questions." He used his magic to bring a pot of tea over along with three small cups. He poured it into each one before setting it down. Taking a sip first, he sighed in satisfaction, "Saddle Arabia never fails to have excellent tea."
Celestia took a sip as well, not being as cautious like her sister. Luna agreed the tea was phenomenal to her, but she kept it to herself and decided to start the meeting. "Do you have any information upon Princess Amore's condition?" Luna asked.
Sombra looked at her. "From my understanding, after I took the throne, she escaped by using her magic before we were able to capture her for her alleged crimes."
"Crimes?" Questioned Luna.
The King sighed, bring up a small chest to the table. Opening it, it revealed much written documents that happened to be in Amore's writing. "These are her secret documents that contained much planning to invade your land." Both Luna and Celestia were silent with shocked expressions. They knew their greatest companion would never do such a thing. Luna lifted up one of the documents and inspected it, seeing that he was really telling the truth. There was no signs of forgery or magic upon it other than Amore's. "I am sorry for you two to hear such news. I am fully aware of your relationship with the princess, but if I and my followers hadn't acted, she would have started her plans," he spoke.
Luna put the sheet back into the chest. "And what were you before being given the title of king?"
"A mere politician for the Empire if I say so. I have kept in touch with much of the ponies to hear what they needed to say and what needed to be done. I was lucky to have half of the ponies' requests fulfilled, but the rest faltered since I needed Princess Amore's approval and signature to do such projects," replied Sombra.
Luna nodded to what he was saying. "Not everything can be approved, but I am impressed for your compassion and integrity for your ponies."
"Thank you," he replied. "And do not worry, I do not plan on invading your land."
This made both Luna and Celestia smile in relief. "Such wonderful news to hear. I believe since you are a new ruler, we should sign a treaty to keep our nations in peace," said Luna.
Sombra magically brought out a quill and a few documents to sign. "Let us begin."
Aniketos remained standing as he looked up to the now night sky, connecting each star with another while Astra waited for what he was going to say next. "Aye, and there is mighty Zeus, god of the sky. He holds much power with him, along with his lightning bolt which he strikes down on those who only wish to bring Tartarus upon the world," he spoke.
Astra looked around to where he was seeing. "Hmm, nope, I don't see it."
He looked down to her with annoyance. "You are blind then. Not being able to see the gods above you is foolish."
"Hey! My eyesight is perfect! It's not my fault you speak about boring things that my eyes can't catch!" She yelled. "Besides, Princess Selene Luna of the Night always creates a new constellation every night."
He remained silent, not believing what he had heard. "What did you say?"
Astra looked up to him. "I announced my highness' full royal name. What about it?"
"Is that-"
Aniketos halted his words once he saw both Celestia and Luna walk out unharmed. A breath of relief came out from him as he walked towards them along with the bat pony. He noticed Celestia having a bright smile while Luna remained the same as she is. "I believe the meeting went well?" He asked, forgetting about what had occurred.
"Yes it did. It would have been better if my sister hadn't continued to ogle the new king for most of it," said Luna.
Celestia scoffed. "I did no such thing. I was focused the entire meeting."
"You mean focused on his flank," Luna breathed out.
"Luna!" Celestia yelled out, making the rest chuckle a bit.
Soon they all made their way to the chariot, but all did not enter it as they heard Sombra calling out to them. Once he was in front of them, his eyes locked with Aniketos, instantly forgetting what he was about to say. "Oh? What do we have here?" Spoke Sombra.
Aniketos looked at Sombra, watching the gray stallion with concern and instant suspicion about him. Something doesn't feel right, he thought.
Celestia soon stood by Aniketos. "This is Aniketos Xenagoras. He is a warrior from Sparta."
"Sparta?" Sombra questioned, raising an eyebrow. "I never heard of such place. Well no matter, I am King Sombra. It is nice to see you, Aniketos." Aniketos returned a nod to Sombra, who only continued to smile. "Silent one, are we? That is fine. I actually came to speak to you Celestia."
"Me?" Celestia asked.
"Yes, I was curious if you wanted to visit the Empire some other day. Have a discussion like two normal ponies," said Sombra.
"O-of course! I will notify you before my arrival."
"Excellent!" He said. "Now run along, all of you must be tired."
With the interruption now over, all four entered the chariot before making their way back to the castle, Sombra waving to the disappearing chariot.
Again, a soft landing was done as the chariot landed onto the castle grounds. All four hopped out of the chariot, the only one being tired was Celestia. Astra had to go back to the barracks to check in and see what she was assigned to do, and thus left the three to enter the castle. Celestia would be the next one to break off, telling the two to have a good night before she made her way to her bed chambers to rest. Now it only remained Aniketos and Luna as they walked together in the hallway. The Solar Guards was no longer around as the Lunar Guards took place.
"So I guess I should leave you be for your duties," Aniketos said as they reached Luna's bedchamber.
"I suppose. But..." Luna started, opening the door. "Follow me, there is something I need to discuss with you."
Aniketos was silent, entering her bed chamber. He listened to her close the door as he sat down on a chair, removing his helmet. "What is it?"
Luna remained standing. "You sensed something when you met King Sombra. I noticed it when you didn't speak to him."
"Aye I did. Something didn't look right about him, but I don't know why."
"My sister became quickly fond of him when she first saw him. I had to ask all the questions because she was too preoccupied with her thoughts about him. Even he had moments of looking at Tia."
Aniketos scoffed, being surprised to hear Celestia acting up. "Well I do not know about that, but I know that we should be careful and watch what he does for a bit. See if he is truthful or if he is hiding something."
"Agreed. I am...afraid of what could happen if he was not the stallion we met. If he were to hurt us, to hurt Tia..." Luna turned away and walked out to the balcony, Aniketos not to far behind her. "I should be happy that he is not planning an invasion upon Equestria, but now I'm concerned of what he can do. I didn't think upon what he can possibly do, only on what he was doing right now."
Aniketos remained silent. Seeing Luna suddenly upset was something he would never expect. It was true, they only knew what he was doing right now, but not what he can possibly do in the future. It was all theories at the moment, but he himself believed there was something wrong that needed him to in guard. If Sombra was to turn his back on them, the land of Equestria would be in danger, as well as Luna's life. Again, it was all theories. Celestia looked satisfied after the meeting was complete, and so was Sombra who looked even more happy. His mind was filled with much possibilities of the future, only one being peace while the rest was war. He sighed, falling down onto one knee in front of Luna.
Luna took notice, slightly looking down to the Spartan. "A-Ani? What are you doing?"
"My mind is filled with possibilities, much being filled with despair upon you and everyone else. I do not wish to see such possibilities occur while I'm here breathing, so I will make an oath to you. An oath to protect you and everypony else in Equestria from any kind of danger. I have saved your life once, and I will surly do it again, even if it costs my life," Aniketos spoke, looking up to her.
"Y-you wish to serve me?" She asked, not expecting something like this to be occurring.
"Aye. It would be an honor to protect and fight for you, Princess Selene Luna."
Luna had a slight blush. "Nay, Ani, it is an honor for me to have you."
Aniketos pulled out his kopis, and held it up to Luna. "I am thy Spartan."
Act I - Fin
