A/N: Thanks for the reviews. I would like more people to read, so if you could just suggest it to a friend or follower, that would be helpful. Before I forget to tell you, I have made Daisy and Ditzy live in Canterlot. I will show why in the next chapter, which will hold some action. Also, chapters will take some time from here on out.
Sapphire woke up as the sun shone into her bedroom window. She smiled as the warmth lifted her spirits already. Something was off though. She looked around to see what was wrong, only to find the book next to her. "Funny… I could have sworn that I placed it on the shelf right there…" She said, looking to the shelf that she stored the book the night before.
"I watched you put it there too… I don't remember you taking it to bed with you though… That is definitely weird. Maybe we should talk to Zecora about it?" Ruby asked.
"I don't know. Maybe we should just ignore it for now, see if it happens again. Besides, I kinda like having it close to me like this. Makes me feel like it's safe." Sapphire said, stroking the book with her hoof.
"Zecora's. Now." Ruby demanded.
"Fine." Sapphire said, putting it in her saddlebag before heading out of her room to find that Zecora and Blitz were already there. "Uhhh… How..?" She started to ask, but Blitz cut in.
"Zecora knows how to pick locks. Pretty cool, huh? Just think, we could have killed you while you slept." Blitz said.
"That's inviting." Sapphire said, placing the bag next to her chair as she sat. "Tell me, why..?" She was cut off again.
"Grave news I bring, for it deals with that thing." Zecora said, pointing to the bag that held the book.
"My bag?" Sapphire asked.
"The book." Zecora stated bluntly as if Sapphire was stupid or something.
"Why?" Sapphire inquired.
"The book has imprinted on you, and this is definitely not new. First, it messes with your mind, then more power it tries to find. It takes your body and soul, then you will pay the ultimate toll." Zecora said, summarizing what she meant to say.
"So it's going to take my body over? Destroy me? Kill me?" Sapphire asked, not believing her.
"Exactly." Blitz said. She then swooped down and took the book out of the bag before Sapphire could react.
"Here." She said, tossing it to Zecora.
"Have you read the book of light? If not, want to you might." Zecora said, opening to a page that held a painting of the last owner in Great detail. It seemed almost realistic. It was realistic.
"I-is that… My father?" Sapphire asked.
"Yup." Blitz said, almost cheerfully.
Sapphire looked to where she set the other book. She magicked it up as it was still there. She opened the page and noticed that Celestia herself had written the book. She read a spell in her mind and then another.
"Pay attention to the ones that contribute to you. That one gives, this one takes. Not all results being desirable is true, but great power it wakes." Zecora spoke in her natural rhymes and riddles.
"You are making it hard to understand. But I think I have an idea." Sapphire said. "I think it's time to get Ruby back, don't you?" she asked.
"I don't think we should just yet. Give me a little longer, after this book is not attached to you anymore. Okay?" Ruby asked.
"Hmm… That's probably a good idea." Sapphire said.
"What's she sayin'?" Blitz asked.
"To wait until this book isn't attached to me anymore." Sapphire said.
"Probably a smart move." Blitz nodded.
"Here." Zecora said, reaching a page in the evil book that held Sapphire's spell.
"Is that..? It is. Now, how do I get it to not like me anymore?" Sapphire asked.
"Find somepony who will take the book, or return it to the place from which you took." Zecora said.
"Well, I can't place it back…" Sapphire muttered. "I guess somepony will have to take it…" She added.
"Try Luna. She can withstand evil magic. Or Celestia. She could completely disband it." Blitz said, stating it bluntly.
"I guess…" Sapphire said.
"Then let's go." Blitz said.
"Stay here I must, royal guards I do not trust." Zecora said, almost as if she was trying to say something important.
"Why?" Sapphire asked.
"Corruption." Zecora stated simply, then got up. "I shall see you again, and will take you in." She finished, stumping both Sapphire and Blitz, and then leaving.
"Okay… Well, let's go deliver this book." Blitz said.
Both Blitz and Sapphire traveled through Ponyville and took the train to Canterlot, hiding the book in Sapphire's saddlebag.
After they reached the train station, Sapphire felt like she was being watched, and almost followed. As they made their way through the streets of Ponyville, she caught a few glances that flew her way from ponies on their regular schedules. Then again, it was Canterlot, a bunch of snooty, uptight brats. They think they are so much better because they have more money.
Reaching the castle doors felt like an eternity. They stepped up to the door and saw the guards step up and stop them. "State your business here." The first guard said gruffly.
"I have a delivery for the princess." Sapphire said.
"What kind?" The guard asked.
"That is strictly classified." Sapphire said.
The guard deadpanned at Sapphire's attempt. "Citizen activity is never classified. What kind of delivery are you doing?" He asked again.
"I can't tell you. It's for the princesses only." Sapphire said.
"Then you can't come through." The guard said.
"Why not?" Sapphire asked.
"Because I don't know what is inside that saddlebag of yours, therefore not knowing what your delivery is." The guard said, a sharp tone crawling into his voice.
"Fine. It's a rare book that must be delivered to the princess, or it could end up destroying a lot of places." Sapphire said, still trying to decide if it was a lie or not.
"Oh, okay, then come on through." The guard said, a smile on his face.
"Really?" Sapphire asked.
"No. Get lost." The guard said. He was starting to approach the two and shoved them back. "Go away, the princesses don't need some losers talking to them, wasting their time." He said, taking his place again.
"Hey!" Blitz said as she was pushed. "Careful!"
Sapphire was about to object when she found herself shoved back. "Fine! I'll be back though!" She yelled, turning around to take off.
A black Pegasus landed next to the guard. Her neon green eyes following Sapphire. "Think it could be her? The one that Daisy let go? She is awfully important to us at this point. Maybe we shouldn't kill her. Maybe we should capture her… I have some thinking to do." She said, then taking off before the guard could respond.
"Yes, Ma'am." The guard said as she was taking off.
Sapphire found herself wandering around Canterlot, getting more stares than before. She saw the same Pegasus flying around, talking to multiple ponies around Canterlot, catching her gaze, then taking off.
"Are you seeing that Pegasus too?" Blitz asked.
Sapphire had almost forgot about Blitz's presence. "Oh, uh, yeah… Think it could be some sort of conspiracy?" She asked.
"Possibly. Let's not get too into it though, it could be dangerous to mess with things we don't know of." Blitz said.
"I guess you are right. I will try to ignore it." Sapphire said, but knew she couldn't. She was going to have to keep a close eye on the ponies near her. She suddenly felt a growl in her stomach as well as heard it.
"Hungry?" Blitz asked. She had been hungry for the past hour or so.
"Yes, I haven't had anything to eat since we had breakfast in Ponyville." Sapphire admitted.
"You should have eaten something when I said to at the food stand." Blitz said.
Sapphire sighed, then looked up, noticing that they were right in front of a restaurant. "How about here?" Sapphire asked.
Blitz froze. Fancy restaurant. Lots of great food. Very expensive. May not have enough. "Sure." Blitz said. She couldn't deny Sapphire the luxury of eating fancy food, nor eating either.
"Do you have enough?" Sapphire asked.
"Possibly. Let's go in." Blitz smiled and laughed lightly. She followed Sapphire in and sat at a table after being showed by a waiter. "So, what do you want?" She asked.
"A simple salad or sandwich should suffice." Sapphire said. "Something filling." She said.
"Okay. Well choose." Blitz said. She felt slightly uncomfortable. She waited Sapphire's choice.
"I just want a rhubarb sandwich." Sapphire said simply.
Blitz nodded and smiled, watching a waiter step up to them.
"May I get you something?" He asked.
"Yes, I would like a potato salad, and she will have a Rhubarb Sandwich." Blitz said.
"It will be right over." The waiter said.
"Thank you." Blitz nodded.
The two sat there for a few minutes, nothing to talk about coming to mind. Sapphire then broke the silence between them. "I still find it odd how that ONE Pegasus has just been going around talking to ponies that seemed to be directly in our line of sight. If I had looked up, I bet that I could have seen her…" Sapphire finally blurted out in a whisper.
"Yeah. It is weird, but there is nothing we can do." Blitz said. She was obviously waiting impatiently for her food. She smiled when the waiter finally made his way to them with their food. "Thanks." She said. She then pushed over the sandwich to Sapphire. "It looks delicious." She smiled.
"Yeah… It does." Sapphire said, obviously deep in thought. She then took a bite of the sandwich and began to ponder.
After the meal, Blitz received the check and looked through it thoroughly. "Wow, wasn't too much. It cost about 35 bits… I only have five left now." She said.
"Sorry, if you didn't want to spend so much, you could have asked me to get something else." Sapphire said.
"No, no it's fine." Blitz said, smiling. "Let's go back to Ponyville and see if we can get Celestia to come to us." She finished, getting up and leaving the bits on the table.
"That's actually a good idea. Maybe I can tell her about that strange pony." Sapphire said, following Blitz out of the restaurant.
They made it to the train and showed their tickets to the conductor and made their way onboard. They took their seats and rode their way towards Ponyvillle. Sapphire looked to the sky and saw that the sun was setting. "Oh no…" She mumbled. She sighed and coughing caught her attention. She glanced over and saw that there was a pony whose body was dark grey and his mane was a silky silver-ish. She sighed again and laid her head on the leg rest. She closed her eyes and took a little nap.
Sapphire woke up to Blitz shaking her weakly. "B-Blitz… H-hey…" Her voice sounded weak.
Sapphire blinked her eyes open and screamed at what she saw. The train had crashed, flipped and part of it was completely torn off. The friction between the train and the ground had caused it to catch fire in certain parts. "What happened?" She asked, getting up weakly, as her legs were cut and sore.
"The train started to go too fast, blazed past Ponyville and crashed on a turn about six miles away. You were almost thrown out the window, but I saved you. I had to wrap myself around you to keep you safe. I broke my wing and I think we may be the only ones alive." Blitz said, glancing over to the pony who had been coughing. His body was hanging from a broken piece of train. Sapphire looked closer, and it was only half of his body. She shuddered and looked for the nearest exit out of the train- a broken window. That would do. Sapphire nodded and squeezed through painfully as the glass dug into her sides and back. Blitz followed after her as her blood ran rapidly.
"We need to take shelter." Sapphire said, looking to an abandoned cave nearby. "Over there." She said, helping Blitz along. They made their way slowly and they crawled in a small space that led to the entrance. Blitz was barely small enough to fit, and Sapphire was smaller than Blitz, so she fit fine. The cave was much larger on than it looks from the outside. It was slightly dark and there was nothing that was small enough to fit in here. Sapphire sighed as she fell on her side, her blood staining the stone below. "This should sustain us for the night…" She hoped. She wasn't sure. At least they had just eaten. Where were they anyway? How long had they been on the train?
Celestia would surely be to the train wreckage quickly. Could she risk it though? What if Celestia banished her or killed her because of the book? Or thought that she caused the wreck? She sighed and started to sob quietly. Why must all bad things happen to her? She quickly fell asleep again as her mind was plagued by these questions and the light outside seemed to grow dimmer with every minute that passed.
Blitz had collapsed on her side and had found some cobwebs to stop the bleeding in her wounds, then noticed that Sapphire was curled up in a ball. She was losing a lot of blood, not as much as herself, but still a lot. She decided to start patching her wounds as well. She eventually became light-headed and had to lie down. She had stopped most of the bleeding and felt herself slip out of consciousness quite suddenly.
Daisy sighed as she left the large manor. The place always creeped her out, despite her having to go there daily. She her mane out of her face as it had fallen as she exhaled. She now made her way back to her house to Ditzy, who probably already broke a few things. She opened the door and got more than she had bargained for. Ditzy had been trying to cook. And to her surprise, she had succeeded in making some vegetarian lasagna and a mess of the kitchen. "It… It smells… Delicious, Ditzy. How'd you manage it? I'm impressed." She said.
Derpy sighed and hung her head. "Only until you taste it…" She said. She sort of liked it herself, stuck between liking and disliking it.
"Oh, it can't be that bad." Daisy said, taking a piece from the pan. She took a bite and felt that it was dry and it had a slight lemony and sour taste. Lucky for Ditzy, Daisy loved sour. It still held the taste of pasta and lettuce with apples mixed in, but it still tasted really good. "And I was right. It's really good, just a little dry. Next time, don't cook it for so long. Let it retain some moisture, okay?" She asked, a smile plastered on her face.
"Wait… You like it?" Ditzy asked. She was utterly confused at her cousin's reaction.
"Yes. In fact, it's really good, just a little dry. It's also a little burnt, but it's still very good." Daisy complimented her cousin.
"T-thanks…" Ditzy said, smiling. She wasn't used to getting compliments, but when she did, she always loved it. She knew that it was really hard for her to do some things right. She hugged her cousin and chuckled. "Thanks." She repeated.
Daisy accepted the hug, taking another bite from the lasagna. "You're welcome, cousin." She said. She finished the piece and let go of Ditzy. "Now I have some stuff that I need to get ready."
"Okay. I'll see you in my room for story time." Ditzy said.
Daisy silently cursed herself. She forgot that Thursday nights were story nights. Saturday was tuck-in-night. "Yes, of course. I wouldn't ever forget story night." She smiled. She then ruffled Ditzy's mane and took off to her room. "Story time… How could I have forgotten..? So stupid, Daisy. I guess you will have to choose family or your job…" She thought. She sighed as she shut her door and grabbed her armor. "I guess family it is." She said, tossing her helmet and breastplate on her bed. She grabbed Ditzy's favorite book and took it with her to her room. "I brought your favorite book; stars in the sky." She said, starting the book as Ditzy clumsily laid in bed and put the covers over her.
A knock came to Daisy's ears after she finished the book. Ditzy had fallen asleep and she knew who it was. It was Fallen Lightning, coming to bring her to Shadow Nexus's meeting. She put the book next to Ditzy and she kissed her forehead. She quickly dashed to her room and grabbed her armor. She grabbed her gear and sword, then opened the door to find that it wasn't who she expected, but was Shadow Nexus himself. Daisy gasped and she bowed quickly. "My lord!" She said, dropping quickly, but she was caught and brought up. "Sir?" She questioned.
"Stand. Come with me. No Bowing needed. Not here." Shadow said. He then turned and left down a dark path that lead away from the buildings and into a plaza that was uninhabited. She looked after him and watched as he stopped in front of her. She was directly in the middle of the plaza circle. "What's it that you wanted me for, sir?" She asked.
"For this." Shadow said, then a large group of ponies jumped out of nowhere and launched at her, weapons drawn. Daisy found herself petrified at this surprise attack.