34: The Crystal Heart
THE CRYSTAL EMPIRE, FOURTH EQUESTRIA
"Okay, I'll admit it," Shining Armor said as he magically ran a comb through his mane in front of the mirror in the bedroom he shared with Cadance, "I'm pretty excited."
"Me too," Cadance said, exiting the bathroom. "I've actually got butterflies in my stomach. They seem really nice."
"I can totally see how Twily got along with those two already," Shining Armor admitted, finishing with the comb. "Ready to move out?"
"Let's do it!"
They met up with Rapunzel and Eugene, who were guided by a few members of the Crystal Guard, in the atrium of the palace. As the four moved out, Rapunzel predicted, "This is going to be the best day EVER!"
Cadance and Shining Armor first led their guests to the library. "There isn't much to do here actively," Cadance explained, "but I thought it would make a nice low-key start to the tour. This is where we have all the books that document history from over a thousand years ago. We're starting to rebuild to include modern history."
"Wow!" Rapunzel moved to where an atlas was spread out on a bookstand, admiring a map of Equestria. "Look at all this, Eugene!"
"Hang on," Eugene said. "Why is this library missing a thousand years of books?"
"Well…" Cadance explained, "the Crystal Empire was a major power in Equestria a thousand years ago, and it is today. It's always had a special place in Equestria, but we can explain that more on the last stop of the trip, which is extra special. Anyway, one thousand years ago, something…happened. Things were already changing from peaceful to chaotic because of a draconequus named Discord, who made Equestria into his playground. When he ruled, he helped a unicorn named Sombra to take over the Crystal Empire. Sombra was terribly cruel, and he forced everypony in the Empire to be his slaves while turning the Empire into a place of sadness and evil…which reflected in part over the rest of Equestria because of the Empire's powers."
"But Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, who have ruled over Equestria ever since the defeat of Discord, wielded the powers of the Elements of Harmony against Sombra," Shining Armor picked up. "This was before my sister and her friends got them. Anyway, Sombra was sealed away under the ice, but there was a curse on the Empire, and it disappeared in time for a thousand years. When it returned, nopony even remembered what it was supposed to be like, and the throne was empty. Twily and her friends joined up with Cadance and me to try and save it, but when it came back, Sombra started to break free of the ice. We ended up destroying Sombra and finding out that Cadance was the rightful Crystal Princess."
"I see," Eugene replied, trying to comprehend it all. "Two questions. One, how have the same princesses been ruling for a thousand years?"
"We…were never sure," Cadance admitted. "I'm part of their family line, and even I don't know. Well, technically, I'm their niece by adoption now, but by blood, there are hundreds of generations between us. I guess it's just strong magic."
"Okay," Eugene answered. "I can go with that. Two: do you two just run into evil villains wherever you go? First Chrysalis, now this Sombra."
"We can be a bit of a trouble magnet," Shining Armor said with a wink.
"I can't believe this!" Rapunzel gushed, looking over book after book. "There's so MUCH here! Eugene, look at these!"
Eugene trotted over to look at the book Rapunzel flipped through—rather awkwardly, as she was still getting used to hooves. His eyes alit upon a page spread featuring three elegantly painted ponies: a unicorn decked out in a silver crown and purple cape, a pegasus wearing hardy armor, and an earth pony with a yellow-and-brown set of ruffled robes and a hat resembling, of all things, pudding.
"Whoa," Eugene sighed.
"Our founders," Shining Armor explained. "Princess Platinum, Commander Hurricane, and Chancellor Puddinghead. Platinum and Hurricane are actually Celestia and Luna's parents."
"There's just so much more…MAGIC here than back home," Rapunzel remarked. "I mean, I love home, but this world seems amazing just from what I can see here!"
"It even surprises us sometimes," Cadance admitted.
In a musical instrument shop, Cadance took a double-bell flugelhorn made of transparent blue crystal off the shelf. "This is the national instrument of the Crystal Empire," she said. "The crystal flugelhorn. To master it takes years of practice and dedication—"
"Can I try?" Rapunzel asked.
"Well…I don't see why not." Cadance handed over the flugelhorn.
Rapunzel grasped the mouthpiece with her lips and blew, giving her best attempt. For all the musical training she had with the guitar, wind instruments were still a mystery to her. This was apparent when the noise that emitted from the flugelhorn caused the shop owner and every patron to cringe simultaneously.
"I guess I need some of those years of practice, huh?" Rapunzel asked sheepishly.
"I thought it was pretty good," Eugene remarked sarcastically with a shrug.
"You think you could do better?" Rapunzel challenged with a wink.
"I…am smart enough to know NOT to answer that question."
"Here," Shining Armor said, putting the flugelhorn down on the counter along with the proper amount of bits. "You can have it as a gift. So you'll always remember the Crystal Empire!"
Rapunzel squealed happily.
By the time the four reached the jousting arena, a few things had changed in their inventory. Cadance had been generous with gifts after noticing that Rapunzel needed a way to carry the flugelhorn and provided her with a pair of saddlebags to wear slung over her back. To this, Rapunzel had remarked that the saddlebags would be perfect for the eventual carrying of a frying pan around Equestria, which rather confused Shining Armor and Cadance.
The tournament of the day had almost concluded; the final jousters had lined up on either side of the arena, staring each other down. From the royal box, Cadance, Shining Armor, Rapunzel, and Eugene watched them charge each other, wearing sturdy, sparkling armor and bearing elegant lances tipped with rounded spheres so as not to injure one another. The opponent on the left, a tough-looking earth pony, managed to strike the opponent coming from the right, an agile unicorn, on the side of her armor and send her tumbling off the course. A cheer went up from about half the crowd while the other half murmured expectantly, hoping the unicorn would claim the victory in the next round.
"It's two out of three," Shining Armor explained.
"Who should we cheer for?" Rapunzel asked.
"Well, Artemis is a regular in the royal court, and known for his strength," Cadance said, referring to the earth pony, "but Magnet Bolt is quite popular around town and is kind of a fan favorite for the way she pulls victories out from seemingly nowhere. I'd be happy if either of them won."
"Hey, I'm cheering for Artemis all the way," Shining Armor offered. "He and I are buddies!"
"Well, let's go ARTEMIS!" Eugene cheered as the two reset their positions to square off.
"Someone should cheer for Magnet Bolt, then," Rapunzel resolved. "YOU CAN DO IT, MAGNET!"
Artemis and Magnet Bolt squared off for a second time; on this bout, when Artemis attempted to knock Magnet off balance, she ducked neatly under the lance and used her own to topple him. The third time, Magnet Bolt jumped Artemis' lance and brought hers down on top of his back, which constituted a victory. The crowd went wild.
Rapunzel leapt up and down, cheering in time: "MAG-NET! MAG-NET! MAG-NET!"
Magnet Bolt removed her helmet, taking a bow for the crowd. Artemis did so immediately after. The two then shook hooves as friends, laughing together.
"And nobody gets hurt?" Rapunzel reiterated. "It looks like so much fun! I actually kind of wonder what it would be like…"
"You know," Cadance said with a wink, "now that the tournament proper is over, Shining Armor and I have full control over what happens on the field. We could use our royal influence to get you—"
"Wait," Eugene interrupted. "You're not serious, are you?"
Dressed up in a bright, glimmering helmet and armor from the locker rooms and wielding a lance in the crook of his front leg, Eugene couldn't help but laugh as he stared across the field to where Rapunzel was dressed in similar armor and wielding a similar lance. "I can't believe they were actually serious…"
"Ready?" Cadance called out.
"YES!" Rapunzel squealed.
"On your mark…get ready…JOUST!" Cadance commanded.
Several stragglers who had come for the tournament still stayed in the stands, watching as Cadance and Shining Armor's new friends charged each other in the jousting field. They couldn't help but take notice, especially since the unicorn mare was so exuberant.
With an energetic scream, Rapunzel was easily able to dodge Eugene's lance and knock him to the ground, causing him to cry out, "WHOA!" The crowd erupted into applause.
"Are you okay?" Rapunzel asked Eugene.
"Not a scratch," Eugene assured her, getting up. "This armor really is hardy. So…looks like you just won your first jousting match."
"I…just won my first jousting match," Rapunzel repeated, realization sinking in. "I just WON a JOUSTING MATCH!"
"Hey, cool!" Shining Armor congratulated, coming down to the field. "You ever wielded a lance before?"
"No," Rapunzel admitted. "Just a frying pan."
"You must be REALLY extreme with a frying pan, then," Shining Armor replied.
"Oh," Eugene laughed, "you have NO idea."
At a sidewalk café, Cadance and Shining Armor treated Rapunzel and Eugene to pastries made of crystal berries.
"I have to admit," Eugene said, "when you first said 'crystal berries,' I was a liiiiittle worried. These pastries have considerably fewer shards than I was expecting."
"Eh, it's really just a name," Shining Armor clarified.
"Does anypony want to call the last three tarts?" Cadance inquired.
"All yours!" Rapunzel chirped as Cadance scooped all three onto her plate.
"Sorry," Cadance said. "I'm just really hungry for crystal berries. Must be from all the excitement!"
The waiter, a well-muscled pegasus stallion, approached the table. "Is everything to your liking?"
"Everything's delicious!" Rapunzel answered.
"I don't believe I've ever seen you two before," the waiter remarked. "Friends of the royal family?"
"Yeah," Shining Armor answered. "They're from…well, out of town. We're giving them a grand tour of the Crystal Empire."
"I hope you enjoy your stay here," the waiter said, "and don't hesitate to visit again."
"Everyone here is so friendly," Rapunzel remarked as the waiter left.
"It's nice," Eugene said with a nod.
"We're proud to call it home," Cadance replied. "Though I'll admit, I'm quite curious about your world."
"You'd love it," Rapunzel informed her. "If you ever visit, I promise to make you feel as welcome as you made us feel here."
"I wouldn't mind being up for a little adventure," Shining Armor admitted. "See your home, see the Seven Deserts…maybe even find something completely different."
"Could you do that?" Rapunzel asked. "I mean, you have a full-time job here in the Crystal Empire."
"There would be ways to fill the position…" Cadance said, trailing off. "But that's hypothetical. Sure, we think about it sometimes, but…it would be impractical. And more to the point, I didn't even think we ever could. I didn't know there were other ships besides the Starlight that could do that until you landed here."
"Well, maybe you'll get a chance," Rapunzel suggested.
"Maybe," Cadance agreed.
The tour next continued to a paddock of crystal ewes, miniature sheep that caused Rapunzel to nearly explode from squealing. The shepherd on duty inquired several times if she was all right, to which Eugene had to reassure him that hers was normal behavior.
After that, Eugene found himself following his group to a place that he dreaded entering: a beauty salon.
"You're going to love it," Cadance told Rapunzel. "They can do anything with a mane, and the hooficures are wonderful."
"Remind me why I'm here again," Eugene sighed. "Shining Armor, is there anything that you and the guys…er, stallions…do while your wife gets all pretty?"
"Actually, I have to keep up my appearance as well," Shining Armor admitted. "Just a quick trim and a hooficure. It's actually pretty relaxing."
"You're joking."
"Come on, Eugene. You should try it."
"Please tell me you're joking…"
"You know that if you don't, the three of us are just going to be enjoying ourselves here, and you'll be missing out…"
"All right, fine. Just as long as no one makes me sing about dreams."
"Huh?"
"Long story."
Cadance was already checking herself and Rapunzel in at the front desk. "Just a simple crystal weave for my friend. It'll be on me."
The two mares were led into the depths of the salon, and Shining Armor and Eugene were next up to bat. "I'll just get my usual treatment," Shining Armor said, "and one for my friend here. He's a first-timer here."
"I can't believe I'm doing this," Eugene groaned.
A friendly mare led Eugene to his own chair. "Right this way!"
"I still can't believe I'm doing this…" Eugene lay back in the chair as the mare set to work filing his hooves.
Ten minutes later, Eugene was completely relaxed in the chair, chatting with the beauticians working on his hooves and mane. "And so that's why my money's on Magnet Bolt for the next jousting tournament. I admit I had my doubts about her, but she really knows how to pull off a strong finish."
Shining Armor approached the chair. "Having fun, are we?"
"What happens in this salon stays in this salon," Eugene warned him. "But yeah, this is actually pretty relaxing. And I will say my hooves have never looked better, though to be fair, I've only had hooves for less than a day, so that might not be worth much. I doubt there could have been much improvement in the mane department, though. I didn't leave room for much."
The beauticians finished, and Eugene stepped down from his chair to look in a full-length mirror. "Well," he admitted, tossing his newly trimmed mane, "it had been getting a bit long to begin with…okay, yeah, they did a good job."
"Looking good, Eugene," Rapunzel said from behind him.
Eugene turned around. "Thank y—WHOA."
Rapunzel's mane, short as it was, had been woven into tiny waves and braids that cradled small crystals, giving her head the appearance of glowing with rainbow light when she moved it. Nearby, Cadance had received a similar hairstyle—not as fancy as her ceremonial updos, but still containing a fair amount of crystals.
"You…you look…" Eugene struggled to find words. "Sparkly."
"Thank you," Rapunzel said, blushing. "So, was it as horrible torture as you imagined?"
"Before I answer that, I'm going to make you swear that what happens in this salon stays in this salon."
Back out on the streets, passerby stopped and stared at the glimmering rainbow crystals in the manes of Princess Cadance and her new unicorn friend, then taking notice of Shining Armor and his new stallion companion. Gossip and questions riddled the crowds. Who were these newcomers? Where were they from? How had they so quickly earned the respect of the royal family?
"It's about time for the last stop on our trip," Cadance announced.
"Are you kicking us out after that?" Eugene asked.
"You can stay with us as long as you want," Cadance replied. "Of course, tomorrow we have royal duties to attend to, so you might be on your own in town."
"I think we can manage," Rapunzel affirmed. "After all, you did a great job of showing us around."
The four returned to the palace, but instead of entering it, they moved to the space underneath; the great crystal spire that was the palace was raised off the ground, leaving a courtyard beneath it. In this courtyard was a single landmark: a pillar consisting of a carved stalagmite below and a carved stalactite above. In the space between the two, a blue, heart-shaped crystal hovered, emitting a bright and calming light. Both Rapunzel and Eugene noticed right away that it matched the crystal heart depicted on Cadance's Cutie Mark.
"This is the Crystal Heart," Cadance explained. "The emotional power source for the Crystal Empire and all of Equestria. When the ponies of the Crystal Empire have hope and love, their happiness powers the Heart and sends out an aura all over Equestria that helps protect it from the forces of hate. Of course, if the Heart is ever stolen, it's possible for anything bad that happens to the Empire to carry negativity to Equestria instead."
"Has that ever happened?" Rapunzel asked.
"That's how Sombra seized power," Shining Armor explained. "He found…some way to get to the Heart without being repelled by its protection. When he took it away, all of the Crystal Empire was at his mercy. He was able to enslave everypony and make them work for him. They don't like being reminded of that to this day. And he hid the Heart in his palace in a secret chamber guarded by dark magic and a lot of staircases. And I mean a LOT of staircases…anyway, when the Empire returned, Cadance and I teamed up with Twily and her friends…oh, you haven't met Spike, have you? Twily's friend Spike was there too. He works with her in the library. He ended up playing a big part in stopping Sombra. We found the Heart—well, Twily and Spike did—and when we replaced it here, Cadance found out that she was the Crystal Princess and that she was connected to the Heart and the Empire. She was able to use the Heart's power to stop Sombra before he could destroy the Heart."
"Right now, I act as a go-between for the Heart and the Empire," Cadance finished. "I help to keep the Empire happy, and that powers the Heart. I was afraid at first that it would stop working if I left the borders, but it turns out I can go pretty much anywhere and as long as the ponies here remember me, the Heart will still function. It's the pride of the entire Empire. It's more than just a crystal…it's our hope."
"Wow," Eugene said, staring at the Heart as it spun in its pedestal. "That's a lot of responsibility for one little rock."
"It's beautiful," Rapunzel added. "I mean, it was before, but now that I know what it really is…" She grinned. "I wonder if it can feel how happy I am right now. After all, I did manage to find a brand new world with the person I love most…and we made two really good friends first thing."
Cadance and Shining Armor couldn't help but feel their hearts warm at Rapunzel's statement.
"Princess Cadance!" a voice called out. "Prince Shining Armor!"
All four turned to see a teal mare with a purple mane and a Cutie Mark shaped like the top of a wheat stalk burst into the courtyard. "Fields of Gold!" Cadance cried, recognizing this pony by name.
"Urgent news," Fields of Gold panted, bowing respectfully. "Princess Celestia has arrived at the train station, and she wants to see you immediately."
"I wonder what she wants," Shining Armor mused.
"This sounds like trouble," Eugene sighed. "I knew it. We can't go anywhere without some kind of big disaster happening. This day? Too perfect. Celestia probably brought bad news about some horrible villain that's going to wreak havoc on everything."
"We don't know that," Cadance answered sternly.
"Celestia…she's the one that rules over all of Equestria, right?" Rapunzel asked for clarification.
"Yes," Cadance affirmed.
"Can we go meet her?" Rapunzel asked.
"I don't see why not," Shining Armor answered. "Come on. We'll go to the station together."
Rapunzel and Eugene were able to identify Celestia immediately upon first sight. They found it impossible to believe that somepony so tall and graceful and with a mane of so many colors wasn't the ruler and sun-raiser of the entire land.
"Cadance," Celestia greeted. "Shining Armor."
"Celestia," Cadance and Shining Armor replied in unison.
Celestia appeared momentarily confused. "Who are your friends? I don't believe I've met them before."
"This is Rapunzel," Cadance introduced, "and Eugene. You remember them. You know. From the letters…remember?" She winked.
"Oh…!" Celestia winked in return, showing that she understood.
"It's a pleasure to meet you," Rapunzel said, bending her forelegs in a bow. Eugene copied the gesture, quite unsure what to say.
"Likewise," Celestia responded. "Although I am surprised that you were able to make it here so…efficiently. I wasn't quite aware there would be other vessels of that kind moving about."
"Well," Eugene said, "there are."
"Celestia," Cadance interrupted, "what brings you to the Crystal Empire? Is there important news?"
"I am afraid so," Celestia said somberly, "and I am afraid it is grave news."
"Called it," Eugene muttered.
"What happened?" Shining Armor asked.
"The story is spreading all over Equestria," Celestia replied. "I had hoped to personally deliver the information to make sure you knew the truth. The Alicorn Amulet has gone missing."
Gasps were heard from all in the station who overheard the statement.
"No," Shining Armor gasped. "But…Zecora…!"
"Someone stole it from her," Celestia went on. "We don't know who, how, or why. But because of what happened with it in the past…I'm afraid of the effects, especially on this Empire."
"Why here?" Cadance asked.
"I'll explain everything later," Celestia promised. "We should move elsewhere to discuss the details."
"Let's go back to the palace," Cadance suggested.
"I think that would be best," Celestia agreed.
She turned to leave the station, and Cadance, Shining Armor, then Rapunzel, and finally Eugene followed.
"So, just to clear things up," Eugene asked, "exactly how much trouble does this 'Alicorn Amulet' put Equestria in?"
"A lot," Shining Armor answered.
"Yup," Eugene sighed. "Called it."
Chapter 34:
· This chapter is kind of a breather. I admit…I just wanted to let readers soak in the "Crystal Empire experience." I pulled in all the landmarks from the episode to tour. I just didn't think I should throw bad thing after bad thing at everyone! Plus, I wanted to build up the friendship between Cadance, Shiny, Zel, and Eugene.
· With the exception of the outright statement that Sombra and Discord ruled at the same time and that Platinum and Hurricane were a couple that parented Celestia and Luna, everything I gave here for backstory was canon. Starting next chapter, a little more fanon is going to get into it.
· "How have the same princesses been ruling for a thousand years?" Yes. That is going to be important for later.
· The MLPFIM Wiki says Cadance is the adopted niece of the princesses. It's just my personal preference that I chose to interpret that as "adoption" just into the niece position because of the thousand-year generation gap and that they're still blood related, perhaps through the descendants of a sister of Platinum. This might be due to a running joke that one of my readers (he knows who he is) and I have had about Cadance and Prince Blueblood being Thor and Loki, which required Blueblood to be the adopted one.
· I realize there is a licensed book that says that Cadance was made into an alicorn by Celestia's powers; I'm either going to retcon this out (because it also has Cadance give Twilight her necklace anyway, which doesn't happen in canon) or say Cadance was still RELATED to Celestia and Luna before her transformation. I find it hard to believe that Cadance was transformed, anyway, because the Mane Six thought there was no such thing as an alicornification spell in the S3 finale and were surprised that it happened to Twilight.
· Rapunzel is slightly better at playing the flugelhorn than Pinkie Pie is.
· Artemis is a fan name I gave to a background pony myself. I saw him in the Crystal Empire episode—he had a bow and arrow Cutie Mark—and I decided "Artemis" sounded gender neutral enough. Magnet Bolt is a name I pulled from the blind bag pony toys and has appeared in a Crystal version there.
· Fields of Gold is another fan name I gave to a background pony. In the Crystal Empire ep, she's probably the one that appears in the most scenes, starting with when Twilight knocks on her door to ask her for information and she refuses to talk because her memory is missing and she doesn't want to try to dredge up memories of Sombra. The wheat was just such an odd choice for a Cutie Mark, and I couldn't help but think of a particular Sting song when I saw it.
· Artemis and Fields probably have fanon names by the bronies that are NOT those. Sorry, but I'm going with the ones I made – I came up with them before I knew just how big the scope was of how many background ponies were named.