6: princess Celestia
With just one glance, Green knew that the alicorn was the most important creature not only in the room, but in that world. He rose with a delicate movement as everyone under her presence hurried to bow their heads in respect, except for the goddess of the night.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Green Mist the traveler," her voice was sweet and melodic, like that of a mother cradling her child. Her alabaster, shining coat seemed to capture the sunlight, emanating a warm and radiant aura as if it were a piece of the sky. Her mane of colors was a cascade that flowed freely and eternally.
The human chose to kneel before such an image, so absorbed in the majesty that he forgot about his surroundings, which played a mean trick on him.
"It is an honor to meet you, princesses," just after uttering those words, the accessory began to sway frantically, interrupting the comfortable silence and leaving behind an almost ridiculous situation. His face paled, and he remained petrified with a poker face.
Around him, those present were shocked, spears aimed at him from every possible angle, his guards were ready to attack, as was the princess of the night.
"Forgive me, princesses!" he exclaimed while shaking the accessory from its chain. "It's not very normal for it to do this," he explained to both alicorns. "Come on, stop it, damn it," he muttered, and after five agonizing seconds, the accessory halted.
Seeing that there was no danger, the guards lowered their spears, and the princess of the night relaxed her posture. Just before the silence became awkward, the elder princess attempted to resume the conversation.
"Well, that's not exactly the introduction I was expecting... Alright, let's start over. I ask everypony else present to leave the room and leave Luna and me with the human," the ruler said. At first, the others seemed a bit surprised, but they obeyed the order without fail. Twilight was the last to leave, casting a concerned glance before closing the door.
"First, let me introduce myself. I am Princess Celestia, ruler of all Equestria and keeper of the day. It's not necessary for you to introduce yourself; we already have a general idea of who you are," said the princess, spreading her wings, giving off an inspiring aura.
"And I am Princess Luna, sister to Celestia and guardian of the night. Moreover, this is not the first time we have met. I know not if thou dost remember, but I did visit thee in..."
"My dreams," Green finished the sentence, suspecting it was the work of magic. However, he had a hunch that not just anyone could do such a thing. "How is that possible?" he questioned.
"We, as the highest representatives of Equestria, possess faculties beyond the average. Indeed, at this very moment, my sister endeavours to make an incursion upon thee," Luna said, and as soon as she uttered those words, Green felt a sudden pang of pain that swiftly faded away.
"I'm not able..." said Celestia, bringing her hooves to her face with a grimace of pain. The traveler immediately understood the situation; she had tried to enter his mind and the accessory intervened to help him, yet that didn't explain why it didn't do the same when Luna entered his dreams.
"Sister, are you alright?!" Luna asked, concerned. Celestia nodded with her eyes closed, then after a few seconds, she focused her gaze on the human.
"Did you know what I was going to do?"
"I suppose you were going to read my mind," the human simply shrugged. "I'm sorry, Princess, but such actions against me are unconsciously halted by the accessory," he showed her the object, and as it had happened countless times, they regarded it with curiosity and suspicion. "It's like having a sort of armor."
"So, that's the object you use for traveling that Twilight mentioned. And you can't take it off?"
"Taking it off is an ambiguous term in this case. It's bound only to me, and only I can use it. Even if it falls off or I lose it, it will eventually return to me."
"And how does that work?"
"Let's say it's its security system. If I separate from it, then it will act on its own, but only to find me."
"Was its security system also what prevented me from entering your mind?" the human nodded. "Then why could Luna enter your dreams?"
"Truthfully, I don't know. It may be that the accessory interprets this differently."
As Luna didn't attempt the same as her sister, Green inferred they didn't have the same capabilities, and therefore, Celestia wouldn't be able to enter his dreams. Of course, the human had to be cautious not to assume too readily; after all, they themselves had mentioned having abilities unlike anything in this realm.
"Well, not being able to enter your mind complicates things a little bit, so I ask that you be completely honest with your answers, agreed?" Celestia said.
"Of course," Green was relieved they couldn't read his mind, as there were several things that would be quite uncomfortable to explain and would make his stay in this world much more difficult.
"Twilight mentioned that your accessory has a timer that measures your stay here, but you didn't tell her because calculating it takes time. Have you measured it?"
"Yes, Princess, right now there are about seventy-nine days left before the accessory takes me to another world," Green replied, noticing Celestia had fixed her beautiful violet eyes examining him for several moments before moving on to the next question.
"Do you have a choice in that?"
"No, not really. Once the time is up, I'm obliged to leave," Green explained. For the second time, the princess scrutinized his face, searching for any hint of deception, but found none.
"Twas surely a hardship for thee to forsake certain worlds..." Luna remarked, looking solemn.
"Yeah... but in some worlds, it's a relief to leave," Green responded. Luna nodded in understanding.
"What do you plan to do during your stay here?" Celestia inquired.
"To be honest, I don't have anything specific planned for my time in the worlds. The reason we started traveling is because our dimension became saturated, so the human race decided to spread out. My intention is simply to explore," Green explained. It was the only time Celestia subtly noticed, precisely when he mentioned others of his kind, that he grimaced, but she couldn't interpret if it was from pain or resentment. This made her raise an eyebrow.
"So, you're just a tourist?" the princess of the day asked. The human nodded. "Then we grant you permission to stay in this country for seventy-nine days. I suppose you didn't bring your passport, did you?" she added with a mischievous smile, eliciting a small laugh from Green.
"Thank you, princesses," he said, offering another bow.
"But ere, we must warn thee of something," Princess Luna said solemnly. "Truly, knowest thou not of Tofi?"
"No, Princess. Why?" Green inquired.
The princesses didn't respond immediately. Instead, they exchanged glances, and in a matter of seconds, without uttering a word, they had reached a tacit agreement.
"Firstly, we would express our gratitude for allowing thyself to be shown upon thy arrival and for coming to visit us, for truth be told, Equestria is not in its finest hour," Luna began. It was precisely the last thing the traveler wanted to hear, but instead of feeling guilt with her words, he felt curiosity. "Thou seest, there have been a series of disappearances throughout the land, and we have a theory that whosoever perpetrates these deeds is connected to Tofi."
"Why do you believe that?" Green inquired.
"Because there exists a prophecy that Luna received in her dreams. A great evil will come to Equestria, which will not only pose a danger to this country but to the entire world. Then, a being from another world will come forth and confront it, being the only one capable of defeating it," princess Celestia concluded.
"I see," Green said, what would a fantasy world be without its respective prophecy of destiny? he wondered with amusement.
"We hold the theory that such evil hath already entered Equestria and seeks out Tofi for destruction. And that is not all, for when Tofi arrived, he was already aware of the prophecy and his duty to protect this realm," Luna explained.
"So that's why Tofi left? He's searching for the source of this evil?"
"Indeed so. Didst thou wish to acquaint thyself with him?"
"Well, it's been a long time since I've seen another human. I would like to."
"Thou mayst meet him. I shall contact him within his dreams, for I am certain he wouldst also wish to meet thee. After all, he is poised to return," Princess Luna spoke.
"Alright, thank you," Green replied sincerely.
"For the rest, we will keep your identity and location a secret. If this evil finds out about your existence, it will likely come for you," this was good news for the human; the last thing he wanted was to be involved in conflicts in this world, especially if he didn't know any concrete details about it. "You will stay in the forest with Zecora, and every night you will give a report to Luna in your dreams," Princess Celestia concluded.
"Furthermore, thou shalt only be able to converse with Zecora and the friends of Tia's pupil," Luna added, but Celestia interjected.
"Sister, I already told you that Twilight is no longer a student..." Before Celestia could continue, Luna interrupted her.
"She continues to learn from thee, sister. She remains thy pupil," Celestia just covered her face with a hoof as if to say "not now."
"Anyway," Princess Celestia said with a weary expression, then turned to Green. "If you need to tell me something, let Twilight or Spike know, or you can wait until nightfall and tell Luna. Understood?"
"Yes, princess."
"Alright, I consider this visit concluded," she rose from her throne and walked until she stood right beside the human, her gaze meeting his eyes. They shared the same height, excluding her horn—a sharp ivory spiral that soared into the air like a lance. It was intriguing to know that a large part of these beings had a dagger on their foreheads with which they could possibly impale you if you were close or set you ablaze if you were far away. It's a relief that they're peaceful, the human thought. "Let's go," Celestia said, and the human followed her in silence, leaving Luna sitting quietly on her throne, watching them depart.
They both exited the room, and Celestia approached the others who were in some sort of lounge. Green sat on a bench and observed as the princess explained to the girls what they had discussed during the audience. After several minutes, the traveler, along with the girls, found themselves outside the ruins of the castle, surrounded by guards escorting them back to Zecora's home.
The journey was long and silent, the presence of the guards somewhat inhibiting the atmosphere of trust. Only after arriving at their destination and knocking on Zecora's door did the guards withdraw.
The girls stayed for dinner at Zecora's house, unaware that the day had passed too quickly. Before nightfall, they decided to leave.
"I'm glad today went well, your visit with the princesses went smoothly, well, if we don't count the beginning..." Twilight's words caused the human to close his eyes in embarrassment. "We have to go, don't worry, we'll come every day if possible," she turned to her group of friends. "Right, girls?"
"Yes!" they all shouted in unison.
"Alright, see you tomorrow," said the human, bidding farewell to everyone.
"See you tomorrow," said Twilight.
"Goodbye," murmured a yellow Pegasus softly.
"Until we meet again, dear," bid a refined white unicorn.
"See ya later, sugarcube," yelled an orange-furred country pony.
"See you around, buddy," spoke the confident cyan Pegasus.
"Goodbye, Mr. Hairless Monkey!" exclaimed Pinkie, waving her hoof enthusiastically.
"Goodbye, partner," declared Spike with his fist raised, Green bumped his fist in return.
After everyone had left, the human bid farewell to Zecora and headed to his room. Several hours later, having managed to fall asleep, Green woke up in the middle of the night for the second consecutive time. His first reaction was to reach for the accessory with his hands, and upon making contact, he felt hostile presences within the house. That was enough to dispel any signs of drowsiness he might have had.
With swift movement, he jumped into the closet and closed the door with a barely audible motion. With the accessory in one sweaty hand, he could track the movement of the intruders. Unpleasant was his surprise when he realized their target was his room. As they got close enough, he could hear their hooves echoing in the hallway. The human couldn't understand how a horse could act so stealthily when they practically had a cinder block on each hoof.
After a couple of seconds, he heard the creak of his door opening and saw some motionless shadows extend from the frame into the room. He could hear their voices.
"Are you sure he's here?" whispered someone who didn't dare to enter, speaking in a low voice, an action futile in the dead silence of the night and Green's sharp senses.
"Of course, our contact wouldn't lie to us," said a female voice. Green tried to concentrate on remembering if he had heard those voices before, but it was futile. I've barely finished my first day, and I'm already being betrayed, he thought bitterly. He forced himself to regain his composure; it was important to know who had betrayed him, but his real problem was in front of his room, just a few meters away.
"Go in and look for him," the female voice continued. Green clenched his accessory tightly.
"But what if he's setting up an ambush? What if he's as strong as Tofi?" Maybe he wasn't a legendary hero from a prophecy, but Green was definitely not defenseless.
"Ugh, as you wish," said the female voice with annoyance. "Then we'll force him out. Follow me." When Green heard the sound of their hooves moving away from the door, he cautiously peeked his head out. He only caught a glimpse of a horn protruding from one of the hooded figures as they turned the corner.
With violence and precision, the unknown intruders burst into Zecora's room, and before the zebra's senses could adapt to the abrupt change, she was already subdued with ropes and a muzzle.
"We know you're here, human!" shouted a male voice. "If you don't want anything to happen to your friend, you'd better show yourself." That's playing dirty, thought the human as he emerged from the closet and headed towards the direction of the voices with determined steps. Zecora was almost a stranger to him, but after her help, he couldn't just abandon her. The human was annoyed; while he had a feeling he would eventually get involved in the kingdom's conflict, he had hoped it wouldn't be immediately after finding out about it. At this point, he felt like he was already involved to a point of no return. So be it.
"I'll go with you," said Green, and everyone jumped in surprise as they noticed how quickly the human had entered the room. "Leave Zecora here, and then I'll go wherever you want." The human considered it a good option; at least he could learn more about Tofi and whoever else was after him.
After hearing his words, the hooded intruders gathered in a circle, murmuring among themselves. One of the figures approached Zecora and addressed the traveler. "We accept your conditions." A horn protruded from their hood, which they brought dangerously close to Zecora's forehead. "But first, you must let us tie you up, for our safety."
Green saw no issue with it; he extended his arms, and one of the intruders hastily tied them with a rope. "Satisfied?" After these words, he saw the unicorn's horn glow, and a moment later, Zecora was unconscious.
"Don't get agited, she's just asleep," she said, noticing Green's gaze. The only features he could discern from under the hood were her silver fur and dark blue eyes. "There's no need to do anything rash now, right? So you're Green Mist, aren't you?" The human didn't respond. The pony approached cautiously.
The pony approached cautiously, her horn maintaining its glow throughout. "You seem too tense. Do you get grumpy when you're woken up in the middle of the night? Don't worry; now you can go back to sleep."
Her horn intensified in brightness, but the human stood firm, a mocking smile on his face. You'd better try harder than that, he thought, observing Eclipse concentrating with closed eyes and her forehead beading with sweat. The room was now fully illuminated by the powerful glow of her horn. The human couldn't help but suppress a laugh. Does she really think her magic would be able to...?
Green collapsed to the floor, deeply asleep.