In The Kingdom Of Hope [Concluded]

“Impatience and irritation are not so far apart, but I respect your distinction. I can still feel the sun down here, Market,” Celestia said. “It is in the best place it has been for a long time. You have to trust that everypony is fine, and when they are not they soon will be. We were struggling for time before as we tried to find a way. With support of a caliber greater than what can be sourced from Equestria, It will never have seen such a collection of powers. We cannot be like the more weak willed ponies before us and just lull it into a deeper sleep, you can delay for a thousand years but you need to face the the problem at some time.” It was unclear how much the princess was talking to Sugary as she stepped down the stairs behind the stallion. Some of it sounded a lot like voicing thoughts from her mind, though they had a tone of encouragement. There was no mistaking that her next words were addressed to the stallion however.  “Was it to you all or to just the young guard Blade that I explained the consequences of the last awakening of the darkness?”

Around the same time Celestia spoke, Summer also began to talk, answering the question he’d asked. "I no longer know. The spell I'm using has become harder and harder. I can only suggest that you keep your eyes looking. You cannot be too far now if I am encountering such difficulty, so I would not suggest moving too quickly into things."

“Would you rather taste me?” Mittere offered in explanation. “I was not going to part with anything for your sake, so I worked with what was easily available." At first signs of her rousing, Mittere was quick to let go of Fearful. "Though I am curious as to why you know the taste you describe I do not think that now is the correct time.” Fearful has failed to draw any sympathy from her from her antics. She had exhausted herself and had only complained as she tried to help. Luna could deal with that, she would go on ahead, guiding herself down the drop by gliding with her wings rather than using the step Sugary provided for use. Mittere preferred to check they were still in good working order, they so rarely saw causal use.

Even with the new light, Blade wouldn’t be able to see anything of threat.The ground was solid and held primitive triggers for any traps, no new monsters and few ways for anymore of them to appear. it seemed to be a safe enough spot to relax. The only way out was through the way he had entered. All of his well placed paranoia and diligent scout work proved to be naught so far.

Sugary heard Celestia's question loud and clear, but he had to consider how best to answer in the meantime. "... No, I believe you did tell us. But we never really got a concrete answer from that. We still don't really know what we're up against after all... Hence why we may as well keep pushing onwards and find out."

With Summer's caution, he looked around as well while Blade lit up the way for them all, but what soon bugged him was the apparent lack of any further routes to take. He let out a tired sigh. "This better not be a dead end, or we'll have come all this way for nothing..." Carefully wandering about, he would look upon any walls worth checking. "Say... Little voice in my head tells me we're likely very close to whatever's been bugging us. Don't drop your guard yet..."

Blade sighed. "Again, I find nothing." He said while realizing that there was nothing that he could see. He was nearly tempted to start smashing the walls in order to see if there was anything behind them, but knew it would be foolish to start smashing walls randomly. He then simply decided to sit down and sigh. He closed his eyes and let his magical energy as he performed a simple scan spell, similar to how he done it with Sugary before they had entered this cave. It would come off in small pulses that moved in each direction and clash against outside magic and fade from anti-magic. If something was powerful enough to destroy the world and have this many trials for them, then it was safe to say that it should also give off a large magical energy as well. Of course this was only of the thing in question hadn't had a way to conceal its magical energy or was forcefully suppressed due to whatever was keeping it at bay.

"No... you'd probably taste like greed and arrogance... so similar to my own. Probably better than mine actually..." Fearful continued to lie on the ground, though feeling had started to return to her limbs. "I could tell you the story, but now is not the time to reminisce abour past mistakes. Speaking of past mistakes," she said as she rolled onto her belly. "Thank you for the assistance. I would have said that first, but it is not often I require aid... the feeling is intriguing. So again, thank you for helping me."

Mittere didn't linger on Fearful's thanks. She wasn't doing it for thanks. She didn't know why she had done it, but she did not have all the much to say. "Do not let it become habitual." She surely would have loved to stay around and chatter, but she did have a job to do. The sooner she finished her job, the sooner he could go home and beginning planning for the next ripe time to challenge Celestia. Whatever her priorities were being thought of kindly were not high, because of her supposed arrogance.

Luna nudged Fearful's rear with a hoof to try and get her to move. "Rise, Fearful, you have yet to earn your break." She had a stern tone to her voice, something capable of expressing how annoyed she was with her. It was not the fact they were lagging behind, but the drama she had brought on herself. It was attention seeking and left her slightly embarrassed, not like in front of Mittere that mattered too much. "I do not wish to have to carry you. It's most undignifying."

Celestia saw Blade sit down and sigh and continued her cheerleading work  "Not too far now," she said softly, not wanting to disturb his spell at work. He was not the only pony that was tired. Stopping and starting was becoming a pain, but if Sugary's extra companion told him they were close, so they could afford to go inch by inch for just a few more. She shifted her attention back to Sugary. “We had enough information to be able to find this place. Hopefully we can get more information before we clash.”

The spell would reach out to the walls and carry on past all the magic in the immediate vicinity caused by ponies. Being underground was not helpful either, causing interference from the planet's core crackling away. They were nowhere near close, but compared to casting the spell on the surface a difference could be felt. Something could be felt however, crudely bending the scan around it. This defence, if it was such a thing, was rather lacking as it would be simple for somepony who was competent to just go between the lines and look at the thing causing the distortion. The general right direction seemed to be behind the glowing wall.

Fearful blinked as Luna's hoof clanked against her armour and she sighed, snorting as she stood up. "As you wish Your Majesty. I shall carry myself." Her helmet clanked into place, the eyes flashing red as it did. Her cheeks flushed red under the helm, and she shook her head. Embarrassing Luna... you are a 12000 year old beast... you were the general who lead the solar armies, start acting like it! She mentally chided herself before moving in the direction of the group, scanning the walls before focussing on the attempt to distort the scan. "There," she said, pointing at it.

The stallion was a bit surprised by feeling the others, not having expected them to start following until much later or until he got back. It didn't really matter since it seemed to be a dead end, but then Blade felt the disturbance. He got up and looked over at the fake wall. He turned off his spell as he approached what he thought to be a fake wall, similar to the one that Fearful had smashed before they were confronted by the three creatures. Once he was near it, he would place a hoof onto the wall and slowly rubbed it. He wasn't expecting anything to happen and would wait for the others to catch up before he spoke up. He kept his horn lite in order to provide some light for himself and help the others spot him, since the light already given wasn't the brightest of lights.

Between Celestia's assurance and the distortion spotted properly, Sugary moved towards the area of attention, while staying near enough to both Celestia and Summer. "Perhaps... I'd like to think this means progress, so let's just keep at it then..." He then conjured a single shield and spear from his Inventory, grasping the shield and spear with a single foreleg for a simple combination of offense and defense readily available for no further Mana cost. "... I still have a bit of water with me. If anyone wants a drink, now's as good a time as any." He also conjured a small cantine, showing his small offer before having to venture forth for good.

“Better…” Luna released a breath she had not been aware she was holding onto as Fearful stood up and actually moved so that they could catch up. She knew she and Fearful would have an easy enough time seeing, but the rest of the group may not even with the artificial lighting they were making. A bigger light could be seen from further. Stealth was not of any essence yet, but should it play a role, eyes adjusted for the dark would be helpful.

Blade would be able to feel the wall, though certainly didn't feel real. The soft rubbing did nothing. The spell must have been made of slightly stronger magic than that. It would require something more deliberate that held the intent of tearing down the wall, caressing it like a lover was just slowly draining the illusion, and they were a group working against their own strict clock. It is for this reason that Luna took over and magically pummeled the fake wall with the force matching a large impact tool. The illusion tore under this stress, leaving a large hold around where the impact was worse. Parts had also folded back from the pressure, as though the princess had punched a hole through paper. “Somepony clean that mess up so we can proceed.”

Being the one wanting to be of most use where he could, Diurnae quietly moved to clear up a better hole to get through. Quickly making enough room so that the gap was wide and tall enough for the larger members of the group to fit through. The newly opened way held a few noticeable differences, one of them being that the tunnels were held up by supports made from cut timber. The ground was more uneven and the the tunnel split off into two directions, leaving the group with a choice. Blade would know the right one to choose however, having the most information about the distortion of his scan.

Mittere refused the offer of water from Sugary, not feeling hunger or thirst with everything happening. “Drink it yourself, Mr Market,” she answered on behalf of everyone, mostly because she wanted to feel she had overwritten Celestia’s authority on something. It was petty, but small things could bring happiness.

“Two hours until the sun should set. We will be done in time for us all to watch it together,” Celestia said, moving towards the the new path, ready to pick if everypony proved indecisive. She chose not to fight with Mittere on this issue. She herself was fine, though she did hold some concern for the guards.

Fearful waited, still as Luna pummeled the wall into oblivion, before Diurnae cleared the rubble away. As she stepped through the hole, her eyes began scanning the walls, nothing the substantially different make-up of the tunnel. "Hold your majesty," Fearful spoke, raising a hoof to stop her before she picked a path. "We should gather intel before we proceed."

Turning to Blade, she gestured at the tunnels. "Blade, scan these tunnels. I believe you can determine the correct one, given your prowess with scanning spells."

Sugary gave some thought to the decision of who should get the drink after Summer shared her own thoughts on the matter. "Very well... But there's someone else who probably needs it too." And so, he drank a bit from the cantine himself to help quench some thirst while moving over to Blade and offer the rest to him. "Take this, you've been shouting tactics for a while to the other guards." That was his only reasoning, and it seemed fair to him as he kept a close watch on the possible routes to take, distortion or otherwise.

With Celestia's last comment, he gave a soft chuckle. "A nice meal to go with that sunset would be icing on the cake... Here's hoping things get resolved that quickly."

Blade was surprised by Luna when she took down the disturbance with ease. He looked down into the opening as far as he could with his small light, readying himself to start up his scan once again. He looked over at Fearful and nodded to show that he was ready before shaking his head at the offer for a drink. He appreciated the concern and actually thought about what he had just recently done. He smirked as a small bit of pride swelled up inside of him. He let the feeling continue as he started up his scan spell once again in order to guide the group down the dark passage. He stayed in front of the group and led it into the dark cave, which would hopefully guide them towards the thing that they were trying to kill.

Mittere pawed at the ground in frustration. Sugary just ignored her in front of Celestia and then asked for dinner with the princess?! Stern words were going to be had later. Whose side was he on? She'd still attend if it ever happened, but she was doing everypony a service with her presence. Not learning from previous times, she grumbled something at Sugary and began to move forward, making her way behind Blade. Being near a stallion she could vent her frustrations on without damaging their relationship. She didn't want to embarrass Sugary by saying what her problem was, so she went back to Blade.

"Very good," Luna commended Fearful. "That is a large improvement over your earlier behaviour. I hope this carries forward." The princess hung back, content to let Fearful go in front of her. She shuddered for a moment as she thought about the new hairless spot on her face. It was unnerving just because of the lack of the familiar feeling. it made her more aware of her whole face.

Celestia made a move also as their positions shifted. It was a brief opportunity to talk quietly before more unpredictable things happened.  "This may be a poor time to ask, but how much of the time you have spent away do you remember? Is there anything left of what we did? I know your memories of my sister will undoubtedly be stronger, but I like to think I leave an impression not just because I am a public figure," she asked rather suddenly to the mare in armour. Unlike Luna, Celestia had little time spent with Fearful so far. It was not as though she was insignificant to her, so as she marched she awaited the response.

As Blade moved forward, venturing off at the front once more the tunnels were mostly bland. As he approached the source he could feel, he needed to turn a sharp corner, before finding himself to be rather inexplicably lost, though not alone. A blissful unaware mare also still followed him, not one of the nice princesses unfortunately. Wherever her attention was, it was not on the fact the steps behind had disappeared or a tint of magic in the air had been lost.  

Celestia and Fearful were next to turn the sharp corner, also finding themselves to be on their own. The princess did not allow herself to be puzzled by the predicament and immediately began trying to scry for the work of any illusion. She said nothing, assured Fearful would understand the situation and work independently to find out what had happened.

Then the guards pulled around the corner. Luna and Sugary towards the back of the group soon came across their turn, finding themselves with only each other for company. For Luna this was frustrating, but for Sugary possibly rather awkward. He was alone with a mare he had been forced to fight not too long ago. It was not the same mare, but they certainly were a likeness. She hummed as she looked around, trying to think about the problem. She didn't give much attention to Sugary.

Blade didn't pick up on the fact that Mittere was right behind him before he noticed the lack of magic. He stopped and looked behind himself in order to tell the others, but they weren't there. This made the stallion groan. "Another trick." He said before looking over to Mittere. "Think it is a repeat of that loop spell?" He asked while contemplating use his constructs in order to test his theory. He was a little off put about the whole thing. The was no sign of the others and they were separated for a reason so this might be a way to pick them off, but he would have thought the monsters would have already shown themselves.

Sugary thought something about Summer was odd when she moved ahead with a mild grumble that he couldn't quite make out until it hit him what it might've been about. He chuckled nervously under his breath for he could guess it likely had something to do with her relationship with Celestia. He hoped she still realized that once the mission was over for good, she'd be the one he came back home with even if they did celebrate in Canterlot. One could only wonder what was really on her mind.

Unfortunately, even with Sugary realizing there was something nearby, he could do nothing against the sudden displacement that seemed to take place in the blink of an eye. He remained still, and tried to look and listen around as he sought out more than just Luna. While trying to aid as well as lookout, he eventually broke the silence as anxiety befalled him. "... Luna? Luna can you see or hear me? Come on, say something..." Had it been anyone else, he might've focused more still on a way out of the predicament, but the last few times he had any interaction with the mare, it had been ambiguous at best. "Phantom... I could really use some of that guidance right about now if you're still there... Please?"

Fearful merely saluted and nodded to Luna, before turning and marching after Blade, her armour clanking gently. She turned to Celestia as she asked her question and she shook her head. "There are few times I would call bad for asking questions, this is not one of them... my memory is not perfect, but I endevour to remember the importany things. You Celestia are one of the most important. I could never forget you, or your sister. Of all of you, your public figure honestly made the smallest impact... rather, I would say your words, and your actions have made a far greater one... particularly when you two were children... lookinh after you was probably one of the most joyful experience, only second to caring for Isabelle." She rounded the corner. "Does that answer your question?" She asked before pausing.

Taking a deep breath, she sent out tiny particles of ice, curious to see if she could find anything abour their rather interesting situation. "Anything?" She asked, glancing at Celestia.

Luna ignored the first call, but when Sugary repeated himself she flicked ear and turned to face the stallion. “Do not be ridiculous, you’re not invisible. I just have little to say to you at the moment.” She tasted the air among other things, but found her tests to be inconclusive. “We are not where we were, nor where we were meant to be. Your mirage will not be able to fix this. We need to focus and find our way on the path we were on. Focus and perform the spell, the one you did with the guard if you recall.” Sugary was not a guard, but the princess would command him as such, with a small amount of glee that this was meant to be Mittere’s guards. It did not change her feelings towards him though....

"You are scattered," Summer said. "I do not know the purpose behind it, but you seem unharmed, all of you from what I can tell. Do something. Just be careful of anything coming from dark corners,” the illusionary mare warned with some concern. .

Celestia was glad to hear of her importance to Fearful. It was that which made all she did so rewarding. A lot of ponies couldn’t place the quality they claimed she possessed, nor could she, but it made people happier. "Thank you, Fearful. It is interesting what you remember of me. The fact you would place me as like a daughter is honouring. Your daughter would have been useful here. You've had a tiny headstart on her, but she must be doing well. We still have more than enough to get through this if we make the most of ourselves.” The princess said, looking to the floor, not for answers, but for catharsis. “I don’t mean we need to skip hoof in hoof, but if somepony was a little more willing to help then..." she exhaled deeply, letting some stress flow away with it. She didn’t want to name the pony because that would be as childish as she was, but she wanted to convey who she felt was being the unreasonable one. Sometimes, though rare, she was wrong about things. Second opinions saved her more than once. She shook her head. “Nothing out of the ordinary, but that must have been a very precisely laid trap.” Celestia watched Fearful’s ice, waiting to see if they could pick anything up. There was nothing abnormal at work as far as she could tell. They just needed to keep moving, or they could go back around the corner to see how that might help, but more of the poison was rarely the remedy.  

It took a few moments for a Mittere to visibly acknowledge what Blade said. Her first sign of paying attention was the mare shaking her head. "I do not think so. It would have to be a much greater version to split us into our own loops. The mare looked around. "I do not endeavour to be stuck here long, though it is nice to be free of Princess Perfect's presence. I am sure we can push on ahead together and have no problems. Are you not equally certain that splitting us up will not change the fate of the being who did this?" The mare began to walk forward slowly, wanting for Blade to follow her forward. She had little to hesitate or to fret over.

Sugary remained cautious of Luna, but it seemed she was the real deal so far, and Summer seemed to help him know how none of the others were in trouble yet at least. "Thank you, that's a good sign at least." Nonetheless, he lightly snorted in frustrated thought as Luna made her request. "If you mean the one about keeping a thread between us, that only really works if we kept it going since... Though it might be a good idea for us to make a thread between us to keep from losing each other actually. That aside, I got no idea where anyone else is, yet, but at least the other companion told me they should be in no more danger than we are right now..." He'd then perform a couple spells, slowly, one involving a thread of light headed towards Luna's body, and another being an effort to Scan his surroundings better. "There's gotta be a pressure or a 'path'... Somewhere... There's no way we're in the Void just yet..." Like a living radar, he sent out a strong pulse of the spell for maximum burst efficiency to tell if something reacted or not to the scan.

"Isabelle? Yes, she would have been useful, but she is but a child compared to us, and I would not dare to place her in such danger." Fearful smiled and the helmet withdrew for a moment so she could nuzzle Celestia gently. "You were always the most collected... the best of the three of us. Your very presence calms me..."

As the helmet snapped back into place, she shrugged. "I'm not sure... I don't there's anything perticularly magical about this area, so I'm honestly not sure what happened... probably best if we keep moving."

Blade wasn't as confident as Mittere. They didn't have her grandchild, which meant no spell for them to kill the monster they were facing. He continued his scan spell and hoped that they would meet back up with the others before they met anything else. He made sure to keep even with Mittere as his eyes looked around.

Celestia moved her head up and down to facilitate the nuzzling. It was a nice feeling. Not many ponies dared to do it. "Sometimes, you have to let ponies you care about wander into danger. The result can often surprise you. We are far from our time yet, but having ponies ready to take action makes the world safer. I would have gladly foalsat her, though she is quite big," Celestia said.

"I do think she would be looking after you were she here. You have not so soon forgotten your reckless move, have you? I can forgive you all of the worry it caused me, but I do not think your daughter could. Do you still consider yourself some kind of monster? Being felled by tiring yourself is what happens when a rabbit is chased by a timberwolf." She hoped that the message would sink in and she would be more careful. Fearful was not a rabbit. He was not as fluffy to just name one difference. The princess then gasped for a moment, seeming slightly embarrassed before remembering the need to start walking rather than stand around.

Luna saw the way that Sugary looked at her, how he scrutinised her. She did not like it. He had the nerve to not trust her! It should be her that was the one lacking the trust after how he had treated her. He drew the ire of a powerful pony when he thought it a good idea to try and force her too cool of. She doubted he would have been so quick to douse the mare he had arrived with, or even Celestia or the guards.

Luna also did not enjoy Sugary's idea, it felt too much like they were tourist in a foreign city trying not to get separated. She allowed it just to see what idea he would produce next. The scan spell seemed more useful, though the mare was unsure what Sugary might find within the cave. Her eyes just rested on his back, waiting for a result. They had all been split, but they were rather close to the course they had been on. Through the walls that same presence picked up by Blade could be felt. The orientation was different, but not too hard to correct. With that, it seemed there was little point in splitting them up at all. maybe a final effort to demoralise them, but that was weak after they’d come so far. “Lead the way when you are ready. I would like you in front of me. You are a guard, yes?” She offered that as an excuse, though she really just wanted his horn pointing away from her.

Mittere didn't get any verbal response from Blade, which she saw as a rather big shame. Now she could not reply while still maintaining her disinterest. He followed her at least, so she did have some kind of guard, which only amplified her confidence, though not as much as one she could trust might. A cause to break the silence came along as something blocked the path. It was a simple iron gate, stretching to the cave's ceiling. Not too difficult to navigate, but it posed questions. “Shall you force it or I? I can happily if you are tired. It does strike as rather odd, do you not think? Most areas we have come across were shaped by nature or magic."

At the very least, Luna allowed Sugary to proceed as he had intended, which made his efforts a little easier as the string clung lightly to them both. He thought it was odd she wanted him to lead, but nodded slowly and accepted once he got something responding to the spell. "More a bodyguard, but very well. I'm picking up something, so we might have a good lead after all... No idea what it is though, so be ready for anything..." And with that, he cautiously moved in the direction he was getting a signal from; Partly because he wasn't sure what he'd find, and partially because he still didn't feel completely secure with Luna herself yet now that his back was turned.

Blade didn't expect to feel the other's presence and it was something he was expecting at this point. He looked over the strange gate that had blocked the path in front of them. He couldn't help, but to nod when asked if this gate was odd. "Let me try something before we try to knock it down." The stallion stepped over towards the gate and created a construct around himself. His scan spell most likely had gone over the gate and he had gotten nothing from it, so now it was time to explore beyond it. His construct moved off of him and slipped through the openings in the gate that would be too narrow for him, but not a morphable construct. It turned into a small orb and rolled further down, basically acting like a scout as along as it stayed within eye shot.

Fearful snorted and nodded, sighing as she remembered. "She's saved me more times than she has any right to really... as for that... I perhaps put a little too much energy into Orchestra," she shrugged and raised an eyebrow. 'Whether or not I regard myself as a monster does not change the fact that I am one Tia, though I do like to think that I am substantially cuter than any rabbit or hare," she said, following Celestia as she started to walk. "Let me pose the same question to you Celestia; do you think that you are a monster?" she asked as she walked, no malice in her voice.

Mittere watched as Blade performed his little trick, ever paranoid for some kind of trap. Her questions had gone unanswered, but Blade was focusing on what was ahead at the least. She watched the orb as it moved down the hall, not seeming to find anything its path. It did however make a pretty light show for Mittere to smile at as it went to the distance. “Is that to your satisfaction?” she asked, placing a hoof on the bars to show her eagerness to move on. She really was not worried at all about anypony else. “Shall you, or shall I?” She repeated. Perhaps speaking prematurely, a gust of wind blew through their cavern. Underground however, that was interesting.

“I think,” Celestia paused, proving she was actually entertaining what was a silly question.  “Monster is a horrible word, that comes from ignorance and a lack of understanding. I’d avoid prescribing such a label wherever possible, so I would most certainly not. I only do it with you to entertain your self-loathing. I have made some mistakes that have hurt ponies, but if I never wish ill of anyone. I think it is better ponies listen to my good advice, rather than any of my bad examples. It’s easier to be wise for others, than for oneself.” Celestia carried on walking with Fearful as they spoke, perhaps moving slightly slowly. A faint noise began to play as they did, like the air was crackling, popping as though under a kind of pressure.

"So yes, you are," Luna answered for Sugary. He was a guard, modifying the position was not going to alleviate him from the role. It was actually a great deal better for her to have to stallion face away from her, though her change in posture would be hard to see.  "Perhaps you can tell me when you find something you can actually identify instead of informing me of all of your tingly feelings." Despite all the complaints and problems, she followed behind the stallion as he led her closer to whatever he could feel. They were approaching slowly, the path was anything but linear. They were going the long way around for sure. “Halt,” The princess ordered. “Can we not just make a more direct passage?” .