A Broken Warrior

by Stonehearth

Mind Games

Skystrike was within his mind, walking through the grey space aimlessly. He's been thinking a lot lately, going back into the memories that he could. Over his travels, he couldn't help but think about his past, namely how Khrusalis died- no, disappeared would be a better word for it. As he found out from Celestia herself, she had no involvement of the attack. Add to that, Khrusalis told him to run from what he remembered, so he never saw the body. Essentially, there's somepony, or more likely somebody that wants him to think the former queen is dead. Also, this same someone wanted him to believe it was Celestia's fault. Bold assumptions for him to make, but he didn't have anything proving him wrong, or right yet.

He thought as he walked, each step getting quieter to him as he continued his trek into the endless void. Skystrike already knew a way to check his memories. It'd be the same way he revealed his past to Luna and Nightmare, just hopping back into his memories. There were just two problems. Skystrike remembered back to a specific memory, when he returned to the hive to face Chrysalis, and his banishment. He paused the memory as a younger Skystrike faced down the current Queen.

The first problem was that some memories were assumedly blocked by trauma. He looked around at the changelings around him. Only a few faces he could make out, notably the pained look on Elytra's face with tears in her eyes, hugging another changeling he got along with, Teeko. For the vast majority of the other changelings, he couldn't make out their faces, just black silhouettes of their heads, with white eyes full of anger. Skystrike still winced at their stares. He still considered them his family, but their looks showed they did not hold the same sentiment. He shook his head in a vain attempt to get the stares out of his head. This wasn't the only way these blocked memories showed. Some were shown to him as static, others, a writhing mass of black tentacles. It all depended on what exactly was being blocked. A face, a voice, an image, all displayed differently.

Then came his second problem. Some memories are nightmares, and have to be experienced, and not viewed. He found this long ago, before he showed Luna and Nightmare his past those months ago. He only realized recently, once Nightmare Moon was able to travel between her alter and Skystrike's mind. Ironically, it was when she began helping to stop his own nightmares. In his dreams, Skystrike has the choice to experience it or view it, as he did the night before when he dreamed of spending time with his siblings from the orphanage... he should spend some time with them once he gets back.

Anyway, both of those problems come together to put him in his current predicament. He wanted to look more into the situation with Khrusalis... but he'd have to relive the memory. Not that he hadn't before, but it doesn't suddenly become pleasant after a couple dozen times. Actually, it's been hundreds if not thousands over the years. Hard to believe it's been over a decade since it happened... He was getting off track. Skystrike stopped his walking and crossed his arms with a sigh. Only two ponies could help him with this, Luna and Nightmare Moon.

The problem is that he'd once again have to rely on Luna's good will to not tell her sister. He trusts her, but Skystrike keeps pulling her deeper into the rabbit hole... well, not necessarily. She already knew about humans in the first place, she just doesn't know about him. Was he willing to take the risk?

No, he could trust her. They haven't been through too much in the grand scheme of things, but it was enough to earn his. She's kept his secret for this long. Skystrike called out to them in the hopes they'd come. "Luna, Nightmare, I... need a favor."

It took only moments for the two to make their presence known, as the grey void turned into a starry night sky. The two flew in from seemingly nowhere before landing in front of him. Luna greeted him first. "Greetings, Skystrike. It is our pleasure to see you again. We hope your travels are going well?"

"Yeah, some hiccups here or there you could say, but it's progressing. Taking longer than it should, but we're only two days behind schedule. Nothing too major." Skystrike shrugged. "How's it going with you two?"

Nightmare gave a small smile. "I like to think it's going well. Confronting our demons is hard, but it's... going at least."

"But enough about us. What about this favor you speak of?" Luna tilted her head.

"Ok, it's a lot to explain, so Nightmare, go into my memories of the past ten minutes, then share it with Luna."

Nightmare Moon gave him a skeptical look, but did so, closing her eyes. Skystrike could feel her crawling around his mind, sifting through each thought. After a moment, she opened her eyes. "I'm... not sure if I should do that, Skystrike... but I will let Luna decide."

Luna gave Nightmare Moon a confused look before the crossed horns, sharing the memories Nightmare gathered. Luna's eyes went wide as she realized what he wanted them to do. "Let us be clear, you wish for Nightmare Moon to give you a nightmare, then wish for me to help you through unblocking these... memories?"

"Yeah, that sums it up. I'm shooting in the dark here, I have no idea if it will even work, but you two are my best bets for it to work." Skystrike nodded. "But let me specify. I can give myself a nightmare, no problem. But I would wake up at certain points on instinct. I need Nightmare to make sure I don't wake up."

Luna hummed. "We are not sure if it is a good idea. It will surely give us answers, but... there is no telling what it will do on your mind. We've only used such a spell on ourselves, let alone another pony. We do not know what affects it will have on you, a human!"

"I'm willing to take that risk. I need to know what happened that day. There's too much I don't know, too much that doesn't make sense anymore. I know it's a lot to ask for, but I really need this." Skystrike clenched a fist.

Luna began to waver at that. "And what would thou do with the information?"

"Depends on what information I get. But I will prepare for whatever comes. Best case scenario, I deal with some past trauma. Worst case, there's someone behind the scenes pulling the strings... and someone we need to deal with."

Silence fell between the trio as the alicorns thought upon his words. Their first worry was what if he was right? Their second was what if it was another human? But Nightmare had a question to ask. "And if we don't help you?"

"Then I will find another way." He answered almost immediately.

The two could feel his resolve. "Very well..." Luna said. "We shall assist you with your goal... Are you ready?"

Skystrike nodded as Nightmare Moon approached him. She closed her eyes as she focused magic in her horn, leaning in towards the human. Skystrike felt his mind go dark, and a wave of uneasiness flowed through his body. When he opened his eyes, he was there. Back where it all started going down hill.

A bright light filled his vision before he came to. He tried to move his head to look around, but he couldn't. All he could do was feel the grass under his hooves and the wind on his body. It was like he was possessing someone, watching through their eyes. In front of him, Skystrike could see Luna and Nightmare Moon staring at him, but no matter how much he tried, he couldn't move towards them, or even call out. It was expected. He wasn't able to last time until the nightmare was over.

Luna stepped forward and reached out to him, only for her hoof to pass through his body. Nightmare shook her head. "It's no use. We won't be able to do anything besides watch unless we stop this nightmare." The two alicorns stood back as a young Skystrike kept walking. He entered a forest. Luna looked around to notice the walls to Canterlot in the distance, along with the castle. She wondered what the dream was about.

Skystrike felt the dirt under his hooves as he went deeper and deeper into the woods. His mind remembered the day, no matter how hard he tried to forget. Each step he took felt as if it was ordering him to grieve, to turn away at what was about to happen. His body reached into his saddle bag to grab a small, crudely drawn map of the forest he was in, a small 'x' where he was at. He was in the right spot. Now it was just a matter of waiting.

Skystrike sat in wait, digging aimlessly at the dirt under him. It took a few minutes before he heard the sound of magic, something teleporting into the forest he was in. He stood up, but quicker than he could react, he was picked up by a pair of hooves from behind and turned around before being pulled into a hug. "It's been so long, my little nymph!" A motherly voice spoke.

Luna and Nightmare looked at the being hugging him. A tall, black pony-like figure, with a height rivaling that of Nightmare Moon. In place of fur, she has a black chitinous shell. Her mane and tail were a beautiful golden hue, the same color as her elytra and her eyes, each reflecting the sun off of her. Her horn was long and pointed, showing her magical capabilities. It was a changeling... one with a regal stature, if it wasn't given away by the golden tiara on her head.

Even if it was a memory, Skystrike could never forget the feeling. The smooth chitin, her warm body, the soft, yet firm hooves around him. "Mom! Don't scare me like that!" The words flowed out of his mouth as he returned the hug, wishing he could tighten his grip around her and not let go. Each of the alicorns eyes widened. That was his mom?

"...You know, I'm still not used to you calling me that." The changeling giggled behind a hoof. "Feels like it was just yesterday when you came to my hive. I'm happy that you don't feel obligated to call me 'Queen Khrusalis' anymore."

That made more sense. Celestia told Luna about her before. The late changeling queen, who passed a bit over a decade ago. Skystrike told Celestia, who then told Luna. The princess of the sun had kept in contact with Khrusalis, albeit sparsely. This explains why their contact was cut short. Then Nightmare realized. "This is..."

Luna turner to her alter. "What is it? Did thou realize what we are seeing?"

"I think so... I recognize how this nightmare starts, one of the many that I've stopped before. But... I never even seen the hug... This is new domain to me, but I know for certain that this is a dream he did not want to remember."

Their conversation was paused as Skystrike continued to speak. "Yeah, it took me a while to get used to too. How's the hive doing? I know we can't really send letters to each other."

"Well, I have some changeling visit every few months to check on you. Sorry you had to find out like this, but you know how we have to stay secretive." Khrusalis sighed, but her warm smile soon came back. "Your sister is doing fine. Chrysalis is focusing on her studies, at her rate, she'll be a good heir in a few years. She's just a bit... hot headed." Skystrike noticed the smile falter a bit.

He chalked it up to a trick of the mind. "Really? It's been almost two years since I've seen her. I'll try and visit when school lets out for the summer." The two released each other before sitting down.

"It'd be nice to see you again back home. Your caretaker, Elytra said she misses you. Even asked to come here to Canterlot and began training to be an operative... with some luck, she wont need to if peace talks keeps the same motions. But enough about that! Today is a day for celebration!"

Skystrike tilted his head. "It is?"

"It's your birthday, my little nymph! You forgot? You're 14 now!" The queen put up her hooves. "You've been in the hive six years! Though I guess this more counts as an anniversary."

Skystrike processed that information. "Huh, I guess it is. Well... I don't have anything planned. Did you?"

Khrusalis looked off, deeper into the forest. "I always wanted to visit Canterlot again. Last I've been here, it was with my own mother over twenty years ago..." Her smile faltered again. "There's a hidden entrance just south of here if I remember right. Maybe you can show me around. I wonder how much has changed over the years."

"Sure." Skystrike said as the two got up and began walking. "Though from what Celestia has said, not much has changed. I asked her about it, but all I really got from her was some new restaurants and bakeries she liked."

Khrusalis blinked. "Hold on, Skystrike... You've talked with the princess? Casually?"

"Oh, right, guess I never got the chance to tell you, I got adopted by her about... two years ago? Yeah, two." He shrugged. "She's pretty alright as long as she knows I'm not... you know..."

Khrusalis looked at him. Skystrike could never hide anything he was feeling from her, the queen being his mom and a changeling. "Skystrike, be honest with me. Do you plan on telling anyone else that you're human?"

"No." He answered quickly. Much to quickly for Khrusalis' liking.

She sighed. "Skystrike, I can only imagine how hard it will be to truly trust another after what happened to you." She tried her best to hide her pain outwardly. "But, you must find someone to trust-" Khrusalis wasn't finished speaking, but any words that came out of her mouth sounded like static. The watchers weren't even able to read her lips.

"I'll... keep it in mind." Skystrike sighed. "We've been walking for a while, mom. Are you remembering right?"

"...Yeah, I'm sure." Khrusalis confirmed as they kept walking. "So, how's your time been among the ponies? You're- well, you were in that orphanage right?"

"Yeah, still visit every day. Surprised how close I got to them. There's Astral Night, Dawnstone, Mystic Falls, Lucky and Blue Clover, from oldest to youngest. Guess I'm a big brother to them. It has it's moments, taking care of Lucky and blue are tricky. They're seven, so they're a hoof full, getting into things. Astral and Dawnstone are... twelve and ten so they're... competing with each other? For lack of a better term. Told them I'd save up some bits so we can go clothes shopping. Mystic wants to hang out with me more, since I'm the only brother he's close to, but he's nine so there's only so much we can do together. But they're all good kids. Sister Paprika says that I have to be a good role model, so I'll try my best." Skystrike gave a small sigh. "As for Celestia and her niece, Cadenza, they're... nice. They enjoy my company when I'm around, and I'm beginning to like theirs. It just... I've been keeping my distance from them. It feels like they're trying to replace you all, and the ones in the orphanage." Skystrike winced. "Saying it out loud, I feel bad. I need to talk to them about it."

Khrusalis felt her heart warm at that. "You've grown so much over the years... I've proud of the pony- no the person you're becoming." She hugged him again. "The connections we have with others is the most important thing we can have in this life. Make sure to keep nurturing them."

Only now did Skystrike notice that the forest was eerily quiet. His eyes darted around to see anything out of the norm, cursing under his breath as he slacked in his training from how peaceful it was in the capital. As soon as he turned his back to Khrusalis, five figures appeared in front of him, and from the sound of it, five more behind him. All with white coats and golden armor. The royal guard? The hell were they doing here? No, this should be fine. They'd know his face by now with how long he's been in the castle. Maybe he could talk his way through this.

But before he could even get a word out, the five behind him began battle with with Khrusalis. As soon as he turned to look at the beginning battle, two of the guards in front of Skystrike tried to jump on him in an attempt to pin him down. Skystrike flew into the air to dodge them, trying to get a better look at their faces. The memory made their faces obscured by black shadows, showing no expressions at all, just a silhouette.

Nightmare Moon was first to notice something. "Look, behind Skystrike." She pointed to her alter. Luna raised an eyebrow at her before turning to see what she was looking at. Khrusalis stood behind him, with five royal guards jumping at her, all of them seemingly frozen in time. "I noticed how every time the memory isn't in Skystrike's point of view, what was in his vision seems to stop." Then she walked up to one of the guards. "But I also noticed that they can change depending on his other senses, in this case, what he hears. Notice how he thinks this one has a blade, because he heard the sound of unsheathing metal."

Luna walked up to the same guard. Nightmare was right. Something that caught her eye was how each one was jumping at Khrusalis, as seen from when Skystrike turned around briefly. But their blades were a black, pulsating mass in the shape of a sword, seeming to imply that Skystrike wasn't able to get a good, or long enough look to see what they had. "Indeed... We believe it would be best to take everything our dreamer doesn't see with a grain of salt."

Skystrike quickly noticed that two of the guards were pegasi, and took into the air to follow him. Seeing as there wasn't a way to get out of this peacefully, he'd start to defend himself. While they couldn't see the pony's face, they could tell from their wings twitching that they were surprised from Skystrike's rapid approach. All it took was a punch to the jaw to send the first pegasus spiraling. The second, seeing their ally crash into a tree, would not be caught off guard and dodged the dive at him from Skystrike.

He took his eyes off the pony in front of him for a moment to see how Khrusalis was holding up. The three ponies that came in front of him went to help their allies against the Changeling queen, who was just barely holding her own. Sure, she was already able to take down two, but her chitin was cracked in some places. Skystrike needed to speed this up. He dove at the second pegasus, who put up a shield to block Skystrike's attack. What he didn't expect was Skystrike's metal arm to pierce right through it and stabbing the wrist mounted blade into their chest, making them fall back to the ground.

Khrusalis was overwhelmed, much to Nightmare's surprise, just keeping up a barrier to defend herself from the unicorn's magic attacks. She grit her teeth as her ears were ringing. Blood dripped down her forehead as she used all of her magic to focus on keeping her shield up. The edges of her mouth curled up slightly as Skystrike landed on one of the unicorns. Maybe she wouldn't have to play defense anymore.

"Are you ok!?" Khrusalis yelled to Skystrike.

Skystrike jumped on the back of another unicorn and bought down both hooves on their head. "I'm fine! Worry about-" His sentence was interrupted by a sharp pain in his side. He coughed up a mouthful of blood as he looked to his left to see the pegasus he stabbed earlier, stanced like he just finished a throw. Coming out of Skystrike's side was the lower half of a sword and it's handle. Almost instantly, he fell over, cursing himself as he was too sloppy. He put all the strength he could in his legs to stand up, but he was losing too much blood. His mind was racing at a thousand miles per minute, too frantic to think clearly.

Nightmare Moon and Luna looked at the scene with horror. This is not what they were expecting. Then, both of the mares ears snapped back as a loud crack was heard, as if a tree was snapping in half. They looked all around them to try and find the source of the sound, realizing it was the space itself they were in. A large, white crack went across the sky as Skystrike's nightmare froze in place. "Luna!" Nightmare Moon turned to her.

"We know!" Luna began focusing her magic. The sky, the trees, everything around them, seemed to be falling apart like flaking ash. More cracks came, centering from their zenith as they spread to the horizon. The alicorn of the night had to admit, it took quite a lot of her magic to stabilize his mind. The cracking reality seemed to mend itself back together as Luna's eyes glowed a white light. She fell onto the ground, trying her best to catch her breath.

Nightmare Moon put a hoof out to help her up. Luna looked at her, confused, put then took her hoof to get up. "Wonderful job, the dream seems it's about to continue."

Skystrike, still experiencing the actions of his younger self, was cursing to himself. On one hand, he's glad she was able to keep this place together. On the other hand, he had to relive it again. He felt the blade in his side twisting, making him scream. He looked up to see a unicorn, their face still blackened by shadows.

Skystrike groaned as the unicorn above him spoke. "Don't move another step, Changeling. All it takes is me taking this sword out and the boy bleeds a slow death." He put up a hoof, telling the other ponies to halt their attack.

Khrusalis looked at the unicorn, then down to Skystrike, his eyes almost pleading for her help. "...Whatever you want, you will have it. Just let him go."

"That can be arranged~..." The unicorns words snaked out of his mouth. "See, we're under specific orders to bring back your head. Sad to say, little guy here was caught in the cross fire. Normally I'm not one to keep witnesses alive, but..." He put out a hoof toward the changeling. "If you'll save me the effort and stay still, I'll let this one go."

Skystrike's eyes widened. He couldn't let her die, especially not for him. He tried to force words out of his mouth, coughing up more blood. "N-... no... Mom-..."

"Ssssh... I know, my little nymph..." She sighed as she approached the colt. Khrusalis tried to put on a strong face for him. "There are times when you have to help, and let others be helped. One must ask themselves how much they value another's life. You and Chrysalis mean the world to me. This is a sacrifice I must make as another." The changeling put Skystrike's head in her hooves, forcing herself to smile. "I'm so proud of who you've become! I'm sorry I couldn't see your journey any further from here."

Luna and Nightmare realized. The words she spoke to Skystrike... they were almost exactly the same as the ones he said to Astral Night in the fire. "We see... how big of an influence the changeling-, no- Khrusalis was on him." Luna and Nightmare Moon both gave a courteous bow to her, showing their respects, however much it meant.

"Are you done with the water works now?" The unicorn yawned.

Khrusalis hid her distain for the unicorn. "Just... one request." The unicorn raised an eyebrow. "Not here... not in front of him."

He groaned. "Ugh, fine. Start the clean up. I got to deal with this..." He motioned to the other ponies before focusing his magic. In a flash of light, the unicorn teleported away, with Khrusalis in tow, leaving the sword in Skystrike.

Skystrike's heart sank, a feeling he didn't want to ever remember, let alone remember. Shock, that she was gone. Denial that she'd do it for him. And anger at so many things. That he and Chrysalis were without a mother. That the guards he once looked up to were doing this to him. That despite his and Khrusalis' dreams, peace would never happen... That he was too weak to do anything.

For the first time in years, his eyes burned a white light. Waves of magic burst from him as he was finally able to force himself to stand up. He grew numb to the pain as he grabbed the stick of metal in his side, puling it out in a spray of blood. Subconsciously, he changed from a pony to his human self in a flash of emerald rage before using magic to quickly close his wound. No words came out of his mouth as he stared down the stunned ponies around him. His white hair stood on end. His jaw was clenched, making his gums bleed. Only a broken, hollow roar, giving voice to every agony he was feeling within himself.

And then the dream froze. The watchers heard a distant, high pitched noise that grew closer... louder. Centering from the human child, static spread from the ground below his feet. It enveloped everything within the dream, crawling along the grass and up the bodies of all involved in the memory. That didn't stop the two egos from backing away as the shifting pixels spread outward. But the ear piercing noise got louder and louder, growing unbearable, forcing Luna and Nightmare Moon to cover their ears and close their eyes in a vain attempt to stop the pain.

And then, is gradually got quieter, stopping after a few minutes. When they opened their eyes, the two alicorns gagged at the scene before them. In the center of the forest, a human Skystrike stood there, covered in the blood of fallen foes. He was covered head to toe, his hair sticking to his skin. A blank look was plastered on his face as he looked down at the blood covering his hand. Luna and Nightmare looked around, seeing the bodies of the nine ponies. They haven't seen a massacre like the one in front of them in ages. Bodies were split limb from limb, organs hung out of bodies torn in half through shear force. And each face, that was still together at least, showed that the last thing the ponies felt were fear.

They were horrified. Appalled. After a millennia, Luna was reminded why humanity was such a danger to their ponies- no, their world. She understood her sister's paranoia. But those were thoughts for another time. She thought the nightmare was over, only to see Skystrike fall to his knees. The burning rage shown through his eyes never faded, but despite that, he began to cry, the drops fell like ichor as he screamed out to the universe. "WHY!? WHY ME!? WHY TODAY!? WHY HER!? WHAT DID WE DO TO DESERVE THIS!?"

But the universe didn't answer. The pain of his wounds and a long battle finally set in as he fell over into the blood stained grass below him, staring into the sky, as if it was to swallow him whole. Skystrike sighed internally. Finally, the nightmare was over.

Luna used her magic to cut off the rest of the dream, making it so she wouldn't have the morbid curiosity to stare at the bodies. She was about to speak before Nightmare Moon walked next to Skystrike and sat down. "...I understand... much more about you now." She forced out, trying to hide her worry. "Your morals... your fear... your megalomania... the reason you wanted to help Luna and I... You see yourself as a monster, don't you?" Skystrike stayed silent as he laid there. "And you knew Luna-... we'd see ourselves as one too." A moment of silence was shared between the three of them. Nightmare Moon took in a deep breath. "I... I wish to assist you with your troubles, Skystrike. To give you the chance that you gave to me. That you can't give to yourself."

Skystrike turned his eyes to look up at the alicorn. "You... you're not-"

"Afraid?" Nightmare shook her head. "Well, I would be lying if I said no, but if I left you here instead of trying to help, what type of friend would I be to you?" She smiled at him.

Luna nodded, showing her agreeance. She sat down on the other side of him. It was time they talked about what happened. "We assume that this... memory... was just before thou returned to thou's hive?"

"Yeah... worst birthday ever." Skystrike gave a sad chuckle. "Hard to believe it's been eleven years. Mom dies on your birthday, get banished two days later. 0 out of 10, wouldn't recommend."

Luna cleared her throat, getting back to the matter at hoof. "We couldn't imagine what thou hadst gone through. But allow us to... give you some words of wisdom. We are who we choose to be. Our moments of weakness should not define us."

Skystrike laid their, taking in the words the princess of the night just said, before words of his own came to him. "You know... for years I blamed Celestia for what happened. Blamed every mistake I made back to this moment. If I just had mom with me, someone like her to guide me through the hardships I had in life, I'd have turned out as someone better. Someone who didn't have to do everything alone. Who didn't have the whole world against him. Who could be there for his friends, his family, in their times of need, instead of hurting them. But after opening up to you two, Celestia, all of my friends around me, I realized how flawed that thinking was. She could've been someone to teach me all of that, but I let my grief blind me. I am in control of my own destiny. And I need to apologize to her." Then he turned to Luna. "I'll send her a letter once I'm awake. For now, Luna, it's your turn."

Luna nodded. "Of course... Though we believe it is best to not to realize that last... memory."

"Knew you'd say that." Skystrike sighed. "I won't force you to watch it through with me, but I need you to unblock it. Like I told you before you began your talks with Nightmare, we have to confront our past, acceptour past. It's the only way we can move forward. I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't follow my own advice."

Luna sighed, but nodded, knowing she couldn't argue his logic. "It is the least we could do for you." She lowered her horn to Skystrike's forehead, and with a flash of light, the memory was restored. "Now, onto the earlier parts... let us work backwards. The unicorn that pierced you, his face, as well as all of the other ponies were obscured. Most likely due to not wanting to remember the faces of thine's fallen foes..." With another flash, another memory returned. "Nightmare, could you go back to when that unicorn first came into his view?"

Nightmare Moon nodded. "Of course." Her long horn glowed, spreading throughout the memory they were in. Time seemed to rewind in front of them, slowing to a halt when the unicorn stood above Skystrike, blade stabbed into his lungs.

They all looked at the unicorn whos hoof was gripping the handle. The alicorns could've sworn they saw him before. A grey coat, with a silver mane and tail slicked back, looking to be in his late thirties at least. "No fucking way..." Skystrike's jaw dropped

"You recognize him?" Nightmare asked.

"That mother fucker!" They were surprised at his yell. "That's fucking MAGNUS! The bitch I fought after you and Celestia called me to Canterlot and put me under Stardust's watch!"

Their heads snapped back to his face. Luna's eyes went wide. "By the moon, you're right! Isn't he still in the prison!?"

Nightmare nodded. "Yes... from our memories, he hasn't been talking much, but he's still awaiting trial. Shining Armor gathered quite the file on him, but that's for later. Why was one of Celestia's most trusted generals here?"

Skystrike blinked. "...Ask him. Luna has the power. And if need be, you can tell your sister." He said, trying to stay calm, sloppily hiding his anger.

"Trust us, it will be the first thing we do once we are done here." Luna assured him. "But there is one last thing we must check." Their foreheads met once more, doing the whole routine of the flash and a restored memory. "Nightmare, to the beginning, where Khrusalis was speaking with him.

One quick rewind later, and Khrusalis was standing in front of them. Even now, Skystrike wished he could say something to her. "I'm sorry... mom. Sorry that I wasn't able to keep our promise. But I'm trying... Despite everything that has happened, I'm still trying. For all of us."

And then the memory played, letting him hear the words that where blocked from his memory all these years. "Skystrike, I can only imagine how hard it will be to truly trust another after what happened to you." She tried her best to hide her pain outwardly. "But, you must find someone to trust. Find someone that you can love with all your being. That is how we truly live. Through the ones we cherish around us."

This time, he'd make sure not to forget those words. "I'll try my best." Skystrike tried to smile. "Thanks for the help, you two. Really. I don't know how I'll make it up to you, but I will."

The two alicorns shook their heads as Luna spoke. "Do not fret over it, dear Skystrike. After thou hath assisted us so much, it is only fair we do the same. But we shall not keep you much longer. It seems somepony wants to awake thee. until next time." Luna waved as a bright light enveloped his vision.

---

Skystrike felt hooves against his arm, shaking him awake. Skystrike pulled himself up right and looked to the source, seeing Zecora's hooves on his arm. "Oh, good morning, Zecora."

Zecora looked up at him. "Are you alright? You were shaking in your sleep. It gave me a fright!"

Skystrike wiped sleep from his eyes, remembering that he and Zecora shared a wall. "...Yeah, just... a nightmare."

The zebra looked closer at him, seeing the bags under his eyes, feeling his hands shaking in her hooves. "This may not be the best role for me to fit, but if you wish, you can talk to me about it."

The human looked at her, then smiled. "I appreciate it Zecora. We'll talk about it another time, I'm... still not done processing everything." He pet the back of her neck, then turned his head to look out the window. About four in the morning in this time zone.

"There is another reason I awoke you with dawn so near." His attention turned back to Zecora. "My hometown, Farasi... We are here."

Skystrike rotated his body so he was sitting on the bed, making room for Zecora next to him. He motioned for her to sit by patting the spot next to him. Zecora climbed on the bed and sat. "So..." Skystrike started. "I assume that you still haven't decided? In visiting I mean."

She shook her head. "I'm still unsure if I'm prepared, to face them now, my soul's ensnared. I wish to seek your council, what should I pursue? The journey we're on mirrors the one I must go through."

Skystrike hummed. "I guess you're right, I didn't think about it like that." Then he crossed his arms in thought. "Thinking back on the story you gave us yesterday, I... can't tell you what would be the best decision. The optimist in me wants to tell you to give them all the chance to do better. The pessimist in me doesn't expect others to change for the better... I've been hurt too many times to stop that part of my thought process. But the realist in me realizes that Marini, your parents, and everyone else in your past, are different beings than who they are now. Like Tethys said yesterday, it's up to you to decide to give them the chance to do better. Whether it's today, or later down the road."

Zecora thought on his words as a comfortable silence fell between them. It took a few minutes for Zecora to give her final decision. "My mind has been made, and my decision is steady... I do not believe that I am ready."

Skystrike pulled her closer, wrapping his arms around her back. Zecora leaned her head onto his chest as she returned it. Then Zecora looked up at Skystrike, her cyan eyes looking into his light blue. Zecora leaned in closer not even sure what she herself was about to do, only to be interrupted by the jingling of Skystrike's door knob.

Zecora, embarrassed, pushed herself off of the human and made enough distance between him before the door opened. "Hey." Elytra entered the room. "My shift's up, and we're over Farasi." The changeling looked at the two, noting Skystrike's confused face and Zecora's flustered one. "Oh my~ I wonder what happened here?"

"Oh, Zecora just wanted some advice and support on her decision." Skystrike stood up and put on a shirt and pants, and finally his helmet. He checked the time, 5:07 in the morning. "You two can head back to sleep, I'll make sure they get dropped off safely." He said as he patted Elytra's back while walking to the bridge. He was barely out of earshot before he heard Elytra laughing.

Questions for later. Thankfully, Elytra parked the ship like he taught her before going to bed. He looked out the side window. Zecora pointed out the capital, Zebrat on the map they were given by the Saddle Arabians. Sure enough, Elytra landed just outside of the port city. It reminded him of Ponyville a bit, but was noticeably different due to having it's own culture. Houses made of painted terracotta, the streets lined with wooden torches, and the decorations were heavily inspired by their surroundings, showing how in tune the residents were with nature.

Skystrike went down to where the Farasians were sleeping and opened the door. Marini, Dune Strider, Tsunami, and Frosty jumped awake at his sudden entrance. "I'm sorry, should've realized you all wouldn't be able to sleep well. He turned his helmet to a collar to show his face. "It's early in the morning, but we're here. In Zebrat."

Marini's ears perked up. "W-we're here? Home? It was so fast! We were in Saddle Arabia just yesterday!"

Dune Strider pulled himself up. "I'm not complaining, I can't wait to get back on dry land."

Frosty nodded, shaking her frigid hair out. "I can't wait to get some Farasian water again. It makes me feel 'whole' if that makes sense."

Tsunami cleared her throat. "I'm not leaving Farasai in a long, long while."

"Don't want to sour the mood." Skystrike stared. "But we're going to be met with some guards or whatever. Can you all do the talking?"

Marini nodded. "Sure thing. It's the least we could do."

---

It took roughly an hour for the guards to come, speak, take the residents back home, get a map from the guards, then leave. Skystrike was currently combining the new map with the rest of the ones he already had. Their goodbyes were heartfelt, thanking him for saving their lives. Though he got the feeling that Marini either knew Zecora was Zecora, or was disappointed she wasn't Zecora.

Either way, it was something he nor Zecora would have to worry about for a long time. He made sure to check everything before taking off towards Diamondia. Thanks to the map, he realized that the flight to Diamondia was ten hours instead of fourteen. Yawning at his lack of sleep, he slumped back into his chair and rubbed his eyes in an attempt to stay awake. But then he thought that after everything he's been through the past few days, he deserved a small rest. He made sure to put on autopilot before going to sleep.

He woke up a few hours later by a set of claws on his shoulder. Tethys shook him awake, telling him she made breakfast. Their routine over the last several days went the same. Wake up, eat, then spent time with each other to pass the time. Tethys was playing around with her camera, taking pictures of everything she was seeing, from her friends to the infinite horizon from the view of the deck. Zecora was spending most of her time reading and testing the book of potions she got.

And Skystrike was spending time with his sister, Elytra, who was sitting across from him in the bridge. "So..." Elytra started. "We never really got time like this before... What do siblings talk about?"

Skystrike chuckled. "Normally, we just hang out. Wanna play a game of would you rather?"

"Oh I love would you rather!" Pinkie slid in from off screen.

"WHOA JESUS!" Skystrike jumped.

"No, it's Pinkie. Hiya Neby! Hiya Stardust! Or are those your fake names?" Pinkie tilted her head as she pulled up a seat. "You two look cool!"

"I forgot you figured out our secrets." Elytra sighed. "Again, please don't tell anyone."

"Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye." She did the whole motion. "Also, Skystrike, I did not realize how ripped you were. And I gotta say, nice." She bit her lip.

"Thanks??? Anyway, what all's happening in Ponyville while we're away?" Skystrike leaned on the table.

"Nothing much, honestly." Pinkie pulled a cupcake out of her hair and began to bite into it. "Fluttershy watched over the cutie mark crusaders and Spike the other day. She had to search for them in the forest after they went to find one of her lost chickens and found a cockatrice! I'm just glad they're ok. Fluttershy was able to stare it down."

"Huh... so she can outstare a cockatrice... Neat."

Pinkie sat up straight. "So, are we still gonna play would you rather?"

Elytra nodded. "Sure, I could go for some. And by the way, my real name is Elytra, but call me Stardust as a pony. It's for safety. My kind isn't on... good terms with ponies."

"Okey dokey lokey!" The pink one beamed. "So..." Her face suddenly got serious. "Would you rather be stuck in a mall alone with a gorilla or five black cobras?"

Elytra winced. "Gorilla, I hate snakes." Skystrike looked at her. "Except Naga. She's cute."

"I'm also going with a gorilla. Snakes are so sneaky!" Pinkie nodded.

Skystrike rubbed his chin. "Do the animals know I'm in the mall too, or are we just hanging out in the same area?"

Elytra tilted her head. "Does it matter?"

"Fuck yeah it matters! If they're actively seeking me out, I can hear a gorilla coming much better than snakes." Skystrike explained.

"Ok..." Pinkie thought. "I guess I'll be more specific next time. This is gonna be fun! Your turn, Elytra."

Elytra sat in thought for a few moments. "Would you rather never taste again, or never smell again?"

"Oooo, that's a tricky one!" Pinkie hummed again. "Well, you know I work at Sugar Cube Corner, so I'd need both. But I'd never be able to live without tasting a cupcake again."

"Similar reasoning for me." Skystrike nodded. "I have heightened senses compared to the average pony, so either is gonna suck for me. Smell is like, 70% of taste. Plus, smell is super important, helps me know what's there if I can't see or hear... On the other hand, I won't be able to taste my favorite meals anymore. Just smelling it isn't the same. Imagine biting into something and the only satisfaction you get is texture."

"Huh, you know, that would suck." Elytra said.

"What is your favorite meal, by the way?" Pinkie leaned forward and rested her head on her hooves.

He smirked. "Oh, you know. Fried rice, sandwiches, pizza, ass, pasta-"

"Did you just say ass!?" Elytra began laughing.

"Prove it." Pinkie said. She waited for Skystrike's reaction, it being a wide eyed look of shock and amusement, then fell over in a snorting fit of laughter.

"You know, I gotta admit, wasn't expecting that." Skystrike chuckled along with them. "Guess it's my turn for one... Would you rather brush your teeth, wash your mouth with alcohol, then drink orange juice, or would you eat a table spoon of wasabi then a ghost pepper without any milk?"

"...By the Pantheon, Skystrike, what in Tartarus!? Are you trying to kill someone!?"

"Sweet Celestia, that's a hard choice. Both suck... But I can barely handle spicy. The rainbows in the cloud factory was already a lot and you drank it like it was nothing. Jeez, the orange juice is gonna suck."

"Yeah, I'm with Pinkie on this one. How'd you even think of that one?"

"I've experienced both, and personally, I like the spicy." He shrugged.

"Hey, don't mean for a sudden shift in convo, but where are you on your way to now, Sky? It's been ten days since you've left. Figured you'd have made it some place by now." Pinkie began rocking in her chair.

"Oh, we've been places. Stopped in Trottingham for a night, then went to Griffonstone. Just dealt with some... issues, but we're on our way to Diamondia. Should be there in... four hours about?" Skystrike checked the clock on the wall. "Hard to truly know, haven't been paying attention to the time zones."

"Oh, it's about ten in the morning back home." Pinkie smiled at him. "I'll tell everypony that it's best to visit in the morning." Then her eyes lit up. "Oh! That reminds me, I know you told me to check on Vinyl for you, and she's doing well. Just not too talkative. Also, you got mail!" She reached into her mane and pulled out a couple letters. "Anyway, I gotta go. We're having a sale today, so it's gonna be busy. I'll see you two later!"

"Alright, Pinkie. See you later." Skystrike said as he and Elytra waved to her as she hopped out of the room. He skimmed over the names of each letter quickly, the senders being Moondancer, Paprika and the rest of his siblings, And a few letters from the village he and Tethys saved. Skystrike rolled his neck. "So, Elytra, wanna read these with me?"

"Sure. I got time."

---

It only took a few more hours to get to their destination: Diamondia. Having no idea where to start looking for their friend, the group of four decided to land on the outskirts of what is assumed to be their capital. The castle was pretty similar to Canterlot, albeit smaller and in the middle of a valley, rather than the top of a mountain. What was more interesting about it was how the castle was built next to a large ravine, going on for miles and miles. The houses were made of marble white stone, with wooden roofs. Jeshan did say that his kind loved digging. Makes sense with the whole 'Diamond Dog' thing now that Skystrike thought about it.

Walking off the ship, Skystrike looked over the valley and breathed in. Took a little while to get used to the change in air, but he, and the rest of his friends welcomed it. "So..." Skystrike stretched. "I've parked far enough away so no guards or anything will come to us. You all would know better than me, do any of you know where Jeshan would be?"

Elytra hummed in thought. "Well, he said he'd set up a shop, making tools and stuff..." Then she had another thought. "Jeshan also said in passing that he'd settle down, since he's getting to that age."

Tethys made a confused face. "Wait, he'd be... 36 now, right? Is that old for his kind?"

Zecora shook her head. "His lifespan mimics the rest of us, a good century without a fuss."

"So we have... no leads." Skystrike gave a small sigh. "About what I expected. Let's split into two groups, it'll be quicker this way." Skystrike looked closer at the city, noticing how few buildings one would expect for a capital. Then he noticed dozens of stairways leading into the ravine the castle was built next to. Logic would assume that Diamond Dogs would live underground. "On second thought... Don't really know the culture too well here, but like most nations, they're most likely not too keen on visitors. Top that with how we don't look the friendliest..." Skystrike began walking down the hill, motioning for his friends to follow.

"I've always wanted to come here!" Tethys pumped a fist into the air. "Jeshan always said that he'd treat me to some gems here. Hopefully it lives up to the hype he gave it."

"You know, I never asked, how do gems taste?" Elytra asked.

"Well, depends on the gem. The more magic dense a gem is, the 'juicer' it tastes, if that makes sense. Each gem has a different flavor, and each color has a different... spice?" Tethys crossed her arms over her chest. "It's super hard to explain. Especially since I haven't had any in a while."

Skystrike had hos own question. "Does the cut of the gem change anything?"

"Only the texture. We need to have Jeshan explain it when we find him."

The four of them began walking on the paved road, looking through the rather small upper city, getting looks from the Dogs going about their days. But then Skystrike realized that some looked... familiar with his races past media. His eyes darted around as he recognized more and more Dogs. Is that-... Is that Loona from Helluva Boss? Scooby doo?? Whitney from Animal Crossing???

Zecora looked at the human. "Are you ok, Skystrike? The look on your face is not one I like."

"Y-yeah, just... a lot of whiplash." Skystrike shook his head in an attempt to get the thoughts out of his mind. Surprisingly, there were no stops from the residents or any of the guards. Whether that was because they were peaceful, or Skystrike's group was intimidating, they'd never know, but they got to the lower city no problem.

Sure enough, the city within the ravine was much, much larger than the one above ground. Each building carved into the stone walls, glowing light breaching the doorways inside. There were many Diamond Dogs of all shapes, sizes, and colors, going about their days. From the looks of it, Skystrike, Elytra, Tethys, and Zecora entered the market district. Colorful lights and wooden signs marked each store, a dozen food vendors being the majority of the stores open. Decorative moss hung off the edges of the stone railing, Skystrike even seeing some gardeners tending to them. He looked at the wooden suspension bridges allowing for easy travel to the opposite side of the ravine.

"So... how would we start looking for the guy? Jeshan always did keep most of his thoughts to himself." Elytra flew into the air behind him and put her forehooves on Skystrike's shoulders.

Skystrike put her back legs under his arms and began to carry her. "Well, assuming he did start that shop of his, he'd be around here. We should ask around."

Tethys looked at Elytra on his back. "You know, I kinda forget you two are siblings... Now, what can I do to convince you to get me some gems from that vendor over there?" She pointed to a Diamond Dog at a food cart, holding small paper bags of gemstones.

He smirked and walked up to the stall, making eye contact with the vendor. She looked to be a sort of Cocker Spaniel, with brown fur and eyes. He also noticed that she, like every other Dog, had large... paws? Hands? More than likely to assist in digging. She greeted the group with a smile. "Well hello there! Never seen your kinds around these parts. What can I do for you?"

"I'd like a bag of these gems." Skystrike motioned to Tethys. "She got a whiff of the smell I guess, and wanted a taste." Skystrike moved one arm under Elytra to keep carrying her as he reached for his bag of bits.

"No problem! That's five bits." She put the bag of gems in Tethys' claws.

Skystrike put the bits in the Dogs hands as Tethys happily ate. "Thank you. Now, if you don't mind, we're looking for a certain dog. It's been a few years since we've seen him, but he said he came back to his homeland. Skystrike raised his free hand to his collarbone. "About this high, dark purple, almost black fur. He has golden hair in his ears, as well as a tattoo over his left eye that the eye of Horus. Purple eyes, but he lost one of them." Skystrike tried to think of any more defining details.

But luckily he didn't have to. "Oh, Jeshan, right? Yeah, I know him! My son and I stop by every once in a while to get some new toys. I never imagined you all were the friends he spoke about! Here to visit him?"

Skystrike smiled and nodded. "Yeah. Nice to see he's still kicking, and that he mentions us. I'm Skystrike, this is Tethys, Elytra, and Zecora. Hopefully he said some good things." He introduced the group. "Would you tell us where his shop is?"

"Sure, no problem!" She pointed to the stairs. "Two levels down, cross the bridge to the other side, and its the store with the gold engraved sign called 'Artifunner'. You can't miss it!"

Skystrike thanked his luck, then thanked her. "I appreciate that, miss...?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, my name is Lady! I'm just watching the stall today while my husband, Tramp is out digging."

'You've GOTTA be shitting me.' Skystrike thought. "Well thanks, Lady. I hope to see you around."

"No problem, Skystrike. Hope you all enjoy the visit to Dimondia"

With that, they parted ways, the group following the explained path to them and stopping in front of the shop. 'Artifunner' was such a silly name, Skystrike had to admit, but it fit the jackal. Unfortunately, it was currently closed. It made sense, it was the afternoon here after all. "Damn..." Elytra went. "May be worth waiting though. Most shops still have clean up to do so someone may still be in there?"

Skystrike looked up at her, then sat down to wait. Tethys and Zecora did the same as he began to make small talk. "You know, it's nice not having to look down as much to talk to beings."

"Tell me about it." Tethys sighed. "I probably got neck problems from how often I need to look down at you all."

Elytra laughed. "We don't have it any better down here. Hurts sometimes to look up at you two."

Skystrike laughed too. "You know, I didn't think about it like that."

Tethys then looked around. "You know, I think I might do clothes shopping here. Diamond Dogs have a similar build to mine, with the tail and all... would just need to get everything a few sizes bigger... makes me feel fat."

Zecora tried to hide her smile as she said. "...I mean-" Elytra and Skystrike couldn't help but make a face in an attempt to not laugh.

Tethys huffed. "I hate you so much sometimes." She smirked.

"Might come with you. I need clothes for this body. Sweatpants too short for me isn't hitting anymore." He rubbed his chin. "...Actually, maybe not here. I've notice that most the dogs here wear a cloak or vest, and all of them wear a collar. I get because how their fur is already hot but... I dunno, I'm probably overthinking things."

"Eh, you could probably fit a vest." A husky, nostalgic voice said approaching them. Skystrike just realized that the voice might be on purpose.

Skystrike looked up to see him stop in front of them. It was Jeshan, fitting the description that he gave to Lady earlier. He never was one for change. Though with one feature that was noticeably different. The left eye he lost a few years ago was replaced with a purple gem.

"Well damn, hey Jeshan!" Elytra jumped off Skystrike's back and began buzzing in front of the Diamond Dog. "You know, I was expecting more of a... surprised look from you."

"Oh, I am surprised, don't get me wrong." He waved a paw. "Figured it'd happen sooner or later. Honestly I'm more surprised how quick it happened. It's been what, a bit over two years? I imagine it took a while to get the three of you here-" Then his eyes fell on Skystrike. "Oh, a new face..." He approached Skystrike and looked up at him, his snout wrinkling as he took in his smell. His eyes widened as he tilted his head. "Damn, Skystrike, what fuckery did you get into?"

Skystrike and the rest couldn't help but laugh at Jeshan's words, then more at the confused look he gave us. "Damn, you haven't changed. It's good to see you again, but you recognized me just from smell?"

"I'm a Dog. It's what we do." He shrugged. "Now, dap me up." Jeshan smiled and pulled back an open hand. Skystrike did the same before they both swung their hands forward, the clap echoing throughout the ravine. "My Dawg." Then he turned to the other three. "Tethys, Zecora, Elytra, I see you three are doing well too. We'll talk more once we're inside." The jackal reached into his satchel and retrieved a key, unlocking the door to his shop.

It was a simple shop, though from how Skystrike saw Jeshan smile slightly, it was something he was proud of. Hard wood floors, rich wood shelving that was lined with rows of various toys that were made of various types of stone and decorated with jewels. At the back of the store stood a counter, as well as various tools for Jeshan's work. Saws, chisels, grinders, everything one would need to do his job. "It's a beauty, isn't it. Made all of this stuff by paw... Oh yeah, I'm a mix of a carpenter and a stone smith. This is what I did with all the money you left me, Skystrike."

"Well, nice to see you're doing good for yourself, Jeshan. I knew you were good at wood working, but not to this level." Skystrike leaned down and looked at one of the toys. A wooden puzzle cube, one where you had to figure out how to take it apart and put it back together.

"I had a lot of time to practice. Plus, in this city of stone, carpentry scene isn't that big. Upside, I have almost no competition. Downside, I have a huge backlog of work to do."

Tethys picked up a stone sculpture of a Diamond Dog, seeing the detail Jeshan went through. "And you do all of this yourself?"

"Well, yes, but technically no. I'll explain later." Skystrike walked behind the counter and opened a door further back. From the light shining through and from the little furniture he could see, Skystrike assumed that it went further back into a living area. "Honeys!" He called out.

"Yeah!?" An upbeat feminine voice responded.

"Could you set the table for six and make a pot of tea!? We have guests! Those old friends I told you about!"

They heard her get up. But then a second voice, still feminine answered. "Alright!"

They all looked confused at Jeshan, who looked back at them. "Oh, sorry, did I not mention?" He flashed two silver rings, one on each of his ring fingers, each have the same engraving.. One was made of what seemed to be gold as a primary and ebony as a secondary material, while the other was revered. "I have fiancés. They said yes a few months ago."

Tethys picked Jeshan up and hugged him. "Oh my gosh, congratulations! We have so much to talk about!"

Zecora nodded. "I'm thrilled you found joy, my dear friend, but you mentioned 'they', who did you intend?"

"Yeah, are they non-binary?" Elytra asked.

Skystrike shook his head. "A possibility, but we heard two voices, and he has two rings."

"Well, you're both wrong." Jeshan waved them into the interior and sat them town at their dining room table. Soon, his fiancé joined them, putting out tea plates and cups for each. She, or they poured each of them a cup of tea and sat down with the group. "They're an Orthros." One body with silver underbelly and black fur held two heads on it. One head seemed to be a Husky, with light blue eyes and the neck fluff one would expect. The other head was a Border Collie with the same light blue eyes. She was a full head taller than Jeshan.

"Hello!" The left head, an upbeat Border Collie greeted them. "My name is Eleanor!"

The the right head, the Husky, waved their right arm. "I'm Maple."

Skystrike stared. The two stared back. "...Holy shit, someone finally eye height with me." He smirked. "But nice to meet you two. I'm Skystrike, this is Tethys, Elytra, and Zecora. We're some friends of Jeshan. We were in the area, figured we'd catch up."

Jeshan tilted his head. "Wait, you're not here to get rid of that curse on your body?"

Skystrike laughed and shook his head. "Oh, this isn't a curse." Skystrike spread his arms out so they got a better look at him. "This is what I am. Human. To sum it up quickly, I grew up with Changelings and got their transformation magic to look like a pony for the last... seventeen years of my life. But, I need to be more honest with myself, and that means being honest with you, and the rest of our friends."

Jeshan sat up straight, a serious face growing on his muzzle. "So... you came here to apologize?"

Skystrike sighed. "...Yeah."

Jeshan tilted his head again. "...Dude, you're stupid." Everyone's eyes widened slightly. "Sorry, that came out wrong. What I mean to say is that we know you well enough to know why you left like that. None of us blame you. Most of us just wish we knew the reason why. We've been in danger before."

"Yeah, but not because of me." Skystrike clenched his head. "You lost your eye for goodness sake!"

"While true, losing my friend hurt even more." Jeshan sighed. "So let me get this straight, you left because you thought being around us would bring danger to us?" Skystrike nodded. "Dude, you're stupid."

Tethys couldn't help but chuckle as Skystrike responded. "Yeah, I guess I am. But I did what I felt like was the best choice at the time. I didn't want to put any of you in danger anymore."

Jeshan looked at Tethys, then Elytra and Zecora. The Diamond Dog sighed. "Well, I won't hound you about it. Knowing these three, they probably went in way harder than me." Thethys grinned and nodded. "Lets move on to happier subjects. How're all your lives going so far?"

Skystrike rubbed the back of his head and took a sip of the tea he remembered he was served. "Well, it's... going for sure. Decided to put down my roots in this small town called Ponyville. Got a bit more attached than I initially thought I would, but I don't regret it. Got some good friends. Still do the merc job, but I've been trying new avenues. Honestly, I'm still exploring what all my hobbies are."

Zecora did the same. "I moved to Ponyville, where tales do swell, learning of the Everfree's ingredients well. To meet Skystrike there, what a surprise to find, and then came Elytra, further entwined. In the forest, I brew potions with care, while with friends, I spend time whenever we're there."

Elytra nodded. "Yeah, after we split up, I couldn't exactly go back to the hive. Decided I'd be a guard. My pony name is Stardust. Whether you want to chalk it up to coincidence or fate, I ended up getting assigned to Skystrike." She looked at the man in question. "Someone here decided they wanted to draw the eye of the princess. But Ponyville is a pretty nice place to live. Gained a few ponies I'd like to spend time with myself."

Tethys finished her tea in one sip. "I didn't do much besides sleep and eat once we split up. Had a few fights here and there with some other dragons, but nothing major. Eventually, I got called to deal with some dragons in north Equestria, and I met Skystrike by chance. Moved in with him once out jobs were done."

Skystrike continued for them group. "We've been meeting up with the rest of the group too. Went to Maud's graduation for her masters, and met up with Casta while there. Met up with Alder a few days ago as well."

Jeshan's ears faced forward. "Well, good to see life's going well for all of you. Didn't think it was fair that I was the only one who found happiness." He held his wives paw. "Wish I could see them all again. Maybe I'll come visit Equestria again sometime." Then his ears flicked around in thought. "Wait... how'd you get from Griffonstone to here in a matter of days? It took me weeks just to exchange one letter with that old bird!"

"Oh, Skystrike played the princesses and got an airship." Tethys grinned.

Jeshan smirked. "Really now? How'd you manage that?"

"He fought the Captain of the Royal Guard and an Alicorn at the same time and won."

"ALONE?!" Jeshan yelled. He clicked his tongue. "Sorry, didn't mean to shout... Just didn't know you had it in you."

"Honestly, I just had to hit them really hard. Plus, most ponies aren't used to fighting a pegasus at close range. But enough about us." Skystrike leaned forward and sipped some more of his tea. "How'd you two meet?"

Jeshan smirked. "Didn't take you for one to like gossip, Skystrike." Then he turned to his fiancés. "You two want to tell them? Last time I explained this all, you said I didn't give enough detail, Eleanor."

"That's because you gave a one sentence answer to all your guy friends." She rubbed her head against Jeshan's shoulder, making the rest of the girls awe.

Maple smiled. "Well, I am fond of the way we met. It was a bit over two years ago in the fall. Jeshan told me he was only back in Diamondia for four months before we met. Because of our two heads, We've been... shunned by our kind. Seen as a curse. We lived in the forests a few miles south of here, and met Jeshan by chance. He was gathering wood from my part of the forest for his work, and us for firewood in prep for the winter."

Eleanor continued Maple's story. "He was interested in us instead of fearful. We offered him wood in place of food, and admittedly, his company. I don't know how, but he was able to get me entry into the city. From there, I confessed. Two years later, we all went back to the same forest. Proposed to us there with a box carved from the wood of our forest, and the rings from his favorite stones. It's only been two months since."

Elytra cooed. "Awww, that's adorable! So he just proposed! Congratulations you two-... three??"

Eleanor and Maple laughed, then the former spoke. "Don't think on it too hard. Two minds, one body."

"Thanks though, Elytra, and the rest of you." Jeshan leaned forward. "You all have impeccable timing as well. While we don't know when the wedding will be yet, I'd be honored to have you all as groomsman and bridesmaids."

A smile creaked on Skystrikes face. "It'd be my honor. Though I need to get a suit for this body... Actually, might have to come as a pony."

"As long as you're there, it doesn't matter what form you're in." Jeshan looked to the girls. "And you three?"

Zecora shot up, putting her hooves on the table. "I’d love to join! This’ll be a blast! So much to prepare, let’s get ready fast!"

Elytra did the same. "What's the theme!? Where is it going to happen!? What color should I wear!?"

Tethys turned to the Diamond Dogs. "We actually have a pony friend who makes our clothes. If you want, she could make you some dresses and suits when you visit."

Eleanor's ears perked up. "That sounds wonderful! Oh, you all have no idea how much I've wanted to talk about this with someone!"

Skystrike turned to Jeshan, who got up from the table with his cup of tea. Skystrike got his and stood up. Jeshan looked at him with a smirk. "Heh... Women." The two began laughing, leaning back as they did so. Jeshan took a long sip of his tea before continuing to laugh along with the human. Then Skystrike took a longer, louder sip of his. It quickly became a competition, each sipping their tea progressively louder before they were done. They gave each other a look before Jeshan looked back at the women talking. "...They're gonna be at it for a while. Guy time?"

"Guy time." Skystrike nodded as Jeshan led him out of the front door.

"Sweet. There's quite a few things we could do. Roxanne Wolf has a show going on tonight, and I wanted to see if she really taught an alligator to play the guitar. One of my bud's Clifford is having a cookout. He's a big, red Dog, and a real softie. He makes a lot of food, probably still prepping. My friends Snoopy and Goofy are gonna be there too."

"Sounds like we're doing the cookout." Skystrike tried to push the names out of his mind. There's no fucking way they were all coincidences. They crossed over a bridge to the other side of the ravine and walked further down. From the smell of it, Skystrike figured they were going to the food part of the market. The smell of raw meat and poultry filled his nostrils, but he was surprised at the smell of fish. "Oh, I didn't know you guys had sea food!"

Jeshan nodded. "Yeah, there's a lot of underground caverns that bring in all different types. Fish, squid, crab, almost every type. Downside is that they're expensive. The deeper you go, the bigger they get, and the more they fight back."

Skystrike tilted his head to look down at Jeshan. He grinned. "...Wanna go hunt for that cookout that Clifford is having?"

"Hell yeah." Jeshan fist bumped him. "So, got any stronger since we split?"

"You have no idea." Skystrike chuckled. "It was all I focused on when we split. Wanted to be strong enough to protect all of you. To not lose anymore of you. I'll show you once we find a good catch... Speaking of, how's the eye?"

"Oh, right." Jeshan scratched under the spot under where his left eye was, and where the purple gem replaced it. "Got it fitted a bit over a year ago. Depth perception was a bitch for a while, but it turned out fine. Found the gem myself. It's an amethyst, dug from the deepest part of the mines under the city. Remembered some potion from Zecora that let me take the heat. The purity helps the magic etched on it work better. Casta gave me some magic circles before we split that I etched into the amethyst." He opened his left eyelid and tapped it. Skystrike saw the countless engravings on it. "Basically, it images things in front of me and puts it in my brain. On top of that, I made some upgrades to it after a lot of studying. Works better than my old one actually."

"Oh, cool I guess... Still sorry I put you through it." Skystrike rubbed the back of his head.

"Don't worry about it." Jeshan shook his head. "Besides, looking at your scars, you had it the worst out of all of us... Zecora and Casta told me about it, you know? How you tore apart those ponies that were after us. And from the look of uneasiness you've been giving me since you got here, there's a lot more on your mind than just visiting old friends... Wanna get something off your chest?"

Skystrike sighed. "You were always able to pick up on the slightest things." He huffed as they kept walking. "You're right... this isn't just a simple visit..." And as they walked, Skystrike spilled everything. Once he started, it didn't stop. All the things he went through before he met up with all of them, what he did after they disbanded, what he found out a couple months ago.

The rushing water of words finally finished, and what awaited was the wide eyed look from the Diamond Dog. "That's... a lot.... Well, glad you came by before your condition got worse. But hey, I wish you luck with the generating mass thing... Also, you were kidding about the genie, right?"

"I wish." He chuckled. "But no one deserves to be locked up like that. Figured I'd give her the freedom that I had."

"Oh yeah, you're technically an alien, huh?" Jeshan looked at the sky through the ravine. "And that whole thing with your princesses is... also a lot. Well, if it doesn't go well, know that I got your back. I can give you a place to stay for a long while. Anyway, we're here."

Skystrike looked at the entrance of the offshoots of the ravine. There weren't any other Diamond Dogs nearby, the only mention that other life has been through here were wooden supports that seemed to have been there for years. The entrance to the cave was ginormous, big enough for Tethys to comfortably stretch her wings. He heard the sound of rushing water. Skystrike yawned as he stretched. "So, what are we hunting for?"

"Whatever we find." Jeshan began walking down.

Skystrike followed him. "What happened to your staff? You don't need any weapons?"

He tapped his gem eye. "Remember when I said I got some upgrades? And the staff is in my bedroom. Looks nice on a plaque. What about you?" Skystrike answered by putting up his metal arm and turning the hand into a rifle. "Oh, that's actually pretty cool."

"Yeah, comes in useful." Skystrike nodded as they continued their walk in comfortable silence. It took a few minutes of walking before they entered an even larger opening, housing an underwater lake. Several rivers flowed in from several directions. Seemed to be an underground spring. Looking around further, he noticed that despite there being no light, the roof and walls of the cave were covered with a glowing moss. Vines hung off of the stalactites, giving birth to glowing yellow berries.

Jeshan picked one and threw it into his mouth, chomping down on it with his canines. "They're pretty good. A good snacking food."

Skystrike tried one, the sweet juice filling his mouth. "Oh hey, they are pretty good." Skystrike pulled out a blanket from his satchel. "Could you help me collect some? I think I can make a good jam out of these! Maybe if I dry them, I can make something like grapes! What are these called?"

"Glow berries." Jeshan looked up at a large vine. He opened his left eye wide before the amethyst started to glow a bright purple light. The light then condensed into a small beam of energy, cutting off one of the vines from the rest. Thankfully, Skystrike reacted fast enough to catch it. "Pretty cool, huh?"

"That's really fuckin cool!" Skystrike decided to put the entire vine in the blanket and tying it up. "Might copy that, not gonna lie. I mostly make projectile weapons and cool armor."

"It was pretty cool." Jeshan thought back to the memory, then further back to the group as a whole. "Hey, can I ask you something? It might be a bit intrusive, so you don't have to answer."

"Go for it."

"Well, from what you said a few minutes ago, Elytra's your sister, so I doubt it's her. Are you with Tethys or Zecora? Or both, I know you ponies have herds or whatever."

Skystrike turned to look at him. "...What? Are you crazy? They don't even like me like that?"

Jeshan sighed and sat down next to the lake and motioned for Skystrike to sit next to him. "Normally, I'd make fun of you for your density, but I'll be serious. You're a good guy, and thus, you're getting quite a lot of attention... At least from what you say about your life in Pony town."

"Ponyville, but where are you going with this?"

"Well, as someone lucky enough to fall in love, this aspect of you reminds me of a younger me... Mostly the naivety." Jeshan sighed. "So let me give you some advice. You can let your fear hold you back. You're already leagues better than years ago, but you have a lot more work to do. You need to live the life you have... and hurting others, accidental or otherwise, is a part of it."

"...I'm confused... I get the words you're saying, but I don't really see how that relates to the current me."

"Alright, so let me say it straight." Jeshan picked up a rock and skipped it across the lake. "Subconsciously or not, you're still afraid of hurting those close to you. Like you said during your story earlier, it wasn't until you realized that you hurt us that you wanted to come and apologize. Correct me if I'm wrong, but from the little I've seen, is comes off that you're afraid to get too close to anyone else again, especially since you lives effectively half your lifespan." Skystrike thought about the words he said. Sad to say, Jeshan was probably right... Skystrike decided to stay silent. Jeshan juggled another rock in his paw and skipped it across the lake again. "So, would you rather be comfortable, with nothing truly changing, or do you want to try and be happy?"

Skystrike sighed and laid his back on the ground, spreading his arms out. "You know, I was not expecting to think this hard today... But you're right. I want to be happy." Skystrike laid in silence for a while, thinking on what to do next. "...Am I really that dense?"

Jeshan chuckled. "Depends, how many times have you been called it?"

Skystrike sighed, then chuckled as. "Enough where my older sister won't let me hear the end of it."

"That bad?" He laughed now. "Well, sounds like you got your work cut out for you. Won't say anymore for those two's sake. Let's get back to what we're here for: seafood. Well, cave food, whatever."

Skystrike sat up and looked into the water. "So, what are we expecting?"

"Well, these are the more dangerous parts of the mines... Honestly I'm surprised nothing jumped out yet." Jeshan looked closer at the water. "But if you want to know what we can get that tastes good, in order from least to most dangerous, Crabbits, Rockfish, Fishron is my favorite, and the Pistol Shrimp."

"You know, I heard about two of those. But I'd like a bit more detail." Skystrike began looking through the water too. There were some schools of fish, resting at the bottom, while the larger ones roamed the upper levels.

"So Crabbits are a weird mix of Crabs and Rabbits. Surprisingly, they taste like the best parts of both. Quick fuckers, and have pretty big claws, but they hurt if you're caught. Downside is that the bigger ones are deeper, and well hidden." Jeshan began counting on his digits. "Rockfish is a type of snapper. Sweet taste, but their scales are as tough as rocks, hence the name. Decent size too. Fishron is HUGE!" He spread out his arms to give emphasis. "The size of a building, tusks the size of me. Has the head of a pig and the body of a shark, and two sets of bat-like wings. One of the kings of the seas. During this time of year, it nests to hatch its young. Best meat I've had in my life." He was beginning to drool. "But it's hard to wake up, let alone get it out of the water to fight, so I've only had it once as a pup... And then there's the Pistol Shrimp."

Skystrike noticed him shuddering. "Pistol Shrimp? Is it that bad?"

Jeshan shook his head. "Well, alone, no. But they come in groups of at least thirty. All of them are about the size of a pony. Their main claw, the one you have to worry about, can store water and shoot it out with enough force to break another one's shell, which is also as hard as a rock. They come in two colors, red and blue, which we call Bloods and Crips."

'No FUCKING WAY' Skystrike shouted in his mind. "Sh-... Shrimps are having gang wars!??"

"Yeah, it's... very, very dangerous. Worst part is that they crawl out of the water to shoot their water guns." Jeshan's ears went back. "On the upside, they do have very distinct call signs for when something happens."

"Like?" Skystrike asked.

Jeshan wasn't able to answer before he heard a new voice was heard, bubbling from within the water. There was no right way yo describe it. It sounded rough, and the sound of rubbing chitin joined it as it came to their ears. As soon as the words kissed their ears, dread fell upon their face. "AYO CUH PULLUP!"

By instinct, the two ran behind a rock on the far side of the cave for cover. Their backs slammed against the stone as they looked at eachother. Skystrike began to whisper. "You didn't tell me they could fucking talk!"

"I was getting to it!" Jeshan whispered back. The Dog peaked around the rock. Skystrike did the same. "Shit... I'm seeing thirty Bloods... I think they heard us earlier."

The shrimps looked around the cave for their next victim. "Run dat fade, Shrigga!" Skystrike blinked. Are... are they allowed to say that? That word implies... so much that he doesn't want to think about. "Ay, where did cuz go?" One spoke. "On gang, these fools must be buggin. You must know not that I'm thuggin..." A second went. "I'M A BIG DOG BIG BEAR SHRIGGA I'M A LION!" A third sang. "SHUT THE FUCK UP JUDAH!" They all screamed at him.

"Ay cuz, you know where you at?" A new voice spoke. Even the Bloods turned around to see where the voice came from. It was similar to theirs. Skystrike and Jeshan peaked out again to see another gang of Pistol Shimps, but blue this time.

Jeshan cursed under his breath. "Shit, there's Crips too!?" He held his head and opened his mouth wide, shock and terror across his face. "That's the Crips!"

"Ay gang, the hell y'all doin' on our turf!? This is our lake! WEST SIDE!" A Crip Shrimp went.

"Fuck you mean 'our turf' this is Blood territory! EAST SIDE!" A Blood Shrimp replied. "I will ice you, on BLOOD!"

'What the actual fuck am I looking at?' Skystrike sighed. He knew the danger of the situation, but couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity.

Trying to stifle a laugh, the attention of the shrimps were now on each other. They eyed each other as their primary claws were pointed forward. Each of the shrimps used their tails for a brace. "SHRIGGA WHO THE FUCK YOU TALKING TO!? GET YO GOOFY ASS ON!" A Blood went, firing the first shot. It grazed a Crip, making them fire back. Soon, a whole shootout engulfed the cave.

Expletives were shouted at the opposite gangs as beams of water were rapid fires. The two friends looked at each other as the water bullets hit the rock they were taking cover behind. Jeshan winced as stone shrapnel hit him. "Damn it, they're destroying our cover! I don't think we have time to wait them out!"

Skystrike nodded. "Well, sounds like we're caught in the crossfire..." Skystrike turned his right arm into a rifle and peaked out of the cover of the stone. He fired two shots of raw mana taking out a Blood and Crip. The shrimps began firing at him too. Jeshan, knowing there was no way they were getting out of this without a fight, began charging magic within his eye, shooting beams of purple light at the shrimps alongside the human.

Soon, the rock Skystrike and Jeshan were behind broke, forcing Skystrike to make a barrier of ice, curving it so most of the impact of the water bullets were deflected. "IT'LL TAKE MORE THAT THAT TO GET ME, YOU OVERGROWN SEA BUGS!" Skystrike shouted as he began using rapid fire, not caring about accuracy. Surely with how many there are, he'd hit something.

"Killer BEEEEEEEAM!" Jeshan yelled as he kept firing lasers. "Heh... always wanted to say that."

It took almost half an hour for them to finish. Though they had some scrapes and cuts, they were alive, and they stood overlooking the bodies of roughly sixty Pistol Shrimp in various states. Some were split in half, others just missing their heads. Most had holes in various parts of their body. All were gonna take a while to process. Skystrike huffed and looked at Jeshan. "How many of these do you want?"

Jeshan looked over them. "Honestly, one feeds me and the hubbies for three to four meals. A good ten will feed us for a bit over a week... Did you still want to go to that cookout Clifford is hosting?"

Skystrike nodded. "Yeah, let's just start moving these away from the lake... One of us will have to get something to transport these back."

Jeshan flicked an ear. "Oh, right, give me a minute." Jeshan held a digit to his temple. "Hey, Eleanor, Maple, we got a lot of food. Pistol Shrimp to be exa-... No I'm fine, Skystrike took out most of them-... I figured we could put all of this in cold storage. Plus, it's your favorite meal... Thank you, I love you both... See you when I get home... Oh, you'll be at Clifford's? Alright, tell him we're bringing some Shrimp!"

The human looked at his Diamond Dog companion. "Was that... telepathy?"

"That, but with extra steps. There's a device in the house that lets me hear what's going on in there and lets me speak through it. It's real handy."

"I believe it. She sounded worried."

"Well, you saw how dangerous those Shrimp were first hand. Elytra and Tethys are stopping by your ship to get stuff to carry these back." Jeshan began moving the Shrimp, picking up a Crip and walking back towards the entrance. Skystrike did the same as Jeshan began to speak. "So... you gonna think about what I said earlier? You know, about Tethys and Zecora."

"Oh... yeah..." He winced. "I will, it's... just gonna take me a while to get out of this mindset..."

"Great. I'm wishing you the best of luck, Sky... Now let's try to get this done quick. If you don't mind, I want you to teach me how to make Shrimp Alfredo."

---

"How the hell did you get this much shrimp, Jeshan!?" A large, red Vizsla dog looked at the Shrimp they were cooking on the grill. The Dog could give Tethys a run for her money based of his size.

Jeshan chuckled. "I'll tell you about it another time, Clifford. Besides, I'm in the middle of learning how to cook this Alfredo."

Clifford slapped Skystrike's back, nearly winding him. "Jeshan tells me a lot about you, though! Thanks for getting this Dog out alive."

Jeshan elbowed Clifford. "Sorry about him."

"No, it's fine." Skystrike shrugged. "If anything, I'm sorry about Tethys..." The three turned their heads from their cooking utensils to look at the dragoness. She was laughing as she flexed her muscles through her sweater just after she beat the tenth Diamond Dog in a row at arm wrestling. The loser paid her a small bag of bits. "But I will also say, I don't know what they were expecting."

Clifford shrugged. "Eh, that's on them. Now, keep explaining this 'Shrimp Alfredo'. Jeshan said you used to make this in your travels."

"Well, we're already done with most of the steps..." Skystrike put a stick of butter in the pan. It was massive for a pan, but so was Clifford the big red dog. "We already cooked the pasta, now we just season this with salt and pepper to taste, then sauté it. Finally, add the garlic, cook for 30 more seconds, and..." He quickly did the steps as he spoke before putting it on top of the pasta. "There, Pistol Shrimp Alfredo... damn this thing is massive."

Jeshan got a fork, then pulled off a piece of white flesh from the crustacean, as well as wrapped some of the creamy parmesan pasta around the fork. He took a bite, making his eyes light up. "God, this is better than I remember! Hold on, I need to go get Eleanor and Maple!" Jeshan quickly ran to his wives with the plate.

Skystrike chuckled as he looked up to Clifford. "You got this?"

"Yeah! Thanks for the recipe again!" Clifford nodded as he got back to cooking.

"Hey, Skystrike!" Tethys called out to him.

Skystrike took off his apron and looked at her, seeing Zecora, Elytra, Jeshan, and his spouses next to her. He walked up and leaned on the table. "Yo, what do you need?"

"Jeshan asked the age old question." Elytra sighed. "If you or Tethys is stronger."

Skystrike gave a small sigh then chuckled. "That's a question quite profound, One worth asking, I have found." Zecora said as she leaned on the table with him.

"No it's not..." Skystrike smirked. "Only thing this old fossil can handle is a glass of warm milk."

"Shots fired!" Elytra laughed as Tethys's eyes went wide.

Then her eyes narrowed. "Oh, someone's confident... hopefully that ego of yours is as big as your mouth."

"...Tethys we need to work on your shit talking." Skystrike laughed before standing up. "I know you'll want more than a simple arm wrestle. Besides, that wouldn't be fair. We're both right handed." He clenched his metal fist. "So what, do you suggest we do?"

Tethys crossed her arms and closed her eyes in thought. "Hmm... wrestling?"

"Do you know how to wrestle?"

"Yeah, this'll be easy! Can't wait to put you in the ground!"

Skystrike's smirk grew wider as he stepped away from the table, noticing the small crowd around them. Sure, she had almost two feet on him and was double his weight, but he had a few tricks up his sleeve. He put his arms up in front of him. "Ready when you are."

Tethys immediately lunged at him in an attempt to grab him. Though surprised a bit, he had more than enough time to run forward and slide between her legs and under her tail. Her wings were spread wide in an attempt to stop Skystrike from getting on her back. Unfortunately for her, that wasn't his goal in the first place. He locked his arms around her waist and pushed one claw off the ground with his foot before leaning as far back as he could. "Urrrryaaah!" He shouted as she flew over him, pulling off a suplex and making her back hit the grass under them. He pushed her off before getting back into his starting stance.

Jeshan chuckled. "Well damn, that was much faster than I thought."

"Damn it!" Tethys rolled over and pushed herself up. "Alright, I'll admit, you caught me off guard... Best two of three?"

Skystrike chuckled. "What, you want me to prove my strength or something?" Skystrike was about to think of another game, but noticed a certain zebra missing. "...Actually, lets continue this a bit later. Just need to check on someone."

"Oh, alright. I'll think of something while you're gone." Tethys sat down and began eating the meal that Jeshan bought over to them with Elytra.

Skystrike walked back to Clifford and made two more plates of shrimp alfredo, one for himself and one for the lady he was trying to find. After a few minutes of looking through the green hills, the black and grey mare was found. She was sitting, looking into the distance. Skystrike walked over and stood next to her. "Room for one more?"

Zecora looked up at him and nodded. Skystrike noticed the somber look on her face. He sat down and put a plate of food and utensils in front of her. She looked at it. Something was clearly on her mind. "Skystrike, can... can I talk to you about something?"

Skystrike nodded. "Sure. I'm guessing this is serious enough for you to not rhyme?"

Zecora put a hoof over her mouth. "Oh, I didn't even notice..." She looked up at him, the somber look still on her face. Even so, a smile creaked on her face. "Promise not to tell?"

Skystrike patted her back. "Promise. So, what's up?"

She looked back at the horizon, thinking of the right words to say. "I'm... I think regretting it. Not seeing my childhood friends, I mean."

Skystrike crossed his legs. "Why do you think that?"

She sighed. "It's just, after seeing all your doing... meeting up with me, Tethys, Elytra, all of your past friends and getting along with them... I realized that I want that. But after leaving, after what they did... I know it can never happen." She rubbed her eyes, stopping the tears from starting. "Well, saying it aloud, regret isn't the right word..."

Skystrike nodded. "You're disappointed that it could've been better."

Zecora's eyes widened. "...Yes, that encapsules it perfectly... How did you know?"

"I've had the same thoughts about leaving too." Skystrike met her eyes. "You all, my siblings, I've had a lot of time to think about it... There isn't really good advice I can give you on it. But I'll tell you what keeps me going." Skystrike sighed before continuing. "There are many 'what ifs' that go through our minds, but there's nothing we can do to change it. But we can change our future. Whether you want to make it one where you're happy or dwelling on the past is up to you. I hoped I've helped make it the former for you."

Zecora thought on his words. Then she smiled. "Thank you, Skystrike, for what you say, Your words help more than words convey." Skystrike was glad she was in good enough spirits now to get back into rhyming. The two began eating the food he bought, Zecora exclaiming how good it was to Skystrike.

For the first time in a while, it was peaceful. He wasn't doing anything, he was in company. His journey was going well. There were two left to go, Celeano and Skybeak. Though there wasn't a sure way to find Celeano, Skybeak was for sure in Hippogriffia. And then, there was Tethys' home in the Dragon seas. But that last part wasn't needed in his mind right now. For the first time in a while, he was happy. And he was going to enjoy the moment. The two finished their food before Skystrike stood up. "Come on, let's get back to the party. Lets enjoy ourselves."

Author's Note:

This one, I had quite a bit of fun writing if you couldn't tell. Hope you all liked Jeshan's introduction, he was one that I was looking forward to writing. He'll be showing up more in the future too.

Not too much else to say. I graduated college finally, so I'll be working on this while on the job hunt. Next chapter, Skystrike will be finishing up in Diamondia, then making his way to Hippogriffia. Celestia, Luna, and a certain pony will pay him a visit as well, too.

Thanks for reading, and tell me about your thoughts in the comments! While I don't respond to many, I do read all of them. Your critiques are appreciated. Until next time!

Comments

[Theresa hall]

I keep wondering if Celestia will give him a chance when she realizes that he been under her nose for years. She is currently unwilling to even consider that he might be innocent in all of this just a pawn that wanted to be free. The fact that he was a kid went over almost everyone heads.

[Bruuuuuuuuh]

Wait so if the shrimp can talk does that mean their sentient because if so that has some disturbing implications and if not well free food

[Prince Jules Moonshade]

Delved back into this story once I got a bit of a backlog, loving it as always and sucks I’ve read all there is to read currently.

Keep up the awesome work my good author!

[Pony addiction]

Fever dream