The white earth pony sat in a plush chair by a dying fire, obsidian mane catching the embers’ glow. The high arched ceiling of the Great Hall carried banners of Atlantica’s legends, tales of triumph and agony, stories mostly lost to the tide. D’estelle Castle was largely tranquil but for the crackling of last year’s white oak, but in time the silence was broken by the princess’ words, soft and confident and glazed in her trademark light French accent. “Where shall I start, ma cherie? I suppose the beginning would be as good a place as any.” She let out a long breath, her grey eyes rising momentarily to the empty space above as if the answer might be found in the aether. “I was born twenty-one years ago this month, the daughter of King Stargazer of Atlantica and his queen, Moonshine. She passed away when I was young, I’m told. He was a pegasus of Equestrian royalty deposed to preside over a small fishing village a good jaunt East of Ponyville. At the time, the town was beset by a sea serpent, a great beast who demanded yearly sacrifices to remain in his waters. Well my father, he decided that this was his chance to regain his stature, and he battled the monster for seven days and nights, horn against fangs and armor against scales. By the time the smoke cleared, only the charcoal pegasus remained. He was a hero, a saint…he was a king. Years later, through guile, wit, and sheer intimidation, he had built the port of Atlantica, a veritable metropolis sitting squarely in the center of the coastal trade routes of Equestria. On any given day one could find sailors, fishermen, artisans, couriers, exotic spice and unseen treasures passing through its harbor…quite the place for a young filly to cut her teeth in the world.” Mia allowed a rueful smile and took a sip of her red wine. “I was the crown princess for much of my time there, Stargazer’s only progeny and a ghost among the halls of the palace. It’s not like any of us could have known at the time that we were all being played for fools; I spent most of my days in the care of pedagogues and master artisans learning calligraphy, star navigation, naval history, and how best to accomplish all sorts of princessly duties. Most memorable was my initiation ceremony, for which I had the pleasure of being outfitted with ten score shimmering diamonds, all fitted to strands of perfect hair and grafted on one by one, replacing my natural mane one lock at a time. The shining jewel of manes, to be my signature and my pride – ‘pain is beauty, ma cherie,’ they said.” Her voice cracked as she spoke the last line; she paused and pursed her lips, letting her rising pulse relax. The princess forced a smile, honed and perfected in a hundred portrait sessions. “Anyhow, things changed when I was…oh, eight or nine, I suppose. That was when Starstruck showed up.” The name visibly pained Mia as she pursed her lips and took a moment to think it over. “She was…for all intents and purposes, an orphan. A rescue. She basically washed ashore in a summer squall, brought before my father in her pathetic, waterlogged state. And what do you know? The old bastard adopted her.” Mia laughed bitterly, shaking her head a little as if still in disbelief. “So here I am, the crown princess of Equestria’s great City on the Sea, and suddenly I’m sharing the spotlight with this shy pegasus who couldn’t run a ceremony to save her life. Years passed, Star mercifully stayed a recluse, and life was good until somebody brought her out on the water.” Mia clearly wasn’t enjoying recounting the story anymore, but she continued, idly watched the fire that cast orange and red sparks in her colorless eyes. “She was…a charmed mare. Bewitched, some said. Her dreams brought much-needed summer showers, and her nightmares sank ships. It only got worse as she grew into a young mare…the harbor flooded regularly, and eventually she was moved out of the palace and farther inland. As my coronation approached – and with it, my arranged wedding to Atlantica’s new fleet admiral – talk around the town centered on this mysterious adopted princess and what exactly Stargazer was hiding, instead of my greatest moment. It was a damn big deal, you know.” Mia shrugged and pushed a lock of mane from her eyes with noticeable frustration. “The week of the ceremony is when everything went wrong. “First it was a plummet in the fish stock. Then, the sharks disappeared. Thousands of them, just poof! Gone. Scared away like cockroaches.” Mia clapped her hooves together and held them in the air for a few seconds. “We started losing ships daily, and more flotsam washed up on our shores every time our naval vessels tried to investigate. Finally, the great red fin broke the surface of the harbor, followed by a gigantic, serpentine body, black as night and strong as the ocean itself. Leviathan, they called him…and he was an old friend of my father’s.” A coy smile crept onto the princess’ lips. “As it turned out, Stargazer’s great victory was all a ruse. He hadn’t slain the serpent – he had surrendered to it. Starstruck was his first daughter, the primogenitor, and ultimately, his bargaining chip for Atlantica. Cast out to sea in the middle of a stormy night, she was minutes from death when the queen cast the most damning of spells – a protection charm. She gave her own life to ensure that her only daughter would be safe as long as she was within sight of the sea. The story goes that she was taken in by an old sailor, raised on the trade winds and salty breeze, until their vessel sank in that same storm that delivered her back to Atlantica. “Anyway, by the time Leviathan returned, Stargazer was too wretched to do a damn thing about it. The sight of the monster alone did the old bastard in, and my coronation was reduced to a formality as it fell on me to save Atlantica. Me, seventeen years old, thrust into the heat of battle! Of course, the real burden was on my fiancé, Silverside. In the greatest of misfortunes, I found out that Silverside had managed to fall for my sister somewhere along the line, and that was probably what pushed me over the edge.” Mia twirled her glass between her hooves as she spoke, her words matter-of-fact after years of disassociating herself from the events. “I sent him after Leviathan. It was a suicide mission from the very beginning, of course. And, as expected, Leviathan made quick work of him, right in front of Starstruck. Those storms her nightmares brought? Nothing compared to what followed. That shy pegasus went headlong after the serpent, and though she was no match for it, the Great Wave that something deep within her summoned was. It was like…a mountain birthed from the depths of the sea, tearing across the ocean and rising up with a great, gaping maw of white water that swallowed Leviathan and cast him against the cliff-side palace of Atlantica…that was my last memory of my home. Black scales, falling granite, spinning sky as I plunged into the ocean far below.” Mia sat in silence, choosing her next words carefully. “I awoke on the shores of a destroyed city. The port, the houses…all washed away with the tide. I had nothing.” Mia looked away as her eyes began to glisten in the flickering light. “I came to Ponyville with a rucksack and a shawl, my mane tied back to avoid questions. Many of the diamonds have since left me, bartered away for shelter and basic amenities. It was a long road to Canterlot, and my greatest fortune was to come upon Princess Twilight, who, as a student of literature and the land, was familiar with Atlantica and my father’s story. With her blessing, I began to rebuild. It has been four years since then.” Mia wiped her eyes with the back of her hoof and waved away any further questions. “Please, if you will.” She sat silently for a minute, no longer hiding her tears. Back came that smile – that mysterious, painted-on smirk that had stopped innumerable stallions in their tracks and that hid the roiling seas behind the princess’ cold eyes.
Posted on: Sat, 19 Jul 2014 21:01:27 +0000
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