Ruki’s discovery

On the other side of the window, the sun shone brightly. The flowers bloomed, there was no cloud to see in the sky, and children laughed and played as they passed the house, unaware of the lonely pony looking at them. Behind this gorgeous scenery, the purple glow of the plants that formed the wall of the High King’s castle garden seemed like a wall not only guarding the secrets of High  King Shanjahen, but also the wall that divided Ruki from the truth she was so desperately looking for.

Only a day ago, one of the guards of the Bond had reported the pony that had followed her at the summer fair had been sighted. She had been seen, together with three other ponies, one male two female, in the company of a palace guard on their way to the palace. They had entered it, and so far, they had not left the castle. Ruki remembered what Takato had told her only too well.

Was the blue pony a spy for Shanjahen? Was he somehow looking for her? Had she been discovered on one of her missions? Or did this pony know her from a different situation, something far longer ago?
“They did not seem like they were from the west. Three females accompanying a male, and he did not even seem like he was in charge.” Takato had told her.
“What did he look like? And the other two ponies?” She had asked, curious about the companions. The pony that had followed her had looked quite alone.

“One of them was wearing a very large hat, like the ones that most women wear these days. She was also cloaked, so we could not see her well. The male was light purple, with ordinary blue mane. He seemed to be incapable of wielding prana, so he’s most likely not a member of the nobility. The third pony was yellow, bright yellow, with mane that looked like they were painted with pure gold.”

“Pure… gold?” Ruki asked, astonished.
It couldn’t be.
Only one pony she had ever seen could have been described like that, but there was no way that pony could be here right now. She was hidden, inside the dark mountains, hiding from the world, sending away even her own daughter. It could not be her, but then who was this pony?
“That’s how he described her.” Takato had answered.

“But there is something even stranger about all this. Why would the High King allow three females inside his palace? There is no reason to be found in conventional explanations; there was no party, no ball, they were not nobles. The only reason I can think of is that they had something he desired for his grand scheme; maybe they knew something about the unicorn he needs.” Takato had argued. Back then, Ruki had not paid much attention to this; she was too occupied with thoughts of her mother; someone she had tried to ban from her thoughts for so long.

Now, however, she realized the truth in Takato’s words. It’s weird that he would allow them to enter; ponies from the Bond had been keeping an eye out on who entered and left the palace for a while and never had they seen common ponies enter; let alone female common ponies. In fact, the only females to have entered the palace were wives or daughters of officials and nobles, and even that was a rare occasion.

Did these ponies have information that he desired? If so, was his plan now complete, ready for execution? Was their time to overthrow the High King running out? Staring at the wall from the first floor window, Ruki became more and more convinced that they could not wait much longer. They still did not know what Shanjahen’s plan was, but whatever it was, its completion would make their cause much more difficult to achieve.

“Ruki.” So lost in her thoughts, she had not heard Takato enter the room.
“Oh, Takato. I’m sorry; I didn’t hear you.” She said while she continued to stare at the wall. Takato came to stand next to her.
“That wall… the longer you stare at it, the more eerie it becomes; like it is alive, controlled and capable of something. I don’t think the defences of the castle lie in the strength or height of that wall, but in the strength of the one that controls it.” Ruki stared at Takato, wondering where he got that information from.
“Oh, Ruki, I’ve been locked up in this house way longer than you have. I’ve been standing here for hours, staring at that wall.”

“Yes… I know you have. I’m sorry.” Ruki said.
“That’s okay. Anyway, what I came here for, Ruki… we need to talk. You and me. Without the others.” Ruki blinked at Takato, wondering if he wanted to talk about them. But she knew that could not be it; he never discussed it, he just came to her whenever he had the chance. Besides, Ruki was sure there were others in the house.
“What about then?” She asked.

“Ruki… both you and I know, more than the others, that time is running out. We must stop my father. I don’t know what he’s up to, but I just can’t get around this feeling that we have to stop whatever it is. But I don’t know how. I don’t know how to stop him if  I can’t even tell what he’s up to. So we have to find out. Now. I know we’ve been running around trying to do just that, but we have no more time to play games. We have to take risks now, and I need your help.”

“What is it… you want me to do?” Ruki asked.
She could see Takato had another mission for her; a special mission only she was allowed to find out about. And it would cost her dearly should she fail.
“I want you to infiltrate the castle. Enter it. Tonight. Don’t return before you know what it is he’s doing in there.” Takato said, his eyes fixed on the wall.
“How?” Ruki asked.

“I’m going to use my powers to shield you. I can’t make you invisible, or soundless, but I can make you undetectable for prana. I can make the prana barriers around the castle believe you’re not there at all. No one else can do that, for no one else’s powers are strong enough. Only a king and his heir… Asana and I used to do it all the time when we were small. Steal cookies, deceive the guards, sneak away from the castle to explore the city; they never found out. I can keep it up as long as you need, but remember, it only works against prana. The castle is filled with servants and other ponies. I trust you to do this.”

“Okay.” Ruki said.
She didn’t doubt his decision; besides, she had been breaking in before. This was just the next step.
“When?”
“Tonight. After everyone went to sleep.” Takato said, and he turned around, away from the window.
“Ruki…” he said, standing with his back towards her. “Do come back.”
“I will. You know that.” She answered.
“Yes.” He said, and without another word, he left the room.

The rest of the day passed by as any other; they had dinner with the others, they laughed, they discussed the course of action, but neither of them said a word about Ruki’s mission. Ruki knew the others would never approve of such a dangerous task. They would convince her not to take the risk and convince her there would be other ways. She was well aware of that, so she did not say a word. After dinner she helped Flora and Sakurako clean up, and she went to bed early, pretending to have a headache.

After she was sure all the others had gone to bed too, she crawled out of bed and went downstairs. Takato was waiting for her in the living room.
“Are you ready?” He asked her.
“Yes.” She replied shortly.
“Good. You know what you have to do. Now, wait for a moment so I can cast my spell on you.” Takato closed his eyes and after a moment, Ruki saw prana coming up through the floor of the room. Astonished that this was even possible, she watched the prana crawl over her body, nesting itself inside the hairs of her coat until it covered all her body. A few moments later, it suddenly disappeared.

“Done. I’ll keep it up for you for as long as you need, but do hurry up. If for some other reason something happens to me, it might disappear. I’ll keep it up but… I might not be able to protect you forever.”
“I know. I’ll be back in time.” Ruki assured him. They left the house and walked onto the street. There was no one around in the dead of the night, and they approached the wall.

“A little bit more to the left you will find a place where the growth of the wall is weak. You should be able to enter there, but try to avoid leaving traces.” Takato explained.
“Okay.”
“Now, go swiftly, before someone comes.”
“Yes. Well, good luck here. I’ll be back as soon as I figured it out.” Ruki said.
“I know. Bye, Ruki.”
“Bye.” She turned around, but he stopped her; for a moment, he held her, held her more tightly than he ever had. Paralyzed, Ruki couldn’t stop him, nor hold him as well. Eventually he led go, and Ruki instantly trotted away, without looking back.

She found the weakness in the wall easily enough. The leaves were mostly dead and the branches snapped easily. Without the protection Takato had given her, Ruki was sure she would not be able to penetrate; the prana would stop her. But as the prana did not detect her, she could simply get through. The wall was much broader than she had thought it would be, but after a while she managed to reach the other side.

The garden was everything she expected it to be, and a little bit more: Large, shining purple with prana, with lots of beautiful trees, plants, lawns, and small roads that led through them all. In the middle of all this she could see the huge castle. Only a few windows were still lit; it seemed most ponies had gone to sleep. The perfect time to get in, assuming the doors weren’t locked.

She saw a back door when she approached the castle, and even though she was convinced it would be locked, she approached it. To her big surprise the door opened. She peeked inside, and realized this was the door of the kitchen; and all the servants were asleep. She could safely slip in. As she closed the door she realized this was probably also guarded with prana; the door was locked, but not for her. She suddenly realized the brilliance of Takato’s spell; nothing in this castle was hidden from her now. No wonder he and his sister had so much fun doing this as kids.

She realized she had to find a place to hide first. Once morning came, this castle would be filled with ponies running around to do the High King’s bidding. She would need a place to hide during those times. She looked around, but the kitchen wouldn’t do; she’d have to find herself another place. An empty room or a closet, or maybe even a chest. She left the kitchen and walked out onto the hallway.

Ruki sneaked around the castle for a bit, but in this part of the castle there was no one; not even a guard. There probably was no need to guard the servant quarters. But this was also not a safe place; she needed to find a more remote place. She walked on through the hallways, and at some point she encountered some stairs. Once upstairs, she realized this was where the servants slept; also not a safe place. She managed to leave these quarters once she passed a great door in the hallway, and then she found what she was looking for; the old nursery.

Shanjahen had no small children anymore and there were no others in the castle now with little kids, so this area was deserted. She walked in and suddenly realized this was where Takato had lived as an infant. Cute drawings of animals and flowers with smiley faces were painted on the wall, as far as Ruki made out in the moonlight, and there were a few cribs lined up, covered with sheets to protect them from dust. She saw another door and realized it led to a really small room once used to store stuff needed to take care of babies. It was the perfect hiding place.

Ruki went in and made sure to close the door behind her. She’d have to stay here during the day, to rest and think over her plans, and during the night… she would go around and try to find any clues about Shanjahen’s plans. Through the small window she could already see the sun rising. She’d go to sleep now; and when she woke up, she would go and explore the castle.