Lens blushed at the words, and smiled. She knew of her stunning beauty, but Scalpel’s words were sweet to hear. [i]He’s no poet, but I would prefer to hear his words over the best musicians who dared to ask for my hoof [/i], she thought. “I must say Dr. Noxferus is that the feeling is… mutual. You’re one of the few ponies smarter than me, perhaps an equal to my grandfather, if not more.  I do not exaggerate - he never did finish his training at Celestia’s School.  As such, his magic is lacking though his intellect makes up for that. 

“I want to know about you as well, that kindness you showed me days ago was but a hint of who you are.  And… I want so discover that, along with your mind.  To bask in the light within, to discover your love… and that of my own.” She trembled in anticipation, heart beating fast. 

 Scalpel had practically gone bright red at the compliments she gave him, he knew he had great aptitude, and he’d been complimented before, but something about them coming from Lens made it feel far more satisfying than it ever had before. Still, a level of fear crept into his skin as she spoke, she wanted to know more about his history, something he did not readily approach with many in his service, or those who were his friends. However, he could feel an element of release to unveiling his history, as if he might be able to let go of an old burden which had held him down for so long.

“My history is not something I really approach much Lens… but for you I’ll tell you, I can’t keep secrets. However,” he paused, looking slightly solemn as he did so, “You may find out unpleasant things about me, my life has not been easy and there have been activities and duties which even I admit I’m not proud of. I’m willing to be honest with you about it though, I can’t pretend that I’m completely blameless for some of my actions.” he gave her a sad smile, “perhaps we could exchange information, one after the other, is there anything in particular that springs to mind that you’d like to know about?”

Lens wondered if she said something off, for she did not want to particularly know the details of Noxferus’ life.  She was curious, but Lens did not want to endanger him by knowing too much. 

Yet, she wanted more than ever to understand the stallion.  

“We should wait on your history - it’s clear that something drives you to the lengths you’ve taken.  And the drive is so intimate to yourself, it would not be best to deal with that so soon. 

“ We should take this step by step, for it may be too soon in our relationship to reveal deep details,” she said. “We should let this grow, and appreciate each other, then we shall be ready.  Is that ok?” 

A small measure of relief crossed his face and he gave her an appreciative smile, “You’re right of course, I could almost kiss you… well, I would, if we weren’t on the other side of an Astral projector. I agree that my history is something that should be gradual, letting it all out could not be the best option… Still, I think we can start with a couple of the basics? At least for the meanwhile. Until you’re safe with the rest of the scholars and I’m hidden.”

He gave her another look, this one emanating with love and compassion towards her, “I’m so conflicted. On one hoof I worry about revealing too much and endangering you, on the other I feel I can’t just simply leave you in the dark…”

“Still,” he said, bending his hooves into a pointed arch like position, “Should we start with the beginners stuff? I can tell you a little of my older family history if you want, that’s pretty much open, or we could generally ask in general about anything…” he shuffled a little uncomfortably, feeling like a teenage colt on a first date, trying to lighten the awkward situation somewhat, “Do you want to go first or shall I?”

Lens smiled at the thought of the Noxferus’ kiss, her first kiss ever, three days ago.  He was not the only pony who wanted to relive that moment.  Or at the very least, feel the compassionate lips of the stallion.  “It’s best not to provide too much that would risk your identity or operations, Master.  I don’t want to get you into trouble on my behalf.    

“But I’m game for the basics too. After all, we have to start somewhere.” She smiled, looking far more cheery than she did in a long time. “So, out of Starswirl’s the Bearded works, which do you think was the best?”  She blushed, mentally facepalming at the question. [i] Why did I go for something so academic?! [/i] she thought. [i] He wants to know you, not the facts in your brain. [/i]

Blushing, she quickly spoke: “Well, my own personal favorite was the Symposium of Love, you know the one with Starswirl attending a party and they discuss the different loves, that sort of thing.  So interesting and reflects the thoughts of the ancient writer Ponyto.  Haha.” Her face was violet in embarrassment.  

“I must admit it was an enjoyable read, mostly from a philosophical perspective. Personally I think his ‘Treaties of Speculation’ was my own favourite. Despite his refusal to delve too deeply, he came up with some intriguing ideas which pointed me in the right paths in my own research, even if he thought that it was too dangerous to approach. Admittedly a good number of his principles were rather dated, but many still held powerful insights.”

“However, I must say I favored his lesser known rival Tattered Spire slightly more than Starswirl himself. Though he may have thrown caution to the wind, he came up with some fascinating insights which have been very much overlooked. Admittedly most of his work was lost after a failed occult ritual, and the pony himself spent the last years of his life in an asylum, but what remains -even during his maddened period- shows startling revelations in the theory of magic. It’s a shame scholars have been so skittish around approaching his work.”

“I’ve never did study much of the occult myself,” said Lens. “My grandfather told me to stay away from it.  The only reason I know of those ‘forbidden books’ was because some in are in the care of the order.  And as Prancer’s Librarian, I know about their wereabouts.   

“But my grandfather’s warnings wasn’t because of his ideology.  But rather…”  She went silent for a moment.  “I can’t quite explain it, but everytime my grandfather talks about that subject, his eyes get wide and he begins to shiver.  Yet the Director has an interest in the topic - he certainly read through plenty of them.
  
“I mentioned the particularity to Steel, probably grandfather’s oldest peer.  They might not look it, but they’re about the same age.  Although, the Earth Pony has kept up his vigorous strength in his advanced years.  He shook his head, and spoke: ‘Your grandpa had an avid interest in the dark lore when he was younger.  But one night, back when we were both students in Equestria U., I saw Prancer so pale that I almost mistaken him for a ghost.  His nerves were fried and he couldn’t speak for hours.  When he did, he muttered something about a ritual at the Silver Dawn house, sort of an Occult fraternity.  It failed, and something happened.  I don’t know the details, but I know the Silver Dawn House was gone, and your Grandfather avoided using the occult.  Mind you, he still read the stuff, but not put it to use.’”  

Scalpel gave Lens an intrigued look, “The Silver Dawn you say? I’ve heard that name before, directly in fact, my own grandfather was involved in it, one of the higher echelons I believe, although I can’t be certain. They were a tight lipped and secretive group. I wonder if that is the self same ritual that drove him into the asylum, although I did have some doubts about it, Father was always eager to take on the role of the Patriarch of the household, he may have sought it as an reasonable excuse to usurp him.”

He leaned back in his chair, trying to rifle through and correlate his memories, “he was an odd stallion, I haven’t heard or seen him in over a decade… I wonder if he is even still alive.”

“Unfortunate times,” Lens said. “My parents… well I should finish the topic at hoof.  I found no records of the Silver Dawn in my grandfather’s personal records.  He’s written tomes of his earlier days and experiments, but nothing about the Dawn.  And since the Old University was sacked, any records on them were gone.  

She shrugged. “Oh well.  I do find it interesting that your grandfather had something in common with mine.”  Lens mind flash back quickly to that memory, the one that she saw of Scalpel’s early days.  The sadness, and pain, it was but a moment but that seemed too much.  She had to focus.  “Do you know anything else about the Silver Dawn?” 

“I’m afraid not, as I said, Grandfather Silver Mist was very secretive about it. I know he kept a volumes of the Orders activities along with his own esoteric research, but Father had that locked away in the family vaults and I don’t think its seen the light of day since then. I have some connections with a few of my extended relatives, I might be able to have them taken from the vaults. Not all of them have been in favor of Fathers… direction of the family, and there are plenty who’d be happy to undermine him. If you want I could send off some letters and get them delivered to me, and then I might be able to decode what they were up to back then, I may need some time to do so however.”

[i]Considering what I know of Noxferus’ father, I can see why they’d be unhappy with such a patriarch [/i] Lens thought.  “As curious as I am, we both have plenty of priorities to deal with first.  The records of some decades gone order is probably not going to be needed right away.  For all we know, all the order did was mostly drink ale during their meetings.” She smiled at the small joke.  

“I guess it’s your turn to ask me something.” 

He gave a small chuckle at that, “Probably. Still I might as well look into it at some point, even if it is just an account of various university binges for the nobility. I could do with some light reading in the future.” He paused and let out a hum of thought, trying to come up with something, “Might be a bit presumptuous to ask a lady, but I guess we might as well start with our ages and birthdays as one of our basics…”

He gave a sort of offhand nervous laugh at that, “I’m August the 15th, and currently I’m twenty-nine, last time I checked. Study does seem to get in the way of the basic things in life sometimes...”

“Well, I’m turned 20 last month, on the 3rd,” Lens said.  She was a bit worried, her eyes giving that fear away. [i]I’m almost a decade younger than him.  Will the Noxferus be bothered by the age difference? [/i] 

He gave her a small smile, reasonably glad in actuality [i] ‘I worried she was actually a bit younger than that, glad the age difference is only nine years’[/i]. “So you’re a turn of the new age mare? It’s strange for me, sometimes I forget an entire generation didn’t live under Celestia and Luna, and when I remember it makes me feel like an old decrepit stallion. I’m actually glad the difference is still under a decade. I’d feel mildly lecherous if you were a few years younger!” He gave a cheerful laugh and that.

Lens smiled at the comment. “Thank you, I was worried about that, but I can rest easy.  But you’re still plenty young.  At least, compared to Steel and Grandfather.  Both were in their 70’s when the Scholarship was founded.  Steel probably tell you how he’d feel, er used to feel at least, when he reached 90.  

“But you’re not alone in your feelings - I hear it all the time from my peers in the order who are in their 30’s.  Scroll himself is actually 35, and yet seems to act like an old stallion,” she chuckled. “But I find that it tends to be more perception than actuality.  When the world changes, it feels like time does fly.” 

“I’d agree with you on that. Luckily us Argentum’s seem to age with relative grace, makes me feel a bit more relieved about the whole process. Not that I’m vain, but nobody likes to feel age creeping up on them. Unfortunately I haven’t gotten around to asking Steel as of late, poor old fellow is still in hibernation, although I had to turn the speaker off, his subconscious attempts at snoring are atrocious.”

“Still, I’ve asked my question, I suppose its back to you again.” He looked eagerly at her, interested to see what she’d ask next, hooves tap tap tapping away as he did so.

 Lens was just anxious, her tail moving back and forth, and legs trembling.  “That’s Steel for you - when he’s not chatting, he’s snoring.  My next question… oh, do you ever watch the stars and moon at night?  If so, what do you feel?” 

“Well the old me would probably tell you that they are divine signs of the Lady of the Nights grace, and a sign of her ‘continual unadulterated glory.’” He rolled his eyes slightly at that, mildly contemptuous of his past zeal, “I do occasionally watch them, but with my time occupied I don’t get many chances to do so. What do I feel about them? I don’t know exactly, one part of me views it as an unexplored vista of possibility, rich in undiscovered knowledge and discovery. Another views it as perhaps an object of terror, who knows what might come down from the stars? The gods have, and their influence has been… debatable. Could something worse come? I don’t know. A final portion of me just takes time to wonder at creation, each of those stars crafted and designed by forces beyond our knowledge, and as far as we may know, may extend for eternity. So much to wonder at, so much to discover... “ he drifted off slightly, his eyes becoming slightly glazed as he did so. After a few moments he recollected himself, grinning sheepishly, “I guess you could say that my feeling for them are complex. How about you, what do you feel when you look at them?”

“Probably as complex as yours.  But I must say your past self was partly right that the stars were a divine sign.  But perhaps not of Luna - she was only the warden of the night, not their creator.  But the nature of the stars, the unseen nature and not just the physical aspects, enimates a beauty.  

“In Manehatten, one can’t see the stars very well. Once the sun sets, the light pollution from the multitude of lamps and other devices blocks out most stars.  Only the highest magnitude could be seen.  It wasn’t until age 10 that I got a chance to see the night in it’s glory.  

“The Scholarship was training the next generation of the order, preparing us on both academics and our order’s purpose.  Our group got the chance to travel outside the city, to an observatory in the Whitetail Woods.  Though the structure would be destroyed years later, the experience inspired me.  

“Inside the dome, a pegasus named Star Dancer opened the aperture above us.  And for the first time, I saw the stars in all their beauty.  It was lovely, wonderous, a multitude uncountable, awe for it seemed like infinity.  Of course, I ended up forgetting what Dancer was trying to teach us.  But that sight… to this day I can but look at the stars and feel an ultimate euphoria.”  

He frowned somewhat, intrigued by her comments, “I guess you could say that my past self had a point, I have a tendency to ignore what he represented however, his zeal and attempts to appease my Father through any means other than a military vocation seem like such a waste of time now…” He shook his head, clearing away the darkening thoughts and focused on the rest of Lens’ story, “The are alluring, I tend not to see them as solely divine however, perhaps it is a fault of mine to search into the science of such things and ignore the beauty. I try my best however.”

He paused in thought, a half remembered line of poetry echoing through his mind, the topic rusling old papers of his memories into wind disturbed action. Almost spontaneously he spoke softly, a half remembered stanza coming to the forefront temporarily,

“...It shone through all the sunset's glories—thin
At first, but with a slowly brightening face.
Night came, and that lone beacon, amber-hued,
Beat on my sight as never it did of old;
The evening star—but grown a thousandfold
More haunting in this hush and solitude…”

He went silent after that, retrospectively trying to recall where such poetry had come from, but turning up a blank. “How strange…”

“That sonnet is quite astonishing,” Lens said.  Her eyes bright in wonder. “It’s as if I can see the stars now, instead of this dusty subterranean alcove.” 

Scalpel nodded, his attention temporarily elsewhere, in strange lands, but still attentive to her words. “Yes… I can’t recall who wrote it… but there is some echo’s of whoever it was within my mind. I guess he appealed to me on some level, sometimes I feel like I am a stranger to the people around me, as If I’d come from other lands… perhaps worlds and visions beyond our own, and through the darkness of the void. I shake them off eventually, but the feeling remains for a long time… and sometimes it seems that my dreams follow such thoughts elsewhere, they have become strange affairs. Bizarre landscapes, strange machinery and a calming, but alien entity, made of brass, silver and fire…”

He became retrospective once more, staring off slightly into the distance, unspoken words ebbing off his lips as he moved them unconsciously. “Do you ever have dreams,” he asked, finally reconnecting with her again, “That you’re so certain are more than just dreams, but visions or messages, like someone is trying to tell you something through the strangeness of the mind?”

Lens shook her head. “No, but then again I’m not particularly trained in the arts of divination or to receive messages from afar.  There’s been rumors, if unconfirmed, that the Archmagister has developed such telepaths, but… sorry I digress too much on tangents.

“These visions… I’ve read of instances of prophecy before.  But these dreams, they are new to my experience.” 

“I don’t believe they are prophesying anything, at least not what I can tell. There is no dialogue of such things in them. But sometimes… after I have them, my mind is filled with ideas and thoughts that seem almost foreign to me, but which represent vast leaps in technological progress. I don’t quite understand it, but frequently they’ve been invaluable in my research, and my final goal.”

He gathered himself together again, becoming more attentive, “Regardless of what they mean, I believe I’ll figure out in time. In the meanwhile I believe its your turn again.”

“Well, if anypony can figure out such a mystery, it’s you,” Lens said.  “ As for my next question… What music do you like?”
“Well, I was raised with classical compositions, and that has been the mainstay of my life… still some venturesome parts of my mind have explored many musical variants and found them to be equally enjoyable, within some limits. Once I heard a symphony by two unicorn mares in my university years which tapped into the various harmonic hums of dimensional layers… the effects were both startling and strikingly alien at the same time. I sometimes wish I had the skill to do as they had done, I’d love to hear them once again…”

“Really?” Lens said in surprise. “Professor Sweet had written of such a technique, of unicorns being able to use manipulate space-time to generate some very unique sounds that no instrument could create.  When I get to the safehouse, I should ask if she knows how to achieve the feat.  Or at the very least, see if she has a recording of something like that.  

“Though I don’t mind Classical, my favorite music is…” the mare began to turn violet again.  “um.. it’s… it’s dubstep.” 

He gave her a grin, “Ah, DJPon3 and the likes, or has the scene moved on from her and branched out? I imagine Manehatten has seen its fair share of new musicians in that genre. I remember her coming to Canterlot once, it was quite an amusing sight,” he gave a small laugh, a smile crawling upwards as he remembered the event. “The nobles didn’t quite know what to do when she started playing, they all sort of stumbled about trying to figure out how to react. For someone who’s used to seeing them act in perfect motion to music, it was quite a hilarious sight to see them wander about like lost sheep.”

“I would have loved to see that.  Prancer and I was younger, and well quite a few of his Faction, had to regularly attend the Noble’s parties in Manehatten.  Oh there was certainly intrigue going on behind the scenes, but most of the time… I read periodicals about the mating habits of tarantulas that were more entertaining.” She stuck her tongue out.  “If my grandfather didn’t have to play their games to gain their patronage, we’d wouldn’t waste our time.

“I still enjoy DJPon3, but its been some time since I heard any beats from her.  Certainly a new generation of Dubstep musicians are on the rise, but its popularity is largely with the freeponies and lower to middle classes.  Though, if the younger nobles were like Lightwing, they’d probably listen to it as a rebellious act against their parents.” 

Scalpel well remembered the intrigues of the nobility, he’d been raised among it, and had largely found it to be both unbearably unpleasant, tedious and irritating. That may have also been because it interfered with with his studies, but the feeling still held true, he didn’t miss it for a moment, although the entertainment was something he did occasionally pine for. “To be honest you could probably compare the mating habits of spiders and snakes to the intrigues of the Canterlot nobility, although I’d say they’re more like the habits of black widow spiders. If they aren’t mating with one another they’re chewing each others heads off, or in general killing one another in complex plots.”

“I imagine there is some level of counter culture in the youth of Manehatten, not that I’d come to much, most of the nobility are too settled in their usual paths to deviate too far from the expected norm. It’s a saddening state of affairs.”

He paused, considering his options now the ball was back to him. A lingering question sat on the edge of his mind. He decided to chance it, “Lens? I do have a more personal question to ask, but I’m slightly concerned over whether I should. I guess I could even it out by allowing you to ask one of your own…

“I guess I want to ask whether you were solely raised by your Grandfather Prancer? you’ve never spoken of your parents, So I have been wondering. You don’t have to answer if its too personal.” 

“No, it’s not a problem,” Lens said.  She had avoided it only because she didn’t want Scalpel to recall that horrible memory. “I barely remember my parents.  They had passed away both before my 5th birthday.  Officially, I was adopted by my father’s sister, May Spring, but it was only a technicality.  She, like any of Prancer’s children, were working for the Scholarship, and my Grandfather’s agenda.  

“But while Aunt Spring was very busy off in foreign lands, her children and I were watched over my Director Prancer.  And he was a great educator and seemed to appreciate children.  After all, he did have over ten.  Well, ten legitimate foals.  Actually, my father was one of the illegitimate ones, born after a rather scandalous affair with a former student, Ms. Crystal Lens.  

She frowned. “If there was one flaw that my grandfather had, it was he was a skirt chaser. I still don’t know how he got a mare at age 70…” She shook her head. “In any case, Grandfather was a caring parent, if his education standards were higher than most other parents.  But he shown me and my step sisters kindness and compassion, keeping us safe while his own children worked on the Project.  

“I suppose I was the closest to Prancer.  My stepsiblings, well, they choose other educations.  I stayed with science, medicine, and psychology.  And who was a better teacher than the Director himself?  I admired his genius, and spent a lot of time with him.  Until I received my Bachelor's at age 11, I barely left his side.  Indeed, even now I’m rather fond of him.” 

Scalpel raised an eyebrow as Lens’ described her grandfathers amorous tendencies, “My, my. I’d heard he was quite a rogue in his own fashion but I never figured he’d be still at it in his Seventies, I’m mildly impressed.” He leaned back a bit, retreating into his memories, “I remember I graduated early at Celestia’s School, I think I was the youngest in my specific field for a long, long time. Well, until I left Moon and Star behind and went on my own way, letting them think I’d snuffed it in the process. I didn’t really have anyone to assist me in my work, Father disapproved and tried to have me shut away in numerous military academies, and Grandfather was long in a Struttgart asylum by that point, although I imagine he could have taught me a few things about my studies and delvings.”

His face fell slightly, “It was a lonely existence sometimes, only having books to talk to and the constant issues at home sometimes made me feel miserable. I managed to get through, and now here I am,” he gestured around him, a slight sarcastic smirk crossing his face, “Stuck in a dark cave in the middle of noponies land! The fortunes have favored me well.”

A sudden sound of rustling metal made him pause momentarily, turning to stare off to his right. In a matter of a couple of seconds the large figure of the unicorn Risen captain, Tsan was brought into the light of the projector.

“I take it all preparations are ready?” Scalpel said, a hint of nervous tension working its way into his voice as he spoke to his creation.

Tsan nodded, “It is done Lord Father. We are ready, we’ll begin at midnight.”

Scalpel relaxed slightly, “good. If all goes well we’ll have it within the hour.” Turning to face Lens he gave her an apologetic look, “Sorry Lens, I am going to have to be drawn away for tonights business. Hopefully I’ll be able to contact you soon after once the mission is complete, I won’t have to worry much about my safety afterwards if its a success.”

He waved Tsan away, and the Risen bowed, first to Scalpel and then to Lens, before trotting off out the cave.

“Thank you,” Lens said to the Risen.  She looked back at Scalpel. “Your work must come first.  Besides, I can rest easier knowing you are safer.  Until then, I’ll try to rest.  Please be safe, and if you see Honey and Nocturne, say hello for me.  

“Take care, my love.”  

“I’ll send them your regards… and I’ll try and keep myself safe for you.” he paused, a passionate look coursing across his face as he took her in one more time.

“You take care as well Lens, the roads are treacherous. I worry for you….

He blew her a kiss, before giving her a longing look, reaching forward to deactivate the box with his magic

“Stay safe Lens, stay safe my love.”

With that, the vision of Scalpel clouded, the magic dissipating, fading into nothingness. The crystal settled into the box once again, and then the image faded away, leaving behind only the broken masonry of the cellar.