Cloud Cover
Accumulation
Previous ChapterNext ChapterIt had been two days since Thunder had left and the two Princes had visited his nightmare. Two questions still remained in his mind from that night. Who is this Spectra they were speaking of? And why don't they want the Princesses to know about them? During those two days, he hired some ponies to help him start building his art studio.
"Hey guys, that's it for today." Chroma said to the two stallions who were helping him. He payed them both fifty bits for the day of work that they did.
"Thank you very much kind sir." One of the stallions said to Chroma.
"See ya tomorrow Chroma. Maybe we'll be done by then." The other stallion said. Then the two walked off towards their respective homes.
Chroma walked off towards the Carousel Boutique, where he knew Jewel would be waiting for him. She had asked him earlier in the day to meet up for lunch together. She had also invited Apple Blossom to lunch with them as well. He arrived at the Carousel Boutique and knocked at the door quite loudly.
Prince Blueblood answered the door with a slightly annoyed look on his face. "Hello there Chroma. What are you here for?" He asked, his look of annoyed-ness disappearing when he saw who it was.
"I'm here to see Jewel." Chroma replied.
"Didn't she tell you?" Blueblood asked.
"Tell me what?" Chroma replied with a question.
"She was noticed by Octavia and is in a meeting of sorts with her today." Blueblood said.
"Oh okay. Well I'll be off then." Chroma said, slightly embarassed by the situation.
"Goodbye Chroma." Blueblood said as he shut the door.
Chroma went off towards the Sugarcube Corner where the three were going to have lunch together. Apple Blossom was already there, waiting for both Chroma and Jewel.
"Hey there Chroma. Where's Jewel at?" Apple Blossom asked.
"Jewel couldn't make it. She's with Octavia." Chroma said to Apple Blossom. "Are you ready to get lunch?" He asked.
"Sure, let's go." Apple Blossom said. The two ponies walked inside Sugarcube Corner and were immediately assaulted by one Pinkie Pie.
"HitherewhatcanIgetyoutoday? Areyougoingtobeeatinginorouttoday?" Pinkie Pie said, mouth going at 100 miles-per-hour.
"Ummm. I'll have a cherry pie. And we'll be eating in today." Chroma said.
"And what about you?" Pinkie Pie said, her words becoming more understandable.
"I'll have a blueberry muffin. If you don't mind." Apple Blossom said.
"Okie dokie lokie! That will be six bits" Pinkie Pie said. Chroma set the six bits for the pie and muffin on the counter seperating She then led Chroma and Apple Blossom to a table by one of the windows. "I'll have your food to you soon."
"Thank you." Chroma said to Pinkie Pie as she walked towards the kitchen.
"So how is the art studio coming along Chroma?" Apple Blossom asked, trying to start a conversation.
"It's coming along real well, we shoud have it done by tomorrow, furnishings and all." Chroma said, excitement at having an art studio and home for himself showing in his voice. "How is planting season coming along?" He asked in return, knowing that planting and gardening were Apple Blossoms forte.
"It's been great. We have half of the saplings for this year planted. And we have all of the fields plowed and ready for crop planting." Apple Blossom said, somewhat bragging about her talent.
"That's cool." Chroma said. Almost immediately after saying that, Pinkie Pie came out of the kitchen with a cherry pie and a blueberry muffin.
"Here you go!" Pinkie Pie said with delight as she handed off the cherry pie and muffin.
"Thank you very much." Apple Blossom said as she picked up her muffin and took a small bite. "It's delicious." She stated while slowly enjoying the sweet flavour of the blueberry muffin.
Chroma then took a bite out of the cherry pie in front of him, the sweet yet tangy flavor of the cherry mixing with the sugar used in baking the crust. He couldn't help but take another bite, this one much larger than the last. "Wow Pinkie Pie, this is the best pie I have ever tasted!"
"Thanks for the compliment! I love knowing that my customers love my cooking!" Pinkie said, overjoyed at the fact that she was getting compliments about her cooking. "I've got to get ready for a party later..."
"What's the party for?" Chroma asked inquisitively.
"The Princesses are visiting Ponyville later for some reason." Pinkie Pie stated, matter-of-factly.
"What!" Apple Blossom said with shock. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Pinkie went over and opened the door, revealing none other than Princess Celestia and Princess Luna.
"Hey there Princesses. What can I do for you?" Pinkie Pie said.
"I'm here for a stallion by the name of Chroma. Is he here?" Princess Luna said, getting straight to the reason why they were there.
"He's here alright. He's right over there." Pinkie said, pointing her hoof in the direction that Chroma and Apple Blossom were sitting.
"Thank you very much Pinkamena Pie." Princess Celestia said in thanks. Pinkie had a worried look on her face now because nopony ever called her by her full name unless the matter was extremely serious or severe. The two Princesses walked over to where Chroma and Apple Blossom were currently sitting. "Hello there young Chroma, may we have a word with you?" Celestia demanded in a way that sounded like she was asking.
"Sure Princess Celestia." Chroma as aid as he walked off with the two princesses. They continued walking until they were out of earshot of anypony who wished to eavesdrop. "What is it you want to talk to me about?" Chroma asked, knowing full well what she was going to say.
"Princess Luna here is in charge of ruling over the night, she also is in charge of watching over ponies dreams to make sure they are safe there. A few nights ago, she happened to be watching over you as one of your nightmares took hold. She stayed in your dreams after the nightmare should have ended, as she was confused why the nightmare did not end. In the dream after the nightmare, you were visited by two ponies. Interestingly enough, you were visited by two out of several alicorns that we have believed to be gone for many millennium. She was forced out of the dream as soon as the both of them showed up. WHAT DID THEY SAY TO YOU?" Celestia said, using her Royal Canterlot Voice at the end in order to stress the importance of the question she was asking. The last part scared the wits out of Chroma, because nopony had ever heard Celestia use her Royal Canterlot Voice before. It was several seconds before Chroma had regained his composure and started to speak.
"The two alicorns, Tempora and Caelia, claimed they were rulers of time and space respectively. They told me that they were watching over me, similar to what Luna was doing, in order to make sure I was safe. They said that they were doing this because I needed to be kept alive for a certain fixed point in time and space. When I asked them why, they responded with, and I quote: 'Because of the power you hold inside.' Then they went on saying something about some pony named Spectra and how my cutie mark looked like his. And then, before the dream ended, they told me not to tell you two because you would become upset. Why does this even matter?" Chroma said frightfully, recounting every detail from the dream that he could remember.
"I have to tell you about this because those two showing themselves. This is a story and legend that only Luna and I know. It begins like this:
"It started with nothing. There was nothing anywhere and everywhere. Out of the nothing came the first pony, the first alicorn. Spectra, bringer of light and dark, bringer of color. He gave the nothingness a color, and he then proceeded to create light to brighten up the darkness that symbolized the emptiness around him. But his powers extended far beyond that of just bringing color and light and dark.
"Those actions done, he proceeded to make it so that everything around him progressed and expanded. He created the flowing time, all that ever was, is, and is to be, and the expanding space, containing and shaping all that would be subject to time. Spectra then createted two beings like himself to rule if the flowing time and the expanding space. The first Princes, Tempora and Caelia. The two worked together with Spectra and created the realm that would contain all worlds to come.
"However, the void in that realm was devoid of light, just as the realm of nothingness was. So Caelia defied the laws that prevented anypony other than Spectra to create living beings. He created Princess Astra to make specks of light, dotted throughout the nothingness that existed in this new realm.
"Prince Tempora saw injustice in this and so he created a being of his own, one Princess of his own to measure the time and give it strict movement that varied in far away realms. And so Princess Motis was created to allow for the movement and measurement of time.
"Spectra decreed to create a new world for his creations to dwell in and on and above. In order to create these worlds, he needed new beings to help shape the worlds.
"He created Aeria, Princess of the sky containing the life giving air that all creatures of any domain needed to survive. The Princess of the sky created a sphere of air in the nothingness that still existed, thus making a bubble that would contain the world to come. She filled the sky with different typeoff air for the different creatures that would live in the air and on the land and in the water.
"He created Terra, Princess of the land holding up the sky and providing land for plants and animals alike to grow and thrive. The Princess created a sphere of similar shape to the sky to hold all in place. The world was a flat place, devoid of any variation in the surface. Terra then created mountains to connect the land with the sky, valleys and depressions and great holes in the land to collect water, vast labyrinths within the floor of the land to hold minerals that would become the most precious of anything, and fields of fertile land for the plants to grow more abundantly.
"He created Laticis, Princess of the water filling up the holes and depressions and valleys in the land that would carry new life. Water filled up some of the vast labyrinths that were under the skin of the earth and made it so that the fields where even more fertile than before. Then Laticis moved water into the sky in order to bridge the gap between the water and the sky. And so rain first entered the new world.
"Then Spectra created Prince Mortem and Princess Aevum to give the new, world living beings a limited time span and a way for more beings to be formed. Prince Mortem made it so that there were many ways for the righteous and the unrighteous to leave the world, with fitting exit of the world for both groups. Princess Aevum made sure that, before they left, the beings had a way to produce future generations and a way for them to adapt beyond measure.
"Spectra decreed that there should be a greater light during the times of activity for most creatures, and a lesser light to watch over the creatures as they sleep. Decreeing that having light for activity more important, he created the ruler of the day and sun, as Tempora and Caelia called it, first. And thus Princess Celestia was born to raise and lower the sun. Then Spectra created the younger sister, Princess Luna, to raise and lower the moon and to watch over the dreams of the creatures as they slept.
"Spectra, along with the other alicorns, created three tribes of creatures that looked similar to the alicorns.
"He created the unicorns, with the magical ability of the alicorns, to control factors in nature to help maintain balance on a finer level.
"He created the pegasi, with the wing strength of the alicorns, to maintain the weather that was sure to occur on the new world.
"He created the earth-ponies, with the will and hoof strength of the alicorns, to work the fields and grow the food that would be necessary to support the three tribes.
"And so the world was in harmony.
"Spectra decreed that there should be balance, so he created a spirit out of the stone of the world to counteract the harmony in the world. Discord. But Discord had too much power in the world, and he threw the three tribes into disarray.
"Spectra created six elements that represented the harmony created through friendship, the Elements of Harmony. He gave the elements to the sisters of day and night so they could assume dominion on the world and banish Discord into the stone from which he was created.
"All was well in the world now known as Equestria. But it was not to last. Tempora had predicted that the youngest of them all would grow jealous and rise up against the solar sister. And happen it did. Luna allowed her jealousy to take control of her actions. Nightmare Moon took control of Luna's body and rose up against Celestia.
"Spectra, in fear of the power that Nightmare Moon had gained through evil emotions, granted Celestia the power to banish Nightmare Moon to the moon. But Prince Caelia had grown affectionate towards Princess Luna. So he created a way for the stars to help aid in her release from the moon. He imbued some of his infinite supply of magic into the stars. This ordeal caused Spectra to become wary of his creations, so he, along with the other alicorns, save Princess Celestia and the trapped Nightmare Moon, had decided that they were to vanish from the world they had worked together to create and wipe any memory of the themselves from the mind of Celestia and Luna.
"...So as you can see, Luna and I thought this was all legend and we were the last and only two alicorns until what you told us proved us to have other siblings and even our father. It is good to know we aren't the last ones anymore." Celestia finished, tears at the edge of bursting forth.
"I am sorry you had to deal with that my children. My fear of this world was too strong for me to cope with. I'm sorry I took your memory of us you two. Forgive me please." A strong mental male voice spoke inside the three ponies minds. Then there was a bright light as an alicorn appeared in front of the three. The alicorn was the same height as Celestia with his multihued translucent mane glittering and waving in the nonexistent wind and his royal blue body showing high regality. "You do forgive me, don't you Tia? Don't you Lulu?" The alicorn said in a fatherly tone, using the nicknames the Princesses used for each other. He turned to the side slightly, revealing his cutie mark, a golden trunked tree with multihued leaves and branches yielding fruits that seemed to be made of stars.
The tears that had been forming in both alicorns' eyes suddenly burst forth. "Of course we forgive you. You didn't have to leave us like that father." Both Celestia and Luna said at the same time. They both hugged the mysterious alicorn at the same time.
"You must be the Chroma that Tempora and Caelia told me about. I have something I must tell you. But now is not the time. In fact, I must remove all memory of this encounter from your memory. It will come back when it is unlocked by me. Goodbye." The alicorn said before touching Chroma's head with his horn. Then Chroma's mind went blank and next thing he knew, he was in the hospital with a worried pony looking over him.
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