Chapters A Pony's Guide to the Multiverse
Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria, Element of Magic, Alicorn of the Dusk and Head Librarian of Ponyville walked at a measured pace through the Everfree Forest until she reached a large clearing, dominated by an ancient ruin. Highabove her, on the roof of a long decayed building stood Sombra, the Dark King of the North, his silhouet stark against the setting sun. As Twilight stared up at him, she felt a burning deep within her, a spark of life and magic, flare up in response.
“Princess,” the Dark King growled, his voice twisted by a millennium of hate. “What a pleasure to receive you, here at the apex of my ascension. Soon, I will be a true king, the Alicorn of Hate, and all will bow down before me. Girls, give our honoured guest a welcome.”
“With pleasure, master,” two voices said at once, an eariy cadence to their voices, as a pair of Unicorn mares strutted forwards, one pale blue with a silver mane, the other mint green with a two toned green and white mane. Dark magic, green and red and black, welled up from their eyes, thick, oily smoke clinging to them, whilst cruel expressions held their faces in grimaces.
“Lyra, Trixie!” Twilight shouted. “Let them go, you monster!”
“Jealous, Princess?” Sombra sneered. “Don’t worry, you’ll join them soon enough.” With a wave of his hoof, the two Unicorns leapt forwards, their horns charged with magic. Bolts of energy shot forwards moments later, but Twilight was already gone, a flash of purple magic teleporting her high into the sky.
Flying high above the battlefield, Twilight watched the scene below as the two unicorns—both of whom she counted as friends—searched for her below. I need to stop them, to break Sombra’s hold over them, but how? I can’t just wait until the rest of the girls get here, it’ll be too late by then. Twilight felt the spark within her writhe with impatience, as if it demanded action, just as it had done on numerous occasions before—her entrance exam, facing Nightmare Moon, Discord, Chrysalis and Sombra, solving Star Swirl’s unfinished spell—all of these had set off what Twilight thought of as her spark, but none had satisfied it, always demanding more. So far, that is, but today is the day, Twilight thought to herself.
A bolt of blue magic brought her back to the present. Looking down, she saw that Trixie and Lyra had spotted her, and where now flinging bolts of magic up at her. Twilight tried to dodge the bolts, but her unfamiliarity with flying caused her to tumble downwards. With another flash of purple magic, she was back on the ground, stood behind the two Unicorns. They turned, but not quickly enough, and by the time they fired off their shots a purple dome had appeared around Twilight, effortlessly absorbing their blows.
“You’ve got to do better than that if you want to beat them,” Sombra taunted, casting a spell himself. Shadowy tendrils rose up from the ground, coiling around Twilight’s legs. Going taut, they pulled Twilight to the ground, stretching her legs in opposite directions.
Twilight briefly struggled against them, but the coils were as solid as stone. Instead, she closed her eyes and cast an illumination spell, the bright light driving the shadows back. Climbing back to her feet, she discovered that the spell had momentarily blinded Trixie and Lyra, who were now crouched on the floor shielding their faces. Twilight strode forwards and locked horns with Lyra.
Closing her eyes, Twilight summoned the magic deep within her and sent a mental probe deep within Lyra’s mind, quickly finding the vile enchantment that ensnared her friend. Remember, Twilight thought, remember how to love, summoning images of their time together at Celestia’s School, in Ponyville, at the royal wedding, and other such events. Waves of love and friendship rolled off Twilight, stripping away the webs of dark magic. Slowly, Lyra began to add her own memories to the mix, her own experiences of her friendship with Twilight, and the rest of her friends back in Ponyville.
Lyra’s amber magic flared, and the enchantment shattered. The oily smoke dissipated into the air as Lyra fell to the ground, unconscious, a smile of blissful relief on her face.
“Curse you, whorse!” Sombra cried. Twilight turned to face him, but an impact from behind knocked her to the floor. Staggering to her hooves, she saw Trixie approach, whilst Sombra laughed.
“Come on, Twilight Sparkle,” Trixie said. “The Great and Powerful Trixie desires to put you in your place.”
“Trixie, this isn’t you. You’re possessed!” Twilight cried. I can’t do to Trixie what I did for Lyra. She’s spent most of her life alone, and we haven’t spent enough time together to build up a strong enough friendship!
“Possessed? The Great and Powerful Trixie thinks not. I just wield power unimaginable,” she said, slowly circling around Twilight. “All thanks to Master Sombra. And when he ascends, why, then the Great and Powerful Trixie will be granted even more power! Power enough to challenge Celestia herself!”
“I thought the Great and Powerful Trixie would rather earn her own power, then receive the cast offs from somepony else,” Twilight taunted back, smirking as Trixie’s eye twitched.
“Silence, whorse!” Trixie shouted back, punctuating her words with a telekinetic blast. Twilight easily deflected the underpowered bolt.
“Borrowing curses from your master now? What next, his wallet?” Twilight said, smirking as Trixie’s eye twitched once more. That’s it—I need to get through to her pride! “Of course, the only reason you’re borrowing power from Sombra is so that you can match me.”
“The Great and Powerful Trixie does not need Sombra’s power to face you! The Great and Powerful Trixie is your equal with or without him!” Trixie cried, working herself into a frenzy.
Too easy. “Prove it.”
“The Great and Powerful Trixie will!” She closed her eyes, and scrunched her face in concentration. A few moments later, the same oily smoke that clung to Lyra dissipated. Her eyes opened, and Twilight sighed with relief as she saw Trixie’s untainted, violet eyes shine through.
“Hah! Now you face the true might of the Great and Pow...” Trixie staggered, falling to her knees. “What... Where am I...” Trixie slurred, before slumping to the ground, unconscious.
“Damn you to Tartarus, Princess!” Sombra cried. “I’ll just have to take you down myself!”
Sombra leapt from the top of the building and onto the ground, black crystals shooting upwards from the earth. Twilight backed away. Not only were the black crystals toxic to the touch, but they also amplified Sombra’s dark magics. Still, being this far from the Crystal Empire, in the heart of the Everfree Forest, resulted in there being far fewer crystals than normal—only a dozen or so.
“I will break your body, then your mind,” Sombra growled. “You will be mine, completely and utterly in my thrall. And then I will throw your broken body before your precious Princess of the Sun, and she will know despair never ending.”
Twilight remained silent, instead focusing on placing herself between Sombra and the unconscious Unicorns. Sombra, however, caught on and cast a spell, a telekinetic blast hurling two of the crystals at his feet towards Trixie and Lyra.
Twilight felt the spark in her heart surge, and she threw herself before the crystals, a shimmering shield of purple magic flaring into existence.
The crystals shattered against the shield, dissipating into smoke. Twilight staggered against the blow, grunting as she strived to maintain the shield. Four more blows and the shield broke in an explosion of energy that flung Twilight backwards.
As Twilight climbed back to her feet, she saw with a smirk that half of Sombra's crystals had been used up.
"What's the matter, little pony?" Sombra asked. "Can you not face true power, the power of hated?"
"The power of friendship is greater than hatred!" Twilight yelled back.
"Hah! Don't make me laugh! Friends are useless fools who exist only to let you down. In fact, if friendship is so powerful, then where are yours? I do hope they didn't get lost."
"If you dare harm them I'll—"
"You'll what, kill me? I'd like to see you try."
Twilight, having regained her breath, fired a volley of magic blasts at Sombra, directing them silently so that they twisted and turned through the air.
Sombra summoned a wall of black crystal, blocking most of the bolts, but several made it through, throwing him backwards against the building with enough force to knock it down.
Twilight felt the spark burn brightly in her chest, but as the smoke cleared her heart fell, Sombra picking his way out of the rubble.
"Gah!" Sombra growled, beyond words, and charged at Twilight, his horn lowered. Twilight leapt forwards, her horn also lowered, and the two clashed with a burst of magic, horns locked together, purple magic competing with black.
Sombra swung his forehoof forwards, catching Twilight in the face and driving her back. Sombra used the distraction to gore her with his horn, leaving a long, deep wound along her barrel.
Twilight cried out in shock and took a step back. She could feel her wound grow cold, then freezing as blood continued to flow down her chest.
"I hope you approve," Sombra said. "It took me ages to gather all the ingredients for that poison."
Twilight's eyes widened in shock. "You poisoned your horn? Do you have a death wish?"
Sombra laughed. "You should be more concerned about your own health, you know. And besides, I figured that I would either be an immortal Alicorn, or dead at your hooves by the time the poison kicked in. Speaking of which, I do believe you only have a few minutes left."
Twilight frowned. Already, she could feel the coldness spread across her barrel and up to her withers, and the wound had yet to clot. Blood loss cause her vision to blur momentarily, but that was all the distraction Sombra needed to leap forwards and buck her in the face, flinging the Alicorn backwards.
Twilight landed in a crumpled heap between Trixie and Lyra. She tried to get up, but her limbs refused to obey her orders. Raising her head, she watched as Sombra sauntered forwards, arrogance in his every step.
"Well, it appears that even the untouchable student of Celestia can fall," he chuckled darkly, before driving a hoof into Twilight's stomach. "That's for driving me out of the Crystal Empire."
Twilight grunted and spat up blood, unable to respond. Her head fell back, and Sombra disappeared from her view, replaced by Trixie. Dimly, she heard Sombra talking, but she couldn't focus on him anymore.
Trixie, Lyra, everypony... I'm sorry, I wasn't strong enough. The spark within Twilight flared angrily, as if it was displeased with Twilight's surrender. No... I have to be strong enough. Sombra seeks to destroy everything I care about, everything that makes life good. He must be stopped, so that ponies can live free, happy lives. Memories of her friendships filled her head, and her heart swelled with love. Sombra, I will stop you.
Slowly, Twilight raised her head and glared at Sombra. She gathered together every happy memory of her with her friends—Pinkie throwing a party, Applejack and Rainbow Dash racing, Rarity and Fluttershy at the spar, Spike and Celestia studying a book with her. She let these memories fill her, washing away her pain. The spark burned eagerly, as if this was the moment it had been waiting for, and she felt her magic grow, surpassing her previous limits.
She noticed Sombra looking at her oddly. "You should be dead by now," he said, coldly and dispassionately. "Why are you still hanging onto life? You've lost."
"Because friendship is magic." Twilight let loose her magic, magic built up from the memories of her friendships, in a tight beam of light, prismatic in colour. It pierced through Sombra's last crystal, through his armour, through his cold, black heart, striking him dead instantly.
There was a moments silence, and then he fell to the ground, whilst Twilight's spark blazed into an inferno.
Twilight was drifting through an endless void, her body turned into discorporeal smoke.
Am I dead? Am I on my way to the Summer Lands? she wondered. Idly, she looked around herself, somehow able to perceive her entire surroundings at once. She was ringed by orbs, clear spheres showing worlds unimaginable. One showed an endless plane of fire, tall towers rising from isolated islands. Another showed an endless city, stretching from horizon to horizon. A third was a realm of steel, death and nightmares born from despair. Twilight quickly looked away from that one. In front of her, drifting away from her—or maybe she was drifting backwards—was an orb that showed the endless fields of Equestria, the city of Canterlot perched above it all.
Goodbye, my friends. May we meet again in the Summer Lands, Twilight thought to herself, repeating the phase used at funerals. Never thought I'd say it from this side.
A sense of falling came over Twilight, and she quickly realised she had fallen into one of the spheres. Turning, she saw dark forests, foreboding castles and morbid churches, before it vanished, replaced with hard, cold dirt.
Twilight gasped, breathing as if it was her first breath, before wincing in pain. The poison was still eating away at her, blood leaking from her wound.
Noise. A figure stepped into view, it's steps crunching against the ground. Looking up, Twilight saw a tall, bipedal being, swathed in thick, black clothes, a hairless, pale face standing out.
Twilight gasped and reached out for the figure. "Please... Help me..."
The figure bent down, arm outstretched, but Twilight was already unconscious.
Cards unlocked!
Sombra, Dark King of the North 3BBB"That is mine!"
Twilight Sparkle, Head Librarian 3WU"This is my book. And I'm gonna read it!"
The Great and Powerful Trixie 2UU"Watch in awe as the Great and Powerful Trixie performs the most spectacular feats of magic ever witnessed by pony eyes!"
Power of Friendship 1WW
Author's Note
I had far to much fun making those cards. I was only going to do one for Twilight and Sombra. Trixie's, however, is my favorite. And Twilght would make an awesome EDH general.
Note: if you are reading this and have no idea what the cards mean, feel free to ignore them. They don't have any impact upon the story, and are just a fun little thing I threw in at the end.
A Pony's Guide to the Multiverse
Authors note—after some complaints constructive feedback, I have decided to completely remove the whole Twilight becoming a Vampony bit. It didn't fit the the story in any way, shape or form. So without further adieu, I give you the real chapter 2!
Twilight groaned as a shaft of sunlight struck her eyes, and she rolled over in bed, burying her face into the pillow. Her head ached and her throat was dry, and the bed she was in was soft and comfortable.
“Good morning,” a voice Twilight didn’t recognise said. Waking up fully, Twilight remembered fighting Sombra, and drifting through that weird void, before landing at the feet of some strange creature.
Slowly, Twilight raised her head and looked at the speaker. Across the room—a luxurious and ornate bedroom, filled with expensive red silks and golden curios—sat a creature she had never seen before. It was bipedal, and tall—easily as tall as Celestia. It was swathed in thick, black clothing, hiding most of it’s physiology, but from what Twilight could see it resembled a skinny minotaur, yet there was a certain confidence in it’s pose, as if it was more powerful than most of it’s peers. It’s face... Twilight had seen nothing like it before. It didn’t have a muzzle or a beak, instead having a small, pointed snout in the middle of a flat, hairless face, topped by a short, white mane. Two piercing, red eyes sat on it’s face, and Twilight shivered as she realised that they were a hunter’s eyes, a killer's eyes, and it’s casual smile, filled with predatory teeth, only confirmed this.
Twilight shrank back under the creatures gaze. “What are you?” she asked, trembling.
“Ah. Now that is an interesting question,” the creature said. “What am I? Once, I was but a mortal man—”
“You’re immortal? What’s a man?” Twilight immediately asked, her curiosity overcoming her fear. The creature glared at her, clearly angered by her interruption. Twilight shrank back even further under his gaze.
“A man,” the creature said, slowly and deliberately, “is the male of the species Homo Sapiens, or Human, in the common tongue. I, however, only resemble a Human superficially—five thousand, nine hundred years ago I was changed into a Vampire, a blood sucking creature of the night. I trust you have heard of those?”
“That sounds like Vamponies,” Twilight said nervously, worming her way deeper into the bed. Five thousand, nine hundred years! He's not quite as old as the princesses, but that's still impressive. And if the stories about Vamponies—or Vampires in this case—are true... “You’re not going to drink my blood, are you?”
Sorin chuckled dryly to himself. “No, no—Only the blood of humans can quench my thirst. Which leads me to my question—what are you?”
“I’m a pony,” Twilight replied. “An Alicorn Pony to be exact, although I used to be a Unicorn Pony, before I ascended.”
“A pony? Why not a horse?” he asked.
Twilight gasped in response. “How dare you!”
The Vampire raised a hand—Twilight noticed that it was very thin and dexterous—and spoke softly. “I’m sorry, I did not mean to offend you. And it’s your turn to ask a question, Miss Alicorn Pony.”
“Um...” Twilight thought for a moment, before realising she didn’t know this creature’s name. “Who are you?”
“A question most would have started with. My name is Sorin Markov,” he said, his tone turning dry, “Lord of all Innistrad.” Twilight opened her mouth, but Sorin wagged a finger at her. “Ah ah, it’s my turn to ask a question. Who are you?”
“I’m Twilight Sparkle,” she replied. “Actually, my full title is Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria, but that’s a bit of a mouthful, so most ponies just call me Twilight.”
Sorin gave a bow. “I didn’t realise I was in the presence of royalty, Your Highness.”
Twilight blushed, and looked off to one side. “It’s mostly a ceremonial title. I won’t have any official responsibilities for a few more years. I only became a princess recently, you see. Um, you said you were the Lord of Innistrad? Is that where we are? I’ve never heard of it before, and I’ve studied geography extensively. How did I even get here?”
“That’s several questions. But yes, we are currently in the plane of Innistrad, specifically the province of Stensia, in my home, Markov Manor,” Sorin said, walking over to a window obscured by thick, red curtains and throwing them open. “Well, it’s my Grandfather’s home, really, but he’s away on... business.”
Sunlight shone into the dark room, causing Twilight to flinch backwards, but her eyes quickly adjusted to the light. Slowly climbing out of bed, Twilight walked over to the window and looked out. Stark, jagged mountains filled her view, throwing shadows across each other. The sky was filled with dark, foreboding clouds, with an angry red sun shining down through it all. Markov Manor was perched high on one of these mountains, a sheer drop from the window. At the base of the mountain, a small, rural village was located, shrouded in shadow. In the distance a walled city on top of a hill could be seen.
“I’m not in Equestria, any more, am I?” Twilight asked.
“No,” Sorin said. “When you were wounded, your Planeswalker spark must have ignited, flinging you across the Blind Eternities from your home plane to this one.”
“Planeswalker Spark? Blind Eternities? I don’t understand,” Twilight said. “Wait, my injuries!” She looked down at herself, patting her body. “They’re gone!”
“Yes, you are quite lucky to have landed before me,” Sorin said. “That poison was very powerful. There are few with the talent, skill and experience to deal with something that potent.”
“Well, then, Mr Markov, I thank you for your help,” Twilight said, bowing.
Sorin simply nodded his head in reply. "As for your other questions, the Blind Eternities is the realm between realms—you must have seen it when you traveled here."
"You mean that weird void? The one with all the spheres?"
Sorin nodded. "Yes. Those were the planes of the multiverse—Innistrad is one such plane, as is your home plane, and countless others."
"What about the Planeswalker spark?" Twilight asked. "What is that?"
"The spark is a fundamental part of our souls, and is what lets beings like you and me walk between the planes. It is a gift from the Blind Eternities, and protects us from the energies within. Only one in a million are born with it, and only one in a million of those can prove themselves worthy and ignite it."
Twilight bounced into the air, hovering at Sorin's eye level. "That's so amazing—how does one Planeswalk?"
The Vampire smiled. "You just need to concentrate on the Blind Eternities, and take a step forwards. Nothing can stop you from walking, and can walk from anywhere—there is no cage or jail that can keep you in one place, except for those in your own mind." He spoke that last sentence in almost a whisper, so low that Twilight almost couldn't hear it.
"That's amazing!" Twilight said. "I now have first hoof evidence of Coin Toss's many worlds theory! I could write a paper on this—no, a book, no! A thesis! This could revolutionise... Everything! We could make contact with other worlds! By the Sun and Moon, I've met somepony from another world!"
Twilight began to kick her legs excitedly in a poor approximation of a dance, bewildering Sorin.
"I'm gonna write a thesis! I'm gonna write a thesis!" she sang, confusing the poor Vampire next to her even more.
Sorin coughed gently, and Twilight came to a stop, blushing furiously. "I got a bit carried away there, didn't I?"
"Just a little bit," Sorin replied. "But I wouldn't tell anyone you are a Planeswalker—most people tend to fear and distrust us, and for good reason."
"What? Why? Why wouldn't people trust us?" Twilight asked, confused.
Sorin sighed. "Because for every Planeswalker who fights to protect people, there are two that fight for personal power. And when you can go anywhere at a whim, it is hard to tie down roots—many walkers become apathetic to the problems of the locals."
"That's terrible! Power should be used responsibly, to help ponies, not for selfish reasons!" Twilight said, anger boiling over.
"I disagree—power should be used however you desire to use it, no more, no less. And if somebody tries to interfere, you stop them. By any means necessary."
Despite herself, Twilight shuddered. There was a hard edge, a coldness to Sorin's voice that Twilight had only heard in a few others before—Sombra, Chrysalis, Nightmare Moon.
"How can you think that?" Twilight asked.
Sorin stared at her. "It is a fact of life. To believe otherwise is the height of naivety."
Twilight shook her head. "But that sort of philosophy is not only self destructive, but it conflicts with the Elements of Harmony."
"The Elements of Harmony?"
Twilight rolled her eyes. "You know; Honesty, Kindness, Loyalty, Generosity and Laughter." Looking at his blank expression, Twilight came to an awful realisation. "You don't know, do you? You've never heard of the Elements of Harmony."
"I've never heard of your plane—Equestria, I believe you called it? Let alone your religion."
Twilight shook her head. "Equestria is just the nation I come from. We call the world Concordia, after the Creator-Goddess."
"Concordia... I can't say I've heard of it." He frowned, looking pensive. "That is quite unusual—it is a rare plane indeed if I haven't heard of it. But you were telling me about these... elements?"
"Yes, of course." Twilight settled in to what her friends called 'lecture mode'. "Concordia is founded on five principles—Honesty, Kindness, Loyalty, Generosity and Laughter, which in turn are bound together by the sixth element, Magic. By not only exhibiting these traits, but also encouraging them in other ponies, it forms bonds of friendship, love and harmony, binding our society together and strengthening it. These bonds then become the source of all magic, regardless of race."
Sorin raised a skeptical eyebrow. "You believe that friendship is magic?"
"I don't believe it, I know it," Twilight said. "I've spent the last three years studying the interactions between friendships and magic first hoof, and the link is as clear as Celestia's day."
"And where does mana fit into this 'Elements of Harmony' creed of yours?"
Twilight paused, uncertainty etched on her face. "Mana? I... I've never heard of mana."
"You know, the energy spells are crafted from. White mana, blue mana, black mana, red mana and green mana? Comes from the land around us?"
Twilight shook her head. "I don't know what you're talking about—magic comes from within us, not from the land."
Twilight turned her head, her horn glowing with a magenta light. Moments later, a similar glow surrounded the four poster bed, lifting it into the air. Twilight rotated it once, before turning back to Sorin. "See?"
Sorin walked over to the bed in silent shock, staring at the light. Slowly, he pushed his hand into the levitation field, causing Twilight to yelp.
"Don't do that—it feels weird," she admonished.
Sorin quickly pulled his arm back. "Sorry, it's just... I've never seen anything like this. This is certainly not mana. Magic that not only comes from within you, but is fuelled by friendships? I don't know what to say."
"Well, you could start by telling me what mana is," Twilight said, setting down the bed.
"Certainly," Sorin replied. “Mana is the life force that binds the differently planes of reality together. Where mana is plentiful, life thrives. Where it is absent, life withers and dies. It originates in the Blind Eternities, where it flows through leylines into the planes themselves. The plane with the most leylines is called the nexus, and is the lynchpin the multiverse revolves around. The current nexus is the plane of Dominaria. Because of its importance, it is often referred to as the wheel.
"When these leylines bisect certain environments, one of the five colours of mana is created—plains create white mana, islands create blue mana, swamps make black, mountains, red and finally forests make green.
"Each colour has its own specific identity, a series of traits that limit the types of spells that it can be used to create.
"White mana is associated with order, morality and control. It’s symbol is the sun. Spells cast with white mana focus on strengthening the power of the group, even at the cost of individual freedom.
"Next is blue mana. Blue is the colour of knowledge, logic and technology. It’s symbol is a drop of water. Spells cast with blue mana seek to understand the nature of the world, and to manipulate it for the benefit of the caster.
"After blue comes black, the colour of death and decay. It is symbolised by a skull. Black mana is selfish, greedy and amoral. However, it is not evil in the strictest sense of the term. It endorses personal might and individuality, unlike white, which values the group over the self. For black, might makes right—but it doesn't care how it is used. I favour black mana."
"Why am I not surprised, mister 'use power how I wish'," Twilight deadpanned. Sorin merely smiled in response.
"Next is red, the colour of fire, passion and freedom. Red mages often act on impulse before thinking. Its symbol is a flame, and many red spells revolve around fire. The typical red solution to a puzzle is to smash it—a crude, by highly effective solution.
"The final colour is green, colour of nature, of trees and wild beasts. Green mana focuses on primordial strength, but also on growth, and the cycle of nature, as well as the creatures of the wild co-operating together.”
"Magic coming from the land... that sounds amazing. And terrifying. You said that where mana is absent, life withers and dies. Is it possible to completely drain an area of mana?" Twilight asked
"Yes, but it takes many years of intense magical battles for the effect to be noticeable. It was millennia before the plane of Dominaria began to fall apart from the constant warfare over its leylines."
"So it's safe? I won't destroy the land if I draw upon its mana?" Twilight asked. Sorin nodded in reply. "Then I would love to study it—have got any books on mana?”
Sorin smiled. “Even better—I can teach you.”
Twilight’s squeal of joy shattered the windows.
Card unlocked!
Sorin Markov, Vampire Lord 4BB
Author's Note
So heres the new and improved chapter two. Instead of mopey, emo vampire Twilight, we have adorkable Twilight (who, quite frankly, is best Twilight). A bit of info dumping, both on MtG magic, and Equestrian headcanon magic. There's a lot more of both, and much of the Equestrian stuff is going to be relevent, so hold onto your hats.
For those that care about these things, here's a reprint of Mirror of Truths:
A Pony's Guide to the Multiverse
"Welcome to the Farbog," Sorin declared, his boots squelching through the mud. Twilight followed behind, hovering a foot above the ground. She had tried to walk through the swamp, but chose to fly after sinking up to her knees. It was the morning after she had first woken up in Innistrad, and the sun was rising, the moon having set hours ago. "Now, Twilight. If this is a swamp, what colour mana would it produce?"
Twilight didn't have to look around to know, having memorised the answer hours earlier. "Black mana."
"Correct," Sorin replied, turning to face her. "Now, what are the traits black mana favour?"
"Power, individuality, and selfishness. It is amoral and parasitic, and believes that the ends justify the means." Twilight recited from memory. "Which are all traits I feel uncomfortable with, to be honest. In Equestria, self sacrifice for the good of the herd is what is valued most."
"Black," Sorin admonished, "does not care how it is is used, only that power is gained and exercised in its use. It does not care if you raise a legion of the dead to conquer a nation, or to defend your nation with a minimum of bloodshed. It does not care if you murder a thousand innocents, or execute a single murderer. It is apathetic to your goals—all that matters is that you achieve them."
"So I can twist black to my own ends?" Twilight asked. "Make it work for me?"
"Exactly." Sorin turned away and began to gather mana together. He shaped it into a bipedal form, then released it onto the field.
Twilight took a step back in shock. The mana had solidified into a hulking, black humanoid creature with glowing red eyes, horns and a pair of leathery wings. The creature turned towards Twilight and growled, a fierce hunger in his eyes, but a sharp command from Sorin halted it.
"Now this," Sorin said, patting the beast on the shoulder, "is a summoned creature—a demon, to be exact. Demons embody all the worst traits of black—the casual amorality, power at any cost, cruelty unbowed. They are powerful, and the strongest ones can share their power—for a price. This one, however, is a token—a a fully sapient duplicate, shaped from pure mana and given a semblance of life by inserting a spark of Æther."
"Æther is the material the Blind Eternities are made from, right?" Twilight asked, recalling one of Sorin's earlier lectures.
"Correct. Now a summoned token will always obey the commands of the one who summoned it, and its summoner can dismiss it at any point, making them very reliable servants, regardless of colour. For example—demon, attack Twilight."
The demon launched into motion immediately, throwing itself forwards. Twilight dodged a massive fist with a yelp, backing away frantically.
"What are you doing?" she cried out.
"Consider this your first test—defeat the demon!" Sorin cried back.
Twilight bit back a scathing retort as the demon swung once more. Twilight shot upwards in response, the demon flapping its own wings and following her.
Twilight flung a telekinetic bolt at it, striking it in the chest and knocking it into the ground hard. At first, Twilight thought she had stopped it, but it picked itself up a moment later, none the worse for wear.
Twilight flung more bolts at it, but they all had similar effects.
"You need to do better than that!" Sorin cried, his voice impossibly loud. "Form a connection with the land and use its mana!"
Twilight flung one last bolt, stunning the demon, before closing her eyes and concentrating. She mentally probed the land beneath her, searching for its stores of mana, just as the Vampire had shown her earlier. All at once, like a floodgate opening, a veritable bounty of mana revealed itself. Twilight eagerly sucked it in, drawing in more and more of it into herself.
Her concentration was broken by its fist, hitting her like a sack of bricks—or a grand piano, Twilight thought to herself afterwards.
Twilight dropped from the sky, surprise etched on her features. Quickly righting herself, she glided down to the ground, landing on a stone outcropping. She could feel a bruise develop on her chest, and she spat up some blood.
She heard a shrill cry above her, and looking up she saw the demon dive towards her, long, black talons extending from its fists.
Twilight panicked and flung herself into the air. She shuddered with fright as the demon's punch pulverised the stone she had been standing on.
Twilight began to gather mana back into herself, this time keeping a wary eye on the demon, deftly dodging it each time she approached.
Eventually, she judged she had sufficient mana built up, and as the demon turned for another pass, she flung it at the demon. A cloud of black mana flew into it’s path, dissipating as the demon passed through it.
Twilight stared in shock, barely dodging another swipe of the demons fist. As she backed away from the demon, she heard Sorin shouting.
“You can not simply fling mana about as if it was mud! You must first shape it! Think! What does black value? Concentrate on it, and it will come to you!”
Black values power... Twilight thought to herself. It is amoral, but not always immoral. To black, being weak and subservient to others is unacceptable... Wait a moment, I think I've got it!
Twilight began to gather mana into herself once more, still evading the attacks of the demon, despite exhaustion beginning to take hold.
Eventually, Twilight judged she had enough black mana accumulated, and began to shape it, this time reaching into the Æther for a spark of individuality to build the spell around.
Twilight released the mana, and this time it clung together, taking form. Four hooves, long and black, thundered onto the ground, a pair of large wings spreading out before it.
"The night will last forever! "
Twilight could only gape in shock—rather than creating a creature based upon Nightmare Moon, she had created Nightmare Moon herself. Twilight barely noticed as the heron marked moon rose up into the sky, pushing the sun below the horizon, bathing the Farbogs in shadow.
The Dark Alicorn of the Night in question looked around herself in confusion. "Where am I?" Turning, she caught sight of Twilight. Marching over, she pointed a hoof. "You. What is the meaning of this?"
Twilight trembled under Nightmare Moon’s glare. "I... I don't understand. We defeated you! How can you be here?"
Sorin, who had approached during this exchange, snorted. "Summoning tokens of your old enemies. That one never gets old."
"Who and what are you?" Nightmare Moon demanded.
"My name is Sorin Markov," the vampire replied. "And yourself?"
"I am Nightmare Moon, Dark Queen of the Night!" she declared.
"But we defeated you! With the Elements of Harmony! How can you be here?" Twilight asked again.
"Let me explain,"'Sorin said. "Twilight, when you summon a creature from the Æther, you need a template in mind. In this case, you were thinking of Nightmare Moon. The spark of Æther you pulled down latched on to this template and created a faithful recreation of the original—right down to her sapience."
"I am not a copy!" Nightmare Moon shouted.
"Yes, you are," Sorin said shortly. "And you must obey the orders of your summoner—which is Twilight."
"I bow down before no one!" she spat, turning towards Twilight, horn glowing.
"Stop!" Twilight cried. Immediately, the glow on Nightmare Moon's horn winked out, and she ceased all movement.
"How can this be?" she cried, despairing. "Am I really just a fake?"
"Yes, and we really don't have time for an existential crisis right now," Sorin said, looking pointedly at the demon flying high above them.
Twilight caught on. "Nightmare Moon, destroy the demon!"
With a look of equal parts hatred and despair, Nightmare Moon launched herself into the air. She flew, impossibly fast, towards the demon, who met her head on.
Nightmare Moon lowered her head, horn faced towards the demon like a lance, and struck the demon in the chest, piecing it like a needle through cloth. The demon shuddered once, before dissipating back into pure mana.
Nightmare Moon circled over the battlefield once, before diving and landing before Twilight and Sorin.
"It is done, Mistress ," Nightmare Moon sneered. "What now? Want me to lick your hooves? Massage your back? Humiliate myself?"
Twilight shook her head. "No... I don't know what to do with you."
"If you no longer need her," Sorin said, "you can simply dismiss her. Just reach out with your mind and remove the spark of Æther."
Twilight did as she was told, and moments later Nightmare Moon was dissolving into mist, a look of rage and hatred still etched onto her face. Twilight shivered.
"Could I have done that with the demon?" Twilight asked.
"No, only your own creatures."
Twilight looked back at where Nightmare Moon had stood, clearly shaken by the experience. "I think I want to go back home now."
Sorin nodded. "Follow me, then." He took a step and vanished. Twilight blinked in shock, staring at where he had been a moment ago. Shaking her head, she concentrated on the Blind Eternities, and took a step.
Twilight found herself back in the endless void, bodiless and discorporeal. All around here where different spheres, each one showing a snapshot of the world contained within—endless cities, perilous jungles, machines of death and steel, lakes of fire, snowy tundras. This time, Twilight detected a series of thin wires made of mana holding the planes together, weaving in and out. Those must be leylines, she thought to herself.
Besides her she felt a dark cloud of thoughts and energies. "Sorin?" she said.
"Took your time," the cloud—which gave off a clear sense of Sorinness —said. "Now, where's your home? I'm interested to see it for myself."
Twilight gave a start, having forgotten her reason for being there. Quickly, she looked around, then once again more carefully. None of the planes looked like Equestria.
"I can't see it," Twilight said, concerned. She spotted some planes that looked familiar, and wondered why, before she realised that she must have passed them on her way to in Innistrad. "I think it's this way!"
Quickly, she set off, navigating the Blind Eternities as if she was a born natural. In a way, I suppose I am.
More and more planes passed her by, Twilight paying only the slightest bit of attention to them.
She dove deeper into the void, growing more panicky as she failed to find the plane of Concordia.
"It should be here!" Twilight cried, pointing at an empty space. "It's missing!"
Sorin came to a rest besides her. "I was afraid of that—many planes drift within the Blind Eternities, and some do so erratically, with neither rhyme nor reason to their movements. In my six thousand years, I have never heard of Concordia. I believe that this means your plane moves around the void so much it is virtually impossible to find."
"No..." Twilight said. "It can't be gone, it just can't! It has to be around here somewhere!"
Twilight dove back into the void, her searching becoming even more frantic as time went on.
Time immeasurable passed, the void caring naught for seconds or hours, and still Twilight could not find Concordia.
"Twilight," Sorin said. "Enough—we're not going to find it like this."
"Just a little bit longer—it has to be around here!"
"Twilight, it's gone."
Twilight stopped and looked at Sorin, despair rolling off her in waves.
"I'm going back to Innistrad, I think it would be best if you would join me," Sorin said, turning back the way as came. Grudgingly, Twilight followed.
They arrived where they had left—the Farbogs. High above them, the moon hung, shining its silver light on the land.
Twilight didn't know if it was a leftover effect from Nightmare Moon's summoning, or if that much time had simply passed by.
"I hope I didn't upset whoever raises the sun and moon," Twilight said, looking upwards.
Sorin looked at her oddly. "No one raises the sun or moon—they raise themselves."
Twilight blinked with dull surprise. "Well, how on Concordia does that work?"
"Can't say myself—I've never studied the matter. It's actually considered normal, although I have seen some planes where day and night cycles are manipulated with magic, but those are typically rare—much like your Concordia, I assume."
Twilight felt another wave of despair overcome her at the mention of her home, and she sagged into the muck of the swamp.
Sorin crouched down besides her. "Twilight, we will find your home again, I promise you that. I have contacts that I can call upon—surely there are other Planeswalkers who have heard of it."
Twilight looked up at Sorin, a glimmer of hope in her eyes. "Thank you, Sorin. You're a good friend."
Sorin paused, his mouth moving silently. "I'm not a good anything," he said after a moment. He recovered, shaking his head and standing up. "We should leave—artificial or otherwise, the Farbogs are dangerous at night."
"Dangerous?" Twilight asked, concerned, as she too stood up.
"Yes, many undead roam here at night, and our actions here are bound to attract unwanted attention." Sorin strode purposefully across the bog, Twilight following him.
Despite Sorin's concerns, they arrived at Markov Manor in good time, without any trouble. Twilight had seen the building when she had left earlier that morning, but she was still in awe at the large, stately castle, black granite carved into gothic arches, ominous towers and grimacing gargoyles.
It reminded Twilight of Canterlot Palace, if in function rather than form. Where the palace was bright and open, the manor was dark and closed off. Rather than standing tall on a mountain for all to see, it was hunched, as if hiding some great and terrible secret. And instead of being filled with life, the manor was filled with the silence of the grave, with even the gardens dead and dying, creating a dreary and oppressive mood.
Twilight shuddered as they passed a particularly frightening gargoyle. Sorin ignored it, however, and carried on.
“Hmm... Grandfather isn’t back yet. Good,” he mused to himself.
“Why would that be good? Don’t you want to see your grandfather?” Twilight asked with concern.
“Not really. We don’t get on very well.” Sorin contiuned on walking through the courtyard and into the manor, barely looking at Twilight.
“Sounds like you have a friendship problem,” Twilight said.
This time, Sorin did stop and look at her. “What I have is a foolish, short sighted, power hungry idiot of a grandfather who is convinced that I have betrayed him and our entire race, when all I did was ensure our survival,” he ferociously snarled, causing Twilight to back away from him in fear. Still snarling, Sorin spun round and stormed off, quickly leaving Twilight by herself in the manor, with no idea where anything was.
Cards unlocked!
Nightmare Moon 3BBB
Demonic Servant 2BB
Farbog
Author's Note
Existential Nightmare Moon is best Nightmare Moon. Or is she?
So Twilight begins to learn how to use mana, and Sorin uses the douchebag teaching method. As far as I can tell, the explanations Sorin gives for summoning creatures is canon—its actually a plot point in one book, where the antagonist summons a copy of the protagonist after the laters death to serve him. Okay, it turned out he was the original all along, but the explanation is still valid.
Concordia is long gone, by the way, as it is one of the planes that move erratically through the Blind Eternities. A canon plane that does this is Shandalar, which is where I got the idea from. I also thought it was Muraganda that drifted erratically through the void, so that shows what I know.
I was tempted to introduce the third main character in this chapter, but I decided against it, as a) it would ruin the pacing and b) it would clog up the chapter with a dissertation on pony headcanon. Which is no bad thing, except that I like to keep my chapters between two and three thousand words long (as I'm sure you've noticed).
I wonder if anyone can work out who the third main character will be?[/colour]
