The Goddess Three
By: Starwin
Long ago, when the world was old with all its life still young three stars came down from the sky. They did not fall nor hurry in their descent. Slowly, with purpose and power they left the heavens to touch the surface of the world. After days and weeks and months and years of drifting down from the sky they finally came to rest atop a hill in the middle of a dry, empty, desert.
As the point of each star brushed against the sand grass grew out beneath them. As each star rested soundly flowers bloom in great sweeping patterns around them. As each star spoke the wind carried its voice for all the world to hear.
Yet, none of the creatures who lived upon the world dared approach. They cowered in fear in the dark forests. They hid in their holes beneath the ground. They dove deep in the oceans until they could see only darkness.
And the stars waited, for time was absent for them.
Life came and went. The passage of a thousand years was little more than a moment for the eternal stars. Still the three shining stars waited on their hill and whispered to the wind. Forever the flowers beneath them bloomed and the tall grass stretched to the horizon.
Then, one day, when the world was still old and its life still young, four creatures answered the call of the wind. From North, South, East and West came those who were brave enough to seek out the unknown. They came to see the shining stars and hear the words they did not understand.
These creatures were young and fearful of the darkness. They were not mindless, yet nor were they thoughtful. They simply were and little more.
The first of the creatures waited for days. It did little else but watch the three shimmering stars. It listened to their voice echo in its mind yet the stars did not speak. Not yet. The creature knew it had to wait, that more of its kind were coming.
On the fourth and fifth days two more natives arrive to join the first. They were all weary of each other, having never met before. Yet, the light of the stars seemed to entice them all.
On the seventh day, the last of the creatures made its way to the hill to join the gathering. It was distrustful of the others.
At last, the stars spoke to them. Yet the creatures did not understand. They did not flee as all the rest of the world had. Instead they stood and listened to the music for which they had no language to describe nor knowledge to comprehend.
The words stopped and the music ended. The stars that had glowed so brightly dulled into pale white. Then, from within their glowing depths three goddesses emerged into the world.
They were more beautiful than the flowers they stood upon. They were more radiant than the stars they had been. They glowed with an inner light that spread warmth of spirit and body.
Their forms were shaped like the creatures that had gathered around them, except, the three goddesses were taller than the four mortals. There were other differences as well. Each goddess had hair that was colored in lights and flowed in a breeze that did not blow. They also had things upon their heads and against their side that the world had never seen.
The tallest of the three was white in color with pastel pink and green and blue hair. She spoke to the four creatures before her and so did they understand at last.
“I bestow upon you the gift of knowledge,” said the tallest of the stars. “So that you might hear and understand us.”
The four creatures did. Not just the words but many other things, as if their eyes had been closed all their life.
“Tell us,” said the second tallest star. She was the darkest green in color with a hair of brown and blue and soft white. As she moved it seemed like a river flowed through her mane. “What do you call yourselves?”
The four creatures looked at each other seeming to come to an unspoken consensus.
“We are ponies,” said one of the creatures. “I am Aurora Fall, a mare of the West.” Her coat was white, much like the tallest of the stars. Her mane was silver and her eyes an icy blue.
“I am Thunderhoof,” said a colt with a brown coat and mane to match. “Of the tribe of the East.”
“My name is Sky Chaser,” said a mare with a golden coat. “From the great herd in the South.”
“And I,” said the last of the ponies, whose coat was the darkest black, “am Sombra, King in the North.”
“Greetings, ponies,” said the third and smallest sister. Her coat was a midnight blue. Like the other two her twinkling star filled mane flowed in an invisible wind. “We are the goddesses of this world.”
“We have come to give you gifts,” said the tallest. “The first of which you now possess.” The four ponies bowed, although Sombra did not avert his gaze.
The tallest goddess stepped forward. From her sides six shining wings of light spread out. Each was a different size, smaller than the first. Atop her head were three magical horns that each glowed with a golden light. Like the goddesses themselves, each horn was smaller than the first.
“To you and your kind, Aurora Fall of the West, do I grant the gift of magic,” said the tallest of the goddesses. One of the horns from the goddesses head, the smallest of the three, shimmered and vanished.
Atop the white mare’s head a new horn appeared and the world was blessed with magic.
The smallest goddess stepped forward next. Like her sister before her she spread out six shining wings of light. However, there were only two horns atop her head now.
“To you and your kind,” said the smallest goddess, “Sky Chaser, from the great herd in the South, do I grant the gift of flight.” The smallest goddess’s horn glowed and two of the smallest wings from her back vanished, only to reappear on the back of the golden mare.
Thunderhoof and Sombra glanced at each other. There was only one goddess left, yet, there were two of them.
The middle sister stepped forward, her two great wings at her side opened. Her two shining horns atop her head glowed with golden light.
“To you and your kind…” said the middle sister.
“Wait!” exclaimed Sombra, lifting a hoof. “Goddess, I demand your gift.” The other ponies looked upon Sombra in surprise but said nothing.
“You demand?” asked the goddess softly. The interruption did not diminish her grandeur. Instead, her presence seemed to grow greater, larger; although she did not become more menacing nor frightening.
“Yes,” said Sombra. “I am King in the North. Among all others do I deserve your gifts.”
“No,” said the middle sister and the light at her horn went out. Then the ground tremble beneath her. The ponies stumbled and fell as the world shook with her displeasure. In the distance mountains crumbled and new peaks rose to take their place.
“Sister, enough,” said the tallest, and the shaking stopped.
“My gift was for the both of you,” said the middle sister. “For all of your kind, now, it shall be only for some. Thunderhoof, from the tribe to the East, do I grant you strength beyond all others.” She turned her head to Sombra. “To you, we give nothing.”
Sombra turned his back upon the goddesses and trotted away into the dark. The lingering greenish glow of greed in his eyes was the last thing to vanish.
“Goddesses, what are thy names?” asked Aurora Fall. The sisters looked to each other.
“I am Celestia at the Heart of the Sun,” said the tallest.
“I am Luna of the Dancing Moon,” said the smallest.
“I am Terra the Wandering Earth,” said the middle.
The three remaining ponies bowed low.
“Return home,” said the tallest, “and give our gifts to your people. When you are ready,” the tallest turned to the great mountain that Terra had brought forth behind them, “meet us atop that mountain.”
The goddesses waited atop the tallest mountain in the land. They did not speak, for they did not need to. They did not move, for it was not called for. They simply waited and watched as the world around them slowly grew and those called ponies became numerous.
Towns and cities and empires spread across the land to the West and South and East but in the North was there darkness. In that direction, where no ponies worshiped them, did they see only shadows in the night.
When five hundred years had passed, the tribes of the three ponies returned.
From each came a representative of their society.
From the West was Violet Dawn, the most accomplished unicorn of the age. She was a gifted prodigy with magic. She had discovered teleportation as well as other complex magics.
From the East was Thunderhoof, named for his great ancestor who brought home the strength that had made the tribe into the most prosperous in all the land. They had become builders, creating great castles and impressive cities of stone. Their agriculture was unrivaled and all the tribes came to them when food was scarce.
From the South was Tumbling Wind, the most skilled flier in the entire world. It was said that she had circled the planet in a single flight. It was said that she had flown so fast that the very sky broke open with colors. It was said that not even the goddesses could match her speed, something she was eager to prove.
When the ponies arrived they found three statues of stone, each with two shining horns made of gold and four wings forged of silver. They sat atop a mountain, raised by Terra and faced outwards, each looking to a different direction: West, South and East.
Around them was an elaborate garden filled with blooming flowers and exotic plants. Waterfalls and streams crisscrossed the patches of grass. Beyond the warmth of the garden the snow was thick upon the stony ground.
The three tribes had discussed at length as to how to honor their goddesses. Much discussion had gone into gifts, treasures and riches. Yet in the end it was the scribes of the West who found the gifts for the goddesses. They had used their magic to take six stars from the sky. When the fires of each star had cooled a perfect gem remained.
And so each representative was given two gems to present to each of the goddesses. Two gems to honor the two horns and the two wings.
Tumbling Wind was the first to arrive. She admired each statue and paid her respects to each goddess in turn. Although her tribe worshiped all three goddesses, they held Luna of the Moon in the highest regards, for she had gifted them flight.
From her tribe she had brought two perfectly cut sky gems, which she placed before Luna. The first stone was a ruby lightning bolt and the second a pink double heart.
The next to arrive was Thunderhoof. Like Tumbling Wind before him he visited and honored each goddess. But to Terra he gave two flawless crystals. One was a sapphire circle and the other a ruby apple.
Last to arrive was Violet Dawn. With a pop and a flash she appeared out of the air. Like the ponies before her she visited each goddess. When she reached Celestia, whom her empire worshiped above all others, she placed two gems before the Sun goddess. A purple star and sky blue diamond.
Only once the gifts had been given did the goddesses stir. The stone that made them look like statues faded away and the three goddesses looked down upon their followers.
“Long have we watched,” spoke the voice of Celestia. “We have seen your acts and what you have done with our gifts.”
“We are pleased by you,” came the words of Luna.
“And your offerings make us happy,” pronounced the goddess Terra, lifting up one of the gems.
“Oh, but you have not received my gift,” said another voice. All of them turned to see the speaker. The goddesses stood in rage at the intrusion of a foul presence.
Though it was brightest day a swirling pool of darkness waited at the edge of the garden. From within its depths a nightmare black pony step forth. His eyes glowed with fiery red light and a sickly looking horn tipped with blood sat atop his head.
“The… the King in the North…” said Thunderhoof taking up a defensive stance. “You have much to answer for!”
“Yessss…” hissed Sombra.
“Why are you here?” demanded the goddess Terra. “You were not invited.”
“A King needs no invitation,” said Sombra who trotted forward towards the sacred spot.
“You are not welcome here,” echoed the wind with Celestia stern voice upon it. Sombra halted in his stride and for a moment he looked fearful. Then the wickedness within him returned and a grin of ill intent parted his lips.
“Come now goddesses,” said Sombra with a bow. “Will you not hear why I have come?”
“What do you want?” asked the voice of Luna, coming from the sky above.
“As I said, I have a gift,” answered Sombra. “I have brought something to share with everypony. Unlike you, who saw fit to give only to some.”
The three goddesses looked at each other.
“Your greed denied you your gift,” spoke Terra, her booming voice causing the ground to shake. Celestia held up a hoof.
“That horn, how did you acquire it?” asked Celestia. “We gave you no gift of magic.”
“This?” asked Sombra, holding up a hoof. “Well, I had to work very hard to earn it. My subjects have sacrificed much for me. But we are not here to talk about me. We are here to speak of you, to praise you. Will you not receive my gift?”
“We will hear you out,” commanded Celestia for her words were law. “What is this gift you bring?”
Sombra’s green eyes glinted as he smiled.
“Why, I bring you my own god,” said Sombra. With a crack like thunder the mountain shook and from the sky came a bolt of lightning. Before the gathered crowd a horrible disfigured monster stood. It was made of many things, not simply one. Paws and claws, horns and antlers, hooves and talons.
“Ah, hello!” exclaimed the monster god that stood before them. “You must be the ones that the King has told me so much about.”
“What… are you?” asked the goddess Terra in disgust.
“That’s a bit harsh, wouldn’t you say?” replied the mismatched god. “Let me see. I haven’t been given a proper name yet…”
“Discord,” answered Sombra. “You are Discord of the Broken World. You are my god and I name you as such.”
“Discord?” said the newly made god. “Hmm, it does have a nice ring to it. I quite like it actually.”
“And what do you want, Discord of the Broken World?” demanded Terra, stamping her hoof and making the mountain quiver with fear.
“Oh now, there’s no need for that!” said Discord. “Are all of us here not fellow gods?” His mismatched eyes looked down at the ponies beneath him. “Except for them of course.” He waved a finger and the unicorn, pegasus and earth pony all became stone.
Celestia waved a hoof and the ponies returned to how they had been.
“Is that your idea of godhood?” asked Celestia, a dangerous edge to her voice.
“Why, yes,” answered Discord. Upon his face was a grin of insanity. “To use my power to do as I wish. If I want, say the Moon in the sky.” He lifted a hand and the Moon rushed up into the sky, to sit alongside the Sun. Luna flinched. “Then all I have to do is put it there.”
“Enough!” said Terra angrily. “You are no god, you are a monster given shape and form. Tell us disgraced King in the North, how did you make this beast?”
“I am standing right here,” said Discord.
But the King in the North only smiled.
“Sacrifice,” said Sombra simply. “Once I realized what the power of life was worth, I began to take it. My people gave me their life energy, their existence, so that I might live to see your downfall. In my five hundred years of life, I have learned the secrets of the world. I stole a star from the sky and made my god.” He put a hoof against Discord. “I fashioned him myself, do you like it?”
“Abomination,” said Luna. Discord’s eyes narrowed.
“If you do not want to be friends, it will be just as much fun to be enemies,” said Discord.
“To safety my ponies,” commanded Celestia, her towering form stepping over the small ponies below to shield them.
“My goddess, we want to help!” said Violet Dawn. “We three are the best of our tribes, the embodiment of your gifts, please.”
“Yes,” said Sombra. “Come, test the gifts of your weak gods!”
“Oh, this is going to be fun!” cooed Discord.
Magic rent the air as the three goddesses attacked as one. With a yawn Discord grabbed Sombra and hefted him into the air. The King screamed in terror as the beams of magic struck him, instantly turning his ancient body to dust. The goddesses pulled back in revulsion.
“Well, that was unexpected!” said Discord who wiped his claws clean of the dust. “I thought he would last at least a little longer. Oh well, I guess I’ll just have to use one of you as a shield. His body snaked and twisted through the air as he lunged at Tumbling Wind. Her wings burst out and in an instant she was air born and Discord held only dirt.
“You’ll have to be faster than that, ugly!” shouted Tumbling wind as she soared through the sky.
“Hmmm, she’s a fast one, I should have started with something slower,” his eyes turned towards the earth colt, Thunderhoof. “You however, don’t have any wings!” Once again Discord made to grab a pony as a shield. Thunderhoof turned and bucked as hard as he could. With a cry of pain, Discord stumbled away. “Oh, ouch!” he looked at the final pony, the unicorn. “Hmm, better not,” he muttered to himself, shaking his bruised claw. “That one has a pokie thing on its head.”
“Relent Discord,” said Celestia. “You alone are no match for six of us.”
“True, I suppose I am not,” said Discord. “But nor can you unmake me. Our power is the same, to undo what I am is to unmake yourselves.” The goddesses said nothing, for they knew this to be true.
“We may not be able to destroy you,” said Terra. “But we can contain you.” She held in her hoof the six gems that ponies had brought as gifts. The goddess began to glow, as did the gems.
“Sister, wait!” cried Celestia, Terra smiled to her sisters.
“I give you my power sisters, so that you might make up for my mistake.” In a flash of blazing light Terra vanished, leaving behind six glowing stones infused with her energy. The second horn and extra pair of wings upon Luna and Celestia vanished. Becoming necklaces of gold to hold the gems.
To each pony went a single stone, save for Celestia who got two. Each stone went to a different pony and a necklace of gold fashioned itself to hold the gems. For Celestia, the purple star became set in a golden tiara and settled upon her head.
“Discord,” said Celestia softly. “By my sisters will do I seal you away for all of time in the stone of the world.”
Then, did all of the gems glow and the power of the elements of harmony rushed forth in a rainbow of colors. Discord let out a cry of distress as he was turned to stone for all of time.
“Wait a minute,” said Apple Bloom as Twilight lowered the book. “That story didn’t have anything to do with getting a cutie mark!”
“Yeah,” chimed in Scootaloo. “I thought you were going to tell us the story of the first cutie mark.”
“Well, I am,” answered Twilight. “This book has all of the old equestrian legends in it, including the story of the first cutie mark.”
“So why didn’t you just start with that one?” asked Apple Bloom.
“The story is in the middle of the book!” exclaimed Twilight indignantly. “You can’t just start in the middle of a book! That would almost be as bad as skipping to the end!” Twilight looked horrorstruck by the very idea of reading ahead. Scootaloo rolled her eyes.
“Hey Twilight, is that really what happened?” asked Sweetie Belle. “Did the Princesses really come down from the sky?”
“It’s a fairytale,” answered Twilight, smiling at the three fillies. “Nopony knows what really happened.”
“Yeah, but wouldn’t Celestia know?” asked Scootaloo. Twilight opened her mouth and then closed it.
“You know, I’ve never thought to ask,” said Twilight.
Author's Note
Hello everyone! I hope you enjoyed this short little story. I wrote it a while back and have been coming back to it periodically to adjust, edit, delete, re-write, delete again, and finally post (the parts that weren't deleted (at least I hope that's the case))...
This is indeed just a single chapter (one-shot), even if the characters imply there is more. I did write a couple other 'legend'-ish stories (yes, the first cutie mark is one) but they are just so-so. Maybe if people really like this I might add on here, but, who knows.
I do have one more story (not related to anything I've previously posted) I want to try and finish up before the end of the year (but that seems less likely everyday and it just might get shuffled into the unpub section (which I have neglected)).
Anyhow (now the real reason you came and read this story, and stuck around for the ANs)... I'm also working hard on VoT2 (no that's not its actual title but I can share the acronym, which is FoM). I would say its maybe about 50% complete in the writing department... and negative 120% in the editing area. I am hoping to start posting it next year. I am fairly sure that this version (the ninth iteration) is the one... at least until it isn't anymore... sequels to stories that weren't written to have sequels are hard.
Thank you everyone for your continued support and fantastic comments/pms/emails.
