The Clone Wars: Friendship is Magic

January 15th

It’s been a week since I woke up. While I am getting used to the whole walking thing, and a little of the flying thing thanks to Rainbow Dash, I am still confused about how I came to Equestria. That’s the name of that the locals use, but I am unsure if it references the province, the planet, or the system.

The eight of us spent practically the entire week looking through every book in the library about anything similar to what happened to me. Twilight spoke of a magical mirror and another world with people, but it wasn’t quite the same thing. Though, she wanted to be thorough with going through the books. She is quite studious, more so than even the best Jedi Librarians of the temple on Coruscant.

As for the library, it has an extensive collection of books. They are all printed, though some are nothing more than scrolls. However, they are not written in Aurebesh, but I can still read them as easily as if they were. Testing this fact, I wrote the Jedi Code for Twilight in Aurebesh, and she said that she could read it perfectly. Her comment was it was part of the magic of Equestria, but I do not wish to simply chock everything up to magic and ignore it.

The books themselves are of an odd design. I’ve seen leather bound books during some of my travels with Master Men-Tor, but these are nothing like them. They are parchment bound in a cloth cover that is made with plant matter, specifically bark and leaves. The spines are waterproofed because almost all ponies use their mouths to grab and carry them. Additionally, the parchment is made with a rougher edge and margin due to the use of hooves and noses to turn them. It is quite ingenious, if you ask me.

Ultimately, we could find nothing in the library. Even a couple of books located in previously hidden holes were of no use, though one had an archaic mixture of the Jedi and Sith Code scrawled in a strange script. That’s when Twilight suggested that we take the train to Canterlot, the capital.

She wrote a quick letter, using her telekinesis to move the pen. I had never seen such a fine use of telekinesis before. Her penmanship was perfect and very calligraphic in its elegance. She rolled the paper and placed a small seal on it before handing it to Spike. Then, the dragon incinerated it!

A short time later, Spike belched and a letter came out of his mouth. It was from the Princess, though I decided to not dwell on the fact that a dragon’s gastrointestinal tract was their main form of communication. The letter itself said that we should make our way to the capital.

“So, how is this thing powered, again?” I asked. I was still a little amazed that they had such a powerful sense of the Force, but used very simple technology. There was electricity, but I didn’t know how it was generated and they couldn’t tell me much, either. Something about Pegasus lightning.

“It’s pulled by the engine, silly.” Pinkie Pie said. She was currently playing a game involving four lines that separated the play area into nine squares. The goal was to get three marks in a row while preventing your opponent from doing the same thing. Pinkie Pie had won three games, but Applejack kept saying that she wanted one more.

“The engine uses coal to heat the boiler and power the pistons to pull the cars on the track,” Twilight said. She was reading a book that she packed in a set of saddlebags that she wore on her back. They had her cutie mark on them, but seemed to pin her wings under them when she wore them. I thought it must have been a style.

[NOPE, IT’S BECAUSE SHE GOT THE WINGS JUST A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO]

Yes, well, thank you, Spike.

Alex was lying on my back and let out a string of chirps and squeaks.

“I know, buddy,” I told him. “But I don’t think they have airspeeders here.”

I saw the movement too late to do anything more than duck my head in a flinch. A carrot flew through the air and hit Alex where he was stretched out between my wings. The impact propelled him flat against the opposite wall. It took a moment before he slowly slid to the floor beside the carrot. The physics were very much different in this world than I was used to.

“Now, Angel,” Fluttershy said in a whispered admonishment. “I said that you should give him the carrot to be friends, not throw it at him.”

The little white rabbit turned his nose up at the pony and hopped off under one of the benches in response. When he was first introduced to Alex a couple of days ago, there was a fight. After a few minutes of being separated, Angel hopped back over and started it again. It didn’t take a Jedi to understand the rabbit had a bad attitude.

Alex shook his head and stood up, dragging the carrot behind himself. Even though he was a droid, I still understood the look in his eyes. I didn’t stop him, though. That would have been wrong. Unless he asked, I wouldn’t get involved except to stop actual injury. But, the little white fluffball was asking for it.

I lost sight of him under the bench, but then heard the unmistakable crack of a carrot breaking. He walked out a moment later with a smile, and sure enough the carrot was broken in half, holding together by a small part of the skin. He climbed back between my wings and began to munch on the produce. Angel, on the other hand, stumbled out from under the bench and fell flat on his face, a pink lump rising out of the fur on his head.

“Now, now, you two shouldn’t fi…” Fluttershy began to say. But the door behind her opened, cutting her off with a squeal of fright. She jumped out of the way, hiding behind the seat Angel had just exited from.

“Canterlot Station, three minutes,” the conductor said. He gave Fluttershy a queer look to which she shrank under her hair. Rolling his eyes, he continued through to the next car. He had a long moustache that went back along his jawline and an archaic chronometer as his mark. Was it still a cutie mark if it was on a male?

The city was beautiful. It was walled in and built near to a cliff. From Ponyville, all I could see was the palace, but there was much more. We walked through the snow-covered streets and I was amazed at the number of greetings we were receiving. It was like Ponyville, but there was something different. Then again, I realized the alicorns were something special in this land, so Twilight and I were probably more of a spectacle. Nothing I wasn’t used to as a Jedi.

We dropped Alex, Angel, and Rarity’s feline off at a grooming shop in town and made our way to the outskirts and palace proper. From this close, it was one of the grandest structures I had ever seen. It eclipsed even the grand palace complex in Theed and those of the Alderaani royal families. Its walls and towers were colored in whites, purples, and golds. Even the blanket of snow enhanced the beauty of it. Seeing it in the distance was nothing compared to actually walking through the gate.

“Why are the guards bowing?” I asked. The various ponies in golden armor were lowering their heads and bending their knees toward us as we passed.

“They’re bowing to Twilight, dear,” Rarity said. “She’s a princess.”

Twilight, on the other hand only blushed. She was trying to ignore the attention and we were speeding up to keep up with her. It wasn’t a full run, but close enough. I stumbled a little and she slowed down again. It seems that when I actually stopped and analyzed my various limbs, they decided to stop doing what they were supposed to do. Best way I can describe it is breathing. When you actually focus on it, it doesn’t work the way it should.

We were in a grand hallway, stained glass windows on either side showing strange images. I couldn’t put my finger on it… um, hoof on it, but some of the figures looked like the Twilight and the gang. It was probably just the simplistic and stylized look of the glass.

The door in front of us opened to reveal a grand throne room beyond. The guards on either side of the door didn’t bow, but I saw them tense. They were both Pegasus, and they eyed each of us with a look that I was used to seeing in the clones; assessing us for danger. Their eyes stuck on me until we passed.

The room was huge. It was ringed with more stained glass windows, illuminating it in mystifying ways. The red carpet continued down the center, the gold accent from the sides lining the regal path. The floors looked to be polished marble and the ceiling had the grandest painting I have ever seen on it. There was a three tiered dais at the far end of the room with a throne at the top. It even included a small fountain of water running down in a peaceful trickle on the lowest tier.

Seated on the throne was a sight I have only dreamed of through my meditations. She was beautiful. Her hair seemed to blow in an unseen wind along with her tail. She had wings and a long horn, and she was taller than any two ponies put together. She wore a crown and mantle of gold and shoes that crept up her forelegs, but that was not the more glaring thing about her.

Her presence was blinding. It was like looking at the sun without being able to look away. Burning heat, but at the same time, a soothing kindness shined from her. She wasn’t just strong in the Force, she was the Force. I can’t even describe it. It was like looking at the crystal of a lightsaber while standing engulfed within the blade. It was that amazing, that beautiful, and that powerful.

I shook my head and realized that the others were bowing, so I did the best I could to mimic their move. For my efforts, I almost went tail over horn, but my wings extended at the last second in an out-sweeping motion. I don’t really know how they work, but they seem like me.

“Twilight Sparkle,” Celestia exclaimed and walked down the ramp of the throne to press her neck against Twilight’s, wrapping a hooves around each other’s shoulder. I guess that was how they hug here.

“Princess Celestia,” Twilight took a step back and turned to look at me. “This is the pony I wrote you about.”

“I am Starfire, Jedi Knight, your majesty.” I inclined my head.

She looked me over and I realized that she was not just using her eyes. I just stood there, waiting. The one time I stood before the Jedi Council on Coruscant, I received the same kind of inspection. I knew she was reading not just my expression, but my essence within the Force.

“You are not supposed to be here,” a voice said from behind me. Then, the presence hit me like a stun blast. I spun and my wings shot out in a defensive gesture to shield Celestia and Twilight. Then I froze.

What I felt was of the dark side, but it was not evil. It was strong in the dark side like Celestia in the light, but it was not dark. It made no sense to my mind. It felt like the glow of a flame upon the shadows. As with the other princess, it was just as indescribable; the pony that stood in the doorway was just as indescribable.

She was shorter than Celestia, but still taller than the other ponies. Her mane and tail blew in the same unfelt breeze as Celestia’s, but shimmered like a night sky. She was dark gray and wore an onyx crown and mantle.

“No, he is not, sister,” Celestia said, walking around me to stand beside the new alicorn. Sister? “So, tell us what you are doing here, Starfire. Twilight informed us that you would explain when you arrived and I am very interested to hear?”

I went over the full story again; every detail. We stopped for lunch, at which point formal introductions were made with Princess Luna, younger sister of Celestia and ruler of Equestria at night. I didn’t understand that, but decided not to ask. I don’t think I would have understood the explanation, or it would have simply written things off to magic which was becoming increasingly annoying.

“This story sounds familiar,” Princess Luna said after I had finished. “I believe I have read of it in the lunar library in my castle.”

“There’s a library on the moon,” Twilight’s eyes were huge.

“It contains forbidden knowledge, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna said, pain etching her features for just a moment. “It is my charge, but I shall study on it.”

“As I will have the scholars at the castle go through our libraries,” Celestia said. She looked at Twilight with a playful glint in her eyes, “Even the ones in the secret sections.”

Twilight plotzed. She was obsessive with her library in Ponyville and I think she was the same way whenever she came to the capital. Not that it was a problem, I enjoyed a good book, but I got more of an obsession vibe from Twilight.

“Until then,” Celestia said, walking back to the throne with Luna at her side. “Twilight, I wish you to teach Starfire of our world, our ways, and friendship.”

I lowered me head. “I do not understand this magic that you use, but it is against the Jedi code to form attachments; even friendships.”

“It is decided,” she said. She stomped her hoof and the room reverberated with the echo and an unseen power. “Twilight Sparkle, you will teach the magic of friendship to Starfire. You might be surprised what you will learn, Volund Starfire, Jedi Sentinel of the Galactic Republic.”

I never told her my title, so how did she know that…