I Look Into The Flames And See
I Look Into The Flames And See
by TrampingPony
Twilight Sparkle licked her lips as she finished the final circle on the floor of the library’s basement. This would truly become the pinnacle of her research, the thing that would ensure her metaphorical immortality along the lines of such ponies as Starswirl the Bearded or Drunk Bucky. Yes, this was going to be the singular best thing she’d ever achieve.
The alicorn flapped with her wings, feeling a bit of her hope crushed at the reminder that she was a princess now. In fact, she had been for forty years. Slick Ink had already published an autobiography on her life and work, historians talked about her achievements and she was mentioned in the same vein as Celestia, Luna or Cadance. Yes, in a way, Twilight Sparkle was immortal already. Still, this was a thing she needed to do. In the end, what was the thing she had always wanted to be remembered for, if not her research into magic.
A scientist never finished their work, life tended to finish them first. That was the thought that kept her going on, and the aging alicorn turned her expression upside, trying to find a smile that worked for a situation like this. With one quick thought, her horn started to shimmer and with a flash of light, she summoned the book to her side. On the pages were numerous calculations, numbers and the like. Everything was done by her, everything was for the sake of her goal. All that mattered was in this book.
She checked the numbers, looked at the circles at the ground. All six of them appeared perfectly arranged, and everything else in the room was done the proper way, too. The two tables stood just opposite of each other at the sides of the room, atop of them stood candles, lit up with magical fire, colored in tones invisible to a normal pony’s eyes. Yes, everything was perfect.
Her heart jumped with excitement and Twilight closed the book, pushing a gray strand of hair out of her face. This will work, she thought and almost immediately lost her smile. Once, she would have checked three more times, just to make sure everything was prim and proper. Back then she had been a younger pony, but by this point she knew her capabilities. Twilight had worked years on this ritual, had run many simulations and tests before finally coming back to this old place.
Applejack’s face appeared in her head, and she thought of a promise the two had made. When this experiment done, they’d all meet up at the acres. Enjoying some apple pie and talking about her experience was a fine goal, in and of itself. Focusing her thoughts on something as positive as that made it easier.
Twilight knew what she was about to do, just as she was perfectly aware of how it might change her view of the world. She just hoped it wouldn’t end with something gruesome.
“You look gloomy,” she heard a deep voice behind her.
Her answer was but a shriek as she jumped up, quickly turning around. “Don’t do that, Spike!”
The dragon looked at her. His scales were purple and he had green spikes, like he always had. Over fifty years they had spent by each other’s side and he still looked like a little kid. She was amazed by how little dragons aged, but she also had decided to not let it bother her. He was of a different species, and being jealous wouldn’t suit her.
He simply lifted a metaphorical eyebrow. “Do what? Walk down the stairs normally? You want me to run down screaming? Would that help?”
She sighed. “No, I mean the sneaking.”
“Do you have your hearing aid in?”
“I don’t have a hearing aid,” she said, getting slightly annoyed.
“And that might just be your problem.” The dragon gave her a sagely nod.
Some things didn’t change, but the now-librarian of Ponyville was, by this point, well known across the country for his attitude. Once he had taken over the library he had gotten himself quite the reputation around town. No more cute dragon baby, but a rather small dragon who’d burn your lawn if you lent a book and didn’t return it on time. He might have looked much like a long time ago, but he sure was a stranger to her.
“Can’t you be a bit nicer?” She asked, hoping for at least some respect, since they had grown up together and shared many adventures.
“Why, just because I’m smaller than you doesn’t mean I need to bow to you. I’m a dragon, you’re a pony. By this point, you should be happy I never burnt your books to cinder.”
A long time ago, he would never have lifted his voice the way he did now, but she knew that in the long run, he was more of a pony than a dragon. He hardly knew anything about his kind and after the events of that one dragon migration never had bothered with them again. By now, she wondered if it had been right. Ponies were hardly accepting of other creatures, what with mules still having to fight for their rights and griffons still feared due to unsavory stories dating back to the days of the tribes.
“I’m sorry,” was all she could manage, leaving the bitter, little dragon nothing to give but a frown.
“What sort of spell is this going to be anyway?” He asked after a few more moments of looking at all the crayon drawings that Twilight had spread across the room.
“Starswirl understood time travel as a means to right past wrongs. Recently, some journals of his were discovered and in them his reasons for developing pretty much every spell he ever created were revealed. Time travel was something he wanted to do, because he regretted past choices.”
Spike gave a disinterested, “uhuh.”
“I want to see how the world looks once I’m gone,” she said, a faint smile appearing on her face. Spike’s eyes turned towards her, but she could not read his face. He was good at hiding his thoughts, unlike back in the old days. “I’m just interested what sort of impact I had, whether or not I’ll have any long lasting impact.”
The dragon shook his head. “Why would you even worry about something like that?”
“Celestia,” she had long since dropped the formalities, “has gotten herself a new student. Emberstar is her name, and she shows a talent that might well be above mine. It’s… weird knowing I’ll be surpassed. Chances are, even forgotten. That’s the sort of sad ending I don’t really want.”
Silence passed between them as Spike did nothing but stare at the circles. He shook his head once more and mumbled something. She could hear the acid dripping from his voice, but never spoke up. By now, the dragon was a distant figure and she was glad that he had at least given her permission to use the cellar for the spell. This magic might well determine her life’s work. It was the very culmination of everything she had ever done, so she didn’t let it hurt, she didn’t let it matter. Only her research for now, and the friends that still remained.
She looked as he turned around, took the book out of the air without saying anything and went up the stairs again. He had only come to frown at her work as it seemed, which, in turn, left a bitter taste in her mouth. Memories swirled around within her head, of a young dragon who had taken down the letter that had gotten her into this town to begin with. As she heard the door closing, Princess Twilight Sparkle resolved herself. This was her one and only chance at the spell. Time travel was a magic with heavy restrictions and only two ponies had ever attempted going back in time. Moving forward via magic was thought of as impossible.
Today, Twilight would achieve exactly that. Grasping the impossible was her thing, it was what she would be remembered for. It was the reason why she mattered. So she stepped into the rings, the light of the candles burning itself into her eyes. No matter what would happen next, the pony had made her choice and she would achieve her goal, no matter how it would end.
Standing within the middle of the room, she closed her eyes and let the magic flow through her. A mystical wind picked up, stealing embers from the fire and swirling them around in the room, tiny lights that swirled across the room and dying it in the colors of the rainbow. Feelings of cold and warm washed over her, like waves of water, drenching her coat. Memories flooded across her mind with the magic, all in ways she couldn’t control. From her parents over her coronation to her standing watch over her own nation for the first time. A fire was set up in her heart and Twilight Sparkle felt it, breathed it in and opened her eyes. A blaze shattered the darkness, the pure roar of magic echoed across her world and suddenly Twilight was engulfed within a light, a path towards where she wanted to go: The very future of the world.
Then, she thought of a green wall and a checkered floor, as well as a cart with dragon’s egg atop of it.
A dragon smiling as he presented her the shield saying:
‘Spike’s Library’
Another breath left her and then the light left and vanished, she knew. Twilight opened her eyes and suddenly a wind took grip of her, a cold, natural wind much like every autumn in her now-home of Ponyland presented. The ground she stood on was cold and rocky, and the wind clearly didn’t come out of nowhere, as Twilight stared at the landscape before her with widening eyes. In all her years she hadn’t seen a sight like this.
Across the starlit nightsky went bright lights, akin to the aurora borealis in the north, but still different. They actually seemed to move in roads, and went over into each other every now and then, their colors spilling across each other, dying what was once pure into something new. Her eyes looked down, and she spotted that she stood atop a cliff, with an endless land stretching before her. The light allowed her to see the forests and the river that stretched out, much like there were lights in the distance, probably from a village.
Had she changed location? The lights weren’t natural, the time was different from when she had left. It had been afternoon, hadn’t it? Had the spell worked?
She ran the calculations through her head, but then she heard a growl behind her. Freezing up, she felt her heart crashing against her chest, as well as her hair standing up. Something was behind her.
She felt drops of sweat running down her forehead as she ran all possible options through her head, but decided to slowly turn around instead. There, beneath the light of the stars there lay a cave. A huge, grey hole that led into whatever mountain Twilight stood on. Once more, she heard something growl. Twilight deduced that the sound must have come from inside the cave, and, despite all reservations, science demanded that she would at least check it out.
With a thought, she conjured up an orb of light, brightening up a small area around her as she walked into the cave. Within, she found nothing more but cold stone and a deep darkness going on and on. Still, she walked, following the sound. Hadn’t she once been in a similar cave? A long time ago?
Though the pony tried to remember, she couldn’t. How many things had happened in her life? How much had she seen? All of it just made it harder to remember the details of some events. Some she remembered however, the good as well as the bad. She remembered a tiny dragon baby and she remembered how Applejack and shown her all the food her family had made for the Summer Sun Celebration. No matter how long ago it may have seemed, Twilight still thought of it fondly. How awkward she had been around others back then, when now public speeches were her favorite part of the job.
She moved closer and closer to the ever louder growing sound, and then she spotted something. Taking step after step slowly a silhouette appeared in the distance. It must have been huge, and somehow Twilight got the idea that this had been a bad idea. Really, hadn’t she been in a similar situation before?
Why didn’t a perfect memory come with getting old? She would pay good money for something like that.
As she picked out the scales, she stopped, immediately remembering the hulking red beast whose smoke had threatened to engulf all of Ponyville.
“Oh, right,” she mumbled in a deadpan voice, her hoof going against her face. This had been a horrible idea.
She tried to turn around, but the sleeping beast stirred and slowly opened its eyes. “Wha–”, it roared in the most groggy of voices.
Twilight tried to make herself much smaller so it wouldn’t see her, but the dragon started to move, albeit only very slowly. “Who dares to disturb my slumber?”
The hall was rumbling as the huge dragon roared out its question and Twilight turned around, looking at the still lying dragon, who in turn turned his gaze towards her. “A pony? You don’t look like you are from their village, who are you?”
Twilight stuttered something, not able to form any words. Her wings clung to her side as if glued there, and her legs were shaking. A full-grown dragon was something nopony could take on.
“Oh, sweet mercy,” the beast said. rolling its eyes. “What have you come for then?”
“I…” She hadn’t talked to that many dragons in her time, in fact, aside from Spike Twilight had always avoided a direct confrontation with them. By this point, she was completely unsure how to appeal to one.
“Is it knowledge of the past you seek? Do you, too, wish to hear of the Princess, Twilight Sparkle?”
Her teeth were chittering as she opened her mouth again, “Now, I-I…” Then she rationalized what he had just said. “What?”
All the dragon did, however, was look at her for a moment longer, not saying anything. Instead, he tilted his head to the side, before leaning forward, more into the light as if to examine her. But as he did so, so did he come into the light of her orb and his purple scales were lit up, while his green eyes remained on her.
“Spike?”
“Twilight?”
A moment longer passed, as the humongous dragon opened his mouth a few times, trying to say something, but the only thing he managed was: “Haven’t you been dead for two thousand years?”
Twilight blinked, then struck a winning pose. “Yes, it worked.”
The dragon looked at the tiny pony, trying to figure her out. “Are you some kind of illusion? Oh, Celestia help me… Rook, if this is you, I swear I will roast you,” he bellowed.
“N-no. It’s me, Twilight,” the mare spoke up immediately. “It’s the time travel I experimented with. Apparently it landed me here.”
“Time… Travel?” He asked, trying to think, before his expression changed. “Oh, yes, I remember.”
Twilight Sparkle gave a smile to her old friend. “Really? You got a pretty good memory if you do remember that, or me for that matter. If it really has been two thousand years…”
The dragon nodded. “It has been that long since I last saw you. If I remember correctly, you look younger now than you did back then.”
“Thanks,” she said, laughing awkwardly. “Wow, well, you‘ve grown big. You were still looking like a baby dragon when I left.”
For a moment his eyes dropped. “Dragons do age differently than ponies. We do not measure our age in years, but in worth. That’s why most dragons keep hoards. Since I believed myself to possess no hoard, I never grew.”
Twilight said down before the giant dragon. “Really? That sounds complicated.”
“It is. But I do not matter, you are on a time limit, Twilight, and as much as I cherish having your company again, I chose my worth already and it is the code I keep to. So, as my name is Spike the Wise, you came to me for a reason. Ask whatever question you want to ask, and I will tell you the answer.”
She looked at her old dragon friend, the giant beast that had once been her little baby dragon, the one she had kept with her through all her adventures, now asking her for the reason she had come. Twilight had told him, though. She had told him that she wanted to know the worth of her work. Yet, two thousand years had passed and Spike lay here in a cave, seemingly just to answer a question. The filly couldn’t help but look at her friend, with his big eyes, shimmering with curiosity. Her entire reason for being here was plain as day, yet she couldn’t bring herself to ask the question.
They had grown apart with time, hadn’t they? Once she hadn’t needed anything of Spike anymore, she had left him in the library and he had accepted it with a smile. By this point, Twilight felt even older. She had believed he had been happy with how things had turned out, but she also had never asked. Not once had she inquired about him. There were a thousand things she could inquire about how things had changed, but Twilight decided on only one question worthy of being asked.
“Are you happy?”
The dragon looked at her, his eyes tired but curious. Once more he tilted his head slightly at the question, before blowing some smoke out of his nose. His eyes, however, never left her out of sight, but his face remained a cold mask of stone, a mask she could not see through. What his thoughts were, how he would answer, that she couldn’t know, but Twilight wanted to.
“Many things have happened since we last met, Twilight…”
She felt the wind picking up and waves rushing over her body.
“Now, in the end, that I could see you one last time… Yeah, I guess now I am.”
Twilight opened her mouth to say something. What, she did not know herself, but it did not matter, for her time was up and she saw the tunnel of light, felt everything go past her, and the memories shift and circle. All the things she had seen in her life, all the things she had done, and then the alicorn princess was back in the basement of the ponyville library, Spike’s library.
The light of the candles had vanished and she stood in complete darkness. For a moment she remained there, only silence around her, but then a green light appeared by the stairs, lighting up a candle. Spike sat there, a grim look on his face.
“Did it work?” He asked, trying to sound disinterested.
“Did you wait for me?”
Spike looked at her, “You’ve been gone for two hours, I got a bit worried.”
A smile formed on her face. “Thanks… And yeah, it did work.”
The dragon looked her in the eyes, “That means you’ll be gone soon, again?”
“I don’t know, actually.”
Now I am, the words ran through her mind. Twilight looked at her dragon companion. “But here’s something I do know: If it’s only been two hours, Applejack still expects us.”
He frowned, “Us? Last I checked it was one of your yearly ‘Elements of Harmony’-meet ups. I don’t know what you need me there for.”
Twilight only grinned as she walked towards him and the stairs. “Oh, Spike, don’t be like that. You can’t just be grumbly about everything. Really, all of us meet only rarely nowadays, and maybe, before we all get old and lie down in our respective caves, we could even get up and have another adventure. How does that sound?”
The dragon did not brighten up as much as she had hoped he would, but then his face grew softer as he returned her smile. “Acceptable,” he answered.
All there was for the pony, however, was the fact that she had met the dragon far off in the future and he hadn’t just not forgotten her, he had been happy to see her again. It didn’t really matter what else she had achieved or what she wanted to be. He had been with her from the beginning, and she would be together with him until the end. For she had looked into the flames and seen the bright light of their friendship.
I Look Into The Flames And See
~The End~
