Bird of Hermes
The air crackled with stray sparks of magical lightning flashing into existence for but a moment before fizzling into nothingness. A soft magenta glow filled library. A turbulent wind slowly grew, swirling around the center where a lone pony stood. Before her sat an open book with glowing text on the floor. Her horn was glowing a vibrant magenta from channeling the spell surrounding her. Her wings stretched out as she lowered herself, solidifying her stance as to not be knocked over by the torrent.
Pages began to flutter as the magical vortex around the pony spun faster and faster. The bookshelves began to rumble and shake as the energy in the room grew stronger. The ground below her shook, as if trembling from the fierce power. Slowly, the mare opened her eyes, revealing a white glow in place of her eyes. The mare narrowed her vision in anticipation. In a brilliant flash, she vanished. The air held still for a moment, as if holding its breath. A loud crackle shattered the momentary silence, and the alicorn mare appeared once again in a second flash of light.
Slowly she let out a deep breath. The spell began to die down; the torrent of magical wind calmed, and the stray electricity ceased. The glow in her eyes faded as well. Twilight looked down at the book before her, finding the text had returned to normal—black ink was all that sat on its pages. A content smile spread on her face as she closed the book. “I can push myself so much further than before,” she remarked, levitating the tome back to a shelf in the library.
Yet just as she was about to place the book, she could hear the remnants of her remark hanging in the air—echoing in her mind. Twilight stopped with her hoof on the book. Memories surfaced, echoing with her own remark. “Pushing yourself is fine, but further is not always better. Stability is key,” the gentle, soft tone of her mentor sounded as fresh as it had the day those words were spoken to her.
Twilight looked at the book as she slid it between the others. Her limits had been pushed far past what they were only a few weeks ago. Becoming an alicorn had changed more than just her appearance. Her magical power was far superior than when she was a unicorn—she could feel it. Even the spell in the book she was looking at normally would have taken her days of preparation, but just now she did it simply on a whim. Twilight was finding that spells she struggled with before she could now do with complete ease. Even the spells Trixie had flaunted when she was under the influence of the Alicorn Amulet were now within the realm of Twilight’s power.
Twilight’s hoof slowly trailed down the spine of the book. Her eyes slowly scanned over the others on the shelf before her. Without realizing, she bit down on her lip. It was a tantalizing prospect to try each of the spells within these books—to push her new power to the limit. She was a forever student, a pony in constant pursuit of knowledge. Yet, she hesitated. This wasn’t what her mentor had taught her, Twilight knew better than to give into these urges. Some of these spells were ancient, mysterious, and possibly dangerous; she knew she shouldn’t recklessly perform them—at least not without research into their effects.
“These books are purely for research purposes, Twilight. They are beyond your ability, and that is precisely why I am allowing you to study them.” Celestia’s voice once again resurfaced from her memories. “My hope is that one day you will be able to control your power enough that you may even be able to use these spells. Study magic my student, so that you may better understand how to keep yours in check.”
Restraint had been something Celestia instilled into Twilight since she was young. She knew more than most what she was capable of, and she knew that she couldn’t control it. The memories of her magic exam as a filly still haunted her. Twilight could still feel that tremendous power surging through her horn as if it had only happened yesterday. When that power erupted from her, she felt like she had lost herself in a sea of pure white. Adrift endlessly, consumed by her own magic. She knew that her body became but an tool for the arcane that day.
It was that reason Twilight holds herself back. Her parents, the exam proctors, even Spike was harmed in that moment of weakness on her part. Though the damage was undone, she had nightmares of Celestia being unable to stop her. She feared her magic taking control of her once again, like it had back then.
Yet her curiosity—her urge to push her new limits begged for her to try. Her reasoning silenced her fears. She was older, and more practice than she was all those years ago. Besides, she wasn’t simply a unicorn anymore. Twilight’s transformation changed her magic fundamentally. She had more power, and had more control than before. Her eyes trailed down the shelf to the floor.
“Hey, Twi,” a voice called to her. Twilight’s attention was pulled away from her musings. When she looked over her shoulder, she was greeted by Rainbow Dash standing behind her. “What’re you up to?” the pegasus asked.
“Just a bit of research.” Twilight smiled. “What can I help you with?” she asked, taking notice of her friend’s saddlebag.
“I came to see if you wanted to do a bit of flying practice. You in?” The pegasus flashed a big smile.
“Not today, I’m working on some magic.”
“What? Why would you practice magic? You already know how to do magic, so let’s do some flying!” the pegasus said, wrapping her hoof around her friend’s shoulder. She slowly started guiding Twilight towards the library door. “I brought some stuff for speed training and maneuvering practice too. It’ll be fun!”
Twilight laughed slightly at her friend’s over-eager attitude. “I would love to, really, Rainbow Dash. But, I’m practicing some advanced magic, more advanced than I’m used to.”
“Sounds boring...” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes.
“It’s actually rather exciting,” Twilight said with a small chuckle.
“What’s so exciting about some stupid spells when you could be flying through the air!”
“Well, I just did a long-range teleportation spell, that was rather exciting.”
“You teleport all the time!” The athletic mare dismissed Twilight’s achievement with a wave of her hoof.
“Yes, but usually close-range. This spell lets me teleport anywhere I want.” Twilight rushed back over to the library shelf. She grabbed the book in her magic and brought it over to Rainbow Dash who was looking at her apathetically.
“This is a rather complex spell, but once I master it, I can go anywhere in the blink of an eye!” Twilight’s face was beaming as she explained.
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes again. “Cool...” she muttered unenthusiastically.
“Think about it Rainbow Dash, I could teleport to Canterlot for afternoon tea with Princess Celestia, and be home in time for dinner!” Twilight flipped open the book once more to the page she had been looking at only moments ago.
“Twi, I really don’t care...” Rainbow Dash said, honestly. “—Wait, did you say anywhere?” she asked, just registering what Twilight had been talking about.
“Yeah, basically anywhere.” Twilight smiled, seeing her friend take a sudden interest.
“So you could teleport us to—say—the stadium in Cloudsdale for the Wonderbolts show?”
“The Wonderbolts?” Twilight asked.
“Yeah, they’re having a show today! It‘s going to be awesome!”
“Well, I could teleport us to Cloudsdale, but—”
“We should totally go then!” Rainbow Dash jumped up into the air. Her wings flapped quickly, stopping her before she hit the ground. With another powerful flap, she did a quick back flip mid-air, before setting down on the ground. “And you can actually go to Cloudsdale without using that one spell too!”
“Wait, Rainbow Dash, I’ve only done this spell once. It’s not safe to try it with another pony yet. Besides, I don’t know what could—”
“Come on, don’t be such a chicken, Twi! This will be awesome! We can go see the Wonderbolts!” Rainbow Dash had a huge, excited smile on her face.
The alicorn looked down at her book for a moment. She could hear her conscience, which sounded much like her teacher, telling her not to do this. The nagging voice in her head warned her against pushing herself so soon after her transformation. As a unicorn, Twilight had come to know her limits, but as an alicorn—even though her control was much more precise—she still didn’t know the depths of her power. There was a chance that she could lose control, and her magic could wreak havoc. A shiver went down her spine, remembering her magical exam once again.
But Twilight had just performed the spell, and teleportation wasn’t something she was unfamiliar with either. She knew the mechanics now, and all she had to do was increase her power to compensate for Rainbow Dash. Besides, Twilight wasn’t a foal anymore, she could control her magic. She had even fixed Starswirl’s spell—one of the greatest conjurors in Equestrian history. She wouldn’t lose control like she had back then.
“Alright, I can teleport us.” Twilight said, silencing the last of the doubt inside her heart.
“Awesome!” Rainbow Dash zipped around the library before setting back down in front of Twilight. “So, let’s do it!”
“Alright, come stand next to me.”Rainbow Dash followed Twilight’s order, standing next to the alicorn stiffly.
“This won’t hurt will it?”
“It shouldn’t, though you may feel a bit nauseous after we’re there. Also, this spell takes a lot of magic and concentration, so I’ll need you to be quiet while I cast it,” Twilight warned her friend before she opened the book. With a small nod from Rainbow Dash, she set it down in front of her like she had earlier.
As the magic sparked, and the glow slowly enveloped Twilight’s horn, the text on the page began to glow once more. Twilight closed her eyes, and began muttering an almost murmur of indistinguishable words. Once again the air seemed to charge with magical energy, making the pegasus’s fur stand on end. She fidgeted slightly, made uncomfortable by the static in her coat.
Twilight raised her head up, spreading her wings as she had before. Rainbow Dash glanced around the library, taking notice of a breeze that wasn’t there before. She could feel the air moving across her fur. The speed of the breeze picked up, until a whirlwind began rotating around the two ponies. As the vortex spun faster and faster, small bolts of lightning jumped around them, startling her. The bookshelves rumbled, and the whole tree around them began to shake.
“T-Twilight?” Dash asked, watching the vortex around them with concern. She back up closer to her friend. When she turned her head to Twilight, she saw the mare’s eyes were now opened, though she seemed distant. It was as if Twilight wasn’t looking at anything in the room.
A crack of lightning startled the pegasus, drawing her attention away from her friend. Another crackle shot through the air, and then another. Finally a fourth bolt shot forth, narrowly missing her. She stumbled back away from the scorch mark on the library floor. “T-Twi—” Rainbow Dash took another step back, accidentally bumping into the alicorn. As soon as her side touched Twilight, the air began spinning faster, almost uncontrolled.
Twilight gasped, and her distant gaze became focused. “O-Oh no...” Twilight muttered.
Rainbow Dash looked back to see her friend’s face straining, and her horn glowing brighter. “W-What happened?” she asked, looking around in a panic. The magical lightning around them was increasing in frequency, and the air around them now howled from the speed of the wind.
Twilight stood silent for a moment, her horn dimming briefly, only to rebound with it’s intensity. “R-Rainbow Dash, you shouldn’t have bumped into me...” Twilight said weakly.
“W-What‘s going on?” the pegasus asked fearfully. The air around them turned ominous. Rainbow Dash could feel the static jumping across her fur, making her skin crawl. The unsettling howl of the vortex surrounding them made her heart race. and with each bolt of lightning, she thought she might just leap right out of her skin.
“I’m losing control of the spell...I can’t say where we’ll land...” Twilight’s horn dimmed again, but flared back up with magical energy after a brief moment.
Rainbow Dash looked around to see books falling from the shelves. “W-Well just turn it off or something!”
“I-I’ve been trying to!” Twilight replied angrily, “I can’t stop the magical flow now!”
“W-What’s that mean?”
Twilight looked to her friend with somber eyes. “It means that this spell is going to be cast, and I can’t stop it, nor will I be able to control where we end up anymore.”
“So...”
“So, that means you’re getting out of here.” Twilight’s horn pulsed with more energy.
The bright light forced her Rainbow Dash’s eyes to close. A shockwave sent her piercing through the vortex of wind. Time seemed to slow down for a brief moment. She opened her eyes to see herself surrounded by a translucent magenta bubble. The violent winds, nor the magical lightning could touch her through the thin membrane. She looked to Twilight seeing a pained expression on her face as she mouthed some words to her, but Rainbow Dash couldn‘t make out what she was saying.
The bubble popped as it slammed into the wall. Rainbow Dash crashed against a bookshelf with a thud. The bubble slowed her down just enough so she didn’t hurt herself upon impact. The pegasus shook her head to regain her senses. “Twilight!” she yelled at the wall of wind separating the two. Dash climbed back onto her hooves, and rushed to the edge of the growing tornado.
“Rainbow Dash! Run!” Twilight cried out, her voice barely audible over the torrent.
“I can’t leave you here!” She yelled back.
“You have to...” Twilight replied softly, knowing her words would not reach her friend over the roaring winds. Bookshelves were being pulled into the maelstrom. Soon, the tree itself would be torn apart by the raging torrent inside its trunk. The crackling lightning seemed to form rings running with the wind. She looked down at the book in front of her, its pages fluttered furiously with the wind. It was only held down only by Twilight’s magic. She sighed. Magic—a force for stability, but stability was what she could only ever hope for.
“Do you know why I took you on as my student, Twilight?” she found herself remembering her teacher’s words once more. Those words of caution that she had not heeded.
“Because I passed my test,” Twilight replied, laughing to herself.
“No, it is because you need to understand how to control the power you have. It is for the greater good to restrain power lest it run rampant, Twilight. Sometimes we must accept self-imposed limits. We do so to keep ourselves under control. We do so to keep others safe.”
“Safe? I don’t think I could ever keep others safe with my power...” she replied in place of her younger self.
“That is only because you do not yet know how to use your power with restraint.”
“And I still don’t...” A lone tear slipped from Twilight’s eye. She had always been wary to use her full power, and this was why. She feared hurting those around her with her unchecked magic as it ran rampant. Her magic as an alicorn was now far too great for her to control with her experience from when she was a unicorn.
“Remember, Twilight. Magic is you. It is an extension of yourself, and it will follow your will. Even if it is rampant, you can always redirect it to be less destructive.” Slowly, she let her eyelids fall closed. The wind hushed to background noise, the thunder became insignificant to her. Though the storm still raged around her, she pushed it all out of her mind.
“I still don’t know...but, that doesn’t mean I will hurt those around me...” Twilight opened her eyes. A pure white glow filled them as her horn pulsed brighter.
“Twilight!” she heard Rainbow Dash call once more. She looked over in her friend direction. She couldn’t see the mare, but a violet light was glowing where her voice was coming from. Twilight could see it tracing a path, the outline of wings, and a wireframe. She wasn’t seeing her friend, she was seeing Rainbow Dash’s magic. Twilight smiled to herself, knowing her friend was not hurt, at least for the moment.
Her horn pulsed once again. Rainbow Dash became enveloped in another purple bubble, much to the mare’s surprise. With a flick of Twilight’s horn, Rainbow Dash was sent flying backwards. The bubble crashed through the trunk of the library, shattering the wood as though it were glass. Rainbow Dash was set down outside the library gently before the bubble popped like the last one had.
Immediately she jumped back onto her hooves, and rushed back towards the library. “Twilight!” she cried out as she galloped. She only made it a few dozen yards before she collided with a large purple barrier around the library, stopping her from getting back inside. She hit her hoof on the translucent wall. “Twilight!” she cried out again.
“Twi—” she was interrupted by the aged tree exploding outward, with the debris immediately being swept away in a torrent of wind. She looked on in horror and awe as the maelstrom separated into bands, channeling the debris into more concentrated segment. Rainbow Dash saw Twilight standing in the center amongst the chaos, where the library stood only moments ago.
Soon, the dirt and rocks surrounding her were swept away, pulled from the ground, and forced into a spinning band of debris around the alicorn as well. Chunks of earth lifted, and spun, and ground together until they turned molten. Rainbow Dash took a step back, seeing a crater had formed around a single pillar of land where Twilight stood.
Lastly, the electricity separated into a final band, all spinning around Twilight. Rainbow Dash looked on in horror as the spinning debris disks all closed in around Twilight. “Twilight!” She cried out one more time, rushing to the barrier once more. She hit her hoof against it as hard as she could, hoping Twilight would somehow snap out of whatever daze she was in.
As Rainbow Dash hit her hoof against the barrier, a bright flash of light blinded her. The pegasus rubbed her eyes for a moment, before she was finally able to open them again. Twilight was gone. At the bottom of the crater sat the molten rock, the remnants of the library probably burned away. All that stood was the pillar of rock amongst the scar where Twilight Sparkle once lived.
Rainbow Dash took a step closer, only to find the barrier still in place. Shakily she pressed her hoof against the magical wall. “Twilight...”
Days had passed, and Rainbow Dash found herself staring at it once again. The new scar in the town had left a much larger impact than any previous marks on the town‘s landscape, and it wasn‘t just physically. The town mourned the loss of their new princess, and the loss of a dear friend. Everyone in Ponyville had come to pay their respects, but the barrier around the crater still stood. No one could investigate the incident, since no one could get any closer than the magic wall would allow. All they were left with was the testimony of Rainbow Dash, and many questions that the pegasus couldn‘t answer.
Rainbow Dash had sat at the edge of the gaping wound since that day. She wasn’t sure what else she could do. She didn’t know if she was there to mourn, to keeping vigil, or if she was thinking of some way to repent. Each day had been filled with mental silence, as she just looked out at the crater until the sun went down. Her friends had come to keep her company for a few hours, but they didn’t stay—she didn’t want them to.
As the sun set on the fourth day after Twilight vanished, Rainbow Dash let out a sigh. “Twilight...’ she muttered to herself, the images from the event still racing through her mind. She didn’t know that this would happen. She didn’t know Twilight would lose control, and things would escalate so quickly. All she knew was that this was her fault. She had pushed Twilight to cast that spell, and she had been the one to break her concentration. She was the reason Twilight was gone.
Rainbow Dash placed her hoof against the barrier. It glowed brightly as her hoof made contact. She could feel the magic energy pushing against her, repulsing her. She didn’t blame it. She deserved that kind of treatment for what she did to the pony who cast the spell. Rainbow Dash looked down at the ground, taking notice of a shadow much larger than her own. Someone was behind her, but she thought it was probably just one of her friends coming to try and cheer her up.
When she looked back up at the barrier, she noticed a hoof above hers, pressing against the barrier much the way she was. It was larger than hers, white, and covered in a gold adornment, befitting royalty. Rainbow Dash looked up further to see Princess Celestia looking down at her with a gentle smile.
“P-Princess...”
“I received word a few days ago, but some prior engagements prevented me from coming until this evening.” The princess looked towards the crater, her eyes weighing heavy.
“I-I’m sorry...” Rainbow Dash muttered, feeling her tears well up. “It’s all my fault...”
“Rainbow Dash, do not blame yourself.” The princess’s gentle tone ceased the pegasus’s tears
“But I made her cast the spell, and I broke her concentration, and—”
“And, Twilight Sparkle did her best to ensure that you were not hurt.” The princess lowered her hoof from the barrier, placing it on the pegasus’s shoulder. “You did not intend for this to happen, so therefore it was an accident. Otherwise you would not be sitting here, mourning her, correct?” Rainbow Dash only nodded to the princess’s words. Celestia looked back to the crater before her. “If anything, I am proud that my student was able to spare you from sharing her fate.”
“I still...” Rainbow Dash trailed off, unable to put her thoughts into words.
“How about we see what exactly happened to Twilight?” Celestia suggested as her horn began to glow. She touched the tip to the barrier, and her yellow aura instantly pierced the magenta of Twilight’s magic. Slowly Twilight’s spell began to dissolve as Celestia’s magic spread throughout the entire barrier.
Rainbow Dash watched as the spell peeled back Twilight’s magic, until the barrier was gone entirely. Without any hesitation, she jumped up to her hooves, and bolted towards the pillar Twilight was last seen standing on. She landed and began looking fervently for any clues as to what happened to her friend. She crouched down low to the ground, scanning the dirt for any clues she could find.
“So that’s what happened,” Celestia remarked, looking down at the ground.
“What happened?” Rainbow Dash asked with anticipation.
“You will be happy to know what Twilight Sparkle is alive, Rainbow Dash.” Celesita lifted a tattered book up with her magic, examining the ragged pages.
“S-She is?” the pegasus asked, shocked.
“Yes, the residual magic in the air offers a good hint as to what happened. Luckily, it was held in place by the barrier.” she said, flipping through a few pages. “Perhaps she did it on purpose, as a message,” she said giving the worried pegasus a smile.
“But what happened to her?”
“She was able to change the spell, though I’m far more surprised that she was able to do what she did.” Celestia closed the book, passing it to Rainbow Dash when she was finished.
“What did she do?” the pegasus asked eagerly, placing the book on the ground as it was given to her.
“Twilight was able to redirect the spell from a teleport spell to a time travel spell. A rather impressive feat, even for a pony trying to do so purposefully.” Celestia turned her gaze to the crater around her.
“S-So where is she?” Dash eyes opened wide, with hints of a smile breaking through her melancholy.
“When would be a more appropriate question, and I’m sorry, but I can not determine that. Just know that one day, Twilight will return...” She frowned slightly seeing Rainbow Dash’s optimism deflate upon hearing the news. “Unfortunately, the odds of her having a planned destination are slim. It may be years, decades, or even centuries before Twilight comes home,” she added, regretfully.
Rainbow Dash looked to the ground. She was beginning to realize she may have very well caused her friend to miss most of her life. She may not even see her friend again until she herself was an old mare, or worse. When Twilight comes back, she may not have a familiar face to greet her. She may arrive in a world completely different from the one she left.
“I didn’t think this would happen...”
“Do not blame yourself, Rainbow Dash. It was an unfortunate accident, and I know Twilight would not blame you.”
“But...what if she doesn’t come back for hundreds of years?” Rainbow Dash asked. She looked up at the princess weakly, hoping for some sort of answer from the wise ruler.
“All you can do is hold out hope that Twilight will return soon.” Celestia smiled at the pegasus once more, trying her best to reassure her before turning towards Canterlot. “I must inform Twilight’s family of this turn of events. I would suggest that you tell your friends. We can’t say for certain when she will return, but we know that she will.”
“Okay...” Rainbow Dash muttered.
“Take care, my little pony.” With a flap of her wings, Celestia left for Canterlot.
Rainbow Dash watched as the princess slowly faded off into the distance. After the princess was gone, she looked down at the book, placing her hoof softly on the cover. She sat there, staring down at the battered binding until the sun had fully set. The moon was in the sky before she finally let out a sigh. Slowly, she climbed onto all fours, and bent down to take the book in her mouth. With a powerful flap on her wings, she flew away. As she left the crater where the Golden Oaks Library once stood that day, she vowed to never let her rash nature cost her friends again. That lonely pillar standing amongst the scar in Ponyville would stand as a monument to her friend’s strength, and a personal reminder to keep her own recklessness in check.
The End
Author's Note
This is my thank you story to my 100 followers. Essentially this was inspired by the line from a poem, "The bird of Hermes is my name, eating my wings to make me tame". The line means that we must accept self-imposed limits for the sake of stability. It was also popularized by the manga series Hellsing. Luckily, I was able to flesh this rough little idea out into around 4500 words.
