The Miracle Workerby StarSprintChaptersBringing HomeNew ArrivalSetting Up ShopVengeful PrincessBringing HomeTHUMP. "Ow," I muttered to the floor, rolling onto my stomach and sitting up. I had rolled off my bed while I was sleeping. Again. Not that I didn't expect it. It was basically my internal alarm clock. Every day at exactly 7:30 A.M., I flopped onto the floor. It had been difficult to get used to when it first started, but now I would be more worried if I didn't roll out of bed in the morning. I stood, flaring my wings and stretching my legs. I slowly shambled toward my wardrobe, looking at my reflection in the mirror. Mane going all directions, eyes baggy, coat ruffled. Pretty normal morning look, if you ask me. I opened the wardrobe and dug through the various outfits with my hooves. Eventually, I pulled out a purple robe with gold trim and a whitish shirt underneath. I put them on and shuffled toward my desk, which was covered with an assortment of books, several inkwells, stacks of parchment, a saddlebag, a pair of goggles with iridescent lenses, and a wand. I snatched the wand and the saddlebag, putting the wand in my robe and the saddlebag on my back. I picked up the goggles and put them on, keeping them off my face for the moment. I trotted back toward the wardrobe, feeling my energy start to replenish. I checked my reflection again. I looked exactly the same as I did before, except I had a pair of goggles on my head. "Just the usual," I told the wardrobe. Out of it flew a glowing comb and a stream of pale blue energy. The comb ripped through my mane until it all went in one general direction, and the stream of energy washed over me, removing any dirt from my coat and energizing me. I checked my reflection again. "Perfect," I told the wardrobe. The comb flew back into it and the stream of energy vanished, leaving me to my business. I trotted back toward my desk, glancing at a book on it as I did so. It opened itself and flipped through the pages until it reached today's schedule. "Seven thirty, prepare for the day without incident: check. Seven thirty-five, prepare to receive a letter of some sort from Celestia about the Summer Sun Celebration." Right on cue, a scroll appeared on my desk with a golden flash of light. I unrolled it and skimmed through it. Dear Star Flare, As you are no doubt aware by now, the annual Summer Sun Celebration is approaching rapidly, and with it, the return of Nightmare Moon. I have made plans to ensure that she is dealt with properly, and I would like you to attend to make sure that the plan is carried out successfully. The preparations for the celebration itself will be taken care of by my personal student, so don't feel the need to worry about those yourself. In addition to overseeing the celebration, however, I would like to ask that you settle in the town permanently. Perhaps instead of being a recluse and staying inside researching all day, you could make some friends! The celebration will be held in Ponyville this year. I trust you can find your way there on your own. Sincerely, Princess Celestia. ...Was she kidding? I couldn't help but wonder. Overseeing the Summer Sun Celebration was one thing. I could understand Celestia's concerns in that respect. A vengeful goddess of the night wasn't something you ran into every day. But moving the base into a town? Permanently? That was a high order. I sighed, glancing at a quill lying on the desk. It floated into the air and dipped itself in an inkwell as a blank piece of parchment flew underneath it. I spoke, the quill writing on the page as I did so. "Dear Princess Celestia," I said. "Very well. I will attend the celebration, and make an attempt to stop being 'a recluse' as you put it. However, I sincerely hope that you realize just how how much you are asking of me. Moving a workshop the size of a small town into another small town will not be a simple task. Sincerely, Star Flare." The parchment rolled up and vanished, and the quill dropped back into the inkwell. I sat down for a moment, pondering Celestia's reason for having me move into a residential area. It was true, you didn't get much social interaction when you lived in the middle of a dense, remote forest. Maybe it would be a good idea for me to make some friends, or at least properly talk to somepony. I grunted, standing back up. As I left my bedroom and turned left down the hall, I ran through the activation code for the spatial storage runes in my mind. I trotted through the living room to the front door and out into the workshop area. It was basically a bunch of stone and wood buildings surrounding a small clearing. Some of the buildings included a forge, a small pavilion with a variety of alchemical apparatuses in it, a few greenhouses filled with myriads of plants (most of which wouldn't normally survive the local climate), a medium-size building labelled "STORAGE" in big letters, and various others. I walked toward a gap in the buildings, which was conveniently just large enough to fit a street. I stopped and turned to face all the other buildings, drawing my wand from my robe. I stuck one end of the wand into the ground, where a circle was drawn. I concentrated, and the circle lit up, glowing a dim blue. The light spread to a chain of runes drawn in the ground near it, then spread further, enclosing the entire workshop in a square of glowing runes. Beams of light shot up from the ground, forming a cube of runes and symbols around the workshop. A low hum filled the air, the runes becoming increasingly bright until they were almost blinding white. The hum grew steadily louder, and the workshop became hazy. There was a deafening BOOM, and then the entire thing was gone. All that was left was silence, and a small metallic cube at my hooves. I picked it up and dropped it in my saddlebag, then pulled out a map. "Ponyville...three hundred fifty miles northeast. Better see if I can catch a train," I said to myself, and then trotted off in search of the nearest town. New ArrivalSCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECHHH I held my hooves to my ears in frustration. Why did trains have to be so loud? Something as simple as a silence enchantment on the wheels would make the whole experience so much better. I got up from my seat as the train came to a halt, moving toward the doors as they slid open. I stepped out into the open air, taking in the scene. The thing I noticed first was the sheer amount of ponies. It seemed like ages ago I'd seen this many ponies in one place. I hopped off the platform, trotting down a path through town. There were buildings scattered everywhere, surrounding the building I assumed was the town hall. Everywhere around the town square, there were market stalls selling all kinds of things. One sold candy, another sold various carrot-based products, yet another sold Summer Sun Celebration-related trinkets. There was the occasional shop that actually had a building, one of which apparently sold quills and sofas. I trotted around for a while, taking note of any significant buildings or structures on the off chance that they had concentrations of magic in them. I spent most of my time looking for a good place to set up my workshop. There was a large field near the northeast part of town, which I made a mental note to check out later. To the south was a very large apple orchard, which looked like it was bigger than the town itself. Nopony seemed to question my presence, which was rather odd considering the gear I was wearing. A stallion in purple robes and goggles was not something you saw every day. Perhaps it was a testimony to the stories I'd heard about how strange Ponyville was. Given its proximity to Canterlot, and thus the nobles, I wasn't terribly surprised. I did get a few strange looks from some unicorns, but that was a given, considering the amount of magic that was in the stuff I carried around. I came to a stop at a massive oak tree that apparently doubled as a library. As it often did, my curiosity got the best of me. I went inside the library. Bookshelves lined the walls completely, save for a staircase that led to the second floor. A purple unicorn mare was standing in front of one of the shelves, rearranging the books and muttering irritably to herself. A small purple dragon was standing next to her idly, rambling about something. "Hello," I called, trotting forward. "You wouldn't happen to be the librarian, would you?" "That's me," she said, not looking away from the shelf. The dragon whispered something in her ear. "Just a minute, Spike," she replied to him. "I just moved into town, thought I'd take a look and see what books are available," I said, trying to initiate a conversation. "Do you read a lot?" she asked, staring at the spine of one of the books she was levitating. "Not as much as I used to," I replied, glancing at some of the titles on the shelves. "I haven't seen any books written by somepony other than myself for Celestia knows how long." "You're an author?" she inquired, sounding interested. "More of a scientist, really," I corrected, pulling a book off the shelf and skimming the back cover. "I haven't published any of my papers though." "Why not?" the mare inquired, placing a book on the shelf where it belonged. "To put it simply, they're all very...controversial," I told her. "In what way?" I put the book in my hoof back on the shelf. "Tell me," I asked. "How good are you at magic?" She laughed. "I'm Princess Celestia's personal student." "Oh, you'll get a kick out of this, then," I muttered. "Hm?" she asked. I faced toward her. "Turn around." She glanced over her shoulder at me, and froze. Her jaw dropped, very, very slowly. "I-" she stuttered. "But-" "Told you." "How?" she exclaimed. "Where did you get that stuff?" she practically yelled, gesturing at my outfit, wand, saddlebags, and goggles included. "Twilight," the dragon said, slightly confusedly, "calm down. There's probably a perfectly logical explanation for whatever it is you're freaking out about," he continued carefully, sounding very cautious, "so just-" "Calm down?" the mare(Twilight?) interrupted. "Spike, whatever this pony-" "Name's Star Flare." "Star Flare-is wearing violates every law of magic in existence!" she finished. "Every law as you know them," I stated simply. "As for how I got this stuff, well, I made it." "Made it? You're a pegasus! I don't know of a single unicorn, myself included, who could imbue an object with that much magical power at all, let alone keep it stable! You're lucky you haven't blown up! There's not even a structure to the enchantments, it's just a bunch of energy!" "Miss Twilight, or whatever your name is, I personally assure you that whatever you know about magic beyond casting spells and enchantments is completely wrong." She stopped dead in her tracks. The dragon(Spike?) gave me a 'what have you done' face. Twilight huffed, and puffed, and then sighed. "Okay," she said. "We haven't blown up yet, and you don't seem like an unintelligent pony. So I'm inclined to believe you." Spike looked both amazed and relieved. "But I'm not going to accept the idea that basically my entire life has been a lie so easily." Spike deflated again. "Fair enough," I said. "Tell you what. If you want to learn more, visit the field to the northeast of town sometime. I'm setting up shop over there permanently, at least as of now. I can teach you a thing or two about magic, if you like." She fumed slightly at that, but said nothing. "Also," I said, grabbing a novel off a shelf. "I'd like to check this book out." She groaned. "Give it here," she said. I tossed it over to her. She caught it with her magic and levitated a stamp toward her, stamped a small card inside a pocket in the book, then tossed it back rather forcefully. My wand flew out of my robes, flaring with magic and stopping the book midair. Twilight's eye twitched slightly. The book floated into my saddlebag, then the wand took its place back in my robes. I trotted toward the door, waving goodbye to Twilight. I hadn't meant to make her flip out like that. I did warn her that my work was controversial though. Setting Up ShopAuthor's Note HUGE apologies for the major lack of updates. Expect them fairly frequently from now on (around once a week or so). Also, there may be a few spacing issues with this chapter, since it was written on mobile. I'll adjust it soon if necessary. Setting Up Shop I trotted northeast from the library, with the exact setup of the workshop running through my mind. It had looked relatively flat, but it would still need some adjustments. I took note of a few more interesting shops and structures as I walked. I still found the amount of things you could learn about an object and its history by looking at its magical energy amazing. I walked past a couple of ponies who I couldn't hear talking, but I could tell that they were jokingly remarking about how silly one of their friends could be, just by seeing the types of magic they were emitting. I directed my consistently inconsistent attention span back at the matter of the workshop. I could see the field now, its lush grass drawing near. I peered through my goggles, easily picking out some positive forms of navitas in the area. Perfect. I plunged a hoof into my saddlebag, rummaging around for the silver cube I had stored the workshop in. After a brief moment, I found it and extracted it from the bag. I floated my wand out of my robe and pressed the end into the surface of the cube. A ring of glowing runes surrounded the area the wand had touched, signifying the cube was in deploy mode. An illusion of the workshop was projected from the front of the cube, showing precisely where everything would be placed. I wandered around the model, adjusting areas that intersected the ground with my wand so that the land was flat. When I finally deemed it ready, it was around sunset. "Phew," I gasped, flopping on the ground. I did a quick double check and then sat up again. "Looks good." I heard somepony call in my direction from a ways behind me, and turned to see who it was. "Hey! Star Flare!" It was Twilight. I stared for a moment before I regained my composure. I was fairly certain I had said sometime earlier, not later in the evening. I felt the need to point this out. "I said sometime, Twilight, as in once I actually have a home established. Not sometime as in later tonight." "Sorry," she said, flushing slightly as she approached. "I can come back later, if that's what you mean." I paused for a moment. "Nah, it's fine, I suppose. Might as well stay and watch the light show now that you're here." "Light show?" she asked, puzzled and curious. "Well," I said, correcting myself. "Technically it's a complex arrangement of layers upon layers of runes and imbuements combined with concepts taken from other civilizations and an understanding of the fundamental forces that govern reality being put to use, but that's a rather large mouthful to say." She looked completely lost, which I didn't imagine felt good to somepony who had studied magic with the Princess for what was clearly a major portion of her lifetime. "It'll make more sense once you see it," I assured her, neglecting to add "or you'll be even more confused." I tapped the cube with my wand. "You might want to stand back." The cube became transparent for a fraction of a second, flashing brightly. Red runes shot out of it, forming a perimeter around the illusion. Twilight looked fairly unimpressed, which was probably due to the fact that she could only see the runes. The illusion began to solidify, pieces of it glowing an amazing variety of colors, some of which I was only able to perceive because of my goggles, before solidifying. An extremely loud boom resonated above it, making Twilight flinch. The runes vanished, leaving my newly re-established home. "What in the name of Celestia was that!?" Twilight screeched. "That," I responded calmly, "to put it simply, was a structure being moved out of a pocket dimension onto this plane of reality." Twilight just stared. "You're telling me," she began, pointing at the cube with her hoof, "that that thing is capable of creating another dimension, and not only that, but it can transfer things in and out of it safely?" I nodded. "That's the general gist of it. Technically it just has a link to the dimension imprinted in it so it can access it, not create new ones, but yeah, you've got the idea." Twilight's eye twitched. "Who are you?" "Star Flare, Equestria's most established and only thaumaturge, for a good reason at that," I replied. "At your service." She turned her gaze toward the workshop, studying the various apparatus that was littered about it. "And what's all that stuff?" "That's my workshop." "I mean," she corrected herself, "what does it do?" I sighed. "Twilight, it's getting late and I've done the calculations. It would take me a full six months to explain everything I have in my workshop in detail. I can probably explain the basics of it in around an hour or so some other time, but right now, I really need a nap." "But-" she began. "No. You don't understand. I need a nap," I intereupted her. "Please. Some other time." She sighed in defeat. "Alright. Some other time." She trotted away slowly. I watched for a moment to be sure she was leaving before stepping into my house. I trotted up the stairs, into my study, and flopped onto my bed. I lay still for a few moments. Just as I was about to drift off to sleep, I heard something shatter outside. It sounded suspiciously like broken glass. In an instant I was out of my bed and my wand levitating in front of me. A dark purple crystal burst out of my saddlebag and fixed itself to the wand. It flashed, and I teleported through the wall to the source of the noise. In front of me was a smashed vial, a puddle of green liquid, and a terrified Twilight. I groaned. "Answer me a question, Twilight. Do you have any idea how disastrous what you just did could have been?" She shook her head almost imperceptibly. "That vial contained a distilled form of magic. You're lucky it was composed of earth magic and not a dangerous kind like, say, chaos. Who knows what it would have done to you." Her eyes managed to widen further. I shook my head. "Honestly, out of all the pieces of equipment you could have chosen to investigate, you chose one of the most volatile." She remained perfectly still. "Go," I told her. She vanished in a flash of light. I raised my wand again and teleported back into my bedroom, then collapsed on the bed once more. Maybe I had been a little bit harsh, I thought to myself. Oh, well. I asked her to leave once, at least semi-politely. This socializing thing was going to need a bit of readjustment. Vengeful PrincessMy eyes snapped open as I remembered that the Summer Sun Celebration was that very night. I reared back, inarticulately screaming my frustration to the heavens. Which, when translated from my perception to reality, amounted to flopping backward and making a noise that sounded something along the lines of "blurgh." I slowly shifted myself out of bed and then to my wardrobe to recharge again. One stream of magic later, and I didn't feel rested at all, but I did feel like I'd just drank fourteen cups of coffee. I supposed that would suffice. Before I left, I grabbed a few articles of clothing out of my wardrobe. They were rich golden robes similar to the ones I was wearing, but with a hood, and there was so much magic coursing through them that even without my goggles I could see shimmers and ripples of color in the surface of it. I stowed them in my saddlebag for the time being, along with another wand, which I liked to call the Immortal Stick. More than likely, none of them would prove necessary, but you never knew when it came to immortal princesses of the night who were possessed by vengeful demons. I made my way back into the town, weaving through the irregular road patterns toward the town hall, goggles down at full power and wand ready to intercept any surprise bolts of magic. Nopony paid much attention to me, which spoke volumes about the strange things this town must have seen. The crowd around the town hall buzzed quietly, chattering away about random little things that came to mind. Suddenly, a fanfare began to play, and the chatter stopped. A spotlight shone on the base of a tower in the center of the hall, revealing the mare I assumed was the mayor. "Fillies and gentlecolts," she announced, "as mayor of Ponyville, it is my great pleasure to announce the beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration!" The crowd cheered gleefully. "In just a few moments, our town will witness the magic of the sunrise, and celebrate this, the longest day of the year! And now, it is my great honor to introduce to you the ruler of our land, the very pony who gives us the sun and the moon each and every day, the good, the wise, the bringer of harmony to all of Equestria..." I suppressed a snort, then glanced at the moon for a moment and frowned grimly. The surface was bare. "...Princess Celestia!" the mayor finished. A white unicorn mare pulled a rope, parting the curtains on the balcony to reveal...nothing. The entire crowd gasped in an extremely theatrical manner, whereas I sat there, completely unsurprised. Everypony began talking nervously, and then the mayor spoke up. "Remain calm, everypony, there must be a reasonable explanation!" The mare exclaimed from up on the balcony, "She's gone!" The crowd gasped yet again, even more theatrically than before, which I hadn't been certain was possible. A blue fog billowed up on the platform, and out of it stepped none other than Nightmare Moon herself. "Oh, my beloved subjects," she began, grinning horrendously. "It's been so long since I've seen your precious, little sun-loving faces." Somepony yelled at Nightmare from below, taking off and flying toward her. Another mare caught her by the tail, holding her back. "What did you do with our Princess?!" Nightmare chuckled. "Why, am I not royal enough for you? Don't you know who I am?" A mare who sounded like she was on a massive sugar high started rattling off names, until a cupcake got shoved into her mouth. I sat there amusedly. "Does my crown no longer count now that I have been imprisoned for a thousand years? Did you not recall the legend? Did you not see the signs?" At that moment, Twilight spoke up. "I did. And I know who you are. You're the Mare in the Moon - Nightmare Moon!" I did a double take, fairly surprised, and the crowd gasped yet again. "Jeez," I muttered, just loud enough for absolutely everypony to hear, "what is it with you ponies and gasping? And kudos to you, Twilight, for reading up on your lore!" I called. "I'm impressed!" Everypony had turned and was staring at me now. "I didn't think you'd know about Nightmare, being Celestia's student and all." Nightmare didn't seem to notice. "Well well well, somepony who remembers me." I waved my hoof around sporadically in the air, as if to signal I was part of the ponies-who-remember-Nightmare-Moon-club too. "Then you also know why I'm here." Twilight started to say something, then trailed off. "Remember this day, little ponies," Nightmare warned, "for it was your last. From this moment forth, the night shall last forever!" She cackled evilly. I flailed my hoof around again. "Hey, Oblivious MacMoonbutt!" I called tauntingly. Her gaze snapped toward me. "Over here!" She looked indescribably furious. If she knew how, her glare probably could have torn me to shreds. "You insolent foal," she snarled. "How dare you insult me?" "Like this," I replied casually. "It's easy. All I have to do is say something completely out of place or unsettling given the context, and then add enough sass to provoke you." Her horn ignited and a bolt rocketed towards me. It fizzled out right before it would have hit me, and I flung myself onto the ground in order to look incapacitated. Everypony gasped yet again, and backed away from me. "Seize her!" the mayor ordered a nearby group of pegasi guards. "Only she knows where the Princess is!" she yelled as the guards took flight and attempted to swarm Nightmare Moon. "Stay back, you fools!" Nightmare cackled. Her eyes glowed white with power, and lightning cracked down from the sky and knocked the guards away. Nightmare turned into a cloud of starry blue smoke, and flew out the door. "Talk about drama," I muttered, standing up. Six or seven layers of protective fields and enchantments came in very handy in these situations. As I stood, I saw the pegasus from before fly out the door after Nightmare, with Twilight following close behind. I spontaneously decided to tag along as well, and trotted out the door, catching the gaze of pretty much every pony in the building. I suppose it made sense, considering the fact that from their perspective, I'd just been completely incapacitated. I halted right in front of the door to the library and knocked on it more times than were probably necessary. A muffled "Who is it?" came through the door. "Just your friendly neighborhood thaumaturge," I replied, walking in without waiting for a response. Magical energy highs leave little room for patience. Twilight was frantically searching through the assortment of books lining the walls as I walked in. "Elements, Elements, Elements! How am I supposed to stop Nightmare Moon without the Elements of Harmony?" I heard an assortment of hoofsteps behind me, and it was then that I discovered I had been followed in by five more mares. I turned my head to see the group walking in. One of them, who I recognized as the pegasus from before, flew up in Twilight's face in an accusatory manner. "And just what are the Elements of Harmony, huh?" Twilight backed up in surprise. “And how did you know about Nightmare Moon, huh? Are you a spy?” “Now hold on just a second, please, in the name of logic,” I interrupted, as one of the other mares grabbed the pegasus’s tail in her mouth and pulled her away from Twilight. “Why would she be a spy? Who would she be spying for, exactly, and what would she be trying to find out?” The pegasus stopped, her expression blank. “You didn’t think that question through very well, did you?” “Hey!” she exclaimed, trying to fly toward me and getting stopped again by the orange earth pony. “Excuse my manners,” I said. “I’ve just had the equivalent of about fourteen cups of coffee, so my mind is all over the place right now. Point is,” I continued, “she’s not a spy.” “But she sure knows what’s going on,” the earth pony said. The entire group took a step toward her. “Don’t ya, Twilight?” “Wait what. You all know each other?” I exclaimed. My mind had ground to a complete halt. They all glanced at me. Twilight was silent for a moment, then took a deep breath. “I read all about the prediction of Nightmare Moon’s return. Some strange objects called the Elements of Harmony are the only things that can stop her. But I don’t know what they are, or where to find them. I don’t even know what they do!” I raised my hoof. “I can help with that.” Everypony turned and stared at me. “Well?” Twilight asked. “What are they?” I took a breath and entered microlecture mode. “There are six Elements of Harmony, only five of which have been recorded. They are Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Honesty, and Loyalty. The last known location of the Elements is the ancient castle of the Royal Pony Sisters, which is located in the Everfree Forest.” I felt a slight buzzing in my side courtesy of one of my alarm enchantments, and turned toward the window. Hovering there was a cloud of starry navy blue fog. "Hey, Moonbutt! This monologue is intended for an audience of six, not seven!" The fog looked as shocked as fog can look, then flew away. “Sorry about that,” I apologized to the group, all of whom looked very confused. “Nightmare Moon decided she wanted to eavesdrop. She knows where we’re going.” “Which is…?” one of the ponies asked. She was the white unicorn mare I had seen at the town hall. “The Everfree Forest,” I replied nonchalantly. “I said that already.” “The Everfree Forest?!” everyone exclaimed dramatically. “Haven’t I said that, what, twice now?” I asked. “Better get going.” With that, I trotted toward the door. I looked back to see the others standing there, not sure what to do. “Well?” I asked. I waved a hoof at the door. “Come on!” They exchanged a few glances, then followed me out. Ten minutes later, we found ourselves standing at the edge of the Everfree Forest. Most of us were standing there, wondering what to do next. I was standing there, waiting for them to realize that we were supposed to go into the forest. “Whee! Let’s go!” the pink one exclaimed. “Not so fast,” Twilight said. “I appreciate the offer, but, I’d much rather do this on my own.” “No can do, sugarcube,” the orange one (I really needed to learn their names) interjected. “We sure ain’t lettin’ any friend of ours” -Twilight cringed heavily at that- “go into that creepy place alone. We’re stickin’ to you like caramel on a candy apple,” she added, as they all began to trot into the forest. I followed suit, with only Twilight and the pink one staying behind. “Especially if there’s candy apples in there!” the pink one exclaimed. “What?” she asked in response to the strange look Twilight gave her. “Those things are good!” Twilight sighed and followed us, albeit reluctantly. “S-so, none of you have been in here before?” she asked. “Nope,” I said. “First day in town.” The pink one gasped dramatically, and looked like she was about to sprint all the way back to the town for some reason. The expression somehow completely vanished in half a second, with no trace whatsoever. “Oh, h-heavens no!” the white unicorn gasped. “Just look at it! It’s simply dreadful!” “And it ain’t natural,” the orange one (I was really starting to feel guilty for referring to them that way by that point) added. “Folks say it don’t work the same as Equestria.” “What do you mean?” Twilight asked nervously. “Nopony knows!” the blue pegasus said in what I assumed was the scariest voice she could muster, which really was not much. “You know why?” she asked, crouching low to the ground and advancing on the rest of the group. “Because nopony that’s ever been inside has ever come out!” She yelled the last word. And then the cliff collapsed beneath us. Author's Note Haha...Oops.
Bringing HomeTHUMP. "Ow," I muttered to the floor, rolling onto my stomach and sitting up. I had rolled off my bed while I was sleeping. Again. Not that I didn't expect it. It was basically my internal alarm clock. Every day at exactly 7:30 A.M., I flopped onto the floor. It had been difficult to get used to when it first started, but now I would be more worried if I didn't roll out of bed in the morning. I stood, flaring my wings and stretching my legs. I slowly shambled toward my wardrobe, looking at my reflection in the mirror. Mane going all directions, eyes baggy, coat ruffled. Pretty normal morning look, if you ask me. I opened the wardrobe and dug through the various outfits with my hooves. Eventually, I pulled out a purple robe with gold trim and a whitish shirt underneath. I put them on and shuffled toward my desk, which was covered with an assortment of books, several inkwells, stacks of parchment, a saddlebag, a pair of goggles with iridescent lenses, and a wand. I snatched the wand and the saddlebag, putting the wand in my robe and the saddlebag on my back. I picked up the goggles and put them on, keeping them off my face for the moment. I trotted back toward the wardrobe, feeling my energy start to replenish. I checked my reflection again. I looked exactly the same as I did before, except I had a pair of goggles on my head. "Just the usual," I told the wardrobe. Out of it flew a glowing comb and a stream of pale blue energy. The comb ripped through my mane until it all went in one general direction, and the stream of energy washed over me, removing any dirt from my coat and energizing me. I checked my reflection again. "Perfect," I told the wardrobe. The comb flew back into it and the stream of energy vanished, leaving me to my business. I trotted back toward my desk, glancing at a book on it as I did so. It opened itself and flipped through the pages until it reached today's schedule. "Seven thirty, prepare for the day without incident: check. Seven thirty-five, prepare to receive a letter of some sort from Celestia about the Summer Sun Celebration." Right on cue, a scroll appeared on my desk with a golden flash of light. I unrolled it and skimmed through it. Dear Star Flare, As you are no doubt aware by now, the annual Summer Sun Celebration is approaching rapidly, and with it, the return of Nightmare Moon. I have made plans to ensure that she is dealt with properly, and I would like you to attend to make sure that the plan is carried out successfully. The preparations for the celebration itself will be taken care of by my personal student, so don't feel the need to worry about those yourself. In addition to overseeing the celebration, however, I would like to ask that you settle in the town permanently. Perhaps instead of being a recluse and staying inside researching all day, you could make some friends! The celebration will be held in Ponyville this year. I trust you can find your way there on your own. Sincerely, Princess Celestia. ...Was she kidding? I couldn't help but wonder. Overseeing the Summer Sun Celebration was one thing. I could understand Celestia's concerns in that respect. A vengeful goddess of the night wasn't something you ran into every day. But moving the base into a town? Permanently? That was a high order. I sighed, glancing at a quill lying on the desk. It floated into the air and dipped itself in an inkwell as a blank piece of parchment flew underneath it. I spoke, the quill writing on the page as I did so. "Dear Princess Celestia," I said. "Very well. I will attend the celebration, and make an attempt to stop being 'a recluse' as you put it. However, I sincerely hope that you realize just how how much you are asking of me. Moving a workshop the size of a small town into another small town will not be a simple task. Sincerely, Star Flare." The parchment rolled up and vanished, and the quill dropped back into the inkwell. I sat down for a moment, pondering Celestia's reason for having me move into a residential area. It was true, you didn't get much social interaction when you lived in the middle of a dense, remote forest. Maybe it would be a good idea for me to make some friends, or at least properly talk to somepony. I grunted, standing back up. As I left my bedroom and turned left down the hall, I ran through the activation code for the spatial storage runes in my mind. I trotted through the living room to the front door and out into the workshop area. It was basically a bunch of stone and wood buildings surrounding a small clearing. Some of the buildings included a forge, a small pavilion with a variety of alchemical apparatuses in it, a few greenhouses filled with myriads of plants (most of which wouldn't normally survive the local climate), a medium-size building labelled "STORAGE" in big letters, and various others. I walked toward a gap in the buildings, which was conveniently just large enough to fit a street. I stopped and turned to face all the other buildings, drawing my wand from my robe. I stuck one end of the wand into the ground, where a circle was drawn. I concentrated, and the circle lit up, glowing a dim blue. The light spread to a chain of runes drawn in the ground near it, then spread further, enclosing the entire workshop in a square of glowing runes. Beams of light shot up from the ground, forming a cube of runes and symbols around the workshop. A low hum filled the air, the runes becoming increasingly bright until they were almost blinding white. The hum grew steadily louder, and the workshop became hazy. There was a deafening BOOM, and then the entire thing was gone. All that was left was silence, and a small metallic cube at my hooves. I picked it up and dropped it in my saddlebag, then pulled out a map. "Ponyville...three hundred fifty miles northeast. Better see if I can catch a train," I said to myself, and then trotted off in search of the nearest town.
New ArrivalSCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECHHH I held my hooves to my ears in frustration. Why did trains have to be so loud? Something as simple as a silence enchantment on the wheels would make the whole experience so much better. I got up from my seat as the train came to a halt, moving toward the doors as they slid open. I stepped out into the open air, taking in the scene. The thing I noticed first was the sheer amount of ponies. It seemed like ages ago I'd seen this many ponies in one place. I hopped off the platform, trotting down a path through town. There were buildings scattered everywhere, surrounding the building I assumed was the town hall. Everywhere around the town square, there were market stalls selling all kinds of things. One sold candy, another sold various carrot-based products, yet another sold Summer Sun Celebration-related trinkets. There was the occasional shop that actually had a building, one of which apparently sold quills and sofas. I trotted around for a while, taking note of any significant buildings or structures on the off chance that they had concentrations of magic in them. I spent most of my time looking for a good place to set up my workshop. There was a large field near the northeast part of town, which I made a mental note to check out later. To the south was a very large apple orchard, which looked like it was bigger than the town itself. Nopony seemed to question my presence, which was rather odd considering the gear I was wearing. A stallion in purple robes and goggles was not something you saw every day. Perhaps it was a testimony to the stories I'd heard about how strange Ponyville was. Given its proximity to Canterlot, and thus the nobles, I wasn't terribly surprised. I did get a few strange looks from some unicorns, but that was a given, considering the amount of magic that was in the stuff I carried around. I came to a stop at a massive oak tree that apparently doubled as a library. As it often did, my curiosity got the best of me. I went inside the library. Bookshelves lined the walls completely, save for a staircase that led to the second floor. A purple unicorn mare was standing in front of one of the shelves, rearranging the books and muttering irritably to herself. A small purple dragon was standing next to her idly, rambling about something. "Hello," I called, trotting forward. "You wouldn't happen to be the librarian, would you?" "That's me," she said, not looking away from the shelf. The dragon whispered something in her ear. "Just a minute, Spike," she replied to him. "I just moved into town, thought I'd take a look and see what books are available," I said, trying to initiate a conversation. "Do you read a lot?" she asked, staring at the spine of one of the books she was levitating. "Not as much as I used to," I replied, glancing at some of the titles on the shelves. "I haven't seen any books written by somepony other than myself for Celestia knows how long." "You're an author?" she inquired, sounding interested. "More of a scientist, really," I corrected, pulling a book off the shelf and skimming the back cover. "I haven't published any of my papers though." "Why not?" the mare inquired, placing a book on the shelf where it belonged. "To put it simply, they're all very...controversial," I told her. "In what way?" I put the book in my hoof back on the shelf. "Tell me," I asked. "How good are you at magic?" She laughed. "I'm Princess Celestia's personal student." "Oh, you'll get a kick out of this, then," I muttered. "Hm?" she asked. I faced toward her. "Turn around." She glanced over her shoulder at me, and froze. Her jaw dropped, very, very slowly. "I-" she stuttered. "But-" "Told you." "How?" she exclaimed. "Where did you get that stuff?" she practically yelled, gesturing at my outfit, wand, saddlebags, and goggles included. "Twilight," the dragon said, slightly confusedly, "calm down. There's probably a perfectly logical explanation for whatever it is you're freaking out about," he continued carefully, sounding very cautious, "so just-" "Calm down?" the mare(Twilight?) interrupted. "Spike, whatever this pony-" "Name's Star Flare." "Star Flare-is wearing violates every law of magic in existence!" she finished. "Every law as you know them," I stated simply. "As for how I got this stuff, well, I made it." "Made it? You're a pegasus! I don't know of a single unicorn, myself included, who could imbue an object with that much magical power at all, let alone keep it stable! You're lucky you haven't blown up! There's not even a structure to the enchantments, it's just a bunch of energy!" "Miss Twilight, or whatever your name is, I personally assure you that whatever you know about magic beyond casting spells and enchantments is completely wrong." She stopped dead in her tracks. The dragon(Spike?) gave me a 'what have you done' face. Twilight huffed, and puffed, and then sighed. "Okay," she said. "We haven't blown up yet, and you don't seem like an unintelligent pony. So I'm inclined to believe you." Spike looked both amazed and relieved. "But I'm not going to accept the idea that basically my entire life has been a lie so easily." Spike deflated again. "Fair enough," I said. "Tell you what. If you want to learn more, visit the field to the northeast of town sometime. I'm setting up shop over there permanently, at least as of now. I can teach you a thing or two about magic, if you like." She fumed slightly at that, but said nothing. "Also," I said, grabbing a novel off a shelf. "I'd like to check this book out." She groaned. "Give it here," she said. I tossed it over to her. She caught it with her magic and levitated a stamp toward her, stamped a small card inside a pocket in the book, then tossed it back rather forcefully. My wand flew out of my robes, flaring with magic and stopping the book midair. Twilight's eye twitched slightly. The book floated into my saddlebag, then the wand took its place back in my robes. I trotted toward the door, waving goodbye to Twilight. I hadn't meant to make her flip out like that. I did warn her that my work was controversial though.
Setting Up ShopAuthor's Note HUGE apologies for the major lack of updates. Expect them fairly frequently from now on (around once a week or so). Also, there may be a few spacing issues with this chapter, since it was written on mobile. I'll adjust it soon if necessary. Setting Up Shop I trotted northeast from the library, with the exact setup of the workshop running through my mind. It had looked relatively flat, but it would still need some adjustments. I took note of a few more interesting shops and structures as I walked. I still found the amount of things you could learn about an object and its history by looking at its magical energy amazing. I walked past a couple of ponies who I couldn't hear talking, but I could tell that they were jokingly remarking about how silly one of their friends could be, just by seeing the types of magic they were emitting. I directed my consistently inconsistent attention span back at the matter of the workshop. I could see the field now, its lush grass drawing near. I peered through my goggles, easily picking out some positive forms of navitas in the area. Perfect. I plunged a hoof into my saddlebag, rummaging around for the silver cube I had stored the workshop in. After a brief moment, I found it and extracted it from the bag. I floated my wand out of my robe and pressed the end into the surface of the cube. A ring of glowing runes surrounded the area the wand had touched, signifying the cube was in deploy mode. An illusion of the workshop was projected from the front of the cube, showing precisely where everything would be placed. I wandered around the model, adjusting areas that intersected the ground with my wand so that the land was flat. When I finally deemed it ready, it was around sunset. "Phew," I gasped, flopping on the ground. I did a quick double check and then sat up again. "Looks good." I heard somepony call in my direction from a ways behind me, and turned to see who it was. "Hey! Star Flare!" It was Twilight. I stared for a moment before I regained my composure. I was fairly certain I had said sometime earlier, not later in the evening. I felt the need to point this out. "I said sometime, Twilight, as in once I actually have a home established. Not sometime as in later tonight." "Sorry," she said, flushing slightly as she approached. "I can come back later, if that's what you mean." I paused for a moment. "Nah, it's fine, I suppose. Might as well stay and watch the light show now that you're here." "Light show?" she asked, puzzled and curious. "Well," I said, correcting myself. "Technically it's a complex arrangement of layers upon layers of runes and imbuements combined with concepts taken from other civilizations and an understanding of the fundamental forces that govern reality being put to use, but that's a rather large mouthful to say." She looked completely lost, which I didn't imagine felt good to somepony who had studied magic with the Princess for what was clearly a major portion of her lifetime. "It'll make more sense once you see it," I assured her, neglecting to add "or you'll be even more confused." I tapped the cube with my wand. "You might want to stand back." The cube became transparent for a fraction of a second, flashing brightly. Red runes shot out of it, forming a perimeter around the illusion. Twilight looked fairly unimpressed, which was probably due to the fact that she could only see the runes. The illusion began to solidify, pieces of it glowing an amazing variety of colors, some of which I was only able to perceive because of my goggles, before solidifying. An extremely loud boom resonated above it, making Twilight flinch. The runes vanished, leaving my newly re-established home. "What in the name of Celestia was that!?" Twilight screeched. "That," I responded calmly, "to put it simply, was a structure being moved out of a pocket dimension onto this plane of reality." Twilight just stared. "You're telling me," she began, pointing at the cube with her hoof, "that that thing is capable of creating another dimension, and not only that, but it can transfer things in and out of it safely?" I nodded. "That's the general gist of it. Technically it just has a link to the dimension imprinted in it so it can access it, not create new ones, but yeah, you've got the idea." Twilight's eye twitched. "Who are you?" "Star Flare, Equestria's most established and only thaumaturge, for a good reason at that," I replied. "At your service." She turned her gaze toward the workshop, studying the various apparatus that was littered about it. "And what's all that stuff?" "That's my workshop." "I mean," she corrected herself, "what does it do?" I sighed. "Twilight, it's getting late and I've done the calculations. It would take me a full six months to explain everything I have in my workshop in detail. I can probably explain the basics of it in around an hour or so some other time, but right now, I really need a nap." "But-" she began. "No. You don't understand. I need a nap," I intereupted her. "Please. Some other time." She sighed in defeat. "Alright. Some other time." She trotted away slowly. I watched for a moment to be sure she was leaving before stepping into my house. I trotted up the stairs, into my study, and flopped onto my bed. I lay still for a few moments. Just as I was about to drift off to sleep, I heard something shatter outside. It sounded suspiciously like broken glass. In an instant I was out of my bed and my wand levitating in front of me. A dark purple crystal burst out of my saddlebag and fixed itself to the wand. It flashed, and I teleported through the wall to the source of the noise. In front of me was a smashed vial, a puddle of green liquid, and a terrified Twilight. I groaned. "Answer me a question, Twilight. Do you have any idea how disastrous what you just did could have been?" She shook her head almost imperceptibly. "That vial contained a distilled form of magic. You're lucky it was composed of earth magic and not a dangerous kind like, say, chaos. Who knows what it would have done to you." Her eyes managed to widen further. I shook my head. "Honestly, out of all the pieces of equipment you could have chosen to investigate, you chose one of the most volatile." She remained perfectly still. "Go," I told her. She vanished in a flash of light. I raised my wand again and teleported back into my bedroom, then collapsed on the bed once more. Maybe I had been a little bit harsh, I thought to myself. Oh, well. I asked her to leave once, at least semi-politely. This socializing thing was going to need a bit of readjustment.
Vengeful PrincessMy eyes snapped open as I remembered that the Summer Sun Celebration was that very night. I reared back, inarticulately screaming my frustration to the heavens. Which, when translated from my perception to reality, amounted to flopping backward and making a noise that sounded something along the lines of "blurgh." I slowly shifted myself out of bed and then to my wardrobe to recharge again. One stream of magic later, and I didn't feel rested at all, but I did feel like I'd just drank fourteen cups of coffee. I supposed that would suffice. Before I left, I grabbed a few articles of clothing out of my wardrobe. They were rich golden robes similar to the ones I was wearing, but with a hood, and there was so much magic coursing through them that even without my goggles I could see shimmers and ripples of color in the surface of it. I stowed them in my saddlebag for the time being, along with another wand, which I liked to call the Immortal Stick. More than likely, none of them would prove necessary, but you never knew when it came to immortal princesses of the night who were possessed by vengeful demons. I made my way back into the town, weaving through the irregular road patterns toward the town hall, goggles down at full power and wand ready to intercept any surprise bolts of magic. Nopony paid much attention to me, which spoke volumes about the strange things this town must have seen. The crowd around the town hall buzzed quietly, chattering away about random little things that came to mind. Suddenly, a fanfare began to play, and the chatter stopped. A spotlight shone on the base of a tower in the center of the hall, revealing the mare I assumed was the mayor. "Fillies and gentlecolts," she announced, "as mayor of Ponyville, it is my great pleasure to announce the beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration!" The crowd cheered gleefully. "In just a few moments, our town will witness the magic of the sunrise, and celebrate this, the longest day of the year! And now, it is my great honor to introduce to you the ruler of our land, the very pony who gives us the sun and the moon each and every day, the good, the wise, the bringer of harmony to all of Equestria..." I suppressed a snort, then glanced at the moon for a moment and frowned grimly. The surface was bare. "...Princess Celestia!" the mayor finished. A white unicorn mare pulled a rope, parting the curtains on the balcony to reveal...nothing. The entire crowd gasped in an extremely theatrical manner, whereas I sat there, completely unsurprised. Everypony began talking nervously, and then the mayor spoke up. "Remain calm, everypony, there must be a reasonable explanation!" The mare exclaimed from up on the balcony, "She's gone!" The crowd gasped yet again, even more theatrically than before, which I hadn't been certain was possible. A blue fog billowed up on the platform, and out of it stepped none other than Nightmare Moon herself. "Oh, my beloved subjects," she began, grinning horrendously. "It's been so long since I've seen your precious, little sun-loving faces." Somepony yelled at Nightmare from below, taking off and flying toward her. Another mare caught her by the tail, holding her back. "What did you do with our Princess?!" Nightmare chuckled. "Why, am I not royal enough for you? Don't you know who I am?" A mare who sounded like she was on a massive sugar high started rattling off names, until a cupcake got shoved into her mouth. I sat there amusedly. "Does my crown no longer count now that I have been imprisoned for a thousand years? Did you not recall the legend? Did you not see the signs?" At that moment, Twilight spoke up. "I did. And I know who you are. You're the Mare in the Moon - Nightmare Moon!" I did a double take, fairly surprised, and the crowd gasped yet again. "Jeez," I muttered, just loud enough for absolutely everypony to hear, "what is it with you ponies and gasping? And kudos to you, Twilight, for reading up on your lore!" I called. "I'm impressed!" Everypony had turned and was staring at me now. "I didn't think you'd know about Nightmare, being Celestia's student and all." Nightmare didn't seem to notice. "Well well well, somepony who remembers me." I waved my hoof around sporadically in the air, as if to signal I was part of the ponies-who-remember-Nightmare-Moon-club too. "Then you also know why I'm here." Twilight started to say something, then trailed off. "Remember this day, little ponies," Nightmare warned, "for it was your last. From this moment forth, the night shall last forever!" She cackled evilly. I flailed my hoof around again. "Hey, Oblivious MacMoonbutt!" I called tauntingly. Her gaze snapped toward me. "Over here!" She looked indescribably furious. If she knew how, her glare probably could have torn me to shreds. "You insolent foal," she snarled. "How dare you insult me?" "Like this," I replied casually. "It's easy. All I have to do is say something completely out of place or unsettling given the context, and then add enough sass to provoke you." Her horn ignited and a bolt rocketed towards me. It fizzled out right before it would have hit me, and I flung myself onto the ground in order to look incapacitated. Everypony gasped yet again, and backed away from me. "Seize her!" the mayor ordered a nearby group of pegasi guards. "Only she knows where the Princess is!" she yelled as the guards took flight and attempted to swarm Nightmare Moon. "Stay back, you fools!" Nightmare cackled. Her eyes glowed white with power, and lightning cracked down from the sky and knocked the guards away. Nightmare turned into a cloud of starry blue smoke, and flew out the door. "Talk about drama," I muttered, standing up. Six or seven layers of protective fields and enchantments came in very handy in these situations. As I stood, I saw the pegasus from before fly out the door after Nightmare, with Twilight following close behind. I spontaneously decided to tag along as well, and trotted out the door, catching the gaze of pretty much every pony in the building. I suppose it made sense, considering the fact that from their perspective, I'd just been completely incapacitated. I halted right in front of the door to the library and knocked on it more times than were probably necessary. A muffled "Who is it?" came through the door. "Just your friendly neighborhood thaumaturge," I replied, walking in without waiting for a response. Magical energy highs leave little room for patience. Twilight was frantically searching through the assortment of books lining the walls as I walked in. "Elements, Elements, Elements! How am I supposed to stop Nightmare Moon without the Elements of Harmony?" I heard an assortment of hoofsteps behind me, and it was then that I discovered I had been followed in by five more mares. I turned my head to see the group walking in. One of them, who I recognized as the pegasus from before, flew up in Twilight's face in an accusatory manner. "And just what are the Elements of Harmony, huh?" Twilight backed up in surprise. “And how did you know about Nightmare Moon, huh? Are you a spy?” “Now hold on just a second, please, in the name of logic,” I interrupted, as one of the other mares grabbed the pegasus’s tail in her mouth and pulled her away from Twilight. “Why would she be a spy? Who would she be spying for, exactly, and what would she be trying to find out?” The pegasus stopped, her expression blank. “You didn’t think that question through very well, did you?” “Hey!” she exclaimed, trying to fly toward me and getting stopped again by the orange earth pony. “Excuse my manners,” I said. “I’ve just had the equivalent of about fourteen cups of coffee, so my mind is all over the place right now. Point is,” I continued, “she’s not a spy.” “But she sure knows what’s going on,” the earth pony said. The entire group took a step toward her. “Don’t ya, Twilight?” “Wait what. You all know each other?” I exclaimed. My mind had ground to a complete halt. They all glanced at me. Twilight was silent for a moment, then took a deep breath. “I read all about the prediction of Nightmare Moon’s return. Some strange objects called the Elements of Harmony are the only things that can stop her. But I don’t know what they are, or where to find them. I don’t even know what they do!” I raised my hoof. “I can help with that.” Everypony turned and stared at me. “Well?” Twilight asked. “What are they?” I took a breath and entered microlecture mode. “There are six Elements of Harmony, only five of which have been recorded. They are Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Honesty, and Loyalty. The last known location of the Elements is the ancient castle of the Royal Pony Sisters, which is located in the Everfree Forest.” I felt a slight buzzing in my side courtesy of one of my alarm enchantments, and turned toward the window. Hovering there was a cloud of starry navy blue fog. "Hey, Moonbutt! This monologue is intended for an audience of six, not seven!" The fog looked as shocked as fog can look, then flew away. “Sorry about that,” I apologized to the group, all of whom looked very confused. “Nightmare Moon decided she wanted to eavesdrop. She knows where we’re going.” “Which is…?” one of the ponies asked. She was the white unicorn mare I had seen at the town hall. “The Everfree Forest,” I replied nonchalantly. “I said that already.” “The Everfree Forest?!” everyone exclaimed dramatically. “Haven’t I said that, what, twice now?” I asked. “Better get going.” With that, I trotted toward the door. I looked back to see the others standing there, not sure what to do. “Well?” I asked. I waved a hoof at the door. “Come on!” They exchanged a few glances, then followed me out. Ten minutes later, we found ourselves standing at the edge of the Everfree Forest. Most of us were standing there, wondering what to do next. I was standing there, waiting for them to realize that we were supposed to go into the forest. “Whee! Let’s go!” the pink one exclaimed. “Not so fast,” Twilight said. “I appreciate the offer, but, I’d much rather do this on my own.” “No can do, sugarcube,” the orange one (I really needed to learn their names) interjected. “We sure ain’t lettin’ any friend of ours” -Twilight cringed heavily at that- “go into that creepy place alone. We’re stickin’ to you like caramel on a candy apple,” she added, as they all began to trot into the forest. I followed suit, with only Twilight and the pink one staying behind. “Especially if there’s candy apples in there!” the pink one exclaimed. “What?” she asked in response to the strange look Twilight gave her. “Those things are good!” Twilight sighed and followed us, albeit reluctantly. “S-so, none of you have been in here before?” she asked. “Nope,” I said. “First day in town.” The pink one gasped dramatically, and looked like she was about to sprint all the way back to the town for some reason. The expression somehow completely vanished in half a second, with no trace whatsoever. “Oh, h-heavens no!” the white unicorn gasped. “Just look at it! It’s simply dreadful!” “And it ain’t natural,” the orange one (I was really starting to feel guilty for referring to them that way by that point) added. “Folks say it don’t work the same as Equestria.” “What do you mean?” Twilight asked nervously. “Nopony knows!” the blue pegasus said in what I assumed was the scariest voice she could muster, which really was not much. “You know why?” she asked, crouching low to the ground and advancing on the rest of the group. “Because nopony that’s ever been inside has ever come out!” She yelled the last word. And then the cliff collapsed beneath us. Author's Note Haha...Oops.
