Where the Wind Goes

...but first, let's talk about history.

I’m sitting in front of a table, almost in total darkness. The dim lights of the bulbs in the chandeliers that hang on the roof barely help me to see anything but the quiet black void around me. There is a large window illuminating the room, but it is nightfall and the windows are thick. It can’t be seen anything outside, nothing but the opaque blue from the night sky… not even a star.

I am looking at nothing in front of me, just a dark shadow, so dark that I can’t even see the other side of the long table in which I took seat not long ago. I keep looking at that dark void, lost in my thoughts. The sudden noise of a chair being moved on the room makes me turn quickly, as if waiting for something to jump out of the darkness.

I slowly turn again at the dark void in front of me… but this time, I don't find the void alone. Right there, on the center, just in front of me, a pair of shining green eyes is watching me. They do not seem to blink or fade, they are just there, watching my soul. Whoever those eyes belong to is seated on the other side of the table, I know that. I’m now looking to the eyes, as if it was a contest. Silence.

The eyes suddenly seem to move as if looking down the table. They follow an object invisible to me. The sound of something being placed on the dark wood of the table caught my attention. The green eyes look at me again. The sound of slight push and something sliding over the wooden table makes me to look down at what just landed in front of me: a book.

I have to turn around the book because it was backwards. I read the title “The History of Equestria, vol. 4”, the old flag of Equestria features the cover and it has many golden ornaments on each corner. I turn again to the eyes. They are still looking at me.

“Was that what you asked for?” Says a neutral female voice, the female voice of the eyes. I now know that she is a female.

“Yes,” I answer in the same neutral tone.

The eyes seem to look down and close.

“I hope it will help your cause,” the voice says.

“It will,” its my answer. I open the book on the first page. I skip the prologue and the first chapters. I continue turning the pages over and over again. I’m looking for one in special… I finally reach it. “Chapter 8: The last years of the kingdom.” I take out a paper scroll, an ink pen, and I start reading.

“Year 1100 ABNM (After the Banishment of Nightmare Moon). One hundred years after the return of princess Luna and the apparition of the Elements of harmony, the princess Twilight Sparkle signs the official declaration of Ponyville as a city, now called Ponycity. Ponies of all races celebrate...”

I look at my paper scroll and start copying the text. I finish and turn the page, looking for another important point, my eyes scanning every single word.

“...To commemorate, the Friendship and Harmony monument is built in the downtown...” Not that important. What else? “...the considerable expansion of the once small earth pony ville had grown over the past years…” I take note of that. My eyes keep reading the same paragraph but skipping some words. “...sweet Apple Acres becomes the most important apple producer of the central region…” That part too, it's important for my research. “...The barn was destroyed again by a…” That one isn’t.

I jump to the next page of the chapter. “...the increasing population impulses the expansion of more cities and the creation of new ones…” That is important. “...1121, Appleloosa officially becomes a city…” That could be important. “...San Palomino´s Community is founded at San Palomino´s Desert…” Not that important. “...Horseshoe bay declared the main port of Equestria…” Useful, I write that. “...more zebras, donkeys, mules, alpacas, and deer arrive to Equestria. The first caravans of camels arrive to trade on the minor cities. The zebra consulate…” very important.

Next page.

“...necessity, the Royal Academy of Canterlot for Gifted Ponies is founded by princess Twilight Sparkle on 1138. The Academy…” Very, very important. “The third pegasi cloud city, Solstice, is founded at the southern east of Appleloosa on 1143 …” That is very important too.

There is an image on this page, I look it carefully. It seems to be a representation of a bigger painting. The image, which is divided on two parts, shows the once princess Twilight Sparkle writing a book on a podium while some ponies are around her holding scrolls and paints. On the other side of the image there are some pegasi building the main acropolis of the city of Solstice, clearly classic pegasi architecture. I turn the page and continue my reading.

“...in Equestria. The construction of the city leaded to the discovery of ancient ruins at the south of Equestria, many...” I finally arrived to the part I wanted.

“Numerous expeditions are made to the ruins. The experts return with all types of treasures. The gold, gems, and diamonds are sold to museums or in the market. The other part of the treasure, knowledge, is carried to the Royal Academy of Canterlot for studies and to..."

I take a moment to write all this down. Making all the words on my paper scroll fit perfectly. I finish and I continue right where I left it.

"...final transaction until 1213. From all the relics founded on the ruins of this ancient civilization, only one receives the full interest of the Royal Academy: a large, monolith type stone that seemed to be the master piece for an strange mechanism on the ruins..."

The sound of a door swinging on the other side of the room interrupts me. I only turn slightly to see what is it about, but I can’t see anything. I continue my writing, ignoring that the green eyes are not in front of me anymore.

"...the monolith is completed late on that same year, and it is tested...  ...the monolit comes to be called as the Cycle Stone because it's power and ability to control the rotation of the main asters..." I proceed to write this important part. I didn't noticed first, but there is a small image on this page. It shows what think it would be the Cycle Stone. I take my time to admire it a little bit and then proceed with the next text.

"...The princesses demand the Royal Academy to end its operations. They infer the closure and, with the support of many ponies in all of Equestria, they... ...The princesses are unable to control the population, it's too much the influence of the Royal Academy... …The princesses finally stop the project, and... ...As a punishment for their acts, the princesses refuse to end the winter of the year, prolonging it over 15 months. This chapter of the history is known as 'The White Year'. The crops don't grow, there is no harvest, and the population starves on the cities. The efforts of the population to clean the winter are useless..." I must admit, this is one of the most interesting chapters of the Equestrian history, and a fundamental part on my researches.

"...a furious mob in Canterlot march towards the palace, the hungry guards let them in without any opposition..." Another image is here, on this one, a furious mass of ponies of every type are crossing the gates of the palace. There are some guards on this one, but they seem to be joining the mob or opening the gates. I take a time to write everything to this point.

I know what is next on this chapter: the “Canterlot Declaration”, a document that stated the abdication and the exile of the alicorns of Equestrian soil. Signed by magic, unless the declaration is cancelled by the council, no alicorn can place a single hoof on the ground as long as it is called 'Equestria'. I write that, but I skip the page and continue.

"Posterior effects: With the abdication of the alicorns on 1215, a council was formed in early 1216 to continue ruling Equestria as a single nation. A representative of each one of the mayor races formed the Supreme Council, while representatives of the minorities combined with the Supreme Council to create the National Assembly. A governor was set to each one of the great cities and a mayor for each one of the small ones or villages..." I write this on my scroll.

"...the Cycle Stone is set to work again. The Royal Academy of Canterlot for Gifted Ponies now passes to be the Academy of Canterlot for Gifted Ponies. The years start to count from the exile of the alicorns (AEA)..." The last part wasn't of my interest, but I write the text anyways.

I turn to the last sentence of the chapter.

"The kingdom of Equestria had failed after the increase of population. Will a council be enough to handle all these ponies?"

I smile and mutter to myself "No, they did not."

I close the book, pack my things on the saddlebags and stand up from the chair. I uselessly look around to see if there is anypony on the room. "I'm leaving now, hope you don't mind," I say to nopony.

I walk to the door behind me and open it. I leave the room, leaving nothing behind me but an old, lonely book on a table in total darkness...