Symbiosis

Equestria was shaking. The very earth itself shook and cracked as the earthquake rippled outwards from Equestria to the neighboring nations and then to the very ends of the earth. Celestia stood at the quake’s epicenter looking upwards along with the most elite knights Equestria had to offer. Their eyes were fixed on the unthinkably large metal fortress which until recently had stayed stationary in the sky above the badlands. Now the massive silver fortress shook, the massive curved shell like plates which formed it’s outer covering warped, buckled and cracked, some parts falling downwards to the earth, others flying skywards as the structure’s gravity fields tore it apart.

“Your highness, the Temple’s destruction is releasing far more power than we thought. If it keeps this up… well I honestly don’t know what will happen.”

Celestia nodded, turning to the fully armored mage beside her and taking the scrying mirror from his magic to see for herself. “How can they have controlled this much power?” Her eyes scanned the tablet the runes and equations indicating the impossible, “The fortress is creating more power than the sun.”

The mage nodded, “It would seem that the Outsiders are the type of people who ensure everyone loses if they do.”

A knight standing behind the mage nodded, “That is precisely who they are… My Lady, I has been an-”

Celestia’s vision suddenly shifted, her army and the badlands instantly replaced with a view of a room made entirely from steel arranged in a truly alien architecture. At the room’s center was a teardrop shaped podium, the tear’s point curved to cradle a glowing purple ball of energy. Laying at the base of the purple ball was a single knight, an earth pony, his armor blackened, melted, dented, cracked, and smouldering. Where his flesh could be seen through the damaged armor it was just as badly damaged, the fact that the knight had one eye open, and was able to look directly at Celestia was a miracle, a testament to the knight, and to the mages who had helped build his armor.

The knight coughed, blood spraying the deck, “M-m’lady, I apologize. We failed. We slew their leaders but-nnngh!”

A spasm wracked the knight’s body, Celestia recognized the specific movements, the way the eye dilated spasticly, the drool from the corner of his mouth. Outsider magic had some of the cruelest ways to kill she had ever seen. “No… Are you both injured?”

He nodded, “She is not as injured, but my wounds are mortal… I… Yes I was telling her… Their leader, he, she can't survive on her own anymore and she can't debond. Ryuome will die with me. But that’s not important! We-gh-ah… This place’s magic is… I don’t know how to describe it… Would you please… thank you.”

Celestia’s vision changed again, she saw the fortress rip itself apart, a monstrous wound in the world at its core, a point of magical energy so great in power and so small in size that everything she had ever known would be ripped to pieces and pulled into that single point. She could see it, each and every last detail of what would befall her kingdom, her world, her people. Then her vision returned to her dying knight, “M’lady, we had an idea. It will take time to create that doomsday spell. Our power is… well we’re dying. Neither of us has the strength. If you could throw it into the sun before it finishes we might be safe. I want you to know that it was an honor serving you.” He pulled one hoof up to salute Celestia, at least as much as the shredded mess of armor and body could be moved.

Celestia nodded, tears running down her face. The pony and the spirit bonded to him had become two of her most beloved friends, during the invasion they had also become heroes. She had hoped to see them live through their final mission. “I will. Equestria will remember your sacrifice as long as I live Cedar.”

He nodded, smiling slightly as the vision he had sent Celestia began to fade. Before it vanished completely his remaining eye widened, “What? Now? Off all the worst possible times for you to possibly… Celestia! She’s-”

The vision cut off, Celestia was once again seeing from her own eyes. Her mage gave her a hopeful look, “Did Sir Creek find a way to stop the-”

Celestia didn’t hear the rest of his speech, her vision was once again forced to another perspective. Unlike the previous message, this one hurt. She grit her teeth against the pain, it wasn’t Ryuome’s fault that simply speaking caused Celestia pain, their magics were simply incompatible. The previous two times the spirit had spoken to her he message had been garbled and hard to understand, but this time it was quite clear pure desperation pushing the words through to her mind.

More information followed, not words but raw knowledge. The proper name of Ryuome’s people, how long her child’s egg would lay dormant as it repaired the developing spiritual being within, what the pale blue gem-like crystal egg looked like, how to ensure it survived the centuries it would need to hatch. It was a plea from a mother to save her child. Celestia could not ignore such a request. You spent your existence doing nothing else but trying to make ponies lives better Ryuome. I will spend a part of mine ensuring your child lives.

Celestia turned to her mage, “Star Fire, I’m going to retrieve Sir Creek's body and attempt to hurl that infernal fortress into the sun. If I fail and our world survives you will lead our people.”

“Understood your highness. All fortune goes with you.” He saluted, every knight within earshot joined in the salute, echoing the knight order’s motto.

Celestia jumped, snapping her wings open and taking off in a single fluid bound. She flapped as hard as she could, pushing herself as fast as she had ever flown, eyes narrowed in concentration as she ascended the several miles to where the fortress floated. She could sense the enchantments on Sir Creek armor, the second she felt it close within range a flash of golden light and a pop teleported her to her dying knight’s side.

She picked him up in her magic, taking special care to not jostle the pale blue egg shaped crystal which lay at his side. Another flash lit the collapsing fortress as she teleported outside of it’s metal confines, taking her knight and the egg with her. Celestia closed her eyes as she probed the fortress with her magic, It’s magic neutralizing defenses are down. If only they could have been disrupted months ago.

From the ground Celestia shown like the sun as she unleashed the full power of her magic. The assembled knights who had been watching in hopes of their Princess’s safe return shielded their eyes or looked away from the blinding glare. Celestia’s light enveloped the fortress’s impossible bulk, the entire ground shook with a tremor many orders of magnitude greater than those which had come before. The very air seemed to crack and scream, then silence.

The fortress was gone. Celestia descended to the ground slowly, her magic nearly completely drained. As her hooves touched the ground several unicorns took the fallen knight’s body and held it aloft as respectfully as they could accomplish. “Star Fire, take this egg please… I fear I may drop it.”

The mage nodded, the green-grey glow of his magic carefully gripping the egg. The questions of where it had come from, what it was, and why his princess had chosen to take it from the fortress could all be asked later. “Your orders, M’lady?”

Celestia took a breath to compose herself, “Take Sir Creek’s body to Canterlot, he is to be given a burial befitting of the pony who saved every one of us. As for the order… the war is over, Equestria has no need of Knights such as yourselves. The Order is hereby disbanded, to be reformed immediately should the Outsiders ever return. Return all equipment to the keep for preservation, all mages who have learned Outsider spells are to work together to try and find a way to shield our world from their sight then forget the spells. No pony will breath a word of this war… There is no sense in causing future generations to panic.”

Star Fire frowned, “Is that wise your highness? It was our attempts to create a magical link between minds which drew them to our world. If we do not let ponies know what might happen if that is attempted again…”

“You make a good point… I will establish a small service of individuals to educate ponies on the dangers of such magic… But they should never be told the true reasons as to why. We may never see them again. I certainly hope we will not, and I do not want my ponies living in fear of another invasion from the stars which may never come.”

~~

Celestia’s orders were followed to the letter. Every Outsider corpse was burned, every ship dismantled and buried, every weapon stored away, the Order’s keep hidden under illusory magics, it’s members minds voluntarily wiped, or made to live out their days within the Order’s keep should the Outsiders attack again. Every record of the war was altered to make it seem as if the Gryphon Kingdoms had attacked, a cover up the Gryphon King agreed to participate in as he too understood that some things are best lost to time. Within three years no trace of the truth aside from the odd conspiracy theory remained. Except that is, for the egg.

Star Fire cared for it first, following instructions by Celestia on how to carefully harmonize pony magic with the egg’s own odd magic. When Star Fire died Celestia cared for the egg herself, until a new court mage was appointed at which time the egg was passed on. In time the egg became a symbol of office for Equestria’s Court Mage, a symbol showing that this pony was the foremost expert on magic. It was held by Starswirl the Bearded, by Glimmer the Wise, and Lady Spellweaver.

The Egg changed hooves with the title or position of the foremost magical expert countless times. When nopony worthy of the title could be found Celestia cared for it herself. After Lady Spellweaver passed on Celestia once more took possession of it once more and in her care it stayed. It stayed with her while she taught Sunset Shimmer, it was in her possession as she mentored Twilight, it remained Celestia’s even after Twilight ascended and was crowned a princess in her own right.

Centuries passed, Equestria thrived under the rule of it’s four princesses, safeguarded by the Immortal Elements, by the EUP, by Luna’s Crusaders, and by the efforts of many an adventurer. The kingdom entered into a golden age of peace and harmony so perfect that even the lands neighboring Equestria shared in the kingdom’s good fortunes. The hundredth anniversary of Twilight’s ascension arrived and Celestia noticed the egg had changed. The blue gemstone looked no different on the outside, it was still the same pale blue many faceted egg shaped stone. But beneath its surface tiny ribbons of pink and white energy whorled and zipped as if enraptured by their own existence.

Taking a quill in her magic Celestia began to write a letter, “Dear Twilight…”