The alien landscape rolled out ahead, a curious cacophony of colors at a stark contrast to the shades of flat green but a turn back. The hills were jagged, like tiny mountains, and piled on, around and over one another like they were stopped midway through a complex waltz. The discordant hues and crooked hills brought forth memories Celestia would rather have forgotten. Just ahead of her trotted Starswirl the Bearded: head down and his mind focused on what this strange land yielded. His hat, seemingly untouched by the wind, jingled gently further and further ahead. She hastened her strides.
So deep were they now in the Everfree that Celestia was not sure where they may be on a map, let alone how the forest could still continue. What kind of book could be so far out here was a definite curiosity, one she hoped that Starswirl and she may satisfy. When he had told her of his amazing discovery, Celestia was more than a little eager to see it. Anything that could make his eyes twinkle like they had ages ago was a good thing. And if it got him away from the dusty old books for a few days, the better.
What was most interesting was Starswirl claimed he could not of found it without her help, as she wasn't quite sure how she'd helped. The last time she'd entered his library to do anything but get him out was nearly 300 years ago. The conversation had started like any other.
“Hello Starswirl.” Celestia had said.
“Hello Celestia.” His tone was at a cold disparity with hers.
“I hope I am not intruding. Do you have a moment? It has been ages since we last spoke.”
“No, but we can talk while I work” He looked away from his books to give a glance. An attempt to look interested, accented with a smile. His face was youthful, most likely from another reverse age spell, but the features were hard and a beard had already covered much. Celestia frowned at that, remembering the warmth he had so long ago.
“Of course. I wanted to speak to you about the Gal-”
“Celestia, you know I have no time for that nonsense.” A book from his desk was enveloped by a blue aura and tossed into the sea of knowledge on the floor.
“Actually, Starswirl, I seem to recall it was your idea to start having a yearly Gala, so the ponies of Equestria could have a chance to see their protector. You had time then, that was almost four centuries back.”
“As you know, Celestia, things change as life goes on. You have to adapt to those changes, or be lost to them. My research has become most important, and, as we have discussed, I have little time for anypony.” He paused and turned to her. “Despite that, I do appreciate our talks, my dear. Remember that when we approached you about leading Equestria, I was making little progress in any of my work. Raising and lowering the Sun and Moon each day took time I wanted to spend elsewhere. I'm lucky I accidentally figured out that age spell, least my work would never have been finished.” The stallion shivered at the thought, his beard vibrating like a frightened lamb. “I try not to even consider the idea. Ah, there it is.” His horn was enveloped with a soft glow and a book was pulled past Celestia's mane and to his desk. He turned and began to scan through it, magic licking each page.
He was looking past her! “I understand, Starswirl, but it seems like you haven't really consider what else there is out there. While you have been in here, I have been out in the world, doing what you used to join me in: Exploring our lands and meeting the ponies and creatures there. I've learned much speaking with all of them and I feel that the connections I have have made me stronger. Not just the joy I feel when I'm around them, but a real strength for having known them or still knowing them. I'd just like to have you experience it too. It may even help with your research.”
He sighed at the last comment. “That is just where you and I differ. You have always been close to somepony or another.”
The pages lost their shine as he stopped suddenly. They toppled on one another, losing his place.
“Y-you have a social personality.” The pages began to glow once more. “It makes sense for our leader to have one. Call it luck or fate. I, on the other hand, have never really felt close to anypony. I've always had something I aspired for, particularly in magic, and ponies seemed to be more of a hindrance to my goals rather than a helper. Even Clover the Clever was little more than a colleague. It's not that I didn't like them. I just have more important things to do than fritter my time away making friends.”
“I can see that, but it is possible that you haven't really tried to make any friends. You're are so absorbed by these books that I can hardly tell you from paper. Perhaps if you tried, you'd see what value the ponies hold for you. I'm becoming worried that you may be losing sight of what is important, like ...” She looked down.
The blue hue on his book ceased abruptly again and Starswirl trotted up to Celestia and looked her straight in the eye. There was a somberness to his gaze. “Celestia. Don't think that way. I wish I had been here during that time and I regret it. I assure you, I have not lost sight of what is important. Trust me.” He stole a glance at an hour glass, the top half three quarters empty.
He paused, looking down. He met her gaze once more. “How does this sound? I'll try making friends again once I have finished this spell, ok? It is the one I have been attempting to cast for ages, concerning Cutie Marks. If I can figure out how their magic works and even how to transfer them..." His eyes wandered in thought and then his head shook smoothly. "Once I have that one done, I'll take some time to join you for some events.”
Celestia looked up, then down, then met his eyes, an uneasiness lifting from them. “That sounds fair. Could you not just take that time now though? The Gala is only once a year. You have your age spell. Take some time out and join me for it. Besides, I find it a lot more enjoyable when I have an excuse to not be greeting every guest.” You worry me Starswirl
“I'm afraid the answer is no.” He turned back to his desk.
Exasperated, it was Celestia's turn to sigh. Her vision locked onto the book he was reading. It's binding was worn thin from use. She'd begun to despise books more and more over the course of the past three centuries. “Could you at least read something you haven't read before? A foal's book even? Just something you haven't read twenty times before.”
His ears perked up at that. “A foal's book...” His head dipped into his hoof, bobbing slightly. “That's it!” And with that he galloped off into the deeper reaches of his library, leaving her a tad confused.
That same voice roused Celestia from her reflection. “I'm sorry Starswirl, I was lost in thought. What did you say?” The words were a bit sluggish from the heat. She was beginning to believe she could cut the humidity with her horn.
“I said come here, we still have a ways to go and I thought I might teach you something,” He looked back at her. “Like before.” He moved his head in a gesture to his front; his hat ringing in a shaky reply. She closed the gap with a few steps and soon glanced over his shoulder. She was much taller than he was now, unlike when he had first approached her; back when she didn't even have her own Cutie Mark. Looks like Alicorns took longer to get their Cutie Mark and grow to their full height. There was a small book enveloped in his personal hue before him. It moved to her and she latched onto it with her own golden glow.
She gave the cover a cursory look: It had a crudely drawn image on the front, like that of a foal's. The picture was a wavy red dragon. She opened the pages and began to leaf through. It was a whole collection of various drawings with accompanying words that described the images. There were dragons, griffons, images of Cloudsdale and even Canterlot. There was also a depiction of a large tree with the symbols of a Sun, Moon and Purple star. But... Starswirl saw her growing confusion.
“Ah, I see you've noticed the things we didn't even know of till rather recently.” He chuckled. “That is a collection of drawings from my foalhood friend, Wring R. Charade. He was an earth pony with a passion for music. Always humming some tune or another.” His eyes twinkled, an event Celestia was hoping to grow familiar with again. “They say that only unicorns can do magic. Well, Charade was never really the type to follow a tide.” He paused, his eyes glancing upwards, scanning his mind. “He had visions: Far off lands and all manner of creatures and places. An Earth Pony, performing clairvoyance?" His voiced speckled still with disbelief. "He'd tell me stories about all of them and each one was more unbelievable than the last. One day he said to me 'I will see it all, Starswirl.'
“To me, a young colt, it was all pretend and fantasy, so I humored him. 'Of course you shall, and I'll be the most powerful unicorn of all time.' I had said. A half truth, for I wanted as such, but knew better. Then he looked at me, looked through me, seeing me, 'You will make it so.'”
He took the book back from Celestia, a blue aura surrounding it once more. “I took his words to heart and threw myself into learning magic. I wanted to become the master of mystic and make what I had dared to imagine, reality. I didn't speak to Charade much after that as he soon disappeared before I had the chance to really show him. I was always skeptical about his visions and we weren't that close. Only later did I realize what he saw was real. All I have left of him now is this book. I never thought I would find such an important answer in his book, most of the visions are merely of places.” The pages turned quickly, consumed by blue and opened to show a floating tome in a forest, surrounded by jagged green hills and a sea of trees in all directions. “That book is the last thing he drew and the only object he ever drew. This is the only thing he told me nothing about, too. I believe that book may contain the answer I seek for my spell. Judging by the hills, I think it is here, deep within the Everfree.”
She looked down, scanning the ground blindly, busying her eyes and mind. “Why do you believe it contains what you need? Charade didn't write anything of the picture except for the name: The Callosum.“ Celestia made a small frown and examined his face.
His eyes twinkled. “There's something about this last message from my old friend. Besides, it may still be magical. Who knows what we may learn.” His excitement whispered a nostalgia she hadn't heard in years, lighting up her face. “Look!”
The Everfree was thick here, trees standing in walls about the path they stood on. Just ahead was The Callosum, still floating above an alter of stone. Starswirl galloped to the book and pulled it down with a flick of his horn. The book opened easily as he began to read. Celestia walked to the stone and glanced it over. There was an elaborate design upon the alter.
It depicted ponies of all shapes, dancing about the base of the stone. Above their heads were dragons, pegasi, sirens, griffons and other winged creatures, entwined. Then, just above that was a lone alicorn, her mane wrapped around the Sun. Next to her was the image of the moon, a dark mare cast upon it: a shadow. She suddenly felt uneasy. There was yet another depiction higher. It was a dark image, even in the midday. She'd couldn't quite make out the creature or...
“Celestia! Look at this.” She turned, her face shaded by gnarled branches. She looked down at the book. “This book lists everything. A collection of the complete history of Equestria. But what's more,” The pages spun, seas of text on every entry, all written by the same hoof. “It is still being written.” This page was half full, words filling in even now, describing the disappearance of the great Starswirl the Bearded and Princess Celestia into the Everfree, but nothing on the book itself. The words seemed to be just appearing on the pages, stroke by stroke, written by an invisible hoof.
“This is fantastic! I've never seen magic like- I could never imagine-” His breaths quickened. The book turned again, to a new page, one on spells. No hue enveloped it.
“The pages move on their own?” She asked.
“It seems to turn to whatever you think of. The pages don't run out, nor do they grow.”
She pulled The Callosum to her. Only one thing came to her mind the book found the article quite quick. A tear graced her eye.
Starswirl was fixated on the book. “It doesn't seem to write anything about the book itself, but it is clearly tied to this realm! Perhaps as the realm affects the words here, so too would the words here affect Equestria. Imagine if we wrote in the book ourselves. What we could do! What we could change. Prevent! I wouldn't need the spell on cutie marks, this could already do it already!” A manic glee was leaking from him, like a stallion granted one final, awesome wish.
She blinked, the salty liquid pulled back into her eye, merely dampening it. She looked at her mentor. “I think it is best not to consider that, my friend. That is too much power for anypony. This tome is here for a reason. We would never have found it if not for Charade's book. It was not-”
“Exactly, Celestia. Why would Charade leave such an important clue if not for it to be found and used! He wanted me to use this to finish my work and more. Think of all the bad we could change. We could stop. The destruction the Siren's had caused: prevented with the thrust of a quill. The disappearance of the Crystal Empire: thwarted before it had ever happened. Think of what you could change. Whom you could save.”
She was taken aback by his words. Her own words would not form.
“It is not wrong if we do what is right. I committed myself to protect this realm whilst I quested for knowledge. You have done the same and are bound only to that commitment. You and I have always saved the ponies of Equestria from our enemies. Why not save them before the damage was done. Then m-”
“Starswirl, we are not the ones to decide what a pony did or did not do. Nor are we,” She took a deep breath. “the ponies to change others to what we desire. Each pony is who they are because of what has happened and what they have done. As much as we may want to, it is not anypony's place to alter that. Changing that would be changing the ponies we have met. They would no longer be the friends we know, just the ones we created. What kind of world is that, but our own fantasy?”
Starswirl frowned, the twinkle gone from him. She continued. “Bad, good, we cannot just tailor things to what we want. I believe the wicked deserve second chances, I have to, and that chance may define who they are now for that is who they always were. Do we take that away, their very identity? Do we change those affected by that evil, for better or ill? We have not those answer my friend, and if I have learned anything from my time with the ponies, it is that nothing is as simple as it seems.”
He examined the path, then the trees to his right, then her. He understood. “What they do because of who they are: simple, mundane or evil as it may seem, shapes our world. We all do. They didn't need a book to do that. Neither do we. You can figure out that spell on your own. All of them. You don't need to use this. You have all the tim-”
“I don't have time Celestia.” His voice trembled. “Look, you don't have to be responsible for this. We've know each other for centuries and I have always done what is best, always been the voice of wisdom. Let me be that here, let me finish my work. I won't rid the realm of conflict, merely make sure nopony is hurt anymore and finish my work. You will still have your character building and I will have my dream. I could even bring your sister back when the time is right. I can just make you forget if it is too much for your-” As he pleaded, his aura lifted the book and Celestia snatched it and tossed toward the alter. It landed in the dirt.
“We have known each other for centuries and I have always looked to you for advice. Even my sister did.” Another deep breath. “But that doesn't mean you will always be right. If you have ever held respect for me, you will listen to me now and leave the Callosum where it lies.”
He was trembling now. “I need this, even if ponies have to be changed, it must be done. They were never a help and I will not allow them to be an obstacle. Nopony will be that. Not even you.”
“Starswirl-” Her voice cracked into a yelp as her weight was shifted by an unknown force. The white mare was tossed, her mane a flurry as she hurtled towards the stone altar. Shocked, she smashed the alter, a sharp pain surging through her right wing. She fell onto her back. Before she could even roll over, the earth began to devour her, pulling her underground. Her horn flashed bright and she found her self upright, before her friend. “Stop this, Starswirl!”
“No, Celestia. Don't worry, I'll rewrite whatever happens here so that you and I never even had this. You won't remember. Now.” His aura swelled, sparks flying off his horn as a torrent of wind began to absorb her. “Yield!” She was consumed, barely able to stand. Her horn shown, radiant beams piecing the maelstrom. Earth gripped her hooves, rooting her in place. The rays were piercing the veil swarming around. One ray fell upon the unicorn. She focused and the earth pushed up from under him in a slab of rock, breaking his concentration.
The gusts shot off, scaring tree and earth alike in all directions. She locked onto her friend, a tear in her focused eyes. His horn glowed. Geysers of water erupted from the earth; wrapping around him like a ferret and righting his fall. With a wave of her horn, the water crystallized. Flaming wings then erupted from inside the ice, a firebird encasing Starswirl. It descended upon Celestia. Her sweat began to boil off. She attempted to spread her wings, but they protested with pain. She winced, then quickly opened her eyes. The flames were a hooves breadth away.
Wind crashed into the phoenix from the right like a wall as her aura swelled. Fire wiped out, searing her flank and lighting the Everfree ablaze. She knelt, overwhelmed with a pain she never thought she'd feel again. She closed her eyes as the burns flared up. She looked at Starswirl and saw a beam of blue light. Too close. She ducked. The light piercing her mane as her horn surged in response. Her bolt was deflected by a shield in his hue.
The shadows battled in the corners of her eyes, their gaze locked on her old friend. The sound of their heavy breaths mingled with the crackling flames seamlessly. She knew Starswirl had mastered every spell, she can't stop him with anything she had learned. It had to be new and unique. Another bolt speed at her. She jumped left. She'd never created new magic, and he was relentlessly aggressive, giving no time t-.
The dirt beneath her hooves began to turn on her, attempting to pull her down like before. She consumed herself in a flame, taking note of how Starswirl had become a phoenix. The dirt couldn't grip the flames. Celestia thought of all of the ponies she had met, she smiled a bit thinking about it. Each of them had a special talent, something that made them different, most of them had a magic related to them. Even the unicorns were more skilled in magic related to their talent. Her talent was the sun. Perhaps she could do something with that...
She opened her eyes, realizing she had closed them while in thought and was immediately struck with a powerful bolt. A cry ripped out of her as she was knocked from her hooves. Tears were welling in her eyes. Her body wouldn't move, she tried but her limbs refused. The watery vision barely made out the unicorn that approached her. To the right of his head, his hat lost and cloaked burned to ruins, was the sun. Her sun. She concentrated, closing her eyes, putting all of her waning strength into this. Imagine the sun like your horn and glow. The darkness behind her eyelids lit up, though from a blast or what she had tried she wasn't sure.
Then it grew brighter, and brighter, until it was like her eyes were open wide. Starswirl cried out. She broke concentration and looked. She saw the light receding as the sun grew dimmer again. She'd done it! Starswirl was dazed, his eyes closed shut from the harsh light. She looked around for someway to stopped this madness, when she saw the Callosum.
Starswirl's vision returned and his eyes were veined and angry. He looked at Celestia and fired a bolt. He did not see the book she had levitating just next to her. She pulled it in front of the blue blast and he let out a shout. The book took the hit, and then sent another blast in response. The sudden shot caught her off guard as it hit him, bleaching him in white light. She looked on, aghast as he began to levitate into the air.
He looked at her, his eyes softened, the tension gone. “So this is how it happened...” A crack began to fray unnaturally from his horn. It bled white rays.
“Starswirl. What's wrong?” Her voice shook. “Tell me what is happening?”
“The reason why I never saw myself in the futures I'd visited.” The sky pulled his gaze. The crack spread, down onto his head. “You were right, Celestia. I never thought to try and use my own talent. I never thought about the other ponies who could do magic with their talents. I was too sure of myself. I needed another, like in the library. Or now. Clever.” More cracks formed, now on his hooves and snaked around the limbs, bleeding more white light. He looked down at her again, and then at the book. “That book, how it is written. I understand what Charade was trying to show m-” A gasped broke his words as the cracks defaced his whole body. Then he shattered, a toppled statue of a friend. The pieces burst into ivory particulates and blew into the wind.
She let another tear flow before pulling up her courage. She struggled, but she stood, aching all over. Her coat was badly singed, her mane was a disheveled mess. She looked at The Callosum. It flipped to a page still being written. “And then the powerful Starswirl the Bearded, perished in a bright light.” Their was no mention of the book within itself, that it had caused the death or otherwise. A deep pain stabbed at her for the third time in her life. It had happened. All that she had lost...
All she had lost could easily be fixed with the few strokes of a quill.
The Callosum had her full attention. She considered it. Would it be so wrong to bring Starswirl back and make a slight change so they never found the book? The book flipped to a new page. It spoke of a young earth pony giving Starswirl a book of visions. It would be so simple and she would still have her friend, the only one she would still have a hundred years from now. She wouldn't be alone. It was so tempting.
She looked away from the book and forced her hooves the other way. The Callosum would be left alone. As unpleasant as this was, these events were created by her and by Starswirl. They made her who she was and him who he was. She can't rewrite the past and force the world to conform to her vision. She would shape the world with her own power. She would complete Starswirl's spell and she would do it the way he never would.
And so she walked out of the Everfree, headed the direction she knew to be home. The Callosum sat where she left it, discarded near the alter. It flipped open, spinning to a new page. New words appeared.
“And then only Celestia returned from the Everfree. She was hurting, physically and mentally, but she had made it back and she knew what she must do. This would never happen again, not with her friends, now or ever.”
Author's Note
Thanks for reading! Any and all comments are appreciated. I'd like some feedback too so I can improve.
