The evening of Twilight Sparkle’s ascension to alicornhood in front of the tree of harmony . . .
“A fourth Harmony. A fourth. What are we going to do?” asks a distraught Princess of the Night to the luminescent tree.
The tree glows briefly, shining a gentle light down upon her. “You are right of course Harmony, we must carry on . . . but if there is a way for him to stop this deterioration . . . .”
The tree glows more brightly this time, as if in alarm. “I must. It is my duty. I am depending on you to guard my mind as best you can while I am there with him.” She says resolutely after which the tree’s glow dims before brightening with resolve.
“Thank you . . . . here goes nothing.” She says with a shiver before the alicorn’s horn glows and she vanishes from sight . . . and reappears in a crystalline prison.
“So . . . you’ve come to finally speak with me. I’ve been expecting you. How long has it been . . . Arisen?”, asks the wizened figure, whose appearance is obscured by dozens of roots, wrapped around the prisoner and keeping him immobile along with an additional ring of chaos flame entrapping him further, the color of which changes moment to moment.
His captor sighs and looks about his enclosure, a relatively small crystalline cavern with no entrance or exit, only accessible via teleportation . . . by design of course. The prisoner situated in the middle and held upright, immobile, wrapped up tight in roots from the Tree of Harmony which lay above him in the heart of the Everfree forest, with the ring of chaos flame further preventing his escape, powered by madness crystals embedded throughout the prison’s walls.
“Over a thousand years Seneschal. When you infected me with the nightmare.”, would answer Princess Luna quite harshly, with an edge of hate to her ancient voice. “To this day I know not how you managed it from your imprisonment."
“It should be obvious to you Arisen, would you not think I would sense when you sealed Discord in stone with his sister’s power? You weakened chaos the world over that day, enough so that the flames weakened enough for me to . . . reach out and give a gift to you. I thought that since you and your sister aided Naroxis’ spawn in sealing me here six thousand years ago, it might give you some perspective to share my fate for a millennia or two.”, he states with an air of dry amusement, his beak clacking closed at the end after briefly chuckling.
Luna bristles but then sighs, “I . . . had feared as much. Then you know that Naroxis’s more mobile child is now free once more. You won’t be getting out of your prison anytime soon.” She states firmly to her prisoner.
“Oh . . . I don’t know about that. You wouldn’t be here unless you needed something from me. Do you think I don’t know. Magic . . . has failed, along with the power of Love, the Sun, the Moon, and the Stars. The process is accelerating, just as I told you it would oh so long ago. I WARNED you this would happen!” he suddenly thunders at the end, the prison suddenly shaking with his unbridled power, Luna taking several steps back in fright before the roots tighten and flames rise higher, eliciting a hiss of pain from the ancient avian. He then sighs himself before muttering slowly, but firmly, “It is time Luna. You KNOW this. It is you who broke the circle, and it is thus up to you to mend it.”
A bright flash suddenly erupts in the cavern, and a sword of pure mythril would appear from the radiance, floating in front of Luna. At the sight of the blade she recoils in terrible fear. “No . . . no I refuse, there must be a way, there has to . . . “ she stammers before being cut off.
“THERE IS NOT!”, His voice thunders with weight of inevitability. “Take up the blade! End my life and take my place! The flame of my heart is spent and guttering, and with it all of reality. You know this to be true. The daughter of Naroxis only postpones the inevitable. None of you alicorns have my power, none of you can sustain reality itself because you depend on the power of harmony and chaos. There is one and only one power this world thirsts for. That it needs. You know what it is as much as I do. You know because you are the Arisen, just as I once was. . . . SAY IT.”, his lasts words hammer into her consciousness forcing her to speak the truth she hides from.
“Volition . . . unbending will.”, she mutters before clamping her hooves over her mouth and taking another step back.
“The universe has used up the greater part of my will.” He continues. “What little I have left can no longer sustain it. You already know the results. The moon failed first, which provoked Naroxis’ daughter to bless you, then the sun shortly afterwards, whereupon your sister joined you in alicornhood. Is she still ignorant of all this . . . ah . . . I can see she is from your look of shame. None of them know do they? None but you and Naroxis’ children. . . .” he mutters as Luna looks away from him.
“It . . . it is my burden to bear! I am the arisen! Not them . . . not her!” she exclaims back.
“I agree! It is your burden to bear. Take up Godsbane! KILL ME. Take up the eternal ring and end this farce and banish chaos and harmony from this reality. They have no business here and you know it.” He intones harshly.
“NEVER!”, screams Luna. “I will not give up my sister again. I. Will. Not. It was the eternal ring that took her from me, it was YOU who took her from me. Harmony and Chaos gave her back. So there is a 4th alicorn now. We will survive just as we have for the last 6 millennia. Good day to you Seneschal.” She states before turning on her heel and powering up her horn, making ready to teleport back to Canterlot.
However his parting words mocked her, “And when a 5th ascends . . . and then a 6th ? 20? 40? I do hope you change your mind before gravity fails at least. Though I dare say it will be amusing to watch everything float off this rock.”, after which Luna scowls and vanishes in a flash of light to the mocking laughter of her prisoner.
His laughter fades though as he stares from his tomb at the blade now lying unused on the cavern floor. “Make the right choice child. Until then, I shall hold your blade close for when you finally need it.” He intones to himself, Godsbane shimmering on the ground before fading from existence, the Seneschal closing his eyes and lapsing once again into his meditation, using his will, what little there is of it, to bolster a dying reality.
Author's Note
Hi! New author here, just wanted to try to write a story, updates will be random. I hope you enjoy it, and if not, feel free to yell at me!
