Tides of the Past

Chapters

Low Tide
High Tide
Look it up!
The first step
Storm Chasers
The Riddle that is the Sphinx
Challenge
The Light in the Darkness
The Phoenix Rises

Low Tide

Author's Note

King: Fillies, gentle-colts, and that technicolor rainbow in-between, I am King-Mac-13. First, I want to address that this story was originally published on fanfiction.net under the name King-Mac-11. I didn't know this was a thing... and when I did there was a lapse in the technology and I had to change the name. So... here it is. Enjoy.

Low Tide

What more needs to be said?
Well… a lot, actually. How can I begin with it all? How would anyone believe me? But… perhaps… I don’t have a choice. Perhaps, if I just tell Celestia…
No! I can’t let anyone know about this. What I’ve found locked away in that place… it has to stay that way. No one can know about this.
I’ve seen what’s beyond that thing… it must never be let free!
-Starswirl the Bearded

A note from the most powerful unicorn in history, hidden away. But where would he have hidden such a thing, and why? None of that is important, though. What is important is that it was found.
/\

Spike made a habit to clean the main room whenever he got the chance. Though, really, it was just the seats and map. The whole room would take way too long. He made his way to the center of the room and got ready to tackle a new challenge, the chandelier. Would you call it a chandelier, though? Close enough. He got a ladder and climbed to the roots of the old library and started to polish the memory crystals and ensure the wood remained strong. He started to make his way to the top when something caught his eye. A small scroll seemingly a part of the root. Others might not notice, but having lived in the tree these roots once nurtured, he could see the difference. He etched out the area around the scroll and removed it before returning to the ground level. “When did this get here?”

“Spike?” The sound of Twilight entering the room caught the young dragon’s attention. “What are you doing?”

“I was going to clean up the chandelier, when I found this scroll in the roots.”

“Wait, in the roots?”

“Yeah. Like it was just part of the tree.”

“Let me see it.” She used her magic to pull the scroll toward her and started to read it. “What more needs to be said…” When she finished it, surprise was an understatement. This then led to what some call, going full fangirl. “Starswirl the Bearded?! Oh my gosh! This is amazing! A hidden notation from the greatest unicorn magician of all time! Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Oh! My! Gosh!”

“Twilight…”

“What?”

“Um… don’t you think what he was talking about in the letter was important?”

“Well, obviously. It’s from Starswirl the Bearded!”

“Then why would he hide something he didn’t want anyone to find? Why not destroy it?”

“Spike… didn’t you read the book obscure unicorn history by now?”

“Uh…”

“Anyway, Starswirl used a special paper that was basically indestructible. He wanted his work to last for as long possible.”

“Oh… right…”

“Anyway, I do wonder what he was talking about in the letter…”

“Well, he didn’t want it to be found.”

“I know. But what if this is something really big? What if it’s something with a friendship problem?”

“Too bad we’ll never know.” Spike left the room with that said.

He had no idea what he started. “Maybe we can find out.” She moved to the map and placed the scroll on one side. She used one of Starswirl’s spells to try to incite a reaction. Thankfully, it seemed to have worked. A symbol of a star and bells flew up from the scroll and fell on the map. It showed a location to the Northeast of Equestria. “That must be it.” A plan hatched in her mind. Her curiosity peaked. She wanted to follow the trail like a scavenger hunt. To find the thing that Starswirl had hidden.
\/

Twilight made her way to the Northeast of Equestria. She told her friends it was a study trip and invited them along. Everyone had something to do, so Twilight was alone for this one. After a few days on the train and another hour of flying, she reached the destination on the map. It was… a cave. Seriously? She wondered in. She wasn’t turning around now.

As she entered, she found that the cavern within had a series of holes to the surface, allowing for a constant flow of fresh air. She made her way farther into the caves, eventually finding a fork in the caves. The path to the right was partially collapsed while the other was narrower, but likely more stable. She took a deep breath and used her magic to find the thing Starswirl talked about. She hoped there was magic within. She was lucky there was.
She followed the magic down the left path and found herself in the presence of a large cavern with what looked like a series of prison bars on one of the walls. She walked in and observed the room. The ceiling was practically non-existent, having a multitude of large holes to the surface. The walls seemed to have once been cut, but have since eroded to form the cavern as it is now. Twilight made her way to the bars and started to hear a voice from the prison.

“How long has it been? What’s happened on the surface without me? I want to know what has become of the world…” The voice paused before bellowing out, “Who’s there?!”

Twilight jumped a bit before moving closer. “Um… I’m sorry. But who are you?”

A steel grey pony with an ocean blue mane and dichromatic eyes approached the bars from within. His appearance was disheveled and really hammered home the idea that he was a trapped prisoner. His yellow right eye and white left eye with black sclera made it feel like he could stare into the very soul. “If I recall, I asked your identity first. Barring that, it is customary to introduce oneself before asking another’s name.”

“Uh…” Twilight shook her head and gathered herself again. “I’m Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship.”

“That’s a new one. I seem to have missed quite a bit.”

“And… your name?”

The prisoner took a deep breath. “My name was taken from me when I was imprisoned and lost in the waters of time, even to me…”

“How long have you been here?”

“I don’t know. Long enough to have gone insane and got bored with it.”

“Wait. You came to your senses… because you got bored with insanity? I don’t think it works like that.”

“There are a lot of things that don’t seem to make sense, yet are indeed fact. From what I see, you are one such being.”

“What?”

“In my era, your kind were practically non-existent.”

“You come from a time before alicorns?”

“Older than any that still walk upon this world…”

“Oh, wow! This is incredible! A real being from before Equestria! I have so many questions!”

The prisoner rolled his eyes and spoke with a sour, sarcastic tone. “Yes. Because this is how I wanted to send my days… as a glorified museum piece.”

“Oh! Sorry, but… I don’t know if I should let you out. Why were you imprisoned?”

“Circumstance. A trio of sirens tried to take negative energy from me -I was an angry being back then- and I chased after them. I caught them and… I think I’ll leave out the next part. The important part is that I destroyed a number of pony lands in the process. Eventually, they got some wizards together and sealed me away. I understand why they did it, but it would seem that they forgot the whole release-after-having-served-my-time thing. So, I’ve been here ever since.”

“Huh…” Twilight looked over the cell bars and found a magic lock. “If I let you out, do you promise not to hurt anyone?”

The prisoner paused a moment. “Wait. What?”

“If I let you out… do you promise not to hurt anyone?”

“Oh… yeah! I’ll promise! Just let me out!”

Twilight reared her head back and prepared her magic.

“WAIT!”

Twilight jumped and lost her concentration. “What?”

“Sorry. I need to let out some energy before I leave. You see, I gain powers from sunlight and I haven’t had an outlet for a while. Now. Just a moment, please.” He leaned a bit and took two very deep breaths. “Okay!” He jumped up and slammed into the ceiling before, literally, bouncing off the walls. He had become a grey and blue blur and he released the power stored away. After a few minutes, he landed back on his feet and shook a bit. “Okay. I’m done.”

Twilight was stunned, but quickly recovered having dealt with Pinkie Pie. She readied her magic and released the lock. “Okay. You’re good.”

The Prisoner stepped out of the cell and stretched. “Thank you, young one.”

“I still have questions I’d like you to answer.”

“Of course. We can talk on the way. I’d like to get out of this cave if it’s all the same.”

“That makes sense.”
\/

The two left the caves and the prisoner stretched and took a deep breath again. “Fresh air… truly fresh air! It’s so nice after so long.”

Twilight couldn’t help but laugh. But at the same time, she kind of felt bad. He had been down there for who knows how long. It was the first time he could really move around. “Okay. Now, I have to ask you some things.”

“Curious one, eh? Alright. There should be plenty of time as we walk back to civilization.”

“I’m not too sure about that…”

“What do you mean?”

“You’ll see.” After a few hours of walking and questions, they arrived at the train station.

“What is all this?” The train pulled up and the former prisoner hid behind Twilight. “What manner of beast is that?!”

Twilight chuckled before explaining. “That’s a train. It allows us to travel across Equestria faster than just walking.”

“Incredible.”

“Though, they’ll need a name for the tickets.”

“Oh… Well, I don’t remember it, but I can think of a new one if I need to.”

They approached the ticket booth and were asked for their names before they were given their tickets. Twilight had no problem, but her new acquaintance was having trouble with the process. Twilight pulled him aside and explained the process.

The new face took a deep breath before walking back to the booth. When the employee asked for his name, he calmly responded with, “Levi Athtan.”
/\
Excerpt from Starswirl’s hidden records:
Siren Satalaria: I remember that thing. My friends and I tried to drain his negative energy. Probably should have realized what he was.
Starswirl: And what was he?
Satalaria: Would you believe me?
Starswirl: I’ve seen plenty that proves that proves that I should be open minded about this stuff.
Satalaria: (After a few minutes of silence) The Leviathan.

High Tide

Excerpt from Starswirl’s interview with Melody the Siren:
Starswirl: Your friend told me that the creature you tried to drain all those years ago was a Leviathan.
Melody: Not “a,” The Leviathan. We never believed those old stories about that monster.
Starswirl: Stories?
Melody: Yeah. Old stories that our moms used to tell us. We always thought it was just one of those stories adults tell to keep kids in line. Turns out those tales weren’t as tall as we thought.
-\/-

Twilight and Levi arrived at the Ponyville station as the sun started to descend in the sky (basically late afternoon). Levi constantly looked around at everything as though he had never seen any of it before in his life. Whether that was true, Twilight wasn’t sure. After all, she didn’t know how old he really was. As they walked, a voice from behind them caught their attention.

“Hey, Twilight!” The trio of young fillies known as the Cutie Mark Crusaders ran up to the princess and pony out of time. Scootaloo looked at Levi, “Who’s your new friend?”

Levi looked down at the young Pegasus and cleared his throat. “I am Levi Athtan. Twilight was just showing me around.”

“That makes sense.” Sweetie Belle replied.

“It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Levi,” Applebloom added.

Levi chuckled. “It’s nice to meet you all as well. Though, I’ll have to ask that we meet at another time. I’ve been on a train for a few days and would like a chance to stretch my legs.”

“Okay. See you Twilight.” The three ran off to do who knows what.

Twilight looked over to him. “You seem to have a way with children.”

“Be it my era or this new era, some things don’t change.”

They continued to walk toward the castle. Twilight continued to ask questions about the old era. “What were the ponies like? Where did they live? What did you mean by alicorns being rare?”

The answers being, “not much different. Often in small communities or cities,” and, “Alicorns, as you call them, were practically non-existent back then. If they did exist, I never heard of or saw one.”

They arrived at the castle in time for the door to swing open and a pink blur to tackle Twilight. “Welcome back!”

“Pinkie Pie!” Twilight was still a little dizzy, but greeted her friend. “It’s nice to be home.”

The rest of the group walked out of the castle and greeted their friend. Applejack was the first to notice Levi and walked over. “Hey there, stranger. Welcome to Ponyville. I’m Applejack. You are…?”

“Levi Athtan. Nice to meet you.”

“Twilight, darling…” Rarity walked up to Twilight and pulled her aside a bit. “Where did you meet this… dashing stallion?”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “I met him during the trip…”

“Apologies, all. But I need to rest after the long trip. Twilight, would you mind if I use one of the guest rooms? Assuming you have one, of course.”

“Of course. Take the first left after the stairs and it’s the third door on the right.”

“Thank you.” He walked in and made his way to the room.

Fluttershy looked toward the door. “He seemed nice.”

Twilight smiled and walked inside with her friends toward the throne room. “Yeah. He’s been really helpful in answering my questions.”

“What questions?”

“Oh! Right. He’s not from our time.”

“Wait!” Rainbow grabbed Twilight’s face and pulled her up a bit. “Is he a time traveler or something?”

“I don’t know everything. But I found him confined in a cave. He says he’s from before Equestria and the evidence seems to support that idea.”

“How, exactly?”

“The lock was an old magic that I’ve never seen before. He knows so much about the world and has relayed them accurately.”

“Lock?” Applejack chimed in.

“He says he was locked away for property damage and they forgot about him.”

“You don’t think he might have been lying?”

“It’s possible. But I want to give him the benefit of the doubt right now. He promised to behave himself.”

“If you say so.”

A murmur from outside caught their attention. Pinkie Pie spoke up, “What’s going on?”

The group made their way outside and found that everypony was looking up at the sky. The six followed their gazes and found something that was… unnatural. The sun was accented by what appeared to be the face of a jack-o-lantern.

“What the hey?”

“So… I was looking in the mirror…” Levi walked up behind them. “I guess that something’s wrong with the sun.”

“How did you get that from a mirror?” The group turned to face him and got their answer. His yellow eye had the same pattern. “What?”

“It’s a long story and one I’d prefer not to get into right now. The point is that something is causing this pattern to appear on the sun and we need to fix it.”

“And do you have some idea as to how?” Rainbow said with skepticism seeping from her voice.

“If it’s still around…” He walked passed them and continued, “There should be an old ruin nearby to the northwest.”

“I don’t remember a ruin there…” Twilight thought a moment, trying to think back to everything she had learned about the area.

“You likely wouldn’t. Come on.” He started to walk to the northwest side of Ponyville.

The group followed him, most a bit concerned. Rainbow was the first to speak up after they left the town’s boarders. “So… Where are we going, exactly?”

Levi stopped after a short while and looked around. “It should be around here… somewhere…”

“You sure about that?”

“No. You’ve likely been told already that I am not of this era. Everything I know is different here.”

“Right…”

Levi closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Unless…” He looked around and started to dig a small hole nearby. “Here!” Below the surface was a small opening into a cave.

“Huh… Maybe it’s not all just malarkey…” Applejack looked down into the cave.

“Lovely…” Levi entered the cavern. “Another cave. This is getting old.”

“Got something against caves?”

“I was trapped in one long enough that I lost track of centuries.”

The group looked between one another but followed him into the cave. “So,” Rainbow Dash, broke the silence of the cave, “What are we looking for?”

Levi stopped at a large structure. “This.” The structure was a large, stone spire with clear indications that there is more to the spire than what is outwardly seen. “Ah… to have seen this in its heyday. They say it was adorned in beautiful colors and gems.”

“Gems?” Rarity’s interest was grabbed instantly.

“So, this thing can fix the face on the sun?” Rainbow asked.

“This is Harmonia. Twilight told me about your previous adventures. This is like the prototype of usable Elements of Harmony. However, using it will have consequences.”

“What consequences?” Fluttershy asked, hiding behind her friends.

“I don’t know.”

“How do know what it is and that there would be consequences, but not know what could happen if you use it?” Applejack inquired.

“Because nopony ever used it. Barring that, all power has consequences. Be it athletic performance, knowledge, or magical prowess; something had to be given up. Be it time for training or studying, or some effect of the magic. Even your old element required all six to be used. If one was absent, it would fail.” He walked up and placed a hoof on the device. “Of course, it will take time to charge.” He pushed a device on the side and the tower started to glow slightly.

“Ah, yes. What a nice sentiment.” The group spun around to find a dark grey, unicorn stallion with a red mane and deep purple eyes walking down toward them. His cutie mark, an open book with a bright blue fire ball hovering over the pages. “Am I interrupting?”

“Who are you?”

“Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Grimoire Maleficarum.”

“Wait a second…” Twilight thought a moment. “I know that name. You were kicked out of magic school!”

“A forced retirement by a broken system.” Grimoire walked up and swatted his tail at Twilight. “Though how can I expect the newest princess to understand that. Just because I dabbled in dark magic, I’m automatically expelled.”

“What?!” Twilight instantly adopted a defensive stance.

“I wouldn’t if I were you, princess. The structure is quite old. Any violence could topple your hope to fix the sun.”

“You’re the one behind the sun’s change, aren’t you?”

“Give the mare a prize! But that’s not the important part of our little interaction. Any violence will break the spire, which I now know is called Harmonia. Thanks for that, by the way. Now then, what will you do? Will you stop me and bring me in, but doom your sun. Or will you hold back and save your sun, but give me the necessary room to be able to escape?” When no one moved, he smiled. “There the answer, I suppose.”

“Why are you doing this?”

“Right to the point. I can respect that. I’m out to do what you used to. The pursuit of knowledge for knowledge’s sake. Of course, unlike you, I’m not focusing on theory and book study. I’m out to prove those theories in the field. I’ve already confirmed the idea that Dark Magic is driven by emotion. But I also debunked the idea that it is the magic of cowards. If anything, it’s more impressive than normal magic. Unlike normal, light magic, which is bound by knowing yourself and being the most magically inclined. Dark Magic is not bound by raw power. Rather it is…” He stopped suddenly and chuckled. “Oops. Almost used up my time. You can forgive me, different magics have always fascinated me and I’m out to understand them all. And I should thank you for making my job easier.”

“What?”

“3… 2… 1…”

Harmonia fully charged and fired a burst of energy upward toward the sun. When it flew into the sky, there was a moment of pause before a rainbow burst outward from the sun. The sun was back to normal.

Grimoire jumped in joy. “Yes! Ha! It worked!”

“What are you talking about? We just foiled your plans.” Rainbow flew over to confront Grimoire.

“Did you?”

“Well… yeah… Right?”

“Not quite. The first rule to mastering Dark Magic is to be the smartest pony in the room. Though… I’m the smartest pony that use magic… If I had half the mental capabilities of your pink friend, I’d be able to do anything I wanted! Again, off topic.”

“I’ve had enough of this!” Rainbow charged forward and flew through Grimoire, crashing into the wall behind him. “What the…?!”

“Do you honestly believe I would be in the same room and the group trying to stop me? This is a projection. I enjoy a good gloat, but I’m not about to walk in to get captured. I see you brought the first of the four, though. How nice of you.”

“What four?”

“The four Elementals. Forces of nature given form. The Elemental of Water, Leviathan.” He gestured toward Levi.

“Leviathan?”

“Yes. One of the Elementals that was sealed away. It’s said his eyes are the sun and moon. His breath is a fire that burns even under water. But, none of that matters, really. The important part is that he’s here.”

Levi stared done the projection. “What do you want?”

“Oh! Right. I want the knowledge that was lost. I want the power of the ancients. I’m going to fix this broken system once and for all! But enough about all that, I’ve spent too much time with the exposition. Maybe next time we can have a real meeting. I’m thinking tea and scones. Anyway, see you around.” The projection faded.

“What just happened?”

Levi looked at the spire. “I fear we played a part in his plan. This magic is old, but powerful. It will act as a beacon for many who seek such power. Including the Elementals he spoke of. I’m not sure when, but they will arrive. And I fear that’s what he wants.”

“Who are these Elementals, anyway?” Applejack asked.

“We did only get an overview.” Twilight looked around curiously.

Levi walked to the wall Rainbow crashed into. “Twilight, if you could give us some more light…” When Twilight illuminated the room, the group could see a carving of four creatures. “They are the Phoenix, the Sphinx, the Raiju, and the Leviathan. Elementals of fire, earth, wind, and water; respectively.”

“Phoenix?” Fluttershy continued to hide, but wanted to know about the creature more.

The phoenix on the carving was shown with outstretched wings and a burning landscape, causing said shy pony to hide again. The Sphinx’s carving showed the creature surrounded by various creatures and plant life. The Raiju was a wolf that seemed to be made of lightning. The Leviathan’s appearance could be described as a harsher version of a siren. Its eyes were a solid gold and silver.

“Woah…” Twilight looked at the carvings with a scientific eye. “This is incredible. We should study the area immediately!” She stops a moment and looks to Levi. “Wait. He said you were the Leviathan.”

“He did.”

“Are you?”

“Yes.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Two reasons. 1) I had inferred that you knew what I was because you came to my cave specifically.”

“And the second.”

Pinkie popped up between them. “You didn’t ask!”

“There you go.” Levi turned around and started to leave the cave. “Get ready, everypony. The days to come will be difficult.
-\/-
Excerpt from the journal of Grimoire Maleficarum:
Entry: K-M-11 (02)
It’s clear they don’t understand. I practice a magic they call evil. In my studies, I have found that Dark Magic is no more evil than light magic. They don’t bother to understand it. They see one bad example and they think they know everything about how it works. They are hoofchair-theorists! Nothing more! They haven’t tried to understand the magic! Though… nothing I say to them will matter. I don’t care, anymore. Their actions create the monsters they try to prevent. Maybe it’s time someone fixed what is broken.

Look it up!

Excerpt from the Journal of Grimoire Maleficarum:
K-M-11 (03):
I found something. An old magic, lost to time. It’s a spire below the ground near a small village called ‘Ponyville.’ A little on the nose… Irrelevant. What I found beside it was what caught my attention. Four carvings of four creatures. Ruins to the south confirmed their identities. They are the Elementals. I used a disguise to search the libraries across Equestria. I found nothing in the modern collections. The Ruins spoke of the Elementals’ powers. Their roles in the world before Equestrian power… There should have been something. Even as a myth or a legend. Why is there nothing? Further research is needed.
-Grimoire Maleficarum
-\/-

The train came to a stop around sunset. As the ponies left the train cars, a group of six rather famous mares and a strange stallion with cosmic eyes walked along the road to the Crystal Empire’s entrance. As they walked, or flew in the case of the rainbow maned Pegasus, they would get a few curious looks. Well, let’s be fair, the stallion got a few looks. When one of your eyes has black sclera and a white iris while the other is a normal yellow eye, ponies tend to need a second glance. They continued their stride until they reached the main doors of the castle.

It was here that Rainbow Dash finally had enough. “Alright. Now, why don’t you explain why we’re here? You didn’t exactly explain anything back in Ponyville.”

Leviathan looked Rainbow square in the eye. “Fine. While we wait for the guardsponies to open the door, what are your questions?”

“Okay. None of this makes any sense. Since when were there these… Elementals? Who was that pony back in the caves? And why did you decide to not say anything and basically drag all of us to the Crystal Empire?”

Leviathan took a deep breath. “Always. Ask Twilight. Royal study.”

Applejack was the one to ask the next question. “Care to give more than two word answers?”

“Since these guards seem horribly inefficient, I might as well. The Elementals are said to have always existed. I don’t remember how much time has passed at this point, but I do remember some of the first pony civilizations, so we’re quite old. As for the stallion back in the caves. I don’t know. Twilight seemed to know who he was, at the very least his name. And the reason we’re here is that none of you had heard of the Elementals, not even Twilight, leading me to believe that the library archives you accessed over your adventures had nothing on the subject. Taking that into account, my hope is that the personal collection at the empire that was lost to time would have something.”

“Aren’t you one of those Elementals? Won’t you know?”

“I am the Leviathan, yes. But I don’t know about the others, where they are, how to contact them if we need to. All I know is my own life, and that’s spotty after being sealed away so long.”

“I hate to tell you this,” Twilight interrupted, “but we’ve been through the library here plenty of times.”

“Not the common archives…” He paused as the doors opened, “We can go over this when we get there.”

“Twily!” Shining Armor was directly behind the door when it opened to great his sister. “You really should let us know when you’re visiting.”

Twilight couldn’t help but smile and hug her brother. “Sorry, it was a… last minute decision.”

Shining Armor noticed Leviathan walk by toward the throne room. “Excuse me, can I help you?”

Leviathan ignored him and kept walking.

“Hey!” Shining Armor used his magic to halt Leviathan’s advance.

“Kind of on a time table… Where is your royal archive?”

“What?”

“The personal, royal archive. The study. The book collection. Where?”

“We… don’t have one.”

“Unlikely. Each royal castle always a room dedicated to knowledge in some form. Now, where is the personal study?”

“Like I said, I’m pretty sure we don’t have one.”

“I wonder about that… now, please release me so I may search.”

“You’ll understand if I’m a bit skeptical.”

“Skeptical or not, I need to access the archive.”

Twilight cleared her throat to get their attention. “Didn’t Sombra have a personal library?”

Shining Armor had to take a deep breath before he could talk to his sister. “There was one, but we gave them all to the main library in the city.”

“Alright. Then we’ll just look there.”

“Hang on,” Leviathan looked the young prince in the eye. “Have you or anyone else in this castle heard of the Elementals?”

“No.”

“Then it won’t matter if we look… unless… Is there an area only this… Sambro…”

“Sombra.”

“Yeah… him. Is there a place only he could access? Some secret bunker? Anything?”

“Oh! He had a secret staircase in the throne room. A pony could only open it with Dark Magic.”

“Then that must be the place to look.”

“And how do we open the door?”

“You said you had before.”

“I know, but… it’s not something I really understand. Beyond that, I get this… feeling. I don’t know how to explain it. It just hurts to use that magic.”

“Perhaps… a path will open if we look at it differently.”

The group made their way to the throne room and started to look over the area. They tried to find a new way to open the vault, for lack of a better term. They searched the room from top to bottom but found nothing.

It was then that Cadence trotted into the throne room. “Shining Armor, can you take care of Flurry for a bit? I need to…” She took a moment when she noticed everyone. “What’s going on?”

“Twily and her friends stopped by trying to find Sombra’s personal study. I can take care of Flurry. You just take it easy for a while.” With that, Shining Armor walked down the hall that Cadence had entered from.

“I don’t think we can get this open.” Rarity looked at the throne and the area Twilight said was the part of the floor with the stairs hidden away. “I think we really cannot open this without Dark Magic.”

“Then what do we do?” Twilight looked around.

“You might have to open it with that magic again…”

“I don’t want to… but I guess it’s the only option.” Twilight took a deep breath and started to focus the dark energy. “I can do this…” She tried to focus, but it proved painful. She winced as the power started to flow. When she finally had enough dark power, her head felt like it was being attacked by a sledgehammer. “Okay… I can do this…” She released the power into the crystal and forced the stairway open. She was tired and her head still hurt. “Got it…”

Tap. Tap. Tap.

“What’s that sound?”

A familiar figure walked up the stairs floating a book in front of his face. The stallion ascending the stairs was Grimoire. “Sombra had serious issues, you know that?”

“What are you doing here?!”

The other ponies rushed to Twilight’s side and Applejack rushed in with a question. “And how in tarnation did you get down there without anyone noticing?”

“Irrelevant.” He levitates a book from his bag toward Twilight. “I believe that this is the book you were looking for. Details the Elementals and everything.”

“Wait… why would you give me this?”

“Why not?”

“Umm… we’re trying to stop your plan…”

“What plan?”

“What?”

“I never said I had a plan. But that doesn’t matter, does it. This is the book you want. I’m giving it to you. Make of that what you will. Now then, I’ll take my leave.”

Rainbow Dash flew forward and cut off Grimoire’s escape route. “Do you think we’ll let you go so easily?”

“No. But you don’t get a choice in the matter. But, for now, I’ll humor you. So, while we’re here, do you have questions? I do enjoy the learning process in all forms.”

“Rainbow Dash,” Twilight walked over. “We’re going to look in the study, in case there’s something else. I need you to watch him and make sure he doesn’t leave.”

“Got it. He’s not going anywhere.” After the others started their search, Rainbow thought a moment before giving a rather large grin toward Grimoire. “Okay… You probably read that book you gave Twilight, right?”

“Naturally.”

“Then give me an overview.”

“Ooh… Nice use of my offer. Shortens what you need to look up and saves time… Alright. But first, you have to answer a question of my own. Would you believe me?”

“What?”

“You give off the air that you still think I’m trying to start something big and that I am a villain. I fancy myself more the neutral force without allegiances. You know, like Sol Cloudburst from the Daring Do series.”

“You read Daring Do?”

“I have many interests. But let’s get back to the point. Would you believe me if I told you what I know about the Elementals?”

“I… guess that… Just tell me!”

Grimoire laughed before continuing. “Of course. Of course. So, what do you want to know?”

“Well, let’s start with what these Elementals are like.”

“More exposition, huh? Alright. I don’t know all the details about what they’re like. I know the Phoenix is said to be a more sentient form of the modern phoenix. The Sphinx is a creature that values knowledge. It will likely ask you riddles if you ever meet it; at least, that’s according to the legends. The Raiju is a different kind of beast. It is a living storm. As a result, it is very volatile. And Leviathan… you already made friends with him, it seems.”

“Right… Okay, next question… Is there any way we can keep them from rampaging or something after you activated that tower?”

“I don’t know if you can stop them… they are forces of nature. But, there are some avenues to explore, if you need them. Phoenix is a creature of fire and a being that values a good home. Once it settles down, it’s there permanently; no rampaging. But that means it is very territorial. The Sphinx, again, values knowledge and will be the most likely to be reasoned with. Raiju, on the other hoof, is lightning incarnate. You can’t stop it. Give it some time to blow over, and it’ll pass. As for Leviathan…”

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure we don’t need that one.”

“You sure? Sometimes it’s a good idea to have all the information available.”

Rainbow thought a moment and had to agree in the end. “Alright. Go ahead.”

“Leviathan is a father.”

“Seriously?!”

“Sort of. According to legends, he created a race of musically gifted creatures meant to spread harmony throughout the world. But they used their powers to cause disharmony and fed on the negativity.”

“Why does that sound familiar?”

“You may know them as Sirens.”

The memory of Twilight’s explanation of the beings returned at the mention of their name. “Wait! You can’t be serious!”

“That’s the legend, anyway. Whether you believe it or not is up to you. According to the book, most sirens didn’t believe it either.”

“Wait, there are more than those three from the book?”

“Not anymore.”

“What happened to them?”

“Inevitability. With a rise of power, so too is the fall. But so, too, is the end of a way of life when one tries to use magic energy without thinking. By feeding on negative energy, they left themselves stranded when their powers were stripped away for one reason or another. Every documented siren has had its powers taken away and they all disappeared. If a siren still lives, they can be used to our advantage.”

“You really expect us to just use somepony?!”

“Oh! Pardon. Lacking a better phrase. I mean that they can set up a situation that can wrangle Leviathan in if need be.”

“And how would that work?”

“Two possibilities. 1) The siren, or sirens, have learned their lesson and they can rekindle some familial bond. 2) The siren, or sirens, learned nothing and Leviathan gets some much needed catharsis.”

“Ca… what?”

“Catharsis: the act or process of releasing a strong emotion, usually through art. Though, in this case, a purging of a long standing, and long repressed mind you, feeling of rage toward his progeny. I’m hoping there will be chairs thrown and tears shed. Something that’ll look good recorded.”

“Seriously?”

“Did you know that before?”

“No.”

“Good. You know what they say about learning…”

Rainbow sighed. “You learn something new every day…” her voice oozed with annoyance at the phrase Twilight would constantly spout.

“No. The day you stop learning is the day you die.”

The rest of the ponies returned to the main floor. Twilight looked over toward Rainbow. “There wasn’t much down there. I don’t know where to begin looking for these Elementals…”

“Oh!” Grimoire interrupted. “That’s easy. Phoenix would need to live in a location with a high ambient and constant temperature; somewhere volcanic. Sphinx is the hardest to find, but often frequents desert regions. And Raiju is the easiest, barring Leviathan, since it’s always found in a massive storm cloud.”

Rainbow turned to him and shook a bit in frustration, “Why didn’t you tell us that before?!”

“Pinkie…”

Said pink pony jumped by saying, “You didn’t ask.”

“There you go.”
-\/-
The Diary of Aria Blaze,
This is the worst idea Sonata’s had… but she wouldn’t shut up about it, so here we are. A diary. This is so dumb, but Adagio said that it might help. I don’t see how, but I don’t care. Apparently, I’m supposed to write about something personal… This is so dumb.
Nothing for it, I guess.
I guess if I have to write about something… I guess I’d write about something my mother told me about. She said that there was this old story about the origin of sirens. Some creature called Leviathan. She told me that he created sirens to spread music through the world. I thought she was full of it. But, she also always warned me that a siren that uses her powers selfishly will surely lose them. Looks like she wasn’t totally the worst. There might just be something to this Leviathan thing…

The first step

Excerpt from Grimoire’s Journal: K-M-11 (04)
I find that I am needing an assistant in my travels across Equestria. I would also need an associate to discuss my findings with. I’ve heard of a powerful magic user in Ponyville, but she’s a princess and will no doubt shun my work without pause. Another possibility was dashed when one saying she was “Great and Powerful” turned out to be a stage magician. Nothing against her, though. It is the place of a performer to talk themselves up and appear more than they are. In the end, I found an assistant, but a colleague continues to elude me. Perhaps one day, I’ll find somepony willing to give my magic a chance and look at my works with an objective outlook. Until then, I will continue my course.
I suppose this works out, in the end. I can’t expect my associates to travel around Equestria at the drop of a hat… My assistant gets paid, so I don’t think she cares as much…
-Grimoire Maleficarum.
-\/-

“You said that the Phoenix lived somewhere volcanic, right?” Twilight asked of their ‘prisoner.’

“Yep.” Grimoire was distracted by the book he brought up from Sombra’s library. “My guess would be the Dragonlands, where a large number of modern phoenixes live. The original, i.e. the Elemental, likely lives nearby. If not, it’s a good place to start, at least. Now, if you still require my assistance, I have to get to my assistant nearby and her know I still have work to do.”

“Assistant?”

“Yeah. You have one, why should I not? Granted, my assistant isn’t a dragon and only agrees to help me for a paycheck. But I can appreciate the honesty, if nothing else.” He starts to walk toward the main door.

“Hey!” Rainbow Dash flew to block him from leaving. “What part of prisoner didn’t you get?”

“I understand the concept, but like I said, I should let my assistant know that I will not be needing her services for the foreseeable future.”

“Wait… why did you get an assistant?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean why did you really take on this assistant? You don’t seem like the type to need help with magic…”

“True. If you must know, I took her on as my assistant because she needed work. She was downtrodden after she was forced from her path. I sympathize with that, having also experienced that. So, she helps me as an assistant and I help her get back on her hooves.”

“Okay… I was not expecting that…”

“That’s just how it works.” They finally made it outside and Grimoire walked off to the left. “Ms. Dust!”

An aqua Pegasus pony with a light and dark yellow mane. Her gold eyes looked over toward the sound of Grimoire, but she noticed the group and jumped a bit when she saw Rainbow Dash. “What are you…!”

“Now, now miss Dust.” Grimoire interrupted. “Remember what we discussed…”

Lightning Dust took a few deep breaths before continuing. “How are you, Rainbow Dash? I haven’t seen you since the Academy.”

Rainbow landed in front of Lightning Dust. She spoke with a sense of uncertainty. “I’m… okay. How have you been?”

“You mean after you cost me my place on the Wonderbolts?!”
Grimoire cleared his throat and caught Lighting Dust’s attention.

Lightning Dust paused, took another deep breath, and continued, “But I don’t hold a grudge. A grudge is nothing more than a chain holding me back.”

Grimoire nodded. “That’s right. Now, to business. I’m afraid I’ll be… indisposed for the foreseeable future.” He levitates a tied pouch and hands it to Lighting Dust. “Here is your salary for the remainder of the month and I wish you luck in your future endeavors. Just remember what we discussed and you’ll be a great Wonderbolt.”

“Thanks again… For all the advice.” Lightning Dust flew off after that.

Rainbow looked over to Grimoire. “What advice?”

“’Determination isn’t the same thing as recklessness’, the thing about the grudge, and that ‘it’s never too late for a second chance’ took up a majority of the advice over the months. She’s trying out for another run at the Wonderbolt Academy. I’m rooting for her. Now, we have something to discuss on the way to the Dragonlands.”

“What?” Rarity inquired. “Who said we were going there first?”

“Considering the desert region where one would track down the Sphinx is on the opposite end of Equestria and the Raiju’s location is basically wherever we find it, it’s the most likely area to start to find the Phoenix.”

“Okay,” Applejack stepped in front of him. “And why would we bring you?”

“I wonder… can afford not to bring me?”

“What do ya mean?”

“Think about it. I know the most about these Elementals as of this moment. Right?”

“Yeah…”

“And I know the intricacies of where to look and patterns to look for. Right?”

“Okay… but…”

“Last one. Did you forget that I was able to make you and your friends do what I needed you to do while utilizing a form of magic none of you understand? Trust me, you’d prefer me nearby during all of this.”

Twilight took a moment and sighed. “I hate to say it, but he’s right.”

Rainbow flew over to Twilight. “You can’t be serious…”

“It’s best to keep an eye on him at all times.”

“Good point.”

Grimoire popped up between them. “I’m still here, you know…” Once the two jumped a bit at the fact that the one that popped in between them wasn’t Pinkie Pie, the Grimoire between them dissipated and the real Grimoire spoke up. “So, are we going to go to the Dragonlands or are you all doing the split up thing until you all reconvene for the final battle?”

“What?”

“Not important. So? Are we going?”

“It would be a good idea to split up.” Leviathan trotted into the conversation.

“Wait… really?”

“Considering we don’t know what will happen if the Elementals are allowed to rampage, we need to get to the other three fast. If we split up and find them separately, we can, hopefully, lessen the amount of destruction to Equestria over all.”

Grimoire was beaming with excitement (not as much as Pinkie planning a party, but you get the idea). “Alright! There’s nine of us, who’s going where?”

“Nine?”

“Yeah. The main six, the dragon, the Leviathan, and myself. That makes six.”

“I only count eight.”

The ponies looked around and found that Spike was missing. They searched the courtyard and found him telling stories to the crystal ponies. When they regathered, Twilight started to set up the teams. “Okay. The Phoenix is the Dragonlands, so Spike has to be on that team. He’ll have more freedom to look around since the dragons still don’t really like ponies. I’ll be on the team that tracks down the Phoenix and Rainbow Dash has the most experience with storms for chasing the Raiju. Rarity goes with Spike and keeps her group hidden. Then Leviathan can…”

“I’m going to have to stop you there.” Leviathan interrupted, “It would be best if we have somepony in Ponyville in case the Elementals are really attracted to the Harmonia site. Also, if I’m there, I might agitate the other Elementals.”

“Okay… revised group.”

“And can you give the short version?” Grimoire added.

“Fine. Spike, Rarity, and Fluttershy go to the Dragonlands.”

Said shy pony looked to Twilight. “W-w-w-why do I go to the Dragonlands?”

“Because, after the fiasco with Philomena, you studied and know the most about Phoenixes.”

“I… I guess that makes sense.”

“Besides, Rarity will be with you and she has a talent for the costumes kept us safe last time.”

“O-Okay,” Fluttershy yielded.

“Alright. Rainbow Dash and Applejack will track down the Raiju.”

The duo bumped hooves as Twilight continued.

“And Pinkie Pie and I will find the Sphinx,” Twilight concluded.

“Hey…” Grimoire lamented, “What about me?”

“You are coming with me.” Leviathan cut Twilight off before she could answer. “I don’t trust you and I’d prefer it if I kept my enemies closer…”

“Alright. I’ll give you that one.” Grimoire trotted passed the main group, toward the train station. “Good luck out there.”

As Grimoire and Leviathan left, the Mane Six plus Spike spilt up into their group. “See you all back in Ponyville.”

What they didn’t see, was their shadows looking back at them.
\/
Back in Ponyville:

Leviathan and Grimoire got off the train at around noon. Grimoire left the train and stretched. “I do so prefer teleportation. Less difficult on the joints.”

“Believe whatever you want… now, we’re heading for the castle.”

“If it’s all the same to you, I’d prefer the library. Where is it?”

“There isn’t one.”

“How can there not be a library?!”

“Something about a giant monster going around and, fundamentally, destroying Equestria in the process.”

“Fascinating. I’ll have to interview the citizens.”

“Nope.”

“Nope?”

“You caused the thing everyone is trying to stop. Do you really think I’ll just let you roam around?”

“How can you stop me? In that form, you have no access to your powers and I’m a practitioner of the Dark Arts. What can you do?”

“I… uh…”

“The way I see it, you can’t stop me anyway. You can follow me and make sure everything I do doesn’t hurt anyone. It’s all you can do concerning me, really.” Grimoire walked into town. “Now, I’ll need an associate.”

“Didn’t you fire her?”

“Not assistant. Associate. Somepony with whom I can really speak with about magic and practice thereof.”

“Why do you need one?”

“Collaboration is the ally of experimentation. If I’m going to test new spells this late in my career, I’ll need somepony I can discuss my findings with. And after I was unjustly removed from the academic scene, I need a powerful unicorn outside the system to help and remain unbiased throughout.”

“And where do you think you’ll find one of those?”

“I’ll need somepony who has also been shunned for one reason or another. They will be more willing to give my work an honest chance.”

“It you want honest, I know three fillies in town that have a knack for bluntness.”

“Children are the most honest source of information, true. But I need somepony who understands magic well enough to give feedback.”

In the background, a pair of ponies were enjoying a day after a spa trip. One was a shade of blue with a light blue mane. The other was lavender with a purple and sky blue mane.
-\/-
Excerpt from the Terrible Truths: Dreams and Nightmares
They say you can’t have a nightmare if you never dream. They couldn’t be more wrong. A dream is defined as two things. Either it’s an aspiration or an unconscious manifestation of the mind. A nightmare, following this ideal can also be two things. There is the common vernacular for an unconscious horror we see while we sleep. The other, following this idea, is the absence of aspiration. We are always pushed to move forward, but if we don't do so, we will find ourselves pushed to our end. We all have talents and by working together, we have strived. However, if we hold ourselves back, we will only doom ourselves to the inevitable. A dream is a good thing. A nightmare is a horrifying thing. But we cannot truly understand the full ideals of this work. Only Luna commands the dreamscape.
-Morpheus Tantebus

Storm Chasers

Excerpt from ‘Eyes of the Hurricane,’ a novel
“This is crazy!” The young stallion lamented his situation on the ship. The ship was being tossed by the waves of a storm and making him sick.
“Crazy? No, young one. This is the truth of the seas!” The captain let out a hardy laugh. “I’ve ridden these waves since I was a foul. I can tell you that this is the calm.”
“What part of this is calm?!”
“For one thing, this is just a small storm. This is nothing compared to the storms of the Dreaded Hurricane!”
“Dreaded Hurricane? What the hey does that have to do with this?”
“It’s just a comparison, son. Pay attention. And this is a breeze compared to that awful storm.”
“What made that storm so special?”
“According to legends, the storm was alive.”
“Seriously?”
“That be the story. It moves erratically and it can chase the ponies that dare to question its power.”
“You can’t be serious…”
“As serious as a hurricane, boy.”
“Normal or living?” The young stallion joked.
“Hope you never see the Dread Hurricane…”
-\/-

“So… we just have to find a storm, why is it so hard?” Rainbow Dash complained.

“I don’t know.” Applejack walked along keeping an eye to the sky, while still making sure she wouldn’t hit anything. “Memory serves, that Grimoire said that this Raiju… I think that’s what it’s called, was easy to find.”

“It is possible… that he was lying.”

“I don’t know. He didn’t seem like he was lying.”

“But can we really trust him?”

“I didn’t say we could. I’m just saying. It almost seems like he wants us to find these things.”

“You think so?”

“He could escape whenever he wanted. But he just sticks around and lets us go out to find these things? Seems a bit weird.”

“True… but when you guys were down in Sombra’s weird magic study, I asked him a few questions.”

“Like what?”

“How we could stop the Elementals from going crazy.”

“Alright… so how are we supposed to stop a storm?”

“He… said we couldn’t.”

“Do you believe him?”

“Heck no! I’m the best flier in Ponyville and I’ve dealt with plenty of storms. I can totally deal with whatever we find.”

“Yeah… but, that’s just it. We can deal with whatever we find, but he’s just sitting back in Ponyville? When we met him, he was trying to wake these things up and tricked us into doing it for him. So why just let himself be captured and taken to Ponyville while we stop him?”

“You’re starting to sound like Twilight trying to figure out a puzzle…”

“I guess you’re right. I’m thinking too much about this…”

The loud boom of thunder caught the ponies’ attention. They ran (or flew, in the case of Rainbow) toward the sound. When they arrived, it was just a normal storm at the hooves of the local weather ponies.

“This is ridiculous!” Rainbow lamented. “Are we supposed to just follow every sound of thunder just to find out there’s nothing out of place?!”

“Come on sugar cube… we need to keep looking.”

Something different caught their ears. A howl. A terrifying combination of the cry of a wolf and the powerful burst of thunder. They looked to one another and nodded, knowing that it had to be the Raiju. They rushed toward the sound as fast as they could. As they made their way to the sound, they found a large hurricane cloud above the area.

“That must be it!” Rainbow Dash shouted.

“Yeah… but where is the wolf thing?”

“Must be in the cloud. I’ll go check it out.” Rainbow flew up to the storm. She looked around, but found nothing. When she flew back down, she shrugged. “I can’t find it…”

A bolt of lightning struck the ground, accompanied by a normal form of thunder.

“Wait…” Applejack paused when that happened. “That was normal. What happened to the weird howl?”

“I don’t know.”

“This might not be the right storm…”

“That’s the largest storm I’ve ever seen! It has to be the right one.”

“But, how can we prove it?”

After a moment, Rainbow shouted, “I have an idea! I’ll go up there and break up the clouds. That way, we’ll figure out if there is anything up there!” As she flew up, she stopped just before contact when she noticed nearby Pegasus ponies arranging the clouds. She returned to Applejack, distraught. “Another dud…”

“This is taking too long. What we need, is a better way to get around and check what’s happening.”

“Well, I can do that no problem. Just fly. But… you can’t.”

Applejack smiled. “Not your way…”
\/

They acquired a hot air balloon and made their way around Equestria, trying to find the living storm that eluded them so far. They made record time… at finding normal, uneventful cumulonimbus events. There was nothing out of the ordinary so far. As the sun began to set, they found themselves at the Equestrian coastline. They set the balloon down and headed into a nearby town.

The town was a lively, little village. It was smaller than ponyville, but just as lively. They found an inn and settled down for some sleep. Though… Rainbow Dash slept on a cloud, as usual. When the sun started to rise, they reconvened in the village square, ready to start the search anew. When they found… nothing. The streets were practically empty.

“What’s going on?” Applejack looked around, but the village seemed more like a ghost town.

“Everyone must still be inside.” Rainbow reasoned.

“No… I don’t think that’s right. There must be something else going on.”

“Right ye be, missy.” An older pony trotted up toward them. “We be a community of sea farmers, ya see?”

“Sea… farmers? What’s a sea farmer?”

“Basically what it sounds like. Though… in this case, we farm something other than fruits. We farm salt.”

“Salt?”

“Yep. The ocean is a great source of salt. Granted, we can’t go too far with it. Keep the ocean salty and the life in it stays happy.”

“Okay… so why is everyone gone?”

“They’re all inside, like any smart pony would be.”

“Okay… is there a reason why?”

“Yes, there be. Look out to the horizon.” The old sea pony pointed toward the rising sun. The scene before them was like a painting. A light red tint filled the sky and the clouds seemed fluffy and soft. The sun accented the world before them. Truly, it was a picture of beauty.

“Okay? So, they’re afraid of a pretty sunrise?”

“I take it you never heard of the old sea pony’s mantra… ‘Red skies at night are a sea pony’s delight. Red skies in the morning, sea ponies take warning.’ There be a storm coming. A big one.”

Rainbow Dash sighed. “Another planned storm…”

“Ain’t no planning for this storm… my kid is one of the weather ponies, this is not on schedule. This is something else.”

Rainbow Dash and Applejack looked toward one another. They both knew what the other was thinking, because they were both thinking it. They charged off toward their balloon and made for the sunrise. This time, they were sure they had it.

Applejack kept the balloon above the clouds as best she could, “This might be it!”

“It better be. We’ve been looking around Equestria for a while.” Rainbow Dash flew close to the balloon, just in case.

As they approached the horizon, they noticed that the smaller clouds were getting larger, becoming storm clouds. The storm clouds were getting larger as well. The clouds, created by ponies, were growing beyond what they were meant for. It was unnatural.

“Umm… is that supposed to happen?”

“That shouldn’t even be possible…”

With a powerful crack of thunder, they saw the Raiju. What they didn’t count on was the scale. It was a massive wolf of lightning some three stories tall and as long as a football field. It was standing atop the clouds and was wrapped in lightning. It let out a howl that shattered the sound barrier. Said howl was also accompanied by a series of lightning bolts from the clouds below.

“Well… we found it.” Rainbow flew up toward the Elemental. “Hey!” When she got close, a bolt of lightning flew out from the Raiju and nearly struck Rainbow. “Woah! What the hey?!” Another bolt forced her back toward Applejack’s balloon. “Yeah… I don’t think he’s listening.”

Applejack looked toward the storm, “Then what do we do?”

The Raiju howled again and caused the ponies to cringe at the sound. The clouds continued to grow and the ponies now noticed why. As Raiju got closer to the shore, the clouds nearby just became storms. The storms got more powerful as they moved. Within time, they became a class 3 hurricane.

Applejack forced the balloon higher to avoid the 120 mile per hour (about 193 kilometers per hour) winds. “There has to be something we can do!”

“Okay!” Rainbow looked over the clouds. “I’ll try to break up some of the clouds!”

“Are you sure?”

“Got any better ideas?”

Applejack thought a moment but just sighed. “Go get ‘em.”

Rainbow flew into the clouds and started to bust up the clouds. They were large and powerful, but she was Rainbow Dash! And she wasn’t about to let some clouds stop her. She was going to break this hurricane. She actually did! When she was done, there was only a single cloud beneath the Raiju. She returned to the balloon, slightly tired, but still very much awesome. “There we go. That should do it.”

“Great work Rainbow. At least we know this storm thing can be corralled.”

The Raiju took a deep breath in and let out a powerful howl. The cloud at its feet rapidly expanded and reformed another hurricane, this time a class 4. The Elemental beast let out another roar and sent a chill down the ponies’ spines. Its hurricane was picking up speed and soon reached class 5 (over 157 miles per hour / over 252 kilometers per hour). The winds would cause catastrophic damage to anything in the Raiju’s way.

“What?! That…! That’s insane!” Applejack lamented the failure and looked over toward Rainbow nearby… who wasn’t there.

Rainbow Dash charged toward the hurricane and picked up enough speed to Sonic Rainboom the storm. She broke up the clouds, but with the same result as before. Now she was mad. She charged back toward the storm beast and made to strike the creature. This proved to be a bad idea. Upon contact, Rainbow Dash was electrocuted with the force of a lightning bolt. She flew off the creature at Mach 5 and crashed into Applejack.

What neither could see was Rainbow’s shadow grabbing a bolt of lightning from the Raiju’s body and disappearing with the bolt in tow.

Once she made sure the Pegasus was okay, Applejack looked back toward the Raiju. “How are we supposed to stop that thing?”

Rainbow shook her head and looked at the creature, her conversation with Grimoire in the back of her mind. “We can’t.”

“What? Are you seriously giving up?”

“No! I just… I don’t know what we can do. We can’t touch it. The clouds grow back when I break them up! I just… I don’t know what to do.”

The Raiju continued to rage in the background. It was moving closer to the shore. It would arrive in minutes if it wasn’t stopped.

“Rainbow… how powerful is that storm, exactly?”

“Powerful enough to level the town and anything else in a few minutes. If that…”

“Then what do we do?”

Rainbow tried to think, but she had no answers. “I don’t know…”

The storm passed below the balloon. At one point, the Raiju roared again. However, it was weaker, just barely, but weak enough to be noticed by the ponies.

Rainbow looked at the clouds and saw the Raiju appear smaller. “What the…?” She flew off, with Applejack calling after her, as she made for the clouds. As she flew over the storm, she noticed that the Raiju would fluctuate in size and strength of its roar. She flew back to Applejack. “I have an idea!”

“What do ya mean?”

“I think the wolf thing changes size around the storm. If we go to the eye of the storm, maybe it would be weak enough to work with.”

“It’s worth a shot.”

The two moved toward the center of the clouds. They were constantly being bombarded with roars from the beast. As they approached the eye, the roars became growls and snarls. Upon arriving, they noticed a pair of glowing eyes on the surface of the water below. They silently decided to descend and see what it was that was below. When they arrived, they found a small silver wolf, half the size of a normal pony, standing on the water’s surface.

Rainbow looked at the wolf a moment before commenting, “Wait… are you the wolf from the storm.”

The small creature snarled weakly. “What do you want?” His was a meek and younger voice. One that a pony would not expect from a storm bringer.

“Umm… I’m Rainbow Dash, this is Applejack… and we wanted to… stop you from destroying the town.”

The small wolf looked angered. “Oh really?”

“Yeah. Your storm is too strong. It will destroy the town on the shore and hurt ponies.”

“Is that right? And I suppose you want me to dissipate the clouds. Or make them weaker.”

“That would be nice.”

“Hmm… I’m thinking… NO!” The wolf expanded to a colossal form. They were now just within the storm beyond the eye. “Who are you to think you can command the storm winds?” The Raiju now had a thundering, deep voice. “What makes you ponies think you can stop nature?!”

Rainbow Dash flew up to his face, indignant. “News flash, storm-y, we ponies have been controlling the weather for a long time. Our princesses raise and lower the sun and the moon!”

The Raiju took a deep breath. “Then I suppose you think that means you can control me? I cannot be controlled. I cannot be stopped. I AM THE STORM! And I will not be commanded by any being, much less you ponies!”

“HOLD IT!” Applejack’s balloon rose between the two and forced their attention. “Look mister Raiju, we’re not trying to command you. We just want to make sure nopony gets hurt. Can’t we talk it out and come up with something?”

The Raiju looked over Applejack for a moment before replying. “You have a calmer head then your associate…”

“Hey!” Rainbow wanted to protest, but Applejack kept her quiet for the moment.

“…that said, there is no stopping the storm. It will rage until it is satisfied. There is no way to break the storm.”

“But your storm is too strong for us to let it hit Equestria. Can’t you do something? Change direction, maybe?”

“I can change my storm’s trajectory. If that’s what you’re asking…”

“That would be great!”

“…but to do so, you condemn the new pathway to take on the storm. Can you make that call? Will you ask me to destroy another land to spare your own?”

“What?! Of course not!”

“That’s what you asked of me.”

“That makes no sense!”

“Doesn’t it? Have you ever been through a drought and wished for some rain?”

“Well… yeah.”

“In order to do that, one must take away the rain from another. You force another to drought so you can have the rain you asked for. Nature is a balancing act, foolish ponies. So, what will it be? Shall I continue my path, or are you willing to take responsibility for what may happen?”

“A… I…” Applejack wasn’t sure what she could say to that. She wasn’t expecting that her request could be turned around against her.

The Raiju turned to Rainbow. “What about you? Would you sacrifice another to save your land?”

Rainbow looked him straight in the eye. “I couldn’t do that… I might be the Element of Loyalty, but I can’t bring myself to do that.”

The Raiju growled a moment. “You are still going to try to stop me?”

“With everything I have!”

“I can respect that. But I cannot stop. This storm shall rage!”

“Then I’ll break up the clouds! I’ll do anything to protect Equestria!”

“Except condemn another land to save yours?!”

“I won’t have to! I will stop you!”

The Raiju let out another roar. With it, the storm’s winds picked up again. “You are the first being to challenge me. You have my respect, little pony.”

Rainbow perked up a bit. “Does this mean you’ll stop the storm?”

“No.” The storm continued toward the shore. It was only a matter of time before its winds could level the town.

“But why?! Why are you so willing to destroy everything without thinking?!”

“Foolish, simple minded ponies…” The Raiju walked along the water, passed the ponies, and made for the shore.

It took minutes. The town that the two ponies had stayed the night was gone. Everything had been destroyed: trees uprooted, houses broken by winds, there was nothing left. Applejack and Rainbow Dash lingered over the clouds, looking over the destruction. They had failed.

Or so it seemed. When they landed after the storm passed, they found that the town’s ponies had hidden in a bunker under the city. As they looked over the damage, they were already going over ways to rebuild.

“What? What’s going on?” Rainbow asked as she and Applejack approached the town’s ponies.

The older pony from before greeted them. “What does it look like? We’re having a get together.”

“But… everything was destroyed!”

“Yes, it was. But this ain’t our first big storm. Though… storms that powerful are rare. It was a real powerful one, wasn’t it?” the older sea pony gave a hardy laugh.

Rainbow Dash and Applejack looked to one another and back at the town’s ponies in shock. They weren’t sure what to think. Rainbow flew up slightly, “Then why would you stay here?!”

The old sea pony laughed again. “That’s just life, friends. It’s never easy, but you stand back up and get yourself ready for next time, wouldn’t be home if we didn’t. That’s why we built a bunker for storms like that.”

“But… how did you know it was coming?”

“You kidding? A storm that big on a flat horizon? It’s hard to miss. The ‘red sky in the morning’ helped, as well. Of course, we have a weather system watching out, just in case. Trust me, we were ready.”

“But… if you had all of that ready, why didn’t you try to stop it?”

“If there’s one thing you learn in this business, it’s that you can’t control everything. We can’t control the tides. We can’t stop the waves. There will always be natural events we can’t control.” The old sea pony returned to his community.

In the back of Rainbow Dash’s mind, the words of Grimoire clawed themselves out of her memory; Raiju is lightning incarnate. You can’t stop it. Give it some time to blow over, and it’ll pass.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash were still confused, but they couldn’t say anything. They looked out to the distance to the storm. They could see that it was breaking up as it reached farther inland. They could see that it behaved like… well, a storm. They decided to head back to Ponyville.
-\/-
Excerpt from K-M-11 (392) Evening
My meeting with the Doctor was a resounding success! He seems rather open minded about the use of Dark magic for the benefit of others. Granted, he had a friend with him; a grey, Pegasus mare with a blonde mane. She seemed nice… but easily distracted. Then again, the Doctor seemed a bit scattered from time to time. In the end, however, I have no complaints. He cannot recreate my experiments, which puts a damper on the idea of being ‘peers.’ That said, if there is one pony that is willing to give my method a chance, there should be more. I need only to find them.
I remain in the castle, with the Leviathan watching over my actions. However, the Elemental’s cursed form allows for many opportunities for escape. That said, I feel it’s a personal challenge to remove his chains. Release the Leviathan, as it were. I have also been interviewing the Elemental. He found out about a portal in the castle and that three of his offspring are still alive in another world. I could see it in his eyes, he wants to see what has become of them. Speaking of, his Helios and Selene visions are quite astounding. It always felt like he was only looking at me with one eye… now I know why. The stories about his eyes weren’t far from the truth after all. But that’s not my story to tell. For now, I look forward.
Magic report: Some of my Shadow Tags have dissipated. However, as a result, I have some of the ingredients for my spell. Soon, I’ll have everything I need. I wait with bated breath.
-Grimoire Maleficarum.

The Riddle that is the Sphinx

Forgotten (a poem by Fine Prose)
\/
Throughout time, and after many years/
Many stories have been told/
With many worlds and ponies/
With many lessons to behold.
I am the story, the lesson, and the prose.
You were once told my tales around the fire.
Tales of legendary ponies and monsters.
Myths and lessons told before the story’s pyre.
Now I am forgotten.
Ponies were quick to forget my lessons.
They forgot how they told the story.
They would change the details, then the ending.
Eventually, they forgot the fireside’s glory.
It was forgotten.
One day, my lessons were told again.
Something happened and I had a new look.
They had taken y tales and written them down.
They had created what they called, a book.
Will I be forgotten?
The book was handed to others and the story spread.
I saw new life where I am I am truly alive.
The book recreated time and again, I continue on.
With this new form, I shall survive.
I am the story. And as a book, I will no longer be forgotten.
-\/-

Twilight looked out of the train window. She and Pinkie Pie had a long trip on the rails to reach the south of Equestria. Pinkie’s ramblings never stopped the whole time. Twilight had gotten used to it after a while, but the other passengers had to keep distance. That is, until Pinkie threw a party and the train car became a party car. That was a few hours ago and now most of the train car was asleep. Twilight looked up toward the moon over the arid locale they approached. She wasn’t sure what to expect, but had to ready for anything.
\/

As Twilight and Pinkie left the train, they looked out over the dry landscape of the border to the Badlands. A small village had popped up when ponies discovered a deposit of gold. However, the old settler ponies were driven off by the high population of monsters in the area. Now the only thing in the area is an old Equestrian Military base that is meant to keep the monsters in check. Pinkie hopped around the area as they trotted toward the base.

Pinkie stopped hopping and walked next to Twilight. “Why are we going to that boring looking, concrete square again?”

Twilight sighed. She knew better than to question Pinkie’s questions. (Yes, that doesn’t make sense, but… Pinkie.) “We’re going there because we received a letter saying that they noticed a strange creature.”

“I thought we were looking for a Sphinx.”

“We are, Pinkie. That’s why we’re here. It’s possible that this is related.”

“Oh! That makes sense!”

“Exactly!”

“I’m sure the author knows where to take us to get to the Sphinx.”

Twilight had to stop a moment. “What?”

“What?”

After a minute of silence, they continued their march to the base. When they arrived, they had to wait for an hour as they were cleared for entry. When they entered, they were met by one of the base’s sergeants.

He saluted as he spoke, “Sorry for the long wait, Princess Twilight. But with changelings roaming the Badlands recently, we can’t be too careful.”

“Changelings?” Twilight’s concern got worse. Changelings don’t make a move unless Chrysalis was involved. “Is it that bad?”

“Not really. They’re easily tracked when you know what to look for. And we’ve had enough time out here to know what to look for.”

Twilight gave a quick cough and had to change the subject. “This creature you spoke of in your letter, where did you see it?”

The sergeant cleared his throat. “Right… One of our soldiers found it in the nearby desert. That’s what he said, anyway…”

“Alright. I’d like to speak with him.”

“I… don’t see that happening.”

“Why not?”

“Well… he has a thing for explosions, nitpicking and taking things too seriously… It was only a matter of time before one of those finally caught up to him. He was sent back to civilization and is currently in a full-body cast.”

“Oh…”

“But, let it never be said that he was bad at his job. We have a full record of his outing, even down to the coordinates.”

“Excellent. We’ll head there immediately.”

“If you’re sure…”

“Yes. We don’t have a lot of time.” Twilight looked around and noticed the empty space to her side. “Where’s Pinkie Pie?”

“Over here!” Pinkie was joking around with a few of soldiers, who were all in a laughing fit. The pink pony hopped back to Twilight and smiled. “What’s the plan?”
\/

Twilight and Pinkie were escorted to the place the injured soldier saw the creature. Once they arrived, they started to search the area. They found nothing for hours on end. Until Pinkie grabbed Twilight and the soldier and pulled them toward a sand dune.

“Is that it?” Pinkie pointed toward a strange creature.

The creature was a bipedal reptile wearing a brown cloak. As it walked, it dragged its tail and covered its tracks. It seemed to be searching the area, as if it had a mission.

The soldier whispered to the two mares, “That’s the creature.”

Pinkie tilted her head to the side a bit. “Two legs and a creature we’ve never seen… you think it’s one of those humans Lyra talks about?”

Twilight sighed. “No. That’s something else.” As she observed the creature, “What is it looking for?”

The creature froze a moment before making a b-line for a nearby cave.

“After it!” They chased it inside and kept pace for most of the chase. After a while, the creature made a break to the side. When the group turned the corner, they found an empty chamber within the cave. “What?!”

They started to look around the cave. Twilight walked passed a certain stone and had to freeze a moment. When she walked back to see, she found a mirror stone. It appeared as a four by six mirror in the wall. Granted, that’s not unheard of. Some of the stones nearby had a similar effect and created a series of reflective surfaces, which Pinkie instantly had fun with.
Twilight looked around the cave. “This doesn’t make any sense.”

The soldier raised an eyebrow, “What doesn’t?”

“This type of stone… it’s not native to this area…” She looked around the cave, “So why is it here?”

The solder trotted up to the stone and placed his hoof on the stone, creating a ripple effect. He instantly retracted his hoof, “Umm… stone doesn’t ripple. Why did this stone ripple?”

Twilight ran back to the larger stone. “What?!” She placed her hoof on the stone and created the same effect. After a moment, she pushed her hoof farther and found the mirror wasn’t solid. “It’s… a portal!?”

Pinkie popped up nearby, “It could just be a door.”

The soldier thought a moment, “Isn’t that still a portal? Just between two rooms?”

“Good point!”

Twilight rolled her eyes. She looked over the mirror stone and her curiosity got the better of her. “It’s likely that the creature from before used this to escape. Pinkie and I will go through and see what we can find. Solder.”

The soldier snapped to attention. “Yes, ma’am!?”

Twilight, still not used to the reactions from the guard, had to clear her throat to recollect herself. “Uh… right. You stay here in case something comes through.”

“Understood, ma’am!”

Twilight turned toward Pinkie, “Ready?”

“Let’s go!” Pinkie jumped through the portal, followed closely by Twilight.
\/

Twilight and Pinkie found themselves in a solid room without windows. A mirror behind them rippled until it returned to normal. They looked around for a moment, but the room was completely empty. The doorway on the other side of the room was an open portal covered by a cloth curtain. A lizard creature, similar to the one from before, stood in front of the door. This lizard only wore something akin to a kilt and a jeweled necklace.

The creature looked down on the ponies. It sticks out its tongue and focuses on the ponies, one at a time. When he looked over Pinkie, she stuck out her tongue in return which caused the creature to recoil a moment. He hissed and gave a quick… shriek (for lack of a better term). It wasn’t scared; more like it was just a loud, quick yelp.

Another lizard creature walked in from the other room, this one wearing a black robe. This lizard walked up and looked down toward the ponies. “Why are you here?” Its voice was deep, but very reptilian.

Twilight was about to speak, but Pinkie beat her to it, “We followed one of the other lizard guys. We’re looking for a sphinx!”

The robed lizard recoiled slightly in shock. “The Sphinx?”

“Yep!”

The lizard creatures looked to one another before the robed creature spoke, “Follow me.” With that, it walked back through the curtains.

After a moment, and some intimidating persuasion by the first creature, Twilight and Pinkie walked through the curtain. Beyond the curtain was nothing short of the largest, most extensive library Twilight had ever seen. However, she couldn’t enjoy the knowledge as she and Pinkie were escorted to the back of the library. They found a large golden door at the back decorated with etchings of various creatures including gryphons, minotaurs, wolves, ponies, yaks, the lizards and a multitude of other beings. Twilight was on edge. She wasn’t sure what would happen beyond that door. She looked over to Pinkie, and the tension waned when she found Pinkie being her usual self. Twilight couldn’t help but smile. No matter what was beyond that door, she was ready for it.

One of the doors opened and the ponies were shepherded inside. Sitting behind a large, mahogany desk was a large was a giant creature with the body of a lion, eagle wings, and a human face. Her mane was trimmed and she was wearing a pair of reading glasses. As the ponies entered, she was reading over a large book which spanned some 20 feet (about 6 meters). On the desk was a number of objects including a pot of ink labeled ‘Rose Ink’, a small plushy of a black feathered gryphon, and a card with a heart labeled KP.

The robed lizard kneeled down before speaking, “My Lady, mighty Sphinx, you have visitors.”

The Sphinx looked down at the lizard and noticed the ponies. “Is that right?” Her voice was melodic and warming. It would make anypony feel at home, but also feel small and insignificant.
Twilight was shaking, but this time the tension was cut by the Sphinx herself.

“Oh! How lovely!” The Sphinx jumped over the desk and shrunk down to just over twice the size of the average pony. “Welcome to the Great Library!”

Twilight wasn’t sure what to think. “Uh… thank you.”

“How can I help you?”

Twilight cleared her throat. “I’m very sorry to bring this up, and I hope that you won’t take any offense; but we are here to make sure that you won’t harm anypony in Equestria.”

“Oh?” The Sphinx seemed confused, but did not seem offended. “Why would you need to do that?”

“Recently, an old mechanism in Equestria was used, waking the Elementals…”

“Oh! You mean Harmonia!”

“Wait! You know about it?”

The Sphinx smiled. “I do. I wasn’t able to study it, but I know about it. One of my visitors mentioned it and gave me an overview. Beyond that, I don’t know too much. That said, I would love to visit it. I haven’t been out of the library in so long.”

“Um… what?”

“Oh! Right. You said this woke my family. I should go see them.”

“Family?!”

The Sphinx giggled. “We’re not related. Rather, it’s the best description we have as a group. That said…” the Sphinx started to walk out into the library.

As she passed by, a section Twilight’s shadow shot up and grabbed a hair from the Sphinx. When it started to disappear, it couldn’t dissolve. The shadow quickly returned to a normal state, but held that hair with all the magical might it could muster.

“…to answer the next question you were going to ask, I have been awake the whole time. You noticed that you entered through a portal stone, didn’t you?”

“Well, yes.” Twilight followed the Sphinx.

“Right now, we are in a pocket dimension. My own personal location. It connects to countless worlds and it gathers information around them. Within this library is the knowledge of thousands of worlds! Granted, looking at some of it would prove… dangerous.”

“What do you mean?”

“Looking over too much of the information could turn anyone into an insane mad-being. The only one that remained coherent was a hippogryph, Silver-something… Point is, he went off the deep end.”

“Okay… Um… if I could ask you a question…”

“You know, I would let you. But how about a challenge. A scavenger hunt.”

“Scavenger hunt?!”

“Yes. You see, my riddles are so easy to solve these days. So, I give you a list and you find the items in the library. Bring them all to me in three hours and I’ll let you ask your question.” With that, the Sphinx left Twilight and Pinkie alone, a piece of paper falling on the floor in front of them.

Listed on the paper was a series of items: 1 novel by a pony, 2 short stories by a being with the title of Doctor, 5 atlases from 5 worlds, and a book of each of Equestria’s schools of magic.

Twilight looked over the list and was a bit disappointed. She was hoping they would be a series of riddles. This seemed more like a “To Get List,” hardly difficult enough to be called a scavenger hunt. But, she needed to ask her question. So, she had no choice.
\/

After an hour, the novel, one of the short stories and the atlases. She looked over the catalog again in hopes of finding the other short story, being the more difficult task than a book from the magic schools from Equestria (which she knows by heart). “Doctor… doctor… Doctor Zeus? No, that’s a series of short stories. Doctor Harmony? No, that’s a set of sheet music. Doctor Wolf? Psychiatric records… Doctor Who? Wait… smudge. That says Time Turner… Wait. Why does that sound familiar?”

Pinkie Pie popped up from the catalog. “Found one!” After getting the prerequisite ‘shush’ from the surrounding patrons, Pinkie produced a book with a series of short stories; one of which was by a Doctor Coltfield.

“Thanks Pinkie.” Twilight whispered as she added it to the pile. “Now to the magic section!”

They made their way to the magic section and found four ponies in the area. A grey mare with a dark mane and a glass of water, a light green Pegasus looking over a book about ‘the magic of animation,’ and a pair of ponies sitting next to each other (a red coated unicorn stallion with a grey mane and a strange note reading ‘IOU’ on his flank; and a Pegasus mare with a yellow coat and a yellow and black mane). The crowd, no matter how small, meant that the duo had to remain quiet in respect for the rules of the library. Twilight looked to the ponies and wanted to ask something, but she and Pinkie were on a time limit, so thought it best not to.

She was able to find a book from the Canterlot Academy (talking about the use of magic during the early years of Equestria), the Trottingham School (talking about the power of magic with dragons), and one from the Crystal Empire’s previous academic circle from before Sombra (about the power of magic of the Crystal Heart). She was certain she had what she needed, but Pinkie added two more books just in case, The Inquisitor and the Chaos Spirit: War of Order and Light of the Heavens: The Eclipse.

It had only been two hours and they were making their way back to the Sphinx. When they arrived, they placed the items on her desk. “We found them all.”

The Sphinx looked over the pieces and shook her head. “No. You haven’t.”

“What?!”

“You have everything but the final piece completed. You have Artifact Magic, Light Magic, Chaos Magic, Dragon Magic, and Celestial Magic. You also have a book on the Elementals in your possession. You are missing a book on Dark Magic.”

“But… they don’t write books on Dark Magic!”

“Don’t they? If I’m not mistaken, there is one such book on the library shelves. Less than an hour. I’d start looking if I were you.”

Twilight was panicking. She grabbed Pinkie and tried to teleport back to the shelves, to no avail. “What?”

“You can’t use teleportation spells in the library.”

Unbeknownst to the ponies, Twilight’s shadow reacted in shock. A section popped off into a sphere and rolled slightly; but, ultimately, not capable of getting far. A section of Pinkie’s shadow broke off and slithered while wrapped around the sphere, allowing the shadows to move across the ground in secret. When the shadows reached the mirror portal to Equestria, they jumped through and disappeared on contact with the Equestrian world.

Meanwhile, Twilight and Pinkie ran back to the card catalog. Twilight rummaged through the cards, trying to find a book on Dark magic, but she knew it was impossible. There was no book in Equestria about Dark Magic. As she found more and more pieces about Dark Magics from other worlds, she started to become angry. That dumb stipulation about it being from Equestria made it impossible!

“Hey! Twilight!” Pinkie popped up again. “I found one!”

Twilight grabbed the card and looked over the decimal and location. She rushed off without reading the rest. When she arrived, she found a journal labelled D-Q-17 by… Grimoire Maleficarum?!?

Twilight couldn’t believe her eyes. She opened the book to make sure its contents were usable. What she found was actually fascinating. Written down was a series of magical experiment notes and new spell types: a spell to instantly write down thoughts, a version of a barrier spell that expands and vaporizes everything in the expanded radius, and a Dark Magic spell to transfer magic from a magic item into a living being. Twilight closed the book and nodded. She wasn’t sure what was going on, but something felt off. She decided to make her way back to the Sphinx.

When she placed the book on the Sphinx’s desk, the Elemental smiled and nodded. “Better. That’s everything. So, you may ask your question.”

“I had a question before all of this. But after this hunt, a new question popped up. Why?”

The Sphinx kept smiling and raised an eyebrow.

“Why ask us for these things specifically?”

“So you noticed? Good. The novel was a simple find. Something to see what you would bring; and you brought Mage’s Hour, a story of a magic wielder facing a magic power they don’t understand. You brought the atlases of your own world and four others from four other worlds, each of which is very similar to your own. You brought me two short stories by Doctors: False Reality and Shadow of the Light. Then you brought me a book from each of the schools of magic from Equestria. But, you forgot Dark Magic. I can read you like a book. Now, you have to read your own book. Take all but the atlases and return to your world. You’ll see what I mean soon enough. Consider it your next test.”

Twilight and Pinkie were escorted back to the mirror portal. Once they returned to the mirror’s room, they had to step back through the mirror. As they left, the robed lizard said, “Come back any time.”
-\/-
K-M-11 (393)
Today was an excellent day! Well… not perfect. I know that much.
I was given a letter. I don’t live here. The mare was the one I met during my meeting with Doctor Time Turner, so she knows my face. Yet for some reason, I was handed a letter for… Rose Luck. I was able to deliver the letter properly thanks to the small size of the town. Granted, when I met her, I was… confused for one thing. She and her coworkers seem to be quick to call out that something is “awful/horrible” while lying on the ground twitching in fear. Makes you wonder. But when she got the letter, she seemed to perk up. I didn’t have time to stick around due to an attack by three of the young locals. Okay, ‘attack’ isn’t the right word, but those three fillies (who I have since learned are named Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo) had a clear curiosity. I love the fact that young ponies are still so willing to learn and experience the world. After that, I made my way to a place called ‘Sugar Cube Corner.’ (Their cupcakes are amazing! By the way.) This town is extremely friendly. Anywhere else, and this would seem concerning. But something about this town just makes you feel at ease. I also walked around and word of my Dark Magic had to have gotten out by now. Yet, while some are concerned, many remain friendly. I like it here. When this is over, I think I might set up a residence here.
Magic Report: I now have all the ingredients for my spell. My Tags have dissipated as a result, but their job is complete. I am now beginning the transfer process. It will take time, but I can wait.
Personal report: My dreams the previous night were filled with visions of Ryuko. Even after all this time, I miss her. That said, I have accepted what happened. I wish I could have changed it, but no one can change the inevitabilities of life. As it stands, I shall continue forward.
-Grimoire Maleficarum

Challenge

Excerpt from Journal A-Z-26:
Name: Grimoire Maleficarum
Species: Unicorn
Home: Canterlot, lower district
Family: Parents (unknown); Hatched Baby Dragon, Ryuko (Lost to illness)
Mission: Total True Magical Understanding
This is my first scientific journal to be written after I was expelled from the magic academy… All for using Dark Magic. I don’t understand these academics. They say their mission is to understand magic, yet they are content to let entire schools of magic to pass into the void of forgotten memory. How dare they!? No, I must remain calm… They think I’m a monster because I used what they deemed “a dangerous abomination of magic” and tried to force me out to protect themselves. Their actions are what set the foundations for the monsters, but I will not become one. If they want to see a young colt as a monster and coward at the sight of one that’s a quarter their age, then let them! Time will pass and they will be forgotten. But my research will open the doors to new possibilities! One day, ponies will study my journals, but they will be lost to time! I look forward to that day.
-Grimoire Maleficarum
-\/-

As Twilight and Pinkie returned, they found their friends waiting in the train station. They all made it to Ponyville within an hour of each other. They greeted each other and went over their respective adventures. As they did, they made their way toward the castle, stopping only for a moment for Pinkie to stop by Sugar Cube Corner. When they arrived at the castle, they found the CMC at the doors.

“What are you three doing here?” Twilight asked.

Scootaloo was the member that answered her, “We’re here to guard the doors!”

“Guard?”

“Yeah!” Applebloom blurted. “Levi asked us to guard the doors from anyone suspicious!”

“Why would he do that?”

“He said it was to watch for shadows…”

“Shadows? Really?”

“I know it sounds dumb, but we saw them! Living shadows!”

“What?”

“Like, real shadows moving on their own. I know it sounds weird, but it’s true!”

“When did you see them, exactly?”

“A couple days ago. They moved across the ground and made their way toward the castle, but we lost them in an alleyway…”

Twilight looked up to her castle. Her gaze was concerned and slightly angered. “Let’s go, girls.”

The six entered the castle to find… nothing. The main chamber was perfectly empty. However, they could hear something in the background. A light tune. They made their way inside the tune became more pronounced. Somepony was singing to themselves.

Unleash the magic.

The song sounded odd to the ponies.

Free the magic now.

They walked through the halls and tried to use the song to find the pony.

Unleash the magic.

The ponies passed by the throne room.

Free the magic now.

They passed a few of the minor rooms.

Imagine all I’ll learn by setting it free.

They made their way to the second floor.

And now winning these games depends on me.

They approached one of doors they rarely see.

And what doors might open if I try to use it.

They could hear the voice just beyond the door.

But the magic’s what I really want to see.?

They moved to open the door.

Unleash the magic.

They opened the door to find Grimoire standing near a bubbling cauldron with a crystal nearby.

Free the magic. Now.

Grimoire looked to the side and noticed the ponies. He nearly jumped out of his horseshoes. “Gyah!” After taking a few deep breaths, he was able to talk again. “Don’t scare me like that. You could knock, you know!” He shook his head to re-gather himself. “Nearly gave me a heart attack…”

Rainbow Dash flew toward him. “What was with the singing?”

Grimoire added a mixture to the cauldron as he explained, “I sing when I’m alone. It’s… an old habit.” He looks over to the gam and levitates it toward him. He places it on a pendant chain and hides the gem in his mane. “Now then, what brings you to the room I’ve commandeered for a quick experiment? Sorry about that, by the way; but it’s easier to ask for forgiveness than permission. And before you say it, I know. Not the best lesson. But it’s a sad truth.”

Twilight trotted forward and looked him in the eye. “Where’s Leviathan?”

“In town.”

“Is there a reason he’s not watching you?”

“He is.”

“What?”

“He’s watching right now. He can see me, you, your friends, even ponies in Canterlot. Basically, he can see anything under the sun at any time.”

“But, how can he do that?”

“Really? Everything you’ve seen these past few days, and you can’t believe Leviathan can see you right now?”

Twilight had to admit, he had a point. Until a realization hit her at that moment. “What we’ve ‘been through these past few days?’”

Grimoire smiled and looked toward Twilight. “Yes…”

“You know what we’ve gone through with the Elementals...”

“Are you asking or stating?”

“How do you know?”

“There it is!” He jumped over his cauldron and stood in front of Twilight. “You really do need to get to the real questions faster.”

“Then answer that ‘real question’!”

Grimoire rolled his eyes before replying. “Fine, miss picky.” He took a deep breath and some minor dark powers flowed from his eyes. He lifted his head upward and the shadows around the ponies seemed to rise up from the ground.

Twilight, along with her friends, jumped more than a bit taking flight as it happened. “W-what?! How?”

He lowered his head back to normal and the shadows fell back into place. “One of the simplest magics of the Dark school, control of shadow.”

“And this how you knew what happened?”

“Not quite. Just a demonstration to put the real reason into context.” A section of his own shadow tore off and floated around him in six spheres. “They’re called Shadow Tags. They allow me to track anypony as long as they can attach to said pony’s shadow.”

“But why would you…”

“I needed to observe. You six have my sincerest thanks for helping me test and complete two experiments at once!”

“What?”

He ignored her and walked back toward his cauldron. “Let me finish up here and we can discuss it.”

Twilight thought back to the journal she was given by the Sphinx. She then thought of the gem hiding in his mane. Transfer of magic from objects into living creatures. She thought for a moment, and glared toward Grimoire. “What are you planning?”

“Planning?”

She used a moment of silence to put the pieces together. “You value a good, evidenced argument, right?”

“Always.”

“Then allow me to guess your plan.”

Grimoire sighed and rolled his eyes. “Go ahead. This should be interesting…”

“You see, I found your journal in the library.”

“My journal? Wait… you mean D-Q-17? The Sphinx said she wanted to borrow it. I’ve been meaning to go back and pick it up…”

“And one of the spells in the book is about transferring magic from items into living creatures.”

“Okay…”

“Call it a hunch, but you had us go and track down the Elementals, spreading us across Equestria, so you can gather the materials you needed for your spell. That’s why you have that gem, isn’t it? You plan on transferring magic and using it to get your revenge on the academy for kicking you out and getting back at the system you hate.”

After a minute of silence, Grimoire’s expression slowly changed from slight shock to a combination of distain and disappointment. “Are you done?”

Twilight paused a moment. “I… uh…”

He pulls up his journal K-M-11 and pushes it toward her. “Experiments 27 and 32. Read the descriptions.”

Twilight looked into the book at the experiments in question. “Experiment 27: Testing group tactics and cohesion when having to work on multiple, simultaneous projects. Experiment 32: test of Shadow Tag modification allowing for the teleportation of small items.”

“Yeah. And what’s more; if you had actually read and retained the full notation, something I know you’re more than capable of, you would notice that my experimentation showed I couldn’t move inanimate magics into sentient beings. Now…” He takes back the journal. “…tell me, how could I test your cohesion objectively if you knew you were being watched? Simple, psychological experimentation rules.”

Applejack moved forward to challenge him, “How do we know you didn’t write these down while we were gone?”

His expression became more at ease when talking to Applejack. “Ask Twilight. She’s read through one of my previous journals. She verify the authenticity.”

“What?” Applejack turned to Twilight.

“I was more like skimming… but I can say that he is telling the truth. The journal I read had a number of experiments written down that he recorded having done after writing other experiment ideas later on. It’s how he operates…”

Grimoire interjected, “I will have you know that the reason I write things down like that is because it’s the best way for me to do so. I travel around a lot and I write down the ideas. Then I test the idea when I get the chance.”

Twilight groaned a moment, but hung her head. She had to admit, her argument was breaking. Until she thought back to his own evidence. “…You wanted us to find the Elementals… you used our shadows to gather from the Elementals.”

Grimoire’s tone became cold again. “Correct. Three birds with one stone, as it were.”

As Fluttershy cringed at the idea behind the expression he used, Twilight continued, “You plan on moving the magic from what you collected into that gem, creating a magic-boosting stone.”

“Now you’re just grasping at straws.” He turned back toward the cauldron.

Twilight adopted a lower stance, ready for action. “I might not have all the details, but I’m certain you’re trying to bring down the Equestrian system. I read one of the early notes in your journal. You called the academy staff, and extended it to Celestia and her rule, ‘the products of the broken system that needs to be fixed.’”

Grimoire took a deep breath. “You know what? Believe whatever you want. I don’t care.”

“You realize that we will stop you…”

“You know…” He turned back around to face Twilight. “I’d like to see you try. Why don’t we take this outside?”

“You really want to fight Twilight?” Rainbow Dash couldn’t really see Grimoire and Twilight in a real brawl.

“Not a fight. A duel. I’m not interested in harming Twilight. I want to prove a point.”

“What point?”

“A personal point. That your system demonizes my field of magic without taking the time to understand it, and that thought process is holding your system back. That way of thinking is holding you ponies back.”

“And using Dark Magic, the magic of hate and evil, is the answer?”

“IT’S NOT ABOUT HATE!” After a series of deep breathes, Grimoire could continue. “Dark Magic is the magic of understanding and manipulating the world around you on a deep level. If anything, it’s Light Magic that’s ruled by such emotions.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t you know? Because I’ve done my research Twilight Sparkle, and the observations side with me. During the assault by Tirek, did you or did you not possess the power of four alicorn princesses?”

“Well… yeah.”

“And did you or did you not have difficulty controlling that magic.”

“Yes. I did, but what does this…?”

“And did you, or did you not, get angry at Tirek when he destroyed your home. Thereby granting you greater control over that magic, basically forcing it to do what you want?”

Twilight couldn’t reply after that.

“You think you understand magic? You don’t.”

“How dare you?!”

“How?! Easily! You go around casting spells to find the easy way out! I know about your record here in Ponyville. The bats that you tried to force to not be themselves?! A ‘Reform Spell’?! Sound familiar?! You think because you can use magic that’s it’s the answer!” After another breath, “That said, I don’t blame you for these actions. You grew up in a system that told you that these were acceptable answers. You were taught by one that doesn’t speak up when she needed to.”

“What are you talking about? Celestia is the princess of Equestria. Why would she stay silent about anything?”

“Let me ask you this, when she dropped off the Chaos Spirit here in Ponyville, did she ask you to use a spell to reform him?”

“No, she asked for Fluttershy’s help…”

“Exactly. Using magic to force ‘reform’? Let me ask you, what is reform?”

“We just wanted to make him good…”

“Morality is relative. You didn’t want good. You wanted to force him to fall in line. You wanted to fundamentally change him without his consent. So tell me, does that sound like the actions of a kind, good-natured pony? Would a kind pony want to force another being to be what they’re not because it fits what they want? Does that sound like a pony deserving to rule? Guess what? Only one other pony in recent memory tried this… King Sombra!”

That’s it! Now Twilight was mad. “Don’t you ever compare me to that monster!”

“Monster, is it? Why is that? Because he uses Dark Magic instead of Light? News flash, princess, Light creates Darkness! No force in existence acts alone. Beyond that, no magical source acts in only one way. You remember the exploits of your first time meeting the pony named Starlight Glimmer? Light Magic! Also, you stated that Dark Magic is fueled by hate. Then why do Changelings feed on love?” He took another series of deep breaths. “Again, I don’t really blame you for the failings of the system.” He starts to leave the room, “Meet me in the town center tomorrow at noon.”

As he reached the door, Twilight looked back at the cauldron. It was glowing in four different colors: red, white, green, and blue. Waves of magic flew from the cauldron and into a set of nearby books. Twilight picked up the books and found that they had been filled with the stories of the Elementals. For the first time, there was a real account of the Elementals put to paper.
-\/-
K-M-11 (394)
This will be the final piece I can fit in this volume. I regret losing my temper with Twilight… but this is important. After being seen as a monster for my beliefs with magic, I just want to show that those who would condemn me for that are wrong. I could see it in their eyes, it was just like the look from the academics. They thought I was a monster. Nothing’s changed. The system continues to indoctrinate the young against the idea that Dark Magic isn’t evil by nature.
That said, my actions were reprehensible. Honestly, part of me hopes that Twilight Sparkle will ask to call off the duel. However, I also know that I cannot turn back now. I cannot just step aside, I have a point to prove here. Dark Magic is not evil. It is no different to any other form of magic. It is all about how it’s used.
Now I must duel Princess Twilight Sparkle. Some would call me mad, but I’m more than ready. The Princess of Friendship, former Element of Magic, and the prized student of Celestia will see what a pony can do if they keep a more open mindset to the uses of magic while truly understanding the consequences.
-Grimoire Maleficarum.

Author's Note

King: a quick note, any lines in bold, underlined, and italicized are being sung (Example)

The Light in the Darkness

K-M-11 (19)
Experiment 22: Harmonious Magic Use
Hypothesis: By combining the fundamentals of Light and Dark Magics, one can create a magic greater than the sum of the magic used.
Process (abridged): Attempt to combine magics when utilizing either. Start out small. Use more magic over time for more powerful tests.
Results: Total success! By combining Light and Dark magics, I have found a new potential within the field! More powerful magics using less energy.
Extra Notes (143): Do not try experimenting on an empty stomach… I have, also, inadvertently found the ability to shift to a new form, one that would seem impossible. However, I don’t care about this new form. The stigma attached to it would make my experimentation difficult. For now, I’ll live in my own form.
Personal Report: I have found a portal in a cave to the south of Equestria that I intend to investigate.
-\/-
Ponyville, center square, 11:55

Grimoire sat in the square and looked toward the sky. He had been there for just under a half hour. Ponies were gathering around to see what brought him to the square, thinking maybe he was going to perform or something. Now, they were wondering why he sat motionless for so long. ‘What is he waiting for?’ ‘Why is he here?’ They would get their answers soon enough…

Twilight trotted up to the square with her friends close by. She stopped in front of Grimoire. “You know, we don’t have to do this. We don’t have to have this duel…”

Grimoire took in the world and a deep breath. “I know.” He stood up and faced her directly, “That said, before we start, I want to apologize for my actions yesterday. I lost my temper and that spiraled the conversation down to a verbal fight. For that, I apologize.”

Twilight smiled hearing this, “Don’t worry about it. So, let’s go back to the castle and have some tea. I’m sure we have a good blend you’ll like…”

“No. I apologized for the way I spoke. Everything I said still holds. I can’t just let this go.”

Twilight’s smile faded. “Look… I’m sorry, but I’m not here to duel you. I wanted to try to talk you out of it.”

“Well, you can’t. I have my reasons to do this.”

The town clock ticked forward, reaching 11:58. Grimoire looked back to Twilight, “Better talk fast. Less than 120 seconds before our duel begins.”

“I told you, I’m not going to duel. I just want to talk. I know you can be reasoned with.”

“I can. And my reason is why I’m doing this.” The clock struck 11:59. “Sixty seconds.”

“Would you stop? I’m not going to fight you!”

“Forty five seconds.”

“Why are you so obsessed with this duel?”

“Thirty seconds. I want to prove a point to a pony that doesn’t know what right in front of her.”

“Are you seriously going to argue right now?”

“Fifteen. It’s not an argument. It’s my plan.”

“Plan?”

“Ten. Yeah. Came up with it last night.”

“What exactly is this plan?”

“Five. If I told you, it would jeopardize my mission.”

“Wait a second! Why would…”

The clock interrupted Twilight as it struck noon. “Showtime.” Grimoire lifted his head upward and Twilight’s shadow rose up and tangled itself around her, tying up her wings.

“What the…?!”

“Can’t have you flying around and cheating, now can we?” He reared back and slammed his hooves on the ground, creating a torrent of magic moving quickly toward Twilight.

The alicorn dodged the blast, but she remained hindered by her shadow. Wait… That’s it! She used her magic to create a ball of light. She closed her eyes and surrounded herself in the sphere. After a moment, she flew out of the ball and remained in the sky.

“Clever. Realizing the key to the spell is your shadow… Now, it’s your move.”

“I told you, I don’t want to fight you!”

“I don’t see how you have a choice.” He fired a blast of magic toward Twilight, who blocked the beam using a barrier. “Every action has a reaction. My attacks need to be defended or you risk injury.” He let out another blast that Twilight dodged. “So, will you take your turn or will you just fly around and try to run the clock?”

“Why not? You can’t do this forever!”

“Longer than you!” Sections of Grimoire’s shadow peeled off and created spheres. With a sway of his head, he sent the shadow balls toward Twilight at high velocity. “My mastery over my magic has thought me to do more with less. You will tire out long before I do at this rate.”

Twilight flew higher and tried to remain out of reach and have enough room to dodge his assault. “That doesn’t matter! We don’t have to do this!”

Grimoire glared up toward Twilight. After he was certain she couldn’t see his face, his face returned to his normal curious excitement. “There we go.” He dropped into a lower stance. “Now, let’s see if this will get her attention…”

Grimoire’s body started to tense. Dark magic energy flowed from his eyes, but the green and red eyes that always seems to accompany the magic was absent. He took a deep breath and his shadow started to rise up from underneath him, mixing with the natural glow of his magic. As he exhaled, the magic surrounded him and his body started to strain. With another inhale, he gained an inch or two in height. With the next exhale, his body relaxes at the new height. He rose slightly and slammed back to the ground, creating a burst of magic that shook the town square.

Twilight strained to see what was happening, but her flight to escape his magic made that difficult. After a few seconds, she noticed something flying toward her. She dove out of the way and looked back down to the ground. “Please! Stop this stupid duel!”

“That’s quite rude you know…”

Twilight froze. Grimoire’s voice was too close at this height. She turned around quickly and found something that couldn’t be real.

Grimoire was flying at an even height to Twilight with a pair of wings. “There’s no need to yell. I’m right here.”

“What?! How?!”

Grimoire smiled and tilted his head slightly. “Important questions…”

“How are you an alicorn?!”

“How much do you know about the alicorn race?”

“I… Uh… I know that alicorns are rare in Equestria and that the title is earned.”

“Is alicorn a title? Or a form of the body?”

“What?”

“Alicorn does not mean princess. That goes without saying. But what is it that makes us think that any pony could, in theory, become an alicorn?”

“What are you getting at?”

“Precedent!”

“What?”

“I found a book in the Great Library that details the creation of the first magically-born alicorn, as opposed to natural alicorns. A unicorn that mastered magic gaining a pair of wings for his studies.”

“So… Why are you telling me this?”

“I like to teach almost as much as I love to learn.”

“Okay then… but, how can you just become an alicorn?”

“Oh! You mean in the moment, not the actual process. Right. You see, I actually achieved this form before.”

“But, you were a unicorn not even five minutes ago!”

“If you let me finish…” He sat down on a nearby cloud. “You see, I achieved this on accident. Turns out, that pony from the past was able to achieve the alicorn form through a thorough understanding of Light and Dark magic. Alicorns are often seen as a symbol of harmony between the three pony types; Earth, Unicorn, and Pegasus. This can extend to the harmonious relationship between Light and Dark.”

Twilight flies over and sits on the cloud next to his. “You can’t be serious…”

“Can’t I?” He creates a magic projection, showing Twilight and Celestia’s meeting before the fiasco with Sombra and the Crystal Empire. “Notice the Princess using Dark magic without an issue. Still a bit perturbed that she can use a spell in demonstration and nothing happens but I get expelled. But that’s on the Dean of Students at the time… Off topic.” The image shifted to Twilight’s use of Dark Magic in the throne room. “Notice you were able to use Dark magic before getting your wings.” The image changed again, showing alicorn Twilight with Dark Magic wisps around her eyes. “Now look at this moment you used alicorn magic. Notice something familiar but not quite right?”

Twilight wasn’t sure what to say about what she was seeing. Then something snapped in her mind. “Wait… aren’t you supposed to be trying to duel me?”

“I am.”

“What?”

“I want you to look around. What’s missing up here on this cloud?”

Twilight looked around, trying to see what he was talking about. At one point, she noticed that Grimoire had no shadow on the cloud. She looked for her own shadow in a panic, finding it missing as well. “Where are our shadows?”

Grimoire pointed over the side of the cloud and showed a duo of alicorns fighting in the sky. “Right over there.”

“But… what’s the point of the shadows fighting?”

“I needed a flashy display that can be seen from Canterlot. You weren’t helping, so I had to improvise.”

Twilight reared back a moment. “What…?”

“More on that later. Right now, we discuss. You said you wanted to talk…”

“I… yeah. I wanted to ask why you wanted to duel so badly.”

“At first, it was a spur of the moment. Like I said, my words were genuine. From what I’ve seen and heard about, you are at your best when you think things out rather than acting in the moment; like when you dealt with the Ursa Minor. You thought it through more and knew the consequences if you had done something differently. You’ve accomplished so much; and yet, most of it is because you had to clean up your own mistakes.”

Twilight thought back and saw he had a point. She always tried to find the quick solution when she could. It was when she slowed down and thought it out that she was at her best. “Wow…” After quickly gathering herself, she looked toward Grimoire. “I have another question, though.”

“Go ahead.”

“How exactly are you an alicorn right now?”

“You asked that already.”

“But there’s a lot you haven’t answered. Like how you were a unicorn before and can just become an alicorn, seemingly, at will.”

Grimoire thought a moment, head tilted to the side, and nodded. “Good point. Okay, get comfortable. This is a doozy. There are three ways to become an alicorn and you have actually seen all three.”

“I have?”

“Yes. The first is natural birth. These are few and far between in the modern day, but still very possible. The second route created was the way I use; a form shift using Dark and Light Magics. However, this form is inherently weaker than a natural alicorn. That said, with study and training, I can stand hoof to hoof with any alicorn. Lastly, there is the version that you were transformed with. This used only one side of the magical formula, in this case Light Magic, to fundamentally change your genetic structure. You earned your wings and were given a body as though you were born an alicorn.”

“I guess that explains that much… But I have a few more questions.”

“By all means.”

“Why do you want this duel to be seen from Canterlot?”

“You’ll find out soon enough. Next question.”

Twilight groaned, but she didn’t want to press this for now. “Okay. Did… did you plan everything from the past few days?”

“On a bare bones level, yes. But it wasn’t explicitly planned at first. My original plan was to use the face on the sun in place of this duel, but you and your friends put a damper on that… And when I saw you brought the Leviathan back to Equestria, I decided to change some plans around for new experiments and learning opportunities. So changed my approach. That said, I didn’t account for details as I didn’t really know what would happen, only that you and your friends would succeed. Next.”

“What happened to Leviathan?”

“Leviathan?”

“Yeah. Nopony has seen him since yesterday.”

“Oh! Okay. Well, I had a deal set up with the Leviathan. That gem from yesterday is actually a replacement for his own gem, long since shattered. Now he can take his own form.”

“That doesn’t really answer my question.”

“I know. I’m getting to that. Anyway, he left Ponyville last night to… visit family.”

“Oh… Why didn’t he say anything?”

“I don’t know. I just know what I observed. I can’t read minds. Now, do you have anything else to ask? We have enough time for one more question.”

Twilight wasn’t sure where to begin, even after all of this. “Alright then… You said you re-tooled your plan. Why? You could have just repeated your face on the sun while we couldn’t stop it. What made you change your plan this much?”

Grimoire’s natural smile faded a bit. “If I had to say one thing, it would likely be the subject matter, you.”

“What do you mean?”

“Let me put it this way, of all the alicorn princesses ruling Equestria, how many earned their status though magical study? The Crystal Princess earned her status by saving her home. The sisters had their powers since their earliest years. Out of all the princesses, you are the one that was the most likely to see where I was coming from. If anything, out of the four of the princesses, you are the one I respect the most. Though as a ruler and a student of magic, you still have a lot to learn.” He looked over toward Canterlot. “However, the true ruling princess will have noticed all the commotion by now.”

“Wait, so, this was all to get Celestia’s attention?”

“Of course not. I’m playing the long game, Twilight. This is just the first step.” The shadows flew up from either side of the clouds. “Oh! This is the best part!”

The shadows fighting their duel ascended in a spiral, their magics colliding along the way. When they reached a point in the sky above the clouds, they clash and fly backward in two opposing directions. The shadows flew in place a moment before charging toward one another. On impact, there was a burst of magic so powerful that it cleared the cloud cover over Ponyville. The shadows disappearing in the blast.

Twilight quickly started flapping her wings and regained her balance. For all intents and purposes, it seemed as though she and Grimoire had been in the shadows’ place. “What now?”

“Well…” Grimoire blasted Twilight with a weak beam to catch her off guard. He used this moment to send her down toward the ground at a high enough speed that she would have difficulty righting herself.

Twilight was about to hit the ground, unable to catch herself, when she slowed and stopped before reaching the earth. She let out a sigh of relief and noticed that she was being held up by magic. She looked around and found her mentor standing among the other ponies. Twilight chuckled nervously before her teacher. “Uh… Hello… Celestia.”

The older princess put her student down and trotted over. “Twilight… what is going on?”

“Perhaps we can speed this along…” Grimoire floated in place just above the princesses. “I’m certain Celestia doesn’t have all day.”

The Princess of the Sun looked up in shock. She looked around to the other ponies, all of whom had no idea what to say. She looked back to the new face. “And… you are?”

Grimoire grinned before returning to the ground. His body seemed to shatter like glass, returning him to his unicorn form. “Grimoire Maleficarum, your highness. Nice to meet you.”

Celestia shook her head for half a second to make sure what she saw was real. “How did you…?”

Grimoire stomped his hoof to get her attention back in the moment. “Another time. For now, I need to talk to you.”

“And you couldn’t have gone through the traditional means? I’m hardly difficult to find.”

“Traditional means were closed off when I got expelled for using Dark Magic.”

Celestia looked toward Grimoire and squinted a moment before continuing. “I knew your name sounded familiar… you were the young colt the dean told me about from all those years ago.”

“Nice to know I have a reputation.”

“Now, what did you need to talk about?”

“I am a practitioner of Dark Magic. And last I checked, that’s a serious issue here in Equestria.”

Celestia’s gaze turned hostile, but remained calm. She was on guard against this pony.

“Exactly. So, I want to offer myself and my work to be taken under watch.”

Celestia reared back. “Wait. What?”

“It’s like this, I know that nothing I say will change anything. So, I’m offering a sort of middle ground to benefit us all. I get to practice my magic, and you get to make sure nothing bad happens. Even though it hasn’t and never will. Call it, covering your bases politically.”

“Let me get this straight, you want to be put under a constant watch?”

“Not really. But I’ve since had a great idea.” Grimoire walks over and pulls Twilight next to him. “You’re prize student and her friends can be your eyes and ears for my dealings.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow. She was still skeptical, but she couldn’t fault his reasoning. “Fine. Twilight…”

The Princess of Friendship trotted to her teacher. “Yes?”

“If you are willing, would take up this task?”

Twilight looked back to Grimoire. “You know… throughout this journey, I thought I knew what he was up to. Now… I realize I didn’t know anything dealing with him. It’s obvious that he’s clever and a bit… eccentric. However, I’ll take up this task. If anything, it will give me time to figure him out.”

Celestia nodded and turned back to Grimoire. “It’s decided. You will be under the watch of Twilight Sparkle.”

Grimoire saluted the princess, but it had a hint of mocking in the gesture. “Understood.”

Twilight stepped forward. “That means you can’t travel around like you used to. And I expect you to check in on time.”

Grimoire bowed to Twilight (again, mockingly) with a smirk, “Naturally. Besides, I’ve already made plans for a living arrangement.”
-\/-
Journal M-A-50
Entry #1
First entry in a new journal and a new home! I am now under the watch of Twilight Sparkle and I’m bound to Ponyville. That’s perfectly fine for me. From my experience here, I like this place. There’s something about this town that just feels like a home. I found a lovely house for sale near the edge of the town. After some work, it now feels like a home to me.
I was surprised when the town party planner, Pinkie Pie, showed up in my home one day with most of the town to welcome me to the community. When I asked why she would just accept me into her community like that she told me, ‘Strangers are friends you haven’t met yet, and I love to see my friends smile!’ I can’t fault her for that one… I could, really, but she can clearly tell when somepony is a threat of some kind. And I learned very quickly that normal logic doesn’t apply for her. The ponies Rainbow Dash and Applejack would glare from time to time, but after bonding over Daring Do and the structure of apple farming economics, this has waned a bit. Fluttershy keeps to herself, but doesn’t seem to outwardly dislike me. As for Rarity… she’s an odd one. When I stopped by to try to get some fabrics to decorate my home, she took over the project and helped design the interior. I can’t complain about the result and price was certainly fair, but she can be… overwhelming.
Twilight is keeping me to a strict, weekly schedule to check in. As it stands, I’ve never been late with my reports. Though, I plan to test her on this. There’s a part of me that wants to see what would happen if I hold back the report and tell her I sent it in. Of course, this might make things worse for me, but it would be fascinating to see.
I can tell that many ponies, the royalty included, still don’t trust me. But that’s fine. Time will help build this trust… That’s all I can do at this point. Until then, I will simply go about my days as I always have. They’ll see soon enough that I am not a threat to anypony, though I know they’ll test me…
In the end, I have a home now, a new journal to write, and a real sense of community for the first time. I’ll call this a win.
-Grimoire Maleficarum

Author's Note

(Have a supplemental Q&A.)
Q&A
Why an alicorn? – A simple complexity. There was a thought process here. 1) Alicorns aren’t inherently special. 2) Huh… Alicorns used Dark Magic pretty often… 3) Alicorns are often seen to represent the harmony of the pony types… maybe it can work for magic as well. 4) Alicorn Grimoire!
Why can Grimoire switch between forms while it seems the princesses cannot? – He explains it, actually. The alicorn princesses were either born or granted their powers (depending on what you choose to believe). However, in this from (of dubious canon) those that gained the power were granted the power through one magics rather than the combination. Grimoire mastered both Light and Dark, so he can use the combination to switch between them.
Why doesn’t Grimoire just stay an alicorn? – Because it would be boring. He knows that alicorns are seen as special and regal. He doesn’t want that. He wants to walk around and observe without ponies staring and thinking he is royal. He’s a field worker by heart. He wants to remain unimpeded and open with his experimentation. He finds the alicorn form to be too inconvenient.
Wasn’t Grimoire the villain? – You’ve activated my trap card! Grimoire was written to appear as a villain when you didn’t have all the pieces. His use of Dark Magic is meant to play on expectations. This story has no villain, just a pony with a different outlook.
Twilight was out of character when she accused Grimoire! – Was she? Consider this: you grow up in a society that teaches you that Dark Magic is the magic of hatred and you’ve only seen and heard about the evil. Would you be so quick to trust someone with that magic?
So… a unicorn that can use Dark Magic can become an alicorn? – Not necessarily. As established, unicorns need to be able to combine the magics on a deeper level. Consider the symbol of Yin and Yang. Though the two halves are balanced and even contain pieces of the other, they remain separated to black and white. Grimoire, through study and a hint of luck for the first transformation, was able to break those halves down and turn them grey. This is a difficult process as it means you need to break down everything you understand and bring it together.
What is Dark Magic to you? – Magic in this reminds me of the Force from Star Wars. We see the Sith as the bad guys; but, if you break down their actual philosophy, it makes things seem different. They use the force rather than act in the wishes of the Force. It’s a difference between active and passive life styles. Being a Sith doesn’t make you evil in the same way Dark Magic doesn’t make you a villain, it’s what you do with it.
How many journals are there? ¬– 12 (A through K) have been completed. He uses the first letter to keep track and the rest of the call number to be more memorable. A-Z-26 (a reference to the Latin alphabet), D-Q-17 (Dairy Queen? I don’t know. It just stuck.), K-M-11 (if you don’t know where I got this one, I can’t help you.), and M-A-50 (the Roman numeral for 50 is L. I’ll leave you with that.).
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King: Here's hoping you enjoyed the story. (If you didn't, it's a little weird that you read the story to its end. Until next time, stay curious, strive to learn, and have fun.

The Phoenix Rises

Excerpt from the Dictionary of Equestrian Fauna (eighth edition);
The Phoenix: A bird of fire. The origin of this creature is, as of yet, unknown. However, there are a large number of phoenixes currently residing in the Equestrian area. The creature resides in higher temperature locations throughout the area. They are plentiful in the Dragonlands due to the volcanic hot spots in the area. That said, the phoenix and dragon-kind are often at odds with one another. The phoenix can be (and in some cases, have been) domesticated. The Phoenix’s feathers are believed to generate their own heat and can provide warmth when used as a lining in clothing. There were old beliefs that phoenix feathers were able to revive those recently deceased. This has since been proven false. (Something about an Aerith… the details are sketchy.) The phoenix can reanimate itself after combustion, reborn from its ashes.
-\/-

“Darling… please…”

While Rarity was attempting to coax Fluttershy out from the rocks, Spike and Dragon Lord Ember watched the scene play out.

“Spike’s friend Ember already said we can look around to find the Phoenix. There are no grown up dragons in the Dragonlands today. So, come out from that rock and we can get to work.”

“I-I-I-I-I-I’m n-n-not sure…”

“Darling, I can promise you, you will be fine.”

“O-okay. If you say so.” Fluttershy slowly left the rocks and trotted over to join the group.

Ember looked between the two ponies before commenting to Spike, “I get the marshmallow pony…”

“Rarity.” Spike corrected.

“Right… but why the one who’s scared of dragons?”

“Fluttershy knows the most about phoenixes.”

“But isn’t this supposed to be some ancient super phoenix or something? Wouldn’t there be differences between the old version and the modern phoenix?”

“Definitely. She’s the best shot we have. There’s also supposed to be a lot of other phoenixes is the area. I’m sure Twilight knew what she was doing when she made the teams.”

“Twilight… that was the purple one with the wings, right?”

“Twilight is an alicorn, so she has a horn as well as wings.”

“Ah… ponies are confusing.”

“It’s not as bad as you’d think.”

After nearly an hour of walking, the group found themselves on a shoreline. In the distance, the flame-cano. A cluster of dragons could be seen flying the distance. Ember held her hand out toward the island, “most of the phoenix population is across the sea. Any that stay behind in the Dragonlands refused to be driven off back in the day.”

The flock of dragons in the distance started to fly toward the shore. A group of three dragons (two flying and carrying the third) flew down, landing in a tired mess. When Ember flew over, the largest of the three stood up and faced her. “Sorry, Dragon Lord Ember… we couldn’t get any new info.”

“Darn it…” Ember looked over to the other two. “So the Flame-cano is still out of our reach…”

“What do you mean?” Rarity walked down upon hearing this.

“Every time we get close to the island, there’s a series of eruptions that push us back.”

“I thought dragons could swim in lava without an issue…”

“We’re not totally sure about it all, either. But, for some reason, this fire is… different. It actually burns dragons.”

“Hmm… perhaps that’s where we can find our Phoenix.”

“You think?”

“It’s the first possible clue so far. It’s worth a look. But before we go, I should really get an outfit that can withstand the fires.”

“Dragons get burned by this fire. Nothing you have can withstand something that powerful.”

“Well… that puts a damper on things… but we can’t let this stop us! How can we get near the island without alerting the… flame-cano…?”

“We dragons have tried to figure out what’s going on for a couple days and we found that flying low helps hide us from whatever is making the flame-cano erupt. So maybe sailing over will keep you all hidden until you reach land.”

“If it’s the best option, then that’s what we shall do!”

The group spent the next handful of hours gathering materials and building a raft to ferry the group across the sea to the island. Rarity dubbed tried to dub it, ‘the SS Fabulous.’ She was eventually talked down about the issue and the group set off for the island. Their journey was a long, but quiet one. It took nearly another hour to cross the water and land on the shores of the island. The moment they set hoof on the island, however, was not so kind. The moment they arrived, the ground started to shake.

“W-w-w-what’s going on?!” Fluttershy was freaking out.

“I don’t know. I thought we were supposed to be hidden from whatever was doing this… stuff…” Spike looked around but stopped when he looked toward the summit.

“Spikey?” Rarity followed his gaze and was taken aback for a moment. After a moment, she responded with, “It’s… gorgeous.”

At the summit was a phoenix. Truthfully, though, it was more majestic than a normal phoenix. Its feathers were a radiant crimson mixed with a brilliant light blue at the tip of the feathers. It seemed like it truly was a living fire. It looked down toward them, its eyes burned with an intensity that the group could feel even at the bottom of the mountain. It stared for a minute before spreading its wings and unleashing a powerful shriek. It retreated inside the summit and the world was quiet again.

After a moment of silence, Spike gave a nervous chuckle. “Well… at least we found the Phoenix.”

They entered the labyrinth within the mountain and made their way toward the central cavern. Thanks to Spike and Rarity’s previous visit to the Flame-cano, they made their way to the area in record time. Waiting for them was the Phoenix, staring them down. Now that they could see the creature to scale, they saw what they could not before; the fact that this Phoenix was the size of a fully grown dragon.

“Okay darling…” Rarity whispered to Fluttershy. “See if you can communicate with it.”

The Pegasus was shaking. “I don’t know if I can…”

“It’s like the other animals you know. Just… bigger. You can do this.”

“O-okay. I’ll try.” Fluttershy flew closer to the creature and started to work. “H-hello there.”

The Phoenix just looked down to her in silence.

Fluttershy started shaking again. “I-I-I’m sorry if we’re disturbing you…”

“Silence!” The cavern erupted with the fiery voice of the Phoenix; she was pissed.

“You can talk?!”

“I can. But that’s not important right now. I demand a reason why you would ever dare to invade my territory!”

“You’re right! We’ll leave!” Fluttershy tried to make a run for it, but was stopped by Spike.

Rarity stepped forward to speak with the Phoenix. “Greetings. We apologize for stopping in unannounced, but we didn’t really know that you were here.”

The Phoenix scoffed. “The fireballs were not an indication to stay away?”

“To be fair, this is a volcano. Fire is part of the package.”

“Perhaps… but this does not excuse your action. Now, you have two options. Either you leave and never come back or explain yourselves and hope I accept your answer.”

“W-well… then I suppose we shall attempt to explain.”

“Fine.” The Phoenix sat in a perch and continued its burning gaze. “Get to it.”

“R-right…” Rarity cleared her throat before continuing, “You see, not too long ago…”

“I will not tolerate beating around the bush. Get to the point!”

Rarity was spooked but tried to regain her composure. “I apologize. I’ll get to the point. We came here to find you and make sure you’re not harming anypony…”

“You would dare to accuse me in my own home?!” The Phoenix let out a shattering screech, causing Rarity to fly backward and hit a rock.

Fluttershy cowered for a moment until Rarity was sent into the stone. At that moment, she forgot her fear and had to speak up. “Hey!”

The Phoenix turned toward the yellow Pegasus and stared in silence.

Fluttershy flew up to look the Elemental in the eyes. “Just because you’re big, doesn’t mean you get to be a bully! We came here to talk and you just sent my friend flying.”

After a minute of silence, the Phoenix replied calmly. “Are you done?”

Fluttershy was taken aback. “What?”

“Are you done with your little rant?”

“I… um… yes?”

“Good. Now, allow me to remind you… I LIVE HERE! You entered my home without being invited! You accuse me of harming another in my home!”

“Um… we never accused you. We just wanted to make sure you wouldn’t attack anypony.”

“And why would I do that if they leave me alone?”

“Um… the… Harmonia…”

“Harmonia? That magic cannon?”

“Yes. You know about it?”

“I do. It was created by the ponies. For what purpose, I don’t know and I don’t care. However, I know it’s the power that woke me from my slumber. And I am grateful to it. I now know that the dragons have been using my home.”

“Oh… um… that doesn’t mean you can just hurt my friend.”

“Pardon my anger when I’m accused by intruders in my home without provocation.” One could feel the sarcasm in the air.

“I told you, we’re not accusing you. We were told that you might try to get the power from Harmonia.”

“I don’t care about the magic of ponies. My only priority is my home and my offspring.”

“So… if we just leave, you won’t hurt anyone?”

“That’s the point. And get those dragons to leave my island alone!”
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As the group returned to the main land, they were swarmed by a few dragons, including Ember. “Well?”

“Well… we found out what was causing your issue.” Rarity explained. “It was the Phoenix we were looking for.”

“And you talked to it and got it to leave, right?”

“Not exactly… She’s quite stubborn. She says she won’t leave her home.”

“This Phoenix thinks it can just take the Flame-cano?!” Another dragon spoke up. A familiar and annoying voice, Garble. “I thought you dumb ponies were supposed to be good at this mediation stuff.”

“Garble!” Ember shouted the teen dragon down and turned back to the ponies and Spike. “As annoyingly as he puts it… I see where he’s coming from. The Flame-cano has been a staple of Dragon culture for a very long time. We never saw this Phoenix.”

“According to what we know… The Phoenix has been sleeping in there for a very long time. Before Equestria… she refuses to leave since she sees it as her home.”

“That could be a problem… The Flame-cano is an integral part of our selection of Dragon Lord. It’s kind of important to us.”

“I understand that, but I don’t think the Phoenix is going to leave. It’s also very territorial.”

“Then, can’t we find it a new home?”

“I don’t know. According to our source, it doesn’t leave its nest.”

“That doesn’t help…”

“Sorry.”

“Don’t worry. We can take it from here.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s like I said, we need the Flame-cano. So… we just have to drive it off.”

“Don’t you think that’s a little extreme?”

“Maybe… but we need that island.”

“Do you?” Spike finally spoke up.

“What are you talking about? You ran that course.”

“I did. And so did you. We worked together, remember?”

“Yeah. I remember. So?”

“So… you entered that tournament even though your dad said you couldn’t. We worked together and completed something that other dragons thought we couldn’t. We beat that challenge. That challenge is over. We proved that we don’t need to follow old ideas.”

“That makes sense… but we can’t just give up the Flame-cano.”

“You can’t be serious!” Garble reentered the conversation. “You’re going to listen to the runt and his pony friends? It’s just a stupid phoenix! We’ve forced plenty of those birds out, we can get rid of this one.”

Spike thought a moment and an idea lodged itself in his head. He noticed his pony companions about to speak up but beat them to the punch. “I’d like to see you try.”

“What?” Garble was mad.

Rarity moved closer and whispered to Spike. “What are you doing?”

Spike whispered back, “we’ve met Grable. He won’t let this go.”

“I see your point, but…”

Spike stopped her and turned toward Ember. “But it’s the Dragon Lord’s call.”

Ember raised an eyebrow, but quickly came to a realization. “Okay… Garble. You can try to remove the Phoenix.”

Rarity tried to speak up. “Wait a moment!”

Garble interrupted her, “Consider that thing gone.” He was about to take off but was stopped by Ember.

“I’m not done.” Ember pointed toward the sun. “You have until sundown. That’s three hours. If you fail to remove the Phoenix, forfeit the island.”

“Fine.” Garble grumbled.

“And don’t think you can go against this if you fail. There are enough dragons here to act as witnesses for this deal.”

“Whatever. It’s just a stupid bird.” Garble flew off toward the island, keeping close to the water.
\/

After about an hour, Garble returned in a fiery crater. He grumbled and flew back to the island. Another half hour and he was thrown back again. One ore hour and he flew back, exhausted, collapsing into the sand.

Ember looked down toward him. “Well?”

Garble growled and stood up. “Okay… I can’t even get near that thing with all that weird fire.”

Spike couldn’t help but wear a smug smile. “Well, it’s not like you could have done anything anyway. That Phoenix is the size of an adult dragon.”

The dragons around the beach, especially Garble, couldn’t believe what they had heard. Ember shook her head in disbelief. “You can’t be serious.”

“I’ll show you if you want. But not too many, the Phoenix is very picky about who can show up.”

It was Rarity’s turn to raise an eyebrow at Spike’s actions.
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Rarity, Fluttershy, Spike, Ember, and Garble floated/flew near the island. Spike shouted to the Phoenix in the mountain and they waited for a few minutes. After a moment, the Phoenix flew out from the mountain and landed on the nearby shore.

“It seems the intruders can learn manners.” The Phoenix looked over the group before her. “Why have you returned to my island?”

Garble was about to speak up, but Ember intervened and spoke instead. “We’re here to discuss the fate of the Flame-cano.”

“Flame-cano? Do you mean my island?”

“Yes. It seems, as you slept, we dragons had taken the Flame-cano as a site for our rituals to determine leadership. As per an agreement with one of my subjects, we shall forfeit the island.”

“And… you felt it necessary to come to my island to tell me this?”

“This is an official statement from the Dragon Lord and cannot be revoked.”

“And why should I believe that? What can you do to prove that those who come after will leave my island in peace? I can already tell one of you does not like this deal and I would prefer not to find my home invaded if I have to leave for a moment.”

Ember thought a moment, then an idea formed. “Okay. How about this…” she takes a deep breath and breaths fire onto the shore. A section of the sands became a crude glass.

“You would attack my home?”

“Take the glass and place it somewhere easily visible. That will tell all dragons to avoid this island.”

The Phoenix took one look at the glass and shook her head. “Though the gesture is welcome, I feel that it remains unsatisfying…”

“What do you mean?”

“For one thing, this glass is far from easily visible. Beyond that… it’s horridly unappealing.”

“You can’t be serious…”

“I’m sorry… who just melted the sand from my island to make this without asking?”

“Okay… I get it.”

Rarity looked at the glass. “If I may, I think I have an idea. But I’ll need to step onto the island.”

The Phoenix thought a moment. “Fine. Given that you at least had the decency to ask, you may.”

“Thank you.” Rarity stepped onto the shore and used her magic to move the glass. “Spikey, can you use your fire…” Rarity marked a few locations. “Here, here, and here.”

Spike used his fire where Rarity asked and melted some of the glass. Rarity then used her magic to reshape the glass into a shape. When it cooled again, it had taken the form of a large fire.

“It’s still missing something…” Rarity looked around and found a plant nearby that caught her eye. “Ooh! I can use that.”

As she walked over, a part of her shadow shot up and grabbed a feather from the Phoenix. It retreated and became normal again before anypony could notice.

Rarity used the plants to stain the glass, turning it a bright blue. “Now, you can set up some kind of light source nearby and it will glow a brilliant blue.”

The Phoenix looked the new form of the glass and nodded. “This is better. I thank you marshmallow pony.”

“Marshmallow?” Rarity was confused by this for a moment but decided not to 1) criticize a satisfied customer and 2) start an argument with a Phoenix that could crush her without trying.
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As the ponies left the Dragon Lands, they noticed the light from the beacon in the distance. They were content, knowing that the Phoenix had a home and the Dragons would remain peaceful toward the creature. They had to give up their island, but they didn’t really need it. This was the best solution they could find. Whether it held is still yet to seen. For now, they turned toward home.
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K-M-11 (392) Morning

The previous evening remained uneventful. I met the townsponies and found that many are… odd. Truthfully, I don’t know how some could handle this. That said, I feel it might be something that a pony could get used to. During this time, I reviewed the ponies that I might yet be able to call peers. In the end, I was disappointed. The most magically gifted pony, one Starlight Glimmer, proved to lack the mind of a researcher. She is gifted, but primarily through talent alone. The only researcher in this town is the time keeper of the town, an earth pony by the name of Doctor Time Turner. I have a meeting with the Doctor later today to test the validity of whether he could be a peer. Magic prowess is not the important part to a peer. It is the mind. Starlight showed magical potential, as discussed before, but hers is not the analytical mind. I only hope that the Doctor is willing to look at my research with an objective eye.
Magical Report: my spells remain intact. The Shadow Tags are holding and the deal with the Chaos Spirit remains binding.
-Grimoire Maleficarum