Callidus and the Mystery of Magic
“Flurry!” Sunburst shouted, desperately trying to bring the young alicorn under control. “Look, it’s very dangerous, what you’re doing, and you need to…”
“Wheee!” Flurry elected to ignore Sunburst’s warnings, choosing instead to fly away and toss around more toys for him to catch. The strain on Sunburst’s horn started to build, rapidly reaching the limit of his available mana. A book flew past him, labeled Fantastic Fables for Foals, providing the answer to the unasked question, “What do I do with a seven year old alicorn who needs something to do right now?”.
It was a very handy solution, and Sunburst did not waste the opportunity. Dropping everything else, he grabbed the book with magic and called out to his charge, “Flurry? Do you want to listen to a story?”
That caught her attention. She landed next to him, eyes full of curiosity. “Yes! Tell me a story!” she said, her tone full of energy and cheer.
“Okay.” Sunburst adjusted his glasses. “So, umm, which one do…”
“That one!” Flurry said, pointing a hoof at the book. She ignited her horn, the pages flipping rapidly, and eventually slowing down to a stop on a title page.
Sunburst read the title out loud to her. “Callidus and the Mystery of Magic.”
A long time ago, there was no magic anywhere for the ponies to use. But there were Gods and Goddesses who wield magic to shape the world to their desires. One day, the ponies grew tired of being subjected to the whims of the higher powers, and they wanted a bit of magic for themselves to use.
“Like magic right now?”
“Yes, Flurry, just like the magic we are using now.”
They did not know how to get magic for themselves, but a clever pony…
“Was he a unicorn?”
“Uh, there weren’t any unicorns at this time, Flurry, because there was no magic they could use.”
...by the name of Callidus knew how to take magic from the Gods themselves. So he told the other ponies that lived with him, “Lift me up to the Mountain, where the Gods live, and I will bring you magic when I return.”
The other ponies, finding hope within themselves, cheered, and approached the Mountain of the Gods. They stacked on top of each other, making a staircase to the very top of the Mountain, and then Callidus climbed for several days before he reached the top.
“Why didn’t he fly up the Mountain?”
“He didn’t have wings or magic, Flurry. And without magic, flight doesn’t work very well.”
Once Callidus reached the peak of the Mountain, he walked through the Gateway into the Palace of the Gods, which was hosting a party thrown by the Gods and Goddesses, and he caught their attention.
“Hello to all! My name is Callidus, and I have come here bearing gifts!” he shouted, for the Higher Ones were tall and spoke loudly, a consequence of their power.
“Really?” said one, craning their neck to gaze upon him. “Foolish mortal, I see no gifts that you carry with you. We shall cast you out from our realm, you do not belong here.”
But Callidus was clever, and knew how to trick the ones who had too much. “The gift I bear is nothing you can see with your sight, Higher Ones, I come bearing the gift of the future!”
Chatter immediately ceased. For all their power and all of their magic, the future always remained blurry and out of focus, no matter what they attempted.
“Speak quickly, and we may let you live, mortal,” the God stated. “If you lie to us, your death will be swift and painful.”
Callidus, unfazed by the threat, spoke, “I have foreseen a time where all of you are deposed by the one thing that can harm you, the final destruction of all. The blade known as Entropy will be wielded against you, and I wish your help in preventing this. Where may I find this blade, as to safeguard it and keep you safe?”
“And how do we know that you are not deceiving us, mortal?” the God replied.
“It will be easy to figure that out. I know you play your games with dice, and I shall predict what shall be shown when you roll them!” Callidus stated defiantly.
“I see. What is the number that will appear when a pair of dice are rolled?”
“The number will be…” Callidus paused for dramatic effect, “...a seven!” Callidus knew from experience that the dice was most likely to show a seven over all other numbers.
The dice were rolled, and as luck would hold it, the result was indeed a seven.
“Again.” one God hissed. “Calling a dice roll once does not make you a prophet.”
Once again, the dice roll was the number that Callidus called.
“Since I have proven myself as a prophet, will you tell me the way to the blade so I may hide it away?”
Those in power do not like to lose it, and the Gods and Goddesses that lived on the Mountain clung to their power like…
Sunburst read the next few words, like a drowning pony in the middle of the ocean, and decided to change that to something much more positive. He was responsible for looking after Flurry Heart, and Princess Cadance would probably not want her daughter hearing that. He adjusted his glasses, and read on.
...a particularly clingy foal to their toys. They spoke amongst themselves, but it was a short debate.
“We have decided the best option is to inform you of where Entropy lies.” As always when they faced a mortal, they were haughty and proud. “Seek beyond your lands where you reside, and head to the Boiling North. You must work past the terrors of the North, and reach the North Pole. There, sheathed in the ground, you will find Entropy. Once you pull the blade out of the ground, hide it away and never let anyone else see it. It will be your secret to guard it and protect it from all who wish to misuse it.”
“But how will I take the blade? Without any way to carry it, I’m afraid I cannot carry out your task.” Callidus knew he could probably make it through the North without magic, but he needed to show his fellow ponies that he would give them the power he promised them.
“...Very well.” One Goddess spoke. “Here is source of power, and a horn with which to wield it.” They gave him a horn and magic, and Callidus knew that he had achieved a small victory. “Once you have completed your task, we shall take this away from you.”
Callidus, the first unicorn, had everything he needed to give magic to all. “I will retrieve the blade Entropy, and keep it from any who would misuse it.” Saying that, he left the Higher Ones and descended down into the mortal realm. The ponies welcomed him back, first with joy, and then with confusion.
“How come you get magic, and we don’t?” shouted one.
Callidus raised his hoof. “Peace. I have been assigned a task to use this magic for, and once I complete it, there will be magic for all!”
The crowd cheered, and Callidus made his way north. Colder and colder the air became, but with his newfound power, Callidus kept himself warm. When he reached a certain point, he stopped and looked at the challenge in front of him.
The Boiling North was a near inhospitable place, nothing was stable there. It constantly churned, throwing out clouds made of dirt and light and turning the very colors that reached his eyes into a dozen different mirrors, each reflecting a different copy of himself. Steeling himself, Callidus walked in, doing his best to find the least unstable parts and continuing to walk northward.
“Did he ever reach the Crystal Empire, Sunburst?”
“I don’t believe he did, Flurry. This was a long time ago, and the Empire hadn’t been made yet.”
Trekking ever closer to his destination, now pelted by a brown liquid that tasted sweet, he heard a voice call out to him.
“Who dares to brave the Boiling North?”
“It is I, Callidus, the first unicorn!”
“A unicorn?” the voiced repeated, sounding interested. “Is that how you can harness the power of those on the Mountain?”
“Soon, I will ensure that everyone will have magic, not just the Gods.”
The voice chuckled. “I see. Well, I oppose them as well. Since I know your intentions, you may have your passage to Entropy. Bring them down to equal size! They bound me here, and I very much wish to be free. Onwards!”
A way further northwards became less unstable, the chunks of land floating about settling down into a jagged, but traversable, path. The odd, repeating squares of two different colors remained on the pathway, and Callidus marched on.
“I didn’t know Uncle Discord was in this!”
Sunburst paused, for a couple of reasons. The first one was the odd resemblance to Discord’s habit of making checkerboards on any lands he warped, and the second was that Discord had been interacting with Flurry Heart. Again.
“Look, I know you enjoy Discord when he is around, but you shouldn’t listen to him. He, uh, really isn’t the best role-model for a young filly like you.”
Flurry leaned closer to Sunburst. “But he always gives me free candy,” she whispered, as if that was the only factor that mattered. To her, that was probably the biggest deciding factor.
Sunburst shook his head. “Anyway...”
The path wasn’t straight to the blade, often detouring in wandering curves. Gravity only tugged him in the direction of the path, allowing him to walk in loop-de-loops without any trouble. For several days, he walked on the misshapen path, until, at last, he arrived at the North Pole.
The blade only called Entropy stood proudly there, its dark coloration absorbing all of the colors that made up the Boiling North. Sticking out from in the ground, it was slightly shorter than Callidus, and the plain hilt gave no indication about the power this weapon truly contained.
Callidus grabbed the blade in his magic and tugged it up from the stone it was bound in. It withdrew without resistance, and the subtle enchantments on the blade started drawing in power from the aura he was holding it in. This would be the blade to free the magic from the tyrannical Gods, and Callidus would bring the magic to all. He turned around, and headed back through the Boiling North, the misshapen pathway still intact. For several days, he moved ever southward, until the jumbled mess of a landscape began to give way to a wintery landscape, marking the end of the North, and the next leg of his journey.
“Farewell!” Callidus cried to the Boiling North.
“Farewell to you, too! Take down those Shards in the sky for me!” The voice chuckled, and then Callidus never heard from it again. He returned to his village, and showed them his prize.
“This will be the sword that will bring you magic! This will be the last day you have without magic! For tonight, we rise to the heavens and take what should have been ours long ago!” Callidus shouted, rousing the crowd’s emotions. They cheered, and they all scrambled to the Mountain, where the Higher Ones lived. Clambering up the Mountain, they quickly reached the Gateway to the Palace of the Gods. Under the weight of a thousand mortals, the Gateway broke, and they flooded into the Palace. The Higher Ones were startled and amused, having never seen this before, but their amusement changed to fear when they saw the black blade of Entropy, now shimmering with a faint magical energy that Callidus had stored in the blade while he was carrying it.
“NO!” one God thundered, and stamped his massive hoof down on the blade. Callidus, with no time to react, could only watch as the hoof descended onto the blade, and the blade flared white in response to the contact.
A bright white flash briefly blinded all who were present, and when it faded, the God was gone, his magic dispersed. All of the mortals felt the new power inside them, some growing wings and gaining the power to fly. Others grew colorful, and some had increased strength. They all wanted some the power of the Gods for their own, and pushed toward the others Gods. Callidus, following the will of the crowd, advanced towards them, who started cowering back in fear.
“Begone, those who hoard magic like dragons do gold! Begone, and give what you have to those who would best use it!” Callidus called out to the Gods, smiting them one by one and dispersing the magic they held into the world.
The deed done, Callidus marched out from the Palace, the cheering ponies following, and together they descended down back to the world. The newly liberated magic flooded out into the world, revitalizing and infusing everything, and all was well.
And that is why, to this day, we have magic, thanks to the efforts of Callidus.
The End.
Sunburst finished the fable, and turned to Flurry. She was listening intently to his words, and because he had finished, she was disappointed, the source of her entertainment now gone.
“Whee!” Flurry took off again, grabbing the scattered toys in her magic, searching for a new source of entertainment.
“Flurry! You need to stop that, it could be very dangerous to you! I... I…” Sunburst sighed. It was no use trying to calm down a young alicorn when she was on a quest for entertainment.
As Sunburst tried to curb Flurry’s extra excitement, the sun set over the land of Equestria, its last few rays of the day stretching across the land, impacting on a dusty and broken gateway on a tall mountain. Nothing had lived there to take care of it for some time now. The buildings were too tall for any currently living being, and any food store had long since rotted away. Nothing was likely to live there again.
For in Equestria, myths and legends were always a bit of a misnomer. They were more like warped history than anything else.
Author's Note
A bit of Prometheus, a bit of Robin Hood, Sunburst as Flurry’s babysitter I got from somewhere, FanOfMostEverything if I remember correctly, and/or the Royal Sketchbook. The Mountain is derived from Mount Olympus, the home of the Greek Gods. Arthur and Merlin somehow found their way in this.
I hope you enjoyed this fairy tale, it was great fun to write! 