A New Era

Books.

Hundreds of thousands of them, drifting slowly through a massive library. The library was bigger than most buildings, even those found in Manehatten. It descended deep into the ground, going on and on further into the stone and dirt of the very mountain that held Canterlot aloft. In the Library's center, hovering in an aura of magenta light, was an Alicorn. Her eyes glowed white with power and her straight, purple mane flowed as if swayed by a kind of celestial breeze. This was Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship.

The Library itself was a project that took several centuries to complete, knowledgeable creatures from all over the world came together to assist in the construction of the library over multiple generations. It was constructed with only the storage of books in mind, no walkways, only rows upon rows of bookshelves that seemed to go on forever downwards into the cylindrical abyss. Occasionally there would be a section that branched off of the main section of the library, only to enter another, if not slightly smaller, round room that seemed to stretch infinitely downwards. Books of all subjects from every continent on Equus were copied, word for word, and delivered directly to Twilight, allowing her to immediately get to filing the new source of information. Upon its completion the purple Alicorn created a custom spell to allow her to read several books at once, giving her the ability to absorb several times as much knowledge as a normal Unicorn. This was one of the many spells that was always active in the great library. Preservation, organization, documentation, lighting. All spells created and run by the Library's keeper.

Twilight was exactly where she wanted, doing exactly what she wanted to do. She locked herself away. keeping as much distance from herself and the pains of the world outside. It had been ages since she heard Pinkie's laughter, seen the glorious glow of a sonic rainboom, or tasted the warm flavors of a once familiar fruit-based cider. Losing her closest friends had put her through enough pain for a century in a single decade. Permanently causing her to fear getting close to another living creature. She was better off learning the wonders of the world than carve another deadly wound in her still aching heart. She almost never got visitors. With only a few exceptions.

"Twilight?"

The Alicorn in question slowly turned and blinked, directing her glowing gaze towards the voice of the intruder. The voice was familiar, the voice of a pony she knew would always be there for her. The aura from her horn briefly intensified as all the books drifting through the air stopped and suddenly changed direction, finding the correct place to re-shelf themselves neatly in the walls. leaving the library quiet and still for the first time in what seemed like forever. Her eyes blinked a few times until the bright glow of power faded from her eyes. She gently lowered herself to the entryway and rose shakily on her neglected limbs. "Ce- Celestia?", she managed to say in a hoarse croak, her body aching from being physically immobile for the last few millennia.

Celestia nodded in reply, "Yes Twilight, it's me." She took a step forward and put a wing over the younger Alicorn's body, steadying her as she swayed on her hooves. Celestia, while still every bit as graceful as she was when she first met Twilight, . The colors of her mane, although they had faded, were still vibrant and beautiful. Her eyes still held that mischievous sparkle.

"Wha- *ahem* -What c-can I help you w-with?", Twilight said, her voice nearly gave out from the neglect it had received.

Celestia sighed, the light in her eyes dimmed a bit as a sad smile gracing her usually warm features. "Would you care to walk with me? It's been a long time since we last spoke, and I believe there are some important matters we must discuss.", she said as she turned towards the entrance, looking briefly back over her shoulder at Twilight while motioning for her to follow with a wing.

Twilight followed Celestia out of the library into the light of day. The entrance to the library was on the far side of the mountain to Canterlot, a long walkway had been constructed that ran around the mountain and into the Royal Gardens. The purple Alicorn squinted and shielded her eyes with a foreleg when the sunlight reached her face.

Celestia laughed, it was a small light hearted chuckle, much like the ones Twilight had grown so familiar to as a filly. "You should get out more Twilight, it's not good for you to be inside for that long."

Twilight snorted, "I've been in there for ages, I don't think my health has decreased all too much. Besides, I know exactly what's going on with the outside world. I have a newspaper delivered to the library to remedy that kind problem." She glanced up at the sky, her eyes finally adjusting to allow her to take in the bright blue sky and the lively green of the bushes as they finally made their way into the Canterlot gardens. "Okay, maybe I Could arrange to get out more...", she thought.

The Solar Alicorn led her along the path to a clearing filled with several different variants of wildflowers arranged so that the colors created a rainbow that wrapped all the way around the clearing. A white gazebo sat peacefully in the center. Celestia led Twilight into the alabaster shelter to a small table and two matching stools, a steaming tea set had been placed delicately upon a silver tray on the table.

For a long time the two just sat there, sipping the tea and making small talk until the day was coming to an end. Celestia sighed, "Thank you for joining me Twilight. It means a lot to me to see you outside, even if I did have to retrieve you myself.", her expression darkened, the sad smile adorning her face once again. "Now, there is an important matter that we must discuss. A topic that I believe I have been avoiding for nearly an eon." She closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath and holding it before releasing it calmly. "Twilight, I know that of all ponies you understand that nothing lasts forever. Ponies grow old, kingdoms rise and fall. It is a truth that applies to everything, every forest and mountain.", she looked down at her tea, "Even us."

Twilight still hadn't caught on, sipping her tea while her ears swiveled at the sound of the birds that flitted among the garden. "Hm? I'm sorry, what was that?"

Celestia sighed and bit her lip, "I'm so sorry, Twilight. I know I should have told you long, long ago. But after the passing of your friends... I couldn't bear to bring you something like this." She looked back up at Twilight, "Nothing is eternal Twilight, and I'm afraid that my time here is almost up."

Twilight looked up at her teacher, one of her only lasting friends. Suddenly became apparent how tired Celestia looked. Age was apparent on her face and the once vibrant colors of her mane had begun to fade.

"You're... Dying...", Twilight's voice was quiet as she met Celestia's gaze. The Solar Princess only nodded solemnly in response. Twilight continued, "B-but that's not possible. There hasn't been any record of an Alicorn dying in... Well... Forever!" She furrowed her brow in concentration diving into the millennia of knowledge she had acquired over her time in the library, "I've read every book, scroll, and tablet in Equestria. None, not one of them, holds any information on an Alicorn dying, old age or otherwise."

Celestia took a sip of her tea, "That is because me and my sister are older that almost all written texts that are still around today. We have been around for so long and seen so much." She looked over at the sun, lighting her horn to start the sun on its descent beyond the horizon, "Me and my sister thought we would be the last of our kind. The end of our species." She turned to Twilight, "Then a small unicorn put a dragon's head through the roof of a classroom in my magic school." She smiled fondly at the memory, "Now here you are, living proof that Alicorns will continue to live on and guide those in need."

Twilight, while she did hear what Celestia had said, didn't give any sign of it. Her horn lit up in a spell, written notes of all kinds in her library were scanned for something, anything to confirm or deny her new discovery.

Celestia sighed, her eyes softening at her student as she poured through her resources, desperately seeking confirmation on what Celestia had told her.

Finally Twilight broke out of her magic-induced trance. Her lavender eyes filling with tears. She stared at her mentor for what seemed like an eternity. Her head slowly shaking as she silently begged Celestia to tell her otherwise, that it was a trick, some kind of cruel joke.

Celestia moved to Twilights side as she simply stared into the space the Solar Alicorn had been previously occupying, making soft calming noises as Twilight continued to cry while Celestia slowly lowered the sun.

The sunset was filled with the anguished cries of a grieving Alicorn.