683-728;AE: First Sighting and The Rumor Mill Never Stops
It fell from the sky, almost 700 years after I... 700 years after the Eclipse.
It was the screams of my little ponies that woke me that night, and soon after I noticed the almost sun like light shining through my curtains. I donned my armor and quickly made my way onto my balcony to see what was endangering my ponies. By then the light had dimmed and up in the sky, what I saw I shall never forget.
On a glowing pane of glass, the best I can describe it, was sitting a creature, clutching a book to it’s chest. Runes and circles floated around it as it slowly fell to the ground. It was tall, but seemingly small for what it was. It was almost a ghost, but I know now it wasn’t. It was translucent, at its center was a core of blue swirling energy, being fed by streams flowing from the points where the book touched its ghost like body. Its shape was ambiguous as to what its gender was. Not that I knew at the time, its back was turned to my position.
It landed in the courtyard, on its knees in a kneeling position. But it didn’t stay long, it stood up, beings just as tall as... As.. Before her-her... I am sorry.
It stood, being just shorter than me by a few of its head’s. The book still clutched to it’s chest as it looked around, searching for something I did not know. Surprisingly enough it started walking towards the entrance to the castle and my guards quickly took action, blocking its entry. But even from my far perspective I could tell they were scared of the being.
With one final surprise, the being stepped back nervously and teleported away. That’s the last I heard of it for the next few days, until the rumors started.
The next sighting came maybe two days after its arrival. It had apparently appeared in a town not far from Canterlot, it was found in their meager library reading and a subsequent mob was formed to get rid of the creature. Once again though it simply teleported away.
As much as I love my little ponies they were... Are rather paranoid. The creature is rather frightening and when you find it as soon as you open the door to your workplace, it is understandable that you would run screaming for the town militia to form and run it out of town.
I continued getting reports of this nature for a very long time, sometimes the space of time between reports would vary but not by much. It was usually weeks between sightings, and almost always it would be found in a place of learning. I am less of an self-absorbed idiot as I once was, so I started connecting the dots. It wanted to learn. What I didn’t know is why it wanted to learn, so I was somewhat... Afraid of the creature for a while. But then I noticed something else.
When the reports were longer space apart, usually months. Soon after some new magic, or advancement would come from the town that the creature appeared in. Usually the the longer the time spent in hiding, the more advanced the.. Advancement would be. None of the inventors would say where they got the idea, and would vehemently deny that they ever even saw the creature. Many of them were terrible liars though, it was always clear that they were overcompensating for something.
After a while, the creature was seen less and less, and soon the rumors started coming, sporadically, from other nations. Until one final one near the border of Minotourous, where nothing was ever spoken of it again and it was lost to most minds. It has lived in foal’s bedtime stories and tales of ghosts around campfires.
Soon after that report, a few months after in fact. Minotourous started prospering, relying on new technologies more and more, straying from their old nomadic ways and beginning to build towns, and cities. No longer worshiping their old gods and spirits. Citing science and engineering as the way of their ‘modern world’.
They advanced so far, that they soon started philosophizing and soon differing opinions destroyed their state. That’s when rumors of the Muse started spreading once again
“Why are you telling me this?” Twilight asks, staring curiously up at Princess Celestia. It was an odd sight, an alicorn laying down next to a unicorn foal. “You’re saying that the Muse is real, but you’ve only talked about rumors and your one first hoof account” She pouts, clearly upset with something “There isn’t enough evidence to really explain the downfall of Minotourous, and you’re saying that it’s because they learned too much? You can never learn enough!” She proudly proclaims, raising a hoof to the air as she stands up in a triumphant pose.
Celestia simply laughs gently, setting a hoof on Twilight’s withers to get her to lay back down. “There are many unexplained things in the world my dear student, and without the old kings’ documents we cannot discern exactly why. This is what I personally believe happened though.” She bends down, nuzzling Twilight. As she does Twilight squirms under the affection, giggling.
“I understand your frustration, but Minotourous has been closed off for the past two centuries now.” Celestia stands, turning to go out the door. “That is enough for of the Muse for today.” She turns back with a coy smile on her lips “And it saddens me that you do not believe that the muse is real, even after I told you of my first hoof experience with it”
Twilight’s face pales when she realizes she had just dismissed her princess’ word that the muse exists and starts to hyperventilate, taking quick, rapid breaths and Celestia chuckles, walking out of her student’s library of a room.
As she walks out into the courtyard, Celestia looks up at the sky and prepares to set the sun and raise the moon. As she completes the deed and it becomes night, she looks to the moon, the silhouette of her long lost sister still emblazoned on the face.
Author's Note
So, bit of a prologue. I think I might make this more of an anthology. Not sure. Anyways, any tips on writing young Twilight? I feel like I did an okay job on Celestia but if not... Welp I'll incorporate any tips in next time I write her. Since most of this chapter is Celestia talking and it's take forever to rewrite her dialog.
Any and all CONSTRUCTIVE criticism is welcome. If you don't like the story, that's fine with me just try and be nice about it in the comments, k?
845-AE: Librarian's Angel
In the cool morning air, a single pony walks about.
With a coat of green and a mane of purple, he walks towards a large building on the outskirts of the small village he lives in. It's a new looking building compared to the rest of the town, made of brick and sturdier things than the comparable huts of the townsponies.
Once he reaches the building, he removes a key from his saddlebags and unlocks the massive oak doors that are set in the center of the wall. He steps by a sign next to the building and flips it over from closed to open.
The building is the town library, the funding to build it provided by the crown to increase the general literacy of the kingdom. The stallion going into the building? Stalwart Stars. A unicorn university graduate from the capital, paid by the crown to live in what is honestly a middle of nowhere town.
inside are shelves upon shelves of books. An expensive commodity even today with the Griffin invention of the printing press. The shelves stretch high into the air, high enough that a pegasus would be more useful than a unicorn to get books for those who cannot reach. That is, if anyone came into the library to begin with.
Stalwart sighs and looks to the east side of the room, towards windows and their fancy time keeping device. The shadow was at seven after morning and he looks forlornly at the tall shelves, long since organized. He then turns towards his desk, small and filled with his own research projects and doodles of inventions that would never get past design, let alone prototypes.
He moves to the desk and takes his seat, preparing to be there for the next, he looks to the time window, five or so hours, Doing nothing but doodling impossible inventions and trying to find some proof that higher beings exist.
Two hours, two hours of the same thing. Sitting, drawing, researching. This wasn't the life Stalwart was expecting to find out of his academic life.
He wasn't expecting excitement, but at the very least he was expecting more than one project, and boredom beyond belief.
He sighs and gets up, walking towards the back of the library. He knew of some reference materials back there that he wanted closer to himself, so that he could more easily read and study them.
If you asked him why he studied if there were higher beings when clearly there was a god serving as his princess, he would vehemently deny that she was a god. There were texts of her birth, her ascension, and even rumors of a sister, though most texts regarding her are fairy tales and folk lore.
He turns the corner then freezes as he hears a sound he doesn't hear from anyone aside from himself in the library, the sounds of a book being read. The pages rubbing against each other, the sound of shifting on a cushion, and even the tinkling of magic.
There was a magic user reading a book in the reference section.
He slowly creeps around the corner, looking into the small alcove that holds the reference books, after all it's weird if the librarian starts staring at you like you're crazy, isn't it? So he wanted to stay hidden while he sates his curiosity.
As he gets a view of the reference section his breath is caught in his throat, in the section, sitting on a book with books littering the floor around it, was an angel. Glowing white, with a glowing blue core, magical energy flowing through it's body producing a light in the darkened section. It's strange shape not similar to anything in the world yet discovered makes it the perfect representative of the goddess that brought the world into existence. Wholey unique and beautiful to Stalwart's eyes, he had to look away and run. Run and tell everyone he has seen the thing he has been looking for all this time.
Five Hours Later
Damn them, damn them all to Tartarus. They had no right to arrest him, to test his mental state without consent, damn them all.
He went straight to the town center, straight to the stage, straight to the podium. He had announced that he had seen the angel of the Goddess. And they mocked him, told him he was crazy, that he had imagined it from the days of loneliness. They pitied him, they insulted him. Arrested him.
As soon as he got back he went straight back to the reference section and looked in. There it still was, reading a new book now with the book it was sitting on now in its lap.
He would get proof, he needed to just bring the angel out into the town. How to do it though... One cannot simply ask an angel to come with them, could they?
He walks into the reference section, head bowed to the angel. As he walks in the angel turns to him, the blank face looking at him with no tell as to what its thinking.
"Master" Stalwart begins. "Your humble servant has seen your face and has tried to spread the word of your existence." He continues on this line of explanation, even as the angel shifts up into a standing position and seems to back up a little, as if preparing to run. "They did not believe me though, and I now seek to provide proof of your existence to them. For that I must have you follow me. Follow me out into the town to show them that you and your mistress exist."
He lifts his head, hoping to see the face of his angel. But all he sees are the books replaced and an clean, but empty, reference section.
At that moment he hears the front doors open and the voices of a few foals. Obviously here, from what they're saying, to heckle him some more. One foal's fearful voice seems to show that they're against the wishes of their families to come here.
He sighs, maybe they'll read some books while they're here.
As he heads to the front desk, head held low in disappointment. He never noticed the new book in the reference section, a book that clearly should belong in the magic section. The book the angel was holding.
