Twilight along with her trusty dragon assistant Spike made their way over the royal garden, with the young drake sitting on his adopted sister's back. Their destination was within the royal gardens, Princess Celestia had planned a little picknick for them. Spotting her teacher at the entrance of the labyrinth, Twilight became a little nervous to ask a question she had been dying to ask the princess.
Something she had discovered while writing an essay for her mentor over the other kingdoms led by other creatures and their cultures; and her secret side research project of mapping out the entire history of discoveries and edits to magical theory leading up to modern magical thought. She found a similar topic in both projects or rather a certain pony involved in both. A name she found herself constantly becoming more and more curious about as she delved into a mysterious pony.
"Ah, there is my student and her adorable assistant. Twilight, how are you today?" the princess of the sun inquired. Twilight smiled and bowed lightly to her teacher. "I am doing great and ready for our picnic Princess. Although, if you don't mind me asking. Why did you choose the labyrinth of all places?" Twilight questioned, glancing up at her mentor with a raised brow.
"Excellent question, Twilight. You see inside this maze is a secret area where I visit once in a blue moon. On the plus side, we won't be interrupted by anypony. Which means we can talk for quite some time" The Alabaster alicorn expressed with a soft smile. "Now then, come along you two" she beckoned them with her hoof, before grasping a hold of a large basket with her magic aura and taking the first few steps into the maze.
They made the first turn right, followed by a left, Twilight was quiet. She dared not break the silence or the slow build up to ask her question to her idol and mentor. "Twilight, we're here" Celestia claimed, as they stood in front of a rose bush. "Uhm, that's a rose bush Princess" Spike noted. "That is correct Spike" Celestia agreed with a smile and turned to face Twilight, "Now I assume you remember the old symbolic runes we talked about a few weeks ago, correct?" she continued.
Twilight nodded affirming the Princess, "Good, now watch as I unseal this rune" Celestia stated, igniting her horn with her golden magical aura and manifested the rune symbol 'reveal' with her magic. Suddenly the rose bush glowed and with a flash dissipated revealing; a secret area with a single tree in the middle to give just enough shade, a small natural fish pond in the corner and a few exotic flowers around the base of the hedge walls. "Woah," Spike commented. "Yes, indeed. Runes like these are sadly not used anymore, but they are just as useful to the more modern spells" Celestia expressed, floating the basket over to the tree.
Celestia began unpacking the basket, "Now that we are here, what was it that's on your mind?" Celestia inquired, glancing back at her student with a smile. "I can tell there is something on your mind. Don't be afraid to ask. After all, as much as I am your mentor and you are my student, you can always speak to me as a friend" Celestia expressed, something she had done before in the past and something she most likely will do again in the future.
Twilight cleared her throat, "Right, well Princess. It's something that is related to the assignment that you gave me. On the other nations outside of Equestria, and it also has something to do with a side project of mine as well. I learned of this pony who had greatly written on the topic of both the advanced alchemy of the Zebras and most of what we know about the Dragons, not to mention a lot of advancement to both rune and early magical theory. I just wonder if you could clear up some confusion I have on this certain pony" Twilight explained, letting Spike hop off of her to help Celestia. "Here, let me help Princess" Spike said, pulling out a surprisingly hot tea pot out of the basket.
"Thank you Spike, and of course, Twilight. However you might need to give me a bit more information. There have been many ponies and creatures that have both aided in the development of magic and our knowledge of the rest of the world, each in various levels of developments" Celestia stated, straightening the checkered blanket on the grass next to the tree.
"The pony sighed his name as a Sirius Star" Twilight stated, unaware of Celestia's frozen expression of shock. "I tried to look him up myself, but there was nothing in the records or other accounts that spoke of him other than his work. It's as if this Sirius Star was erased from the history books!"
Spike noticed the deep sadness that was written on Celestia's face, it was the first time he had seen such an expression from her and it concerned him. "Um, Twilight?" Spike said. "Not now, Spike. I was wondering, Princess, who was Sirius Star?" Twilight asked, finally noticing Celestia's downtrodden expression. "Princess?" Twilight whispered, concern in her voice.
"I haven't heard that name in quite a few generations" Celestia sighed, before giving a sad smile to her apprentice. "Apologies Twilight, Sirius Star is a bit of an uncomfortable or rather painful topic for me" She said turning to the young dragon. "Spike, can you finish setting up for me?" she asked, getting a nod from the dragon.
"Now then where to begin, I suppose from the beginning. Sirius Star was a very controversial pony but despite the rumors and whatever he did, he did so in the name of friendship and helping others. To know who he was you must know he came from a time when Equestria was recovering from... a chaotic period lets say. He never knew his father, although his father was not a liked pony to say the least" Celestia recalled, being careful not to go in depth.
"Sound like you knew his early life, did you know him more personally Princess?" Spike found himself asking to finish setting up the picnic. "Spike, you can't just interrupt the Princess!" Twilight said aghast. "It's quite alright, Twilight. You are correct in your assumptions, Spike. Sirius was my nephew, and I don't mean like Prince Blueblood is" Celestia said, expressing hurt as the memory of her sister came to her.
"Wait, you have a nephew. No, a sibling?" Twilight questioned surprised, she was not expecting her mentor to reveal such a big surprise. Everypony had speculated that she might have had a sibling when she was younger, but there was no real evidence. "Yes, but that is a topic, I would like to avoid discussing due to obvious reasons" Celestia expressed followed by a sigh. Celestia knew she had about a year left till Luna was released from the moon, and hopefully that nightmare will be defeated along with. Then she would be more willing to tell Twilight about her family fully.
"Sirius's eyes would light up at the mere mention of studying or practicing magic. The same way yours do, Twilight. I would even go so far to say that you might have him beat" Celestia recalled with a small smile, before it shifted back to a more somber expression. "Unfortunately for him, when Sirius grew to the age of eight he discovered an ability that no other pony has since developed. The ability to look upon fate itself, to see the past and future of anypony before him. Known simply as premonition, a curse more than a gift" she said continued.
"Princess, how did he discover such an ability and why was it such a curse?" Twilight asked, fixed on her mentor's tale. "Sirius said he discovered it whilst helping a maid. He had scarred both himself and the maid when his ability activated it caused a surge and he somehow saw into the past learning something about me an...he knew something that only I had known and never discussed with anyone else before" she recalled thinking of how her nephew's premonition had showed him; what she and Luna had looked prior to their ascension, they had to explain to him why she had grown wings and his mother had grew a horn.
"As for his curse, his visions were more or less akin to a double-edged sword. He could see the future and the past, but they were often the gateway to bad luck. His premonition warned us of many potential threats and natural disasters, but it was those visions and perhaps the distrust with his exploration in the other races' livelihood that over time turned ponies against him and eventually himself as well" Celestia said staring deeply into her tea cup.
"On a lighter note, Sirius was well versed in both the sciences and magical arts. He used them to advance our standings on rune magic, something he enjoyed the most outside his expeditions outside the kingdom's borders. His first expedition was quite a shock to me and his mother, we never would've guessed he would seek exploring the Unexplored West. His mother was very perturbed at her only son going to the most dangerous place outside of Equestria, she almost tried locking him in the dudgeon at one point just to avoid him leaving the castle" Celestia chuckled, wiping a tear from her eye.
"With some talking he was able to and became the first pony to explore the unexplored west and return with everypony alive. It was because of this expedition we learned thirty new fauna and flora, as well as the understanding of most of the monstrosities that have moved into the Everfree" Celestia stated, taking a small bite of her daffodil-salad. "What kind of monstrosities Princess?" Twilight asked, before taking a bite of her hay-sandwich.
"Well for one, at that time manticores were just crossing into the forest. Sirius's expedition allowed us to understand the danger it brought, as well as how to cure a pony from their specific venom. Sirius went into the Unexplored West three times, each time he brought back more and more knowledge" Celestia explained, before taking a sip from her tea.
Twilight's eyes were widened in amazement, she knew the Unexplored West was dangerous and going there once and coming back with minor injuries was considered extremely lucky. Celestia pulled out a couple of cake slices for the three of them to share. "Princess, what happened to him?" Twilight asked.
Her mentor released a disheartened sigh, lowering her head in the process. "I am afraid I don't know the answer myself. He returned from an expedition to Equestria during a dark time. I made a mistake of asking him to peer into the future for my own selfish desires in seeking answers for the future. He left shortly thereafter in fear, I could only imagine what fate he foresaw in his last premonition. I spent a few decades trying to find him, or at least where he went. At last, no successful development has been made since" Celestia thought to be her second biggest mistake, after her sister's fall and banishment.
"But that was almost a thousand years ago, I have gone through the stages of grief long ago and accepted what had happened since" Celestia expressed. She looked at her student and saw pity on her face, "Now then my student, how about you tell me how's your essay going along?" Celestia asked, changing the topic of the discussion. Twilight began to explain the details of her essay, thankfully Celestia could always count on Twilight's love for knowledge and writing papers to easily get sidetracked if she pushed her student in the right way.
Celestia soberly trotted through the maze in the gardens. The sun had long since lowered and the scarred image of the mare in the moon beamed its silvery light down upon Equestria. Celestia glanced up at the moon for a second, finding herself thinking of her sister, as she often does when she either raises or lowers the moon; and when she stays up past her usual bedtime.
Celestia rounded a corner revealing a similar rose bush, she proceeded to waste no time casting the same rune spell she did earlier. Upon entering the hidden section of the maze, she proceeded to cast the spell once more on the back of the maze wall to reveal another secret opening.
Stepping inside she walked up to the single statue that the clearing held. "Oh, nephew. The time is almost upon us, just as you said. I have found my apprentice, now I just have to wait for Luna. Twilight, will find the rest of the elements. I can only hope that whatever you foresaw after Luna's return, will be something that Luna and I can handle" she expressed looking up at the statue's face.
Author's Note
Short but Sweet
I hope you had enjoyed this little short story. This was actually planed to be a much bigger story with a detailed plot and characters, along with a new world to explore. I just need to figure out how large of a story that I want that to be.
"Please I need to know, you are the only one who can see if it truly is forever. I need to know, please Sirius" A frantic Celestia begged. The stallion grimaced from behind his cloak, he didn't like what she was asking of him. "It's dangerous to peer so far, I might not be able to fully decipher what my visions will show me" he expressed hesitantly. "Please, I must know how long till I can see my sister, if ever" she Celestia pleaded.
"If not for me, then do it for Luna" she added. He lit out a tired sigh before looking up at the night sky and onto the moon. It had been a week since the elements of harmony had struck Princess Luna or rather Nightmare Moon, thus scaring the moon with a powerful seal with her inside.
If only he was not away when this had happened, he could've prevented this. He cursed Grogar with all magic and his heart. "I'll do it, but I won't promise that you'll like what might be the outcome" he declared his blue eyes beginning to glow as he focused his magic.
"Thank you" Celestia, thanked him as a green mist like magic started to warp around them. His breathing hitched as he stared into the magical fog around them. He was the only one able to see them, the images that is. "What is it you see?" she noticed the change in his expressions. "Luna..." his response came like a chill.
He started to walk around her and an ominous musical note began to play in the background only heard by them. He started to break out in a chant, as ponies tend to often do other than sing randomly.
"I see a nightmare returned onto you" he said pointing his hoof towards her, "I see a mare being set free"
"As the days turn to years every time the sun shall set, you'll feel great regret" he explained, glancing to his left. "A millennium alone on that moon she owned" he continued gesturing to the direction of the moon. "Is where she'll be kept, until the star align and she pays her debt" his eyes glowed brighter as his heart raced, "For what will be centuries past, until the final moment at last"
Celestia felt relief knowing her dear little sister would return to her, however knowing she would have to wait for a thousand years hurt her grieving heart just as much. Sirius grunted his breathing becoming strained from over working his power. "This Nightmare will end, so keep your smile. Your apprentice you will send" he said a weak smile appearing through the pale expression he now wore.
The mentioning of an apprentice had stolen her attention as she knew despite her broad skillset, she was never really good at teaching others. Her having an apprentice sounded a little weird, but then again a thousand years could help in time. "Who is this apprentice, what do they look like and what will they do?" she inquired.
"Hrmp" he groaned, eyes looking for the answer, despite the magical fatigue building from peering in for too long. Celestia frowned, worried that she might have asked for too much. "You can sto-" she started but was interrupted by the next words out of her court wizard's muzzle.
"Look to the sky, a ripple of colorful hue" he began his eyes now shifting back to a blue hue. "Then she will not hide, a surge that will follow" he closed his eyes and visibly shook his head. "A unicorn that will fix all your sorrow" he declared now clearly out of breath.
"The six stones of Elements, renewed they'll be and..." he said, stopping mid sentence, his eyes widening with deep concern. The sudden abrupt stop left her anxious to know more, but worried about his expression. "Are you alright what is it you see?" she inquired about reaching out to her last living kin. Before she could make physical contact the mist began to move aggressively and change color just as rapidly. "I-I can't stop it, no, no, no" he warned as tears started to flow from his eyes.
Celestia once again felt helpless since she fought her sister. "Chaos King" escaped his gasp, before twirling his head to something else. Celestia felt her heart skip a beat at the mention of one of Discord's many titles, what about the statue? "Plot of Insects that shift... The Return of the shadow of Crystals, the Centaur... Grogar" his rambling started to become unintelligible to her ears as she could only quickly decipher the Crystal Empire and the 'Shadow' that was Sombra.
He began to visibly shake, "The sisters rule no more, Equestria is shattered, broken and apart. The magic gone, like love from a broken heart" as the last of his words escaped his lips, the mist dispersed leaving Celestia in a state of shock and worry. As he breathed heavily and shaking from extreme magic fatigue.
"Sirius, are you okay? What did you see?" she asked concerned, taking a step closer to him. As she was about to place a hoof onto his shoulder he swatted it away. "Stay, back" he warned his eyes revealing the signs of corruption from dark magic. "Sirius-" before she could continue he interrupted her.
"W-why, I don't understand?" he inquired, keeping his eyes shut. "Sirius what was it that you saw?" she asked, her heart hurting knowing that she was not able to help with whatever he saw that scared him. He chuckled before swiftly becoming stoic, "I have seen things, secrets that must never be told, knowledge that must never be spoken" he rambled, before holding his head. "I-I need to leave, you have your knowledge" he said softly before running off, with Celestia's voice calling out for him.
