“An urgent summons from the princess.” Twilight leaned against the window sill as the dark of the cave passed behind them. Frost covered the window Twilight gazed out of, despite the train’s internal heating systems. The sun’s first rays lanced across the sky, and the tips of the tall spires glimmered. Canterlot was beautiful, as usual.
“What do you think she could want from us at two in the morning?” Twilight asked. Silence answered.
“Spike?”
Silence.
“Spike!”
A snore this time. Well, that was improvement. Turning from the window, Twilight walked over to the mass of blankets Spike had brought with them. It rose and fell, the folds mimicking the gentle rock of waves. Beside the pile was the letter that had come in the middle of the night. Twilight had barely had time to read it before a detachment of the royal guard had knocked on the door. That had been four hours ago.
“What could be so urgent?” she mused again. The scroll drifted toward her, opening so she could read it again. It went on about how events were moving rather quickly, and that she was needed as soon as possible. But nothing inside it hinted at what she was actually rushing across Equestria for! Twilight hated waiting almost as much as she hated not knowing something, and the two together was killing her. But her lack of proper sleep was killing her more. An involuntary yawn passed through her, and suddenly those blankets looked very welcoming indeed.
Just as she fell onto the soft pile, welcoming the darkness, the train stopped. Guards came onto the car, asking if she had slept well. The purple mare could only glare. She was vaguely aware of some shifting and bumping, and soon found herself off of the train, the chill air smacking her wide awake. How high was Canterlot, anyways? It certainly wasn’t as chill down in Ponyville. Or maybe that was because she usually wasn't awake this early.
The streets were empty as she moved on towards the castle, bodyguards and a still snoring – yet upright – Spike following behind. Twilight found the escort a bit disconcerting. When she and her friends had fought Discord, there had been almost no royal intervention. But now here she was, Twilight Sparkle, surrounded by a detachment of guards and none of her loyal friends. Well, she did have Spike. Looking behind her, she saw him stumble into a lamppost, back up, try again, and repeat a few more times before one of the guards steered him around. Yeah, at least she had him.
Soon the giant double doors leading into the audience chamber stood before them. The guards on their posts swung open the doors, and as soon as Twilight crossed the threshold they were swung back. No need to let in a draft, she supposed. However, her guard was outside, and the mare found herself alone. Down the long Hall rolled a carpet, red, soft to the touch, and again Twilight found herself inclined to just lie down for a few minutes or maybe hours. Just before sleep could take her, a gentle cough from down the Hall jolted her awake. There stood Celestia, flowing mane and all, pure elegance. Normally Twilight would be overjoyed to see her mentor, but right now all she could think was...
“I’ll have you know, that is twice this morning that somepony has rudely interrupted my falling asleep, not counting your little message," Twilight remarked. Celestia blinked, slowly, and a thin smile touched her lips.
"And a good morning to you, too," the princess responded. Twilight tried as hard as she could to keep a straight face, but it was too much effort and she was too tired. So she settled for just burying her face into the carpet.
"Can I just go to sleep, please?"
Celestia looked sympathetic as she spoke. "No, Twilight, I'm afraid this is rather important. More important than anything you've ever had to do." Well, that got her attention.
"What could be that important? We've defeated Discord, Nightmare Moon, even the changelings! I think eternal chaos, endless night, and total enslavement are pretty high standards to set, let alone break." Twilight wondered what the princess could be talking about.
Celestia spun around and walked towards the doors at the back of the hall. No answers forthcoming, Twilight grudgingly followed her. The room behind them was smaller but no less grand than the hall. Dark red curtains hung above several windows, plush carpets lay on the floors. Two staircases swept up the sides, curving impossibly up to two different doors. The princess moved to the left staircase, and Twilight followed.
Another thick door, another grand room, more stairs. Twilight wondered just how high one could go before they ran out of oxygen. They must be getting close. Her hooves ached, her eyes drooped. "Next time, put the big secret threat to the kingdom a bit lower down," she mumbled. Celestia just kept walking.
Finally, they stopped before a door. Same old door, same old room behind it. The only thing that stood out was a wooden table shoved into the far left corner. Beside it was a window with a brilliant view, and beside that a blank wall.
"So, we're done, with the walking, right?" Twilight's voice was hopeful, and came in breaks along with her breathing. A smile came back to Celestia's face. She nodded, and two cushions floated from another corner towards them. They both sat down -well, Twilight more fell down- on them. Soft. Very soft. Possibly satin. Satin's good. So is sleep.
"Twilight, wake up, please."
"Uhn..."
"Do you know what this room is used for?"
Twilight took another look around. The only thing that stood out was the table, and a few chairs back by the door.
"No."
"Have you ever heard of the idea of alternate universes?" Celestia said in such a way that she doubted anypony hadn't. Her gaze was fixated on the window, staring out of it.
"Yes, I have, but only in passing during one of my reading sessions." Twilight tried to remember the name of the book. "Observations on the Reactions to Time and Space. It was an odd book, with a few grand hypothesis'. Why?"
Celestia removed her gaze from the window. "Because, Twilight, we are in one. Look outside." Twilight rushed to the window in disbelief. The view she had found previously to be so brilliant was now horrific. Smoke hung in the air. Rusted metal spikes shot up out of the brown earth. Millions of fires lit the ground before her, shapes huddling in front of each one. Some threw things into the fires. Others threw themselves.
"Where are we?"
"We are in what used to be known as Mirrodin, and is now known as New Phyrexia. This plane used to be a place of peace, much like ours. But then they came." Celestia moved up beside Twilight, and the view from the window became one of Canterlot again.
Twilight looked to her teacher, saw on her face a mask of pain, and of dread. "Who came?" she asked.
The princess didn't answer for awhile, instead beginning again to stare out the window. When she did speak, her voice was low, solemn, each word like the sound of a gallows.
"They are called Phyrexians. And they are coming here next."
Twilight stared at her teacher, jaw dropped open. It took her several moments to regain her composure. "Here, in Equestria?" she asked. A mere nod in response. "Well, what do you want me to do then?" This time it took the princess longer to respond.
"What I want you to do, Twilight, is to be my emissary. My champion." Questions flew almost instantaneously from Twilight's mouth, and Celestia waved them aside. "Twilight, this threat is too great for us to fight alone. We are not a warlike people. The people who lived in Mirrodin were, and they fell all the same." Celestia levitated the table in the corner of the room to the center of it, along with several of the chairs which she placed around it.
"No, we need help. And I know who to call." The alicorn's horn began to glow. A ball of blue energy filled the room, a strange bubble almost, and Twilight found herself staring, falling into it, mentally if not physically. The purple mare felt as if her very soul was being torn from her body. She felt empty. Then a flame lit inside of her, warming her body, drawing her back into herself. The bubble popped, and Twilight was flung against the wall, and with her footing went the flame. Celestia slumped to the floor, exhausted.
In place of the bubble stood a dark figure, tall and imposing. It was robed in blue, with odd marking decorating it's clothing. It's face was masked in shadows, it's head covered by a hood. A few sparks flew off of it, the energy it released standing Twilight's hair on end. For awhile it just stood there, then finally it spoke.
"Owh sha llceda em?" it demanded. He demanded, for it seemed to have a male voice. It cast back it's hood, revealing a narrow face atop a short neck -short in comparison at least- wild spiky hair, and piercing blue eyes. Slowly his face changed from what appeared to be indignation into a kind of humor. "Inesop? Rylela?"
Twilight looked away from it for one moment to Celestia. "What is it saying?" she asked.
Celestia's face went blank for a moment, her brain still recovering from the mental exertion it had just gone through. After a few seconds her mind registered with her ears, and her horn began to glow again. This time an odd circle formed around the thing's throat, slowly closing in with a gentle pop, and then it was gone. The thing seemed rather unfazed by it all. A similar circle appeared around Twilight's throat, and it closed in on itself also. Celestia indicated that Twilight should try to talk to the thing.
Twilight turned to face it. An emissary, she had said. Her champion, she had said. She gathered herself, and then took the plunge.
"My name is Twilight Sparkle, Champion of the Princess of the Sun. Who and what are you?"
It spoke. "My name is Jace Beleren, and I am a Plansewalker. A human one to be more specific. A pleasure to meet you, Twilight." He turned to Celestia. "And I can merely assume that this other pony is this, oh how did you say it, 'Princess of the Sun'?" Twilight nodded. Jace nodded. Celestia just nodded off.
"Oh, of course, she can sleep whenever she wants to," Twilight thought, then quickly pushed the thought away as the human seemed to read her mind.
"Well, she does deserve the sleep," he said, taking a seat. "She summoned me across whole planes of existence, and without even having the Spark herself." Jace shook his head. "And that would kill most people." Twilight was stunned. Celestia had risked her life to bring this, thing, here? Twilight felt a small tingle behind her eyes, then Jace spoke again. "I wouldn't risk thinking things like that around me," he said.
For the second time that morning, Twilight found her jaw loose. "Are you reading my mind?" she asked.
"Yes I am," a voice in her head whispered. Her voice. But not. "I am the greatest mind manipulator in the universe," it said. "I could dance you like a puppet on a string, if I wanted. I won't though. For now." Then Twilight's mind was hers again. The man's face showed no signs of boasting, just a cold determination, and the mare felt fear.
"What are you?"
"Like I said, a Plansewalker. Like you." Well that got to Twilight.
"What do you mean, 'like you'?"
"You have the Spark, Twilight. You have a gift given to a select few." Twilight just shook her head.
"What is this Spark?" she asked. "You mentioned it earlier, said something about Celestia not having it."
Jace nodded. "So I did. The Spark is what ties Plansewalkers together. It is where we draw our power from. In some, the full potential of this Spark is realized. Some become gods in their own rights." Jace's eyes clouded over, for a second, then flashed back into a frightening blue color. "Others never realize they have it."
"I certainly didn't," Twilight mumbled. Jace smiled.
"Explain to me how you feel right now." Twilight paused for a moment. Her emotions were all over the place, from fear to excitement to irritation to... calmness.
"Calm. Somehow," she responded. "It's like my emotions are all skewed, yet a piece of me is just sitting there, watching." Jace nodded, sagely. Twilight thought about that. This human looked relatively young, she guessed, but his eyes were old. They seemed to almost radiate knowledge.
"Now, that is your Spark," he said. "While I was in your mind I saw what happened while I was being brought here. You felt yourself being torn out, then pulled back in. Your body tried to reject your Spark. Your soul wasn't being torn out. Your Spark was. And without it you would have died."
Twilight was shocked. She had almost died?
"Is that a normal thing, your body rejecting it?"
"No, it's not. Your Spark has been lying dormant, soaking up your own personal magical energy. Your mana. The pull of another Spark nearby awakened it, but it was too powerful. So your body rejected it. I absorbed most of the energy," Jace tapped his chest, "and your body accepted your Spark again."
Celestia chose that moment to wake up, her head lifting groggily off the floor. She looked first to Jace, then to Twilight, then back to Jace.
"So, that kind of hurt," she remarked. With a visible effort the princess pushed herself off the floor, stretching out her wings to full length. "I can see you two have been talking. That's good.” She folded in her wings. " Now, how much has Jace told you, Twilight?"
The unicorn relayed as much back to Celestia as she could, who just nodded. Once the mare was done, the princess turned to Jace.
"Do you know why I have brought you here?"
"Honestly, no. I assume it has something to do with her though," he said, pointing to Twilight.
"That is correct. I had hoped to ask your assistance in training her to be a Plansewalker. The Phyrexians are going to invade." At the last sentence, Jace's face grew pale.
"When?"
"Several months time."
Jace looked to Twilight, then seemed to reach a decision. One that shocked both of the ponies.
"No."
