Twin Souls

Chapter 2

Visitors

I woke up feeling the familiar sensation of cold. I found myself tossed around the bed, various pillows on the floor. Wow. I’m a rough sleeper. Besides the amazing wake up call, I felt great! If I knew anything about being tired I would say I must have ran ten miles, climbed the highest mountain and well...You get the picture. Wondering where the amount of deathly frosty temperature was coming from, I noticed my door was opened slightly. I did the math, assuming it was coming from downstairs. I got up, dressed myself, and made my bed. I felt a little better with clothes on but the cold was persisting to bite through them. I had not entirely noticed the design and layout of my clothes. It was all some sort of dark leather hide. It was strange, as when I would put it on it would shroud itself, blending into the darkness of the room. To top it off, there was a cloak as well, with a dark wool to cover over my face. I could just barely see out of it.

Nothing at all seemed different about these clothes, but one thing made me worry. If it was pure white with snow outside, what kind of idiot would wear full black? If these were intended to blend in with darkness, why would I wear them in the white snow? Feeling a bit stupid, I felt a little more stupid when I felt the need to use the restroom. Just when I put my clothes on as well...

After my release of unnecessary toxins and other various sorts of objects, I found myself hastily putting my clothes back on myself. I completely forgot about the cold air. Deciding it was be best to search for the source, I headed towards the door, but stopped when I saw what was in the reflection. What did I see? A badass, that’s for sure! This leather armor is so sick! I looked like some sort of stealthy assassin. I felt my childish imagination coming as I felt myself switching into the mindset of a ninja. I laughed at my silliness, heading down the stairs.

When I reached the bottom, I noticed that the fire was out. It became obvious to me how to solve this problem. Next to the fireplace I saw an axe, which was pleasing the eye. Can’t chop wood without an axe, right? I headed out the front door to be greeted with a dark blue colored world. The ice stood out greatly, but it had now occurred to me that it was very early.

“And I thought I got a lot of sleep...” I mumbled.

Glancing to my left I saw a faint cluster of trees. Knowing nothing less, I ran towards the firewood. Despite the obvious temperatures outside, I only felt a small twinge of cold actually touch me. Perhaps there’s something more to this leather? I reached the trees in under a minute. Seeing nopony else around, I went about my business. Chopping the tree down was hard work, though cutting them into several pieces was much easier in terms of time consumption. I thought back to the house. Then it hit me. If the house was that cold, then was Lyra...? I decided to pick up the pace, chopping the final block of wood. I could only fit eight pieces of log into my arms as I found a place to store my axe. On my back I found a small slot designed for a weapon. I decided not to question it, and hastily ran towards Lyra’s.

On arrival, my heart was beating out of my chest. I pushed through the tiredness, stepping inside and closing the god forsaken door shut. I noticed the cold was just about the same in here as it was outside, which was bad. With even greater haste, I tossed the logs into the fire pit. I needed fire, and I needed it fast!

Panicking, I did what any idiot would do. I rubbed some sticks together. However, much to my own surprise, I managed to get a small ember of flame. Feeling warmth cover me up, though not literally, I gently placed the ember under the logs, adding small sorts of timber and over various pinestraw kind of things to get it going. I felt like a coltscout, though I couldn’t understand what that even meant. Shrugging it off, I continued managing the fire. Eventually, a small flame enveloped the fireplace, and I could finally rest. Getting back on my feet, I felt the warmth of the fire soon filter throughout the house.

I sunk back down into the couch sighing with great content. In a sudden burst of fright, I nearly shreiked when the fireplace blasted with blue flame. I was shivering, unable to contemplate the situation. Blue...Flames? I chuckled slightly, sinking right back into the chair.

“Odd world,” I shrugged, “Remember?”

I wasn’t going to lie to myself. I couldn’t understand any of it, but at that point in time, I was used to getting surprised. Though I pondered something to myself. If I knew nothing about this world, or any of it’s...physical possibilities, then why was I surprised, as if I knew what was ‘normal’? My brain started to strain from the painful search so I tossed it aside. Feeling tired, I let the warmth take effect, and slowly drifted off into the realm of dreams.

. . .

Lyra awoke from a bad dream. She groggily got herself from her bed, taking a look at herself in the mirror. Her mane was in a mess, to say the least. Another nightmare...She thought dreadfully. Skipping the idea of a shower, as food came first, she quickly combed her hair into the correct style she prefered. Which was the same one as before. During the winter, she prefers to have her mane combed in a single purely straight manner. Besides, it’s not like she even leaves the house much in the winter anyways. Nopony does.

Her stomach growled with furiousity, throwing herself into a limbo of mental confusion. It was minor, as she assumed everypony would experience this after not eating for so long. Despite the small disorientation, she managed to find a way down the hall toward the stairs. It was then she noticed the strange scent of familiar wood in the air. Though her brain couldn’t process much without proper sustenance, she knew this scent. Soulfire trees, as they are commonly called.

Even so, this particular topic confused her the most. She didn’t remember gathering any such wood recently. It was very strange. Trotting down the stairs, she met gaze with the full blast of the suspected source...Soulfire. The powerful blue-almost twilight flame blazed in the fireplace. The heat was much hotter than that of normal flame. Then she noticed it.

Upon the couch was the creature, fast asleep. She pieced it together quickly, though much to her disappointment of course. That idiot! He went outside in that cold, all himself!?

Angered by his act of idiocy, she couldn’t help but smile. A huff of air passed through her snout, signalling a small sense of humor from her. Despite her anger towards him, she knew what he had done. She figured she would have to go gather wood herself for the day. She never expected such generosity from this creature. Rarity would be impressed!

She trotted past the sleeping ancient, heading towards her kitchen. Arriving at the culinary workshop, she made herself a simple, easy, light breakfast. She wolfed it down without haste, savoring it while it lasted. By the time she was finished, she noticed the air was settling. Sighing, she came over and sat next to the creature. She started endlessly into the twilight flames, pondering over the events of the past few hours. These, revelations, however, were interrupted by a deep voice coming from another sentient being. Well, a cough to be more exact.

“So...” It started. “I have questions.” Lyra nodded, understanding the reason behind the statement.

The creature shook his head. “Despite the fact I know absolutely nothing about this place, or myself. One thing intrigues me to no end.” He pointed at the fire. “Why does it glow like that?”

Lyra found herself tripping over her own expectations. Out of everything else, he wanted to know this? Lyra shrugged, “I’m not quite so sure myself. Some say the trees are enchanted by the magic flow in the air. However, old stories say it burns with the souls of the dead. Something creepy like that.”

The ancient raised a brow, though behind the dark clothing, she couldn’t possibly see that. “Souls of the dead...?”

“Yeah,” She laughed. “It’s pretty strange, stupid in fact. But stories say the seed gathers the souls of ponies buried in the ground, taking it’s energy and sprouting a tree. Hence the name, Soulfire was given to it.”

The darkness in the room nodded. “Pretty sweet name if you ask me.”

Lyra shrugged, “Pretty dark.”

A few moments passed before Lyra realized something important. “You know nothing about yourself and neither do I, since I’ve, well...Never seen you before! So how about we make you a name. Something to call you while you try to find your true identity?” Lyra asked.

The creature pondered over the subject. Finding it obviously necessary, he nodded. She smiled gently, as she conjured up possible names. “So what do we call you...” She trailed off into thought.

“Why not just Soul?” He asked, glancing at the fire. “I think the name of the fire is pretty cool, so wouldn’t that be a good name? I mean, Lyra! Lyre! We all see the similarities, right?” He moved his appendage over his body. “I know there’s nothing...Soul-ish about me, but it’s a name, right?” Lyra thought about for a second. He, without a doubt, loves the fire, so maybe his special talent is fire?

“What does your cutie mark look like?” She asked. The creature started at her like she was insane.

“My...What?” He responded, confused. She then considered the possibility that this species doesn’t have a cutie mark. “N-Nevermind.” She said. The creature nodded, throwing the topic away with ease.

“Anyways, Soul is a fine name. It suits you well. Mr. Soul Fire!” She added enthusiastically. The ancient smiled behind the mask.

Lyra’s smile faded as she gazed up at Soul. “Say...Do you always wear that covering over your face?” She asked.

Soul pondered over the question. He thought of removing several times, but it was like something was stopping him from doing so. It just didn’t feel right. “Yeah. I guess I don’t feel comfortable letting others know what I look like. It feels weird. It’s just...Natural to have it on, always.” Lyra nodded, before a loud knocking woke her from her premature daydream about what Soul really looked like.

With haste, she answered the door. Behind it, was the guest she was expecting. Twilight Sparkle. The lavender unicorn greeted Lyra before being invited in. Twilight looked around to her right, noticing some changes from her last visit. Then her gaze slowly came to the left before stopping completely. Her pupils shrunk as she noticed the massive dark figure standing before her. It towered over her, its dark gaze set solely on her. She felt a small tinge of fear enter her, and found herself slowly backing away from the monstrosity.

Lyra, uneasy by this frightening sort of introduction glared at Soul. He found her serious glare, turning his creepy position into a polite bow, before kneeling down to Twilight’s level. “Pleased to meet you, Miss Sparkle.” Twilight responded with a polite nod, though she was quite skeptical about the whole thing. She wasn’t as surprised as she thought she would have. An odd sense of familiarity flowed through her, but she quickly ignored it.

“Yes...A pleasure to meet you as well, Mr?” She asked.

“Soul,” He interrupted. “Soul Fire. So...What brings you here?”

Twilight glared at Lyra, silently scolding her for not informing him of the visit. Lyra started to sweat, embarrassed. Twilights thoughts were interrupted by a hum coming from the elephant in the room.

“I trust you are the one whom Lyra send that scroll to?” He asked clearly. Twilight nodded, hastily. “Sorry to interrupt your questioning, but may I come in?” She asked, shivering all over. “It’s kind of cold out here...” Lyra jumped. “Y-Yes, of course! Come on in!” She welcomed Twilight in, who headed towards the ethereal fire, presumingly using it to warm herself.

Soul found himself upon the couch once again, staring at Twilight. He was without a doubt interested in this creature. It bore the same features, as far as body structure to the bone instrument required to cast these spells. Her colors were however different. Soul found it strange the colors these ponies could take form of. From mint green, to the obvious scholar being a deep shade of lavender.

The two mares continued speaking to each other, much of it ignored by Soul. He was too far in thought. Sure, he knows her name, but the question still rang in his mind. Just who is this purple spellcaster? Something about her made him uncomfortable, though he couldn’t tell what. Soul’s eyes grew darker, becoming skeptical about the mare sent to this house.

She was supposedly here to help him recover his memories, but he couldn’t help but think otherwise. Lyra was the only pony she could trust. Soul pondered over Lyra’s decision before deciding to throw the suspicion away. If Lyra thought she could help, I suppose I could trust her...Soul thought, slightly unsure of what the mare was preparing to do, exactly. The lavender scholar approached Soul, her eyes beaming with excitement. Despite Soul’s horrifyingly dark appearance, to the mind of a historian, this was something of interest. Soul couldn’t help but chuckle lightly, his heart nearly exploding from the sheer cuteness of these creatures.

“Oh! I’m sorry, I came here for a complete different reason, but I just can’t help myself.” She apologized. Soul stood up, giving her a wider observation to him. She seemed to be entirely intrigued in his clothing, not so much his anatomy. Soul caught this as very strange, wondering if that it could be possible this wasn’t the first time she’d seen his kind?

Twilight mumbled something to herself before quickly casting a spell. The ball of light shot into Soul, giving him a slight tingle. He remained solid still, while the waves of light passed through his body, as if something was scanning him. “Amazing...” Twilight mumbled.

“This is amazing!” She shouted, scaring both Lyra and Soul. After silent apologetics, the small ball of light left Soul’s body, heading back into the tip of her horn. With her data stored, she could now fully review it whenever she wanted! She squealed in excitement, causing an uncomfortable stare from Soul, and a facehoof from Lyra.

Twilight noticed Soul’s little attitude, chuckling a little. “I just casted a scanner spell on you. It let’s me gather a large amount of information on you in an instant.” Soul nodded, realizing with the powers these unicorns had, a spell like that could exist. Perhaps she could shoot fireballs? Soul kicked himself for letting his childish side take over.

“A large majority of it was your basic anatomy, which well...Isn’t much of a difference between the diamond dogs. The only part the spell didn’t work on was your brain, which proves you’re a far more intelligent creature than the others. Probably just as smart as us!” Probably? She’s got some nerve...

“That isn’t what intrigues you. Get to the point.” Soul rudely stated. Twilight cringed, but couldn’t blame him.

“Yes well...While I was scanning you, I noticed something remarkable. As you know...Or, don’t know.” Twilight laughed, “All unicorns have a basic mana pool that resides in the base of our horn. It is what allows us to cast spells.” Soul saw where this was going.

“Are you saying I have one too?” He asked. Twilight mumbled something to herself. “Yes....And no. The thing that caught me off guard was the clothing you are wearing. It’s enchanted.”

Soul knew what enchanted meant, but what exactly did she mean? “What do you mean, enchanted?”

“The...I shouldn't say clothing, considering it’s obvious by the padding that it’s not clothes. The armour you are wearing, though light, has been protected using a rare and complicated form of magic. Otherwise known as Enchantment.” She finished, rather interested.

Lyra could do nothing but stare wide eyed at the ancient. “It all makes sense now...Twilight!” She shouted. “Earlier I felt a large gap in the magic fields when he was around. Do you think the armour is what caused it?” Twilight nodded, confirming Lyras theory.

“So...What is it enchanted to do?” He asked, curious. Twilight shook her head slowly.

“I do not know, sadly. I’m just a student studying the magic of friendship. Though I do study magic from time to time, it’s mainly to know spells. The only way for us to figure out what your amour does is to find an enchanter.”

“Well surely there is an enchanter of such nearby, correct?” He asked. Twilight shook her head. She took in a deep breath. Lyra cringed, knowing another history lesson was about to commence.

“Enchanting is long gone. The last it was used was during the second and third wars, which dated around three hundred to four hundred years ago. During those days, war covered the land. Ponies steel was strong, but not nearly strong enough. So the rulers of our kingdom sought help from the dragons, the creators of magic. The dragons have always been a neutral race, but luckily, the princess knew a certain ancient well. She managed to get the dragon to teach her the art of enchantment. Thus, she taught it to all her greatest scholars and court wizards.”

“But as I said, that was four hundred years ago. I doubt even the princess remembers how to enchant something, not to mention how to read an enchantment.” Twilight finished.

Soul laughed. “Wouldn’t she be dead though? You just said that was four hundred years ago.”

Twilight shook her head again. “Princess Celestia and Princess Luna are immortal. They have been alive for several thousand years.” Soul blinked.

“Right. Sorry, should have expected that.” Twilight giggled. “There is a lot of things you don’t know. “But it’s a first step, right?” Soul nodded, though not exactly full of energy.

“Hmm...I didn’t find a single shred of memories in your mind, other than the most recent events...” Twilight trailed off, pondering something closely to herself. “Perhaps the princess might know you! I know just the thing to do. Stay still, we’re heading to canterlot!” Twilight excitedly said.

Despite the obvious rudeness of performing such a dangerous spell in someones home, Twilight charged her horn to its greatest extent. The space around the three started to twist and became distorted, almost as if being pulled into a central point. Soul, though confused, furrowed his brow, not expecting great results from this new spell of hers. The air thinned and in a flash of light the three were gone.

As result of this surge of energy and power, Soul blacked out. The remaining two managed to stay conscious but appeared slightly off course from their intentional direction. In other words, straight into the canterlot gardens.

Twilight rubbed her head, groaning in agony. “Note to self...A minimum of two passengers next time!” She said, nearly fainting from the small reserves of energy left.

Lyra growled, “Next time you decide to do this, it’s considered polite to at least warn us!”

Twilight sheepishly laughed, “Sorry. I was just so excited to test it out!”

“Whatever...Say where’s Soul?” Lyra asked, glancing around the small area around them. Soul was nowhere to be found.

Twilight gulped, “Uh oh...”

Lyra stared her down. “What do you mean ‘uh oh’? What happened to him?!”

Twilight gulped again, clawing the ground with her hoof. “Well, the spell was designed for two...There is a chance Soul was flung off into some different direction. Or worse, is stuck somewhere between the walls of the universe.”

“Are you saying he’s dead?!?” Lyra shouted.

Twilight sniffed, “What have I done?”

“Nope.” Soul said, appearing from behind them. The two jumped, frightened by his sudden appearance.

“S-Soul, what, where, how...” Twilight babbled.

Soul shook his head. “I woke up behind those bushes over there.” He said, pointing at the finely cut bushes beside the various statues of Equestrian heroes. Soul looked around, taking in the scenery around him. “This is canterlot, then? Let’s get moving.” He demanded, already heading his own direction. Twilight would have stopped him if he had not been going the right direction. Lucky guess.

“Soul?” Twilight began, “I must warn you, the princess is a little different than what you would expect. I suggest yo-”

“I have a feeling.” He interrupted her.

“What?” She asked, confused by his random outburst.

“I have a feeling I already know this. We must hurry.” Soul responded, his tone changing into a strange accent. Before Twilight could question his attitude, he began running straight to the throne room. How he knew where it was, Twilight could not figure out, but decided to follow him.

The castle was deserted, so to speak. No guards stationed outside the throne room door, which surprised Twilight and Lyra. Soul payed no mind, heading straight to the large door in front. He stopped at the door, scanning it’s various markings and designs. Twilight and Lyra barely managed to keep up.

“Soul, what has gotten into you?” Lyra asked between various pants. Twilight nodded. “You’re acting very strange. Not only do you know where to go, but you’ve been saying weird things.”

Soul glanced back at them. “I know. Trust me when I say that I’m not quite sure myself, but this feeling just won’t go away.”

Twilight sighed. “What are you feeling?”

“Warmth. The sun. The closer I get, the hotter it becomes.” He said. He mumbled things to himself, as if he was talking pure cryptic code. He put his hand on the door. “These doors...Not metal. Reflects sunlight. Of course...” He laughed. “Your princess, immortal god of some sort. Name...Celestia?” He asked. Lyra and Twilight nodded, though still very much confused as to what his incoherent sayings meant.

With a surprisingly powerful push, the doors flung open. Soul charged inside, glancing around at the display of ornaments and decorations. As he charged down the hall, he forced himself to stop, taking notice of the extreme heat. Twilight and Lyra followed him, before hastily bowing to their knees before a royal presence. Soul gathered his senses, switching his gaze to the source of the heat.

“Celestial. Earth, moon, stars...” He slowed his words, staring in amazement at the creature that stood eye to eye with him. “But more importantly...The Sun.” He finished. Soul could no longer understand his own situation, and just decided to give in to the strange feeling controlling him. “Celestia. Your sun burns brighter than any I’ve ever felt. I...My name is Soul Fire. I assume you know why I am here.”

She smiled brightly, “Of course. Despite the limited knowledge of yourself, you pursue a single topic in hopes to regain your identity.” She glanced at her subjects, allowing them to rise. They did so with order, their eyes filled with the interest of a thousand scholars.

“Sadly, I cannot say I know your identity. My apologies.” Soul nodded slowly, clenching his fist in frustration. “However, you also seek the one who enchanted that armour of yours.” Soul nodded. “I am also sad to inform you that I have lost all knowledge of enchanting. Seeing as it was used for nothing but war, I sealed it away within the care of something very powerful. Still...I do have various scraps of memories left behind from its effects.

“That chest piece you wear, you say you feel could my warmth radiating from it?” She asked. Soul nodded. “I know this much then. The chest is enchanted to detect the magical element of the opponent. I raise the sun every morning, thus I have naturally inhabited the element of the sun. This explains how you were able to sense me, and find my location.”

Soul nodded, pondering on what to do next.

“You no doubt seek your identity. The key to it is without a doubt, sealed within that armour. I know what you wish to do next. The knowledge I so preciously sealed away is guarded by an ancient even older than I. That armour you wear was not enchanted by the magic of ponies.” She shook her head.

“Then what is it?” Twilight asked.

Celestia chuckled. “Twilight! My dear student, you of all students should know this! That armour was enchanted by none other than the founders of magic.”

Twilight gasped, covering her mouth with a hoof. “Princess...You don’t mean?”

Celestia nodded. “Yes, I do. The ancient guardians of this world. The dragons.”

Despite all that has happened to Soul, this subject in particular interested him the most. What was it about dragons that intrigued him so much?

“Using their voice, or Thuum, they can apply several different forms of magic to almost anything.” Celestia finished, glancing back at Soul. “Soul! I know very little of the world beyond this, but one thing is certain. You must seek out Void, the ancient of death. There he will teach you the many forms of dragon tongue and the meaning behind your armour.” Celestia said, rather serious. “I must warn you. He will test you in a series of trials. If you cannot pass these...Then I cannot guarantee your reincarnation.” She finished, her tone sad.

“What do you mean?” Lyra asked. Soul furrowed his brow, suspicious of the alicorns meaning.

“He is the ancient of death. He lies within the realm of the dead. In more simple terms...”

“I must first die.” Soul interrupted, his tone dark, serious. Celestia cringed slightly, nodding.

“It sounds highly illogical, but Void is the gatekeeper for the souls of the living. He has the ability to send souls back, should he feel the need.” Celestia said. “I can of course, end your life with close to no pain whatsoever. Remember, this is all your choice. One last thing, should you confront him, tell him I sent you. He will understand.”

Soul looked back at Lyra and Twilight, feeling a little selfish for taking a risk like this, but his desire to find his purpose, his reason for existence was far more consuming.

He looked back at Celestia. “Do it.”