Chapters Chapter 1: Time to wake up
The Everfree forest, a place that darkness calls home, where all sorts of wild creatures run wild, and bad intentions can be felt in the air. In the center of it though, in the ruins of castle long forgotten by ponykind, a great power rested. The trees stayed away from the castle, almost as if afraid of the power that lurked within. Within those walls, the Elements of Harmony once rested, ready to be retrieved when they were needed. They are gone now though, resting in the hearts of six brave ponies until they are needed once more. However, in a room deep beneath the castle, a lone unicorn began to stir.
~
It was a dark and gloomy day in Ponyville. An unscheduled shower had made its way to the town and was now raining down upon the ponies scurrying about with a mighty downpour. In a mighty tree, carved out into a home, three ponies found refuge from the storm; Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash.
"Thank you ever so much for allowing us to stay, Twilight." Fluttershy said, almost in a whisper. The pony was stressed to her wits end by the storm, jumping at the tiniest roars of thunder.
"It's no problem at all girls, you're lucky you were so close to my house when the storm hit." Twilight responded.
"Ugh, I could have this storm cleared in no time! It'd just take a few good kicks, hyah!" Rainbow dash yelled, kicking her hind legs into the air.
"Please Rainbow, you wouldn't even be able to see where you're flying in this storm. Why didn't the weather team say anything about this anyways?" Twilight asked as she looked out the window. She could only see a few inches out of her window before the view was pitch black.
"Dunno. It just came out of nowhere. By the time we noticed it, it was already here." Rainbow said, also looking out the window.
A flash of lightning streaked across the sky, lighting up the pitch-black Ponyville for a split second. The lightning was soon followed by a loud crash of thunder that shook the house, and sent Fluttershy into a shaking frenzy.
"Fluttershy, stop being such a scaredy-horse!" Rainbow commanded.
"But it's so... Loud..." She said, closing her eyes tight.
"It's late girls, let's just get some sleep. I'm sure by the time we wake up, this storm will have passed." Twilight began making her way up the stairs, stopping once to look out her window again, "I hope... " she added, quietly.
~
In the Everfree forest, a young unicorn had just found his way out of a hidden room, deep within the now abandoned castle. His elegant white coat set him apart against the dark background that was the forest, but his black mane blended nicely. His mane appeared to be professionally styled upwards, undamaged from whatever put him in that room. His tail was short and trimmed, lacking the style his hair had. The most striking feature of the unicorn though, was his brilliant blue eyes, although their brilliance was diminished from the several veins in his eyes, making the appeared bloodshot.
He stumbled out of the castle into a doorway, now looking into the Everfree forest, his heart started pounding wildly, and his breath grew faster. Adrenaline pumped through him as he felt the claws of fear sink into him.
"Where am I?" He asked the night.
~
The next morning in Ponyville was not what Twilight had hoped for. The storm was over, but the clouds still lingered, darkening the village. As she looked out her window, she saw several ponies fixing whatever was damaged around the town; picking up stray branches, hanging up flags that had blown off, and re-opening several stalls that were closed for the storm.
Twilight made her way to her mirror and began taming her wild mane with a brush, levitating it easily with her magic. She caught the reflection as Fluttershy waking up in the guest bed behind her. "Good morning, Fluttershy." Twilight said in a cheery voice. "I hope you slept well."
"Oh, yes. I did, thank you again for letting me stay."
"It's no problem at all, you ponies are welcome here anytime you like. Hey, where's Rainbow Dash?"
"I believe she decided to sleep downstairs." Fluttershy looked to the ground, remembering the awkwardness Dash showed at the idea of the two sharing the same bed.
"That lazy pegasus is probably still asleep." Twilight began descending the stairs and found Rainbow Dash still asleep on the couch. Fluttershy followed Twilight downstairs to find Dash in an uncomfortable looking position.
"Ooh, I should of gave her the bed. She looks so uncomfortable." Fluttershy said, becoming upset with herself.
Rainbow Dash opened an eye at the noise. She rose from her sleeping position and stretched, causing several cracks to be heard in her back. "This is what I get for not sleeping on a cloud..." Rainbow Dash said, rubbing her back with a hoof.
"You could of slept on the bed, ya know?" Was Twilight's response.
Rainbow Dash's face grew a shade redder, "I... Kick in my sleep. I didn't want to hurt Fluttershy. We all know how fragile she is, aheheh."
"Whatever you say, it looks like the storm's over now. I think we might have to get to work around town; there's quite a mess out there." Twilight said, once again looking out her window, hoping to see a different scene than the dreary one laid out before her.
"Those pegasus ponies must be getting lazy. It still looks so dark out." Rainbow Dash joinedi n looking out the window.
"How ironic..." Twilight said.
"I'd better get out there and show them how it's done. Thanks for letting us stay over Twilight." And with that Rainbow was out the door and in the sky.
"Uhm, I'd better go too. I'm sure all the animals are worried. Thank you very much Twilight."
And with that, Twilight was alone, she sighed at the clouds that still lingered. She had a sick feeling in her stomach. She pushed on though, she knew she had work to do around the town. She put on a pair of boots, and then headed out, closing the door behind her. There was a lot to do today, and she intended to help as much as she could.
~
The unicorn had finally made his way down the steps to the forests ground. His vision blurred in and out, and his ears rang. The unicorn pressed on though determined to find out where he was, and what had happened to him. He couldn't remember anything at all though, everything was a blank to him. The more he thought back, the more his ears rang, and the more a headache threatened to make him pass out again. He pressed the thought from his head, the very idea of sleep frightened him. His hooves moved clumsily through the forest and he felt weak. Trees were his only support through the forest, and he often found himself leaning on them to catch his breath. With no sense of direction, or destination, he set off into the Everfree forest.
~
Ponyville was finally getting back on track. Shops were opening back up, and the town was getting cleared of all the debris. Twilight Sparkle galloped through town with a pair of saddlebags on her back. She was on her way to Fluttershy's house, whom had requested her help with searching for a rare mushroom.
"Sorry I'm late Fluttershy. I had to organize a few books." Twilight said, a little out of breath.
"Oh no, It's no problem at all. You really should have taken your time."
"So, what are we looking for exactly?" Twilight said as she levitated a book all about plant-life out of her saddle bag.
"Oh, it's a purple mushroom with white dots on it. I need a few of them to mix up into Angel's food. The poor bunny has came down with a tummy ache, and the mushroom is a powerful medicine."
"Ah, here it is. the 'Goaway Mushroom.' Named for making pain 'Go away.' Is this what it looks like?" Twilight asked, turning the book for Fluttershy to see.
"Yes, that's the one." She said with a simple nod.
The book turned back to Twilight, "OK, it says here it grows in damp, dark places, like most mushrooms. It's most common place is in... The Everfree forest." Twilight said as a chill slid up her spine.
"Now you see why I couldn't go by myself." Fluttershy said, kicking at the ground with her hoof.
"It's no big deal, we'll just pop in, grab a few mushrooms, and then pop out. No problem at all." Twilight in a cheery and assertive tone, trying to calm the now frightened pegasus.
"Right." Was all she said.
~
The white unicorn pressed on, turning back every now and again to check the progress he had made form the castle. He had been at his forceful trek for what felt like an hour, but he had put barely any distance between him and the abandoned castle. He turned away from it, and then kept pushing his hooves forward. Each step made his legs heavier, and his vision blur more. He stopped to lean on a tree, but soon found this was as far as he was to go. His vision went black all at once, and his body went numb. His mind screamed at him to stay awake, but his body just wasn't able to push any harder. The unicorn collapsed into a still pile in the forest, his breathing, and his heart, began to slow.
~
Fluttershy and Twilight had just arrived at the edge of the Everfree forest. A chill could be felt coming from the forest that would make a ponies mane stand on end. "No big deal, just in and out." Twilight repeated, this time attempting to calm herself down. The two ponies pushed themselves forward into the forest, and into the darkness. What they didn't notice though, were the clouds over Ponyville beginning to break, and disappear.
Chapter 2: Welcome to Ponyville
Twilight and Fluttershy worked quickly trying to gather to the necessary amount of mushrooms, not wanting to spend another second in the dark forest. The mushrooms didn't grow near the edge of the Everfree forest, so the duo had to delve a little deeper into the maze of trees. With every step into the forest, the air seemed to get colder. Fluttershy could barely move an inch in the dark forest, so Twilight did most of the gathering.
"Should this be enough?" Twilight asked, holding up five of the Goaway Mushrooms.
"Oh yes, that should be enough for a while." Fluttershy said, almost whispering. The pony was shaking from the cold, and the fear.
"Good, let's got ahead and leave then." Twilight said as she started leaving the forest.
Fluttershy stood still, her eyes wide, staring off into the forest.
"Come on Fluttershy, let's go. The sooner we get out of this forest the better."
"Twilight..." Fluttershy whispered as she lowered her head to the ground.
Twilight turned and saw a white unicorn leaning against a tree, he wasn't moving, and his eyes were closed.
"Oh no." Twilight said, her adrenaline started pumping, her mind raced with ideas expecting the worst.
Fluttershy followed behind Twilight, her caring side overpowered the fear that she felt. "Oh Twilight is he OK?" Fluttershy asked, approaching the unicorn.
Twilight lowered herself to the ground and examined the unicorn. She closed her eyes and her horn began glowing a mystical purple, as did the white unicorns body. "He's breathing, barely. He needs help though, and now." She said levitating the body into the air.
"My cottage is the closest place to here, let's hurry." Fluttershy said before galloping off with Twilight following behind.
~
It was many days until the unicorn awoke. He shot up out of his slumber in a sweat, breathing heavily. The sudden jerk sent signals of pain rushing all over his body as it protested to the sudden movement. He felt stiff, like his body couldn't move. He slowly laid his head back down on the pillow and clenched his teeth to avoid grunting in pain. He slowly began working his body up to moving capability through small movements and stretches, but before he could get up, Fluttershy entered the room.
"Oh, you're awake! How wonderful!" The pegasus said, trotting over to the bed.
The unicorn looked at her with nervous and frightened look.
"It's OK, there's nothing to be afraid of. Me and my friend found you out in the Everfree Forest. We thought you were..." Fluttershy's sentence trailed off as she looked at the ground not wanting to even think of a pony encountering such a fate.
The unicorn felt a little at ease after hearing the soft soothing voice assure him of his safety. He visibly relaxed, and his face turned to simply a puzzled look.
"This is my cottage, you're in Ponyville now."
The unicorn looked at her still with a perplexed look.
Fluttershy tried to smile, but it came off as awkward, "So, what is your name?"
The unicorn looked down at the sheets, going through his thoughts.
"I... Don't know." The unicorn said suddenly feeling fear wash over him.
Fluttershy was the one wearing a look of confusion now, "Oh dear, I think this is a job for Twilight. Uhm, stay in bed, please. I'll be right back." And with that Fluttershy galloped out of the room, and out of sight.
The unicorn continued looking down, trying to retrace his steps. He remembered waking up in a room. The floor was marble, and the walls were stone. He awoke on a throne that was seemingly made of diamond. Upon it was several engravings of the sun and moon. The same symbols decorated the wall. In front of the throne was a red door with golden trim. Upon it was a picture of a black pony facing a white pony. None of it made sense to the unicorn. He remembered the door having no handle, but he could push it open. There was a winding staircase which led to the abandoned castle he was in. He remembered walking away from it, and then collapsing.
'But what happened before that... Why was I in that room? ' the unicorn asked himself. He tried to trace his memories back further, to no avail. It was all blank, like it never happened. He couldn't remember who he was, what happened to him, or anything. The only clue he had was a mark on his flank. It was a picture of the sun.
He looked over and on a desk beside the bed was a few apples and a glass of water. The unicorn's stomach then began to growl wildly, reminding him that he hadn't ate in who knows how long. He leaned over and got an apple with his mouth and started eating it slowly. The fruit tasted great to him, and his stomach thanked him for it. He began eating quicker until all the apples were gone. He tried to get a drink of water by biting the glass with his teeth and tilting the glass up, but to no avail. He sat the glass back down and with a sigh, laid his head back down. He still felt a tad drowsy, and getting some sleep he actually expected seemed like a good idea as well.
~
"And he doesn't remember anything at all?" Twilight asked as she entered Fluttershy's house.
"Oh, I'm afraid so Twilight, and I just had no idea what to do, and I felt awful."
"It's OK Fluttershy, I'm sure there's a spell we can find that will solve this problem."
The two ascended the stairs to a now sleeping unicorn. As the two arrived though, one of his eyes slowly opened. After he realized there were new arrivals he raised his head up.
"Oh, sorry to disturb your nap." Twilight said.
The unicorn shook his head.
"Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Twilight Sparkle, and this is my friend Fluttershy."
"Hello." The pegasus pony said, sheepishly.
"And from what I understand, you seem to have a memory problem?"
The unicorn dropped his gaze to the ground.
"Not to worry though, there should be a spell in this book that should solve that problem." Twilight said as she levitated a book out of her saddlebag.
The unicorn looked shocked, he then noticed that this pony had a horn like he did, and she was levitating a book in thin air
Twilight caught on to his surprised look, "Don't tell me you forgot how to use your magic too."
The unicorn only continued to stare at the ground.
"This is much worse then I thought..." Twilight began flipping through the pages of the book rapidly as she approached the unicorn.
"For this to work, you're going to have to trust me, and open your mind to me. Can you do that?" She asked.
The unicorn looked concerned for a bit, but nodded; anything to get his memories back.
As Twilight's horn began to glow, so did the white unicorn. Twilight closed her eyes and began to focus, attempting to bring memories to the surface. The white unicorn also closed his eyes, trying not to hold anything back, or push Twilight out. Twilight's brow furrowed, she was obviously upset about something.
"There's something...Blocking me. Something that doesn't want me to bring these memories out."
She let out a small grunt and tried her best to force through the block. The glowing intensified for a second but then a loud crack was heard and Twilight was thrown back as the white unicorn let out a grunt of pain.
"A-anything?" Twilight asked, rubbing her head.
The white unicorn began to slowly open his eyes, "M-my name, is... Lucent."
Twilight smiled with joy, at least the spell was a minor success. "Great! The spell worked, a little bit anyways. Is there anything else you remember?" Twilight strolled closer to the unicorn, curious.
Lucent closed his eyes, trying to think, trying to remember. The darkness that clouded his thoughts seemed thinner now, as if he could make shapes of figures beyond it. Minor things were coming back to him; his name, his ability to use magic, common sense, speech. But the trail of memories ended there. Something still blocked him from digging deeper, from reaching those memories that felt so important to him.
"No." Lucent shook his head with a sigh.
"Well, don't worry. I'll just have to find another spell and try harder." Twilight was determined to solve this mystery. Something forcefully blocked her from awakening some of Lucent's memories, some form of magic. She knew this unicorn was tied to something bigger. For some reason or another, someone had cast a spell on him to lock away memories. And not just certain ones, all of them. Someone wanted this unicorn to be a shell of a person. Twilight was able to awaken deep rooted memories, but her spell wasn't enough for the bigger ones. She cracked her book back open, flipping through pages wildly. When she was through one book, another levitated out of her bag and she began going through it.
"I-is there anything I can get you?" Fluttershy asked.
"No thank you." Lucent said, but at that moment his stomach let out another growl which betrayed his lips.
Fluttershy giggled at the display, "Just hold on, I'll go get you some more apples." Fluttershy descended the stairs and was then out of sight.
Twilight let out a sigh as she set the second book down, she couldn't find anything on memory seals. "This will be a bit trickier then I thought." Twilight levitated a third book out of her saddlebags.
"This all really isn't necessary Miss... Twilight, was it?" Lucent spoke very elegantly.
"It's no trouble at all! Besides, the seal on your memory intrigues me. I've never seen anything like it before!"
Lucent looked troubled, "There's a seal on my memory?"
Twilight's eyes widened as she realized she said a bit too much, she sighed and slowly closed the book she was going though, "Yes. I'm afraid that somepony, or something, put a seal on your memories so you couldn't reach them."
Lucent looked down, clearly upset. What had he done to anger anypony? What did her do to deserve this?
"It's OK. Me and my friends can help you, we've dealt with worse things in the past, I'm sure." Twilight spoke with a very cheerful expression, obviously proud of the powers her and her friends held.
'Friends.' The phrase warmed Lucent a bit. He smiled for the first time since he had awoken.
"There you go." Twilight said with a sincere smile. She retrieved her book and returned to exploring it.
~
Hours seemed to pass as Twilight read, an re-read her books. Fluttershy would ask questions to Lucent and he would answer what he could; his favorite color was orange, he couldn't remember how old her was, he couldn't remember his parents, his favorite food was apples (At this the pegasus giggled), the questioning went on. Fluttershy wanted desperately to help all she could, but this seemed like something her love and caring couldn't fix, and it called for magic.
"Oh, Lucent, if it's OK may I ask another question?" Fluttershy always had a nervous look when she asked, as if she was going to get rejected.
Lucent, who had warmed up to the pegasus pony, smiled warmly "Of course not."
"Uhm, OK then, well, do you remember how you earned your cutie mark?"
Lucent looked down at his cutie mark, the image of the sun looked back at him,
"It's just, we know another pony who has a similar mark, and she's a princess."
Lucent's eyebrow raised, "A princess?"
"Yes! Princess Celestia of Equestria. She raises the sun every day over Equestria."
'Princess Celestia ' Lucent said to himself in his mind. The name seemed to want to make a connection with one of the figures on the other side of the darkness in his mind, but he just couldn't make the connection. He could feel the seal grow only the slightest bit weaker at the thought though.
"That name...Sounds really familiar." Lucent said looking back up.
"It does? Oh, how wonderful!" Fluttershy was excited that she may of helped, even the tiniest bit.
"Yes, but I can't quite place why it does. To answer your question though Fluttershy, I'm afraid I don't remember how I earned my cutie mark."
"Oh..." Fluttershy said, a bit disappointed.
"Princess Celestia? That name sounds familiar to you?" Twilight asked, her curiosity peaked.
"Indeed. It's like when I think about it, it tries to make a connection with my lost memories, but something stops it. I assume it's the 'seal' that you said has been placed on me. But also, at the thought, the seal weakens ever so slightly."
Twilight's eyes lit up at the discovery. "That's it then! We just have to make enough connections to your lost memories that the seal weakens enough for me to break it!" Twilight was excited that she may be able to break the spell after all.
"What about princess Luna, do you remember her?" Fluttershy asked, trying to pick a subject that was related to Celestia.
Lucent closed his eyes, trying to match the name to a figure. The name sent connections out to several figures. "Yes, the name does seem familiar to me. It sparked many connections within my mind. Thank you Fluttershy."
"Oh, it's no problem at all." The pegasus said with a warm smile.
"What about Canterlot, the city where the Princess' live?"
Lucent closed his eyes once more, thinking hard. Something seemed wrong about that phrase, but it still made connections in his mind.
"Yes. That helped as well."
"Well, it's obvious that you still remember somethings about Equestrian history. We should go to my library, there are many books there that could get you up to speed on Equestria."
Lucent climbed out of bed, he felt stronger now. He could stand without wobbling, and walk without tilting. Lucent gave a nod to Twilight and the trio set out for the library, hoping to find some answers.
~
At Twilight's library, before the trio arrived, a rainbow pegasus was questioning a baby dragon.
"What do you mean she's not here? She's always here! Reading books is all she does!" Rainbow Dash said with a laugh.
"She's just not here. She rushed in, grabbed a few books, and then rushed out. She woke me up from my nap with all her rummaging." Spike said with an annoyed expression.
Fluttershy, Twilight, and Lucent could be seen on the horizon as they approached the library. Rainbow Dash hovered in place a bit before flying over the the trio.
"Twilight! I've been looking for you all day!" Rainbow was facing Twilight but flying backwards as the trio walked forwards.
"Me? What do you need Rainbow Dash?"
Rainbow Dash looked left and right, making sure a certain somepony wasn't around. She then leaned in close and whispered "Do you know a spell that would make a pony all asleep?"
At that moment a loud, high pitched "RAINBOW DAAAASH!" Was heard in the distance. A pink pony with mane and tail of what appeared to be cotton candy bounced into view.
"Rainbow Dash, I was looking everywhere for you! I need a favor!" Pinkie Pie said.
Rainbow Dash sighed and collapsed to the ground. "I give up..." She said, defeated.
"Great! It'll only take a Pinkie Pie second!"
"Does this involve another prank?" Rainbow Dash asked with a hint of hope in her voice.
Pinkie Pie only giggled, "Maybe!" and with that the Pink pony started bouncing off with the pegasus floating behind her asking about what prank they would pull.
"As long as they stay away from me with those pranks." Twilight said, as they entered the library.
~
Twilight pulled book after book from the shelves of the library, creating a neat stack on a table.
"These should cover most of Equestrian history." Twilight settled one last book onto the pile.
"Thank you, Twilight." Lucent said as he magically levitated a book over to him. It was the first time he had used his magic since waking up, and the book wobbled a bit. He could feel himself getting the hang of it though as he flipped the pages with his magic as well.
"We should leave you to your studies. We will be upstairs if you need us." Twilight and Fluttershy ascended the stairs.
Lucent read through the first book, 'Early Beginnings of Equestira: How Equestria was Made.' The book described the early beginnings of the world. It told of four alicorns; Terra, Aqua, Ignis, and Ventus. These four alicorns were the ones who shaped the world of Equestria into what it was now. Terra crafted the ground, and Aqua cut through the ground with her mighty oceans, rivers, lakes, and streams. Ignis brought fire, and with it power to the land. Finally, Ventus brought the wind and with it, the air and skies.
They created two more alicorns who would actually interact with the subjects of the world, they created Luna and Celestia. With Celestia, came the sun. With Luna, came the moon. With that, the world was split into two, light and dark. The original four alicorns took to the heavens, watching over their creation from high above. Luna and Celestia created the first of pony kind; the unicorn. It had the horn and magic of the alicorns, but lacked the ability to roam the skies. They then created the pegasus, a pony with wings, capable of sailing the great ocean that was the sky. Finally, they created the earth pony. It lacked the magic alicorns had, or the wings that pegasi had, but it had a connection with the world, and could feel it.
The ponies they created wouldn't move though, they lacked motivation, they lacked a reason to move. Celestia and Luna gave them motives; they created kindness, loyalty, honesty, laughter, and generosity. These were known as The Elements of Harmony.
Lucent read on in the book, connections shot out left and right as he read through the chapters of the book. Parts of it seemed wrong, and other parts filled blank spaces in his head. He finished the book and moved on to 'Laws of Ponyville: Stop Right There Criminal Scum!'
~
"Are you sure this will help Twilight?" Fluttershy asked.
"...No. But it's the only lead we have."
"Who IS he anyways?" Spike asked.
"His name is Lucent, we found him collapsed in the Everfree forest, and he can't remember anything."
A knock was heard from Twilight's balcony. As they all looked over, they saw Rainbow Dash on the other side of the glass with a scowl on her face.
Twilight opened the glass door, allowing Rainbow to walk inside, it was then that they noticed she was dripping wet.
"Rainbow? What happened? It's not even raining outside." Twilight asked as she checked outside to be sure. When she did, she noticed a wall of rain heading for the tree. She quickly closed the doors and the rain began pounding on the tree house.
"Another storm?" Fluttershy asked, already starting to shake a bit.
"Rainbow? I didn't hear anything about a storm today." Twilight said.
"It was another storm that came out of nowhere. I was out helping Pinkie when the weather team found me. We tried our best to stop it, but the more we kicked the clouds, the bigger the storm got."
Twilight could feel a chill as the storm grew louder and angrier.
Fluttershy noticed Twilight tremble a bit, "Twilight, what's wrong?"
"I don't think this storm is natural. I think something causing it. I felt it with the last one, but I didn't think anything of it. This one though, I can feel a lot of magic floating around in the air."
"Oh no..." Was all Fluttershy could say.
~
Lucent closed the book on Ponyville law. Most of it seemed like common sense anyways, so he only skimmed through it. The next book was a book on the Elements of Harmony. Lucent remembered the first book he read saying something about them. He opened the book and began reading.
The book told of the Elements of Harmony and their history. It re-told the story of Luna and Celestia creating the elements. It also told of a method of harnessing the elements through stone orbs. These orbs were created when Luna suddenly turned against Celestia out of jealousy and attempted to overthrow her. Celestia had used the elements against Luna and defeated her sister, banishing her to the moon. Something about the story didn't click to Lucent, he didn't understand how jealousy or anger could take someone to such extremes. It almost saddened him to even consider it.
He closed the book, his eyes were stinging from such intense reading. Lucent approached the stairs and tapped the bottom one with his hoof, as if he was knocking.
"Miss Twilight, may I come up?" He asked.
"Oh, of course Lucent."
Lucent ascended the stairs to find himself in the presence of not two, but three ponies. The Rainbow one from earlier, and the other two ponies were sitting in a semicircle in the floor.
"I'm sorry, am I interrupting?" Lucent asked.
"Oh, of course not. We were just discussing the storm outside." Twilight said.
"So, you're the forgetful unicorn?" Rainbow Dash spoke up.
Lucent's gaze dropped to the ground and he gave a slight nod.
"Speaking of which, did you learn anything?" Twilight asked.
Lucent's gaze rose back up to Twilight, "Oh, yes. A lot actually."
"Maybe we should try breaking the seal again?" Twilight asked.
"I would like to try again, if that is OK with you Miss Twilight." Lucent said, bowing his head.
Twilight approached Lucent and closed her eyes as her horn began to glow.
Rainbow Dash looked at the two confused, with no idea what was happening.
Lucent's horn began to glow as well, along with his entire head.
Twilight examined the seal again in her minds eye, it was definitely weaker then last time. She concentrated hard, trying her bast to break the chains on his memory. She felt like she could almost put a scratch on it. Before she could though, it rejected her. Twilight was pushed back again, and she landed with a thud.
Lucent let out a small yelp of pain as well, but no new memories surfaced.
"Anything?" Twilight asked as she rose to her hooves.
Lucent simply shook his head.
"I didn't want to resort to this, but we're going to need help to make sense of things. And I think I know the only person who can help. Spike, take a letter..."
"Dear Princess Celestia,
Today we discovered the body of a collapsed unicorn in the Everfree Forest. Me and my friend Fluttershy have been working diligently to nurse this unicorn back to health. There is something odd though, the unicorn in question has no recollection of his past! I'm afraid a crime has been committed against him, as I did discover a spell that temporarily bars his memory. We need your help in dissolving this seal, and bringing the criminal to justice. Please respond with haste.
Always your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle"
"Alright, Spike, send it!"
The tiny dragon took a deep breath, holding the scroll in front of his face. As he exhaled a green jet of flame shot out, incinerating the scroll. The smoke however drifted out the window, ethereal magic guiding it to its destination.
"She should respond urgently, the princess always does when she sees an urgent note from her faithful student." Twilight said with a tone of superiority.
This was not the case though. Hours passed and the group heard nothing from the princess.
~
In the royal city of Canterlot, an urgent message appeared in front of Princess Celestia.
"Is it a note from, Twilight?" Her sister Luna asked. Luna, whom was recently freed from the grasps of Nightmare Moon, was at a loss when it came to friendship and was using Twilights notes to learn more about making friends, and the power that was friendship.
"Yes, it is little sister." Celestia said with a smile. She loved seeing the signs of her pupil growing more knowledgeable, more experienced.
Celestia's smile soon faded, and a look of worry replaced it. "Luna, I have to go. Tend to the castle while I'm gone." Celestia rose to her feet and began to leave.
"Sister! What's happened? Is Twilight OK?" Luna asked, her voice filled with worry and fear.
Celestia took flight once she was outside. Several guards tried to ask where she was going, or attempted to follow her. The princess was too fast and powerful though, easily outracing any of the guards.
"Big sister, wait!" Luna called, also stepping outside. Luna took the skies as well and followed her sister the best she could.
~
"Maybe she's asleep?" Spike suggested.
"Alicorn's don't need to sleep Spike." Twilight said.
Suddenly the door downstairs opened.
"That's strange, I didn't hear a knock." Twilight rose to her feet and began to head downstairs.
The gang followed, once they were all downstairs, they then realized they were in the company of Princess Celestia. All the ponies bowed except for Lucent. After noticing the other though, he also dipped his head into a low bow.
"Princess Celestia, Thank you fo-" Twilight was interrupted by Celestia's overpowering voice.
"I should of known that with the awakening of the elements, you too would have awoken." Celestia said, looking straight at Lucent.
"E-Excuse me?" Lucent wore a perplexed look, which slowly turned to fear as Celestia approached him.
"Do you remember anything?" She asked him.
Lucent simply shook his head, "No, nothing other than simple memories."
"Good, then all is not lost." Celestia said.
Luna entered the room, "Sister!"
"Luna, you shouldn't have come." Celestia turned to her sister.
Luna looked past Celestia though, straight at Lucent. "It's you..." She whispered.
Lucent looked back at her, some memory in his head was trying to claw its way to the surface. It tore and scratched at the seal, causing a massive shock of pain to go through Lucent. He let out a grunt and stuck a hoof to his head.
"Celestia, you know Lucent?" Twilight asked.
Celestia sighed, "Yes Twilight, I do. I'm afraid though that I can't explain how with him in the room. It will only cause problems."
Lucent got the hint and began to walk outside, "I'll be outside then, I apologize." The door then shut.
"Celestia, can you explain now?" Twilight was curious.
"It was long ago, my student. This was before Nightmare Moon."
"Does that mean-!?"
"Yes, this was over one-thousand years ago. Lucent," Celestia looked out the window, wanting to see the unicorn, "Was my first student."
The group was taken aback, several gasps were heard.
"I assume you're well versed in the creation of Equestria, so that shall save some time. After we had created Ponies, me and Luna began our ritual of raising the moon, and the sun over Equestria. Me and Luna decided to create one last pony, not a pegasus, or a unicorn, but another Alicorn. Me and Luna had never thought of trying such a thing before, and the thought of a new sibling made us young Alicorns very excited. We spent days planning what he would look like, what he would be like. He would be wonderful, he would do no wrong, and he would be very helpful, assisting us whenever the need arose. We called him "The Light of Equestria," he would be loyal, kind, honest, generous, and he would bring laughter with him. We based him off the Elements of Harmony. We didn't understand the magic behind Alicorns though. There is never only one Alicorn. When Terra was brought, so was Ventus. When Aqua was brought, so was Ignis. And when I was brought, so was Luna. All the Alicorns are opposites of each other, oh how foalish we were. We created the Alicorn, and named him Lucent. Everything seemed to of gone well, he helped me and my sister whenever it was needed. He would often visit the ponies, and he became good friends with all of them. We were very proud of our new creation, as he could watch over the ponies as me and Luna designed our castle. One night though, everything went wrong. A scream from Ponyville distracted us from our work, and me and Luna sat off to discover the cause. In the middle of the new town, there was the body of a unicorn; dead. Me and Luna didn't understand, why would any of the ponies do this? There was only good in this world. But we soon learned; The closer you are to the light, the greater your shadow becomes. In the distance of the night, we saw an Alicorn. Its coat was pure black, it's mane was white, and its eyes were red like the blood on his hooves. He wore a a smirk on his face, one that I will never be able to get out of my memories." The princess began to tear up, trying to refuse the memory.
Luna simply looked away, her stomach turned with thoughts of that night. Even after her one-thousand year imprisonment, she couldn't get that image out of her head.
"It was then that we realized; there were only three Alicorns in this world. This 'murderer' had to be Lucent. The Alicorn disappeared into the night. It was then me and Luna decided we had to do something. As the black Alicorn left though, Lucent approached from behind us, curious as to what me and Luna were doing in Ponyville. It was impossible, Lucent stood before us, yet another Alicorn was in this world. We then noticed everything about the alicorn was the inverse of twhat Lucent was. Lucent's blue eyes, his white coat, and black mane; The black alicorns red eyes, his black coat, and his white mane. The three of us regrouped at the now half-built Canterlot, and filled Lucent in on the disaster. Lucent said he knew of the black alicorn, that it visited his dreams, that he and it were connected."
Celestia began to get more and more choked up as the story went on, something pained her.
"Lucent, he came up with a plan. He set off to work, building his own castle. It wasn't until he set his plan into action that we realized, he was building a prison. He called on me and Luna, asked us to accompany him to his newly built castle. Once there he said to us, 'I know neither of you have it in your hearts to kill me, but I do ask one favor. Put me to sleep, forever.' We were shocked. 'If I'm asleep, he will sleep. He will not threaten any other ponies. Put me to sleep, seal of my memories, and place me under this castle.' He had put a room under the castle, a cell for himself. It was what seemed like a mile into the world. After several threats to kill himself, me and Luna eventually placed him into a deep slumber. We locked his own memories away from him, and left him to his throne. His rightful place as the god of light and dark."
"What happened next?" Twilight asked, very intrigued by the story. She had never heard this story before, it completely changed all the history books she had read! How could such an event be overlooked?
"We sealed the room. The statue that you saw in that abandoned castle, it was the lock. Each of the orbs had it's own seal that kept Lucent in slumber, and also would keep the door to his room sealed."
"Then when Nightmare Moon shattered them..."
"That's correct. She broke the seal, and released Lucent, and his counterpart, unto the world again."
"Is she connected to this too?"
Celestia sighed, hoping the question was never brought up. She turned to look at Luna who had a look of extreme sorrow on her face.
"I'm afraid so. Even after Lucent was imprisoned, the body of his counterpart was still out there somewhere. Luna... Unfortunately encountered it. Just as Lucent's spirit was still alive, so was the others. Luna unfortunately ran into the body, she found it in the forest that surrounded Ponyville. It's magic was unhindered by any seal and it reached out to her with all of its might. It didn't have much magic left in it, as it knew it would have to keep its body alive, but it still planted a seed in her. One seed of evil, that would eventually go on to blossom into Nightmare Moon."
"Her breaking the orbs then was no mistake at all, she was trying to free Lucent this entire time!" Twilight said, as she pieced the puzzle together.
"That is correct, my student."
"But then... What do we do about him...?" Twilight looked out the window.
"... I do not know, Twilight. I do not know..."
Lucent wandered Ponyville, wondering what the group in the library could be discussing. He knew there was a connection between him and the royals, and now he knew that they held the answer to all the questions he had. There was a reason he was asked to leave though, and he was sure of it, and so he obeyed. He decided to speak to Celestia personally later on, hoping to find his answers.
Ponyville was dark on this day, and it seemed to grow darker still. It was as if the night had come early for this city, but Luna obviously hadn't raised the moon yet as she was still at the library. Lucent could feel a chill in the air, he could feel it trying to creep under his skin. But the darkness also gave him a strange sense of nostalgia. Something about the darkness reminded him of his long gone memories.
He then realized the darkness wasn't causing memories, it was reaching for them, trying to bring his memories to the surface. The seal pushed it out, just as it did Twilight though. He felt the shock go through his body as the seal pushed back against whatever tried to break it. He gritted his teeth, and tried to bare the pain though. The force didn't stop clawing though, didn't stop when it felt the opposition. It continued to claw and scratch, and push. Lucent tried to bare it, but he ended up letting out a scream in pain.
~
Celestia heard a scream that she didn't want to acknowledge was true, as this only confirmed the worst. After exchanging worried glances with Luna, the two exited the library with the other ponies hot on their trail. The group followed the screams to Lucent who had his head reared back, eyes shut tight, and was screaming in pain.
"Lucent! What is wrong!?" Celestia asked.
"Something...Something is trying to break the seal!"
"Celestia, what do we do!?" Twilight asked worriedly.
Celestia had no time to think, this force wasn't going to stop until that seal either broke, or completely destroyed Lucent's mind. In a moment of hast and worry, she broke the seal.
Lucent's entire body began to shine. Wings of light grew from his body. His eyes opened wide and revealed a lack of pupils; a great light shone from his eyes. He began lifting up into the air as the screaming died down, becoming gasps of confusion. In one blinding flash of light though, the unicorns eyes returned to normal, his wings turned to white feathers, and he fell to the ground.
"Lucent, can you hear me?" Celestia approached the body.
"Lucent, please let me know you're OK. Let me know I wasn't too late." Celestia laid beside the body, examining the unicorn for any signs of life.
The unicorn didn't move.
A tear began to form in Celestia's, and Luna's eyes.
"Please don't make me say goodbye again..." Celestia pleaded.
The unicorn shifted slightly, "Why...?" He asked quietly
"Lucent?"
"Why am I awake?" He asked.
"Lucent I-"
"Celestia, you know what this means."
"I know Lucent. But we stand stronger this time. The spirits of the elements are strong in these five ponies."
Lucent raised to his hooves, a little wobbly.
"Lucent, we're stronger now." Luna said, also approaching the unicorn.
Lucent looked over at Luna and Celestia for the first time since he had awoken, "Celestia...Luna... The years have been kind to you." He said with a warm smile. "Look at me, still as young as the day I 'fell asleep'." He let out a warm chuckle.
Celestia let her tears flow freely, "I'm sorry Lucent, I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough then."
Lucent nuzzled against the princess, "Celestia, do not worry. It was by my own want that I ended up where I did. Do not blame yourself dear princess."
Luna approached the two as well. She was shocked, this was Lucent from all those years ago. He was whole again.
"Ah, princess Luna. You've grown quite a lot since last we met."
"I wish I could say the same for you." She said with a weak chuckle, unsure of how to act to her old friend.
He only flashed another warm smile, "You say 'we' are stronger now. That the elements are strong in 'them'. Pardon my asking, but may I have a better description of the situation?"
~
The group retreated to the library, and the rest of the Mane 6 were gathered as well.
The hours went on, and many stories were told. The rest of the Mane 6 were brought up to speed on the situation with Lucent, as well as Lucent being brought up to speed with the Elements of Harmony that resided within the six ponies.
"I thought there were only five elements, princess Celestia?" Lucent was puzzled. In his time there were only five.
"As bonds formed between ponies, Lucent, we discovered a new power; friendship. We learned that through friendship, we could overcome any obstacle. The power that friendship bestows upon is, we refer to as magic."
"So, friendship is magic then?" Lucent asked.
"To put it simply."
"Lucent, Celestia told us of a black alicorn, can you tell us more about him?"
Lucent let out a breath, "Yes, Twilight, that I can." He stood and moved to a candle, and stuck a hoof up in front of it, "Do you see my shadow?" He asked.
The ponies nodded.
Lucent moved his hoof closer, and his shadow grew in size, "The closer one is to the light, the greater ones shadow becomes. But what if you ARE the light?" Lucent asked as he dropped his hoof and looked down, "What if you ARE that from which shadows spawn? Does that not make your shadow the greatest of all?"
"So, this alicorn is your shadow then?" Twilight asked.
"He is more then just my shadow. Just as I was meant to be the embodiment of good, light, and harmony; he is the embodiment of evil, darkness, and discord."
"We defeated that evil once, and we can defeat it again." Twilight said, sounding triumphant.
"Ah, yes. 'Nightmare Moon,' was what you called her, yes? That was but only one element though; jealousy. There are five more sides to the darkness."
"Then we stand against it together. The three alicorns of old, and the elements of harmony."
"Twilight, you are indeed an amazing unicorn. I can feel potential pouring from you, it's no wonder Celestia chose you to be her pupil."
Twilight blushed at the compliment and smiled.
"I can't let that potential be destroyed. I already hurt one of Celestia's friends," Lucent looked into Luna's eyes, "I won't let him hurt another."
"Lucent, I think she's right." Celestia spoke up.
All eyes fell on Celestia.
"Do you mean that?" Lucent asked.
Celestia simply nodded her head, "I do, Lucent. I think together we may stand a chance against this evil."
Lucent looked hard into Celestia's eyes, "Then, we do this by your orders, princess."
"We will strike first then against the beast."
"Celestia, have the years hindered your sight? These clouds are not natural. He already knows where we are, and is planning to take this whole town with us."
"Then we move."
"Where?"
"To where this ended last time. History repeats itself, and this evil will end at that castle once more. For good."
Lucent stared at Celestia, testing her resolve. A warm smile met his face, "Then we go."
"You heard him girls, these three alicorns need the Elements of Harmony. Can we do this?" Twilight turned to her friends.
Several cheers, agreements, and applauds were heard.
"We're behind you all the way, Celestia." Twilight said with a confident look.
"Then we set out for Castle Ultim."
~
The team set out into the darkness that had overshadowed Ponyville. They did not run from the darkness though. Instead they plunged into the heart of the darkness with the brightest of lights leading the way.
The group assembled on a wooden bridge, merely feet away from the gaping jaws of the Everfree Forest. Lucent wore a serious look, ready to end the thousand year struggle between him, and the darkness. Celestia was ready to take revenge for what hurt not only her closes friend, but also her sister. The Elements of Harmony stood prepared to continue defending their home, and the lands of Equestria. Lucent was the one who took the first step, and the other followed.
~
It was no easy task to traverse the forest. Branches and roots blocked the path, hindering the teams advancement.
"Do any of ya'll have any idea where we're goin'?" Applejack asked. She had taken point for the time being, her powerful legs seemed unhindered by the forests attempts at stopping them.
"The castle is at the center of the forest, so we just head straight until we reach it." Lucent said.
Applejack moved a branch out of her way, and took a step forward. Her foot hit no ground though, and she felt her entire body fall forward.
"Applejack!" Lucent called. He dashed forward and chomped down on her tail as hard as he could, suspending the eart pony in mid-air.
"H-Help meh!" Lucent said through clenched teeth.
Rainbow Dash flew out and grabbed a hold of Applejack's torso, and together the two pulled her back to safety.
"Gee, thanks partners. I owe ya'll one." Applejack said, still attempting to catch her breath.
The group then carefully made their way down the cliff.
"Say, Twilight?" Applejack said as she reached the bottom of the cliff.
"Yes, Applejack?"
"Isn't this the same cliff that ya'll almost fell from?" Applejack looked up the cliff as memories of the last trek flooded back to her.
"Why yes, it is." Twilight said, also remembering her near death experience.
Applejack chuckled, "Guessin' it was my turn to have a tumble. Thank ya again, Lucent." Applejack turned to Lucent.
Lucent smiled warmly to Applejack, "It's no problem at all. You can trust me."
The team moved on while Applejack stayed behind, looking at the cliff again.
"Honesty..." Applejack said quietly to herself.
"Applejack!" Twilight called.
"Ahm' a comin'!" She called, and galloped to catch up with the rest of the group.
~
The trees began letting up, allowing the team to proceed faster.
As they neared a clearing, they heard what sounded like snores.
Lucent proceeded quietly ahead of the group to look around. He found a sleeping Manticore behind a bush, curled into a ball.
He turned back to the group and made a "Shh" noise. The group then quietly passed by Lucent as he watched over the Manticore, making sure it didn't wake up.
Fluttershy moved beside Lucent, also looking at the Manticore. She looked at its paw, and noticed a scar on it. She gasped, but not loud enough to wake the sleeping beast.
Lucent looked over at Fluttershy with a curious look.
"I know this Manticore. I helped it once, and we became friends." Fluttershy said, remembering when she removed the thorn from its paw.
Lucent looked back at the Manticore. His horn began to light up, and so did the Manticore's paw. The scare began to slowly fade to match the rest of the paw, and was eventually gone all together.
Fluttershy gasped again, and looked at Lucent.
He simply returned a smile before moving away from Fluttershy to catch up with the rest of the team.
Fluttershy floated over to the Manticore, giving it a soft pet with her hoof.
"Kindness...." She said to herself.
Lucent cleared his throat as quietly as he could.
Fluttershy looked up to find him waiting for her. Together, the two rendezvoused with the group.
~
The trees of the forest began growing thicker, blocking the light of the moon and stars. What little light there was caused the trees to cast strange and frightening shadows on the ground, and each other.
"This is really creepy..." Twilight said.
"Don't ah know it..." Applejack replied.
Pinkie let out a sharp gasp causing all the ponies to jump a bit.
"Pinkie! Don't do that!" Twilight shouted, her legs were wobbling uncontrollably.
"Girls! Don't you remember this place!?" Pinkie said, excitedly bouncing around.
Lucent looked around, wondering how anypony could remember this place, it looked just like the rest of the forest.
"This is where we..." Pinkie took a deep breath in.
"Uh-oh." Rainbow placed a hoof over her face.
"Giggled at the ghostly! Guffawed at the grossly! Cracked up at the creepy! Whooped it up with the weepy! Chortled at the kooky! And snortled at the spooky!" Pinkie sang.
Lucent found himself smiling and nodding his head to the tune. His smile eventually turned into laughter at Pinkie Pie's shenanigans.
The rest of the team looked to Lucent, then each other, and also joined in the laughter. As they laughed, the darkness seemed to disappear all together.
"Thanks, Pinkie." Lucent said as the group started to settle down.
"For what?" The pink pony asked, her head cocking to the side.
"I think we all needed a good laugh." Lucent began walking ahead, still giggling to himself a little.
Pinkie turned to the trees, remembering all of her friends lying together on the ground, laughing together.
"Laughter..." She said with a smile.
"Pinkie?" Lucent was looking at her.
"Coming!" Pinkie said as she began her signature hop to the team.
~
"Are we there yet...?" Rainbow Dash asked in an annoyed voice.
"Almost, Rainbow." Twilight spoke up.
The team came upon a large river that cut through their path.
Rarity walked to the front of the group and looked into the water. It was very calm and clear.
"Something wrong, Rarity?" Lucent asked.
"Oh no, not at all my good sir." She said, raising her head. "Just reminiscing is all."
"Memories are a great place to find strength." Lucent said with a smile. He began to trot across a shallow part of the river to the other side.
Rarity's thoughts went back to the purple sea serpent that her and her friends encountered on their first voyage to the forest. She remembered cutting her tail off and using her magic to repair the serpents beloved mustache.
When she came back to the present, she noticed she was in the air, and being brought to the other side by magic.
"Forgive me, I simply thought you wouldn't want to get your coat wet." Lucent said as he brought her to the ground.
"Oh, thank you very much, Lucent. How generous of you." She said, bowing her head to the alicorn in thanks.
"It's no problem." He said and began to walk on.
Rarity looked further down the river where she thought she saw a purple body rise out of the water only to submerge itself again.
"Very generous indeed..." She said quietly to herself. She then began to catch up with the others.
~
After what seemed like hours of walking, the group had found their goal. The castle that Lucent came from rested across a great gorge ahead of them.
"Strange." Lucent said, kneeling down to observe a broken rope bridge.
"What is it, Lucent?" Celestia asked.
"This bridge wasn't out when I awoke."
Rainbow dash dove over the cliff and took one end of the rope bridge in her mouth. She began flying over to the other side to repair it, when she noticed the load became significantly lighter. She glanced over to see Lucent using his magic to help levitate the bridge.
The two landed on the other side of the bridge and retied it to the posts.
Rainbow looked at the bridge, then turned around to look at the ground where a patch of grass was burnt away and had never recovered. That was where the 'Shadowbolts' landed when they attempted to recruit Rainbow Dash and make her forget about her friends.
"Rainbow Dash?" Lucent asked.
"Huh?"
"We should get back to our friends. We wouldn't want them thinking we left them." He said with a light laugh.
"No way would I ever do that. I'm too loyal..." Rainbow Dash said to herself with a smile. She then began to fly back across with Lucent.
~
The group now stood outside the doors of the dark and abandoned castle.
Lucent was in front, eyeing the door with a very stern and serious look. What felt like fear was gripping at his heart, hindering him from moving forward.
He felt a sudden warmth against him. He looked to see Celestia nuzzling his side.
She flashed him a warm smile, and he responded with one as well.
"I don't know if we can beat him, I don't even know if he will be here." Lucent said.
"That doesn't matter, you have your friends here with you. Remember?"
Lucent nodded, "Yeah. How could I forget?" He asked himself as he turned to look over the group they had assembled.
Applejack, strong and honest. Flutterhy, calm and kind. Pinkie Pie, energetic and funny. Rarity, beautiful and generous. Rainbow Dash, fast and loyal. Twilight Sparkle, smart and magical. Luna, ruler of night. Celestia, ruler of the day. And himself, ruler of light and good.
A brave smile overtook his face as he assured himself that they would all be safe, he swore it.
He began climbing the steps to the doors. It was only roughly a day ago that he had awoken with no memory, scared to death of this place. Now he was approaching it willingly without an ounce of fear in him.
"Come out, Acerbus. I'm ready to settle this score." Lucent said to himself as his magic opened the large doors.
Chapter 7: Confront the Darkness
Lucent's magic opened the door to the abandoned caslte he built long ago. It was here that he expected to find his darker half looking for him. When he possessed Luna, he knew to come here to break the seal that held Lucent captive so that he himself may be free again as well. Therefore Lucent realized that his darker half must of known he'd be here.
Lucent was the first to enter the dark room. Before he could even fully enter the room, dark tendrils wrapped around him and took hold of the unicorn.
"Oh there you are brother. You had me worried to DEATH!" The dark alicorn squeezed Lucent tighter with a wild and evil smile carving itself across its face. Lucent let out a loud yell of pain.
"Lucent!" Celestia called as she entered the room. She instantly used her magic to cut the tendrils and free Lucent. "Are you OK?" She asked him.
"Yeah, I'm fine." He said between breaths. He struggled to get back to his feet.
"Brother, I can't believe this! You went and made some friends without me. Oh I am so very disappointed brother." The alicorn let out a maniacal laughter.
Twilight and her friends were the next to enter, along with Luna.
"Oh you are just FULL of surprises!" The alicorn said between laughs.
Lucent was standing steadily now after shaking off the death grip Acerbus put on him.
"Accerbus, this is between you and me." Lucent said, stepping forward.
Acerbus only laughed, "Oh, are you the one calling the shots now?"
"No, it's between us." Celestia said, stepping forward with Lucent.
"I created you, albeit without knowing I did. Therefore you are my responsibility."
"I helped as well. So this is also between us." Luna said, also stepping forward.
"As long as you threaten Equestria, we will be there to stop you as well. If you have a quarrel with Ponyville, then you have a quarrel with us." Twilight and her friends also stepped forward, creating a grand line that stood against Acerbus.
Acerbus began snickering and then burst back out into full laughter, "As if I am to be impressed?"
"If that doesn't impress you then try this!" Lucent shouted, rearing his head back. His horn began to glow with a bright light.
"Hm?" Acerbus tilted his head to the side.
Lucent pointed his horn straight to Acerbus and shot a grand ray of light at him.
Acerbus' horn began to emit a dark aura, "Instead of investing time into friends and helping people, perhaps you should of been investing time into controlling your magic!" Acerbus shouted. With minimal effort, Acerbus deflected the beam, sending it into the sky.
Lucent was breathing heavily, he had put a lot of himself into that attack.
"Lucent, allow us to try." Celestia said. Her and Luna moved forward in front of Lucent.
"Celestia, and Luna too? My where have the years gone? You two look so much older now." A smile began to appear on Acerbus' face.
"Silence, this is the end for you. I've never took such actions against any pony, but you are to be judged for your several murders all those years ago!" Celestia began to glow with an intense light.
"Hm? OH! Those, right. I had almost forgotten about them." Acerbus snickered again.
Celestia grew angry as Acerbus dismissed his killings as if they were nothing. A great heat began to surge from her body.
Acerbus' eyes widened and a slight "Ooh!" was heard from him.
Her mighty wings expanded and then pushed down with great might. The force propelled her off the ground in the direction of Acerbus. Celestia seemed to turn into a glowing fireball heading straight towards him.
Acerbus made a tutting noise before beginning to glow himself. The aura around him expanded and met with Celestia's stopping her in her tracks. Sparks and lightning shot through the air. Snaps and crackles filled any gaps of silence that were left in the room.
Celestia was grunting, having a hard time against the dark powers that Acerbus was unleashing.
"Oh come now. This is all the ruler of Equestria has to offer? You may be the god of the sun, but even the sun sets!" With that, Acerbus let out a powerful blast that knocked Celestia away. Luna quickly galloped to her sisters side and assured she was alright.
Twilight sparkle and her friends then took point. "We are the Elements of Harmony," Twilight spoke with great bravery, "Which, as you may know, is the most powerful magic known to Ponykind!"
Acerbus looked at the six with a bored expression.
A grand tiara appeared on Twilight's head and began to glow with great intensity. Gold and diamond necklaces began to adorn the neck of the other elements, all bearing a very close resemblance to their respective cutie marks. Together, the six ponies light glowed together making a bright beacon in the night.
Acerbus still had a bored look, but rose from a sitting position to stand.
The light grew so intense that the ponies were no longer seen, it was ll just one big ball of light. Then , a rainbow shot out of it, into the air. The beam then redirected itself and began heading straight for Arcebus.
"You do realize that even though you are the Elements of Harmony, I was born from them, right? That makes me their opposite. Foals." Acerbus began glowing again. He then shot a beam out of his horn that connected with the rainbow one.
The beams struggled against each other, seemingly matched. Acerbus smiled, with a might roar his beam over took the other beam and pushed it back. Acerbus' black beam was heading straight for Twilight and her friends.
Lucent got up and began channeling his magic again, drawing from all he could, trying to use every ounce of magic he had to save the ponies.
With a grand flash, Lucent teleported in front of the black beam with a golden forcefield surrounding him. The beam hit the shield and then divided, shooting left and right. After the beam was fully countered, Luncent's shield drop, as well as well as Lucent himself. He collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily.
"Lucent..." Twilight said, laying down to get closer to the alicorn.
Celestia also approached, "He's bested all of us." She said with a sorrowful look.
"Finally, I can be rid of you Lucent. I will destroy you and absorb that precious soul of yours!" Acerbus said with a maniacal laughter, dark energy began to swirl all around him.
Lucent could only brace himself for what felt like the end. He closed his eyes tight, and readied himself.
"So this is how it ends then. What we thought to be our most capable creation, destroyed in an instant." The voice spoke to Lucent, almost as if it was inside of his head.
Lucent opened his eyes, he was no longer in the abandoned castle, and Acerbus was no where to be found!
Instead he was high above the world, floating far above the clouds. He was looking down on Equestria and could see all of its beauty.
"Take a good look at it. It's one of a kind." The voice said again.
"Huh, who's there?" Lucent asked as he looked around.
"I shouldn't of expected you to remember me. It was before your time after all." The voice chuckled. A small flame appeared in front of Lucent and then grew brighter and larger. Lucent didn't feel any heat though. All at once the flame morphed into the shape of an alicorn. The alicorn had a wild red coat, and it's mane was a blazing fire.
"I am Ignis, god of fire." The voice had a very warm tone to it.
"Ignis...One of the alicorns who shaped Equestria."
"That's right Lucent, and I am not alone my son. Or should I say, Grand-son?"
Water began to pour from nowhere, creating a small waterfall. From it, another alicorn stepped forth. She had a blue coat, and her mane flowed like water.
"I am Aqua, the god of water."
A tree sprouted from the air before growing to great heights. From the thick foliage above, a brown alicorn with leaves for a mane fell.
"I am Terra, the god of earth."
Finally a tornado approached the group, and then began to slowly stop turning. When it was done, another alicorn had joined them; he she had a coat of green and a grey mane that whipped about like the wind.
"And I am Ventus, the god of wind."
"You are the four alicorns of old who shaped Equestria...What are you doing here? Wherever here is... I thought you ascended to the heavens to watch over Equestria?" Lucent asked.
Ventus chuckled, "Where do you think you are, young one?" Her voice was carried on the wind around them.
Lucent's face turned sorrowful, "Then...Then I failed. This is heaven then. I don't deserve to be here." His eyes began to water up.
"Now now, don't cry. You haven't failed Lucent, yet anyways. We only borrowed you to remind you who you were. But you will fail if you do not listen to us!" Aqua spoke with a very nice flow to her voice, as if it poured perfectly from her mouth.
"What?" Lucent looked up to Aqua with a shocked look.
"Your friends are still in the castle, waiting for you. We had stopped the flow of time itself to speak with you though, God of Light." Terra's voice was strong and formidable.
"You...Stopped time, to speak with me?" Lucent still hadn't grasped what was going on.
"Lucent, even before you imprisoned yourself, you never came into full recognition of your god-hood, of your true power. Acerbus on the other hand did, and he put his entire being into mastering that power." Ventus said.
"Then how am I to defeat that? I didn't even want this power to begin with." Lucent began to tear up again.
"What did you want then, Lucent?" Ignis asked.
"All I wanted...Was to make friends, to help Ponykind."
"Exactly, and those friends you made, all those ponies you helped, that is where your power lies!" Ignis said.
Lucent's eyes opened wide in astonishment, "What do you mean!?"
"Lucent, although Acerbus' magic rivals even ours, you have something much stronger. Friendship. And friendship, my dear Lucent, IS Magic!" Aqua spoke triumphantly.
"Friendship is...Magic?" Lucent ran the thought through his head over and over.
"You are the God of Light Lucent. Even though we created you, it is to you that we answer, as your light is the greatest power in all of Equestria. That bright light of yours reaches out to every heart in this world! You tie all of Ponykind together!" Terra approached Lucent, he could feel the energy Terra gave off.
"He's right, Lucent. When one is afraid, one turns to their friends!" Aqua also approached as Lucent felt more energy.
"And with many friends come great power!" Ventus stepped forward as well, adding her energy to the mix.
"And with that great power, your light will shine further then any hand of darkness." Ignis added his own power to Lucent.
"Go now Lucent, God of Light, embrace your true power and take your rightful throne! Defeat your shadows and shine so brightly that no darkness can escape you!" The four Alicorns spoke all at once.
The four disappeared into flashes of light and shot up into the sky above. With a twinkle of light, they were gone. Lucent then had a feeling of falling. He turned to see he was rapidly approaching the ground, and below him was the castle.
Lucent attempted to flap his wings, to slow his descent but it didn't work.
As he got closer, he noticed that no one was moving, and he even saw himself still laying down there.
He was heading directly for his own body. Once he realized this, he abandoned his fear.
"Alright then, here I go!" Lucent shouted. He turned into a great streak of light and he cut through the darkness, making a bee-line for his body.
The light struck his body as it and his soul became one again.
Time began to flow again, and everyone looked down to see Lucent glowing brighter then ever. The group shielded their eyes from Lucent as his light threatened to blind them.
"Okay Arcebus, I'm ready for you now." Lucent said in a very calm and superior voice. It was a voice fit for the king that he was.
"Lucent..." Celestia was in awe at his raw power.
"Celestia, I want you and the other ponies to stand back. This is where this battle begins."
Acerbus' laughter became louder, and grew more maniacal, "Oh, is it!? Then I'll be happy to oblige you in your death-wish! You will perish this day, Lucent!"
Acerbus' aura grew larger, threatening to swallow the whole area. The others seemed to be weakened by it, as if it were hurting them.
"That's ENOUGH!" Lucent shouted, his light glowed brighter and dispelled the black aura around them all.
"Well, well, well...This IS where the fun begins." Lucent said with a devilish grin.
Chapter 9: A Duel With Destiny
Lucent's wings opened fully and pushed down hard, sending him high into the air, and Acerbus followed.
Acerbus' figure stood out against the backdrop which was the moon, "Let's end this, brother!"
"Don't CALL ME THAT!" Lucent yelled as he rocketed towards his brother.
Acerbus responded by propelling himself towards Lucent. The two collided and lightning shot in all directions. There was a loud clash followed by what sounded like thunder. The two were pressed against each other at the head, both staring into the others eyes.
The two backed up from each other and collided again. They would then back up, and collide again. Their speed began to get faster and faster with each collision. Eventually it sounded like one constant explosion, and the sky was adorned with lightning that shot in all directions.
Lucent was the first to break the monotony; instead of going for another head-on collision, Lucent instead fired a beam of light towards Acerbus.
"Foal!" Acerbus yelled as he flew to the side to avoid the beam.
Lucent crashed into Acerbus' side and began to plummet for the ground, Lucent had used the beam as a decoy.
Acerbus eventually rolled out of the death plummet and regained his balance, "It wall take a bit more than that, Lucent!" Acerbus laughed Lucent's attack off. "This is how it's done!" Acerbus' mane turned into dark tendrils and shot towards Lucent. They wrapped around him and began to squeeze the life out of him.
"Not today!" Lucent cried, his light began to shine as it sliced through the darkness that held him.
Acerbus slammed into Lucent's stomach and threw him high into the air, "I have you now!" Accerbus yelled as his horn emitted a dark aura. He focused it into a beam of darkness and blasted it upwards towards Lucent.
Lucent felt frozen after the sneak attack, his body wouldn't respond to his requests. "Move!" He yelled to himself in his head, "MOVE!" The beam got closer and closer. Eventually one of his wings decided to react and gave one hard flap. The flap threw Lucent into a spin out of the way of the beam.
"What!?" Called Acerbus.
Lucent righted himself and began coming back to his senses.
"Answer me, Lucent! What is this new power of yours!?" Acerbus yelled at his brother.
"Friendship!" Was all Lucent yelled before slamming into Acerbus at high speed. The two began plummeting to the ground once more, this time faster.
Acerbus struggled to free himself, but Lucent had his hooves around Acerbus' torso. The two were mere feet from the ground. It was then that Acerbus began channeling his magic, and with a single flash he had teleported away. Lucent slammed into the ground at full force and rolled a few feet before coming to a stop against a tree.
Acerbus let out a hefty laugh from above, "As if THAT would work twice!"
Lucent struggled to stand up, he was a little wobbly. 'Nothing is working! What do I do?' Lucent asked himself.
Lucent took back to the skies. A small stream of blood was coming from his mouth, and he had a few bruises on him from his fall. Lucent was breathing a bit heavily.
"What's wrong Lucent? You're looking a bit rough!" Acerbus called before breaking into another maniacal laughter.
Lucent jerked at the remark. It was true, he was a bit beat up from all the collisions. Yet, Acerbus didn't have a scratch on him. What was he doing wrong?
'Lucent, don't just attack with your magic, attack with your heart!' The voice of Ignis burned in his memory, refreshing his mind.
"Ignis...?" Lucent didn't have much time to think about the voice in his head as he had to dodge the attack that Accerbus set on him with.
Lucent had flown to the side just in time to avoid Acerbus' dive towards him. Acerbus slowed his descent and then turned to see Lucent.
"Attack...With my HEART!" Lucent said, allowing his feelings to fuel himself with renewed energy.
"What!?" Acerbus was astounded at the new well of energy Lucent had found. "No matter, I will stop that power!" Acerbus yelled as he flew at Lucent.
The two clashed their front hooves together. Lightning and sparks exploded from the two as a loud rumble was heard across all of Equestria.
"You fight a losing battle!" Acerbus pushed harder against Lucent.
"As long as I have my friends, I can't lose!" Lucent yelled back, forcing Acerbus back as well.
The two went about their power struggle for some time before Acerbus backed off, he was now breathing heavily for the first time since the fight begun.
"If that's how you want it..." Acerbus said, instead of the calm look the alicorn always had he now had a serious and angry look. His horn began to emit the dark aura again, although this time it seemed to be a very powerful spell he was about to cast.
Lucent braced himself for the attack as he projected a shield of light in front of him.
Acerbus merely smirked.
In a flash Acerbus was gone.
Lucent looked around frantically, "Where did he go?" He asked himself. "Behind me!" Lucen turned quickly to find Acerbus behind him, he wasn't aiming the attack at Lucent though. Lucent followed Acerbus' vision, he was aiming at his friends.
"I won't let you!" Lucent cried. His wings beat as hard as they could, propelling him faster then ever. The air began to bend around him. A bright light shone from him and bent into a cone behind him. Then a huge explosion was heard as Lucent broke the sound barrier. He flew as quick as he could towards Acerbus with a grand trail of light streaking across the sky behind him.
Lucent slammed into Acerbus' back, but he was too late. Acerbus had already fired the blast at the castle, attempting to destroy Lucent's friends.
The blast hit its target. A giant explosion was seen coming out of the castle, blowing its walls away. All Lucent could see was smoke.
Lucent's eyes began to tear up. His eyes shut tight as he remembered all the ponies who had helped him get this far. Celestia and Luna, the ponies who raised him and cared for him, the ones who gave him life and purpose. Twilight, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Applejack; The ponies who took him in after he awoke, nursed him to health, did everything they could to help him, and even led him to this place, and they didn't even know who he was. He had led them all to their own grave.
"I won't...FORGIVE YOU!" Lucent called, his entire body began to glow brightly. His black mane turned white, as well as his eyes. There were no longer and discernible features about the alicorn, he was simply a ball of light in the shape of an alicorn.
Lucent shot across the sky with blinding speed. He smacked into Acerbus and blew him back. The light then shot towards Acerbus faster then it had knocked him back. Lucent circled behind Acerbus and hit him hard in the opposite direction. Lucent flew into the air this time, he then came down on Acerbus, driving the dark alicorn straight into the ground.
There was a large explosion of dust as the two slammed into the ground. Lucent was standing on Acerbus' side, with on hoof raised in the air. With that hoof he constantly stomped on the alicorns head, releasing all of his anger. "Take this! And this! And this!" Lucent called with each strike.
It wasn't until a warm hoof touched his shoulder that he stopped stomping on the now limp alicorn. "Lucent, does this make you any better then him?" Celstia asked.
"Princes...Celestia...?" Lucent's light began to fade as his features returned. His mane went back to its black color, and his eyes faded back into existence. "But I thought..."
"You should of trusted me better." Celestia said with a smile. "I saw the attack coming and prepared a shield to defend myself and our friends, none of them are harmed." The rest of the group emerged from the smoke around them and came into view.
"Y-You ponies..." Lucent felt weak, his fit of anger had taken a lot out of him. He looked back down to Acerbus. The black alicorns eyes had rolled into the back of its head, and its jaw was hanging open. Blood came from its mouth, eyes, and several cuts on his face and body.
Lucent sighed and backed away from the body, "I-I didn't mean...I..." Lucent couldn't speak, his victory didn't feel right.
"You did what you had to, Lucent. Was there really any other way?" Celestia asked.
"I...I guess not."
As the team turned from the body and began to leave, Acerbus shifted a bit.
The group gasped and turned around with a shock.
Little by little the alicorns face was starting to repair itself and heal. The blood stopped flowing, and the dents and cuts began to close and fix themselves. "What kind of brother would I be... If I were that easy to best...?" Acerbus said between breaths. He then looked directly at Lucent with a maniacal stare, he was hellbent on killing Lucent.
Lucent silently began to walk towards Acerbus, slowly.
"Lucent, what are you-" Celestia tried to call out to the alicorn.
"Stay out of this, please Celestia." Lucent said without turning. "This is my battle, it's always been my battle. Light and dark, good and evil, harmony and discord. These things are always connected to each other, just as I am connected to this alicorn before me." Lucent still walked forward.
"Fight me...FIGHT ME!" Acerbus yelled at Lucent.
Lucent drew closer to the alicorn, not saying a word. He merely stared into Acerbus' eyes.
"FIGHT-" Acerbus stopped and his eyes opened wide.
Lucent leaned against Acerbus and nuzzled his brother.
"I know that neither of us have the strength in us to fight..." Acerbus said almost in a whisper.
"What is he..." Celestia asked.
Lucent began to glow a bright light once more as he brought out his reserves of magic, "Let's end this brother."
"The way it started."
"Lucent, no!" Celestia called. She began to gallop towards the two.
"Together." The light and dark alicorns spoke in time.
The light surrounded both of them.
Lucent turned and looked to Celestia, who stopped in her tracks.
"Celestia, thank you for being a great teacher. It made me happy to be your pupil. It made me even happier to be your friend." Lucent looked past Celestia to Twilight Sparkle.
"I'll be watching over you. You're her pupil now so don't let me down kid." He said with a wink.
"Lucent..." Twilight said as a tear began to form in her eye.
Lucent turned back to Celestia, "I'll see you...When you get there..." Lucent closed his eyes.
"Lucent, please don't go!" Celestia let her tears flow freely like streams down her face, "Don't leave me again!"
"I'm not leaving!" Lucent spoke up.
Celestia silenced herself, and her tears stopped for a second.
"I'm just going on ahead is all, I'll be waiting." Lucent said as he turned away.
Celestia's tears began to flow stronger then ever as she watched Lucent walk into the light. He slowly faded from view and merged with the light completely. The light then shot into the skies, and embedded itself into the sky.
The shinning point in the sky then exploded into a grand blast.
"LUCENT!" Celestia yelled at the top of her lungs.
The explosion sent bits of light in all directions across the sky.
Celestia had her head on the ground, crying loudly for her lost pupil. A hoof tapped her shoulder, "Sister, look!" Luna said.
Celestia raised her head to see the shinning bits from the explosion forming and dancing, creating shapes in the sky.
"It's creating a new consolation!" Twilight said in an astonished voice.
All the ponies looked up in awe at the night sky, as streams of light danced across the sky, presenting the most beautiful spectacle any of them had seen. They finally settled into a picture in the sky. It appeared to look like half of Lucent's mark; the sun, and half of Acerbus' mark; the moon. It was as if both marks were cut in half and put together at the middle.
'Anytime you need me, I'll be here. Watching over you. Just look up to the night sky, and know I'll be looking back.' Lucent's thoughts became Celestia's own thoughts as he communicated with her.
The mark shined a bit brighter then any star for a split second, and only Celestia noticed it.
"One day, I will join you. And I'll tell you all the wonderful stories of Equestria, and I will tell you of all the ponies you so dearly loved Lucent. One day..." Celestia spoke to the heavens above.
Time passed in Equestria, and as time passes wounds heal. To Ponyville, it was just another passing storm, but to Celestia and the others, it was a reminder that they had thwarted the greatest threat to ponykind.
~
"It was raining on that day...Do you remember, Lucent?" Celestia spoke to the night sky. She was laying on a cushion on her balcony, with her sister Luna curled up against her in a deep slumber. Luna had raised the moon and then gone to bed early, the young alicorn still had not learned to focus her powers correctly and had pushed herself over her own limits.
A star in the night sky blinked, as if responding to Celestia.
She smiled at the star, knowing it was Lucent calling out to her from the heavens above. She knew Lucent didn't perish that day, as it is impossible for an Alicorn to die. An alicorn always has a choice of when he or she wishes to join the others in the heavens above.
"I apologize Lucent, as I still have much work to do her," She said as she looked down to her young sister.
The rain began to lighten up.
~
"Another storm..." Twilight said as she looked out her window.
It had only been a few months since Lucent left, but it seemed like it had been years without the alicorn. Twilight shook the thoughts of the alicorn away, "I only knew him for two days, yet..." Twilight said as she brought a hoof to her chest.
"He was Celestia's first pupil, I could of learned so much from him. He was an alicorn of old who knew the first of ponykind well. He was like a walking history book." Twilight was forcing the thoughts into her head.
"And he was so...Handsome." Tears began to form in her eyes.
The door to the library opened, and Twilight worked quickly to wipe the tears from her eyes.
"Just one moment." Twilight descended her stairs, wondering who her late night visitor could be.
When she had fully descended the stair, she saw Princess Celestia standing inside of the library.
~
"I spoke to him again, Twilight." Celestia said as she took a sip of tea. Twilight had used a recipe that Rarity had taught her.
"What did he say?" Twilight asked.
"Nothing really, it's hard for him to talk. I do most of the talking and he merely answers. It's hard for an alicorn to reach out from the sky. Celestia looked out of her window and out to the stars.
"Oh, I see..." Twilight said with a bit of a disappointed look.
Celestia smiled, "Would you like to speak to him?"
Twilight's face let up, "Can I?"
"Come." Celestia called as she walked outside.
The rain was lighter then before, but it was still coming. Celestia and Twilight stayed under the grand branches of the tree, to keep from getting soaked.
"Close your eyes, focus your thoughts to the heavens." Celestia said, also closing her eyes.
Twilight could feel Celestia's magic around her, and leading up to the sky. Twilight tried to follow the trail up, tying herself to Celestia's magic.
Twilight looked down and could see her own body, and Celestia's. But when she looked up, she saw herself holding onto Celestia as the two flew higher and higher. They reached high above the world of Equestria, and were among the stars.
"Look there." Celestia didn't speak, but the thought entered Twilight's head in her Celestia's voice.
Twilight looked over and saw a set of stars swirling.
"Celestia, is that you again? I can see you much clearer now, and I see Twilight is with you as well."
That voice was Lucent's, Twilight was sure of it.
"Yes, Twilight is here. You're already talking a lot more then usual." Celestia said wit ha chuckle.
"Your magic is much greater this night, it's a much easier task to reach out to you. You two are like...A light in the dark." Lucent said, he laughed as he realized the irony. "That pupil of yours really is something, Celestia."
"Thank you very much Lucent. Twilight? Why don't you speak? Simply think and we shall hear it." Celestia looked to Twilight.
"H-Hello, Lucent." Twilight tried the technique Celestia explained.
"There you go." He said with a smile. "I can feel a lot of magic coming from you Twilight. You're really something special." Lucent could feel her warm aura surrounding them. "I think it was you who I found so easily."
Twilight did the equivalent of blushing in whatever form it was that she was in.
Lucent merely laughed at the unicorn's display.
"Thank you, very much Lucent." Twilight said.
"You're very welcome. Is there any special occasion for which you have visited me twice, Celestia?" Lucent asked.
Celestia shook her head, "Not at all. Twilight here simply wanted to talk to you."
"I mean, if that is alright with you." Twilight said.
Lucent nodded, "That is fine, Twilight."
The three talked for what seemed like hours.
"I'm sorry Twilight but my energy wears thin, and I'm afraid I must rest to regain my magic."
Twilight's look of sorrow returned to her face, "Oh, I see. I apologize for keeping you so long."
Lucent laughed, "One hour here is but a minute on Equestria, Twilight."
"Oh." Twilight said.
Lucent approached Twilight, "You know the spell now, you followed it well. You may contact me anytime you wish, Twilight." With that, Lucent nuzzled against the unicorn in an attempt to cheer her up. With that though, Lucent began to fade away and once again become a set of stars. "Farewell, Celestis. Goodbye, Twilight. I hope to see you two again very soon." And with that, Lucent was gone.
Celestia and Twilight began to fall back to their bodies at a very rapid speed.
The two regained consciousness in their bodies.
They looked up to the sky as the rain began to fade. The clouds parted directly above Celestia and Twilight, and a single star shone a little brighter. The clouds separated farther, and the rain above Ponyville began to vanish slowly.
Twilight was ready to study harder then ever. She would learn all she could, and train her magic all she could. She would surpass Lucent as Celestia's student, and she would impress him.
Celestia saw the determination in her pupil's eyes. She laughed lightly to herself as her gaze rose back to the heavens.
"She is a keeper, Lucent. She'll get there before me, so I hope to hear many stories from you as well, child." Celestia giggled once more as Twilight gave her a confused look.
