Northern Lights

“Now, why did you want me to drop you off at the mall again, Tyler?” My mom asked as we pulled up into the parking lot of the local shopping mall.

“Just wanted to look around, is all.” I replied. Her curiosity over the situation was completely understandable, seeing as how I never go to the mall and this being the last day of school. Plus, I’m a serious stickler when it comes to routines and schedules. On any normal day I’d be sitting at home, engrossing myself in the simultaneous splendor and torment that is the online gaming community.

Though really, this all boils down to poor planning on my part. I mean, I love the woman, and all, but even I should have remembered how observant she is. C’mon, last day of school and I’d just written a massive two hour long math exam, which happened to be my weakest subject. How didn’t I see this coming? I actually find that fact a little funny, since my best subject is science and you really need a good understanding of math to be able to do a lot of the advanced sciences. But I guess that’s just the different ways our brains develop.

“Alright, you have ten minutes to look,” my mom said, turning the car off. “But make it a quick in and out, the train will be leaving in half an hour."

This day really was a big one for me. See, it not only marked the end of this year of high school, it marked the end of my entire high school career. Yep, I had passed grade twelve, with an average in the high eighties and low nineties. As such, my family decided to drive all the way up to Ottawa to visit my mom’s side of the family for a large celebration, as well as my grandmothers birthday, since we’d be missing it to celebrate with my dad’s side. And as if that wasn’t good enough, my parents had even gotten me a seat on a train so I could arrive a day earlier than them and my two sisters - of which I was relieved.

Actually, now that I thought about it, it’s actually kind of funny that my mom didn’t realize the true motivation for this detour. See, while our family had all pitched in to get my grandmother a gift, I felt that she deserved a little bit more. So I had spent the last month of school saving up all the money I could, and by now I had a few hundred dollars, and I had a nice little idea of what to get.

Quickly I got out of the car and made my way towards the mall. I opened the door, and the moment I took a step inside I felt myself being blast by what felt like a thousand sounds coming from all directions. I heard the footsteps people were making, I heard their muffled voices, and their fingers clacking against cell phones as they texted. Needless to say it didn’t take long for my heartbeat to quicken into my throat, and I absently ran my fingers through my messy brown hair.

Ever since I can recall I have had problems in crowded locations. All the noise and people moving, talking, giving off heat... It had a way of making me go on edge. How other people were able to stomach it was beyond me. But I was a guy on a mission to get a secret gift, and it’d take more than some crowded hallways to get the best of me. The things we do for the ones we love.

I walked onward through the noise, keeping myself sane by focusing on the ground in front of me and trying my best to filter out some of the sounds. It was a handy trick I had learned through the years. To put it simply the process is that I go through all the sounds around me and then choose some of them to block. It’s not a 100 percent elimination, but it does help to reduce the audio input, and a such my stress levels. This time I was marginally successful, reducing noise intake by at least twenty percent - specifically on people’s conversations. Not a significant drop, but a drop nonetheless. And, as luck would have it, I looked up to find myself at my destination; a small jewelry store located in an inconspicuous corner of the mall. And I must have been born under the lucky star or something, because the place didn’t seem to have many customers. For a brief second I felt bad for the people in the crowded retail stores, but those thoughts were brushed aside as I remembered the reason for this journey.

Before going in, I decided to just stand there for a second and allow my stress levels to recede. Once I’d felt it was gone - at least partially - I walked along the display cases. Inside of each were necklaces and earrings of silver and gold of every shape and size. Further along they became more intricate in their designs, and gemstones ranging from diamonds to onyx were fitted into them. Not that my grandmother would wear any of these, she hadn’t for years. But she did have a certain affinity towards jewelry. Something about the craftsmanship always captivated her. Sadly the prices on these pieces ranged anywhere from 600 to 1000 dollars.

Of course, there was always the fake jewelry, but I wouldn’t dare touch the stuff. Call me old fashioned, but I never liked the idea of using glass and plastic to replicate truborn metal and gemstone jewelry. It didn’t require nearly as much time, effort, and what you got in the end was just another cheap, dime a dozen knick knack. What makes jewelry so valuable is that each piece is authentic. Each piece is a work of art that is unique and tells its own story. If I’m spending the money on this gift, it’s going to be genuine.

“Excuse me,” A voice asked abruptly. I looked up from my browsing and saw a young, mid twenties looking woman staring at me from behind the counter. “Can I help you with something?”

“Maybe,” I replied. “I’m looking for something nice for my grandmother’s upcoming birthday.”

“Oh, well that’s sweet of you,” she replied with a daww tone of voice. You know, the one girls use when they see something cute. “What is she interested in?”

I shrugged. “Silver, especially if it’s got lots of design work. Do you have anything that can fall below 500 dollars?”

“Sure, but what are you thinking of getting?” she asked. “Necklace, bracelet, earring, pendant?”

“Necklace.” I replied. If I remembered correctly she had the other things in plenty.

The women nodded and gestured to several display cases in front of her. “These are all jewelry that’s been traded into us. Perhaps one of them will interest you?”

I gave her a quick nod of thanks and moved over to the cases. The necklaces inside were indeed beautiful, particularly this one with ten rubies encrusted into its sides. My grandmother used to have red hair in her youth, so it would have worked well with her. But at the price they were selling it for I’d have been better off buying equal amounts of fake jewelry. Ugh, even the thought of it makes me feel cheap.

Things didn’t seem to improve past these pieces, sadly, as everything else was either just too expensive or I was finding some tiny imperfection in the metal. What can I say, I’m, a perfectionist when it comes to gifts.

But then I saw it. Sitting in the back of the case was a plain silver necklace, one of those ones with the large collars that go around your neck. Not a choker, but thicker than most other necklaces. It was covered in a beautiful and perfectly cut scale shaped pattern, and on its front was a serpent with four wings spread out in opposite directions. This gave it an uncanny resemblance of a six pointed star.

Hmm, snakes aren’t her favorite animal, but still... I looked at the price tag. Yes, it was affordable.

“I think I’ll take this one.” I said, pointing to the serpent.

The receptionist pulled some keys from her pocket and unlocked the case. “Excellent choice, I’m sure she’s going to love it.”

I nodded in agreement and passed her the money, my eyes still looking at the necklace, even as she removed it for packaging. The more I did, the more I came to realize just how magnificent the crafting was. The scales alone seemed like they’d taken days to make. I have to beat myself to keep consistent with a school project, or even a personal one. So to imagine somebody slaving at this task where just one mistake would lead to destruction was mind boggling. He, or she, deserves a frigging award for this.

“Just need you to sign here,” the women said, handing me a pen and receipt. I quickly signed my name and she handed me a bag. “I hope your grandmother likes this.”

“Thanks.” I said before walking back the way I’d came.

I felt really good at that moment. You know that feeling of anticipation you get when planning a big surprise and you just can’t wait for the person to see it? Well, I was getting that all through my body. So much so that, I wasn’t even bothered by the mall and its noise. Instead, I found myself humming a little tune - Owl City, I believe - before I returned to the car. My mom looked up from the magazine she’d been reading in my absence and turned to me as I sat down.

“You’re back,” she said, though perhaps a little more surprised than she meant. I decided to make use of this window of opportunity.

“Does this mean I win a prize?” I asked, to which she shook her head. “Figures” I sighed, tucking the bag with the necklace in it under the seat. My mom looked at it for a moment with curiosity.

“So, what did you get?” she asked before I even had the chance to buckle in.

“It’s not for you to know,” I said with a smile that caused her to roll her eyes in annoyance.

“Why do you always do this?” she asked, a slight edge to her voice.

“Do what?” I asked, though in my head I knew where this was going.

“These guessing games. I know you think they’re funny but all they do is piss people off, like I am now.”

I inhaled slowly; once again I’d taken things a little too far and the joke - if there even was one - was gone and replaced by annoyance. “I’m sorry.”

My mom looked me in the eyes. “I know that you think it’s ok with family, and it is to an extent, but in the real world you’re going to get smacked.”

“So you think I’m just going to go up to random people and mess around with them?” I asked defensively. “I’m not that stupid. I do it with you guys because I know I can get away with it.” I finished with a silly smile, which got my mom smiling as well.

“Now, as for the item in question, I cannot say what it is because I want it to be a surprise for everybody. So please, bear with me, women!”

I said the last word in an overly exaggerated manner, which got a small chuckle from her. “Oh Tyler, what am I going to do with you?”

“Donations are always accepted.” I held my hand out a if I was accepting something. My mom rolled her eyes again and started up the car.

~~~

Princess Twilight channeled magic into her horn, illuminating the vast and haunting catacombs around her. Many of the pathways were broken or crumbling away to jagged pitfalls hundreds of hooves deep. In fact, some areas couldn’t be accessed by walking - you’d have to use magic or flight to reach them. The ceilings were a veil of wicked stalactites that looked as if they would fall at the slightest disturbance, and the walls were hollowed with dozens of tunnels leading to who knows where. And all around her, jetting from the walls and growing tall from the ground, were large, light blue and black crystals that seemed to make up more of the caverns then the actual rocks themselves.

The last time Twilight had been in these caverns was during the Changeling’s attack on her brother’s wedding. From what the queen had said - as well as her own speculations - there were sure to be many secrets hidden within them. With the attack on Canterlot, and her own studying of friendship in Ponyville, there hadn’t been an opportune moment for Twilight to investigate them. But with her new status of princess, this opportunity had arrived. Already in her mind the possibilities of finding how the Changelings broke in, a use for the mysterious crystals, and who knows how many other possibilities were forming in her mind. It was enough to emit a light giggle of anticipation from her.

“My word, would you look at the size of this place?” A voice spoke, bringing the Alicorn of Magic back from her thoughts. The voice happened to belong to a grey pegasys guard, though he wasn’t the typical royal guardsmen. From the catlike eyes and the leathery wings it was easy to tell he was a member of Princess Luna’s night guards.

“Yes, Shadow Sight, these caverns are impressive,” She replied, spreading her wings and flying towards a nearby ledge. Shadow Sight spread his own wings and followed after her.

“Princess, are you positive this is the best course of actions? If the Changelings found a way in, then who knows what else might be waiting for us.”

“I didn’t find anything dangerous down here before.” Twilight replied.

“That was close to a year ago, much can happen in that time.”

“That is true, but I’m confident we are more than capable of handling anything down here.”

The night guard opened his mouth to reply, but decided against it. Twilight smiled reassuringly before illuminating her horn further and continuing down the closest cavern. She appreciated his concern for her safety, but really, she wouldn’t have even come down here if she wasn’t sure she could handle herself.

As the delve deeper into the catacombs Twilight began to notice slight differences in the structure of the crystals. Compared to the ones that she had seen on her first visit, they were smaller and more fractured. Oddly, it was almost like they’d been broken off. Twilight inspected the crystals closer. Yes, definitely broken. But not recently.

“Princess, over here.” Shadow Sight called. Twilight looked up and spotted him further down the tunnel. However, when she looked beyond the Alicorn felt her jaw drop.

Directly beyond the night guard was a set of massive steel doors, thick with what looked like centuries of rust. A gaping hole lay in the center of them. All around it the metal was ripped and twisted into long, jagged ribbons that spread inwards. Twilight didn’t even need to inspect the door, even a child could tell that it had been blown open.

“Princess, perhaps we should go back and return with more guards?”

Twilight shook her head. “Whatever caused this left long ago.” She then spread her wings and flew through the door, her horn illuminating the pitch black interior. Though instantly she considered dimming it.

The room was vast, easily rivaling the main hall of Canterlot Castle in size. Crumpled on the ground were hundreds of large serpentine shaped skeletons, all sprawled in positions of death and agony. The bones themselves had been fossilized by time, giving them the typical black and rocky characteristics. Many of them weren’t even fully put together, with pieces of the spine scattered all around, along with ribs cracked and ground to powder. Their skulls were all agape in a simultaneous cry of panic. Twilight was standing in the middle of an ancient tomb.

She was at first appalled by this fact, but something about the skeletons caught her eye. At first glance they appeared as just massive snakes, yet the princess noticed two long vertebrae that projected from their sides. She peered closer and her eyes widened with amazement; wings! On some they ended in a single claw, much like a birds, and on others they had three long fingers, along the lines of a bat where wing membrane would most likely have connected them in life.

This is incredible, the violet Alicorn was having trouble confining her excitement to her head. A species of avian serpents, perfectly preserved after all this time. She heard a muffled gasp behind her and realized that Shadow Sight was inside as well. She turned to the night guard, who was looking around in both amazement and horror.

“... What do you think happened here?” He asked after a moment.

“I’m not sure,” Twilight said. She took a step toward the nearest skeleton and felt her hoof make contact with something hard. Looking down in curiosity she discovered a strange substance. It looked almost like amber, but was clear coloured instead of golden. Sweeping over the room, she spied more clusters of the substance, particularly around the skeletons. Curious, Twilight leaned in to inspect the piece in front of her. As she did, she noticed a slight tingling sensation beginning to surface in her horn. At first she tried to ignore it, but every step the princess took further into the metal tomb seemed intensified it.

Shadow Sight caught sight of her discomfort. “What is it, Princess?”

“I’m beginning to sense something down here.” she replied. “And whatever it is, there’s a magical property to it.”

~~~

I waited on the edge of the train station platform with my bags in hand. In total I had three, the one from the mall, a large leather bag that contained my cloths, and the bag which contained my computer and books - currently slung over my shoulder. Next to me was my mom, who was busy looking down both ends of the train tracks for the approaching iron horse.

“I see it,” she said, pointing down the tracks. Curiously I leaned over and stared in the direction of her finger. Sure enough a small speck of light appeared in the far horizon and was rapidly growing bigger. I smiled and took a step back as the train slowed down to a screeching halt before me. The doors along the sides all opened up to ascending staircases, from which the tired passengers exited with their luggage to be received by loved ones and be on their way. I always loved watching that; I’m not sure why, but there’s just something really warming about seeing friends and relatives greeting each other. Needless to say I found myself smiling.

“Now remember, when you get to your grandparents the first thing I want you to do is call me,” My mom said, snapping me away from the tranquil scenes around me. She then handed me the train ticket, which I took in between my middle and index finger. “You got it?”

“Yes, mom,” I replied, adding a lot of agony into the words just to mess with her. She rolled her eyes at me and let loose a soft chuckle. Eh, I’ll count that as a victory.

By now all the departures had, well, departed, and the people around me were beginning to board the train. I hoisted my bags up and followed after them, turning to my mom one last time before I left. “Bye mom.” I called at her.

“Bye, I’ll see you tomorrow.” she called back. “And don’t forget to help your grandparents around the house!”

What is it with mothers and constantly reminding us of things we already know to do? I thought to myself as I ascended the ladder into the train. Help your relatives, I do that. Help around the house, I do that. Help your sisters, I do that. Comb your hair, I purposely forget. Find a job, I’m working on it. Become more active in the community... Ok, maybe I do need some reminders here and there.

Once I was actually on the train I made my way down to the seating area, depositing my clothing bag in a storage section along the way. Using my ticket I found the way to my seat - number 12A, an aisle seat. Fine by me, I prefer aisle seats to the window anyway. It makes it easier to exit.

I settled into my seat and pulled out my laptop. While the train did have a wireless connection they didn’t allow you to use websites that involved downloading or video streaming. This meant things like Youtube and Blip were off limits. This sucked because I couldn’t listen to any music that I didn’t have downloaded - which was about everything. However, I still had access to all my games. So I decided to pass the time by playing Civilization V. It’s a pretty fun game where you found an empire and compete with other nations in order to end up the number one force in the game, be it by culture, science, peace or warfare. It even managed to get some educational facts in an age where the gaming industry is dominated by games like Call of Duty and Borderlands.

As I was halfway through getting the loading screen up I was approached by one of the attendants - a short women with a kind face. She held out her hand and I showed her my ticket, which she promptly checked off. After she left I heard the announcer speak to the passengers, first in english and then repeating in french.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we thank you for using VIA Rail Oshawa station. Our next stops will be at Cobourg, Belleville, Kingston, Brockville, and Fallowfield.

“Mesdames et Messieurs, nous remercions d'avoir utilisé VIA Rail Oshawa station. Nos prochains arrêts seront à Cobourg, Belleville, Kingston, Brockville, et Fallowfield.”

Fallowfield was my stop; it wasn’t more than a ten minute drive from where my grandparents lived. Unfortunately those stops were in order, so I had a ways away from finally reaching there. Oh well, at least my game was ready to go by this point. I leaned back in my chair and waited as the map finished generating and felt my foot push against something. Looking down I saw that it was the bag that contained the necklace. Using my leg I pulled the bag closer and brought it within arms reach. I didn’t want it possibly being damaged, after all, and since I had my computer on an extendable tray table this left my lap free. So I ended up resting the bag there just as the game began. What’s more, the train finally decided to leave the station.

~~~

Bones. That’s all that Princess Twilight and Shadow Sight came upon as they traversed deeper into what they now knew was some form of large, underground building. The serpent creatures were piled in great heaps, most of whom had wings ripped off or entire pieces of their spinal columns crushed to dust. The strange amber like substance was also present, but it became more and more scarce the deeper they traveled.

Despite the death, Twilight was growing more and more fascinated by their discovery. So far she wasn’t sure if the serpents had built this place themselves or if they had discovered it. If they had built it, then how? And, most of all, how did they die. Many of the skeletons were surrounded by rusted and chipped pieces of armour, so it was safe to assume that they were soldiers. However, the increasing magic levels currently required her immediate attention.

“This is looking more and more like a last stand,” Shadow Sight said while inspecting a rusted helmet. “The direction of collateral damage, plus the fact that there’s more dead further in than at the entrance suggests that they were cornered in here and falling back.”

“But why would they choose here?” Twilight pondered while carefully inspecting a set of large doors in front of her. As with the previous pair - as well as every other door they had run across - they had been blasted open. From the gaping hole an invisible blast of magical energies hit her like a tidal wave, and the princess took a step back from the sudden shock.

The night guard noticed and moved to her side. “Princess, are you alright?”

She nodded to him. “I think whatever is causing this magical disturbance is through this door.”

The princess flew through the opening and landed perfectly in the room beyond, her horn shining brighter than before. Inside she found only one serpent skeleton - which had died with its wings torn off - laying in the center of a room constructed entirely from metal. The walls were lined with odd devices that seemed to be a merger of crystal and metal, all of which were dead after all their inactivity. The princess only spent a moment looking at them, however, before something else caught her attention.

Past the skeleton was a large diamond shaped construction, much like an archway. It was twice her height, and made from an odd blue metal. Resting beside it were two large copper pillars, which also showed bits of the blue metal in their rounded tips. Twilight approached the construction cautiously. She didn’t need her horn to tell her that she’d found the magic source, at this distance she could feel it radiate from the metal.

And yet, it did more than this. It was almost like the device was calling to her. Like the magic was yearning to be released, but for some reason it couldn’t break free. Curiously the princess attempted to move some of the metal with a simple levitation spell. Yet, to her surprise, the magic vanished the moment it touched the blue substance. What’s more, she felt the force of magical energies amplify.

Twilight’s eyes widened in amazement. The metal! Whatever it was, it had somehow managed to contained raw magic. She stood there, eyes sparkling at this amazing discovery that lay in front of her before taking on a more thoughtful appearance. What purpose did the serpents have for this metal, and why use it in this construction?

“Princess,” Shadow Sight called, turning Twilight away from the metal construction. The night guard walked up to her, only briefly looking at the construction. “Is this what you were sensing?”

“Indeed it is, did you discover anything new?” Twilight asked, which prompted the night guard to shake his head. “That’s alright, I need you to go back to the surface anyway. Tell either Princess Celestia or Luna to bring now an excavation group.”

“You’re not coming with me?” he asked in confusion.

“I’m going to stay and inspect this device a little longer.” Twilight said with a smile. “Don’t worry, I don’t think its creators will give me much trouble.”

Shadow Sight gave a quick nod and took his leave. Once he’d gone, the Alicorn turned her attention back to the strange construction, particularly the copper pillars by its side. Both were about as long as an average stallion laying on the ground with his legs stretched out. Curiously she approached the one closest to her, her horn feeling like it was going to burst from all the magical energies. She took a step back and instead opted to levitate the pillar to better inspect it.

The Princess began to gather the magical energies needed,but instantly stopped when she noticed what was happening. Both pillars were levitating in front of her,with faint glows coming from their poles. There was a series of loud clicks and then the poles divided into three triangular pieces that spread out like a windmill. Twilight was intrigued by this sudden activity, but that quickly gave way to shock as her horn involuntarily fired beams of magenta coloured magic into the open pillars. She cried in shock and tried to get her magic under control, but it was no use. The magic moved as if it possessed a mind of its own. The Alicorn was helpless as her immense magic reserves were drained in mere minutes by the strange devices. Finally she was released and collapsed to the ground, weakened, but still conscious.

With great effort Twilight got back to her hooves just as the pillars began to levitate away from her. She stumbled backwards as they took their places next to the arch. Once there, the pillars began rotating around it - first slowly, but quickly gaining speed. By the time Twilight was beginning to regain some feeling in her horn they were already an indistinguishable blur. A high pitch droning sound filled the cavern, causing the princess to cringe in pain. Not from the noise, but from her horn. It was throbbing and burning with pressure from all the unstable magic in the room.

A blinding light then flooded the room, causing Twilight to shield her face with her wings. when it dimmed the Alicorn was shocked to discover that the pillars had stopped rotating and were hovering next to the archway, only now there were beams of magic trailing from the poles to the very top of the arch. The blue metal was glowing fiercely, and to Twilight’s amazement something was forming in the middle of the archway. It was faint, almost like a thin layer of mist, but gradually it grew more defined. In less than five minutes the entire arch was filled with a swirling wall of pink, purple, and blue, all blending and separating into cosmic patterns.

Twilight stared transfixed into the otherworldly colours. She felt magical energies flowing forth from them and dispersing around the room. As they did, the colours seemed to change with a peculiar ebb and flow.

Her curiosity at breaking point, Twilight ventured approaching the archway again. Oddly enough, the Princess of Magic felt energized once more, and her horn had even stopped burning. That one was easy to answer; because the magic from the archways was now stable it no longer caused the reactions in her horn. She wasn’t quite sure about the new energy, unless...

Enticed by her new theory, Twilight quickly gathered as much magical energy into her horn as she could before firing it through the gaping hole she had used to enter. She felt her horn fizzle slightly from the extreme blast - and then stop instantaneously. She even felt her internal reserves fill up as she stood there, causing her to let out an excited laugh.

“This machine can replenish magic at an alarming rate!” she said to nopony in particular. Before she could think of any possibilites for this discovery, however, her eyes were pulled back to the colours. Amidst the three colours was an oddity - a small black dot, to be precise. It rapidly grew larger, and Twilight was able to make out a few more features about it, such as an approximate size and length. But this didn’t make any sense, if the machine was making magic how could this shape come to be?

“Unless that’s not its primary purpose,” The Princess said to herself. That would make some sense, since it required such tremendous magic levels to activate. Sudden dread spread across her face. “Oh no, what if this thing is a weapon? What if I’ve set in motion Equestria’s destruction? What if-”

The Princess was cut off by another burst of blinding light from the machine. As she shielded herself, something large was tossed at her at rapid speed. She stumbled over and was able to catch one final glimpse of the device as its colours finally dispersed and the copper pillars sealed up, before falling lifelessly to the ground.