The Wat Chronicles: Álru for an Eai

Dawn breaks," I said, "heaven's light sets ablaze. And the darkness flees." "Seems we're all done now," Whooves said, "and I think I will be going home. Are you joining?" "Nay, cuz. I'll stay here a little longer. See what has happened around here." "Okay, Wat. See you around, then." Whooves went down from the tower, and I could see him trot out of Lissmeä from the view on the balcony. After a couple of moments, I went back inside, and sat down by the long table. I looked down for a moment, closing my eyes and resting. When I looked back up, I saw someone sitting on the other side of the table and a bit to the left. I was shocked, and I froze in place, just looking at whoever it was. It was a stallion wearing a pointy hat, his coat and mane dusty and grey. I could barely see the horn, but he was a unicorn. Suddenly, he turned to me and looked at me with golden eyes, letting out a little, surprised "Ah!" before turning away again. Then, I could see his hat lifting, his horn glowing with a golden shimmer. Then, a layer of smoke and dust surrounded him, and out from the cloud came Starswirl, the Bearded.

"Foreigner," Starswirl said. "That's what you used to call me," I replied, "and how come you speak modern English fluently?" "Well, miss, I'm a wizard. Lingual expertise is an area that I'm a master of." "You've observed us while you were gone, then." "Indeed I have. All the way until the lights went out five days ago." "Can you imagine why?" "Someone must have broken the code of magic." "They coronated a mare not from the royal bloodline." "That explains it, yes. Broken code. It's a dangerous thing, screwing around in the world of magic. Tell me, who was the one to coronate her?" "The Opal and the Amethyst." "The princesses?" "Indeed. The two sisters." "So according to them a unicorn can become an alicorn if the princesses think they deserve it. Well, in that case, an earth pony may just as well get to become a unicorn. Or a pegasus. We can't just change races like that." "What's your plan?" "Looking at the code." Starswirl's horn glowed gold again, and with a poof, a blue book popped out of thin air. Starswirl looked through the pages. "Ah," he soon exclaimed, "Equinan enchantment. The spell that gives power to the Equina language for those who are enchanted." "Huh?" "You're not getting all that much of a choice." Starswirl readied another spell, which he shot straight at me. After it hit me, I felt strangely rested and powerful. "What did you do to me?" I had to ask. "How about a demonstration," Starswirl replied, "focus on the book with the code of magic and put power into the Equinan word for 'hold'." "Okay." I concentrated on the code. Then, I channeled in my head, saying "Halta!" I felt a tingling in the four frontmost locks of my mane, and to my surprise I was controlling the code like unicorns do. I switched focus, but kept the spell going, and the code flew to me, keeping close and in the air until I released the spell."Good! Very good," Starswirl said. "You don't need to say the words out loud, though. It's enough to think them." "That was a bit exhausting in length." "Álru is an art, missy." "Shouldn't we get to the princesses? Fix up there?" "First of all, go downstairs and get a blue potion. Drink it. You'll feel stronger magic-wise. Then, I'm going to teach you the blink magic." You don't question a wizard, so I did what he told me to. The blue potion made me feel refreshed, like he said, and I went back up. Starswirl was out on the balcony when I came back. "Ah," he said as usual, "ready for the álru of blinking?" "This has nothing to do with blinking with my eyes, right?" "No. Blinking works like this. You focus on a place close by, and you put power into the Equinan word for 'blink'." Then, he looked down, and a golden poof appeared, him vanishing. I went out on the edge of the balcony, and I saw him standing by outside the tower. This time, I thought the word, while focusing on the ground next to him. Instantly, I was taken there, to my surprise. "How long does this reach?" I asked. "To wherever you can see within a mile's radius. Now, the chain blink. Use the words for 'fast move', and you'll chain blink around. Race you to Evisreä!" Starswirl took off at a blinding speed. I tried my best to get going as fast as possible, and I started not long after him. In front of me laid his golden train of poofs, which I followed. I couldn't win, but I kept up. We were both blasting through Eävelainde at an immense speed, and we were back in the southern mountain range separating Equestria and Eävelainde after fifteen minutes. From there, one could see Canterlot's city, and we continued straight there. It took up another five minutes to get there, and we stopped chain-blinking outside the city gates.

"So this is Canterlot," Starswirl said, "capital of Evisreä. Home of the Opal and the Amethyst. Speaking of which, Wat, which princess rules the most?" "Celestia for the most part," I replied, "as she runs the rising of the sun and controls the day." "So the Opal is idle at daytime, and the Amethyst rules. I would have believed that the Opal could be used more efficiently, before adding a third ruler, and a non-royal at that." "So would I believe too." "When dawn broke, the Opal and the Amethyst lost their powers. Only alruneä's álru can control the celestial bodies that are the sun and the moon, and that's what the gems do. They grant the powers. The Opal has álru to raise the moon, and the Amethyst to raise the sun. Now, these gems are inactivated." "Who controls the sun and moon now?" "A wizard that knows álru." "That would be you." "That would be me." "We should get to the castle." Getting to Canterlot Castle was easy, the city in itself was small. There were no structural paths of decorations like the one in Lissmeä. When Starswirl and I showed up at the gates, two guards blocked the entrance. "You cannot enter," they said simultaneously. "Strictest orders from Princess Celestia." "Ah," Starswirl replied, "you do not recognise me?" "You've been gone for three thousand years," I said to him. "Don't expect that anymore." "Ah. Well, I will be entering anyway." Starswirl's horn glowed gold again, and the guards were flung away from the doors, screaming of fear and surprise, landing twenty yards away from the doors. Then, Starswirl opened the door to the castle.

"Okay," Starswirl said, "I have never been in this castle before. You lead on, missy." "Neither have I," I replied, "you're the only pony of higher status that has bothered much with me." "I don't know if that makes me nice, or if it makes everyone else a bit less nice." “It makes you nice.” “Ah.” “Judging out from the fact that we weren’t let in, I don’t think there are very many ponies here other than the ones we are looking for. Can you hear talking from anywhere? Surely you must have a spell for enhanced hearing.” “Yes…” Starswirl focused for a little while, and then continued. “I can hear talking. It’s from upstairs, and in front of us. That is surely where the throne room is.” “We need to find a way up there, then.”  Finding the staircase leading upwards was easy; it lay right to our left side, in a tower. We went up, and back out to the room, where we could see big gates. The only room that would ever need such grand gates would be the throne room. Starswirl and I opened the gates together, and we saw the throne room, with two thrones at the far end of the room, stained glass windows up the sides, a red carpet down the centre and three alicorns discussing fiercely by the thrones. When we came in, we closed the gates behind us, and with the deep noise of their closing, the alicorns went completely quiet, looking at me and Starswirl. We slowly went up to them.

“The Opal and the Amethyst,” Starswirl began, “finally I meet you two.” Celestia, Luna and Twilight, the three alicorns, looked at each other, and then back to Starswirl, saying his name simultaneously. “I’m Starswirl the Bearded. You, Moonraiser, bear the Opal. Sunraiser, you bear the Amethyst.” Starswirl hinted at the jewels in the two true princesses’ necklaces. “However! You, the third one!  Why are you here? You are not of royal descent. You are not a born alicorn. You have been transformed into your current shape.” “She managed to create her own magic,” Celestia tried to say, “and she has saved Equestria many times! Her name is Twilight-” “Saved Equestria many times. Some times from challenges you have brought upon her!” “I-” “No. Sunraiser, not even you have the right or reason to coronate new princesses. You may be old, but you are too young to understand the rules of the world. Only royals can be alicorns, and a coronation will not just make a pony royal. That is why you, Sunraiser and Moonraiser, lost the power to control the sun and the moon, and the world was flung into a moonless night lasting all the way until my return half an hour ago.” “This is so confusing, yet so revealing,” Twilight said. “Ah,” Starswirl quickly said, “Princess of Red Bull.” Starswirl’s horn got the usual magically golden shine, and he zapped Twilight with a magical light that surrounded her. When she was visible again, she was back in her old unicorn form. “The wings…” she said, “they’re gone…” “They should have never been there. Sunraiser, this is not why you were gifted with the powers of the Amethyst. You rule a kingdom, not the world. If you had read the Code of Magic, you would have known.” “The Code of Magic…” Celestia said. “But that’s just an ancient book! It has no meaning today!” “It has all the meaning of all the magic in the universe! You broke the rules, Sunraiser. Not even the highest ranked pony can break the Code. It is stated that only true royals can be alicorns. You are thousands of years old, you two. I would have expected you to know better.” The two princesses looked down shamefully, and Twilight sat down, poking the floor. I did nothing but stand by Starswirl’s side. But Starswirl turned away, and started casting another spell. With a bright golden shimmer appearing from the ground, he was encased in light, and he vanished. He had teleported away, and I heard his voice in my head, saying “I have returned to the tower in Lissmeä”. I turned to the princesses, and I had to say some words of my own.

“So,” I started, “Celestia. Luna. Give me your necklaces. Well, don’t give me them to keep, but I need to check them.” “Fine,” Luna said, “whatever you say. Who are you, anyway?” “My name is Doctor Wat. I’m a timelady from the planet Gallifrey many light-years away. I’m the last timelady alive, in fact. I have lived here for five thousand years, and I was the mare that carried the jewels in your necklaces to your parents, which became the beginning of the Equestrian royal bloodline. And I see your memory fades over time, Luna. Do you not remember anything from the thousand years you were trapped in the moon?” “No. I was Nightmare Moon, wasn’t I? I didn’t control myself.” I looked at Celestia, who looked away. I went closer to Luna, so close that I could touch her muzzle with mine. I looked deeply into her eyes, and I saw, deep within her mind, a mental barrier. I tried to look beyond it, but I could not see past it. Since I had learned that I could use the Equina language for magic, I focused on the barrier in her mind that I could see, and put power into the Equina words for “mind clear”. Luna let out a little shriek, and shook her head furiously. I stepped back, and waited for her to calm down. “…Wattie?” Luna eventually asked. “Woonie…” “I remember it all now!” Luna trotted over to me and hugged me. “Thank you so much for clearing my mind.” “No problem, Luna. Now, about these necklaces…” “Oh! Of course! Here. Sis, you give her yours too.” Luna gave me her necklace with the Opal, and Celestia did the same with hers and the Amethyst. I analysed the necklaces, but all I needed to do was check the jewels for álru power. “I can feel magic from your necklaces. The Opal and the Amethyst are active again. Here, you may have them back. You are able to control the sun and the moon again.” Celestia almost nabbed her necklace back from me. Luna, on the other hoof, took it back politely, smiling at me as she took it. I could see gratitude in her eyes, and maybe something more than that too. I also noticed that Twilight had left the soon and the castle. “So, Luna,” Celestia said, “you know her?” "Yes, sister, I do. When I first turned into that foul version of me, Nightmare Moon… you used the Elements to trap me in the moon. Well, you tried to. I was stuck on the lunar surface, yes. But that’s only because I can’t fly without air to push down under my wings. It’s a good thing I knew magic to give myself an air supply for my breathing, otherwise you would have killed me. Anyway, after a couple of decades, this wonderful mare came by. I’ll have you know that I returned to my normal self only a couple of days after you sent me to the lunar surface. I sat there in complete sadness and loneliness until Wat showed up. She took me with her on all sorts of fun adventures. Wat's a time traveller! She has these machines and stuff to take her through space and time." "That is correct," I said, "I have travelled with Luna through time and space in the last few centuries. Let me tell you a tale. Two and a half years ago, when Luna returned as Nightmare Moon... It was a hoax. A well played hoax. Me and Luna devised it together. She was to act evil, so that the Elements of Harmony would be used on her by their wielders, to try turning her good again. She was always good, but also an excellent actress. However, there was something we didn't foresee. The Elements reformed her, making her memories from between the banishment and the return inaccessible. I have made them accessible again." The Amethyst, Celestia, looked out into space. Luna, the Opal, smiled at me.

I took five steps away from the alicorns, then turned to them, raising my voice again. "Princesses! Do not fret. A mistake can be made. I'll take my leave now, by the ways of old." I used the language magic to float up in the air by thinking Levitate. I noticed the Opal and the Amethyst looking at me, in great wonder. I spoke the words to teleport, for dramatic effect. "Alra! Bívennthye árinn tórn alruneäri!" From the floor below me came golden shimmers of light slowly showing a pattern, encasing me in light. When the light disappeared, I was standing outside of the alruneäri's tower in Lissmeä again. There were no signs of life at first, and I went into a silent tower. But then, I could see Starswirl at the balcony, and he saw me, letting out his usual "Ah". He blinked down to me, and hinted at the city streets. We started going down them, him having something to tell me.