Chapters Prologue 2: Communication
Luna took a sip of her tea. She had planned on going to bed, but after Celestia had taken the girls past the throne, Spike had been left alone. She felt sorry for the small dragon. He had saved the Crystal Empire, a crowning feat for anypony, and then he had watched as an even darker evil tore it asunder. After the group had left him in the medical ward, Luna had offered to keep him company. He happily accepted, and now here they sat.
“What is the Princess showing them?” Spike inquired, having already finished his tea. As a dragon, he was resistant to heat, and did not have to wait for it to cool.
“That is something I cannot share, Spike. Twilight may choose to share it with you when she returns, but tis not something that should be known by everypony.”
“I hope they come back soon. I’ve got the strangest feeling that Twilight’s gonna get hurt or something.”
Luna smiled. Spike was merely worried about his surrogate mother. Her eye gave off a slight twitch as she felt Celestia sever the last ward protecting the chamber.
“I can tell you, however, that they are currently safe, and have arrived at their destination.”
Spike let out a sigh of anxiety. “That makes me feel a little better. I just get so antsy when-” Spike stopped talking, his eyes widening.
“When what?” asked Luna, confused as to why Spike had stopped so suddenly.
“Do you feel that?” Spike asked
Luna could sense nothing but the signal of the crystal, very faint due to its distance in the heart of the mountain. “Feel what?” She asked curiously. Surely he cannot feel the signal from this far. He is much to young…right?
“My blood…” He said. “It’s like it’s on fire.”
“Perhaps the tea was hotter than you thought?” Luna suggested, a smile pulling at her lips.
“No…this is…I’ve…never felt this before…” Spike suddenly jumped up from his seat, shaking the small table and knocking his empty cup to the ground. “Twilight’s in trouble!”
A mere second after Spike had spoken, the air around the entire palace shuddered. Shockwave after shockwave rolled across the white towers. A few of the smaller ones could not take the pressure, and collapsed.
The guards immediately jumped into action, pegasi already on their way to aid and wounded. Trusting the safety of her subjects to them, she turned to Spike.
“It seems you shall get your wish. We are going to see what just happened.”
Spike seemed only marginally happier about this.
“Do we have to walk the whole way? That would take too long!”
“No. Since my sister is there already, I can use her as a target and teleport us there directly”
“Then lets go!” Spike ran over to stand beside the princess of the night. With a flash of light, they were gone.
The creature landed on the dais. The wings folded back to rest upon its back. As it stepped away from the light of the pit, more of its details could be seen. It was completely hairless. It stood taller than Celestia, horn included. And its eyes. Black slit pupils wreathed in fire, the flames constantly moving as if they were actually burning. These eyes were currently searching the room, staring at the small group of ponies that lay on the ground at its feet. Then it spoke.
The voice was not loud, but anger would be heard beneath the baritone sound. What is it angry about? Celestia wondered to herself. The creature spoke no language that she was familiar with. And with her age and political experience, that was a very big deal.
The voice spoke again, its eyes moving over each pony in turn. The anger in its voice had diminished slightly, but that did not change the fear that it instilled into the shaking ponies.
A flash of light appeared behind the creature.
Luna stepped out of the light, Spike by her side.
“BEGONE, DEMON!” She shouted in her Royal Canterlot Voice. The small cavern echoed with her shout as she lowered her horn and charged the creature.
The pressure holding Celestia down doubled. Luna slammed into the ground, the impact knocking the wind from her lungs. Celestia watched as the creature turned and walked over to her sister. Removing one of its upper limbs from the mare it held in them, it reached down. Celestia tried to say something, to distract the creature, but the pressure now held her head against the ground. She couldn’t open her mouth even if she wanted to.
As the limb extended to its full length, the claw at the end turned upward. It appeared to grip something in the air, and then slowly began to raise the limb. Spike rose with it. When Spike was at eye level with the creature, the creature spoke again.
Spike stared, entranced, as the creature spoke. Dragons were born with the innate ability to speak this language, so Celestia was not surprised when Spike talked back. He gestured at Twilight, still in the creature’s grasp. The creature looked down at the young mare’s body, then spoke to Spike once more.
“Everyone, stay calm. He’s going to let you go now. He doesn’t want to hurt anypony.”
Now this surprised Celestia. Had the young dragon somehow brokered a deal with the strange creature?
A few seconds passed before the pressure began to lift from Celestia’s body. She flared her wings, working her sore joints. Despite Spike’s claim that this unknown monster wanted peace, she was still wary. She lowered her head and prepared to charged.
“Spike, translate, please. Release my little pony.”
Spike relayed the message. The creature turned to look at Celestia before slowly shaking it’s head. Its turned back and spoke to Spike again. As it opened its mouth, Celestia caught a glimpse of sharp incisors in its mouth.
“He says he can’t. Not until he can trust that you won’t attack him. He means her no harm.”
Celestia snorted in frustration. She had expected such a reply, and she was in no position to demand it of him.
“Very well, then. My name is Celestia. I am the leader of these ponies. Who are you?”
Spike repeated the message. At the sound of her name, the creature turned its head and stared at her. Then it spoke in yet another language.
"Can you understand me?" The now obviously male voice asked.
Celestia nearly fell over. This beastly creature was speaking the language of alicorns. Very few people knew of the existence of this language. The number of people who knew enough to speak it numbered in the single digits.
"I can. Who are you?"
Ignoring the question, the creature asked, "Why have I been awakened?"
Deciding it best to comply with the creature that held her student hostage, she responded.
"A never before seen evil has been awakened, and the power you gave off was similar to its. We were trying to harness said power to better defend ourselves."
"Then the seal was broken before I awoke..."
The creature furrowed his brow. Now that the initial fear of the situation was gone, Celestia examined the being more closely. His skin was pale, though not as pale as her fur. Speaking of fur, he had none. He stood tall on his two legs, with no tail to balance him. His muscles shown through his skin, though she had to strain to see the faint outline. His head was shorter that a ponies, lacking a muzzle, with the nose and mouth separated by a small area of skin. The ears were the only thing that looked remotely normal. They rested on the side of his head, and rose to a small point at the top. The wings...wait, where had the wings gone? She was sure the creature had risen from the pit on a pair of dragon wings...
The creature lowered its arm, allowing Spike to touch the ground again. As soon as he was released, the purple dragon ran to hide behind Celestia. She turned her head to watch him, then noticing that the others had moved behind her as well. All except her sister...Who was still on the ground, breathing faintly.
Following Celestia's gaze, the creature stared at the still mare.
"I apologize. I did what I felt was needed to defend myself. However, I may have overestimated her constitution."
The creature turned back to Celestia.
"Time is short. She should have the answer to any questions you may have." he said, motioning with his chin to Twilight.
"You still have yet to tell us what and who you are."
The creature chuckled. "She can better describe to you what I am. As for my name? Call me Zeke.
And with that parting name, Twilight's body began to stir. At the same time, Zeke fell backwards, landing hard on his back, the mare held close to his body to protect her.
Author's Note
Ill be honest. I was mainly writing this as a creativity exercise. I figured the the internet would be the best place for criticism.
Imagine my surprise when, after posting and going to sleep, I was awakened by a series of alert messages informing me of all the favorites my fic was receiving.
Guess I'm just saying thanks for giving my story a shot. As I said, criticism is why I'm here, so feel free to donate some.
Prologue 3: The Adventure Begins
Twilight awoke to the feeling of warmth. She was being clutched by some sort of life form. Oddly though, she did not find it scary. The embrace felt warm, and caring. Almost like a hug. As she stood up, a pair of long limbs fell off of her.
“Arms. They’re called arms.”
“Wha...?!” Twilight stumbled back at the sound, falling off the being in the process.
“Call me Zeke.”
Twilight searched for the source, spinning around to get a 360 degree view. She stopped when she saw her friends hiding behind Princes Celestia.
“Hey girls…Um…Why are you hiding?”
“They’re probably scared of me.”
“Who keeps talking?” Twilight wheeled around again. She again saw nothing but her friends and her teacher.
“No one is speaking, Twilight. What do you hear?” Celestia took a step forward, the five smaller ponies right at her heel.”
“Y-you mean you don’t hear that voice?”
“Ah ain’t heard nothing unordinary since that thing fell over.” Applejack chimed in, slowly moving from behind the Princess.
“Yeah,” Rainbow Dash followed Applejack out. “What is it, anyways?”
“Um…I think he said to call him Zeke” Fluttershy whispered. The small cavern helped amplify her voice to an audible level.
“Wait…Did you say Zeke?” Twilight’s face froze. She felt a panic attack rising in her. The voice only she could here had called itself Zeke as well…Maybe a coincidence?
“I think not.”
The color seemed to visibly drain from Twilight. A voice no one else could here. That meant either a spell she hadn’t heard of before that allowed singular communication within earshot of multiple ponies, or the voice was in her head. The first was a definite no. A spell that useful would be common knowledge. Which left…
“Ah. Seems the kindling finally caught flame. I’m sure you have many questions, but the one who attacked me is still injured, and I don’t know how long she has left.”
“Who attacked you? And what did you do to them?” Once again, Twilight found herself looking around the small chamber. The ponies who were previously staring at her like she were crazy suddenly remembered Luna, and rushed over to her now unconscious form. Celestia bathed her sister in a magical aura.
“She will recover, but she needs medical attention now. I shall return shortly.” With a moment of hesitation to look at the fallen body of Zeke, she whisked her sister away in a flash of light.
“Whatever were you thinking, Twilight?” Rarity was first to break the short silence. “I admit I’ve seen you do some crazy things, but touching an unknown magical item with your horn? And now look where we are! Luna is lucky to be alive.”
“I don’t know what happened to me, Rarity.” Twilight lowered her head in a depressed manner. “My element just seemed to take over for a second. The next thing I recall is waking up with this voice in my head.”
“I told you my name. Is it so hard to use it?”
“How about before you go asking favors, you explain why you’re in here in the first place?”
“There are a few reasons. The only reason you can hear me now is because my body is resting. While it does, my mind dwells within you.
“And why is such a thing necessary? Can you not stay in your own head?”
“Apparently not. This is the nature of such a bond.”
“Are you speaking of the contract? What does this contract entail? Aside from having a monster in my head.”
“And who, pray tell, is the one who woke this monster?”
“Had I known the implications, I never would have approached the dais.”
“And your world would have burned for your vanity.”
Twilight flinched at the sudden hostility in his voice. “What do you mean?”
“If I am awake, then the seal is broken. He is free, if only partially. It is only a matter of time before he
“What are you talking about? Who is he? What evil did you bring to us?”
“ENOUGH! If you want more information, then perhaps you should find something less monstrous to share your mind with.”
At this, the voice fell silent. A faint presence that Twilight had felt during the conversation dwindled into a small speck in her mind’s eye. It was clear that Zeke would talk no more.
“UGH! What is with him! He invades my mind, and then complains when I ask why?” Twilight snorted in frustration.
“Think about this from his perspective, Twilight.” Celestia had returned during the mental banter. “He has been imprisoned here since before I even had this castle built. The fact that he has the mental capacity to hold conversation is impressive in itself. Yet the first thing he experiences as he steps from his prison is an assault and now being called a monster.”
“Look at him!” Twilight vigorously pointed at the prone body with her hoof. “What else could he be but a monster?”
“If I recall, you said the same about Zecora. How lonely do you think she felt at that time? And that was only a few years’ worth of isolation. He’s been alone for longer than Luna or I have been alive.”
Twilight's voice caught at that. The incident still hit her worth pangs of guilt. And now the same situation was before her again. A chance to redeem herself. And she had failed. She looked to her friends for support. But found none. They all looked at her with the same expression Celestia now wore. Disappointment.
Twilight bowed her head, humbled. “You’re right, Princess. I should not have judged him so harshly. Can you forgive me?”
“That is not a question you should be asking me.”
Twilight sighed. Why did doing the right thing make her so nervous?
“Hey, can you hear me?”
The silence echoed loudly
“He’s not answering. I…may have angered him.”
“Then you should apologize as soon as he has calmed down. In the meantime, I think we’ve all had enough of this cavern.”
“Thank you, Celestia! I can’t wait to get to the open sky again!” Rainbow Dash jumped into the air, snapping the tension with her usual spunk.
“Oh, does this mean I get to throw a welcome party?” Pinkie bounced over to the body…Zeke’s body, Twilight told herself…and began prodding it with her hoof.
“Maybe later. I don’t know if he’s ready for a Pinkie Pie party so soon after waking up.” Twilight walked over to Zeke. Focusing her magic, she lifted him with a levitation spell. As soon as she did, she felt a strange tingle in the mental speck that Zeke currently inhabited. She hoped he would return, but all she got was a mental image of the claws on the altar, with the metal bands around them. She assumed they were important and picked them up as well.
When everyone was assembled, Celestia teleported them out. “I must go and replace the wards around the cavern.” She announced. She called for one of the guards outside the throne room. “Take these ponies to the guest rooms. They are free to stay here until I say otherwise.”
The guard nodded once and gestured for the ponies to follow him.
“I will come to you when I am finished, Twilight. There is much to discuss regarding this…Zeke…”
“I will be waiting, Princess.
Each girl had gotten their own room. Zeke had gotten his own as well, though Twilight decided to stay in his room until the Princess showed up. Zeke himself lay silently on the bed, his lower body covered by a single sheet. The rise and fall of his chest was the only thing that proved him still alive.
Twilight sat on an armchair next to the bed. The more she thought about her and Zeke’s conversation, the worse she felt. He was probably happy beyond belief to be freed, and she treated him like so much dirt. What’s more, she had blamed him for the entire situation. And the whole time, he was probably just as confused as she was.
Eventually, her inner thoughts passed into a fitful sleep. Flashes of fire and metal glinted at her as she ran through a forest. Something yelled behind her, and she screamed as she felt a searing line of pain cross her back. She awoke and promptly fell out of the chair in shock. The dream had felt so real. Yet she had never seen a forest like that one before.
Remembering where she was, and why, she glanced at the bed. Then did a double-take. It was empty. She stared at it for a few seconds, wondering if the past day had been just a great big dream.
A breeze blew through the room, drawing Twilights attention to the balcony door, which was wide open. As she walked around the bed to get to the door, she nearly tripped on Spike. Twilight had told him to stay in the room given to her, but it seems he was too worried, and had opted to sneak in here to sleep next to her.
She carefully stepped over her number one assistant, making her way to the balcony door. Her dream theory was shattered as she spotted the bipedal form of Zeke standing at the balcony’s edge. He had tied one of the bed sheets around his waist, and it softly fluttered in the light breeze. He appeared to be speaking to someone, in a language she did not know.
The voice of Princess Celestia responded in the same language. Twilight had planned to let them continue in peace, but something caught her eye. Stretched across his back was a large scar. Twilight shuddered as her mind traced the path of pain from her dream. Apparently, it was more than a dream. Her curiosity peaked at this new theory, and she decided to intrude on the conversation.
“Is that you, Princess?” She asked softly. She had not seen Celestia, but her voice was hard to match.
“It is. Did we disturb your slumber?” Celestia dropped down from the eaves above the doorway. Twilight could not fathom why she was up there.
“No…A nightmare woke me…”
“Ah. I hope it wasn’t too unpleasant.”
“Actually, it involved a great deal of pain. A wound which would have left a scar similar to Zeke’s.”
Celestia frowned and returned to conversing with Zeke in that language. Twilight tried her best to discern any familiar words, but none could be heard.
“It would seem you are reliving some of Zeke’s old memories. During his imprisonment, his body was deformed into a very basic outline of what he originally looked like. As your bond deepens, you will more than likely experience more memories of his, which will slowly return his form to its true state.” Celestia stepped inside, shivering slightly from the cool night. “I must say, I am more than interested in this strange connection. We have never fully understood the Elements of Harmony, but every time we think we understand something new, they perform a new miracle, and leave us staring in awe.”
During this entire conversation, Zeke had remained still, facing the night sky. He now placed his hands on the railing,
“Princess, can I ask you to translate something for me?”
Catching on, Celestia smiled faintly. “I could…but it would seem a lot more sincere if you did it yourself…”
“But he can’t understand me…”
“If your heart is in the right place, I’m sure he will get the message.” Celestia moved further into the room and motioned for Twilight to join him on the balcony.
Twilight slowly walked out into the breeze. She immediately shivered. She had no idea how Zeke could stand it out here in nothing but a bed sheet. Maybe he was originally from a cold climate? But he was trapped above a pit of lava for Celestia knows how many years. Surely he must find heat more comfortable than cold. Unless that was another part of the torture he had endured.
Her thoughts were laid to rest as she approached him. He seemed to radiate a very real warmth, and she felt the shivers leave her almost instantly as she approached him.
“Zeke…Hey, Zeke?” Twilight softly prodded his leg with her foreleg. This caught his attention, and he looked down at her. “I just wanted to tell you…I was being very insensitive back in the cave. I should have thought about how you feel, but instead I just thought about myself. That was very selfish of me. I have no idea what you are or why you are here, but I promise I’ll help you any way I can. Really…I’m just trying to say…I’m sorry…I hope we can still be friends?”
Twilight continued staring into his eyes after she had finished. She could barely see them in the low light. They were much smaller than a pony’s. After a while, though, he had still not moved. Twilight began to feel embarrassed. Maybe he had not gotten the message after all? But Celestia said if her heart was in the right place…Was it in the right place? I mean, sure, she had wanted to apologize, but was it for her benefit or his?
As she stood there, slowly beginning to doubt herself, her head lowered. She could not bear to look at him anymore. Her guilt began eating away at her.
Just as she was about to turn and leave, she heard a rustle as Zeke moved. She lifted her head to stare directly into his eyes. He had kneeled, and was now just under eye level with her. She was finally able to get a good view of his eyes. What she saw caused tears to slowly stream down her face. She saw her own eyes. A familiar shade of purple. Probably another side effect of their bond. But she also saw more. She saw pain, loneliness, desperation, sadness. A whole host of negative emotions smoldered behind his eyes. But on top of all those, she saw something else. Something that spoke to her plain as day. She saw acceptance. He had gotten her message.
As her tears fell from her face, Zeke slowly wrapped his arms around her, and pulled her into a hug. It’s strange. Worlds and eons separated them, but a hug still meant the same thing.
The morning sun shined brightly through the stained glass windows of the throne room. Celestia and a still injured, but much very much recovered, Luna sat upon their thrones. The Elements of Harmony, Spike, and Zeke stood before them. Celestia had asked the royal maids to prepare a simple robe for him, as they had no idea how to make proper clothes for his form.
"Zeke and I have discussed his reason for being here. He says that he and five others willingly submitted themselves to what was supposed to be an eternal prison, using their own bodies, which he says were extremely powerful, in a sealing ritual to imprison an evil being that wished for the destruction of their world. The very evil, it seems, that was released when Sombra fell. This evil will undoubtedly attempt to destroy our world as well.”
“Pffft! Big deal! We’ll just zap this evil dude with the elements and BAM! Back to prison with him!” Rainbow Dash proudly flashed her necklace while saying this.
“I believed that as well, at first. But after describing the Element’s power to Zeke, he seems to believe that the gems that give power to your harmonious traits were somehow draining said power from him and his friends. If they could not fully defeat this evil with their full strength combined, how could we hope to defeat it just from borrowing some of their strength?”
“What sort of evil is this, Princess? Surely it must take some kind of form.” Twilight looked at Zeke. “Did he not say what this evil was?”
“He says that not even they could figure out what it was, where it came from, or why it wished destruction upon its world.”
“Then it seems our next action is clear.” Rarity stepped forward. “We must find these poor beings and free them. It seems to be our only hope.”
“I agree. However, there are a few things we must take care of first.” Celestia levitated a roll of parchment over to Twilight, who took it in her magic. “That is a written consent form, signed by Luna and I, allowing the being Zeke to operate with Equestria as a foreign agent. This afternoon, we shall publicly announce his existence to the world, and ask that any unusual magical signatures be reported to the Royal Guard. Hopefully, this will speed our search for the other five. While we wait for information, I want Zeke to go with you to Ponyville. I want you to begin teaching him about our culture, traditions, and, more importantly, our language.”
“You can count on us, Princess!” Pinkie Pie was suddenly on top of Zeke’s shoulders, smiling like the fate of Equestria didn’t rest on them yet again.
The other ponies froze, nervous about Zeke’s reaction to Pinkie’s peculiar ability to break reality. They relaxed after he showed no reaction. In fact, he seemed to be rather bored. His vision wandered all over the room and he occasionally muttered to himself. Considering he had not understood a single bit of the conversation, he probably was bored. Celestia decided to wrap things up before he got too bored. Best not to test the patience of a being with such power. You never know how they’ll react.
A few hours later, they were on the train and nearing Ponyville. Spike, being the only one who could communicate with Zeke, was trying to explain the train’s mechanics to him. It had taken way too long to coax Zeke into the “loud metal monstrosity,” as he had apparently said. After his initial anxiety, his curiosity took the lead, and Spike had to constantly ask the girls for information before relaying it back to Zeke.
As the train pulled into Ponyville, the group was surprised to see a crowd gathered at the station. Twilight trotted over to one of the local guards as they entered the private car Celestia had arranged for them to travel in.
“What’s going on out there?”
The guard sighed. “Princess Celestia announced the presence of this Zeke fellow about two hours ago. As you know, pegasi fly faster than a train can roll, so the news arrived here about a half hour ago. This crowd immediately formed, hoping for a glimpse.”
Spike looked out the window before jumping back as a green unicorn plastered her face to the other side.
“Uh…Twilight? Lyra’s here…”
“Oh, great. So much for doing this the easy way. Sorry about this girls, but I’m going to teleport him to the library. It’ll be easier than trying to hide him.” Twilight trotted back from the guard to stand by Zeke. “I’m sure your families will want to hear about this and celebrate your return, so how about we meet at my place, say…tomorrow afternoon?”
“That sounds fine by me, Twi.” AJ waved her hoof at the pair. “Ya’ll stay safe now.”
The crowd outside watched as the private car’s windows flashed purple.
“Spike, I thought you were gonna tell him about the teleport?”
“You didn’t give me enough time!”
Zeke, upon arriving, had fallen to the ground, before scampering into a corner.
“Well, tell him now!”
“I’m trying, but I keep having to stop to answer you!”
As the dragon spoke to Zeke, Twilight watched, willing him to calm down. A flash went off in her head. He was showing her the image of the claws with the metal bands again. She went to her saddlebags and retrieved the sculpture, levitating it to Zeke. Who promptly took it and smashed it to the ground.
“Hey! What was that all about?”
Spike shrugged. “I dunno…He hasn’t said anything.”
He rifled through the rubble, picking up the metal bands and sliding them onto each individual claw as he found them. Eight in all. He continued searching, before looking up and flashing another picture in Twilight’s mind. It looked like some sort of medallion.
“Tell him I didn’t see anything like that, Spike.”
“What? Okay…” Spike relayed the message. Zeke responded with a rather rough sounding hiss. “I’m…not gonna translate that…”
“Has he calmed down at all?”
“A good bit, actually. Those bands must be important.”
“Can you ask him if he’s alright enough to start learning our language?”
Spike asked, then nodded. “He says the sooner he can talk to you, the better.”
Twilight blushed lightly at the sight desperation in that sentence. “Well then, let’s get started.” She said, levitating a roll of parchment, a quill, and a dictionary over to her desk.
Author's Note
And that concludes the prologue. From this point on, the real adventure begins. Which of the Mane 6 should get their companion next? Leave any suggestions in the comments. Also, please point out any issues with grammar and such. CC is welcome.
A loud thump echoed through the library. The source of the thump was none other than a lavender unicorn’s head slamming against the table she sat at. Across from her sat a bipedal being, his eyes locked onto a sheet of parchment in front of him.
A muffle voice wormed its way out from underneath the unicorn’s head. “One more time?”
The next voice is hard to describe. Its tone was somewhere in the middle, with a slight gruff sound to it, as if it had just finished screaming and the throat attached to it was a little sore. The most noticeable thing about it, however, was how badly it was butchering the basics of the Equestrian language.
Twilight sighed as she lifted her head. “Spike, take a letter, please.”
“On it.”
“Dear Princess Celestia, I regret to inform you that, after three days of trying, I have come to the conclusion that Zeke’s vocal cords are unable to replicate the sounds required for our language. The best he can do is decipher basic words when someone else speaks to him. This one way form of communication will make it difficult to merge him into the pony population. I am trying to think of alternatives, but unless we can spare another dragon to follow him around as a translator, I don’t see an easy answer. Signed, Twilight Sparkle.”
Twilight looked to her assistant before frowning. His quill was not moving.
“Did you get that, Spike?”
“Reh…pleh…kate?”
Another loud thump echoed through the library. The source of the thump was none other than a lavender unicorn’s hoof slamming against her face.
“Never mind, I’ll do it.” Twilight said, levitating the quill and parchment from Spikes claws.
As the quill moved to make contact with the parchment, Zeke stood straight up. The force he had used to lift himself was enough to send the chair he was sitting on skidding across the floor. The sudden movement startled Twilight, which by extension, caused the quill to tear a long gash in the parchment.
“What did he do that for?” Twilight turned to Spike, awaiting his translation.
A short conversation of growls and hisses ensued, before Spike turned to Twilight and spoke. “He said he has a solution to the language problem, but he needs to borrow one of your dictionaries."
“Then, by all means, let him. I’ll even offer him my favorite one.” Twilight levitated said book over to Zeke, who pulled it out of the air. He then turned on his heels and walked to the basement stairs.
“Just ask him not to lose my spot.”
Spike gave her a sarcastic look. “I thought you already read it.”
Twilight smiled innocently. “I was bored and thought it be just as good the second time…”
Zeke stopped at the top of the stairs and looked at Spike, who simply waved and smiled nervously. Zeke then descended the stairs, shutting the door at the top as he did.
Twilight and Spike stood there, staring at the door.
"Did he happen to say what he needed it for?" Twilight asked, suddenly worried for her book.
"He said it was for a ritual to allow communication. He needed a source of information to base the ritual on."
"Wait, so he can use magic?!"
"Well yeah, didn't you see...Oh...right...you were unconscious for that." Spike rubbed the back of his neck, smiling sheepishly at his lapse in thought.
"So what did he do?" Twilight moved her face to right in front of Spike's, excitement slowly beginning to dominate her worry.
"Well, you saw what he did to Princess Luna. He levitated me for a few minutes...I think that's all...Oh! He also had wings, but no one could figure out where they went, so we assumed it was more of his magic."
"Why didn't you tell me this earlier? There could be all sorts of things he could teach us!" Twilight whipped around and ran towards the basement. "I'm gonna see if I can help with anything. He might even teach me something while we're at it!
As Twilight reached the door, she felt a tingling through her horn. It almost felt like she was using magic, though there was no glow, and she had cast no spell. The feeling gave her pause, but she disregarded it and continued into the basement. She hit the bottom step just in time to watch the last embers of her dictionary die out. That gave her much more pause.
"What did you do?!" Twilight ran towards the small pile of ash. Zeke held out his hand, and Twilight's running came to a complete stop. It was as if she had run into an invisible pillow. It was soft, but would not let her pass.
"Let me through!" Twilight sent a shockwave at the wall. The wave dissipated almost as soon as she cast it.
Zeke's outstretched hand closed into a fist and Twilight was forced to the ground. She watched, immobile, as he began shifting through the ash of her beloved literature. Her eyes began to tear up.
Finding what he was looking for, Zeke lifted one of his rings from the ash. The metal band was glowing, though from heat or arcane means, Twilight could not tell. It must have been the latter, because Zeke slid the band onto his finger without any sign of discomfort.
As soon as the ring was in its place, the pressure holding Twilight disappeared. She immediately ran towards her book, sobbing lightly. "Why would you do that? I let you borrow it because I trusted you to return it..."
"I'll get you another one."
Twilight froze. Part of her mind kept telling her that she shouldn't have understood that. But the other part of her mind definitely understood it. She slowly turned her tear stained eyes towards the direction the voice came from. As she suspected, Zeke was the only one there.
"Did...did you just...talk?"
"No." Zeke replied.
Twilight couldn't help but giggle at that. Then she remembered her book. "Why'd you burn my book?"
"It was part of the ritual. Burning it released the knowledge stored inside it. I used the ring to absorb the knowledge."
"That doesn't make sense. How would you know about the rules of grammar?"
"That was actually a nice bonus. It was probably because of the emotional attachment you had with the book." His expression softened. "I am sorry. But it was clear that it was the only way."
Twilight nodded, wiping her face with a fore-hoof. "Fine. But I want you to promise me that you'll never use magic against me like that again."
"That was for your own good. It's not smart to run into a ritual. The results can be...unpredictable."
"Promise me."
"What if a similar situation occurs? Would you have me just let you waltz into a dangerous situation?"
"Promise me!"
Zeke sighed, giving up. "Fine. You have my word."
"I'll hold you to that. Now, let’s go eat dinner. And while we're out, you can figure out how to get me a new dictionary."
A loud chuckle echoed through the library.
The initial hype caused by a new intelligent life form being discovered wore down fairly quickly. After their first language lesson kept suffering interruptions from nosy ponies, Twilight decided to go ahead and let them see Zeke and ask their questions. After everyone discovered that he couldn't talk, and after he refused any kind of medical examination, the general population gave up and moved on. However, there was an occasional reporter that thought they could get a little more out of him, such as the one following them to dinner, pelting Zeke with questions. Zeke, it seemed, was content to pretend he still couldn't talk.
Twilight decided to splurge in celebration of their recent accomplishments, and took Spike and Zeke somewhere rather fancy. She still had no clue as to his diet, but he ate fruits and vegetables fine enough, and never said anything to Spike about any other food types. Just one more thing to add to the growing list of things they could talk about now. Twilight was finding it hard to keep herself composed. The amount of knowledge she could gain from him...The amount of knowledge the world could gain...it made her giddy with joy. So giddy in fact, she almost didn't notice when Applebloom came running at her, yelling for her help.
"What’s wrong, Applebloom?" Twilight asked.
"It’s the farm! The farm is under attack! Applejack sent me to get you!"
Attack? What creature would attack a farm that the Apple family couldn't handle themselves? Perhaps a manticore?
"Spike, I need you to get Fluttershy. Tell her to go to the farm. Zeke, you remember how to get back to the library, right?"
Zeke nodded.
"Go there and wait until we get back. Lead the way, Applebloom!"
Twilight didn't notice the frown on Zeke's face has she galloped after the small filly.
"Fluttershy, what are these?" Twilight asked as she picked up the small green creature in her magic and chucked it back into the Everfree forest.
"I-I just don't know...I've never seen them be-EEP!" The yellow pegasus was hiding behind Twilight, her back against an apple tree. One of the creatures had somehow gotten into said tree and had dropped down in between the two, giving Fluttershy a good look at it. Had she been standing, it would have only come up to her shoulder. It was bipedal, and walked similar to Zeke. It stood on its hind legs and each foreleg ended in one of those "hands" that Zeke had. The things skin was green and lumpy. It held a weapon made up of pieces of metal held together by straps and welds. The worst part was its mouth. Its mouth stretched almost all the way across its face. It could open it up to the point where she couldn't see its face anymore.
It began advancing on Fluttershy, cackling and gnashing its teeth. It raised its arm to attack, but the attack was cut short by two small red apples colliding with the side of its head.
"Fluttershy! Git outta here!" Applejack yelled, before bucking two more apples at the group swarming out of the forest.
"Where are the other girls?" Twilight yelled out, covering Fluttershy's retreat.
"I dunno! I figured Rainbow Dash at least woulda seen this happenin', and helped us out! Maybe she got tied up?"
"By what?"
At that moment, a loud horn blew from the direction of the town.
"That's the emergency alarm! Are they attacking Ponyville too?"
"They're startin ta thin out. Me an Big Mac can take it from here. Go find out what that was!" Applejack called out.
"Are you sure?"
"Git along! The town is more important than the farm!"
"I'll send help as soon as I can!"
The town was in a state of chaos. Ponies were running around, trying to hide anywhere they could. Twilight followed the direction the chaos seemed to be coming from, and eventually ran into a friendly face.
Rarity, her coat stained black with ash and soot, was levitating a bucket of water over to a house that had caught fire.
"Rarity! What’s going on?!
"Oh, Twilight, it's horrible! These green...THINGS came out of the forest and starting attacking and burning everything they could get to!"
"Where’s Rainbow Dash?!"
"She's with Zeke!"
A loud explosion rocked the town, emanating from the direction of the chaos. The force of it knocked everypony in the vicinity to the ground. Gritting her teeth, Twilight forced herself up again and ran once more towards the attack.
As Twilight approached the edge of town, she noticed Spike, staring into the sky.
"Spike, what are you doing out here?! Get home now, before you get hurt!"
Spike's only reaction was to keep staring.
"Did you hear me?! Go home!" Twilight nudged him with her hoof
Spike raised a claw to the sky, pointing. Twilight, curious as to what held his attention, looked up as well. Her jaw promptly hit the floor.
It was late evening. There was just enough sun left to outline the thousands of large crafts slowly making their way towards Canterlot.
A flash caught her attention, and she lowered her gaze slightly. She immediately noticed Rainbow Dash. The form next to her took a bit longer to identify. When she finally had put a name to it, her jaw hit the floor a second time.
Spike spoke up in a quiet voice. "Told you he had wings..."
Author's Note
At long last, I have updated.
I find it odd that the second chapter has less views than the third.
Hovering in the air next to Rainbow Dash was a figure she had heard of, but not yet seen. Gigantic wings, glowing red like the embers of a great fire, stretched from their point of origin: Zeke. The size was hard to make out from such a distance, but each wing was easily larger than the man himself. They flapped rather slowly, considering what they were holding up, but each flap was powerful enough that Twilight could feel a light pressure after each one, even from so far below.
Her gaze was interrupted as Zeke and Rainbow Dash both folded their wings behind themselves and began plummeting towards the ground at an alarming speed. Rainbow Dash fell faster, and flared her wings before landing in front of Twilight. Zeke was not far behind. The sudden flare of his wings created a downward pressure that almost caused a nasty incident involving the unicorn's teeth and her tongue as it slammed into her. Shortly after, the offending wings folded again, and Zeke fell the last few feet to the ground. He landed daintily on his back legs.
"Are you two okay?" Zeke knelt as he spoke, looking between Twilight and Spike, whom Twilight had forgotten was there.
"We're fine...What are these things?" Twilight asked as she looked around, spying the charred body of one of the creatures and gesturing at it with a hoof.
"There's no time for a full explanation. They are called goblins." Zeke stood up.
"How come we've never seen them before? There's so many here, someone must have seen them before. But there's no mention of them in any of the books I've read. Are they the cause of those large things in the air?"
"Twilight..."
"They're moving towards Canterlot! Are they attacking there too? Surely the Princesses can handle them. I mean, they aren't that strong, right? Oh, but what if they catch the Princesses by surprise? Oh, this is not good, not good, not good..."
"Twilight..."
"What if these creatures reawaken Discord? I don't know if the Elements will be able to handle both threats...Oh, what to do, what to do, what to do?!"
"Twilight!" Zeke grabbed the now pacing pony by the chin, lifting her face til she made eye contact with him. She simply stared at him. "We can worry about that later. Right now, you need to help guide everyone to a safe place."
"But where? Where could possibly be safe from these...goblins? They're everywhere! Where in Equestria could you possibly call safe if even Canterlot is under attack?!"
"Celestia mentioned a castle in the woods." Zeke gestured to the Everfree as he spoke. "She said there was a signal there long ago. Take them there."
"You speak as if you aren't coming..."
"That's because I'm not. Rainbow Dash and I will distract the enemy to buy the citizens time to make their escape."
"And how do you plan to distract an entire army, might I ask?"
"Easy, Twilight! I can't think of anything more distracting than a sonic rainboom!" Rainbow Dash suddenly jumped into the conversation.
"So your grand plan is to draw an entire army's attention to just the two of you? That sounds wonderful! I can't imagine what could go wrong with-"
The conversation found an abrupt end when the two spellcasters in the group spun around to face Canterlot. The lone pegasus was at a loss at first, but when a very large light suddenly blossomed from the city on the mountain, she joined in.
The trio watched in awe as the light grew. As it passed over each vessel in the air, said vessel flared up for a few seconds, before disintegrating in midair. within seconds, the remaining aircraft were in full retreat. a few more seconds later were all that was needed to prove they weren't fast enough. In the span of about a minute, Canterlot airspace was goblin free.
The light continued to spread, a great orb in the sky. A few minutes later, in which our trio remained rooted to their positions, the light engulfed Ponyville. Any goblin that had remained suffered the same fate as their ships.
It wasn't until another few minutes had passed that the group of three picked up their jaws actually looked around. The only reaction Zeke could muster was a drawn out whistle.
"Was that...Princess Celestia?" Rainbow Dash turned to Twilight, a look of awe and confusion on her face.
"I don't see how it could have been anything else...We all knew she was powerful, but that was..."Twilight trailed off before slowly turning to the winged biped. "But if she was able to win so easily, why weren't you? From what I'd heard, you had her and Luna completely pinned..."
Zeke could only shrug. "She was probably worried about you getting in the crossfire. Instead of fighting back, she simply chose not to fight." He ran a hand over his bald head. "But still, this level of power...She can't be well after channeling that much energy..."
"You think something might have happened to her? Spike, take a letter. We need a situation report. Should we moblize the elements?" Twilight began pacing as she contemplated. "Spike? What are you waiting for? Spi...Where's Spike?!"
Rainbow flew up for a birds eye view. "I think I see him!He's running this way from...Fluttershy's cottage? How'd he get there?"
"Can you tell him to meet us at Town Square? We need to assess the damage."
"Sure thing, Twi!" A cyan blur took off towards the house by the forest.
"Shall we, Zeke?"
"Huh? Oh...yeah..." Zeke fell in behind Twilight, looking extremely confused.
"Are you alright?
"Yeah...yeah...just thinking..."
"About?"
"About how He amassed so much power this quickly. Pulling entire armies through dimensions is not something you do cheaply."
"Who is He exactly?"
"Well, he calls himself Gabriel, and he is cruel as much as he is powerful...Other than that, we never learned much about him."
An odd twinge flittered across their connection as Zeke spoke. Twilight wasn't sure what to make of it, but with such strange magic, odd things were bound to happen.
"How about the 'we' part? Tell me about the others trapped here."
"That'll have to wait. Spike's here."
The dragon ran up to meet Twilight as the duo entered the Square. He then made a desperate attempt to permanently attach himself to her leg.
"Spike! Where'd you go?"
"I was with you!" Spike spoke into her leg. "Then one of those goblin things grabbed me from behind while you and Zeke were arguing! A group of them tried to carry me away...If it weren't for that light..." Nothing more could be heard as his language descended into sobs.
Another twinge on their connection. This one was sharper though. Twilight quickly glanced at Zeke's face to see the remnants of furrowed brow fade into nothing.
"Any idea why they'd take Spike, Zeke?" Twilight asked, already suspicious of his answer.
"Not of the top of my head." Came the expected reply, followed by the same twinge she had felt during his explanation of Gabriel.
Is he...Is that him lying? If it is...then what does he know? And why wont he tell me?
After the town had gathered and cleanup had begun, Spike received a letter for Twilight. It was from Luna, explaining that Celestia had drained her magic to repel the invasion. She was fine, but would be quite weak for a while. In the meantime, the two Princesses wanted Twilight to visit the old castle and free the warrior imprisoned there. After discussing it with her friends, it was decided that they would leave in two days time.
That night, as Twilight drifted off to sleep, her thoughts turned to her strange companion.
How many other secrets does he have? With everything going on, I haven't had a chance to really figure him out. I don;t even how what he is...
Twilight stood in a cloud of fog. It was a warm fog, the kind that feels good against the skin. A box could bee seen in the distance. With nothing else to do, she decided to walk towards it. She fell flat on her...face?
"Where's my muzzle?!" She reached up to feel her face only to stop in shock. Attache to her forelegs were Zeke's hands, complete with rings an all. She looked at the rest of her body...Correction his body...She quickly looked away from that part of her...him...her...
So, I'm in Zeke's body?
After a few failed attempts, she managed to get back on her feet. With nothing else but the box in sight, she continue moving towards it. It was a hard journey, and she gained many battle scars -ahem- bruises along the way. But at last, she made it.
As it turns out, it was a small vanity. Opening the door revealed a small hand mirror. Wrapping her new fingers around the handle, she brought it to her face. She was greeted by a large amount of hair. Great bushes of dark brown hair, on the top of his head cascading down, as well as growing thick up the side and front of her face. All of that hair was unable to hide the small points that had formed on his ears though. the only other feature visible through his hair were her eyes.
I wonder what his original eye color was? Twilight thought to no one, staring at her eyes in the mirror.
Suddenly, his eyes flashed fire red. Twilight dropped the mirror in shock. As it hit the floor, it shattered, waking her from her dream, Or was it the sobbing that woke her?
...Was Zeke crying?
She ventured downstairs, stopping just before the last few steps into the basement.
"Are you okay, Zeke?"
"Gods be praised," He replied between sobs. "I have hair again..."
The next morning came with as much excitement as one would expect from a town that had been recently attacked. Even the return of Zeke's shoulder length mop of hair could not overshadow the damage done to the town. Most of the litter in the streets had already been cleared, but burnt houses were aplenty. Applejack had offered her orchards as a temporary home for the now homeless. As they approached her house, Twilight could see tents nestled between the trees, marking the poor ponies. Her own house was inside a living tree, making the few repairs needed rather easy. A simple burst of magic and the tree regrew. Normal houses, however, were not the same. It could be weeks, months even, before all the houses were completed. And winter was soon coming.
The reason for the visit to Sweet Apple Acres was to help Applejack's family salvage any food and other supplies that the town desperately needed. Zeke had come along, but was not in the best shape at the moment. Apparently, when the attack had started, he had generated a fire wall large enough to separate the entire forest from the town for a few moments, to give the fleeing ponies a head start. When questioned, Zeke had explained that his strength in magic came from fire, and normally a wall of that size was nothing. However, goblins have a natural resistance to fire, so he had to spend extra energy to make it hot enough to prevent their passage.
"How long does it take for magic exhaustion to pass for your..." Twilight pettered to a stop, before dropping a large beam from the destroyed barn and facing Zeke, who happened to be sitting on a fallen tree, enjoying an apple. "Actually, you never did tell me what your people call yourselves."
"No, I don't think I did." Was the reply, followed by a satisfying crunch into the apple.
Twilight nabbed the apple with her magic, levitating it out of his reach. "No sir, no more apples til I get a straight answer from you. I know next to nothing about you, and I'm tired of it."
Zeke's eyes narrowed, and he glared at Twilight, before leaning sideways and falling into a relaxed prone position on the tree. He sighed, folding his hands behind his head, then replied. "Fine, I guess that's fair. We're called humans, and magic exhaustion is usually fixed with a good nights rest."
Twilight returned the apple to him, which he immediately took another bite of. "Then why aren't you better yet?"
"Can't be certain, but I think it has to do with this world's magic. It's...different from mine...Can't seem to absorb it very well, at least not without a filter.
"A filter? Care to explain?" Twilight asked, sitting down next to Zeke's impromptu bed
"Its an item or being enchanted to absorb magic from its surroundings. The caster of the enchantment can then siphon the energy from the filter."
"So make one."
"That takes magic, something I'm in short supply of right now." Zeke deadpanned
"Well, there must be some other way...Maybe I could try it?"
"Nah, its not an easy enchantment, and besides, only the caster can siphon the energy." Zeke sat up and sighed again. "Look, there is one way."
"Well, then? Lets hear it."
"Last night I did a little experimenting with our connection. As it turns out, the nature of it allows me to use you as a filter. You'll absorb the energy around you, and as I siphon it, the connection converts it into my kind of energy."
"You...Did you...siphon off of me while I was sleeping?"
"Well..." Zeke scratched the back of his neck nervously. "...kinda..."
"Zeke! That's dangerous! What if something had gone wrong? I could have died!"
"Hold on...You ponies can die from magic exhaustion!?"
"It's rare, but yes! If we go too far over our limit, our spells can start drawing power from our life force!"
"Crap! I didn't know!"
Twilight took a moment to calm herself down. "Its...well, its not fine, but now you know. Exactly how much did you take?"
"Only enough to test it out. And right afterwards I passed out, into a dream. When I woke up, I was empty again, but my hair and ears had returned to their natural form."
"Okay. How about we try now?"
"Er...Are you sure? They might need you for the cleanup..."
"Its fine, just take as much as you did last night."
"Alright..."
Zeke leaned forward, closing his eyes. His dark brown hair fell forward with him, hiding his face from view. After a few seconds, Twilight could feel, as if it were an itch, a steady stream of energy leaving her. It continued for a few seconds, then stopped. As it died away, Zeke raised his head.
"Oh, Gods but does that feel good." He remarked, stretching his arms over his head. The sleeves of his makeshift robe slid down his arms, and the sun glinted off the metal bands on his fingers. Twilight raised a hoof to block the bright light.
"We need to get you some real clothes."
Zeke lowered his arms, rotating them at the point where they connected to his body. "I think we have bigger problems at the moment. It's nice to have something but that's still not enough to fully revitalize me."
"I know, the town first, then clothes."
By this time, other volunteers were starting to glance at the pair of slackers, so Twilight excused herself to return to work, and Zeke wisely decided to go fetch some water for the workers. Upon his return, he stood next to Twilight, occasionally picking up something salvageable and taking it to the pile the group had designated as usable. They were silent at first, but before long, Twilight felt something echo across that little nub in her mind where part of him resided.
Can you hear me?
Twilight gasped, dropping the piece of roofing she was lifting. The roofing landed on Zeke's arm, who had been reaching for something under the roofing at the time.
"Damn, Twilight, what the hell?!" Zeke held his arm against him.
"Sorry! Sorry! It's just...I was just...Was that you?"
"Oh, so it did work."
"We can talk through our minds?"
"Not quite...Still working on it..."
"Oh...Is your arm alright?"
"Yeah, just a scratch. Must've been a nail or something. A long red streak now adorned Zeke's arm. Without a second look at it, he continued working.
"Um...aren't you going to clean it?"
"Why?"
"So it doesn't get infected."
"Eh, I'll live."
"You sure?"
"Mmhmm."
"Alright then...So...How much do you think it'll take to fully revitalize you?"
"Eh, its kinda hard to say. I've never run out before, so it's not something I've ever had to consider."
"Why not take some more?"
"You sure?"
"Why not? Levitation isn;t very hard, and I've got plenty to spare."
"Alright then..."
Zeke lowered his head in concentration again. The itch came faster this time, and more intense. Too intense.
"St-stop...Zeke..." Twilight dropped to the ground, slowly fading from consciousness. The last thing she saw before passing out completely was a large amount of pink.
Author's Note
Booyahkasha
Read mah blog post
For those that don't, I pose a question. Long chapters, or short chapters more often
Also, point out all my flaws and tease me about them til I fix them. :D
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Prologue 1: The Fall of Sombra and First Awakening
Spike ran as fast as he could down the spiral crystal, his arms holding the Crystal Heart against his chest. He had to deliver it to the crystal ponies waiting below, or the coming evil would swallow them all. As he descended, he noticed a line of black crystals rising rapidly from the ground, expanding in the direction of the Crystal Palace. The line suddenly stopped, and a crystal erupted from the ground at its end, the disembodied head of the dark king, Sombra, floating at the point. The sudden appearance of the evil king startled Spike, which, in turn, caused him to stumble. Not a good thing to do when running down a smooth crystal spiral. The Crystal Heart slipped from his grasp and fell over the edge of the crystal. Spike followed very close behind it. He found himself wishing his wings had grown already. Alas, he was but a young dragon, and it seemed his age would be the downfall of the Crystal Empire, as Sombra came closer and closer to the Heart. Spike closed his eyes, not wanting to witness what was about to happen.
Almost as soon as he closed his eyes, he felt himself no longer falling. I must have bit the dust…He thought to himself. Then he opened his eyes. Instead of the darkness he had expected, he saw light. The Crystal Heart was floating in front of him, held by Cadence’s magic. The Princess of Love had caught them both! She quickly turned in the air and flew towards the base of the palace, where the Crystals power could be utilized to purge the Crystal Empire of evil.
“The Crystal Heart has returned! Use the light and love within you to ensure King Sombra does not!”
The Heart began to shine as the crystal ponies channeled their love of their princess, and their love of their Empire through it. As the brightness began to rival that of the sun, it began to spin. An orb of power appeared around the gem, expanding rapidly. The black crystals shattered on contact with the orb. When the orb reached Sombra, he tried to block the light with his forelegs. As he attempted to peer between, he noticed a series of cracks running through his body. As he felt himself coming apart, he let out a final scream of defiance. His body shattered into miniscule pieces, scattering in the wind. The ponies cheered as they witnessed Sombra’s demise. However, one pony was not cheering.
Twilight Sparkle sat at the top of the Crystal Palace. She had given a shout of joy at seeing the dark king brought low, but her triumph was short lived. Having always been fascinated with magic, she had her eye on the orb of light that was still expanding outward. She watched as the orb suddenly stopped, right at the border of the empire, then fade away. The clouds of Darkness that Sombra had been controlling were unaffected by the power of the Crystal Heart, and even now were beginning to slowly invade the newly purified land.
The ponies on the ground were too caught up in their celebration to notice the cloud until it was halfway to the Palace. Panic quickly set in. The cloud seemed to take strength from this, as it began to move faster. As it neared the palace, the cloud began to rise, slowly churning as it climbed the palace walls. Twilight lost sight of her friends for a moment, but could barely make out Rarity’s horn as it lit up in the darkness. She continued to watch as the cloud reached the top and began to seep past her hooves, moving towards the insignia on the floor of the tower. As the cloud passed her, she felt her skin crawl. Wherever it made contact with her, it left a feeling of extreme dirtiness. As much as it disturbed her, she needed to know what was going on. But all the same, something had to be done about her hooves.
Her horn lit up as a small bubble formed around her. The cloud passed around this shield, seemingly uninterested. Twilight watched as the darkness made contact with the symbol on the floor. The symbol ignited in green flame, and the whole tower shuddered as a booming, malicious laugh echoed through the land. The shuddering grew more and more violent, until Twilight no longer felt safe.
“Buck this!” Twilight exclaimed as the vibrations nearly caused her to topple off the edge of the tower. Looking down, she noticed her friends running away. They had somehow gotten through the cloud to the other side. Rainbow Dash was already on the way to the tower to collect her. She quickly teleported to her friends on the ground. Rainbow Dash noticed the light and looked back to see her friend appear safely with the group. She high-tailed it back.
“What’s going on, Cadence?” Twilight inquired. “This is definitely dark magic, but not any I’ve seen or heard of.”
“I do not know either, Twilight.” Cadence frowned. She had thought the Crystal Heart would save her people from the darkness, but the current situation spoke volumes in opposition to that.
By this time, the darkness had almost completely ascended the tower. The visible bottom of the Palace looked similar to Sombra’s castle, dark and foreboding, and every area that the cloud slowly revealed compounded this appearance. As the last of the darkness reached the top, a concussive blast tore through the air. The force of the blast was so great that it picked up the group of refugees and flung them into the arctic wasteland surrounding the Empire. Twilight screamed as the snowy ground flew up to meet her face. She blacked out on contact.
Noises.
Loud noises.
She just wanted to sleep…
“How is she doing?” A familiar voice asked.
“P-princess!” Twilight sputtered, bolting awake. “I-I’m fine! What are you…doing…here? Um…”
Twilight looked around. She was in a hospital bed, an IV attached to her foreleg. Her gazed shifted to the large white alicorn standing a few feet from her bed. Celestia eyed her student worryingly.
“Checking up on your health. You took quite a beating out there.” The regal mare responded.
The last few moments of consciousness returned to Twilight.
“Princess! What happened to the Crystal Empire? We beat Sombra, then there was a dark cloud, and an explosion, and-“
“I already know what happened, Twilight. Your friends woke before you and gave me all the details.” Celestia told her. She turned to the doctor. “How is her health?”
“Her physical injuries have healed. All we were waiting for was for her to awaken.” The doctor stated while walking up to the bedside. “If I may?” The stallion asked Twilight, gesturing with the flat end of his stethoscope.
Twilight nodded. He placed the earpieces into his ears and listened to several places on her chest. Seemingly satisfied, he made a note on the clipboard hanging from her bed, before removing the stethoscope and picking up an otoscope, which he placed against her ear and peered into.
As he worked, he filled Twilight in on her condition, and that of her friends.
“When your group came in, there seemed to be no external damage, aside from punctured eardrums. Yours have healed nicely, by the way,” he stated, putting down the otoscope and picking up a pen. “Follow this with your eyes please” He said, moving the pen slowly to the left and right. “The amount of internal damage was rather bad though. The concussive blast caused multiple ruptures in your bodies.”
“How are my friends doing?” Twilight asked, anxious to hear how they had healed.
“Fine, mostly. I’ll let them tell you themselves.” He replied. He wrote a few more things on the clipboard, then turned to her again. “Everything seems to be fine now. Would you like to try walking?”
“Yes, please,” She said, eager to find out more about the incident.
“Alright then, let’s take this nice and slow- wait on a sec now!” The doctor exclaimed as Twilight practically launched herself out of the bed. She landed on her hooves before collapsing to the ground.
“How long have I been in bed?” Twilight asked, staring at her hooves as if they were a strangers.
“It’s been four days, Twilight.” Celestia, who had remained quiet throughout the checkup, spoke softly. Her horn glowed briefly, and Twilight felt warmth return to her legs.
“That long? What’s happened while I was out? Is the Crystal Empire okay? D-Did I pass the test?” She whispered the last question nervously.
“The test was cancelled, Twilight. We will talk more about it later, once you’ve had a chance to catch up with your friends.” Celestia replied, before opening the door, revealing said friends. They immediately pushed into the room, pelting her with questions.
"Twilight! Are you okay?" Asked the small dragon that had wrapped its arms around her neck.
"I'm...fine...Spike" Twilight gasped as Spike's arms tightened.
"YAY! That means we can finally throw our Come-Back-From-The-Crystal-Empire-Alive party!" Pinkie Pie squealed in excitement. "Oh, I've got so much to do! Balloons, streamers, cake, invitations..."
"I think it can wait til we get back to Ponyville, Pinkie.." Twilight said with a giggle. Pinkie simply beamed.
"Aww, I knew she'd be fine. Nothing can keep Twilight down for long." Rainbow Dash commented, walking over to Twilight and giving her a rather rough slap on the back. Twilight had to struggle to keep her balance.
"Oof! Well, I'm glad we all made it back in one piece" Twilight happily said.
"As am I." Celestia spoke. The questions died down as attention turned to her. "As much as I'd like to let you celebrate, there is much to explain, and time is short. Please, follow me to the throne room."
"I'm sure you all have questions about what happened." Celestia began. "I have quite a few myself. But I do have some answers, which I will now share with you." Celestia faced her throne, and a single beam of light traveled from her horn to a small gem above where she usually sits. Her throne silently slid to the right, revealing a stairway.
"Great. Even more stairs..." Twilight remarked sarcastically. The others just giggled. Celestia silenced them with a glance.
"What I am about to show you is a secret only myself and Luna know of. It involves the Elements of Harmony, and I think you will need the power hidden here to combat the evil that was released by Sombra's death." Celestia spoke softly as they descended the stairs.
The stairs went down in a spiral before opening in to a corridor. The corridor was carved with inscriptions in a language Twilight could not understand.
"What language is this, Princess? I don't think I've seen these characters before..."
"You would not have, Twilight. This language is not from this world. Allow me to explain what I know. Back before the incident with Nightmare Moon, my sister and I ruled Equestria from the Royal Castle of the Alicorn Sisters, where you first discovered the Elements of Harmony and used them to defeat Nightmare Moon. Back then, the Everfree forest did not exist. We chose to build the castle there because of the fertile land around it, and because the area had an unusually high concentration of magic. This is back when we were younger, and needed more power to move the sun and moon and still protect our ponies."
Celestia stopped for a moment, her horn glowing. Twilight felt something in the air snap and realized that the princess herself had placed magical wards through this corridor. Celestia continued walking and talking.
"One day, we discovered a secret chamber underneath the castle. Inside this chamber was a large crystal. This crystal is where the abundant magic came from. With direct access to the source, we were able to utilize more of its power, and Equestria quickly expanded and flourished. Realizing that this could be a breakthrough in the origins of magic. We set up a team to scour the land, looking for other magical signals similar to the crystals. We found one. Which is why, after the rise of Nightmare Moon, I moved the capital here. Deep in this mountain, we found another crystal.
After listening to the story, Twilight inferred that they were headed to this second crystal. She began feeling the air for any strange signals. The amount of magic in the air was definitely greater than usual, but nothing strange. She looked up at her mentor, wondering if it was something only an alicorn could sense. But didn't she make a team of other ponies to find more? Which means she should be able to sense it.
Just as Twilight opened her mouth to voice her thoughts, Celestia's horn lit up again. Another snap was felt in the air, and suddenly, a foreign energy touched her horn. It sent shivers down her spine, all the way to the base of her tail. Glancing over, she saw Rarity shiver in much the same way.
"Good heavens! Is that the energy you were talking about, Princess?" Rarity asked.
"It is, though it is differs slightly from the first crystal's signal. I had to place wards to keep curious ponies from discovering this place." There was a flash of light, and a golden box appeared next to Celestia. The box opened, revealing the Elements of Harmony.
"My sister and I are not sure why, but the Elements seem to give off a reaction to the signal. I ask that you put them on before we continue."
Twilight looked in the box and saw that the elements were indeed reacting. They were giving off a slight glow, and her tiara was vibrating slightly, though when she put it on, it stopped its vibrations.The others put their Elements on, and the box disappeared in a flash of sunlight.
"Let us continue." Celestia turned and began walking again. Her story, however, was apparently over.
After a few more minutes of walking, they came to a door. Celestia's horn lit up again, and several snaps could be felt. As the last snap faded from existence, Celestia used a hoof to push the door open slowly, then gestured for them to enter.
The first thing Twilight noticed was, obviously, the crystal. Back in the Crystal Empire, she had seen entire buildings made of crystal. It was impressive, but it was done with magic. The crystal before her though. It was huge, and seemed to be growing naturally out of the wall of the chamber. The crystal was a stunning shade of red, and was hanging out from the wall over a pit. There was a burning light rising up from the pit, and Twilight could smell the molten rock at the bottom.
The second thing she noticed was the dais in front of the pit. A series of round steps led up to the raised platform, upon which rested a large stone slab similar to an altar. The light reflecting off the crystal from the lava below shined upon a small item upon said altar.
The third thing she noticed was Rarity slowly walking towards the giant red crystal, apparently oblivious to the lava pit.
"Rarity, stop!" Called out Twilight as she started to run for her friend. Rainbow Dash ran past her, catching Rarity and grabbing hold of her, pulling her back.
"Snap out of it, Rarity!" Rainbow Dash pleaded.
"But its just so big and...shiny...MINE!" Rarity shouted, redoubling her efforts.
"ENOUGH!"
Everyone, Rarity included, turned to look at the delicate looking Celestia, a hoof covering her mouth.
"Excuse me..."
Rarity slumped down, the sudden adrenaline rush wearing off. She looked back at the shining hunk of rock, before looking below said rock.
"That could have ended badly..." She said
"Yeah, no kidding..." retorted Rainbow Dash as she rolled her eyes and released Rarity
Celestia stepped forward. "Twilight, I'd like you to examine the item on the dais. I believe the Element of Magic held the strongest reaction to this place. See if it tells you anything."
Twilight did as her teacher asked, approaching the altar and looking at the item placed upon it. It looked similar to Spikes claws, except longer, and rounder at the tips. Two of these round claws rested upon the altar, a small band upon each one. Each of the bands looked different from the other, and a small magical field emanated from them. Other than that, there was nothing out of the ordinary.
"All that's up here are these strange claw figures." She reported, reaching a hoof out to touch one. As her hoof made contact, she felt a jolt of energy. Her Element suddenly began thrumming with power.
"Twilight, whats goin' on up there?" Applejack called out.
Twilight couldn't hear her. All she could do was listen to the roar of power her tiara was emitting.
The crystal shifted.
The rest of the group jumped at the sudden sound, and began stepping back as the crystal slowly began to remove itself from the wall.
Twilight saw the crystal move, and watched as it now pulled itself from the wall and floated across the pit, coming to a stop before the altar. Her Element told her to stand upon the altar. So she did. Here Element told her to press her horn to the crystal. So she did. Her Element told her to accept the contract. What contract? Doesn't matter. She accepted.
Celestia watched as her prized student pressed her horn to the crystal. A bright light flared as thousands of cracks formed across the surface of the glittering jewel. Through the light, Twilight silhouette could be seen leaning farther, and farther, and farther...until she fell off the altar. Straight into the pit.
With a cry of alarm, Celestia moved to rescue her pupil. At that moment, the crystal shattered, letting off a booming report that echoed loudly in the chamber. The shock wave threw Celestia against the far wall, where she stayed, help down by some sort of magical pressure. She pushed against the pressure with her magic, but to no avail. She couldn't push back if she didn't know what was pushing her. She noticed the others all held to the ground in a similar manner. Returning her attention to the pit she had just watched her favorite student fall into, Celestia reached out with her magic, hoping to feel anything from Twilight. Instead her magic was severed. Violently. Imagine a rubber band, stretched beyond possibility, suddenly snapping back and hitting you. Now imagine the rubber back to be the size of a fire hose.
The recoil of her magic slammed her head against the wall. Celestia saw stars. Then she saw something much more pleasant, but much much worse at the same time.
Rising up from the pit, with the wings of a dragon on its back, was a bipedal creature. In the bipedal creatures arms lay the still body of Twilight.
Author's Note
If you see any errors, let me know.
This is the manifestation of an idea I've been kicking around for a while. Basically, after the prologue, I'm going to read any and all comments I get, and whatever most people think the adventurers should do next, will happen.
