//------------------------------//
// Chapter 18: Echoes of the Past 
// Story: The Powers of Harmony 
// by CyborgSamurai 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 18:


Echoes of the Past

 
Later That Day-
 
Twilight grunted as she was jolted out of slumber for the third time. She briefly thought about making another attempt, but then a second, bigger bump made her teeth rattle. She'd never even considered that trying to sleep on a train might be difficult, and was ill-prepared as a result. Piro had offered her a sedative, but she disliked the loopy feeling that lingered behind drug and magical-induced sleep, and so decided just to soldier through. She was at least glad she wasn’t cramped on top of it all, as Blair had talked her into springing for two separate compartments instead of trying to squish all four of them into one.
 
Making a noise of disgust, Twilight blearily opened her eyes and wearily re-examined her surroundings. The train compartment was a moderately-sized space with two couch seats sitting across from each other, with a foldout table underneath the window. The shades were currently pulled, and a set of tacky, leaf-themed, orange and red curtains hung from the top. The compartment was dark, but the window still emitted a dim light even through the thick shades.
 
Resigning herself to the few hours of sleep she’d got, Twilight magically opened the shades and allowed the late morning light to spill in, taking a look at the whizzing landscape beyond. The northern reaches of Equestria were comprised of thick coniferous forests, wide sloping valleys, and crystal clear rivers and lakes. Twilight saw that the train was now chugging at a decent clip along the edge of one of these valleys, which descended one hundred feet in a sheer, grass-covered cliffside before ending in a wide snaking river that meandered off to the west. The sky above was wispy, and the sun was almost at its zenith.
 
A low, rebellious moan came from the other couch seat. Twilight glanced over to see Blair, grimacing and covering his face. She hadn’t realized he’d been drinking until after they left the party, and it seemed that he hadn’t held back. She was at least grateful he'd been able to hold his liquor, as the last thing she’d wanted to do was have to carry him back to the library.
 
“For the love of Celestia," he growled, "close the shades.” 
 
Twilight did no such thing. “How can you sleep through all this noise and jostling around?” She reached up into the storage space above, searching for one of her bags.
 
Blair scooched away to escape the sun’s wrath. “Years of practice.” 
 
Twilight pulled out a thick book and sat back down. “Serves you right for drinking so much.”
 
Blair mumbled something intelligible, then rolled over and curled into the fetal position.
 
The door suddenly slid open, and Twilight looked up to see Piro and Ace outside.
 
“How’s the patient?” Piro asked as he walked in. Hovering before him was a mug of steaming liquid. Ace followed close behind.
 
Twilight snickered as she looked over at Blair’s curled form. “Miserable, by the looks of it.”
 
Piro gave his usual lopsided smirk as he looked over at Blair. “Aww, does Blairy-wairy got a case of the drunky-wunky icky-sickies?”
 
Blair opened his bloodshot eyes, shot Piro a look that promised pain and suffering, and then mashed his face back into the cushions.
 
“Well, if you’re going to be like that.” Piro offered the mug to Twilight instead. “Care for a family remedy? It’s supposed to be for hangovers, but it takes the edge off of sleep deprivation, too.”
 
Twilight didn’t get a chance to reply, as the mug then became enshrouded in a teal aura, and zipped over to Blair. He sat up and took a large swig of the liquid, but he immediately spat it out.
 
“Damn it, Piro!” Blair frantically waved his mouth while nursing his scalded tongue.
 
“Your own fault.” Piro focused on the stain of liquid on the floor, which became surrounded in a fiery glow. It began to give off steam again before completely evaporating into the air. “You know I like to boil my drinks.”
 
“Still could’ve warned me.” Blair’s horn flashed, and Twilight felt a tendril of cold air caress her face. Blair's breath came out in a fine mist as he blew on the mug,  after another, more cautionary sip, he downed the entire thing in a few gulps.
 
Ace rolled his eyes and took a seat beside Twilight. “Battlemages.” 
 
Twilight looked down at where the spot of liquid had just been seconds before, then up at Piro. “You’re a Battlemage, too?”
 
“No, no.” Piro kicked at Blair to make him sit up. “Ace was referring to our fearless leader, here. I may be a stallion of many talents, but even I have to sleep sometime.”
 
Twilight stared at the two stallions as they sat side by side. Blair’s mane and tail were short and unkempt while Piro’s were long and groomed. Blair was solid and well-muscled, Piro was thin and wiry. Blair was stoic and serious to a fault, Piro was emotional and witty.  They were both solid colors, with Blair’s teal almost directly contrasting Piro’s bloody red. Blair’s cutie mark was an omega symbol with a line underneath, and Piro’s was a stylized ‘M’ with an arrow on the end.
 
Piro raised an eyebrow as Twilight gave them both a once over. “Something wrong?”
 
Twilight shook her head. “It’s just hard to believe you guys are childhood friends. You’re so different, it seems like you wouldn’t get along at all.”
 
Piro shrugged. “Haven’t you heard that opposites attract? We’ve known each other long enough that we’ve gotten used to each other’s eccentricities. Familiarity breeds comfort, after all.”
 
“I think you mean contempt,” Ace said dryly.
 
“Maybe between you and me,” Piro said with a wink, “but that’s a special kind of hate.”
 
Ace rubbed his chin. “I knew there had to be some reason why I’ve saved your sorry flank so many times.”
 
Twilight looked over the normally silent guard. She barely knew anything about Ace other than that he apparently liked to paint. His body was lithe like a cat’s, his movements were fluid and supple, and his mane was parted to the left in a half-hearted gesture. He was the color of healthy grass, and his cutie mark was a pair of sideways sixes.
 
“Saved him?” Twilight repeated. “What do you mean?”
 
“I’m something like the muscle of the group,” Ace said with light sarcasm, looking over at the two stallions across the way. “Can’t tell you how many times I’ve turned away for five seconds, only to find these two neck-deep in some kind of trouble.”
 
Both Blair and Piro chuckled with sheepish looks on their faces.
 
“Don’t tell me you grew up with them, too,” Twilight said.
 
Ace shook his head. “Piro's got it right. We just know each other's 'eccentricities' by this point.”
 
Twilight nodded. “How long have you guys served together? Shining told me once that the trust and camaraderie between soldiers could almost be considered as a kind of family.”
 
Ace coughed and looked pointedly over at Piro.
 
“Twenty years,” Piro said without hesitation. “Hard to believe it’s been that long sometimes.”
 
“Oh, well that would make—“ Twilight did a double take. “Twenty years?”
 
Blair tried to elbow Piro, but he moved farther down the couch. “Yep,” Piro said without any note of jest. “Two decades.”
 
Twilight stared at him. She didn’t exactly make it a hobby to guess other ponies’ ages, but Piro only looked to be in his mid twenties. For all of them to have served together for twenty years would make each of them thirty-eight at the very least!
 
“How old are you guys?” Twilight asked.
 
“This is a bad way to tell her,” Blair hissed.
 
“You're implying there’s a good way,” Piro drawled. “No more excuses. Either take charge, or sit back and enjoy the show.”
 
Twilight’s throat went dry. “What’s going on?”
 
Piro raised a hoof to his chin. “Hmm, where to begin?”
 
“Just come out and say it,” Ace squared his shoulders. “Twilight, we’re not what you think we are.”
 
Twilight blinked. “I—buh?”
 
Piro facehooved. “Okay, that was a bad way to tell her.”
 
 “What?!” Ace demanded. “It’s the truth, isn’t it?”
 
“Yes,” Piro said patiently, “but now she’s going to think—“
 
Twilight snapped back to reality. “You’re not from the Royal Guard?!”
 
“—that,” Piro finished.
 
“We are,” Blair said quickly, glaring at Piro and Ace. “We were sent by Celestia herself to guard and protect you. That’s not what these idiots meant.”
 
The tension in the air was palpable, and it didn’t exactly help matters that Twilight now realized she was surrounded in a small, enclosed space. Ace had flattened his ears, and Piro was shaking his head with a clenched jaw.  
 
“T-Then what did you mean?” Twilight stammered.
 
“Calm down,” Blair said soothingly. “We’re going to tell you everything. In a nutshell, I misunderstood the Princesses’s orders, so if this is anypony’s fault, it’s mine.”
 
“Don’t go hogging all the blame,” Piro said with a bitter tinge. “You may be responsible for the latest batch, but there’s plenty to go around.”
 
Twilight felt a pit in her stomach. She had no idea what they were talking about, but she could tell from all their hesitant expressions that this wasn’t a small thing.
 
Twilight steadied her breathing. “Tell me what this is about.”
 
Blair stamped down his desire to throttle Piro and looked over at Twilight. “I wanted to do this somewhere with a little more room so you wouldn’t feel threatened, but since Piro feels that now’s a good time, you’ll just have to trust us.”
 
He then reached up into his own compartment, and hovered out a hefty book to give to Twilight. She took it and inspected the cover.
 
‘Daunting Divination Discoveries, by Arch-Magus Clear Sight. Third Edition.’  Twilight narrowed her eyes as she 
noticed the familiar dark splotch on the lower left side of the cover. “Did you take this from the library?”
 
Blair held up a small library card with his signature on it. “Legitimately.”
 
Twilight resisted the urge to verify his claim and instead turned her attention back to the tome, which had a thin, teal bookmark sticking out of it. Curious, she opened the book to the indicated page.
 
“Truesight?” Twilight looked up at the three guards, who were staring at her like she was about to jump off a cliff. “Why do you want me to cast this?”
 
Piro chuckled. “Only one way to find out, isn’t there? Don’t worry, I promise we’re not going to drain your magical font.”
 
Blair smacked Piro upside the head with a dull thunk.
 
“You’re incorrigible, you know that?!”
 
“I’ve been called worse.” Piro rubbed the spot where he’d been struck, but didn't retaliate.
 
Twilight was surprised by Blair’s reaction, but then reconsidered. Truesight bypassed even the strongest Illusion spells and showed magically altered objects as they truly were, but wasn’t very useful because it cost so much energy to cast. Most unicorns would completely drained afterwards, and while the good doctor happened to know that that wasn’t going to be a problem for Twilight, Blair, however, didn't.
 
“You want me to cast this now, then?” Twilight asked.
 
Blair nodded. “It's the best way to start.”
 
Her curiosity and suspicions aroused, Twilight took a moment to memorize the specifics of the spell before getting up and standing with her back to the window. She widened her stance and lowered her horn, preparing to draw energy from her font.
 
“One last thing,” Blair said.
 
Twilight stopped. “Hmm?”
 
“Just, um...” Blair trailed off as he looked towards the door.
 
Twilight cocked her head. “Just what?”
 
Blair mumbled something, but Twilight couldn’t hear him over the noise of the train.
 
Twilight leaned forward. “Speak louder.”
 
Blair sighed and turned back to Twilight. His ears were drooped, and he hunched down into his seat as he muttered two words.
 
“Don’t scream.”
 
Twilight lowered her chin. Did he think she was some little filly? She was the personal protégée of the Princess, one of the six who had defeated Nightmare Moon and saved Equestria from darkness eternal! If she could go hoof-to-hoof with one of the most powerful and terrifying creatures in all of history, she could face whatever surprise these three simple guards had in store for her!
 
Twilight said nothing more. She closed her eyes, and felt the magic draw from the segmented portion of her font. The spell greedily consumed it all, and then began to draw from the main portion instead. She shuddered at the unfamiliar sensation of being drained, but gasped as she realized the spell had only taken away a fraction of her reserves. She made a mental note to take an actual measurement of her font later.
 
Twilight felt a flush of warmth in her face as the Truesight spell completed, and she opened her eyes.
 
“AUGH!”
 
Twilight became a lavender blur as she jumped up on the seat and shrank into the far corner of the compartment. Blair, Ace and Piro were now eyeless ghosts comprised of translucent, flowing energy, colored the same as their coats. The shape of their manes and frames were the same, but the other features of their bodies were lost. Most noticeable of all though was the golden, pulsing sphere that was lodged in each of their chests.
 
“Nice set of lungs there.” Ace rubbed his ears. The door was encased in a green aura.
 
“Don’t know why I even bothered,” Blair muttered.
 
“Y-You’re…” Twilight squeaked and shrunk even farther into the corner. “Echoes.”
 
Piro jovially waved at Twilight as if they were meeting for the first time.
 
Blair examined his hoof, which looked completely normal to him. “I assume you've an idea of what Echoes are.”
 
Twilight had more than just an idea, Celestia had gone over them in their studies on forbidden magic! Echoes were bodiless, ageless magical constructs comprised of the memories and personality of a living being up to the point it was created. They fed on magical energy, and had the ability to store a near infinite amount of it for later consumption and use. They had a great many limitations, such as not being self-sustaining and needing a host to survive, but that particular drawback was what also made them so dangerous, as they could use any conduit or container of magic as a host... including living beings.
 
Twilight gulped.
 
Ace snorted at the terror in Twilight's eyes. “The reports of our abilities are greatly exaggerated.”
 
Piro leaned back on the seat. “We have rules, Twilight, just like everything else in the world. We can’t just jump into you and take control, and even if we could, you’re not an ideal host.”
 
Twilight’s panic attack was thrown off-kilter. Not an ideal host?! She was a literal lake of magic! She’d have enough to sustain all three of them indefinitely at the rate her font was growing, how could she not be good enough… for…wait.
 
Did she actually just take that as an insult?
 
“You're not helping.” Blair shot the other two Echoes a dirty look.
 
“We're helping more than you have in the last three weeks.” Piro's eyes were locked on Twilight's face, watching as she wrestled with her inner turmoil. “Echoes are forbidden magic. You know that, we know that. Your head is exploding with questions, but most of all, you're wondering if we're looking at you like you're the main course at a buffet. The answer is no. We already have a host, and we can't leave him, because if we did, very, very bad things would happen.”
 
“The least of which being that he'd die,” Ace said darkly.
 
Twilight stared at the two of them for a moment. That revelation definitely helped, but it wasn't quite enough to quell the fear of having her magic devoured by a trio of energy clones. Her instincts were still very strongly insisting that she was surrounded by a group of predators, and needed to get away by the fastest means possible. She probably would’ve already teleported by now had they not ben on a train, and that pesky law of conservation of momentum would result in a bone-breaking crash.
 
Twilight looked over to Blair. “Um...”
 
Blair sighed. “This is why I didn’t want to do this here. Now that tact’s thrown out the window though, it’s probably better to just throw the facts at you. You're in no danger, Twilight. It's true that we can reside in anything that can store magic, but as Piro pointed out, living beings make for terrible hosts. They have complete access to our thoughts and memories, can kick us out at any time, and have to be willing to accept us in the first place. There’s also the whole thing that we need magic to survive, and that puts a constant drain on a living host. If an Echo has a choice between residing in a living being or an artifact, we’ll take the latter every time.”
 
 “If it’s any consolation,” Piro offered, “I’m sure your magic is very tasty.”
 
Blair groaned. “You need to stop talking.”
 
Twilight logic was slowly regaining dominance as her eyes swept over the three guard’s alien bodies. She’d heard stories about Echoes outside of Celestia's lessons, the most famous of which being a Magus that stored an Echo in a powerful artifact, leaving it to be found by a foolhardy treasure hunter. The Echo possessed him, stole his magic, then tried to find a way to resurrect the Magus. Twilight knew that Echoes could copy the magical signature of their host and therefore hide completely undetected, so it didn’t make sense that her guards would willingly reveal themselves if they wanted to possess her. They’d had dozens of opportunities to do so anyway, and they hadn’t shown any signs of aggression in all the time they’d been around her. Piro was right that her mind was overflowing with questions, and it seemed like that they’d be willing to answer them if she gave them the chance.
 
Piro withheld a victorious smirk as he watched as Twilight’s fear melt away. He'd known that this wasn’t as much of a gamble as Blair feared, as the Element of Magic wouldn’t allow Twilight to pass up such a ripe opportunity to learn about something so unique and foreign. Twilight was right on the edge—all she needed now was one last little push.
 
“Come on.” Piro leaned forward. “Aren’t you curious?”
 
The word hit Twilight like a bludgeon. It triggered a jolt in her core that smashed away the last vestiges of reluctance, sparking outward and flowing into her limbs like a crackling river of electricity. She blinked, and a dim, glittering white spark appeared in the depths of her pupils.
 
Twilight slowly inched out of the corner, her panic now replaced by a look of hunger born of an intense desire to know. Her mind was struck with a sudden clarity, and the pieces of information were falling beautifully in place before her.
 
“Oh, I'm curious alright.” Twilight’s voice was low and quiet. “I recognize the transdimensional anchors in your chests. You’re sharing a host, aren’t you? He must be packing some serious magic to be able to sustain all three of you, whoever… and wherever he is.”
 
“His name’s Horizon,” Ace replied, “and it’s more accurate to say that he’s made of magic. Oh, and there’s twelve of us, not three. The only guard who isn’t an Echo is Vigil.”
 
Twilight hopped off the seat. “Twelve Echoes sharing a single host? Interesting, very interesting. I thought that was a Disguise spell you have on at first, but now I see it’s more advanced than that. Blair has a hangover right now, and I’ve seen all of you perform other biological functions. I’d say it’s a Polymorph spell, but Polymorph only works on living targets. In order to transmute your forms, and then to make said transmutation permanent… I can only think of one pony that could’ve done that for twelve of you.”
 
Twilight’s glittering eyes twinkled as she looked at Blair. “Which makes sense, seeing as she’s the one who sent you.”
 
Piro snickered. “Should we let her keep going? She might just figure out everything on her own.”
 
Blair ignored him and kept his attention on Twilight. “Will you give us the chance to explain ourselves?”
 
“I have a question before that,” Twilight said, her voice picking up speed. “As Piro pointed out, the creation of Echoes is unbelievably illegal. So much so that making just one is enough to earn you a life sentence in prison. For you to be in the voluntary employ of the Princess implies that Horizon’s continued existence outweighs the potential hazards and penalties of creating twelve Echoes, and for her to then send the twelve of you to the six of us suggests that this is a very delicate, dangerous matter that requires the Elements of Harmony. I’m the personal protégée of Princess Celestia, and my friends are all completely loyal to the nation of Equestria. I think I speak for all six of us when I say we have nothing but the country’s best interests at heart. If we'd known Horizon's life is at stake, we would've gone and helped him immediately. The Princess knows that, so it's safe to say there are one or more unknown factors forcing her silence and caused her to send you instead.”
 
Twilight was talking so fast that Blair could barely understand what she was saying. He shook his head clear and focused on the main point of Twilight’s speech.
 
“What’s your question?”
 
Twilight fell silent, staring hard at Blair with her dim, glowing eyes.
 
“Why are you really here?”
 
The energy in Blair’s body swirled faster. “Do you have a mirror?”
 
Twilight cocked her head. “I have one in my bags. What does—“
 
A small smile played on Blair’s lips. “Showing's better than telling.”
 
Twilight frowned at the cryptic response, but did as she was told. A small hand-mirror floated out of her bags from above.
 
“Okay, what does—“
 
Twilight froze as she caught her reflection, luminant eyes and all.
 
“Oooooh.”
 
It all suddenly made sense. Shining Armor’s statement, why only she and her friends could use the Elements, their strange reactions to the Symbols, the way her mind felt like it’d been injected with a syringe of understanding, her font growing off the charts. The Elements hadn’t just left their mark on her and her friends, they’d actually infused them with their power and now the effects were beginning to show. Celestia hadn’t sent these Echoes to guard them, but to watch to make sure they didn’t hurt themselves. No wonder Blair had been acting like he’d been walking on eggshells around her, he knew about her font and probably thought she was a ticking time bomb!
 
Twilight wiped her bangs away to get a better look. This certainly did explain a lot, but nowhere near everything. Why'd this Horizon need the Elements so badly? How much of their power did she and her friends receive? What were all the effects? If there were twelve Echoes and six of them, why was a thirteenth pony that was flesh and blood brought into the mix? How in the world were these Echoes made in the first place? And most of all, why hadn’t the Princess just told them about all this herself?
 
“Pretty cool, huh?” Ace said.
 
Twilight slowly lowered the mirror. “I think it's storytime.”
 
“I think you’re right.” Piro cracked his neck with a loud pop. “Would you prefer the cut and dry version, or do you trust us enough to give you a more interactive experience?”
 
Twilight scrunched her eyebrows. “Depends on what the interactive experience entails.”
 
“Piro…” Blair began.
 
Piro’s eyes twinkled with mischief. “We’re not going to leave Horizon, for reasons you’re about to understand, but if we were, the way we’d do it is by making contact with the new host and switching over. During that process, the Echo is in contact with both minds.”
 
“I don’t think I’m quite ready for that,” Twilight admitted. “I’m still getting over the shock of what all of this means.”
 
“Oh, well that’s a shame.” The disappointment in Piro's voice almost sounded sincere. “I was looking forward to showing you our memories of the War of the Sun and Moon. You know, because we were there.”
 
The white light in Twilight’s eyes glinted. “You were... there?”
 
“You know, I think proper introductions are in order.” Piro stood up, and with a sweeping motion of his forehoof, lowered himself in an elegant bow.
 
“Fair maiden Twilight Sparkle, Bearer of Magic and protégée of Her Excellency Princess Celestia. I am Pirosco, Echo of Scorpio, Medic and Seneschal of the Order of the Zodiac.”
 
Twilight’s jaw dropped. “Order of the Zodiac?!”
 
Ace also got to his hooves and bowed low before Twilight. “Tis a pleasure to finally lift the veil from thine eyes. I am Accern, Echo of Cancer, High Swordstallion, wielder of the Cardinal Blades and Knight of the Order of the Zodiac.”
 
Twilight dumbly beheld the two stallions bowing before her. If she’d had any doubts about their claims, they were long banished now. Old Equestrian was a long-dead style of speaking that was only used in plays and poetry. She turned to Blair, remembering that he’d mentioned there were twelve knights in that order. There were twelve Echoes sent to guard them, and from what she’d seen of the guards when they were around Blair, they all seemed to hold him with a mixture of respect… and fear.
 
Twilight’s lips parted. “You’re the leader, aren’t you Blair?”
 
“Where art thy manners, boorish lout?!” Piro sneered. “We hath wronged the student of our liege with deception and ignorance! Introduce thyself at once, if thou wishest to preserve even a shred of thy honor!”
 
That did it. Blair sprung off the seat and loomed over Piro, his nostrils flaring. “Thou wouldst invoke the old ways in attempt to reprimand me?! Remember thy place, Seneschal! Thy barbed tongue is tolerated due to the wisdom hidden amongst thy cynicism, but thou knowest better than to question my honor!”
 
Blair and Piro locked gazes for a moment. Finally, Piro relented and lowered his gaze to the ground.
 
“Apologies… Grandmaster.”
 
Blair flinched at Piro’s sarcastic enunciation of his title, but decided not to press it. Instead, he closed his eyes and spoke in a formal tone.
 
“My apologies Twilight Sparkle, it seems a paltry forty-seven years is not enough time to achieve perfection in all things. I am Blair, Echo of Libra, Battlemage and Knight-Grandmaster of the Order of the Zodiac. Forgive mine error in misleading thee all this time. It is not my wont to keep secrets.”
 
Now Twilight was confused. “Forty-seven? How can you be that young if your originals were alive during the war?”
 
“There are three ways we can measure our age.” Piro straightened and switched back to modern grammar. “By the age of our host, the time of our creation, or the age of our predecessors when we were created, combined with our current age.”
 
“Which is twenty-two, one thousand, or late forties,” Ace went and sat back down. “Fifties actually, in my case.”
 
The Element of Magic flickered again, sending a powerful shock through Twilight’s brain. She squinted as she sorted through her thoughts with lightning speed. It was rumored that Echoes could lie dormant for exceedingly long periods of time by placing themselves in a kind of suspended animation, but such a state left them vulnerable to exposure and therefore was only done as a last resort. The Princess must’ve done something in order for them to safely sleep for so long, and Twilight was burning to know what it was. These three were survivors of a forgotten age, literal repositories of lost information. Nopony save for the Princess knew exactly what happened in the War of the Sun and Moon, and she’d obviously taken great pains to keep the specifics lost to time. Twilight had searched and searched, but all she’d ever found from that time period were legends and myths, and the inconsistency made her want to slam her head into a wall. Now not only was Piro offering to tell her anything she wanted, but to let her see a fragment of lost history with her own eyes. There were so many questions, and here were all the answers. 
 
Twilight turned back to Piro, a faint resonance now laced into her voice. “Show me your memories.”
 
Piro gave a half-smirk. “I knew you’d see things my way.”
 
Blair nervously shifted as he looked between the two. “We don’t have—“
 
“Your hesitance alone is proof of your intentions,” Twilight said haughtily. “I know Piro is goading me, but I suspect it’s because he doesn’t want to listen to you drone on for hours. If any of you really wanted to possess me, then this was the stupidest thing you could’ve done, and while you did make a mistake Blair, that doesn’t make you an imbecile or a cunning mastermind. I believe what you’re saying is the truth, and I'm not going to let a little trepidation stop me from the opportunity of a lifetime.”
 
Piro burst out laughing. “I can at least confirm that Blair is  not a mastermind.”
 
Blair ran a hoof through his mane. Twilight didn’t understand that she was asking to see what hell looked like. He didn’t want to shoulder the burden of exposing an innocent soul to the horrors of war, but he also knew she wasn’t going to let up. Twilight’s assumptions so far had been dead-on thanks to her Thirst for Knowledge power, but they longer he held out, the greater the chance she might misinterpret something, and the less forgiving she was likely to be.
 
And he really, really didn’t want to make her mad right now.
 
“All right,” Blair finally said, “but only if you let us show you how we came to be first. The war itself doesn’t have a lot to do with what’s going on right now—“
 
Piro shot Blair a questioning glance.
 
“Okay, it does,” Blair corrected, “ and I promise we'll tell you everything eventually, but it’s going to be easier to understand if you let us go in a certain order.”
 
Twilight’s eyes gleamed. “As long as you tell me everything, I don’t care where you start. What do I have to do?”
 
Blair extended a forehoof. “Just take my hoof, and relax.”
 
Twilight stepped forward, and slowly, tentatively, touched his ghostly limb.
 
It wasn’t instant. Twilight stood there holding his hoof for a few seconds, feeling her ears burn. Blair betrayed no indication of any effort on his part, and she was beginning to suspect she'd been led on when suddenly, a foreign tendril of thought roughly jabbed her mind. Its touch was like ice, and it sent an involuntary spasm through her body.
 
Twilight recoiled and slapped Blair across the face.
 
“Agh!” He fell back. “What was that for?!”
 
“Was that you?!” Twilight stared at Blair in shock. “Why the hay are you so cold?”
 
Blair glared at her as he clutched the side of his face. “I was trying to show you why.”
 
“Swing and a miss?” Piro asked.
 
Blair rubbed his head. “Oh, she hit all right.”
 
“Sorry!” Twilight said. “I wasn’t expecting that. I guess I didn’t know what to expect.”
 
“Each Echo’s touch feels different.” Piro watched Twilight rub her forearms. “I’m guessing that Blair's wasn't very pleasant?”
 
Twilight shivered. “It felt like he was going to suck all the warmth out of me.”
 
Piro patted the spot next to him on the seat. “Here, sit down and try it with me. This is gonna get tiring if we do it while standing.”

Twilight flushed, but conceded the point. She went over the seat and sat beside Piro, who chuckled as he watched her fidget beside him.
 
“Don't worry, I promise I'll be gentle. It's your first time, after all.”
 
Twilight was about to retort when she felt flicker of heat brush against her mind. Remembering the last time, she reluctantly relaxed and let the sensation wrap itself around her mind.
 
That wasn’t so bad, was it?

Twilight blinked. The voice was Piro’s, but had come from inside her head. She glanced down and around. “How—”

You're leaning back on my tail.

Twilight swiveled her head. Sure enough, she saw the furry appendage crushed against her back. “Oops.” Twilight rubbed the back of her neck. “Does this mean it worked, though?”

Piro tapped his head.  You can just speak with your thoughts and I'll hear you.  I’m still connected to Horizon, but I’ve extended a portion of my consciousness to connect with yours. Want Blair to do it now?

Twilight glanced at Blair out of the corner of her eye. Um... yes but, could you stay? His touch is freezing, and you’re actually kind of hot and—

Piro waggled his eyebrows.

She swatted him. Not like that.
 
Piro’s laughter reverberated in her mind. I don’t think it’d work out between us anyway. Celestia told me that Scorpio was divorced three times. Can’t imagine why, though…

Twilight could think of a few reasons, but wisely kept them to herself.

Piro gestured for Blair to sit on the other side of Twilight. Let's have Blair try now—just don't slap him this time.

Blair sat down and touched Twilight's right shoulder. She held her breath as she felt his frigid presence creep up and brush against her consciousness, which was much more cautious this time. It gingerly spread itself out and enveloped her mind, much like Piro’s had.
 
Blair stared inquiringly at Twilight. Can you hear me?
 
It was still mildly uncomfortable, but Piro’s heat took the edge off of Blair’s chill. Twilight nodded. I think this’ll work.

Blair flexed his jaw. Good, because that really hurt.

Twilight felt a slight flutter in her gut as she realized she was sitting between two stallions. This is going to be awkward if somepony walks in on us.
 
Piro glanced at their fourth companion, whose horn was still glowing. That'd be why Ace is watching the door. Now, are you ready?
 
For what? Twilight asked.
 
A vague, blurry image appeared in her mind’s eye, followed by a surge of emotion and collection of input from all five senses. Twilight instinctively resisted it, and the image shattered into a million pieces.
 
What was that?!

Blair swished his tail. You need to be willing to accept our memories in order for us to show them to you. If you don’t, they’ll bounce off your psyche like we’d thrown them against a wall.

Twilight watched in awe as the last fragments of the memory faded away into nothingness. Curious, she pushed against Blair’s presence on her mind, and found she could peel him off with little resistance. It was like her brain was wrapped in a pair of blankets.
 
You really can’t do anything unless I allow it, huh?

Still had misgivings? Piro felt her continue to poke and prod at Blair. The only way an Echo can override a host is if he or she becomes incapacitated, like if they get knocked out, slip into a coma, or their mind gets shattered to pieces from being exposed to—heh, let's take this one step at a time.

So let me get this straight, Twilight said absentmindedly. Not only can you not show me anything unless I allow it, but I can kick you out at any time?

T-The most we could do is match your m-magical energy signature and hide ourselves away in y-your font. Blair was having trouble concentrating, as it felt like Twilight was sweeping him with a feather duster. Y-You’d feel it the minute we s-started draining it though, so we’d have to use our own reserves and… Twilight, that really tickles.

Twilight ceased her experimentation and let him be. Sorry.

Piro exhaled out his nose. Understand now why we prefer artifacts over living hosts?

Twilight nodded. This really was a raw deal for them. Do any of you have ‘reserves?’

Blair regained his composure. No, and you’ll find out why soon enough. Are you ready?
 
Twilight took a deep, calming breath, and closed her eyes. Show me.
 
A sense of weightlessness washed over Twilight, like she was sinking into a pool. The darkness of her mind receded, flowing outward into a landscape of incoherent blurs and colors. The foreign thoughts gained definition and shape, and Twilight realized with a start that she now stood in a familiar setting, although the last time she saw it, it was a little more… run-down.
 
Is this the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters?

Castle of the what?! Piro barked out a short laugh. This is Old Canterlot Castle, or just Canterlot Castle, as we called it. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised they romanticized it, but really, ‘Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters?’ That’d be a mouthful to say all the time.
 
Twilight was in an ornate cobblestone courtyard filled with well-dressed ponies and lined with guardsponies, one of which was a familiar shade of teal. There was a band playing, and ponies conversed with each other in a style lost to time. Princess Celestia was there overseeing the celebration, garbed in a magnificent flowing dress of pastel colors while the ponies around her basked in the presence of royalty.
 
Blair’s voice came from both everywhere and nowhere. The War of the Sun and Moon was a two-year conflict filled with bloodshed, destruction, sorrow, and terror. Princess Luna claimed that ponies didn’t appreciate her night, that she’d been used and shunned by her sister, and her subjects mocked and feared her. Consumed by her bitterness, jealousy, and anger, Luna decided to teach her subjects a lesson, and stole the Elements of Harmony to keep the moon in the sky and bring about night eternal.
 
There was a sound like thunder, and Princess Luna landed in the center of the festival from above. She looked different than how Twilight remembered. She was taller, just shy of Celestia’s height, her coat was a deep navy, and her mane and tail were ethereal masses of shifting stars. Her regalia was a shining silver, and she exuded an overwhelming presence of power and authority.
 
You mean that part of the legend is literal?! Twilight tried poking a nearby pony, and found that her hoof passed right through.  How could Luna use the Elements all by herself? And why would the Elements do something like that in the first place?

Princess Luna is—or was, rather, the Bearer of Magic, Blair replied. It has a special connection to all the other Elements which allows the Bearer to activate all of the Elements by themselves.
 
Twilight’s voice turned sullen. I KNEW there was something special about the Element of Magic! You’ve known about this the whole time and didn’t tell me?! I ought to slap you again!
 
Luna’s abrupt landing knocked several ponies off their hooves, and the party ground to an awkward halt as guests nervously edged away from the lunar princess. Her eyes narrowed as she looked around wildly, taking in the looks of intense discomfort and shock on the faces of the ponies. She tried to smile, but it came out unnatural, forced, and had the opposite effect of what she’d intended. Luna finally locked eyes with Celestia, who shook her head with a pained expression on her face.
 
Her face twisting into a snarl, Luna stormed out of the party, ignoring any and all she passed by. The teal guardspony watched her departure with a mixture of apprehension and wonder.

Blair wasn’t fazed by the threat. How could I have explained how I knew that? The only ponies alive today who could’ve told me that are the Princesses, and they don’t make a habit of sharing centuries-old, lost information with underlings. Besides, you almost activated all the Elements by yourself as well, didn’t you?

Yeah, but—

—but nothing. Blair said with finality. That answer was right in front of you, it’s your fault you didn’t see it.  As for how or why the Elements could be used in that way, I don't know how she managed it. I don't even know if Princess Celestia figured that out. I do know how she was able to use the Elements to do other things, though.

Twilight pushed aside her resentful thoughts. Such as?
 
The memory faded. Twilight was alone amongst a sea of darkness for a moment before a new memory surfaced, and she now saw that she hovered in midair. She looked down, and her stomach emptied into a pit of dread. Below her was Old Canterlot, nestled in the heart of the Everfree Forest and surrounded by a shimmering golden barrier. Half the metropolis was already in ruins, and the air was filled with piercing yells and the crumbling of rock. The battered gates of the city still stood, emblazoned with a set of glowing yellow runes that radiated with magical power. Crashing against the barrier was a host of ponies wreathed in shadow, their numbers breaking against the barricade like a rising tide.

We don’t know for certain, but Celestia surmises that the Elements backfired on Luna. Instead of drawing power from the traits that they represent, they reacted violently with her corrupted emotions and began to twist her into a mockery of her former self. She fully succumbed to it a short time later, transforming into the abomination known as Nightmare Moon.

Twilight’s hackles rose as she heard a mad, chillingly familiar laugh. An alicorn of purest black clad in cruel armor hovered above the attacking host, her taunting voice booming out over the shielded city.
 
“Come out, Celestia! Or dost thou not care for the lives of thy subjects?! Let loose thy pet mongrels and let us have our fun, or I will carve a bloody swath through thy miserable city!”

Piro’s voice suddenly cut in. I thought you said you were going to start with us, not give a play-by-play of the entire war. We’re going to be here all day at this rate.

I’m trying to give her context and buildup to Nightmare Moon’s army, Blair shot back. I figured it'd help her to know what Horizon's guarding.
 
Okay, but don't turn this into one of your long-winded rigmaroles. Tell her about the Corruption magic and Libra, then move on.

Fine...

The city faded, and Twilight got the sensation of moving very fast through a long tunnel. Images, sounds, and sensations sped around her at a dizzying speed, all of them scenes of terrible battle and carnage. Stone buildings exploded in a hail of rubble and debris as they were struck by dark, chaotic lances of magical energy. The sound of hooves came from all around her as civilians fled for their lives, while swarms of armored ponies marched in the streets.
 
The memories slowed, coming to a stop in a ruined street. Twilight realized she was now in the city, but the golden barrier above was gone. Before her stood eleven stallions—four pegasi, three earth ponies, and four unicorns stood lined up in a single row. All of them were clad in unique sets of silver armor, which Twilight guessed was an indication of their roles in combat. Emblazoned on each of their breastplates was a crest: A dodecagon with a golden sun in the middle surrounded by with twelve colorful symbols. Twilight recognized three of the symbols as Blair’s, Piro’s, and Ace’s cutie marks.
 
Twilight’s skin tingled. Is this—

The Order of the Zodiac, yes. It’s not them I wanted to show you, though—it’s what they’re fighting.
 
There was a bloodcurdling screech. The Order of the Zodiac tensed as nine grotesque monstrosities emerged from the ruins, ambushing them and breaking their ranks. The Order let loose their own battle cries and squared off against the foul creatures, filling the air with the singing of steel, the gnashing of teeth and the splattering of blood.
 
Twilight’s eyes bulged as she watched the battle unfold. What in Celestia’s name are those things?!
 
A grim note accompanied Piro’s voice. Meet the Astral Guard. Luna discovered that she couldn’t use the Elements all at once, but she could activate them one at a time using the Element of Magic’s connection. She activated the Element of Loyalty before the start of the war, hoping that the Undying Loyalty power would give her an edge.

Undying Loyalty? Powers? Twilight had been slowly backing away from the fight, but she stopped as the implication hit her. It's not just my Element. Each one has unique respective powers associated with them, don’t they?

Correct, Blair said. And yes, we’re going to tell you what The Element of Magic’s powers are, but not now.

What?! Why not?

Because you’re a special snowflake, Piro sang in a mocking lilt, and we don’t want to distract you from our riveting tale. We want you to get your head around this little sordid affair before throwing anything else at you.

An immense beast the size of a house with bat-like wings and covered in black, glistening scales towered over one of the Order, a sky-blue pegasus with a thin, black-tipped spear and a crossbow on his forehoof. The monster bared its dripping fangs and lunged with a roar, but the pegasus tucked and rolled underneath him. Gritting his teeth, the pegasus plunged his spear deep into the monster’s belly, soaking him in a shower of crimson gore.

Twilight’s stomach rolled. Is that Tastar’s predecessor?

His name was Sagittarius, Blair said. He was a Dragoon, which is a soldier specialized in tactics used against larger foes. He was known for his extensive knowledge on anatomy, particularly on dragons.
 
Knew his way around the body of a pony, too.

Sagittarius was clad in light, spike-covered barding that covered him from nose to tail. His hooves were shod in armored boots that looked like wicked talons, and he wore a helmet in the shape of a dragon’s head. His eyes darted back and forth as he drove the spear deeper into his foe. 

The monster howled and reared back, grasping at the mortal wound. Sagittarius tumbled away and readied his crossbow, which was armed with a black-tipped arrow. Once clear, he leapt high into the air and fired at the monster’s exposed throat with precision accuracy. There was a meaty thunk as the arrow pierced the monster’s arteries, then sunk deeper and punctured his windpipe. The monster gagged once and fell to the ground with a crash, his wounds weeping rivulets of blood. He shuddered on the ground for a few seconds before going still.
 
Twilight knew she ought to feel sickened, but her shock was dulled by her fascination of Sagittarius’ movements. His eyes had been always moving, not out of nervousness, but in analysis. She realized he’d been studying the most vulnerable points on the monster’s body, as well as his possible means of escape. To discover the most efficient manner of dispatching a foe in midst of the throes of battle was an impressive skill, and acting without hesitation was even more so.
 
Wow, Twilight murmured. He killed that thing in seconds!

No, he didn’t.

Are you kidding? Twilight motioned at the corpse, which Sagittarius had backed away from. He stabbed it in the gut and then shot it in the neck! How could—

The wounds on the corpse became enveloped in a shadowy mist. They swirled around in a spiral pattern, knitting flesh and muscle back together. Twilight watched in incredulous horror as the corpse twitched, then got back to its hooves, bellowing its deafening rage at Sagittarius.
 
How… Twilight choked.

The memory froze, and Blair’s tone was dark and resigned. Loyalty is a fluctuating Element that forms a symbiotic relationship with whatever pony, place or thing the Bearer directs their loyalty towards. Its strength is measured by the Bearer’s will, and becomes exponentially more potent if said feelings are reciprocated. Inspiration instills a fierce desire to push past one’s limits, accomplish goals as fast as possible, and tackle any challenge with fervor. Courage hardens one's resolve, and gives one the strength to stand up for their beliefs. Undying Loyalty turns the Bearer into a peerless paragon of their beliefs and ideals for a short time by dramatically increasing the Bearer’s strongest traits. In addition, it temporarily links the Bearer’s lifeforce with her followers, so they can keep death at bay in order to accomplish their goals.

What you want to gather from that is Undying Loyalty makes those who are loyal to the Bearer unkillable.

I just said that.

Along with a ton of unnecessary stuff, Piro said with a huffy sigh. You’re explaining this to a genius and I still feel the need to translate.

Heh.

Blair spoke a little louder. The point is that Luna didn’t know how much power she’d need to activate the Element of Loyalty through the Element of Magic’s connection, so she poured in as much as she could. The sudden, violent influx of power caused the Element of Loyalty to overload, and the effects of Undying Loyalty became… permanent.

Twilight’s chest went tight as she stared at the malformed, newly resurrected creature before her. No…

Luna’s dark, corrupted emotions were her strongest traits when she used the Element of Loyalty, Blair said. Undying Loyalty drew out those feelings to the utmost, which in turn tainted all the soldiers who were loyal to her, which is to say, half of the military. It twisted them even further when she turned into Nightmare Moon, and the end result was the foul creatures you see before you.

Twilight’s breathing became shallow. You mean this huge crazed beast, and all these other monsters, were once ponies serving under Princess Luna?!

And our comrades, Piro noted. Not any longer, though. They’re demons, Twilight. They know no remorse, mercy, or pity. All they want is to destroy and kill all they come into contact with. Most of them couldn’t even talk anymore, let alone formulate any kind of reason.

Isn’t there anything you could do?! You had to have tried something!

Not much we didn’t try, Piro said wryly. We captured one or two to see if we could reverse the effects, but nothing we did could overwrite Luna’s corruption. And believe me, we got creative.

Twilight didn’t want to admit it, but in a way it made sense. If there was a way to reverse the effects of Luna’s corruption in her soldiers, there could’ve been one to be use on the source. Twilight had felt the edge of Nightmare Moon’s corruption when she’d used the Elements, and she knew that it’d been too deep to be purified by anything less.

How’d you fight them? Twilight asked.

We couldn’t, Blair admitted.  Not really, anyway. We could pierce their vitals, break their bones, chop off their limbs, blast them to pieces or crush them to pulp, but Nightmare Moon’s magic always reanimated them. The best we could do was disable them, and even that didn’t do much because they got brought back so fast. However, despite all of that, there was one pony who managed to find a way.

At the cost of his soul.

Blair's voice became strained. Not now, please.

Twilight was about to ask who, but then she took a second look at the number of the Order of the Zodiac. She only counted eleven. She thought back to the party, recalling the guard’s faces and colors of their coats, and it didn’t take her long to realize who was missing.
 
Twilight smirked. I never took you to be vain, Blair.

The memory blurred into a swirl of colors as the perspective shifted. Twilight sailed through shattered buildings and thick plumes of smoke as she passed through Old Canterlot. As she flew, she realized that the city seemed strangely empty. She’d seen a host of hundreds, maybe even a thousand strong outside the barrier in the earlier memory. If the Astral Guard had broken through, where was the rest of the army?
 
Twilight felt looked up and saw that she was heading for the castle. As she passed the gates, she noted that the walls were battered, worn, and stained with dark splotches. She made a beeline for a large, blackened rectangular tower that jutted up towards the sky, where dozens of grim-faced, armored guards stood in silent vigil. Earth ponies and unicorns guarded the base, and an entire squadron of pegasi circled the structure like vultures. At the top of the tower was a large, oval-shaped balcony.
 
Twilight flew straight past all the defenses and up to the balcony. As she neared, she realized that the balcony held a single occupant—a solid teal stallion in a silver hooded robe of flowing silk covered with violet glowing runes wrapped around his chest that pulsed like a heartbeat. The cloak was fastened with a brooch that bore the crest of the Order of the Zodiac, and a vest of chainmail could be seen under the robe. Hundreds of thin, swirling tendrils of frost surrounded the stallion like a frozen vortex that reached up high into the sky and disappeared into a round, violet portal.
 
This is my predecessor, Libra. He was the son of the Arch-Magus Justitia, whose studies and papers on the origin of magical theory led to her being given a very dangerous task by Princess Celestia. She was to study spells that had been declared forbidden, and see if there was any way they could be altered to be used safely, or in the very least, applied in a practical manner. Libra became interested his mother’s work as he got older, and after he graduated from school, assisted her with her work.

The son of Arch-Magus Justitia?! I’ve heard of her! She’s known for her papers on the Lifeforce spell! Twilight landed on the balcony, gaping at the stallion before her. Libra’s eyes were jammed shut, and his face was contorted with a grimace mixed with yearning. He jerked his head from side to side, taking his breath in great, ragged gasps as he shuddered under some kind of extreme strain.

Piro suddenly snapped. Yeah, and want to know who took that forbidden spell and used it as a weapon? Take a guess which stupid, selfish, idiotic foal violated his mother’s trust, ignored all the warnings, including the ones given to him by his best friend, and got himself addicted to Lifeforce knowing FULL WELL what the consequences would be?! I’ll give you a hint—it’s not Ace.

Twilight went rigid. She hadn’t even considered it because there hadn’t been a case in centuries, but now that she saw Libra, she realized it was a textbook case. Lifeforce addiction was incurable, insatiable, and uncontrollable. Those who broke the taboo couldn’t stay hidden for long, as their very presence was like a void that sucked away the warmth and life of everything they came into contact with. There was very little that could be done for such individuals, and the law stated very clearly what to do with them—sever off the perpetrator's horn, and then banish them from Equestria.
 
Are you purposely trying to freak her out?! Blair demanded. Or is your stupid grudge blinding you from realizing how she might react without hearing an explanation on how we have it under control?! I swear to Celestia, there’s no pleasing you! Libra apologized all throughout the war, I’ve apologized for the last twenty years, and—

—and neither of you ever understood, Piro spat. Your rationality is that Libra had to martyr himself for ‘the greater good,’ but we both know that’s a load of horseapples. He wanted to play hero, so he betrayed Scorpio and Justitia’s trust in the blink of an eye, didn’t even consider trying anything else and used his little I-win button. You defend it by saying it was the only thing that actually worked against Nightmare Moon’s soldiers, and while that did turn out to be true, the point you always conveniently leave out is we didn’t know that at the time. You could’ve killed me, all the soldiers and civilians in the city, your own mother, and you say you’d do it again if you had to?! What in Celestia’s name is wrong with you?!

Twilight was barely listening to them. She saw that Libra was standing in the center of some kind of rectangular array. The runes on the edges pulsed in time with Libra’s robe, and Twilight could see that the magic was how the frozen tendrils were staying in the vortex. The pegasi above were giving both the pillar and the portal a wide berth.
 
Blair.

I can’t belie—What is it, Twilight?
 
Twilight pursed her lips. You’ve shown no symptoms of Lifeforce addiction until two nights ago when you had that nightmare. I thought you were just rambling, but you mentioned something about Horizon breaking a seal. What did you mean?

Blair clicked his tongue. Twenty years ago, Princess Celestia put a powerful seal on me that completely numbed my mind to symptoms of Lifeforce addiction. It took her thirty-six hours to cast. That nightmare was actually an argument I had with Horizon, and he performed a… demonstration of sorts to remind me who’s in charge. I doubt he meant to, but the result of his actions was that Celestia’s spell was broken.

Twilight digested that for a moment. The most difficult and complicated spells she knew of took no more than twelve hours to cast.  Lifeforce addiction was no joke, but it shouldn’t have taken the most powerful spellcaster in the world a day and a half to cast a single spell! The only reason it’d take that long is maybe some complication with him being an Echo, or less likely, that he’d fed his addiction that much.

Fortunately, we’re not all idiots, Piro said. I thought something like this might happen, so I continued Justitia's research and created a little sealing ritual of my own. It’s actually an advanced version of the Lifesealing Ritual Libra’s standing in right now. It’s not Celestia’s super spell, but it has other ways of keeping the addiction in check. I cast it on Blair right after he and Horizon had their little heart-to-heart, so you don’t need to worry about him going berserk and killing us all anytime soon.

Twilight looked up at the pillar. She could feel Libra’s magic stretching out and away to the edge of the city, where she could make out a swarm of ponies in dark armor just beyond the wall.
 
That’s a translocation portal. Libra used his Lifeforce addiction to repeatedly drain Nightmare Moon’s forces in order to keep them immobilized, didn’t he?

Yes.

Twilight felt herself being drawn through the memories again. She had a moment of vertigo as the world swept passed her, and she came to rest on a battlement atop the city wall. Beside her treating a wounded pony was Piro—Scorpio, Twilight corrected, clad in silver barding comprised of interlocking plates. A small sheathed dagger was strapped behind his neck, and a pair of saddlebags hung at his sides bulging with vials, bandages, gauze, splints, tourniquets, and various other medical instruments. A small set of crosses were emblazoned on the armor where his cutie mark would normally be.
 
Scorpio murmured something under his breath as he finished wrapping the pony’s bleeding shoulder, causing the gauze to glow with his magic. He motioned to a set of soldiers, who carried the pony away. As they did, Scorpio sighed and looked out beyond the wall.
 
“Foal. Celestia told him only to take out a third of the army. We shan’t even last the winter if he keeps disobeying orders.”

Twilight followed Scorpio’s gaze, and immediately fell to her knees. In the center of the battlefield was a violet portal, from which emanated countless icy tendrils that criss-crossed the flat grassy field like a spider's web. Caught in this web were hundreds of malformed soldiers, each of them completely wrapped up like flies as they lie helpless in Libra's vampiric embrace.  A foul miasma blanketed the field which was attempting to break the soldier's free of the frigid grip, but more tendrils formed as soon as the old ones were ripped off. The air was eerily silent, the only sound coming from the snapping and crackling of Libra's magic as he continued his dark harvest.
 
Twilight could barely breathe as she beheld Libra's grim work. How many…

He immobilized half the army in this battle. The memory disappeared, sparing Twilight the grisly scene. Libra’s addiction got worse every time he indulged in it, so we couldn’t just have him suppress the entire army right at the start of the war. Celestia knew there’d come a time when he wouldn’t be able to control it anymore, but she wanted to hold out as long as possible. Problem was, Nightmare Moon knew about Libra's problem as well, so she repeatedly attacked with her forces to try and break him as soon as possible.

In every battle, Celestia had to carefully meter out how many of Nightmare Moon's soldiers Libra would suppress, and how many the army would fight. However, there was also the issue of the Astral Guard. They were stronger than the rest of the soldiers, so much so that it would’ve taken all of Libra’s concentration to suppress them, and that would’ve let the rest of the army run free.

That’s where the others and I came in, Piro said smugly. Libra and the rest of the army fought the demonic soldiers, the Order of the Zodiac held off the Astral Guard, and Celestia crossed blades with Nightmare Moon herself. Our monarchs were evenly matched, but Nightmare Moon was a psychopath, not a strategist. She'd eventually lose herself to her rage, try to overwhelm Celestia with force, and Celestia would capitalize on her sloppy fighting and blast her and her soldiers away. Lather, rinse and repeat for two years.
 
So there was a time limit, Twilight observed. Celestia would lose more of her army as time went on, but Libra could compensate for that up to a certain point. The war had to have ended before he couldn’t control himself anymore, or else he'd turn and start feeding on Celestia's soldiers.
 
Twilight had expected to be shown another memory, but instead there was darkness and silence. 
 
 Well? Twilight asked. How’d it end? 

Blair’s voice was shaky. I…I c-can’t show you.

Can’t show me? Twilight protested. How—

He means he’s literally unable to, Piro said. He’s repressed the memories of that battle. You’d have a better time interviewing a rock about it.

Twilight felt a chill. It was one thing to be told about the war or shown it from the view of a spectator, but seeing that there were still lasting psychological effects put everything on an entirely new level of realism.
 
 Do you remember it, Piro? 

…yeah.

Can you show me?

Not while Blair’s here, Piro said with a note of sympathy. Sorry, but it’ll have to wait for another time.

Twilight crossed her forehooves and pouted as she floated in the ether. She knew she couldn’t identify with what they’d gone through, as the worst thing that’d happened to her was fighting Nightmare Moon with her friends, but that battle had to have been a monumental affair, and she wanted to see it.

Piro was quiet, but firm. You need to understand, Twilight. I may needle Blair with insults and guilt trips, but showing that battle with him here would be like pulling teeth, and I’m not that kind of doctor.

Twilight sighed. I guess it can wait for now. Could you at least give me an overview though?
 
That I can do. The darkness lightened, but remained formless and nondescript. It’s not so different from the legends, really. We went on the offensive, and attacked Nightmare Moon’s fortress in the Hollow Shades. Celestia distracted Nightmare Moon, and two of our Order, Taurus and Aquarius, snuck into the fortress and stole back the Elements of Harmony. We got them to Celestia, and she used the three she could control to banish Nightmare Moon to her heavenly charge.

It wasn’t over, though. Blair was much calmer now that the matter of the battle had been dropped. Even with Nightmare Moon gone, there was still the matter of her troops. Celestia regretted it, but there was nothing she could do for them until Nightmare Moon’s release, and that wasn't going to happen anytime soon.

So she created an inter-dimensional rug and swept them under it, Piro said with an ugly laugh. Not exactly the greatest way to deal with any problem, much less one that causes an entire host of innocent soldiers to suffer, but there wasn’t much else she could’ve done.

Inter-dimensional rug?

The darkness melted. You'll know it by it's actual name—Tartarus.

Twilight stood on flat, nondescript plane of blood-red stone that stretched out as far as the eye could see. The sky was a dull, depressing gray, and the musty, thick air pressed on her lungs as she fought for each breath. Before her was a hole in the ground, thirty feet in diameter and surrounded by six tall, ornate pillars emblazoned with fiery runes. Sealing the hole was a grid comprised six magical multicolored lines of energy that met in the center, and engraved on the floor was a glowing Symbol that gave off an audible hum.
 
This is… by the Sun and Moon. I never imagined that Tartarus was—

Twilight’s heart skipped a beat as she recognized the two Symbols closest to her. She looked over and saw four nondescript glowing blobs surrounding the circle. 

Are these the Symbols of the Elements?!
 
Maaaaaybe.

You know them? Twilight ran around the hole to see what the other three were, but the memory faded and the Symbols blurred out as she came into eyeshot. She rounded on the two Echoes in her mind. You know them! Tell me what they are!
 
I’ll make you a deal Twilight, Blair said coolly. Princess Celestia wants us to help you master your powers. I don’t know why she can’t do it herself, but I trust she has a good reason. Our orders are to not interfere in your daily activities, so we can’t stop you if you decide to go to her for answers.

I think you can see where we’re going with this, Piro said.
 
Of course I see. Twilight stamped a hoof.  You want to use the Symbols as leverage to keep me from going to the Princess. This isn’t fair!  You know how much this means to me!

And following orders means everything to us, Piro replied.

Twilight glowered. What happened to ‘keeping secrets isn’t your wont?!’

The knight’s code dictates that we must both love and fear the Sun Goddess. Blair’s voice was low with reverence. Her will is the sword that fights for the good of all. Her doctrines are the shield that defends the weak and bereft. The word of Princess Celestia is law, and her knowledge and authority must be followed without hesitation or question.

Twilight squinted at the blurred out Symbols, trying to discern their shape. This isn’t what you promised. You said you’d show me anything I wanted!

We said we’d show you everything eventually, Piro said with a sly note. And we will, provided you’re willing to work with us.

This can be very easy for you Twilight, Blair said in a soft, coaxing tone. You won’t have to run around all of Equestria for months, searching through mountains of archives and chasing after dead ends. You won’t have to spend countless sleepless nights bouncing around on uncomfortable trains and stressing over navigating unknown cities. All you have to do is let us train you for a few weeks, and you’ll have your finished thesis, your degree, and you’ll be back in Ponyville with your friends before you know it.

Twilight flattened her ears. You think you’ve got me right where you want me, don’t you?

Piro chuckled. Don’t we? Come now, melodrama doesn't suit you. You could deny our offer, but then you’d be right back at square one, wondering which of the dozens of libraries in Whinnyapolis to start digging through. You want to finish your thesis as soon as possible, and we have what you need. All we ask if that you give us something in return.

Twilight didn’t want to do this. Blair and Piro were withholding information and using it to serve their own ends. She didn’t care that they were just following orders or that they were offering exactly what she’d wished for, the very principle of being ordered around and used made her blood boil.  It was almost enough to make her say no just out of spite, but then none of them would get what they wanted. Twilight had always strove to be self-sufficient and prided herself on figuring out things on her own, but that same stubbornness prevented her from asking for help or admitting she was wrong. She’d lost count of the amount of times it’d overcomplicated her life as a result, and despite all the lessons and examples, she still had a tough time with it.
 
Twilight almost gagged as she swallowed the sour taste in her mouth. It stuck in her throat like a lump, but she managed to get it down.
 
I’ll agree.

Both Blair and Piro gave an audible sigh of relief.

I was worried that was going to be harder.

Don’t question it, Piro said quickly. Tell you what Twilight, since you didn’t put up much of a fuss, we’ll show you one of the Symbols right now.

The Symbol that Twilight had been examining came into focus. It was an ovular teardrop resting upon a triangle, bisected neatly down the middle by a single straight line.
 
That’s the Symbol of Laughter, Piro said. I always did like that one.
 
Twilight committed the image to memory, and took a quick glance back at the other three Symbols before grinding her teeth and looking away.
 
Let’s move on.

Twilight felt herself being pulled away, and a moment later she stood in the ruins of a throne room. The stone walls were blasted and crumbling away, and the windows were shattered with their tattered curtains blowing in the wind. The ceiling was completely gone, exposing the room to the sky and elements above. In the center of this room was a six-sided pedestal with six spherical rocks resting in six depressions.

After creating Tartarus, Princess Celestia granted a boon to each member of the Order of the Zodiac in recognition for their services. Libra was the last to receive his.

A set of thrones were on the back wall, one gold-trimmed with a symbol of the sun, the other velvet-lined with a painting of the moon. Princess Celestia sat in the first of these thrones holding an audience with Libra and Scorpio. Libra wore the same silver robe as before, except now it was stained with blood, dirt, and grime. His chainmail could be seen through rips in the garment, and his right foreleg was in a splint. Libra's hood was drawn and completely concealed his face. Scorpio stood next to him. He wore a pair of metal prosthetics attached to both his right legs at the knee, but he otherwise looked unharmed.

What happened to them?!

Piro snorted. You don’t live through a two-year war without some scars, both mental and physical. Unless your name is Aquarius, in which case you have the devil’s own luck.

Celestia looked down at the two stallions, focusing on Libra haunted, distant eyes. “Thou art the last of thine order to come before me. What dost thou desire, Libra? I assume thou wishest to be forgiven for breaking the Lifeforce taboo?”

Libra’s voice was haggard as it floated out from the hood, his breath accompanied by a freezing mist. “Many regrets I carry, but my actions on that fateful night are not among them. I wish for my boon to be of a different nature.”

Scorpio fidgeted, but said nothing.

“Then let it not be thy boon, but a favor to a friend.”  Celestia's mouth twisted.  “Say but the word, and I will relieve thee of thy sins. Perhaps I might even find a way to numb thy mind to the damning call. Thou art a hero and comrade-in-arms, Libra. I wish not to see thee be condemned to a life of suffering.“

“Suffering,” Libra murmured. “Thou knowest the meaning of that word better than I. Whether it be in measured in seconds or years, my life will one day fade, my body decay, my bones wither to dust and become scattered to the winds to rejoin the planet and start the cycle anew… but thou wilt endure. There is nothing that can be done for a wound that never closes, an ache that never ceases to throb, or the life that can never be spent. No, Princess Celestia, I have not suffered, for when I look upon thee with these eyes, the truth becomes painfully clear.”

Twilight let out a sharp, hissing gasp as Libra reached up and removed his hood. His horn was gone, left with nothing but a thick bandage caked with dried blood. The skin around his eyes was pale and mottled, interrupted by a pair of jagged scars that stretched the span of his temples. Across the ruined eye sockets was a thin strip of white cloth covered in deep, shimmering violet runes.

Twilight put a hoof to her mouth. He’s—

—hornless and blind? Yeah. Understand now why Blair can't remember the last battle?

“Thou art suffering incarnate,” Libra said. “Thou hast suffered more than every other pony in this world, and will continue to suffer long after everypony alive today is dead. Thou hast done well in hiding thy pain from thy subjects, but one cursed soul shall always know another. Lifestealer I may be, but Eternal art thou, and if my tears still flowed, I would weep for thy sake.”

Celestia closed her eyes. “So that is why thou wouldst deny thyself solace and instead turn thyself into a pariah?”

“Nay.” Libra gingerly adjusted the white cloth. “I deny sealing because the curse is the only manner of sight left to me, and I am loath to spend my life in darkness. As for my banishment, I have broken the law many times in using the Lifeforce spell, and I must be punished for my crimes.”

Celestia shook her head. "Tis true that justice be as blind as thee, and the law doth state the penalty for thine actions without err, but I will speak plainly—thou dost not deserve this.”

“Thou couldst always command me to stay.”

“And so would begin my descent into tyranny.”  Celestia sighed. “If it is thy wish to not use thy boon to exonerate thyself, and instead wish to spend thy life in exile, I will not stop thee.”

“Thou hast my thanks, for what it is worth,” Libra cleared his throat. “Now then, on to matter of my boon.”

“Name it.”

“Nightmare Moon is gone, sealed away by the Elements,” Libra began. “Her prison is strong, but unlike thou, it will not last forever. Eventually, there shall come a time where she will walk these lands again.”

Celestia eyes flickered to the second throne beside her. “Unfortunately.”

“There have been many close battles.”  Libra sat on his haunches to relieve his splinted leg. “Forgive my ego, Highness, but many a time has there been where the day has only been won due to the efforts and abilities of my comrades and I. The Astral Guard committed terrible atrocities, but countless more would they have performed had we not been there to stop them.”

“The Order of the Zodiac shan’t soon be forgotten, Libra.” Celestia said earnestly. “Thou hast my word on that.”

Liar.

Quiet, Piro.

“Remembrance does not concern me,” Libra replied. “My worries lie with those who have been inadvertently cursed with immortality. They shall live as long as their mistress, and when she is released, she will try to release them as well. I fear my comrades and I will be long gone at that time, Highness, and if the worst comes to pass and Nightmare Moon catches wind of Tartarus, what shalt thou do?”

Celestia lowered her head. “Thy words hold the ring of truth. It is doubtful I shall have soldiers equivalent to thine order at that time. However, even though thou knowest the truth of immortality and only ask this out of a desire to serve, it is not something I can grant.”

“Do not misunderstand.” Libra set his jaw. “I care nothing for the time in between, or after. All I desire is to be there when Nightmare Moon returns, so that I may aid thee in protecting our country once more.”

“A most interesting proposal,” Celestia admitted. “One I would welcome, but if not through immortality, how would such a feat be achieved?”

Libra looked at Scorpio, who produced a piece of parchment from his bags and hovered it over to Celestia.

“Dost thou remember the task thou gavest my mother before the war?" Libra asked.

“To study forbidden magic.” Celestia took the parchment and examined it. “What of it?”

Libra couldn’t see Celestia’s expression as she read his request, but he did hear her sharp intake of breath. He lowered his chin with a clever grin.

“Tell me Majesty, in thy long years, hast thou had any experience with the creation of Echoes?”