Curator's note: What follows in the original manuscript is Twilight Sparkle's account of the events leading to the defeat of the unicorn Sombra and the restoration of the Crystal Empire, as well as the following two weeks. As it is in every aspect concordant with the official account, we do not believe it necessary to include it. The chapter presented here is reported to take place after the failed attempt by the magician Trixie to take over the village of Ponyville using the Alicorn Amulet.
After Trixie left Ponyville, my spirits were higher than ever. I couldn't say if I was more glad that we had succeeded or relieved by the fact that after all that Trixie had redeemed herself. And in all of this, I couldn’t help but feeling proud of what I had accomplished. It seemed like nothing could go wrong.
And of course, everything did.
The night after we had returned the Alicorn Amulet to the safekeeping of the Princesses, a knocking on my window woke me up in the middle of the night.
Immediately I knew I was in danger. The banging was constant and unrelenting. It probably had been going on for a while before waking me. I got up.
I walked to the window. The silhouette outside was unmistakable. It stopped knocking when it saw me. In the restored silence, all I could hear was the constant sound of raindrops on the glass; it was pouring outside.
I opened the window. She entered, followed by the fresh smell of nightly air.
Her rainbow mane and tail were soaked and she was dripping all over the floor. She seemed unfazed by the rain or the cold.
Her eyes were once again reduced to red dots, and when she spoke, she sounded just as raspy and unpleasant as the last time she had broken in.
“Thou... You... You are the element of Magic.”
I wondered if that was supposed to be a question.
“You are the element of Magic” she repeated “But you know not of the Dark Powers.”
I remained silent. I wasn't even sure what it meant by that. I thought of the powers of the moon, of Luna's control over dreams, but I felt quite sure it wasn't what it meant.
“You need to speak more clearly” I finally answered
“The powers of Darkness and Nightmares. The Narrow Path. The Road Less Traveled. All this is unknown to you. And yet you have proven you are strong enough to counter my spells, albeit temporarily.”
“What are these powers you speak of? Perhaps I know them by a different name.”
“The magic that allows to control another pony's actions. The magic that causes fear, confusion and madness. The creeping darkness. The manipulation of dreams and nightmares. The living death.”
The very sound of those last two words made me cringe. I retracted from her.
“You know nothing of all this.”
“No, I have never even heard... I...” I realized I was shivering.
“Twilight Sparkle, Element of Magic. Ignorant of the inner workings of half of the foundations of magic itself. You need my help at least as much I need yours.”
I gulped, thinking of what to say. Once again, I was stumped as to what that apparition wanted of me. The creature controlling Rainbow's body stared at me with its minuscule eyes.
“I can help you” I answered “But only if you free Rainbow Dash.”
“I cannot; I may let her act on her own temporarily, but I have no way of returning to my body. Not until we can acquire the book. Then, I will return her to her normal state.”
“Let me get this straight- you are now outside of your body?”
“In a sense. I am still dependent on it; every second I spend away from it, my whole self withers away. And I am sorry to say, as I inhabit this body I cannot help but hurting it just as much.”
“And what do you need to do to return there? Is there a spell or...?”
“A ritual. It is the only way for me to escape my prison.”
I took a mental note of the word it had used, ritual. The term wasn't often used in magic discourse. Just like the word curse, only lay ponies used it. Then another particular hit me.
“Your prison was in the caverns in Canterlot? But I thought they hadn't been used in centuries!”
“Perhaps they haven't. I have been lingering there for more than eight hundred years, if my calculations are correct.”
It said this with a calm, emotionless tone, as if that was so mundane it wouldn't warrant an explanation. My mind boggled as I tried to piece together what could allow one pony to survive so long; Perhaps in its own body it was an alicorn with powers like those of the Princesses; Perhaps it had been cast out of time and space for centuries like Sombra and the Crystal Empire. But what if it had been locked away for centuries just like discord, in a stone prison or an even craftier device, and I had released something even more dangerous and terrifying upon the world? The words living death returned to my mind, along with nightmarish images they conveyed; still, I had no choice but to at least hear it out. I prepared to cast the same spell I had used to quell it the first time, just in case.
“Where do we need to look for your Grimoire?” I asked “I have recently been in the Crystal Empire; there is an enormous library there and...”
It interrupted me. “If your friend's memories are not faulty... Sombra has been destroyed.” it said, while staring blankly ahead.
“Well... he has been defeated. As for him being destroyed completely, I have learned to be cautious with this kind magic; it seems to find a way to return.”
It started chuckling, and in a few seconds his chuckles evolved in an loud, unsettling laughter, as booming as it was emotionless. I cowered from it; for a few seconds, the creature in front of me had nothing of the Rainbow Dash I used to know; it had become a dark, twisted apparition, mocking me with its insane laughter.
Suddenly, it stopped.
“That we do.” he commented, with one last chuckle “But Sombra... he was too impulsive. He did understand those few powers of darkness I taught him... but he could never master the Book. His defeat proves this.”
“So he was your apprentice? You taught him the magic he used to enslave an empire?”
“It was my greatest mistake...” it stopped for a few moments “Sombra was never ready for the knowledge I imparted him and I should have known that. But he came to me when I was in my lowest ebb. When I was trapped in darkness and... alone. he offered his help. I should have refused. I should have at least tested him... but I didn't. I could let go my last chance of passing on my knowledge. He was powerful, cunning and curious... I took him as my student and...” it shook its head. Every time I looked at its face, I noticed it changing slightly. The colors in her hair were becoming grayer and grayer, just as its eyes were shrinking.
“This doesn't matter now.” it shook itself. “He never had the book. Had he perused the secrets hidden in it, you would've never been able to defeat him.”
“So who could have your Grimoire?”
“I'm afraid it is still kept by those who captured me...”
“Princess Celestia.”
“Indeed.”
We remained in silence for a few minutes. I considered what could have this creature possibly done to earn the punishment from the Princess. Having been Sombra's master, it most definitely had even more destructive powers. Was that enough to warrant its arrest? I had little doubt this creature was what Celestia feared I would find in the caves. I knew I could not trust it; every word it said could have been another lie to convince me to release untold destruction upon Equestria.
“Why should I help you against the Princesses?” I asked.
“For the same reason you haven't delivered me to them.”
“Which is?”
“Oh, I don't pretend to know. But there's a reason you're listening to me.”
I wondered if he could be right. I would've been lying if I said I wasn't curious; the creature had demonstrated powers of mental control much greater than even those of Changelings and the power to read minds, something I had never though even possible.
“Maybe I do.” I answered “So where do you think Celestia and Luna would keep the book if they had it?”
“I have no clear idea. As i've told you, the book wants to be found, so keeping it hidden is a tasking endeavor. If they don't use it... and they most certainly don't... they need someone to act as a guardian.”
“Such as?”
“It most certainly isn't a unicorn.... or any kind of pony. Anypony who comes in contact with the book will eventually be led to read it. The powerful will use it, the weak will be used. But Celestia would never allow this to happen. Dragons have been guardians of the Book in the past, but their greed eventually overcomes even their faithfulness to the task.”
“The perfect guardian would be someone who cannot read the book, then. Perhaps a magical creature such as Cerberus.”
“But even then the book would find a way to escape... it wants to be read. It would find someone who can.”
We stood in silence a little while longer. I looked at the clock, realizing it would be dawn soon. I wondered if the light of the sun would somehow interfere with the creature power, since, as it had said, they were connected to darkness.
Darkness. Dark magic.
If I were Princess Celestia, where would I hide a book of dark magic?
First option, hiding it among other books. There are whole sections on the library in Canterlot which can only be accessed by authorized scholars; some I have visited only with Celestia herself. If you keep track of it, you can make sure a few scholars read one or two pages every now and then, the book is satisfied and nopony reads enough to learn dangerous magic.
Second option, hide it in plain sight. Somewhere anypony can see it but nopony can read, or at least cannot read more than a few lines. Maybe somewhere in the castle, hidden under a magicproof glass. Maybe in the gardens, like Discord's statue.
Third option, find someone you can absolutely and definitely trust.
Like me.
I pondered the option. I had gone through every book in my library and I was certain none of them was some kind of supreme magical craft with its own free will.
But no, even though they certainly trusted me, if nopony could resist the book, they wouldn't give it to me anyway.
Right?
“What if” I ventured “they gave it to somepony who could read the book, but was otherwise trapped?”
“You mean somepony like me.”
“I... I suppose.”
I looked at it another time. The face was becoming wrinkled, as if growing older and older with each passing minute. The eyes, reduced to red dots in the middle of translucent whiteness, had acquired an eerie glow.
“It is possible.” It admitted, sighing “Perhaps even in my same prison. I considered that possibility in the past. But... would Celestia truly do that?”
“She would do what is necessary. She imprisoned her own sister to protect Equestria.”
“Yes... yes. Eight hundred years with the most powerful magic in the world, and no chance to use it...” it chuckled for a second “Such fantastic torment...” I looked outside, almost amused.
“I don't know of any other prison which could hold a being capable of teleportation; so if we're right, the Canterlot caverns are the only place to look, and now they are locked and well guarded.”
“There is Tartarus.”
“The underworld? I admit, I don't know much of it... I’m afraid nopony does.”
“Is that so? Granted, It was uncharted in my time, but I had hoped in eight centuries of civilization somepony would have bothered to explore it thoroughly.”
It had spoken with a very authoritative and disappointed tone, which actually made me feel a bit ashamed.
“I can research what we know about these options. I know of a book in the Canterlot library which lists the prisoners who had been taken to the caverns before you. Perhaps you can make sense of those names. As for Tartarus, I know of a few geographers who can help. I have thought of a few other leads, but following them might give our plan away to the Princesses and...”
“Say no more. We will save it as a last resort. As for now, I believe I have abused your friend enough. I will now let her go.”
As it finished saying those words, Rainbow's colours started slowly returning to her body. The wrinkles on her face distended and her eyes returned to their normal shape.
She blinked, looked around, then at me. I was wearing a fake smile as I considered if it was worth explaining everything to her.
Not now, I decided.
“What am I doing here, exactly? And why do I have a headache?”
“You... you came because you you needed a magical cure for the headache, of course!”
“Are you sure? That doesn't sound right...”
“Would I lie to you...?” I said, quite unconvincingly. Before she could answer, I cast the spell to protect her mind; the creature may have said it had retreated but I wasn't going to take any chance.
“All done.” I said.
“Okay... I don't really feel the difference but...” she paused “Is it morning already?”
The sun had just risen over the mountains. I was so taken with the conversation that I had not even noticed the rain had stopped in the meantime.
“I don't have time!” yelled Rainbow “I have to pack for the camping trip!”
“Well, safe travels!” I waved. Rainbow sprinted out of the window and disappeared in the distance.
I sighed heavily. I couldn't keep up the charade much longer. Perhaps talking to Princess Celestia was truly the right thing to do.
I yawned.
I was considering the option of going to sleep and thinking it through after getting some rest, when a knocking at the door recalled me. I walked down, noticing along the way that Spike was still sleeping soundly with earplugs in his ears. I answered the door.
Zecora was standing outside, seemingly very preoccupied.
“Twilight, I'm afraid I need a word with you
We thought Rainbow was safe but there's something new.”
I blinked a few times. “What?”
She took a deep breath.
“What happened in Canterlot months ago
and what we have discovered down below
was more dangerous that what I thought back then
and in fact I need to look at her again”
“Okay. I think I now what you mean. In fact, she was here until a few minutes ago now. I'm afraid she is controlled by some malicious source.”
“More malicious than you can think, I fear
remember the parchment which we saw appear?
I translated the words we found in my tongue
and searched them among words long left unsung.”
“And did you find anything? I've discovered “The Road Less Traveled” is the name of a book. Perhaps it comes from your people! That would explain...”
“My people did not write the book, nor did you own
It was handed down by a monster to you well known
the Demon my people call Laughing Lord
But in Equestria is known as Discord.