//------------------------------// // 8: Rulers (Guiding - Accusing) // Story: Alchemical Empire // by NineOneThree //------------------------------// Twilight sat at the table as she watched Princess Celestia look through her desk. "Thanks for taking this time with me, Princess... I'm lucky to have a veteran Alicorn like yourself here to help me, I'd be so lost without your guidance." Smiling as always, Celestia returned to the table with a smallish box. "My brilliant student, you are always welcome. Especially so in matters such as these; I understand you must feel pressured by your new position as an Alicorn, and I'm always happy to help you. Now, I'm sure you know what this is." She opened the box, drawing out a deck of cards. "Cards... wait, those are tarot cards." Twilight frowned a little, confused. "But you told me yourself that tarot divination is like astrology, misleading and inexact at best." The sun goddess nodded. "True, but I don't plan to read anyone's future with these cards. They're part of a lesson you need to learn about what we are and what it means to be an Alicorn... as much as you may not be fond of tarot, go on and tell me what you know about it." "Well," Twilight sat up a little, "tarot cards date back centuries or more and consist of twenty-two 'Major Arcana' and fifty-six 'Minor Arcana', the latter group being divided into four suits of Cups, Coins, Wands, and Blades. The Major Arcana have no suits." She watched Celestia separate the two groups, set aside the bigger stack, and start to lay out two rows of eleven cards facedown. "But what do these cards have to do with Alicorns?" Celestia's horn glowed as she selected a card to flip face-up: XIX, The Sun. "You see, Twilight, the original creator of the tarot deck long ago chose the cards of the Major Arcana based on visions they had. Being a unicorn situated over a high crossing-point of leylines, what they were actually experiencing was a glimpse into the realm of deities, concepts. Thus, these cards correspond fairly well to the truths embodied by us Alicorns, as well as those not yet embodied---I'll explain that bit, don't worry." She turned another over, The Moon. "It's not exactly hard to reason that these two cards point to myself and Luna, of course. Pick any one of these and we'll see if you can put a name to a face, so to speak." Twilight's violet aura surrounded one card, turning it over: XIV, Temperance. It showed a Unicorn holding two goblets and standing on a riverbank, one hoof on land and one hoof in the water. "This one isn't so easy as the first two..." She noticed a booklet within the otherwise-empty card box and pulled it out, relieved to find it gave summaries of the meanings ascribed to each card. Finding Temperance's entry, she read aloud. "Temperance, representing harmony, moderation, and unification... I... I would guess that might be Princess Cadence?" "Exactly right!" Celestia smiled. "Now, some more of these currently have Alicorns corresponding to them, but others are laying dormant. But a pony, or any being, can take on the mantle of a concept if they have proven themselves truly worthy..." She turned over another card, The Star, and gave her student a meaningful look. It took a second, but... "... That's me?" Twilight stared, then looked up at her teacher. "I didn't just get a horn and better magic, I'm actually a... a deity?" She blinked, looking at her forehoof. "But I don't really... feel that different." Celestia shook her head. "A pony does not become a goddess in a day, Twilight. This is something that you will grow into bit by bit, until finally you assume its full power and responsibility." Her smile lasted a bit, then faded slightly. "But there is a darker side to this... Nightmares, Twilight. What is a Nightmare?" "Um..." The young Alicorn started to feel an odd tug in her stomach. "Well, in this sense, I've only heard of Nightmare Moon. Princess Luna... was overcome by her jealousy and unhappiness and became a twisted shadow of herself... but I know it's not permanent!" She smiled a little, swallowing. "We were able to make her better, right?" Celestia nodded. "That's true, a Nightmare can be redeemed... but what a Nightmare truly is, Twilight, is somepony so crushed under the weight of despair and negativity that they cast aside all parts of themselves except for one. My sister is an artist of the night skies who takes pride in her beautiful work, but she's so much more---guardian of dreams, a princess who keeps safe those who must face the dangers of the dark, a loving sister, a mare with a special place in her heart for the young. Nightmare Moon cared about her night and nothing more." She turned the Moon card around, inverted it. "A Nightmare is fundamentally broken, an incomplete being. When you and the others used the Elements on Nightmare Moon, you were healing Luna, making her whole again." She paused before going on. "However, and this may shock you, Alicorns are not the only ones who can become Nightmares. Bearers of the Elements of Harmony, or potential Bearers, are among those who can as well." Twilight felt her wings fold tighter against her sides as a cold tightness formed in her stomach. "You mean... you mean my friends could become... that? Applejack could become a Nightmare, or Rarity, or Rainbow Dash?" A realization chilled her even further. "And if they did, then we wouldn't be able to fix them with the Elements... we'd be finished." Celestia came around, her warm wing settling around her student. "That's not quite true. It would be a terrible thing if you or one of the other Bearers were to fall into such despair and become inverted, but there are others in this world whose hearts are attuned to the Elements. You would need to find them and wake the Element sleeping within them, but it could be done... however, there is another point." She gathered the Major Arcana in a pile and set them aside, pulling over the Minor Arcana. "When a normal being becomes a Nightmare, they gain a great deal of power---not as much as a true deity, but not far off." She pulled out the Queen of Blades and set it face-up, inverted. "But when you and your friends came and used the Elements upon that pony, their power would not simply go away. Instead, it remains and they are... fixed." She turned the card right-side up. "From then on, they are a minor deity, and with that power comes heavy responsibility. In some ways, that pony's struggle is still ongoing." --- Template sat up, blinking. She looked around; she was alone here in her room, just as she had been when she had laid down for her nap. But that voice... "Aleph? Aleph, how are you talking in my head? You're hundreds, thousands of miles away, neither of us are even built in the Unicorn frame..." Template frowned. 'Okay, I guess that makes sense... what did you want to talk about?' 'Chassis checked on them before I went to take my nap. She says they're fine, some of them are going out into Canterlot to meet the local ponies.' 'No, I'm in Canterlot Castle with Mother and Aunt Luna and Twilight and the others. The crew's staying on the ship and Chassis can fly down to the docks way quicker than I can walk, so...' Template bit her lip. 'I'm not neglecting them, they're happy and safe and they don't need me to hover over them 24/7. And... and I've spent all my life with Brother and our sisters, and I love Mother and Twilight is so kind...' Aleph's neutral voice took on a disappointed tone. 'No, that's not true at all!' Template shook her head, eyes moistening. 'That's wrong, I know it! Mother doesn't hate us, or Auntie Luna, or Twilight, or the maids, or anyone! They're just... not familiar with us.' 'That's not true, but... even if it is, I can help ponies understand us better if I get to know them!' As Aleph's voice faded from her head, Template buried her face in the pillow, shaking. Was her sister right? Was she really neglecting her people?