//------------------------------// // Study Session: The Tale of Athelina // Story: Equestrian Throwdown // by Hex Mark //------------------------------// Twilight Sparkle opened the door to her library, letting the human in as she laid out a blank book on the wooden table. She searched through a drawer of quills before finding just the right one and setting it next to the book. "Miss Twilight, do you mind me asking what exactly you want to learn?" he asked, raising an eyebrow as the unicorn smiled. "I was hoping you could tell me more about your world before I run some tests on you." She told Skylark, who gave her a rather nervous look, prompting her to chuckle a bit. "Don't worry, I won't do anything to hurt you. Simply a study of your anatomy. Maybe even scanning your magical aura- it is a special kind of energy that helps identify who you are in Equestria. Every living creature has one." The unicorn explained, having figured what he'd ask next. Just then, the door opened as Spike was carrying a box "Spike! Perfect timing!" Twilight called to the dragon, using her magic to give him the blank book and the quill. "I need you to write down what he tells us about his home." Twilight instructed the dragon, who held the quill and book in his hands, nodding as if to give the okay. “I guess I should start with the beginning...I mean, the story of how my world came to be.” Skylark guessed, finding a seat. "I'll warn you- there are a few different versions of this tale, so I'm going to tell you the one I was told." he cleared his throat and took a breath. “Long ago, when my world was still young, there was only one entity, a being who dominated the realm with little more than an insane grip. Dementia, as we would later know her, had everything anyone would ever want. Power, an entire world to play around in…yet something was missing from her eternal life…” Miles started, taking a breath as he adjusted himself while Spike wrote every word down. “There was a void in her heart, a void in the world that she could not fill despite her absolute power…at least, that’s what she thought. After all of her efforts to fill the void, she came to the conclusion that she could not solve this dilemma alone, so with her vast power, she created the Six Maidens, or as we mortals back home call them, Goddesses. There was Solstia, the Maiden of the Sun, who had the power to move the sun as she saw fit and helped bring new life to the desolate world- creating all the mortal inhabitants of the lonely world that Dementia ruled. Second was Celena, the Maiden of the Moon. Solstia’s equal in power and statue, she would raise the moon when her sister needed to lower the Sun- and would reinvigorate those who were exhausted. Liebe, the Maiden of the Heart- brought love and compassion into the very souls of the inhabitants of the world, Mana, the Maiden of Magic, who lends her power to all beings who wish to tap into the mystic arts. Integra, the Maiden of Truth, brought justice and stability to the otherwise wild creations of Solstia. And finally; The Maiden of Chance, Lady Luck, created by the last of Dimentia’s power. She brought a necessary chaos to the realm. In the time that The Maidens shaped the world, Dimentia herself began to wane, but for the first time in her life, she was happy. The void in her heart had been filled, and even as she faded, she had no regrets. Leaving the world in the hands of the Six Maidens, Dimentia vanished without a trace." He paused, checking to see if they were following before he continued. "That is the story of my home...The Tale of Athelina.” Skylark finished his story, Spike having the look of a kid who wanted to hear more about the story, while Twilight Sparkle had the mixed expression of shock and confusion. "Spike, that's enough." She said after a long pause, and the dragon put the quill down. Looking at Skylark with a now concerned expression on his face, the unicorn focusing her magic on one of the books in the shelves. "There is something you should see, Skylark." her voice sounded like she was lamenting, giving the book to the human. Opening it up, Skylark's eyes widened a little as he flipped through the pages. "It's all here...From the creation of Athelina to the coronation of Queen Athlaina the First..." He mused, looking up at Twilight. "Where in the Goddesses' names did you get this history book?" he asked, closing the book and inspecting the cover. It was a bit faded, some worn down spots. "It was in the Canterlot Library, since before I became a student under Princess Celestia. It was about three years ago that she had given me permission to move the book here- allowing me to read it myself....To tell you the truth, I thought of it as nothing but a fantasy, a work of fiction." Twilight Sparkle answered as best as she could, although this made things a bit harder to take in for the human. "So wait, Skylark is a character from a fairy tale?" Spike asked bluntly, and the unicorn thought. "Anything is possible...I mean, whoever wrote the story could have been creating a world of their own without realizing...or maybe even had a subconscious link to Athelina- whatever creativity the author had was actually the events." The unicorn stated her theories. "No. The author of this book was most likely a human, based on the name. Vega Lorewalker." Skylark refuted Twilight's theory. "It may be a stretch, but it could be possible that somebod- somepony could have visited Athelina and brought this back. The aging of the book, coupled with where it ends, would bring it to about 500 Athelinian years. I'm not sure how long that translates to here." he stated his own theory, pointing out his uncertainty. "That's one idea...although I need to ask Princess Celestia about this. If anypony would know, she would. Spike! I need you to write a letter to Princess Celestia. I need you to tell her about Skylark, about how he is from the same Athelina as the one detailed in her book." Twilight instructed the dragon, who quickly wrote down the message, looking at her. "Anything else, Twi?" he asked, but surprisingly the unicorn shook her head. "No. Anything else would be a bit pointless, I trust she will know what to do." Twilight told Spike, who nodded, rolled up the parchment and breathed green flames on the letter. In his ignorance, Skylark stared blankly before looking to Twilight once again. "I'm sorry, but what did burning that letter accomplish?" he asked, and the unicorn chuckled. "Oh! You've never seen an Equestrian Dragon's magic breath before...To put it simply, it sent the letter through the air. It is much faster than just sending a mail pony to do it. Besides, Celestia trusts Spike enough so there is a direct connection between us for communication." Twilight explained, smiling at the fact that this had relieved the human before her horn began to glow. A translucent cloud of purple energy moved closer to the Skylark, who panicked and fell out of the chair to try to get away from it. "What the hell are you doing?!" he asked. "Just hold still! I am just going to scan your magical aura- It will make it easier to take care of the..." she cut herself off, not letting the human question her before the purple cloud of magic enveloped the human. A cyan aura was made visible and, while relatively fluid like that of a candle light, there were sporadic dark blue bursts outward. "That's interesting..." Twilight mused. "What's interesting, Lady Twilight?" Skylark asked her, and the unicorn stared at him for a bit. "Your aura seems calm enough, yet there are some wild pieces to it...Something about you that you are trying so hard to restrain.." Twilight pondered for a bit before her ears perked once she noticed a slight shift. Skylark's pupils shrank, a bit of sweat forming on his brow. "If what I am thinking is right...then the Nac-MMPH!" she was cut off when the human suddenly covered her mouth with his palm. "Lady Twilight...please....No one can know about that..." he barely whispered. He was trembling slightly, and they each stared into the other's eyes for a few moments before the purple unicorn stepped back and nodded. "I understand. Sorry..." her ears drooped, and the human wiped his forehead in relief, but soon held his head, his eyes half closed. "Skylark? What's wrong?" the unicorn asked, quick to catch him as he stumbled. "How long was it since we parted with Lady Lyra?" Skylark asked, regaining his balance. "It has only been a few hours...five at the most." Twilight replied, and the human shook his head quickly, as if he were dizzy. "Five hours...I could have sworn it was longer than that...why in Solstia's name am I so exhausted?" He asked, and Twilight closed her eyes for a moment, focusing her magic on him once again. "What are you doing, Twilight?" Skylark asked again, only for her to gasp. "I was checking your body for any signs of disease, but I found something that worries me even more..Your body's clock goes at a much faster rate than any pony I know of. You've only been awake for at most five hours, yet your worn down as if you have been awake for at least four days." Twilight replied, quickly thinking before nodding. "I know Celestia will be disappointed that I am even thinking about doing this, but I have a friend, Zecora, who might be able to brew a potion to fix that. The best I can do is use a rejuvenation spell to restore you to how you were earlier today." she suggested as she cast the rejuvenation spell, and after agreeing, Skylark left the library with Twilight Sparkle. However, the human's first stop would not be to where Zecora resided.