How far will a disgraced unicorn go in order to get back at her enemies?
How far will a disgraced unicorn go in order to get back at her enemies?
This was a question posed to Starlight immediately after being run out of the town she once called home. Now abandoned, she must lick her wounds, re-establish herself in a new city, and prepare a plan.
A plan that will put her in direct conflict with the Equestrian monarchy and six of the kingdom's greatest heroes.
Her goal is simple. She just wants to get revenge against Princess Twilight Sparkle.
This is my take on what happened to Starlight Glimmer over the course of season 5, between the premiere and finale.
It was inspired by the few cameos appearances she had over the course of the season.
Starlight Glimmer’s hooves clopped loudly against the stone ground as she galloped quickly through the mountainous caverns. The darkness assaulted her from every direction, being held at bay by the pinprick of light which erupted from the tip of her horn.
Starlight’s lungs ached as her chest rapidly rose and fell under the exhaustion of her hasty retreat. She slowed from a gallop to a trot, before finally stopping to rest. Her ears perked up and listened. The only noise to greet her was the sound of her own breathing. The ponies who had pursued her must have given up their chase.
Ponies, who mere hours ago, would have been called her friends and neighbours. Within a day they had gone from a close nit community to an angry mob set upon getting revenge.
It had all begun when six ponies showed up on the outskirts of town. Two earthponies, two pegasi, a unicorn, and most stunning of all, an alicorn. Starlight welcomed them into her community, and almost immediately they had spat in her face.
First they preached an unwelcomed ideology among her town. One which stated that true friendship could only come from groups where everypony had something unique to bring to the mix.
Starlight in response removed their cutie marks, and began to indoctrinate them. It may have seemed like a rash move considering the party’s regal leader. However, she couldn’t let such lies flow through the denizens of her home.
One of the members cracked and embraced Starlight’s philosophy. At least, that is what Starlight thought happened. Really the mare had faked submission and put into motion a plan to stab Starlight in the back.
The next morning the alicorn princess had snapped, offering to submit like her pegasus friend had. Starlight was thrilled, walking into the jaws of the carefully orchestrated trap like a lemming. When her guard was down the pegasus threw a bucket of water at her.
The water had missed, with only a single drop landing upon her flank. That single drop turned out to be just enough to wash away her life. The drop cut right through her painted on faux cutie mark, and revealed the true nature underneath. While Starlight may have preached for a world without special talents, she had retained her own.
The town turned against her almost instantly. Ponies who she had known for months, for years ran her out like a criminal. Years of her life had been devoted to those two rows of houses and in less than a day she had gone from leader to pariah.
The only glimmer of hope was the fact that she had gotten away from the mob. She was now in the caverns of the nearby mountains. None of the other ponies in the small village knew how to navigate them, but Starlight did. Starlight was always a mare with many plans, and even though she loved her town she was prepared to abandon it on a moment’s notice.
When Starlight’s breathing was back under control she took a step forward and began to slowly walk deeper into the cavern. As she walked she cursed six names under her breath.
“Fluttershy”
“Rainbow Dash”
“Rarity”
“Applejack”
“Pinkie Pie”
Starlight paused as the image of the last pony was conjured in her mind. The regal alicorn herself. Just the thought of her made Starlight’s blood boil and breath quicken.
“Twilight Sparkle.”
Her teeth were gritted as she practically spat out the name.
These ponies were her targets now. Starlight would extract revenge upon them for what they had done to her community, to her ponies, and most of all for what they had done to her. She would have Princess Twilight begging at her hooves when her plan was finished.
The seeds of a million devious plans swam through her mind only to be shoved aside as Starlight focused on the task at hand. She wouldn’t be able to do much from within this cave, she needed to escape.
It was lucky that Starlight knew these caves like the bottom of her hoof. For instance, she knew that the cave would split up ahead into three separate tunnels. The left most tunnel would have her out on the other side of the mountain in less than an hour.
As Starlight entered said chamber, she turned left. She took only a few paces before stopping dead in her tracks. Large boulders now blocked the tunnel before her.
Starlight quickly turned left, and then right, hoping that she had simply overshot the tunnel entrance. There was no such luck. So now she was stuck with two options, neither of which she had actually investigated properly before.
Starlight let out a hoarse sounding chuckle as she approached the central tunnel. Her horn was only so powerful, the light barely cutting more than a few metres into the darkness.
Starlight inhaled sharply and began to bob her head between the two remaining tunnels. “Eeny, meeny, miny, moe, Catch a tiger by the toe. If he hollers, let him go, eeny, meeny, miny, moe.”
Starlight’s horn settled upon the right tunnel and she approached it. A part of her considered going back, as there was no way of knowing if this path actually led to an exit. It was a small part and was soon overruled. The ponies of her town would toss her in jail, and revenge couldn’t be achieved from a jail cell.
Starlight walked forward allowing the tunnel to swallow her whole. It was an oddly beautiful sight, the gemstones embedded in the wall reflecting her magic and causing a shimmering effect.
It was still incredibly silent with only her hooves and breathing creating an ambient noise. Not even the dripping of water could be heard.
As time slowly crept on by, the shimmering of gems soon lost its beauty and the tunnel refused to end. Deeper and deeper it went into the mountain, going through twist and turn, and yet daylight never once graced Starlight.
She could tell the hour was beginning to grow late as a hunger ravaged her belly, which growled viciously for sustenance. Along with that she was beginning to slow, her eyes drooping as exhaustion began to mount.
“I mean. A little nap couldn’t hurt.” Starlight said aloud, her own voice repeating over and over in an echo.
She ducked into a little nook in the rock. It was hardly large enough to fit herself, but the closeness of the walls made her feel safe. When the light on the tip of her horn faded she was left in complete darkness.
Starlight shivered and closed her eyes, letting out a sigh. Sleep came rather quickly considering the hardness of the rock she laid upon.
Her dreams were fevered and incredibly lucid. They began normal enough with her living a random day back in her town. The ponies Starlight led all smiled and waved, and of course she had no problem returning the gesture. She continued her walk and as she advanced she noticed that the street went on for far longer than it should have.
Starlight walked and walked and as she did so the ponies around her changed, they went from smiling to sneering, growling, and even hissing at her. Finally, the street she thought would never end halted. Standing at the end were six ponies, the same six ponies who had ruined her.
They all glared at her. At first they were normal looking, though angry ponies. This normality was only a charade, as they soon began to grow, getting taller and taller until she was an ant at their beastly hooves.
Rainbow Dash leaned forward, a grin plastered onto her muzzle. Her teeth were pointed and razor sharp.
“So pathetic,” Rainbow Dash boomed in a voice that couldn’t possibly belong to her.
Pinkie Pie leaned forward, the happiness she had displayed upon arriving in town having evaporated.
“She’s been abandoned, all alone.” Pinkie Pie said before she paused and drew back.
Now Twilight Sparkle, their leader leaned in nice and close her eyes taking on a red glow as they stared right into Starlight’s. Starlight tried to scramble back, but behind her a barricade of ponies had formed. They all had death in their eyes and murderous intent upon their posture.
Twilight smiled nice and wide her breath reeking of hot garbage. “All alone, just the way she always is.”
Twilight’s mouth opened and she lunged forwards taking Starlight between her lips. She swallowed her whole and Starlight screamed loudly. The descent down the pony’s throat was like a waterslide and upon reaching the bottom she found herself sitting within a room.
The room in question was a living room, a pretty standard one at that. Soft gray walls flanked her from left to right, and she sat upon a coarse blue rug. To Starlight’s right was a bookshelf, devoid of any titles as each of them had been stacked on a round coffee table before her. She looked at the tower of books, seeing that the stack reached all the way to the roof.
The roof began to head skywards, and with it the tower of books continued to grow as volume after volume was added. The tower grew unstable but this didn’t slow construction. Starlight couldn’t imagine that even the grand library of Canterlot would hold this many titles. Finally, the tower buckled and began to collapse.
Books rained from the sky landing all around Starlight. Books that were big and thick with leather bound covers of every colour. A book nearly crashed into her head, but she managed to avoid it by stumbling to the left. That had only bought her seconds as the rain of books soon turned into a shower. Starlight turned just in time to see an orange unicorn colt smirking cruelly at her as a book cracked her on the skull.
Starlight awoke with a start as only blackness greeted her from the slumber. Starlight let out a panicked scream as she desperately tried to conjure a spell to light her way.
It took a few seconds but finally Starlight’s horn shot out a faint beam of light. Starlight winced at even this low illumination. She still felt exhausted and worst of all the back of her throat felt dry. She was thirsty.
Starlight pulled herself out of the nook, looking left and then right. She swallowed hard, before letting out another chuckle.
“Which way did I come from, again?” Starlight asked herself.
No one replied.
Starlight studied both direction before deciding to turn right and continue her journey.
The hours continued to creep on by, as the cavern began to repeat before her. Each segment looked like the last, with uniformed walls, and generic looking gemstones.
The thirst in the back of her throat mounted, and soon she could feel it taunting her with each inhale she took. Starlight would have drunk from a patch of festering water if it would mean putting an end to her suffering.
Drip
It was such a foreign sound to her.
Drip
Something that was not her hooves, or raspy breathing, a sound that did not belong to her.
Drip
It took a moment to realize just what it was. She galloped forward, throwing caution to the wind in order to reach the source of that noise.
The tunnel widened and soon Starlight found herself in a naturally formed chamber. In the centre of it was a small puddle. It was shallow and discoloured, the filth of the ground mixing into it. Starlight didn’t care one bit. She scrambled for the puddle and dipped her muzzle into it. She took a hearty sip, and paused.
Salt; The water was filled with it. She spat it back out and screamed. Her horn glowed brighter and brighter as her fury engulfed her. She was like a child throwing a tantrum as she stomped her hooves on the ground.
Starlight wanted to sob, but the thirst denied her the tears. The taste of the salt lingered on her tongue, mocking her. She then paused, her rampaging stomps coming to a pitiful end.
Starlight was a smart unicorn, one who was well-versed in the various fields of magic and worldly studies.
Starlight’s magic formed a dome which she placed over the polluted water. The dome then turned to a bubble which she used to lift the water into the air. She studied it for a moment, thinking of a solution. She needed this water.
Starlight’s horn glowed and the bubble began to grow bright. She was heating up the bubble and before long the water inside was boiling violently. The bubble expanded to contain the newly added energy. She constricted the middle of the bubble causing it to narrow until finally separating the bubble into two. The upper one containing steam and the lower, salt.
Starlight popped the lower bubble causing the salt to scatter onto the floor. She then began to cool the remaining bubble, causing it to shrink. It cooled and cooled until finally only a small bladder of water remained. It wasn’t much, maybe a cup or two at most.
Still, that was a cup or two more than she previously had. Starlight turned the bubble into a magical cup and levitated it up to her lips. She took a sip, testing it. It tasted pure, purer than even the highest class filter could manage.
The sip turned to vicious gulping as she welcomed the cold water into her dry throat. It was gone in a matter of seconds, yet it had given her the strength to continue.
Her slow descent resumed, and by now Starlight was sure it was a descent. Once again the tedium of walking knocked up against her mind. The minutes turned to hours, and before long she had zoned out. Her body was on auto-pilot as her mind filled with imagines of revenge.
Oh, there were so many ways to achieve it. Starlight could burn down their town, that would be a fitting punishment. They took her town away from her, she would take theirs away from them.
Starlight came to a stop as a gleaming white object caught her sight. She trotted over to it curiously. It was wedged into a little crevice, similar to the one that she had spent the night in. Upon reaching the little space, she pressed her head in. She screamed almost immediately.
The object in question was part of the lower half of a pony skeleton. The bones were ancient and covered in a grimy layer of dust. Yet their impossible whiteness haunted her. Starlight jerked back and stumbled away from the skeleton, muffling another squeal.
Starlight wasn’t a crime scene investigator, but even she could tell the cause of death. While crawling into the nook a giant bolder must have come crashing down on the pony’s head.
Such a sight caused Starlight to clench her teeth and look up at the roof. It appeared solid over her head, but with each step she took a new weight settled upon her already fragile nerves.
The cave continued to twist and turn, causing another grim thought to enter Starlight’s mind. She was going to die in here, she was sure of it by now. Her stomach was ravenously hungry, and the thirst had made a nasty return, reinforcing her dark thoughts.
By this point Starlight was pretty sure that the cave was just an optical illusion, drawing her deeper and deeper into an infinitely repeating hallway. It may have even been a continuation of the nightmare which so vividly returned to the forefront of her mind.
Starlight closed her eyes and sighed, and when they reopened her horn had gone out. The blackness surrounded her from every side. Only it didn’t, a star in the distance, a pin prick in the blanket of night beckoned to her.
Starlight approached it slowly, one hoof in front of the other. The pin prick grew, blossoming before her eyes. Her pace picked up, her hooves pounding against the ground. The light grew and grew, until finally it engulfed her.
Starlight blinked repeatedly as her senses were overwhelmed by the impossible brightness. It took a few moments but finally she found herself outside. All around her was nature, with tall trees growing in a meadow of grass and vegetation.
Starlight cheered loudly, pressing her muzzle against the ground to kiss it. She was outside, she was alive. She kissed the ground again and again, laughing like a madmare as she did so.
When Starlight finally pulled away from the ground she noticed a hill. She scrambled up it, and upon reaching the peak she could see a crystal blue lake spread out before her. On the opposite banks of the lake was a small village. It really wasn’t much to look at, but it had one important detail; a train station.
Starlight went back down the hill deciding to tackle her hunger and thirst before venturing into the community. It didn’t take long with how tall and abundant the grass was. She felt like a bit of a savage eating from the earth, but the fresh memories of the cave easily supressed any self-conscious thoughts.
With her belly filled, Starlight began to walk around the lake, entering into the small hamlet. The ponies of the community studied her. She smiled nervously, hoping that none of them had heard of her exploits on the other side of the mountains.
When none of the ponies approached her with anything but curiosity she made her way into the train station.
Once inside, Starlight saw that only a single employee was present. He was a bored looking unicorn who was reading a manuscript on his desk. When Starlight approached he looked up.
“Hello miss,” he said in a soft voice. “How can I help you?”
Starlight smiled warmly. “I was just wondering when the next train is coming into station.”
The stallion dragged over a laminated card, his eyes scanning is quickly. “There is a regional train coming in about fifty minutes.”
Starlight nodded. “And where does it go?”
The stallion ditched the card and already had his muzzle shoved back into the book. “It goes to a couple of small towns in the area before returning to Canterlot.”
Canterlot, the very mention of the city made Starlight grin. “I’ll take one ticket please.”
Canterlot, the imperial capital and beating heart of the Equestrian Kingdom. Everypony who was anypony lived, worked, or at least visited here on a regular basis. It was marvel of design, hanging gracefully from the edge of a mountain like an oversized bird’s nest.
Spires dotted the densely populated city, crawling skywards. It would seem that the architects were in a constant struggle to see who could create the greatest monument. Yet even though the city was dotted with them, each spire was a unique landmark in itself. The royal palace, city hall, the famed clock tower, and the observatory. Each was carefully designed and constructed to look different from the rest.
The sight of the city took Starlight’s breath away, though at this altitude that wasn’t very hard. Starlight had always been a big pony in a small world. She had moved from hamlet to hamlet and had never even held interest in visiting any of the larger cities of Equestria.
She felt saddened realizing just what she had been missing. The sadness was soon replaced with a bitterness as a fresh series spires greeted her. It was the campus of Canterlot University. The campus that housed the illustrious Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. The very school her greatest friend had been taken to, before he abandoned her.
It may have been treason to think negatively of a princess, but Starlight’s feelings for the four rulers ranged from neutrality to straight up animosity at this point in her life. In a pessimist way she was just waiting for Cadance and Luna to screw her over and complete the list.
The campus was soon obscured, along with most of the spires by a large white wall. They were approaching the city, and before them the gates parted, allowing the train entry. The gates were massive being at least several stories tall, and constructed from the finest woods and metals the kingdom could spare.
Upon passing through the gates, the city once again captured a warmer side of Starlight. Ponies, hundreds of ponies walked through the streets of the city. They talked, laughed, pranced, sung, shopped, ate, and performed every activity imaginable. Starlight couldn’t help but stare at them in awe. This was a completely foreign world to her.
The train began to slow as they entered an immense structure of glass and brick. The train’s deceleration grew until they came to a jerking stop. Outside of her window was a platform with a small group of ponies having gathered on it.
Starlight got to her hooves and walked for the door, though she was soon forced to a halt as everypony else made a rush for the exit. Most ponies had luggage so the rush soon halted as a jam formed. It was slow work but eventually the line crept forward as groups of one or two gathered their bags and left.
It took a few halting minutes but Starlight eventually made her way onto the platform. She looked around, feeling a sense of confusion. She knew that her plan required her to be in Canterlot, but now that she was here she had no idea what to do.
Starlight walked up to a small booth with its shutters closed. Written upon a piece of cardboard was the message, “gone for lunch be back in 30.”
Lunch, that seemed like as good a start as any. Starlight hadn’t eaten on the train and her last meal of mountain grass was a distant memory.
There were several shops embedded into the far wall of the station, along with several kiosks intermingled among the various train platforms. Most of these served food. Starlight approached one of the kiosks, this one preparing coffee and donuts. Maybe it wasn’t the most luxurious food, but Starlight wasn’t the most luxurious mare.
Starlight entered into a queue, which slowly began to move forward. She studied the menu, mentally calculating what she wanted. Obviously a cup of coffee would really be nice, oh and one of the blueberry jam filled fritters would be delectable. The math of want soon broke down as a realization hit her. Canterlot was not her town, in Canterlot things cost bits.
Oh sure Starlight knew how bits worked, everypony did. The problem was, she hadn’t had to use bits since her foalhood. She smiled awkwardly before side stepping out of line. How could she have been so absent minded.
Back in the small town where she boarded the train the pony running the train station had attempted to ask her for a fare. She had rejected and with a little flare of her more, illicit magic, she had managed to get him to waver the fee. That would have been a nice trick to use on the coffee shop but with so many witnesses around the idea was soon thrashed. Magic was never a subtly force.
That little incident should have been a precursor of things to come. An old saying entered Starlight’s mind, there was no place like home. That seemed true, her town was the only place a pony could eat and have housing without money. All they needed was neighbourly spirit and unity.
Feeling dejected Starlight left the little kiosk and looked around for an exit. She noticed on one of the pillars a bronze arrow pointing right. Under the arrow was a plastic panel reading exit, and a translation of the word into several languages.
It took a few minutes of following the arrows, but finally Starlight found herself outdoors. Canterlot looked even more spectacular from this angle. The cobblestone streets were filled with ponies, and flanking them were a dozen different shops each with its own unique flare and design. Yet even with all the clashing shops and styles two traits remained present across the board. Everything was regal and cosmopolitan.
However, every single shop required the one thing she didn’t have, bits. Starlight walked aimlessly through the streets trying to figure out her next move. Her plan was to stay in Canterlot until Princess Twilight was summoned by Princess Celestia. Without bits, she’d either be forced out of the city, or if she remained into squalor. Neither option sounded pleasing.
Starlight walked around for the gods knew how long, but when she finally looked up she was outside of the Royal Canterlot Library. It was an immense domed structure, coloured grey and purple. Royal and civic banners hung from the roof. To enter a pony would have to ascend marble steps, which were guarded by the pearl white statues of two scholarly unicorns.
Starlight walked up the steps and approached the structure’s golden doors. She at least knew that this place would not bar her for lack of funds.
Starlight entered and was immediately overwhelmed. Books, books everywhere. The walls were lined from floor to roof in tens of thousands of books. The library was also filled with ponies. Either walking around in search of something to read or reading at one of the many oaken tables.
Starlight wandered deeper into the library, finding herself amongst the many rows of shelves. She was idly sifting through some tomes, still deep in thought. A voice peaked on the edge of her understand. When she realized it was directed at her she zoned back in and chuckled nervously.
“I’m sorry, what did you say?” Starlight said with a sheepish grin.
Standing a few steps away was an elderly unicorn mare who was sliding a book back onto the shelf.
The mare smiled. “I asked if I could help you with anything.”
Starlight shook her head. “Uh no I’m good, thank you. Wait, do you work here?”
The mare nodded. “I am the head librarian.”
“Head librarian? That sounds prestigious.”
The librarian smirked, and gave a small laugh. “Is it? I don’t feel overly prestigious.”
Starlight bit her lip looking from left to right. It was just the two of them in among the shelves.
“I mean to be the head librarian of the kingdom’s largest library. It obviously takes a special sort of pony to do that.” Special the word tasted like acid in Starlight’s mouth. “I’d love to work here. How often do you hire?”
“I just hired a new assistant librarian, so sadly not for a little while.”
“Oh that’s a shame, this looks like it’d be an interesting job.”
“Well we are looking for ponies every once in a while. If you can give me your address, I’ll make sure to send you a letter next time we’re looking.”
Starlight made sure to watch the gap between the shelves. Over the course of their conversation not a single pony had walked by. It really was just Starlight and the librarian.
“Has anypony in your staff met the new pony yet?”
The librarian paused, “uh no, just myself.”
The edge of Starlight’s lips turned upwards as she faced the librarian, looking her dead in the eye. Starlight’s expression must have been absolutely sinister since the librarian took a step away, a startled noise falling from her lips.
Starlight’s horn began to glow a nice ambient aqua green. The librarian took another step back, looking ready to bolt. Starlight didn’t allow this as magic laced around the librarian’s tail. The librarian tried to scream but another tendril of magic wrapped around her muzzle forcing it closed.
A cloud of light floated off of Starlight’s horn, slowly making its way over to the librarian. The cloud rested right before the librarian’s nostrils. Once she inhaled she took in both air, and the magical essence. It took a moment but soon her eyes went glassy and unfocused.
Starlight smirked and began to pace around the librarian, talking in a nice soothing tone. “My name is Starlight Glimmer, your new assistant librarian.”
“You are Starlight Glimmer, my new assistant librarian.” The librarian repeated in a distant voice.
“You will inform the interviewee that a better offer had been presented and you sadly can not hire them.”
“I will inform the interviewee that there was a better offer.”
“Very good.” Starlight paused before deciding to kill two birds with one stone. “Do you live alone?”
“Yes, I live alone.”
“Oh absolutely fantastic. Do you have a guest room?”
“Yes.”
“Well how very kind of you to rent it to me for such a reasonable rate.”
“Very kind.”
“Now where do you live?”
As the librarian rattled off an address, Starlight noticed a small saddlebag hanging from the librarian’s hip.
“How many bits do you have on you?”
“Fifty-Seven.”
“Well that hardly a proper hiring bonus, but times are tough.”
“Times are tough.”
Starlight smiled warmly and released her control on the mare. The librarian blinked once, twice, and a final time before entering her body once more. She looked at Starlight for a moment in utter silence before putting on a nice big smile.
“Its so good of you to stop by Starlight. Are you ready for work this Monday?” The librarian asked in a cheery tone.
Starlight’s smile went from warm to beaming as she replied. “Of course, I can’t wait.” She paused and went wide eyed realizing she never got the librarian’s name. “Miss.”
The librarian laughed and waved a hoof. “Miss? Please Starlight, call me Poetic.”
Starlight gave a small nod. “Of course Poetic. Sorry, I must be nervous. I am really excited about this job.”
Poetic looked at Starlight in a motherly fashion as she levitated a small bundle of bits out of her bag. “Before I forget, here is a small hiring bonus. I know it isn’t much, but you know, the economy and what not.”
Starlight took the bits, hovering them beside herself. “Oh don’t worry Poetic, I completely understand. I’ll see you later?”
Poetic nodded, giving off a crisp smile. “Of course Starlight. See you back at home.”
With that Starlight left the librarian behind walking back into the atrium of her new workplace. Oh sure it was a step down from being mayor but she could get used to this.
With some bits now to her name Starlight began to get herself acquainted with a couple of stores in Canterlot. She was usually a rather conservative mare but now she couldn’t help but splurge. She had just come off of a rather traumatic experience after all. So, why not live a little?
The first thing Starlight did was buy herself a pouch to store her bits. What she ended up purchasing was a small little bag which hung tightly around her midriff. The store owner explained that most ponies in Canterlot hid it under their gown or suit. Starlight now only having fifty-two bits decided to forgo additional clothing for the moment.
Next on Starlight’s list was something to eat. She had still not gotten herself lunch and her stomach was rumbling. She looked around town, humming and hawing at the various places to get a meal. Part of her wanted to splurge and run into one of the restaurants proclaiming three hooves.
Starlight had no idea what that meant, but it must have been good considering so many places bragged about it.
Instead she decided on a nice little bakery that was nestled into the corner of a bustling intersection. She grabbed a bagel with rosemary cream cheese and a cup of chai tea before sitting down at one of the tables outside.
Starlight ate slowly, watching the world go by around her. There was so much chaos in this city, and she enjoyed witnessing it from the safety of her seat. Muscular earthpony stallions trotted swiftly pulling carriages behind them. Slender unicorns walked on the shoulders of the street chit chatting amongst themselves. Pegasi zoomed over head, eager to avoid the pandemonium below.
It was a far cry from the rustic calm that her village offered. She felt lonely, and with that came a stinging bitterness. She didn’t need her village. They had betrayed her, and she had no time for traitors.
She wolfed down the bagel, which had lost all of its flavour. She then just sat there, her hoof poking at the disposable cup of tea before her. She looked around, and seeing that the space had lost its charm decided to throw back her tea before leaving.
Canterlot was a massive city, and while Starlight would have enjoyed a bit more exploring she decided it would be better to find out where exactly her new home was. First she made her way back to the library, using it as the starting point for the long list of directions that Poetic had rattled off.
Starlight began to follow the directions and as she did so the city around her changed. The city core was constructed of narrow cobblestone roads with massive ornate buildings flanking them. Not a single space was left to homes, instead being used by many shops or services.
A transition began as Starlight made her way towards the walls that surrounded the city. The ornate buildings were soon replaced by identical looking brick and concrete apartment blocks. Individual homes seemed like a very elusive prospect in Canterlot. Starlight couldn’t really blame the city. While it may have been massive to her, it was still compact for the sheer number of ponies who lived there. This meant economizing on space.
When Starlight finally arrived at her destination she stood before a five story tall building constructed of a faded red brick. Starlight walked up the steps and tried the door, it was locked. She thought about trying to wedge her magic into the building and opening it from the inside but the door was tightly affixed to its frame. The gap between the frame and door was far to narrow for her to even attempt it.
Starlight looked to the right and noticed a mechanism affixed to the wall next to the door. On it were twenty different names with black buttons next to each of them. She scanned them until she saw the name Poetic Prose, next to the number 303. Her hoof came up and she pushed the button. Nothing happened. She pressed it again, and still nothing happened.
Starlight peered through a narrow rectangular window next to the door. There were no ponies within view inside the building.
Starlight grunted and took a step back examining the apartment block. She trotted around it, looking up and down. The building was solid brick though on each floor were eight windows. Two in each compass direction.
Starlight noticed that a single window on the forth floor was opened. Starlight looked around, and when she saw that there were no prying eyes she encased herself in magic.
Flight was not a common skill for unicorns. In fact, Starlight had never met another unicorn who could pull it off. She lifted herself gingerly off of the ground and began to levitate herself alongside the building. She crept along the side until she was level with the opened window.
Starlight peeked inside and grinned. The place was devoid of any ponies. She gently propelled herself inside and released the spell as soon as her hooves made contact with solid ground.
The apartment Starlight landed in was rather mundane looking, so she moved on quickly. She unlocked the door and walked through, closing it gently behind her. The hallway was equally boring with white walls that had been yellowed with age, and a greying carpet that had probably been vibrant blue a couple of decades ago.
Starlight walked through the hallway and down the flight of stairs until she reached the third floor. She then looked around, and upon seeing the door labelled ‘303’ approached it. She grabbed the door knob with her magic and gave it a twist. It didn’t budge. Starlight then noticed a peep hole which had been hollowed out
Starlight smirked and looked around once more to make sure that no ponies were present. It turned out that being a unicorn destined to toy with magic gave you an almost criminal set of skills. Her horn glowed and an aura of magic pushed through the peep hole. She was blind so she felt around with her spell slowly rolling it down the interior of the door.
Starlight was deep in concentration, searching along the rough wooden surface. Her magic then made contact with something smooth and metallic. She carefully wrapped her magic around the object, identifying it as the doorknob. Giving it a gentle turn, Starlight felt the doorknob pop out by a few millimetres.
Starlight pulled her magic back through the peephole and gave the doorknob on her side a turn. The door opened, revealing her new home.
The apartment was humble, though Starlight was use to that. It was also tidy, Poetic clearly doing a fine job of keeping her life in order. The furniture was old and looked straight out of a catalog from thirty years ago. Starlight closed the door behind herself and walked through the apartment.
On the kitchen table was a half finished puzzle. While the coffee table in the living room was piled up with books in various states of incompletion. Starlight ignored them instead making her way into a narrow hallway, which had three doors connected to it.
The door to the left led to a small bathroom. So small in fact that there was no bathtub and just a shower. The door to her right led to a bedroom. This one looked lived in so Starlight assumed it was Poetic’s. She then advanced to a door at the end of the hallway.
Inside was a perfectly kept, though completely boring room. The furniture was spartan. A table, a chair, a dresser, and a small bed. On the bed were some white sheets with lilacs imprinted upon them. As Starlight got closer, she could smell the faint echo of mothballs upon the sheets.
Having been without sleep since her little catnap in the caverns, Starlight climbed onto the bed. She rested her head upon the impossibly soft pillow and was out like a light within seconds.
The sound was piercings and forced the exhausted Starlight Glimmer to open her eyes. Ever since she had moved into the apartment she had been plagued by terrible nightmare flued insomnia. She didn’t know how much longer this would go on, but the pounding aches of sleeplessness had been a reliable companion for the past three weeks.
The source of the offended noise was directly off the bridge of her snout. It was her alarm clock, its two shiny silver cymbals crashing against the metal casing. Starlight groaned and sat up, smacking her hoof down upon the device. It stopped clattering, leaving the room in silence. She blinked repeatedly looking at the time, five, five in the morning.
Starlight rubbed her eyes with the edge of her hoof, clearing away the last lingering vestiges of sleep. With a huff Starlight swung herself off the bed, her hooves connecting with the ground. She yawned loudly and looked around. The first lingering rays of regal sunlight entered her room, lighting up the space.
She walked over to her desk examining the paperwork she had been doing before bed. They were plans, ranging from A to Z, each of them a separate act of treason for merely existing. Starlight picked up Plan C. She multitasked, reading over the plan while at the same time making her bed.
Plan C called for poisoning the punch at the Grand Galloping Gala. Starlight thought about it, it would be simple enough to do. A few leaves from a hemlock plant could kill anything. She also had newspaper clips proving that Princess Twilight and her gang had been in attendance to every single Gala since the return of Luna. However, Starlight was not a huge fan of harming bystanders. As such the plan was shuffled down the alphabet, losing relevance with each letter that was now above it.
Starlight shuffled her notes, shoving them into a folder before depositing that into a drawer. With a click of a tumbler her crimes became safely locked away from any prying eyes.
When Starlight had first arrived in Canterlot she had been amazed by the sheer volume of things to do. Yet less than a month later she had found that every day became routine, with every morning playing out nearly the same. She’d wake up, clear her desk, take a quick trip to the washroom to clean up, and then she was out the door.
Poetic Prose would still be in bed by the time Starlight left, her own shift at the library starting later in the day. This meant that Starlight never really interacted with the mare at home, the two of them having very few overlapping private hours. This suited Starlight just fine. The mare was simply access to a job and roof, nothing more, nothing less.
Upon hitting the streets Starlight would head towards the city core. The maze that she had first encountered was now a series of familiar routes with their own unique landmarks and faces. The most traveled of these routes was the one she took to work.
This early in the morning the city was just getting itself together. The early risers, such as herself, shuffled out of their homes. Each of them looked as sleep deprived as she felt. They all possessed eyes with dark sleepless rings, and moved around like mindless drones.
Starlight soon found herself in the shopping district, though only a couple of places were opened. Those few were either bakeries or convenience stores. Starlight ducked into a small side street and approached a bakery wedged into the first floor of a thin building. It went by the name Cup of Joe.
For every day Starlight had work, she’d stopped into this bakery for breakfast. She had quickly become a regular, which prompted the cashier behind the counter to wave a hoof at her every time she entered. The mare had a greyish-blue coat with a black mane pulled into a bun behind her head.
Starlight trotted over to the mare and flashed her a professional smile. “Good morning, Puzzle Piece.”
Puzzle Piece returned the smile, hers having far more warmth and friendliness to it. “Hey, good morning, Glimmer. What can I get you? Oh let me guess, medium coffee, one cream, two sugar, and a lemon poppy seed muffin.”
That had been Starlight’s same order for the last month. The same thing, to help cement the eerie routine she had imposed upon herself. So, for reasons she couldn’t really justify she decided to change things up.
“Actually how about a blueberry muffin today. I’m feeling adventurous.” Starlight stated allowing her smile to turn into a grin.
This made Puzzle Piece laugh. “Oh-oh, is somepony having a drug test at work today?”
“Drug test? Why would they have a drug test at a library?”
“Well I mean there has to be a reason why you’re not getting a lemon poppy seed muffin.”
“Maybe, I just felt like changing things up. What does a muffin have to do with a drug test anyways?”
“Well I mean; they make painkillers out of poppyseeds. So sometimes eating them can give you a false positive on your drug test.”
“What? That can’t possible be true.”
“Sure it is. How do you think I lost my last job?” Puzzle state before laughing. “Joking, joking, enjoy your meal Glimmer.”
Starlight side stepped as Puzzle Piece address another regular who was standing behind her. From what she could eavesdrop the customer’s name was Honey Bee and he was a comedian.
As Puzzle Piece and Honey Bee chatted, another of the shop’s employees grabbed the muffin and coffee, placing them down on the counter. The employee rang up the purchase and Starlight forked over the couple of bits her breakfast cost.
She levitated the coffee over, taking a massive sip. The first pulse of caffeinated goodness hitting her as she left the bakery. It put a little extra hop in her step as Starlight merged back onto one of the major roads that cut through Canterlot’s core.
She bit into the muffin letting out a satisfied moan. It had been a good choice to try something new. The muffin was the perfect texture, the berries ripened with their sweet juices coating her tongue. She washed down each mouthful with another sip of coffee until only an empty cup and wrapper remained. Both of them were tossed into a nearby garbage can before Starlight cantered towards her job.
By the time Starlight reached the library, the sun had asserted its dominance, ushering away the last bastions of night and replacing it with a glowing dawn.
She walked up the flight of stairs and approached the golden doors leading into the library. They were locked at this early hour but as a librarian she knew the spell to open them.
Without even a pause in her step she advanced. Her horn glowed and a spell gripped the handle to the door. They swung open for her and she walked inside. Upon entering they closed behind her, locking automatically.
The library was an eerie place without its patrons. Libraries were always quiet, but at least when ponies were around Starlight could hear them walking about, flipping pages, and having hushed conversations. Without any of that the only sound that greeted Starlight was the echo of her hooves upon the tile floor.
After her training she had been given the responsibility of getting the library ready for opening. This was a job she was informed, they saved for the newest staff since it involved ponies having to wake up incredibly early in the morning. While Starlight wasn’t fond of the silence she did enjoy the privacy such a position gave her.
She would talk to herself as she worked. Her conversations always being about the same topic, revenge. If any other pony had been around they would have been driven mad long ago by her constant and infinite interest in the topic. However, since the only set of ears in the space were her own, she knew her voice had a captivated audience.
So, Starlight worked while muttering under her breath. The tasks were simple, junior level stuff. She had to empty the bins containing returned books, check them in, and then cross reference the titles with a reserve list.
Any incoming book on that list would be set aside for the first pony who requested each title. Any book that remained afterwards would be placed on a wheeled cart. When the day began Starlight would be responsible for taking that cart and restocking the shelves.
She was usually done about an hour before opening at which point more of the staff would arrive. It was still a skeleton crew containing Poetic Prose, and another of the assistants, but at least it was enough bodies to start creating some ambient noise.
The three of them worked independently as more of the staff trickled in. Five minutes before nine, Poetic Prose called together a pre-work meeting. In it she went over the trivial news of the day. Payday was friday, membership was steady, and the city mayor had seen to it that the library would have funding to buy an additional five hundred novels for the city’s foals.
With the meeting done everypony got to their stations. The library was opening and the first “rush” was about to hit them. Starlight sighed as Poetic unlocked the door and a grand total of three ponies came marching in. Each of them were an elderly unicorn clearly more in need of attention than a good book.
Starlight wasn’t fond of talking with the patrons, so instead she went over to the cart. She gripped it with magic and disappeared amongst the shelves. The library was massive and even though she knew what to do, the shelving would still take her a good bit of time to get done.
Book after book slipped into the vacant gaps in the shelves. Starlight was kind of amazed by the diverse taste the ponies of this city had. She was putting away spell tomes, fiction novels, auto-biographies, and even a picture book full of figs.
Just like she predicted the whole process took her nearly two hours. By that point the cart was down to a dozen or so volumes. All of which needed to be shelved in the main atrium. Those were the shelves that held the newest and most popular books.
As it was unwieldy to push the cart through the atrium, Starlight parked it and scooped up the books with her magic. She then marched into the atrium, making her way around, moving swiftly from bookshelf to bookshelf. By now the atrium had become populated as students and other ponies had begun to wander into the library.
The pile of books embraced by Starlight’s magic began to dwindled until only a couple titles remained. She nearly dropped them as a shrill gasp pierced the library’s silence.
“Oh my gosh! Moondancer is that-” A very familiar voice state before being assaulted from every angle by shushes.
Starlight stared at the figure, her jaw agape at the royal’s presence. Standing in the middle of her place of work, was Princess Twilight Sparkle. Who having been silenced by the mob of library goers made a hasty retreat away from the atrium.
She couldn’t believe her eyes, her magic faltering at the sheer shock of the encounter. Starlight swallowed hard and noticed that one of her coworkers was studying her in a very concerning manner.
“I uh, know that mare.” Starlight said with a nervous grin.
The mare known as Bookmark rolled her eyes. “No kidding? It’s almost like she’s a monarch or something.”
Starlight let out a single amused sound. “Yeah, sorry. I must be star struck, or something.”
“You should have been here like four or five years ago, Twilight used to come in all the time.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, she moved though.”
“Oh? Where to?”
“Uh some small town called Ponyville. She got a job as the librarian there. You know, before the whole becoming a princess thing. I heard she’s become pretty down to Earth. I’m sure she’d be willing to sign something for you.”
“I wouldn’t want to bother her, she’s probably busy.”
“Suit yourself Starlight.” Bookmark said before shrugging and turning to help a young foal.
Ponyville, the home of Princess Twilight Sparkle. That was a little sliver of information Starlight was eager to get. She’d have to visit this town when she had a chance. Though, she needed to figure out what Twilight was doing in her library first.
The next time Starlight saw her, she was under a purple dome of pure magic within the centre of the library. The dome surrounded a single desk where this Moondancer unicorn was sitting. Twilight obviously had some business with the mare.
She couldn’t help but wonder how Moondancer could possibly know Twilight. Moondancer was a regular to the library and Starlight had only interacted with her a couple times. Those interactions portrayed Moondancer as a bit of a hermit with severe social issues.
The relationship between Twilight and Moondancer while strange also appeared to be rather one sided. Starlight couldn’t help but smirk at how bored and aggravated Moondancer looked at all of Twilight’s advances. Very few words were exchanged between the two before Moondancer shot up a spell of her own and pierced the silencing bubble with a loud pop, prompting another wave of shushes.
Twilight once more fled into the library, hiding herself amongst the rows of books. Starlight decided to follow. She played it safe, making sure to remain a shelf over from Twilight. The shelves were accessible from both sides, and with the strategic removal of a book Starlight would be able to peer into Twilight’s row.
Twilight had fled pretty far into the library when Starlight finally found her. She peered through a gap in the shelf studying the mare. Twilight was just standing their, seemingly deep in concentration.
Starlight smirked. She could end things right here, right now. A well placed spell to remove Twilight’s cutie mark, and then a swift retreat. Canterlot was a big city and she’d be able to disappear. It took a lot of willpower not to do that. Sure it would have been great to destroy Twilight but it would be even greater to take her and her five friends out, all in one mighty swipe.
Starlight kept her eyes on Twilight, replacing one book for another whenever she felt like renewing her cover. She began to notice that Twilight was doing the exact same thing with the shelf across from the one Starlight was using. She’d pick up a book, peer on through the gap it created, then stare at the cover for several moments before finally putting it back.
Time made a slow advance with Starlight watching Twilight spying of what seemed to be an empty row of shelves. Suddenly Twilight slid a book into place and pranced on the spot. She cleared her throat and took a deep breath. Whatever she had been waiting for was clearly coming.
A white glow formed on a book a bit to Twilight’s left. She stepped to the side in order to be directly behind it. The book was removed and Twilight leaned in, going nose to nose with Moondancer.
Even with Twilight facing away, Starlight had no trouble hearing her conversation. “I’m really sorry to bother you. I was just hoping that we could go outside and talk for a bit-”
Twilight wasn’t even able to finish the plea before the book was re-insert and Moondancer was gone, shunning her. Starlight nearly whinnied watching her nemesis getting snubbed by a commoner. It was the most entertaining thing she’d watched in years.
Twilight wandered off once more, with Starlight lingering behind. The princess was to engrossed in Moondancer to even notice her own stalker.
Starlight’s espionage went on for a few minutes before Twilight made an intrigued noise. Her little gasp of surprise was followed up by the casting of a spell. Starlight peaked through the bookshelf and noticed that the mare was missing. She grunted and let out a potent sigh. Twilight must have teleported away.
Starlight returned to the front desk and assisted with the midday returns. Canterlot had a busy library and as such there was a constant supply of work to be done. Still even as she performed her tasks, Starlight couldn’t help but stare at Moondancer.
Moondancer did not seem like the type of pony who would garner a royal’s attention. She was a complete and utter dork. She presented herself in an unkempt manner with overgrown eyebrows and a scattered mane. She was so distant and antisocial, and seemed to prefer her studies over interacting with other ponies. Maybe that was their relationship, Twilight needed information and knew that Moondancer was well versed in the field.
Starlight shrugged it off and went back to her duties. That is, until a scream came from Moondancer. The mare slammed her book shut and was for the third time told to shut her trap by the surrounding patrons. She then looked at her book, re-opened it, and began to have a hushed discussion with the pages.
An oddity like that only managed to pique Starlight’s interest. She watched from the corner of her eye as the discussion became rather theatrical. Finally, the book erupted with a flash of light and Twilight Sparkle stepped out of the pages. Starlight’s jaw hit the counter at the shock of what she just saw. She turned to her left and right, her co-workers seemingly neither impressed or aware at the feat of magic.
The duo of Twilight and Moondancer talked for a moment before the two headed for the exit. Starlight looked at the mare to her left and shot her a smile.
“Hey I’m going for my lunch break. Do you uh mind covering for me?”
The mare nodded and waved a hoof. Starlight looked at the door, waiting for Twilight to exit. Once she was gone Starlight waited several seconds longer before teleporting for the door, and stepping outside.
Starlight had timed it perfectly with her exiting the building just in time to see Twilight descend the final step. Twilight was engrossed in conversation with Moondancer, seemingly completely unaware of her surroundings.
With a roll of her eyes Starlight let out an amused snort. How had no one even attempted to assassinate her yet, it didn’t even seem all that difficult.
Starlight began to follow, making sure to trail behind at quite the distance. Now that it was noon the number of ponies on the street had exploded with hundreds rushing around in every direction. This supplied Starlight with the perfect cover, giving her an endless supply of bodies to put between herself and Twilight.
Thankfully they were in Canterlot. A city where most of the inhabitants were unicorns. In Canterlot, Starlight would be just another unicorn. Twilight, however, would always be a sore thumb in a crowd. Her regal body marking her as the special little snowflake she was.
Moondancer and Twilight trotted along at a rather casual pace making it easy for Starlight to follow. The three of them weaved through the crowd pressing towards the majestic white wall of Canterlot. Their destination was a series of pristine spires that dotted the grounds of Canterlot University.
As they made their way closer to the campus the crowd of ponies began to thin. This would make Starlight easier to spot if Twilight were actually bothering to look. Thankfully, she hadn’t turned her head once.
The campus of Canterlot university was an incredible sight. It was a mixture of clashing architectural styles, with different buildings being built dozens of generation apart. Gothic structures made of stone stood next to their modern counterparts constructed from steel and glass. Intermingled among the buildings were ponies of all ages talking, walking, and discussing their fields of interest. The campus also had some of the largest stretches of green space that Starlight had ever seen within Canterlot.
Starlight had to fall farther and farther back as the crowd continued to thin, until finally she stood alone. Her heart hammered in her chest as Twilight turned around. Starlight stared right into her eyes. She thought that Twilight had noticed her, but to her relief those eyes stared right through her as she swept a hoof over the campus saying something apparently funny to Moondancer.
They giggled for a bit before Twilight turned back around, continuing her tour of the campus. Starlight had to be more careful with her hunt. In lieu of ponies, she began ducking behind trees and shrubs. This prompted ponies to give her strange looks. Though once they saw who she was following, they simply rolled their eyes and continued on. Some ponies were just crazy for princesses after all.
The tour ended near the edge of the campus. Where the only buildings around were storage shed, and the offices of long forgotten faculty members. Among all the drab and grey was a single tower.
It looked far more exotic then its neighbours. It had a dark blue base which leapt skywards in the form of a marble white tower. At the very top of which, was an onion shaped golden roof. A spiraling walkway clung to the outside, leading to the very top of the structure.
Twilight and Moondancer ascended the walkway, climbing higher and higher. Once they were about halfway up Starlight made her own trek upwards. She peered through the many ornate windows while performing the hike
Inside the structure was a home, though one that looked long abandoned. Cobwebs clung to the furniture, and a thick layer of dust seemed to have settled on practically every surface. Whatever this place may have been, it had clearly been left in squalor long ago.
When Starlight finally made it to the very top of the tower she felt winded, the ascent having robed her of energy. The view from this high up was spectacular. The campus of Canterlot university spread out around her. It was massive, though even it eventually clashed with the far larger city that swallowed it whole. It was like a green boat in a sea of grey.
There was a single door at the very top and Starlight pressed her ear against it. She attempted to listening to whatever conversation the two may be having inside. Though, not a single sound reached her. She growled loudly and let out a pent up huff of aggression. She began to pace, wondering what type of valuable conversation the two were having away from her prying ears.
She waited and waited, the minutes slowly rolling by, until finally a white aura clung to the door. Starlight instantly pulled herself to the side, pressing tightly against the wall. The door flung open nearly smacking her on the snout. Moondancer walked out, though only a few step before turning and looking back over her shoulder.
“You’ll teach me Hayscartes’ method?” Moondancer ask.
“Yes, but only if you come to dinner.” Twilight responded from outside of Starlight’s view.
Moondancer paused staying silent for a moment before sighing. “Where and when?”
“Seven tonight at the Royal Hoof. The reservation is under Twilight Sparkle.”
Starlight smirked, it was rare that she had plans for dinner. She’d have to book a reservation on the way back to work.
“Alright, I’ll come. I’ll see you later Twilight.”
“See you later Moondancer.”
Even before Moondancer had a chance to close the door Starlight leapt into action. She teleported under the walkway, and held herself in a hover. She looked down, swallowing hard. A rock began to form in her gullet. Even if she could fly, it didn’t mean she was exactly comfortable with the process.
Starlight could hear the other unicorn above her, noisily walking down the steps. Moondancer was muttering under her breath. She was clearly not a fan of being blackmailed into going to dinner. In fact, she seemed to downright despise Twilight for holding a new spell over her.
Starlight followed her from under the stairs until her hooves hit bare ground. She paused for a moment waiting for the unicorn to get further ahead. Starlight then began to follow her.
This pursuit was far easier to accomplish due to the fact that Moondancer had no idea who she was. To Moondancer, Starlight was just another mare. Plus, she seemed to be focused on her angst filled lamenting.
They left the campus after awhile, and entered into a nearby neighbourhood. This one looked pretty residential with housing units standing row by row. They walked along an elm tree clad street until they stopped in front of a dilapidated little shack.
The shack stood out for two glaringly different reasons. First it looked like something an ogre would live in on the edge of a swamp. Secondly, it had been one of the few homes Starlight had seen that housed a single pony. She found herself both jealous and repulsed by Moondancer’s abode.
Starlight blew air into her cheek as she walked on by. An alarmed expression washed over her face. She was nearing the end of her lunch break.
The trip back to work was uneventful, with only a brief detour taken to slot in a reservation at the Royal Hoof. For the rest of her shift she was zoned out, simply wasting away the hours with shelving and other repetitive tasks. No pony approached her, nor did she really want to interact with any of them if they did. When she finally came back to reality it was three in the afternoon and her shift was over.
The next three hours went by rather slowly, with her wasting time walking through the city. By six forty-five she found herself in front of the restaurant.
It was a luxurious place in a well off neighbourhood. The streets were clean, and all of the buildings were free of even the most minute flaw. Ponies dressed in the finest of attire marched to and fro eager to dine, dance, and in general be around the best that Canterlot had to offer.
Starlight felt strangely naked, an odd sensation for an equine. She walked into the restaurant and felt her jaw tighten. The place looked straight out of an aristocratic painting. Fine tables surrounded by velvety chairs filled the rich looking space. Fine drapes hung from the windows and expensive looking decorations coated the walls, tables, and lights. This was going to be an expensive evening.
A waiter dressed in a fine looking suit stood behind a pedestal. He observed Starlight with wary expression.
“I’m sorry, but we are not hiring at the moment.” The waiter said with his nose turned upwards.
Starlight raised an eyebrow, and responded with a hint of edge in her voice. “I have a reservation at six-fifty, its under Starlight Glimmer.”
The waiter blushed and cleared his throat. He briefly looked at the sheet of paper on his pedestal confirming that she was in fact a client and not a job seeker. “My apologizes madam. Where are my manners? If you would please follow me.”
The waiter led her over to a small table near the back of the room. It overlooked the whole restaurant, including a large table in the middle surrounded by six empty seats.
The waiter pulled out a chair and Starlight sat upon it offering him a cold smile. He looked sheepish, offering her a menu and listed off the specials for the evening.
“Can I interest you in anything to drink madam?”
“A glass of the nine eighty-three Canterlot Merlot if you would.”
It was the first thing listed on the wine menu.
He gave a curt nod and walked away, leaving Starlight alone.
A few more minutes passed before every conversation in the room halted. Starlight peered from behind her menu watching as Princess Twilight Sparkle entered with an entourage following at her heels. The princess sat down with her friends, and began to converse.
There were six of them at the table. Two of them were the familiar faces of Twilight and Moondancer. Mingled among them were three other unicorn mares. One was cream coloured with a pink mane, the second was yellow with a blue mane, and finally the last was a mare made up of various shades of blue. The most peculiar figure was a little purple and green dragon.
Not a single member of the party cast Starlight even a wayward glance, it was like nothing existed outside of their little bubble.
The waiter returned with the glass of wine.
“Have you decided on a meal madam?”
Starlight glanced through the menu swiftly, picking the first thing she saw.
“I will have the eggplant loaf with a side of three carrot soup. Thank you.”
The waiter nodded and made a grab for the menu. Starlight held onto it firmly, warding off the waiter’s magic.
“I would like to hold onto the menu thank you very much.”
She was given a strange look but the waiter decided to leave her be, he was already in deep water after all.
Twilight’s group began to talk while idly sifting through their own menus. The talk was mostly centered around events and developments in their own lives. Moondancer was pretty silent during the whole thing only giving short answers when directly prompted. Starlight wasn’t the queen of small talk, but even she would have made better conversation for Twilight.
They ordered their own meals, before slipping back into conversation. This time putting Twilight under the microscope, what was it like being a princess and what not. Twilight deflected most of the questions trying her best to get the attention on Moondancer. Starlight had no idea why. Even if they had at one point been good friends it was obvious that Moondancer was not enjoying herself.
Their first course arrived, with each of them being presented with a platter of grilled vegetables.
The mare with several shades of blue in her mane decided to turn to Moondancer and ask a question. “So uh, what are you studying these days?”
Moondancer responded with an almost aggressive curtness. “Science, magic, history, economics, poetry, things like that.”
Starlight’s ears perked up. Magic was a wide range of fields. Knowing how much Moondancer studied meant that the mare probably had a stronger theoretical understanding of magic than Starlight. She would have to look into that later.
The blue mare laughed. “Yowzah, you planning on being a professor of something?”
“No.”
“So you’re just studying?”
“Can I go now?” Moondancer asked, flashing Twilight a glare.
Starlight smirked, her magic curling at the edges of the menu. She was liking this mare, a lot. Anypony who could aggravate Princess Twilight was a friend of hers.
“Moondancer, please.” Twilight said in a slightly embarrassed tone.
“It’s alright Twilight. We’re having a good time. Right everypony?” The blue one said gesturing to the yellow, and cream coloured unicorns. Both of whom shrugged and made an uncommitted noise.
“So uh Spike. Tell Moondancer the story about how Twilight had to read a book about doing a sleepover.” The blue mare said.
The dragon, Spike, raised a claw only to be cut off by Moondancer. “Slumber 101? I’ve read that.”
Twilight laughed nervous. “Oh really? Well uh did you know Lemonhearts here works at the Canterlot Palace?
The yellow mare, Lemonhearts, replied awkwardly. “Ah yeah, it’s true. I do the big events mostly. State dinners, that sort of thing.”
Starlight smirked and cocked an eyebrow from behind the menu. She would need to pay this Lemonhearts a visit sometime. You could never tell when getting access to the palace could come in handy.
Starlight watched as Moondancer didn’t respond and the rest of the table chuckled nervously. Moondancer instead bolted to her hooves and began to trot away. A noise of disgust fell from her lips.
Twilight stood up and held out a hoof, trying to stop Moondancer. Though she didn’t call out, seeming at a loss for words. She apologized to her friends before disappearing in a cloud of magic.
The meal continued on in a rather tense manner. The three unicorns exchanged small talk about how awkward that situation had been. When Twilight returned, she just seemed drained, and the groups conversation slowed to a half-hearted crawl.
When each of them was finished eating Twilight requested the bill, paying for it by herself.
“I’m so sorry girls.” Twilight mumbled, seemingly unable to meet their gaze.
“Hey its not your fault.” The blue mare said.
“Yeah, Moondancer was just…..” Lemonheart went on trying to find a polite way of putting it.
“Weird,” the cream coloured mare finished.
Twilight shook her head, leaving the restaurant with her friends.
After her own meal was finished, Starlight left the restaurant with a smile. Two useful tidbits of information had been uncovered. First, Moondancer was well studied in magic, and secondly, Lemonhearts had access to the palace. She would need to pay them both a visit. Since Starlight already knew where Moondancer’s hovel was she decided to get that out of the way tonight.
The hovel looked the same now as it had during the day. It was small, overrunned with filth, and in general an eyesore on the otherwise perfect city. Starlight approached the door and hammered her hoof upon it.
A groan came from inside, as a pony stomped towards the door.
“I swear to Celestia if that’s you Twilight. I told you too-” The door swung open and Moondancer stopped, her voice softening by only a hair. “Oh. What do you want?”
“May I come in?” Starlight asked with a smile.
“No.”
Starlight’s vision narrowed and the tip of her horn glowed. “I really suggest you let me inside Moondancer.”
“How did you know-” Moondancer paused and stumbled back allowing Starlight enough room to advance.
Starlight entered the home, closing the door behind herself. Moondancer cried out and struck out with a bolt of raw magic. Starlight brought up a barrier and easily deflect it. The deflection sent the bolt hurtling into a dilapidated couch. The couch exploded sending pieces of moldy wood and stained fabric showering in every direction.
The mare may have had an incredible theoretical grasp on magic, but in practice she was as weak as a foal. Moondancer readied herself for another spell, but Starlight simply smirked and encased the tip of her foe’s horn with a layer of raw magic. The spell caused the layer to harmlessly balloon outwards by a few inches.
A magical glow began to taper off of Starlight’s horn sending a glowing cloud towards Moondancer. The cloud filled her nostrils, entering her form. Moondancer spasmed for a moment before her eyes glossed over and she stared blankly at the wall.
Starlight smirked and paced around Moondancer’s home. It was filled to the brim with books, resting on shelves, tables, and even staked into haphazard towers on the floor. It was like a scene from her nightmare.
“Hello Moondancer.”
“Hello.” A distant voice replied.
“My name is Starlight Glimmer,”
“Starlight Glimmer.”
“and you are going to help me.”
“Help you.”
“Very good, so simple question. Why do you hate Twilight Sparkle?”
“She left me behind.”
“Left you behind?”
“Yes, when she went to Ponyville. She left me behind without saying good bye.”
“Do you know why she left you behind?”
“The Princess ordered her to do it.”
“Well that is just awful of her. Don’t you just hate when ponies come into your life, and then leave? Ripping you heart out while doing so.”
Moondancer blinked, so Starlight went on.
“Tell me Moondancer, do you know of a spell which would allow me to be as powerful as an alicorn?”
“There is no such spell.”
“Is there anything that would allow that?”
“The alicorn amulet, that would enhance your magic a hundred fold.”
A smile crawled across Starlight’s lips. A hundred fold wouldn’t just make her stronger than Twilight, it’d make her stronger than all the princesses.
“And where is this alicorn amulet.”
“In the possession of Princess Celestia and hidden away in her private vault.”
“Do you know where that vault is?”
“Only rumours.”
“What do the rumours say?”
“That it’s on the moon.”
“Well shit,” Starlight blew air into her cheek. “Do you know of anyway to defeat Twilight Sparkle?”
“Time travel.”
“Excuse me?”
“You could use Time Travel. Twilight ascended to alicornhood. If you can go back in time and stop that, then she will remain a unicorn.”
“And is there a spell for that.”
“Yes.”
“Where is located.”
“The royal archives at the palace.”
“What is the spell called.”
“The spell is unnamed but it was written by Starswirl the Bearded.”
Starlight smiled. “Well thank you Moondancer. You’ve been very helpful.”
“Helpful.” Moondancer replied distantly.
“When I leave your home you will fall asleep. When you wake up it’ll be like this little talk never happened.”
Virus. Plague. Those two words came to the forefront of Starlight’s mind as she thought about the pox before her. It had spread through the ranks of the library at a slow but steady pace. First, Bookmark was struck by it, then Lemon Glaze, Written Word, Jelly Donut. One by one the female patrons and staff had been afflicted until Starlight remained one of the brave few unmarked.
The princess dress, it was all the rage of Canterlot. Any mare who was worth her bits had ordered one. Rumour had it that there was a waiting list which now stretched into the months to get one tailored.
Starlight couldn’t help but feel giddy at the sickening irony of it. Mares spent huge sums of bits in order to make themselves sparkle and shine among their social circles. Yet when everypony tried to sparkle, none of them could. In their quest to be special they had all become the same.
That very idea brought a smile to her lips. After all, she did always have an affinity towards sameness. It would have been wonderful if not for one little fact. The source of these dresses was Rarity. The very same mare who had helped ruin her life. A bearer for one of the accursed Elements of Harmony.
The fact that Starlight had to thank one of her enemies for this monument to uniformity made it taste so bitter. Rarity probably didn’t even appreciate what she created. This mania towards the princess dress was probably an ego stroking experience and helped make Rarity’s talent shine.
Oh how Starlight hated to think about talent. Talent was just like the dress. If everyone had one, why was it anything special?
Her co-worker coughed, breaking the silence between them.
“You seem happy today. Got big plans?” Lemon Glaze asked with a cheery smile.
Lemon Glaze and her had been banished to a little side room within the library. They were tasked with doing an apparently despised job. The two of them had to record all of the new foal books and properly categorize them. It was a tedious job that would probably take them two or three days.
Starlight was actually quite fond of it, though she would never admit it.
“Actually I do. An old friend is in town,” Starlight replied.
“Oh, who are they?”
“Her name is Lemon Hearts. She has apparently lived in Canterlot for awhile. I only ran into her recently. Its been forever since I’ve seen her.”
“Small world, eh?”
Starlight nodded, agreeing with her. “Small world.”
“Wait, is this the same Lemon Hearts who does party planning?”
“Yeah, do you know her?”
“I mean. I know of her. She’s a pretty big name in town. I heard she’s the best party planner in Canterlot, and the third best in Equestria.”
“Only third best? Who’s better than her?”
“Uh, some guy in the badlands is second. Cheese Sandwich or something?”
“Cheese Sandwich? What do parents think of when they name their kids?”
“I know right,” Lemon Glaze paused, “anyways number one is Pinkie Pie. You know, the element of happiness.”
“Element of laughter,” Starlight corrected.
“Wait, really? I’ve been calling her the element of happiness.”
Their work drew them back in, causing a silence to once more settle between them. The work was tedious but simple. Starlight would flip through a book, find out its genre, and then slap a label on the spine.
She looked up at a clock on the wall. the large hand nearly settled on three in the afternoon. While it was not quite home time, it was still early enough to shuffle out of the room and make a go for the door.
Upon leaving the small side room she walked over to the front desk. There, she squandered away the last moments of her shift making small talk with one of her fellow librarians. All the while her eyes gazed at the large clock affixed to the wall. When three o’ clock finally rolled around she left as quickly as she could.
Once on the street she could only sigh and shake her head at the ponies around her. Dresses were never big in Canterlot and in all her time here she had only seen them saved for the most special of occasions. Now here she was, surrounded on every side by them. One little act had transformed the dress from a luxury, to daily ware. It grated Starlight to see her enemies succeed.
She trotted home quickly, eager to get away from the social parasites that wandered around her. Plus, she had to get ready for her little get together with Lemon Hearts.
It was going to be her first meeting with the mare and she had to put on her best impression possible. That involved putting on a little disguise she had in the works.
Back in the safety of her room she sat at her desk. A specialized kit was now opened upon it. Inside were an assortment of blushes and paints which covered the whole spectrum of the rainbow.
Starlight held a brush, dipping the thin bristles in a purplish powder. The brush was then brought over to her flank. There it stroked back and forth applying a nice even coat of colour. This effectively erased any trace of her cutie mark.
A stencil then came out. It was in the shape of a pencil. She pressed it against her now barren flank and applied a yellowish powder over top. It looked roughly like its intended target but still something was missing.
A fine tipped brush began to carefully apply black paint forming the lead tip, and the various strands of detail.
The brush was then washed off and the black was replaced with pink. This colour was used to form the eraser.
Starlight looked in the mirror, her eyes locked onto the artificial mark. It wasn’t perfect, but unless somepony was staring right at her flank it would do. The process was then repeated and another pencil occupied her other flank.
She blew air into her cheek. Changing cutie marks was good and all, but it wasn’t enough. She’d have to do something a bit more extreme in order to further muddle her appearance. Starlight had no idea if Lemon Hearts even knew of her, though she didn’t want to take any chances around a friend of Twilight Sparkle.
Her hair was pulled out of its traditional ponytail, spilling out upon her shoulders. She wasn’t a hairstylist, nor somepony who even really cared all that much about appearances. She poked and prodded at her mane trying desperately to call on inspiration from memory. When none came she simply left her hair straight and flowing past her shoulders
Starlight gave herself a final once over in the mirror. The disguise was flimsy but it was the best she could muster in such a short period of time.
She left her apartment and began her journey towards the core of Canterlot. Her destination was a small neighbourhood known as the village.
It was a trendy neighbourhood. The buildings were short and had an architecture style to them that wasn’t repeated anywhere else in Canterlot. Structures which had their origins in medieval stone found themselves adorned with modern looking accessories made of metal, glass, plastic, and cloth.
Each building was filled with various shops, and each of those was selling something exotic. There were bars with craft ales, restaurants with outlandish names, and stores which sold all manners of crazy goods.
The stores were not the only exotic fixture of the neighbour. Its citizens gave the area a character that the stuffy elite, and working class could never hope to match. In a city dominated by unicorns it was refreshing to see so many earthponies and pegasi walking around. Along with them were also zebras, yaks, gryphons, and batponies.
While the area had its fair share of average looking citizens, there were also a lot of freaks. There were ponies with heavily dyed coats. There were gryphons with piercings that jingled in the wind. There were zebras who kept their manes in unique styles. There was even a Yak who kept himself completely shaved.
Starlight walked deep into the neighbourhood before stopping in front of a small boutique. It was located inside of a crimson brick building. A yellow and blue overhang shielded a heavy looking door that was painted a majestic shade of emerald green. Above the overhang was a wooden sign with the phrase, “Lemon Hearts’ Party Planning” etched in an ink black cursive.
Starlight entered the establishment with a little bell jingling as she opened the door. A grey pegasus stallion peaked up from behind a desk and offered her a warm smile. His black mane was shaved around the sides with a nice puff of length sprouting out at the top.
“Hello, can I help you?” he asked, his voice as smooth as silk.
Starlight approached his desk. “Ah yes, my name is Glistening Sapphire. I’m here to see Lemon Hearts.”
The stallion nodded. His wing flipped open a book, and he quickly scanned the page.
“Alright, I see you right here. She’s just finishing up with a client and should be out in a moment. Can I get you anything? Water, juice, coffee?”
“Coffee please. Two sugar, and a dash of cream.”
“Right away miss.”
He gave her a smoldering smile before standing up and leaving the room. The pegasus had a pretty nice build. He had a slender body, with a powerful gathering of muscles tightly grouped around his chest.
Starlight chuckled to herself. It seemed that Lemon Hearts had a sweet tooth, considering she hired such nice eye candy.
She waited patiently, grabbing one of the magazines scattered on the coffee table. It was about cooking, something she really never held much interest in. She skimmed through the pages while waiting for the stallion to return.
He was back in less than two minutes, with a mug of steaming hot coffee balanced upon his powerful looking wing.
“Thank you,” she said before taking the mug from him.
Starlight took a small sip, her eyebrow rising in surprise. The coffee was actually really good. What else could Lemon Hearts’ “assistant” do?
Before she could think to much on the subject a door opened. Lemon Hearts marched out, talking with a pony who was still in the room.
“I swear Gleaming Sabre. I have no idea how a party goer got into the royal guest chamber. I promise you, it will never happen again.”
A stallion in full golden armour stepped out of the room. He had a stern expression etched onto his snow white face. His mane was buzz cut into a short blue Mohawk.
He turned and stared at Lemon Hearts. “I trust you Lemon Hearts, but my guards have better things to do than throw your guests into the drunk tank. Please try and keep them out of restricted areas.”
Starlight’s expression quivered, the edges of her lips practically vibrating. She peered over the magazine, staring at Gleaming Sabre in pure awe. Literally steps from her was a pony who could take her into justice if he so desired.
Lemon Hearts’ expression was firm but it was obvious how nervous she was. “Of course, of course. I wouldn’t want to compromise my partnership with the guard. Right?”
Gleaming Sabre smiled. “Yes, I could imagine how much of a drain that would be on your business. Have a nice day, Lemon Hearts.”
With that the guard did an about face and headed for the entrance. He looked at Starlight, meeting her gaze. The two of them locked eyes, and for a moment Starlight’s heart stopped. He knew her, there was no other explanation.
Gleaming Sabre paused at the door, still looking at her. He then smiled and dipped his head. “Ma’am.”
With that he left.
Lemon Hearts sighed and looked to her assistant. “What a f-“
The assistant raised a hoof, pointing it at Starlight. This cut off whatever Lemon Hearts was going to say. He then leaned in and whispered something to her.
Lemon Hearts put on a big cheery smile before sauntering over towards Starlight. “I am so sorry for the delay, miss Sapphire.”
Starlight got to her hooves. “Trouble with the Guard?”
“No, well yes, but nothing I can’t handle.”
“What happened?”
“I had a party in the Royal Canterlot Garden and one the guests wandered off. They found him passed out in one of the bedroom of the palace,” Lemon Hearts walked towards her office, gesturing with a hoof for Starlight to follow, “when the guards finally managed to wake him, they nearly charged him with treason.”
“Oh Celestia. What happened, then?”
“It turned out his brother was the president of the Royal Bank of Canterlot.”
“So he bribed his way out?”
“What? No, he just had the right connections to make things difficult for the guards.”
Lemon Hearts stood behind her desk, gesturing to a seat across from her. Starlight sat upon it with the party planner then taking her own.
“So how exactly can I help you today?” Lemon Hearts began.
Starlight smiled. “Well, my name Glistening Sapphire and I represent the Friends of the Equestrian Library society. We are a non-profit who fundraises and collects donations for libraries across the kingdom. It’s our organizations tenth anniversary and we want to do something big.”
“And let me guess. Something big involves the royal palace.”
“I mean, what better place to celebrate and raise money for books then the royal archives themselves. They are the oldest collection of books in the kingdom after all.”
Lemon Hearts nodded. “I think we can work something out. There might be a bit of a hurdle getting permission to use the space but I’m sure the palace will let it slide for a charity. I will admit I have yet to organize an event in the archives. It should be fun.”
“Oh, that’s fantastic news,” Starlight paused biting her lip softly, “would you be opposed to a small personal favour?”
“It depends?”
“I’ve uh, always wanted to visit the archives on my own. Is it possible that you could take me on a small tour ahead of time?”
“Uh, yeah, sure. I don’t see why we can’t do that. I could take you sometime this week if you’d like?”
It took a lot of effort for Starlight not to grin even wider at the prospect. “That sounds fantastic, thank you very much.”
Their conversation slipped into the details afterwards. What type of foods are you thinking of serving? Who were you going to book as an entertainer? What colour of napkins are you going to use?
Starlight thwarted each question with a vague answer, all the while having Lemon Hearts nod along silently.
The meeting dragged on, though eventually the long list of party questions had come to an end. Seeing this they decided to call it a day. Lemon Hearts was the first to stand up, quickly trotting over to the door and throwing it open for Starlight.
“We’ll work out the finer details later. Maybe we can talk it over when I take you to the archives?” she said, turning to face Starlight.
“That sounds fantastic. I’m free this Friday,” Starlight replied.
“Hmmm, I should be free. Let’s say we meet in front of the palace at seven?”
“That works for me. It’s been a pleasure working with you Lemon Hearts.” ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The week went by without any problems. Work crawled along at its standard tedious pace, Starlight’s private life was as absent as ever, and her hobbies were reduced to the zealous worship of the manila folders on her desk.
By seven on Friday, Starlight found herself back in her disguise. She stood in front of the palace, a sense of awe washing over her.
The palace was a building you could see all across Canterlot. It was massive with its sparkling white granite walls and spires being the most pristine in all of the city. Banners with regal imagery flowed gracefully in the wind and hung from pretty much every ledge. At the base a garden made of hundreds, if not thousands of species formed a natural moat of life.
Barring her from any of this was a massive steel fence which surrounded the whole compound. Only a single gate allowed access in or out and it was protected by the watchful gaze of a half dozen guards. That wasn’t even including the additional patrols which walked both inside and outside of the gate.
Starlight couldn’t pull her eyes away. The structure radiated importance, and demanded attention simply for existing. After all it was the home of half the Equestrian monarchs and the de facto seat of power for the whole kingdom.
“Glistening Sapphires,” a voice cried, drawing Starlight’s attention away from the palace.
She turned and saw Lemon Hearts approach, looking as composed and professional as ever.
Starlight smiled at her and waved a hoof. “Hello, Lemon Hearts. How have you been doing lately?”
“I’ve been doing alright,” Lemon Hearts answered before diving straight into business, “I narrowed down the list on food choices for you. I was hoping we could tackle that on our little tour.”
Starlight replied as they made their way towards the palace gates. “I hope so as well. I need this to go off without a hitch.”
“Well, I don’t mean to brag, but I’ve never received a bad review.”
A guard lifted a hoof stopping them at the gates. He looked them over, his eyes narrowing in examination.
He cleared his throat. “What is your purpose for being here today?”
“I am here to take a client on a tour of the royal archives,” Lemon Hearts replied.
The guard nodded. “Can you supply proof that the captain of the guards okayed this?”
Lemon Hearts pulled a card out of her saddlebag. It was printed on a thick white paper and had a bright blue stamp imprinted on the bottom left corner. The guard took it from her, his eyes quickly scanning the words printed upon it.
He looked up and down, up and down, comparing the details on the card to the two mares in front of him. Starlight was sweating buckets at this point. What in tartarus was the hold up? Finally, the guard returned the piece of paper, which Lemon Hearts slid carefully back into her saddlebag.
“You are free to go on in,” the guard said, gesturing to one of his comrades to open the gates.
They passed through, heading along the cobblestone path that led to the palace’s doors. These doors were guarded by yet another two stallions in shining armour. They parted, allowing the mares to enter unopposed.
The interior of the palace was incredible as everything shimmered and shined. Colourful glass windows formed moments of Equestrian history. The sunlight causing them to glow in radiance. Pieces of art ranging from statues to paintings filled the walls. Grand marble pillars supported balconies trimmed with precious metals. There was no other place quite like it.
Palace staff rushed about in a frantic hurry. Their numbers must have ranged in the dozens with everypony seeming to have a separate purpose and duty. The concept of remaining idle did not seem to exist for these ponies as not a single set of hooves was empty.
Lemon Hearts trotted forward. “The archives are on the south end of the royal garden. We can cut through the palace to get there.”
“Are we going to meet the princesses?” Starlight asked, a nervous edge creeping into her voice.
“I doubt it. Luna’s probably unconscious at the moment and Celestia’s in the throne room. So anyways, we should probably get started. How do you feel about cheese?”
Starlight placated the mare, asking questions and giving answers to fill time as the two of them made their way through the castle.
As they progressed they garnered no attention. They were neither famous nor important meaning that the staff simply ignored them.
The exception of course being the guards. They were all over the place, marching in every direction and posting sentries at nearly every door. Their eyes would constantly follow Starlight. Though everypony was treated to a similar gaze.
They crossed through a chamber which had a massive golden door facing eastwards. Outside was a line of ponies all dressed in their best. Acting as a barrier between the ponies and the door was a wall of royal guards. Each of them staring straight ahead in a stoic manner.
Starlight raised a hoof, silencing Lemon Hearts’ rambling about decoration and invitations. She then pointed towards the chamber.
“What is that room?” she asked.
Lemon Hearts looked over and grinned. “That would be the throne room. Today, Celestia will be doing hearings from the public until sundown.”
Starlight nodded. “I didn’t realize she actually did that herself. I would have thought she’d have an army of bureaucrats.”
“Oh she does, but sometimes ponies aren’t willing to be placated by some faceless being. So they come here and pester Celestia instead.”
Starlight nodded and Lemon Hearts took the pause as a que to enter into another party related spiel. Now she was onto the bunting. Starlight had no idea that there were so much bunting options but by the time they had made it outside she could have written an essay on the subject.
They exited the palace through one of a dozen identical doors. On the other side was a place so utterly foreign in the cobblestone and brick of Canterlot. It was a rolling meadow of green grass. If it were not for a few small structures littering the landscape she could have sworn she was back in the country.
Lemon Hearts turned left and headed towards one of those structures. It was a flat building, being only a story tall. It had a dark stony exterior with a bronze trim laced around the top. It was a nice looking building, if not a bit mundane compared to the palace.
“This is the Royal Archive. I am thinking for the party most of the activities can take place outside, with limited food and drink service within,” Lemon Hearts lectured.
They approached the structure and Starlight took note that it was surrounded by guards. Maybe this wasn’t going to be quite the cakewalk she had planned.
Lemon Hearts’ voice began to fade, becoming replaced with the rapid beating of Starlight’s thundering heart. Her vision became sharp and senses tuned as each step brought on another hit of raw adrenaline.
A guard halted them, though Lemon Hearts waved a hoof showing off, once more, the little card of royal authority. He stepped aside and the door opened.
The interior of the archive was like a hybrid of library and royal palace. There was a single hallway which was bathed in sunlight by the many outwards facing windows. The wall opposite of the windows housed several doors.
The middle one lacked a traditional wooden door, instead opting for a series of heavy metal bars which covered an empty entryway. Over top of those bars was the room’s title. It was known as the, Starswirl the Bearded wing.
Bingo.
Once they walked in, the door behind them closed, leaving Starlight alone with Lemon Hearts. She was still chatting about some useless party accessory that had now drained Starlight of all interest.
A vase crashed down on the back of Lemon Hearts’ head. She staggered back and forth for a moment before slumping to the ground. Her eyes were shut tight and her breathing was swallow but steady.
The sound of the vase being smashed caused a guard to come rushing out of one of the archive’s rooms. He had his spear at the ready, and his eyes were alert.
“What’s going on!” he shouted.
He looked at the body on the ground before staring at Starlight. She smiled nervously before sending out a beam of raw light. The light hit the wall just over the stallion’s head. He looked alarmed, the tips of his helmet singed by the blast.
His expression shifted from shock to sheer rage. He charged at Starlight, his armour clad hooves pounding against the ground.
She shot at him again, this beam hitting the wall next to him. He drew closer as her third beam scorched the ground beside him. He stumbled but still continued his hasty advance.
There was a single doorway between them at this point. If she didn’t act fast she’d find herself in intimate contact with his spear. She gripped the door and threw it open just before he reached it. A loud ‘thunk’ came from the other side.
When the door closed, the guard was out cold upon the ground. Starlight smirked, walking past both him and Lemon Hearts. She headed for the Starswirl the Bearded wing.
She reached the metal bars which restricted her access. Peering inside Starlight could see shelves filled to the brim with scrolls, books, and scrips that looked impossibly old. In the centre of the chamber was a massive hour glass surrounded by tables littered with literature.
The metal bars would have been an issue if not for the fact that Starlight was a powerful unicorn. As such, all she needed to do was teleport. With a little blip of magic, she found herself on the other side, staring through the bars back into the hallway.
A brief scan of the shelves showed that she was in for quite the task. There were hundreds of publications and little order among them. They were not alphabetized or ordered by any reasonable system. They were just there, scattered on the shelves as if the archivist was a child throwing a tantrum.
The door to the archives themselves came crashing down, the clattering of metal filling the space outside the wing. Shouts of surprise and anger joined in, growing nearer with each passing second.
Starlight whipped around and cast a spell upon the metal bars. It would act as a barrier denying the key entry to the lock, hopefully buying her a bit of time.
The guards came crashing against the barrier their expressions aggressive and filled with rage. There was three of them, each armed with a long spear which they pushed through the gaps in the bars.
Starlight could only laugh at this as she continued her search. She picked up a scroll and quickly read through the first few lines. When it held little interest to her she tossed it to the ground.
“Grab the key!” one of the guards shouted.
A different guards slipped away, though Starlight paid him little attention. She was to busy flipping through the tomes and scrolls looking for one little word, time.
The mage from so many centuries ago turned out to be a real idiot. He didn’t give any of his papers useful titles meaning that she had to waste precious seconds reading the opening sentences.
Hooves came pounding over, and the guard had returned with the key. It was a big brass thing, almost comically large. He attempted to press it into the lock, managing to get it about half way in. A flash of light erupted and the key came rocketing back, along with the stallion who was thrown against a wall.
Starlight swept a shelf empty, an annoyed roar erupting from her mouth. She shuffled over to the next shelf, scanning its contents. They were all books, and each of them had to do with Starswirl’s alchemy lessons. They might have been useful for many things, but none of them were her desired topic.
“She cast a spell on the door!” another guard roared, “grab a unicorn!”
The guard who had attempted to insert the key was lying on the ground, groaning loudly. He’d be fine in a while, but for now he was a kindly reminder of the damage her magic could perform.
Hoofsteps thundered away and the doors to the archives swung open with a bang.
Starlight went from shelf to shelf, searching eagerly for any trace of the legendary scroll. She found one on teleportation, another on instant fire, a third concerning research on coffee. Each was an aggravating thorn in her side.
The delay in reinforcements gave her a solid chunk of time. A good ten minutes to search through the shelves. More and more tomes spill out before her. She saw a few instances of the word time but none in the context she so desperately needed.
The door the archives burst back open and the thundering of hooves returned outside of the wing. A mighty unicorn stood before her, his white horn gleaming in the light. He had a sneer on his face, one of incredible anger and determination.
His horn glowed and a beam of energy burst forth. The beam connected with the gate where a barrier composed of her own aqua radiance fought back. This instantly put a strain upon Starlight who was forced to give up her search for the spell in order to shore up her defenses.
Her own magic sifted towards the gate bulking up her defense and slowly but surely repealing the guard’s spell. Suddenly the beam coming from the guard was forced back as her own aqua magic crawled along it like vines. Her vines grew and grew forcing the guard back until she enveloped his horn.
He cried out as his magic was extinguished. With a small pulse of energy, he was flung through a window and out into the garden. The guards around him all looked awestruck.
Starlight grinned before rushing back into the wing. She quickly ran over to the central tables, hoping that some clumsy scribe had left the article she desired upon it.
“Quick, Sterling Silver go and get Princess Luna. We need to get his gate open,” ordered one of the remaining guards.
A chill went down Starlight’s spine, sending her into a short shivering fit. Sure she had been able to handle a unicorn, but to face Luna, that would be insanity.
Starlight zoomed along the tables quickly searching the surface for any instance of the desired document. So much knowledge was before her hooves yet none of it held an ounce of interest at the moment. Who cared about medicine, engineering, or ascension when the spell she needed evaded her.
Time seemed to slow as her search grew more and more desperate. She picked up any document she could reach, her eyes frantically scanning the text upon the pages.
The torches inside of the archives dimmed as its doors opened for a final time. A powerful sounding set of hooves marched into the space, their steps echoing impossibly loud. The guards skirted away, bowing at whatever figure approached.
It was Princess Luna and she did not look pleased. She examined the staff around her before staring at Starlight through the bars which separated them.
The princess opened her mouth, the powerful shriek of the Royal Canterlot Voice spewing forth. “INTRUDER, I GIVE YOU ONE FINAL CHANCE TO SURRENDER. I CAN PROMISE YOU A SWIFT DEATH!”
A guard whispered to Luna, causing her to wince.
“I CAN OFFER YOU A FAIR TRIAL WHICH WILL RESULT IN YOUR DEATH!”
Another whisper.
“I CAN OFFER YOU A FAIR TRIAL WHICH WILL RESULT IN JAIL TIME,” she paused, “my, how this generation has grown soft.”
Starlight was sweating buckets at this point. She ran over to a final shelf, her hooves franticly pawing at its contents.
The princess’ horn glowed and a massive bloom of light bathed the metal bars. Instead of simply shattering Starlight’s charm, Luna smashed the gate causing it to explode into the wing. Metal pieces of shrapnel flew through the air embedding themselves into solid brick and wooden shelves.
The guards began to rush in as Starlight grabbed at a final scroll. Written on the first line was the phrase Time Travel. It would have to do.
As the guards pounced upon her, Starlight cast a teleportation spell.
She would not end up in prison tonight. Instead she found herself in a small field outside of the castle. Clutched tightly to her chest was the contents of the forbidden scroll. The legacy of Starswirl the Bearded was now in her possession.
The train jostled along through the valley, the tracks below a slight blemish upon the otherwise pristine sea of green. After spending so many months within Canterlot to be away from it was strange. It was funny how quickly a pony could become adjusted to their new home, even if they had no attachment to it.
Home was always a weird concept to Starlight and her recent history didn’t make it any easier to understand. What was it to her? Was it her bedroom in Canterlot? Was it the town she had established? Neither seemed like the proper answer.
No, the last time Starlight could pin point a true sense of home had been during her foalhood. Back then she had defiantly had a home, and a circle of ponies who enriched it.
The town she approached was much like the one she had grown up in. It wasn’t too large nor too small. It would have been a blip on the radar of most ponies, if it were not for one little landmark that diminished the rustic landscape.
On the edge of the town was a palace. One that could have rivaled that back in Canterlot. It was constructed of pure crystal and the setting sun caused it to glisten. It was home to Princess Twilight Sparkle. The town that it degraded was none other than Ponyville.
Starlight looked back to her book as the train began to slow. Initially, she had been worried that she’d have trouble finding her enemies within the town. Then she found the little volume resting on the table before it.
It was an issue of a travel guide written by a stallion named Trenderhoof. In it he wrote about the town in question and it just so happened that three of the elements were associated with local businesses.
Rarity, the seductress, owned a clothing store. The boutique received a generous review and it was, to quote the guide, “a little slice of Canterlot in an otherwise provincial town.” Starlight found it odd that the mare would favour this locale over the one she operated in the capital, but decided not to delve on the subject.
Applejack, the hick, was located on the edge of town in a farm known as Sweet Apple Acres. Starlight could see it from her seat. There was the apparently iconic red barn in the distance and spread out from it were row after row of identical looking apple trees.
Pinkie Pie, the wack job, was also briefly mentioned. She fell under the category of staff at a small bakery known as Sugar Cube Corner.
Then there was Twilight, who would obviously be residing in the monstrosity she called a palace.
Starlight was impressed in herself, being able to locate the majority of the group without even having to step a hoof in their town.
The train slowed before coming to a lurching stop outside of the station. The station was little more than a rickety wooden platform and a tiny hay-roofed shack with a single window. At this hour it was locked up tight with a closed sign hanging haphazardly from the door.
From what Starlight could see much of the town’s architecture looked like this. While Canterlot may have been built of brick and mortar, Ponyville was made of wood and hay. She was honestly surprised that some lesser minded antagonist of the princess had yet to set the whole town ablaze.
Unlike her previous train ride this one was nearly deserted. There were maybe a dozen ticket holders on board and when the doors opened they all began to mill out. Starlight joined them, picking up the single bag she brought along.
Once off the train Starlight headed towards the heart of the small town. According to the book that was where Ponyville’s best (and only) hotel was.
It was only a short walk away and during her little tour she got to see all of the sites that interested her.
The first was a brief jaunt past Rarity’s Boutique. It was a lovely little structure, just as fashionable as its Canterlot counterpart. The lights were still on within and when Starlight passed she peered through the window. Inside, a small gathering of ponies were looking at the wares. Sadly, there was no sight of the owner who was either out of view or not on the sales floor.
The shopping district of the town was small, so almost instantly Starlight caught sight of her second destination, Sugar Cube Corner.
Now this place, really was a sight to see. It began like a normal home but as her gaze went higher it turned surreal. The roof was made of gingerbread with thick globes of what looked like icing acting as a trim. The theme of sugar continued as a pink tower sprouted out the top, with a massive cupcake resting at the peak.
The bakery even emitted a mouth watering smell of sugar and spice. It made Starlight’s stomach rumble with hunger. If her enemy didn’t work there she would have eagerly sampled their wares.
The remaining shops of the town were of mixed interest. There were a few chain stores, though in outlets far smaller then their Canterlot counterparts. There were also several additional independent vendors who specialized in food, books, and oddly enough a store which sold a mixture of quills and sofas. An odd combo but if it was still in business, who was she to judge.
Among all of these establishments was her hotel. It was a small place, and if the guide told the truth only had five rooms. She walked in and entered a cramped lobby. A mare sat behind the front desk, her eyes lazily reading something before her. She begrudgingly looked up as Starlight approached.
“Can I help you?” the mare at the front desk asked.
Starlight smiled. “Yes, I was wondering if there were any rooms available?”
The mare looked over her shoulder where five keys hung from a cork board. She then returned her gaze to Starlight.
“Yeah we should have a room available. How long will you be staying?”
That was a good question.
“At least for the weekend. Maybe longer if my plans change.”
“Well our prices are twenty bits a night. If you pay an extra five you get breakfast in the morning. Would you like to pay now or at checkout?”
“At checkout if you don’t mind.”
“No, not at all. Would you like breakfast in the morning?”
“Sure, if its only five more bits.”
“Alright can I get your name ma’am?”
“Ah yes, Gleaming Sapphire.”
“Alright. Do you need any help with your bag, miss Sapphire?”
“Oh no, I should be fine. Thank you very much. I’ll just take my key.”
The mare nodded and reached over with a hoof, grabbing one. She made note of the room number before placing it on the desk.
“Just take the stairs behind me up to the second floor. All the rooms are up there.”
Starlight nodded and scooped up the little white tag. It had the number three imprinted upon it in a fairly weathered font.
She then ascended the stairs and at the top were six doors. Five were numbered and the last was labelled ‘employees only’.
A black metallic three marked one of the doors and Starlight unlocked it. As she pushed on through a poorly lit room greeted her on the other side. Her magic reached out and found a switch. She flicked it, bathing the room in a yellowish glow.
The room was basic by hotel standards. There was a bed with polka dotted sheets, a single desk, and a small closet. The bathroom which was right next to the closet wasn’t much bigger. It contained a shower, sink, and toilet. The only frivolous feature was a painting of a sailboat which hung over the desk. It presence got a chuckle from Starlight as Ponyville was nowhere near a coast.
She placed her bag down on the desk and began to unpack, though she hadn’t brought much. There were of course the basics like a toothbrush, toothpaste, and a hairbrush.
Then came out a pair of binoculars. She had bought them back in Canterlot from a pawnshop. They were powerful allowing her to zoom in and see distant objects with four times the clarity.
The scroll was the final item she pulled out. It was rolled tight and bound with a thick wool string. She undid the binding and unrolled the parchment, allowing her eyes to gaze upon its contents.
She had practiced the spell many times since her heist in Canterlot. It was rather intriguing allowing her to go several days back in time for a few moments. Even going that far back had taken her a lot of practice. This was going to be the road block. At her current magical aptitude, she just wasn’t strong enough to get the desired results from the spell. She needed to go back years, not weeks.
Practice makes perfect was a motto Starlight was a firm believer in. So with that in mind she decided to embark on another trial run for the spell. Her horn glowed and she closed her eyes. The spell was not an easy one to cast and she had to really concentrate. She probed at the fabric of the universe, trying her best to find a spot where reality was kind of ‘soft’.
Upon finding such a spot Starlight began to channel her magic into a type of blade. Though this one was invisible to all but its caster. With the accuracy of a surgeon making their incision she carefully cut into the soft spot. It parted, forming a rift in reality. Raw, untamed arcane forces oozed out, like blood from a wound.
No, that was a bad comparison. It was more like a breached dam as the hole she punctured it with widened causing more and more of the energy to pour through. Finally, the rift became big enough that Starlight could leap through.
She didn’t right away because first she needed a destination. If her trip was mistimed she might run into one of the rooms former occupants and that was a situation she wanted to avoid. She’d make a short trip she decided, go back to earlier in the morning.
With a destination in mind she began to absorb the arcane forces coming from the rift. It energized her with more vigour than even the hardiest of coffees. She took a step towards the rift and walked through, her destination on the forefront of her mind.
The room on the other side was nearly the same as the one she left. The only difference being that the light came from the window and not the bulb above. Starlight approached the window, looking down at the street below.
Ponies walked back and forth, chatting eagerly with one and another. Everypony looked so happy, the town’s citizens a very different breed from those in Canterlot.
She could feel as the universe shuddered around her. She was a tumour upon time and the laws of nature were swift in their attempt to dispose of her. The arcane forces she still wielded would offer her some protection but only for a minute or two at most.
Starlight continued to look through the window, seeing Sugar Cube Corner in the distance. From it came five very familiar faces, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack. They were laughing and chatting loudly with one and other. It was quite curious that Twilight was not among them. Starlight grinned, wondering if something had disturbed the supposedly close friendship.
A final figure exited the building, slithering through the air in a creepy fashion. The beast looked like somepony had taken pieces from a dozen different puzzles and mashed them all together until they fit. Starlight had heard of this monstrosity before. His name was Discord.
Before she could question what he was doing here, the universe engulfed her. She was pulled back through the rift and thrown out the other side. It was night again and at the sight of her bag she knew she was back in her proper time.
She closed her eyes and probed at the fabric of reality, once more. The place she had broken through had been mended but it had left a mark. It was invisible to the naked eye but as she touched it with her magic there was the sensation of stroking a recently healed scar. This ‘scar’ had been left every time she casted the spell and it scared her.
Every time the spell was used she asked herself a question. Was getting her revenge honestly worth damaging reality? It was growing increasingly hard to justify a yes. Not impossible, but hard.
Another side effect of the spell was the sudden onset of exhaustion. To no one’s surprise tearing open the fabric of reality took a lot out of a mare.
Starlight groaned softly and got to her hooves. She thought about attempting to take a shower but instead found herself collapsed upon the room’s bed, allowing sleep to embrace her.
It was still dark when she awoke. She groaned loudly and threw off her sheets, scrambling to her hooves. Her magic reached out and she felt around for the light switch.
It flicked on and the bulb above buzzed, washing the room in an orange glow. She looked around and spotted her bag. It was still upon the desk, the one with the portrait of the carriage above it. She trotted over and opened it.
Inside was her toothbrush and toothpaste both of which she took to the bathroom with her. She opened the little door and stumbled back. There was nothing behind it, not even a wall, just solid darkness for as far as she could see. The door crashed inwards and faded becoming another stretch of mundane wallpaper.
Starlight dropped her toothbrush. The piece of plastic hit the floor and pierced through forming a precise little hole. One that wasn’t all that different from the incision she cut into the universe.
She swallowed hard and leaned forward bringing her hoof close to the hole. There was suction, a faint pressure which tugged at her.
The remaining door in the room rattled on its frame. Starlight gasped at the sudden noise, accidently pressing her hoof down on the hole. The pressure of her step widened it and the suction became even greater. As she withdrew her hoof Starlight could now peer through it.
On the other side was blackness, a solid wall of it that went on infinitely. No that wasn’t true, there was something in there. It was discoloured, or maybe had no colour at all. It pulsated and was wounded. She reached out with her magic and instantly understood what it was. It was one of many scars she had left upon the skin of reality.
However, this time reality did not remain idle to her abuse. It reacted to her probe, latching onto it. She screamed loudly and tried to take a step back. A stream of aqua left through her horn and drained like water down the hole. The scar below engulfed her magic and belched, sending a pulse of light in every direction.
Starlight felt empty and found herself unable to cast even the simplest of spells. The scar’s belch rushed forward, rocking the room like an earthquake. As the room shook, the hole in the floor widened. She ran from it and pawed at the remaining door, managing to throw it open in a frenzy.
On the other side was the greatest nightmare of all. She was back in the room. The one with an empty bookshelf and the endless stack of books which headed for the heavens. She was stuck between two horrors and had no idea which one she wanted to face.
The hole made a ripping noise and she turned to face it. An appendage of light crawled through the gap and flopped onto the floor. It oozed outwards like a thick sludge, coating the flooring directly adjacent to the breach. In that moment she made up her mind and attempted to make a dash for the book room.
As she turned back around, a figure now blocked her. It was a foal, an orange unicorn with a splotch of cream on his snout. He smiled at her, a warm inviting smile. It was both friendly and terrifying.
The unicorn slowly opened his mouth and said three words, “Good bye, Starlight”.
With that, the door was slammed shut and she was left alone with the beast.
The glow continued to advance, encountering no resistance as it rolled over every obstacle in the room. Any object that it touched melted and became one with the beast. The bed, the desk, the walls, all of it was stripped away until Starlight was left alone, cowering in the corner.
A claw protruded from the goo and reached out. It inched forward getting closer and closer to Starlight. Each individual digit spread revealing their razor sharp edges. They could have easily cut into her and, as if to test the theory, the claw swung.
Though as a mercy, Starlight woke before they made contact.
Well that’s new, she thought to herself as her eyes opened. She crawled out of bed and groaned softly.
Outside, the sun was starting to rise. She noticed that the lights to her room were still on and flicked them off, allowing the sunlight to take over.
Starlight quickly grabbed her toiletries and spruced herself up in the washroom. With that out of the way she grabbed her pack and left for the day.
Downstairs a different employee was waiting for her. He was a slightly overweight stallion and resting before him was a plain white package.
As she made her way down the stairs they creaked under her hooves. This caused the stallion to turn away from his desk and look at her,
“Good morning, miss Sapphire,” he said, offering her a warm smile.
“Good morning,” she replied.
“How did you sleep?”
Like crap. “Alright.”
“Only, alright?”
“I can never sleep in beds that aren’t my own.”
“Ahh I completely understand,” he paused before gesturing to the package, “your breakfast is here by the way.”
“Oh, well thank you very much.”
She scooped up the box and headed for the door.
“Have yourself a nice day.”
“You too.”
Once outside she took a closer look at the box. It was made of a thin, glossy cardboard and imprinted on the bottom left corner were the words Sugar Cube Corner. It was written in a rather fun looking red font.
She flipped open the box, examining its contents. There was a large lemon raspberry muffin in the middle. It was massive, probably the size of two muffins back in Canterlot. She was also supplied with a couple packets of butter and a flimsy wooden knife to spread it with. Next to all this was a bottle of name brand orange juice.
It was still early in the morning, with not many ponies up and about. So Starlight decided to tempt fate and sit in the open. She chose a park bench overlooking the town hall. Once seated she began her breakfast.
The muffin was delicious, finding the right balance between tart and sweet. Before she knew it the muffin was gone and the juice was drained.
It was a pleasant surprise that she got to sample Sugar Cube Corner. She’d have to compliment Pinkie on a job well done, before destroying her, obviously.
Starlight looked around, pondering what her first move should be. It was far too early to stalk Rarity and if Pinkie was awake, she’d be trapped in the bakery’s kitchen. Twilight was locked away in her highly secure castle, so she was out of the question.
In the distance a rooster cried out. There was her inspiration. Most ponies may have been asleep at this hour but farmers were always early to rise.
She got to her hooves and headed towards the eastern side of the town. The path was fairly mundane and easy to navigate. To leave the shopping district Starlight took a small bridge into an area of the town dominated by small homes. Unlike the rows of identical apartments in Canterlot the dwellings in Ponyville all had their own unique charm and flare.
Starlight absolutely despised them. It was so fitting that the princess who clung to the obsolete system of cutie marks and individuality ruled over a town like this. A place where homes were misshapen and the shops were held together with food products. It was ridiculous.
At the edge of town was a hill, which separated it from the farm on the other side.
Starlight crested the hill and instantly noticed that something was amiss. The trees were all wrong, being nothing like those she saw yesterday on her way into town.
She sat on her haunches and threw off the saddlebags, fishing through it for her binoculars. To call what she saw an oddity would have been an understatement.
Each of the traditional apple trees had been replaced by a single giant red apple with its thin stem acting as a trunk, anchoring it to the ground. Vines grew along the waxy skin of the apples, slithering towards the ground before connecting and burrowing under. They then traveled a short distance before sprouting out into a wide array of multicoloured bushes.
The Apple family was out in their fields, scrambling from one freak show to another. They looked to be in an utter state of despair.
Starlight smiled at this. How did it feel Applejack? To have your life burn to the ground around you.
Starlight’s gaze was upon the mare in question, watching her pained reaction. She could have sworn she saw tears upon those orange cheeks.
However, all good things had to come to an end. The universe sensed a disturbance and began to assert its authority over the farm. The “trees” disappeared in a plume of white smoke, being replaced by their mundane counterparts.
Regular brown bark held up canopies of rich green leaves. A heavy load of red and green apples hung from the many branches of every tree.
Applejack let out a sigh of relief, addressing her family. As she spoke the ground behind her began to blemish, growing into a mound. Her family was frozen in place as the mound began to grow arms, legs, and a head all of this at the expense of Applejack’s blissful ignorance.
It was once again the Lord of Chaos and he was wearing a very sinister grin. He said something and Applejack screamed so loud, that the noise carried to the hillside. She turned around and scolded the beast. To his credit, he did look wounded at her words. The expression was brief however, as he put on another smile and replied.
Applejack froze in place before breaking into what appeared to be a giggling fit. Starlight cocked an eyebrow at this. The reaction was not what she had expected, but it was intriguing. Clearly Discord must have had Applejack under some type of spell.
Starlight watched their exchange until Applejack, her family, and Discord all entered the farmhouse. She then began to wait, closely observing the structure for any signs of movement.
An hour passed, when the sound of hooves alerted her to a nearby presence. Several ponies were making their way up the hill, all of them coming from town. They were the other elements of harmony, though they lacked their leader.
What had happened between Twilight and the others? Before she could ponder on the subject Starlight dove for cover behind a nearby bush.
The ponies were noisy with their conversation, making it easy for her to eavesdrop.
“Man this is going to be so awesome,” Rainbow Dash declared.
“I know right! Discord has been so much fun lately,” Pinkie Pie replied.
“I’m just sad Twilight’s on her booksortcation thingy,” Fluttershy meekly added.
“She’d have our manes if we interrupted her, me time. Discord’s right she’ll be out tomorrow and can join us then,” Rarity finished, her voice trailing off as the group put distance between themselves and Starlight.
While she was a little heartbroken to hear that their friendship was apparently still intact, it was nice to know where Twilight was. It was also good to know that her friends would be occupied at the farm for the next little while.
As the four mares made their way into the farmhouse Starlight began to pack up. This was honestly going to be one of her best chances to get a closer look at Twilight’s castle.
She walked back into town, heading towards the monstrosity on the horizon. Unlike the stoic and well planned architecture of Canterlot this castle looked like an organic mess. A purple keep rested in the air, being suspended upon the branches of a dead crystalized tree.
There appeared to be one little detail that boded well for Starlight. The castle was completely undefended, with no guardsponies in sight. This allowed her to get up, nice and close.
At the ground level there were no ports nor windows to peer through, with the only access point being a pair of golden doors. A message hung from a nail embedded into the left door. Starlight approached it and quickly read the words.
It was a decree from the princess letting her citizens know that she would be unavailable for a couple of days. Included, was a notice she was not to be disturbed unless it was the direst of situations. Finally, at the very bottom of the note was an example list of ‘direst’ situations. It included several items and thankfully none had her name or description.
Starlight pushed upon the front door, confirming that it was locked up tight. She took a step back, observing the structure and trying her best to find an alternative route in. Besides the front door, there were several balconies that a flying creature could access. Thankfully, she could be a flying creature.
She cast a spell, enveloping herself in a shell of aqua light. It shuddered under her weight but with a bit of effort she left the ground. The bustling little town was active at this hour, so she made sure to keep the castle between herself and it. The elements may have all been occupied today but she knew that many a concerned citizen would treat a flying unicorn as dire.
As she rose above the palace the roof came into view. Most of it was made of steeply sloped stone, though a small portion came in the form of a skylight angled far less abruptly. Even better some of the panes of glass were opened allowing her an alternative route in.
She landed upon the glass gracefully, making hardly anymore noise then a bird roosting. Her heart skipped a beat as she looked down and noticed right below her was Princess Twilight Sparkle.
Thankfully Twilight seemed busy with the task at hoof. She was inserting several books into a partially filled bookshelf. If Starlight had to venture a guess, the room below was most likely the princess’ library.
Twilight’s little dragon assistant marched into the room. He was holding a tray with a steaming cup of something warm upon it. Twilight gave him a brief nod before placing the last book onto the shelf. She then seated herself onto a velvety cushion next to a short round table.
The dragon placed the tray down and Twilight picked up her cup, taking a gingerly sip from its contents. She said something to the dragon, though Starlight couldn’t hear it through the skylight.
Starlight carefully shimmied her way over to one of the opened glass panes. Once there she slowly poked her head through, mindful not to make a single noise. Lest she draw unwanted attention to herself.
She was now able to hear as the dragon replied to Twilight.
“So when are we getting to that claw massage?” he asked.
“Well, I am nearly done sorting my fiction section. So how about after that?” Twilight replied.
“Honestly I’m surprised its taking you this long. I thought you had a system in mind already?”
“I did Spike. It’s just I realized that it falls apart around book series where the order of book does not follow the chronological order of release date. It saddens me to admit that the alteration to accommodate for that will void the third of a second I gained on this system.”
“So wait, what you’re saying is that we just wasted three days and you didn’t even gain anything?”
“Nothing ventured, nothing gained Spike. If it makes you feel any better, I’ll be done tonight and tomorrow we can go hang out with Rarity. Wouldn’t you like that?”
“You know I would,” Spike grumbled.
Twilight rolled her eyes. “Now let’s get back to work.”
Spike shot off a salute and marched over to the nearest pile of books. He picked one up and listed off the title. Then at Twilight’s discretion he shelved it.
Starlight had a lot of questions. The most pressing of which was, who in their right mind would waste three days rearranging a library? The second question was, how in Celestia’s name had Starlight lost to this mare?
When neither answered revealed itself Starlight pulled away from the opening. It was obvious to her that the secrets of the universe were not going to found stalking a mare who was sorting her personal library.
With five of the six elements off on a playdate with the Lord of Chaos and the last one in self-imposed exile Starlight decided to call it a day. If her rivals weren’t going to do anything interesting, she might as well catch up on some much needed sleep.
Another day, another breakfast. Today’s muffin was blueberry and it to was absolutely delectable. Even better than the meal was the sleep Starlight got. For what seemed like the first time in ages, she had not been awoken in the middle of the night by nightmares.
With food in her stomach, she gathered up her equipment and took the trek out to Twilight’s castle. It was pretty early in the morning and she hoped to get there before the mare left.
It was only a short walk away and upon approaching she noticed that the royal decree remained on the door. This was hopefully an indicator that Twilight was still within.
Starlight decided to pop herself into yet another bush, using her binoculars to examine the entrance.
The minutes dragged on but eventually the heavy golden door parted and Spike exited. He looked left, then right before shrugging and stepping farther outside. He plucked the decree off of the door and retreated back into the castle.
More time passed and the first hour of her observation went by without any more sightings from the pony or the dragon who lived within. Maybe she had already missed Twilight? It was possible that the mare may have left without Spike or maybe even teleported away.
However, before she could ponder on it too much, her patience was rewarded. The doors once again opened and out stepped Twilight and Spike. They walked down the castle’s steps and began the trek towards Ponyville.
The two of them were having a conversation, though Starlight couldn’t hear a word of it from her current position. Thankfully she didn’t have to move as the duo’s path took them right past her cover.
“-It’s not like we missed anything,” Twilight stated.
Suddenly a loud whoosh filled the air and Starlight looked up. She saw two trails of colour streaking swiftly through the air. One was a rainbow while the other was plaid. They zoomed towards Twilight before colliding with the ground behind her, sending up a massive cloud of dust.
When it settled two creatures stood there, big grins plastered onto their perspective faces. One was Rainbow Dash, the other Discord.
The two of them waved before greeting Twilight in unison. “Hello, Twilight. Hi, Spike.”
Starlight really had to ask herself what the heck Rainbow Dash was doing with Discord. From what she had read, the elements of harmony and Discord had a very uneasy history. Though from what she saw now the two parties had clearly adopted a, let bygones be bygones sort of relationship.
Twilight approached the two. “Hi, Rainbow Dash. Good to see you, Discord.”
“Did you rehearse before you found us?” Spike asked, sticking close to the princesses’ side.
“What makes you think we practiced?” Rainbow Dash and Discord chanted in unity. Even their hoof gestures were aligned and well coordinated.
“Come on Rainbow Dash, what’s going on here?” Twilight asked with a hint of worry in her voice.
Rainbow Dash snickered before breaking out into full blown laughter. She then bolted into the air before apologizing. “Sorry, me and Discord are just messing around,” she laughed, “like we do.”
Discord spoke and a chill went down Starlight’s spine as she heard his voice. “Oh, Twilight. We simply had a momentous time together these past three days. You could say it was HISSSSterical.”
Starlight watched in utter horror as the hiss in hysterical triggered a transformation in Discord. First his pupils turned to red slits and a long snake-like tongue shot forth from his mouth. Then his fur was replaced with scales. His limbs retracted effectively placing his head upon the body of a large brown cobra.
Dash’s laughter became rowdier. “Sneaky snake,” she snorted in between laughs.
“Just snaking around,” Discord declared.
In an absolutely revolting act he shed and discarded his skin, returning to his usual abnormal form. The dried husk bounced across the landscape before getting itself stuck in the bush next to Starlight. She gagged silently, trying her best to ignore it.
Dash tapped her hoof against Discord’s extended paw. “Good one, Discord.”
“It is?” Twilight asked.
Dash bolted over, fluttering in front of her friend’s face. “It’s kind of an inside joke from this weekend. You wouldn’t really get it, unless you were there.”
Twilight looked skeptical. “Oh, ok.”
“Cool, well catch you later, Twilight,” Rainbow Dash said. She then flew away, going at such speeds that her colour pallet morphed into a chromatic blur.
Discord waved goodbye. “Catch you later,” his tone suddenly turned sinister, “Twilight.”
With that he frantically ran on the spot, kicking up a mountain of dirt onto Spike. At the last moment of building up momentum he instead teleported, leaving Twilight alone with the now buried dragon.
Spike broke forth from the dirt, exchanging a look with Twilight. “Can I get a little help here?” he asked.
Twilight’s magic embraced Spike and pulled him free. She looked incredibly worried. “Something is going on here Spike and I’m going to getting to the bottom of it.”
“Well maybe Rarity knows what’s going on? We could stop by and ask her.”
“Not a bad idea Spike. If Discord’s here, he’s probably up to no good.”
With that, the two of them headed towards town, leaving Starlight behind. With no prying eyes around she gripped the “snake” skin and attempted to toss it aside. However, as soon as her magic touched the husk, it crumbled into a fine grey powder.
She shuddered and climbed out of the bush. Her mane and coat were loaded with random debris, which she quickly brushed off.
It was incredibly lucky that Discord was in town. He may have been a complete nutjob, but he was a nutjob who was going to keep Twilight busy. This meant that the castle before her was going to be unguarded, unpatrolled, and unoccupied for at least the next couple of hours.
Just like yesterday Starlight hopped up the crystal steps to the tower’s golden doors. She brought her hoof down to see if they were locked and thankfully, they were not. The two doors swung open, inviting her to enter. She grinned and did just that, closing the doors carefully behind her once inside.
Starlight began to walk through the entryway when a hoot pierced the air. She gasped sharply and leapt on the spot. Upon landing, she frantically looked around trying to find the creature that would dare alarm her. There it was, a little barn owl, roasting in a nest on one of the castle’s many door frames. He stared at her and hooted again.
She chuckled nervously, walking past it. Though, she never dared to look away. The bird’s body remained stationary with its head pivoting to follow her around the room. It hooted repeated, as if inquiring who exactly she was.
“Yeah, yeah, stay right there. You creepy little owl,” she muttered under her breath.
The castle’s interior was amazing. Dark purple walls flanked Starlight on either side with softer lavender pillars acting as supports. There were dozens of doors, each of them constructed of a golden frame filled with soft yellow and green stained glass panes. All of this was illuminated by the light of a hundred glowing gemstones, which hung delicately from the roof.
A closer look at the walls revealed another little detail. They were painted. No, not painted, they were augmented by veins of discoloured purple which formed epic mosaics. There were romantic landscapes, stoic scenes of nature, and imagery of long dead architecture. Just to name a few.
It was all very breathtaking. The doors separated the mosaics, acting as a border between each work of art. Starlight was so caught up in the beauty of it all that she completely forgot the mission at hoof. So, she picked a door at random and walked through. She entered a kitchen, which was well stocked but held no interest to her.
The castle must have had a hundred rooms, if not more, and it turned out the vast majority of those were void for anything interesting. There were broom closets, bedrooms, reading rooms, bathrooms, and many more. The one room she failed to find was that containing Twilight’s artifacts and treasures
She had no interest in bits or gold. What she was looking for was the alicorn amulet. Oh sure, Moondancer had said it was banished to the moon but Starlight had a feeling that Twilight would never let that happen. The princess was a known researcher and would hopefully keep such a powerful artifact nearby to study.
The alicorn amulet was going to be an accessory to Starlight’s plan. If the legends were true, then it would amplify her powers a hundred fold. This meant that the two minute trip a week back in time would become three hours long and take her nearly two years into the past.
Three hours wasn’t a whole lot of time, but at least it’d give her a shot at making a real difference. To rob Twilight of her alicornhood would make the events at Starlight’s village a non-reality. She’d have her town and purpose back while leaving Twilight’s self-worth and esteem in tatters.
She ventured deeper into the castle and discovered how suddenly mundane it became. There was no difference in any of the hallways with even the artistic mosaics being replicated every dozen metres or so. Until finally, the pattern was broken. There was a pair of doors which stood out. This was due to the fact that they stood nearly five ponies tall, dwarfing all of their counterparts.
Starlight opened the left door a crack and peered on through. Inside was a room unlike any other in the castle. It was a large chamber with six marble thrones surrounding a heavily textured granite table
As she entered the room, every little detail became more apparent. The first thing she noticed was the massive set of wooden roots which hung from the roof. Their organic and gnarled shape supported an intricate network of gems. There was something, special about them. Starlight reached out and snapped one off, bringing it over for closer examination
Each of the gems, or at least this one, contained an image imprinted within. It was a moment from Twilight’s life, with the mare hanging out inside of a coffee shop with her friend. They were all dressed in fine looking gowns and looked incredibly happy.
Starlight made a disgusted noise and tossed the gem aside before moving over to the thrones. She had miscounted initially. There were six regular sized thrones with a single tiny one resting at the side of another. With the exception of the miniature throne all of them were labelled with a cutie mark. They were the marks of the elements.
On a second glance, the table wasn’t actually a table at all, but rather a very detailed three-dimensional map of Equestria. She knew a lot of the places. Manehatten, a metropolis by the sea. Ponyville being a little blip south of Canterlot. She even noticed her own town hugging a mountain range on the northern edge of the map.
She placed her hoof on Canterlot and yelped in surprise as it went through the city. The whole map waivered and flicked before stabilizing around her obstruction. The details were a projection like that of a film upon a screen.
As she withdrew her hoof, Canterlot returned, popping back into existence. The table was magic and since Starlight had never seen anything like it before, she labelled it an oddity. Sure it wasn’t the alicorn amulet but it was worth investigating.
Her horn glowed and a link was established between herself and the table. To study an object’s background magic was like taking apart a machine, with each segment removed revealing a whole new level of complexity.
Only she had no idea what she was really getting into. The table’s magic was ancient and overwhelming. It surged across the link and entered her body. She screamed in surprise as the situation was reversed and the table began to study her, as if it were a sentient creature.
She screamed again, this time in agonizing pain. The table bore into her mind and she could feel it burning a hole in the centre of her consciousness. It began to fill her with an untold level of magical strength, more than she could ever hope to handle. She attempted to sever the link with the table but it refused to relent, seemingly content to fill her until she burst.
Her world began dim, becoming a numb haze for everything beyond her immediate reach. The energy inside of her was too much, it was going to burn through her like a cheap candle wick.
The universe however, showed her mercy. The link between herself and the table ended, allowing Starlight to stumble back and fall to the floor. She breathed heavily unable to remove her eyes from the murderous map. Screw the alicorn amulet, what was an enhancement of a mere hundredfold when she had just experienced something infinitely stronger.
It would take a bit of work, but if she could figure a way to link Starswirl’s spell with the raw undistilled magic that oozed from that table she’d be able to travel freely through time. No more limits on duration or distance. Though, she could hardly do that work within the fortress of her greatest foe.
She’d have to return to Canterlot and do her research there. All the pieces were coming together. She had a plan, a spell to perform it, and a source of magic to power that spell. All that was left was to figuring out how they worked together
Starlight stood up and swayed slightly from the lingering aftershock of the table’s trauma. She then gingerly made her way out of the room and into the endless hallways of Twilight’s castle.
Her progress through the halls was aimless as she tried her best to make it back to the entrance. There must have been some damage to her memory as she soon found herself hopelessly lost in the maze of repeating purple walls.
A hoot came from her left and she once more gasped in surprise. She looked up and noticed an owl staring at her. The owl was familiar and then it dawned on her. He had been present when she entered the castle. She searched the surrounding doors with the third one attempted leading outdoors.
The sun’s position in the sky and the rumble in Starlight’s stomach told her that it was around lunch time. If she remembered correctly there was a nice little café in the town square. Hopefully she’d be able to get a quick meal and then slink back to her hotel room.
The walk to town square was uneventful, though the citizens who had previously looked upbeat now seemed somewhat nervous. The reason for that became apparent as she approached the café. Twilight and her gang of goons stood near town hall and were accompanied by none other than Discord.
Starlight swallowed hard and looked around for cover. She was exposed and if any of them bothered to look up they’d spot her in a second. A bush was nearby and she dove in. She then pulled out her binoculars and used them to observe the group.
The group was in the middle of a conversation which Twilight seemed to lead from her position, standing a top a bench. They talked just loud enough that the wind carried a faint whisper to Starlight’s eager ears.
“I reckon you mean my sister, Applebloom,” Applejack said.
Discord waved a dismissive claw. “All you Apples look the same,” he paused before changing topics, “and then, Rainbow Dash saw a snake.”
Fluttershy opened her mouth to speak though her voice was too faint for Starlight to hear. A fact she found incredibly aggravating.
“It was a hose snake. Super deadly,” Rainbow Dash interjected.
“I recall it being a large stick. That looked like a hose that in turn did in fact look like a snake,” Applejack corrected.
Pinkie Pie in the meantime had approached Twilight’s bench, getting in nice and close to the princess. “Point is we galloped away.”
Rainbow Dash came from the sky and pushed Pinkie to the ground. “And it chased after us.”
Twilight looked confused as she asked, “the hose? A snake? A stick?”
“A snake,” Rainbow Dash cried out.
“A stick,” Applejack added on.
“We literally trotted for our lives. Isn’t that hilarious,” Discord joked.
Starlight didn’t find it overly funny, and judging by Twilight’s expression neither did she.”
Fluttershy said something and Twilight beamed.
“I do need to be there,” she declared.
Rarity spoke up, “but you weren’t, and it’s already happened. Oh are you suggesting-“
She was cut off as Pinkie rushed forward. Starlight had to do a double take. Where in the name of Celestia had Pinkie acquired a puffy red coat, some sunglasses, and also had enough time to restyle her mane.
“TIME TRAVEL,” Pinkie shouted in an excited tone.
Twilight looked shocked at the idea. “Absolutely not. Time travel is not something to be messed with.”
She continued to speak but Starlight phased out concentrating on that one little bit of dialog. What did Twilight mean with that warning? Had the mare meddled with time travel before?
Twilight’s group chatted for a while longer before shambling off. From there, they went over to the little café that Starlight had planned to get lunch at. It looked like she’d need a plan B for her own meal now.
Though in all honestly she didn’t think she’d be in town for much longer. In fact, she figured that she’d check out after lunch and head back to Canterlot. She had a lot of research to do and the fire of revenge was freshly rekindled, spurring her on.
Your days were numbered, Twilight Sparkle. Starlight thought as she pulled herself out of the bush. A few townsfolk gave her fishy looks but she ignored them. It wasn’t like any of these moments would exist in a few days’ time.
No, in a few days, everything would change. History was written by the victors and soon enough, that would be her.
Starlight stood at the train station, taking in a shallow breath of the late night air. It was crisp and tasted slightly of the impending fall that approached. She was waiting once again for a train to ferry her to Ponyville. This was going to be her last trip.
The life she had put together in Canterlot was now nothing more than a memory. Yesterday she had left her job and today her apartment. There were a few good byes but not many.
All that remained of her possessions were stored away in a saddlebag. It wasn’t much, a few articles of clothing, her notes, some pieces of lighter equipment, and of course Starswirl’s spell.
Though, it was no longer solely his. She had modified it, adding in her own amendments. These were scribbled frantically into any empty space on the parchment not occupied by the work of the long dead wizard.
Her additions would act as a bridge between his time travel spell and the unending source of magical energy that was Twilight’s map. The improvements had been ready for a while now but she held back on using them. She needed a target, a point in time where she could do the most damage to her enemies.
Initially, she had thought about crashing Twilight’s ascension and stopping her from becoming an alicorn. While that would have been nice it would have left her friends unpunished. No, she needed to strike at something bigger, something that would wound them all.
Then she attended a university lecture. One hosted by none other than Princess Twilight Sparkle herself. It had been the must see event of the academic year and she had been lucky to even find seats in the room.
During the lecture Twilight let slip the details of an event which intrigued Starlight. Apparently there had been a kind of link forged in destiny between her and her friends. Something that bound them together before they had even encountered one another.
It all began when a far younger Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were in a racing camp sponsored by Cloudsdale. At this camp Fluttershy had been bullied, prompting Rainbow Dash to defend her honour in a race. During the race Rainbow Dash broke the sound barrier and created a massive rainbow coloured eruption of light.
This light washed over Equestria with ponies as far away as Manehatten and Canterlot being able to see it. This had been the talk of the kingdom for a few weeks and it had also been witness by each of the elements of harmony. As they witnessed this “Sonic Rainboom” all of them had discovered their purpose in life and acquired their cutie marks.
It was simple. If Starlight could interfere with the race she could stop the six mares from finding their purpose in life. Without their marks the chances of their friendship being formed would be slim to none. She couldn’t ask for a more deceives blow against her enemies.
So here she was, back where her adventure began. At a train station in Canterlot with not a single bit to her name. She had spent the last of them on a late night train ticket to Ponyville. This was done so she could get there before Twilight.
The princess’ Canterlot schedule had been posted in a local paper and according to it she’d be busy until tomorrow afternoon. This meant that if Starlight’s train wasn’t late she’d have more than enough time to properly plan her ambush.
The sound of steel screeching upon steel got her attention. She looked up and saw her train pull into station. Its name was written on the engine in big red letters. Her chariot to go destroy Twilight was called the Friendship Express. The irony caused her to chuckle.
It came to a shuddering stop before her and the doors opened. At this late of an hour not many ponies were waiting to get aboard. Besides her there were maybe a half-dozen others. So she ended up being seated in a car by herself.
The train didn’t remain in station long. Just enough time to top up on whatever the engine and its conductor desperately needed.
Being so late at night they opted not to start their journey by blowing the train’s whistle. Instead Starlight felt the whole machine lurch jarringly forward as they slowly crept along the tracks. They picked up speed rather quickly and she peered out the window, catching a final glimpse of the city that had taken her in. She would not miss it but it had defiantly been an interesting experience.
Even at this hour the city was alive. Ponies walked through the streets, though in numbers far lesser than their day time counterparts. The lamp posts guaranteed them safety, bathing the streets in a nice yellowish glow. There were couples on dates, friends chatting, and strangers making awkward introductions.
Then in a flash it was all blocked as they passed through the city gates. In a moment the apartments, factories, and businesses of Canterlot were replaced by the massive white walls that kept them safe.
Starlight turned her gaze, settling it upon the rest of Equestria. It all hung out before her. An endless abyss of wilderness that seemed to go on infinitely. The only evidence of any ponies living out there was the sparse sparkle of lights that labelled the few rural communities.
She thought about trying to get some sleep. Though there was no way that would ever happen. Her plan was now hours away from being fulfilled and she was far too excited.
The problem with being excited was that time slowed to a crawl when you weren’t engaged with the active that put you in that state. She had nothing to distract herself, no books, games, or music were in her possession. Instead she stared out at the landscape which passed by in a dark blur. With only the occasional stop in some tiny hamlet to briefly break up the tedium.
Night eventually began to fade into day as they approached Ponyville. By the time the town appeared on the horizon it was early dawn. As they began to slow, Starlight could see a clock tower upon one of the town’s hills. It read that it was six in the morning.
The train continued to slowly chug along before coming to a complete stop outside of the town’s train station. She was the first off the train, being followed by a slow flow of exhausted ponies. Immediately she turned and headed towards the castle on the horizon. There was not a second to waste.
She wasn’t going at a full blown gallop but took a rather quick canter to get to Twilight’s tower. It was so early that very few ponies were around to give her funny looks as she blitzed through the town. As Twilight’s doors came into view she bound up the castle’s steps and pressed upon them
They flew open and she spilled in, nearly falling upon her rump. Twilight seemed to have adapted the small town mentality of never locking your doors. Starlight didn’t care, in fact she applauded her nemesis’ sense of security. It just made her job easier.
Starlight made her way into the castle, scanning the various door frames for any sign of Twilight’s owl. The creature’s nest was still there but the feathered scoundrel in question was missing. She shrugged to herself before moving on. Even if the owl was a nuisance it wasn’t like he could stop her.
The castle was still a maze and her previous trip here had done little to acclimate her to the internal layout. She wandered around in confusion trying her best to find the one set of doors that led into the map room.
She began to open doors at random, hoping to stumble upon a landmark from her last trip. One of them led into a kitchen and immediately her stomach began to growl. She decided that since Twilight wouldn’t be back for at least another six hours there was more than enough time to sneak a meal.
Starlight entered the room and began to throw open cupboards, trying to find herself a quick breakfast. A box of cereal came flying out, followed by a bowl. She then opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of milk, adding it to the mix.
Twilight had a single serve coffee machine so Starlight decided to indulge herself. She grabbed a cartridge of hazelnut coffee and popped it into the machine. It took a few moments but once it was brewed she took a sip and let out a satisfied sigh. It might not have been a full night’s sleep but it would keep her awake until Twilight got back.
She grabbed her breakfast and hauled it into the hallway. Instantly, she lost her bearings and began to wander around aimlessly. The castle was a big place and it all looked the same. Could any one honestly blame her for getting a bit turned around?
Starlight brought forth a spoonful of bland tasting cereal. She took a big bite before washing it down with some coffee. All the interesting looking flavours in Twilight’s pantry contained massive hunks of gemstone. Clearly those brands were not meant for an equine audience. So she was stuck with the boring cereal of possibly the least interesting alicorn in Equestria.
She could feel time moving slowly forward. Every second she wasted finding the map room was one less moment she’d have to actually configure her spell. Experimental arcane arts were already dangerous enough. To rush them was just asking for something to go wrong. The last thing she needed was for Twilight to find her embedded in a wall.
Finally, after what seemed like the millionth corner, the massive doors that led to the map room were before her. As she approached she dumped her coffee and the bowl into a nearby broom closet. It was best not to bring unneeded objects in with her. She then went over and stood before the two massive doors, peering up at them.
They loomed over her. Behind them was the final piece of the puzzle, the map. She could remember her last encounter with it in vivid detail. When it had latched onto her and nearly shorted her out like an overwhelmed fuse. The memory alone was enough to make her body ache.
“Nothing ventured, nothing gained,” she mumbled before pushing on through.
The room looked exactly like she remembered it. The six thrones still surrounded the map which was under the glow of the tree root chandelier. She walked over, placing her bag upon Twilight’s throne.
The map didn’t seem to recognize her. Either that or it just didn’t care that she was here. She thought that her fears were both ridiculous and justified. On one hoof the map had nearly vaporized her and on the other it was a giant hunk of sparkling stone.
She levitated the scroll out of her bag and opened it. The words were right before her. Though, they were already well established in her mind. She had helped to write them after all.
The bear had been poked and suddenly a wave of energy radiated off of the map’s surface. She gasped in horror and scrambled away from Twilight’s throne. A glow continued to build until there was a ball of energy hanging in between the map and the roof.
A jagged bolt of lightning erupted from the ball and struck the ground beside her. Starlight jumped to the side. The ball flexed, drawing back before lurching forward and casting another bolt. She put up a shield which caught the spell.
It pressed down upon her defense causing it to contract and shrink. The bolt fragmented turning into a dozen smaller blasts which peppered her shield in many different locations. She was losing this battle. Just like before.
The shield continued to constrict growing closer and closer to her body. Her brow sweat as the sound of electricity arcing through the air came from every angle. Her shield waivered and wobbled under the bombardment. If she didn’t act soon then Twilight would find nothing but a pile of ashes when she came home.
Thankfully she had a plan. At the cost of her already depleted shield she reached out and grabbed the spell. She needed to be quick as there was already strain beginning to mount upon her. A headache had started to form, creeping across the front of her brain and blurring her vision.
She clumsily thrusted the scroll upwards. It collided with the underside of the orb and was absorbed into its massless body. It twitched and fluxed, its colour rapidly shifting through a spectrum. The strands of electricity the orb threw at her retracted, orbiting around it in rings.
It finally settled on a blue hue before popping out of existence and leaving her scroll levitating in its place. Only it had been further changed. The text coursed with electricity and took on a strange arcane glow. The map’s core, its source of power had been trapped inside the spell. She had tamed the beast.
Her shield cracked and shattered as she powered it down. She then advanced towards the map, ignoring the scroll for a moment. A shaky breath came forth as she touched the surface. Nothing happened, no attacks, no defenses, no tricks or surprises. The image simply fluttered and fluxed around her hoof.
Finally, she felt secure. Her horn glowed and she grabbed the scroll forcefully out of the air. She brought it to the bridge of her snout and looked at the words closely. It would seem that the strange glow only afflicted her words, leaving Starswirl’s a weathered black.
“Not so powerful now are you?” she said taunting the piece of paper.
It didn’t reply.
Now all she had to do was set a time and location. With a little luck the spell would drag her to wherever she wanted to go.
She pulled out her folder, laying it out upon the now defunct map. Inside was the last bit of research she had done before leaving Canterlot. This included a series of coordinate and a date. These would lead her to that faithful race all those years ago.
The location had been easy enough to find. Cloudsdale’s formation was always on public record and every year they would release a volume telling the city’s place in the kingdom, to the hour. Scribbled on the bottom of the note was a series of coordinates. She “plugged” them into the spell though the process took a fair amount of time.
Time was a bit trickier to find out. Trickier but not impossible. For this Starlight had to skim the contents of ten Cloudsdale Flight Camp yearbooks. In them she found a common theme of awards. Best flier, fastest flier, most aerodynamic flier. There turned out to be a lot of flying awards in a flight camp, go figure.
In one of the books she managed to find Rainbow Dash, who had been awarded quite a few accolades. Also in the yearbook was a calendar which posted all the major events of that year including one simply labelled “Rainbow Anomaly”. So that date was the one she factored into the spell, taking about as much time as the location. When both had been completed several hours had slipped away from her.
The spell was primed and ready to be activated at Starlight’s beckon. She waited however, it wouldn’t be right to cast it without rubbing her victory in Twilight’s face. So she waited, throwing her hind legs up onto the table and crossing them. A victorious and smug smile was plastered onto her muzzle. Her season of infamy was coming to a finale.
