//------------------------------// // Solving for Zero // Story: PaP: Bedtime Stories // by Starscribe //------------------------------// Archive had gathered the greatest minds from all of Comox. The deer she'd chosen had very little in common. A handful were young, fawns in their second or third year who looked almost like adults but acted like adolescents. There was Cherry-Blossum-Always-Blooms, and her younger brother Unseen-Wind-Lifts-Many-Birds. They sat side-by-side on a single cushion made from rough fabric and stuffed with straw. They were only permitted to be so close on account of both still having their spots—once 'Birds' lost his, he would be grown, and no longer be able to spend time with his sister. A few adult deer. A doe without fawns of her own named Stargazing-During-Storms, who's slightly slower wit was sometimes broken by bursts of surprising insight. Another doe, a year older and with a yearling to care for, Runs-Beside-Wolves. Alex had seen a few promising bucks too, but couldn't convince any of them to attend her "magic" lessons. Once they had learned the lessons were only a test and might not produce results, they couldn't run away fast enough. Bucks belonged either foraging in the wild, caring for the crops, or fighting for territory with rival tribes. Despite Comox's gigantic size (in terms of deer tribes), they had been unwilling to leave these duties for others even for a few afternoons. Archive's own apprentices attended as well, though often as much as assistants as attendants. They brought food and water to her students, cared for the tools, or helped prompt questions Archive wanted asked. Very useful, though she wasn't sure how much they learned. Only two older deer. Elders were a very rare thing, requiring both useful skills and enough plentiful years that the deer wouldn't reach some point in their minds where they weren't contributing to the tribe and wander out into the wilderness to be devoured. Comox had five, and two attended her class. The first was Stride, one of the tribe's founding members and the deer who had spent the longest around ponies. Stride had the best grasp on abstraction by far, since she'd had so long to learn it. She knew pony languages and understood pony culture. She did not, unfortunately, have much hint of magic talent about her. The last deer was also the only grown buck in attendance, an herbal healer named Finds-Softest-Flowers-At-Dusk. Dusk said very little at her meetings, but always seemed to be listening. He also seemed to have a great deal of natural talent for magic… for a deer. The deer had almost no magic of their own. They believed in tons of it, seemingly endless rituals and rules that bestowed the mother's favor on those who followed and her displeasure on those who did not. At the very least, they never seemed to feel the need to enforce the mother's displeasure on anyone, even other deer. The Mother herself was the judge, not any of them. Archive had not yet discovered any sign of working magic in the tribe. She had observed all their rituals with the sensitivity of Unicorn observation, yet had seen nothing. She recognized the Keeper of Earth well, yet hadn't ever seen her bare feet walking in Comox. "I am glad you have all come," she said, from the center of the circle. They'd picked a quiet grove of trees very close to Comox itself, but far enough from the fields and thoroughfares that Deer would not intrude loudly upon them. Plenty would still sneak up to watch—she was counting on it. The strongest indicator of magic talent was a desire to learn more magic, after all. The study area was about twenty feet of soft, green grass, with thick undergrowth forming a wall beyond. Archive had used earth pony to cultivate that wall particularly strong and dense, so that only a "gate" between two trees that led onto one of the tribe's scent-marked trails could be used to enter. The air was crisp, even in summer. Alex's new body was sturdier than she'd been even as an earth pony, so the cold didn't bother her. Her apprentice Dividend was another matter, and he wore a light cloak even in winter. Nancy, or by her tribal name, Makes-Sky-Lighter, was a pegasus, and thus more tolerant of cold weather. She still had to bundle up in winter, though. Winter in northern Canada was very cold. "What will we learn today, All-Crafted?" asked Birds in his still squeaky fawn's voice. He fidgeted in his seat, as he always did. "You always have such interesting things to show us." "Today we're going to learn about the Mother." Archive said. This hushed the muttered conversation of her guests at once—the Mother was a sacred subject, always treated with the utmost respect. "What would you know of her?" Dusk asked. His voice was not disrespectful, merely curious. "You may have passed our trials and become an Elder of this tribe, but you are still mageblood. You barely know our ways." "I know her magic," Archive responded. "Or more precisely, I can use the same kind of magic she uses. This is the kind of magic that magebloods called Earth Ponies use. I believe it is the kind of magic you all are most likely to possess, since like earth ponies no deer has a horn for magic or wings for flight. It would also be the most useful to you, if any of you could learn it. "Earth ponies can grow a whole season's crop in days. They can bring life to dead soil, or foster it from nothing. They can break trees with their kicks, or bend steel. The Mother grants them this power. I wish for her to grant it to Comox as well." There were a few nods of general agreement, and the attitude in the clearing seemed to relax a little. As though the deer had been afraid she was going to disrespect their traditions somehow. She never did, not anymore, though they always seemed worried. "Alright," Archive's horn glowed, and she picked something up off the ground in front of her. It was a small brown seed, with a pair of transparent 'wings' on either side. She held it up in front of them all, moving it around the circle so they could see. "What do you see?" "A seed," said Bird. "A white-birch seed," Blooms added, smiling a little smugly. Alex shook her head. "Tell me what you see. Not what you think you see." Silence from the group. Her own apprentices knew to remain silent unless prompted, though she doubted either one would know where she was going with this. Neither one was an earth pony, after all. Dividend had the bias of his people (most ponies in general) that only unicorns did "magic" and most others just performed various acts of dexterity. "I see something brown. A hard, bitter, flaky something. Dark in the middle, but light around the sides," Storms said. "Better," Alex responded. "But not what I was looking for." "What is the purpose of this question?" Dusk asked. "Doors open to those that see them." There was another long silence. Lonely Day did not move, even as the deer all around her started to fidget. Even the elders didn't like sitting in place for every long. It made prey very uncomfortable. The more discomfort they felt, the more she hoped they would strive for an answer. "It's potential," said Wolves. "It's a tree, but it isn't right now. This is why we gather them after each harvest. Our seeds become new harvests. That seed will become a new paper birch." Archive smiled. She gestured to the center of the circle. "Come here, Wolves." She set the seed down on the ground. "Dig a hole and plant that seed. Take your time. You aren't a farmer." "What am I?" Wolf asked, as she rose from her cushion and made her way into the center of the circle. The eyes of all the deer were on her now, watching intently. "Something new," Lonely Day whispered. "Something that never was. Take the seed in your hoof." Wolf did so, though the gesture came slowly. Even for ponies, it would have required some skill. Few Deer were as good with their hooves as ponies were—their bodies just weren't as flexible. "Okay," Wolf said, tone flat. "Now what?" Day moved up beside her. Compared to an adult doe, she was still short, even as an Alicorn. Day touched her own hoof to Wolf's, so that she too was in contact with the seed. "Close your eyes first, so you can see. Everyone else do likewise." "That doesn't make sense!" Bird protested. "If we close our eyes, we won't be able to see." How could she explain? Day had tried so many times— and every time she'd failed. It was like the time she'd tried to teach Jackie calculus, repeating the same concepts over and over without her ever seeming to retain them. "Magic is within, Wolf. Let me show it to you." Wolf didn't seem to understand any better than the deer all around them. She obeyed even so, closing her eyes and holding still. "I'm ready," Alex waited another moment, hoping the other deer would obey as well, but not wanting to wait to force them. These deer had obeyed all her instructions, taken her lessons, and had no magic of their own to show for it. Only teaching humans would've been worse. There was one thing Alex hadn't tried yet, though. She'd tried pointing them in the general direction of magic, but she'd never violently ripped the scales away. Her horn glowed reddish brown as she began the complex spell, targeting everyone in the clearing. Every one of them would gain a powerful connection to her, and through her to the Earth. It might only last for a few minutes, but that would be plenty of time for what she wanted them to see. Archive released the spell, and watched carefully to see how they would react. The result was instantaneous. No sooner has the spell left her horn than every single one of the deer rose to their hooves, staring down at the ground with sudden shock. Their eyes naturally traced the current of power back to the origin of the spell, and several shielded their eyes with a hoof as they finally found Alex. "Ignore me," she commanded, not taking her hoof from the seed. "Plant it, Wolf. Right now, before the spell wears off." Alex could feel the poor deer's hoof shake as she shoved it into the dirt. As deep as she could reach. A little deeper than this particular seed "liked" to be, but she wasn't going to bring that part up. It wouldn't matter for this next part. "Good, not leave your hoof there. You're going to focus on the ground now, through the magic you can sense. What you're all feeling is…" "I can see her face," Dusk said, his voice barely a whisper. "Do you live with this all the time?" "All the time," she shrugged. "Focus, kin! Everyone get close. We're all going to try and make this seed grow together. I need every single one of you here, Wolf can't do it alone. They gathered in, every single one of them. Even without magic, Archive could sense their sincerity. Does and Bucks avoided each other, standing close enough to touch her, but never each other. They concentrated, they focused, they followed the ritual in every way she suggested. Painful minutes passed, with every one of them crammed together as their bodies would fit. Nothing changed. Alex became conscious of how little was happening in front of her. It would have taken only a second of effort on her part, but she didn't fall to the temptation. It would be easy to trick these deer into thinking that their effort had come to something that it hadn't, but that would hardly help make for a stable society. They could not teach each other pony powers based on a lie. Your effort is admirable, said a quiet voice in her mind. Archive opened one eye to see a dark figure sitting on a nearby log. Naked, with hair of growing plants and feet like roots that sunk into the ground in front of her. If anything, this figure was far larger and stronger than the last time they had met. But it will not succeed. Will alone does not a bond make. These cervine were not meant to be composing sonnets. The fruit they eat is enough to plant the only fields I never needed from them. For all that the deer worshiped the Keeper of Earth, they seemed oblivious to her presence. They appeared to be so laser-focused on what Archive had asked for that they could see almost nothing else. She lowered her voice to a whisper, retreating from the circle. "I don't mean to second-guess you, but the conditions you created them in have changed. They're as intelligent as we are. They are as deserving of respect as we are." Deserving of respect? The keeper rose to her feet, and suddenly she towered over Archive. Where she walked, the soft grass grew long and out of control, leaving huge footprints in the clearing. Rid your mind of mortal thinking, child. 'Deserving' is a meaningless term. A purpose is either fulfilled, or it is not. How intelligent they are is irrelevant. Alex shivered, glancing briefly back over her shoulder. By now, the spell would already be wearing off. Soon enough the deer would be able to feel nothing at all, and they would probably stop trying. "There must be a way to give them magic," Alex pleaded. "They worship you, Keeper. Can't you give them strength in return as you do to ponies?" I can't, she sounded almost sad to admit it. I'm sorry, child. You would not understand. I do not bring my children to their destiny, I can only place them on the road that leads there. If they are ever to know me as you do, they must do as ponies have. A bond is required, one only they can make. You cannot give it to them. Gaia turned away, passing through the bushes on the edge of the clearing with hardly a rustle. As she did so, a new spring burst from the ground there, gurgling up and washing away the grass nearby. It began to gush and pool, threatening to fill up their whole clearing. The deer had all moved, though not much. Every one of them was facing the direction she'd left, every one of them had their head bowed. Even her pony apprentice Dividend, unicorn from primitive Salt Lick, had his head bowed. Maybe they're better at sensing than I gave them credit. Archive's hooves splashed in the water, and she gestured suddenly away. "Out!" she instructed, pointing towards the gate. "We can talk outside, come on!" "She was here," Dusk said, as they splashed and scrambled out of the way of the growing pond. A steady flow of water and detritus proceeded them out the open gateway, but most remained. So much for ever training here again. "Your ritual… the Mother was actually here. You spoke to her!" "I did," Alex slumped down on her haunches, looking back at the study circle. "I begged your case. If anypony could give you the magic you deserved… I thought she could." Archive sighed. "She refused you?" Wolf sounded suddenly frightened. "She was angered that we turned our back on custom? She demands a pur—" "NO!" Archive cleared her throat loudly, glaring at Wolf. "She was not angry with you. She doesn't mind if you get magic, but she says she can't give it to you. If you want it you have to find it yourselves…" Alex trailed off, staring down at the ground. "So this training of yours in less practical skills will not be required," Dusk said. "She wants us to discover it our own way. Not the Mageblood way." Alex opened her mouth to protest, but no words came out. She didn't actually know what set ponies apart from deer in this way. It wasn't just the deer, ponies had an unfair magical advantage compared to just about everything. There was no obvious physical difference to explain such a disparity. So what made ponies different? It was a question without an answer. Certainly not one she would answer today. "No more lessons," Archive finally said. "I will study out her words, and research pony history. It's possible I'll be able to put the Kin on the right trail, even if I can't give you a map."