In the western reaches of Equestria lies the sleepy settlement of Manehattan, settled deep in the woods. The town, barely a decade old, was founded as a forward post for the expansion of the still young country. The streets were no more than dirt, pounded and packed hard from the travel of ponies passing through. The buildings themselves were no more than brick and log, but they were very cozy, and made travelers feel relaxed in the tranquil surroundings.
A pegasi known as Storm Slasher flew at full speed towards a clinic, spiraling from the clouds as soon as he heard from his co-worker about noteworthy events. Slowing down, he landed roughly right outside the small makeshift hospital. Bolting straight through the doors and past the front counter, he began scanning each door for the right numbers. Slowing to a stop, he heard the grunts and screams emanating from room 202.
Ignoring his surroundings, he opened the door and flew in scanning the tiny room, and there he saw her. In the corner of the room was Peach Luck, the look of pain disappeared from her face as Storm settled down and took her hoof in his own. As he squeezed reassuringly, she returned her attention to the doctor.
Like the shattering of a glass window pane, a cry rang out over the sleepy town. It wasn’t the cry of pain nor sadness, but the tell-tale cry of a newborn foal.
“It’s a girl!” The doctor called out, the two new parents turned to each other, starry-eyed and with grins to match. The doctor wrapped the foal in a clean towel and gave the infant to her mother.
“Oh my, she’s more beautiful than I ever imagined!” Peach Luck remarked as she looked at her foal with her shimmering white fur. Her mane fluttered softly with a soft pink sheen to it. She turned her attention to the horn, it was slender and pure white like the rest of her, but...there was something else on the foal. Something...that could only be described as a miracle.
Peach Luck gasped. “Doctor? Why does she have wings?”
The look of panic spread quickly across her face as the doctor reassured her. “Miss Luck, don’t panic. Your daughter is a very rare case indeed. It would seem your daughter is, in fact, an alicorn.”
Confusion spread across Storm’s face.
“Now doc, just how rare are we talking here?” Storm Slasher spoke in a gruff tone of voice that was tinged with fear for their newborn.
“Well, the last alicorn was born around six months ago...” he trailed off. If they weren’t panicked before, they sure were now.
Subsequently, the doctor put his hoofs up in defense. “But don’t worry, medical science has come a long way since then, we are going to put her in the intensive care unit.”
The doctor reached over as Peach Luck reluctantly gave up her newborn. “Don’t worry about it. If all goes well, she will be home with you by the end of the week.”
A nurse stepped in carting behind her a small gurney outfitted with several tubes that hung down at its sides. The doctor handed the foal to her as she set her down inside the rails and wheeled her off into the ICU.
“So. Have you two thought of a name yet?”
“Yes,” Peach spoke up with a bright twinkle in her eyes. “Celestia.”
The name rolled off her tongue like it was made of liquid. The doctor raised an inquisitive eye at Storm, who nodded in return.
Then, he said, “Couldn’t have named her better myself.”
“Very well,” the doctor nodded curtly.
“There are some things that you need to know about alicorns, but we can discuss that tomorrow. For now, miss, you need to get some rest. As for you Mr. Slasher, we need to fill out some paperwork. Nothing big, it’s just a formality, it’s not like I expect you to have a family heritage of alicorns.”
Storm leaned over to his wife, giving her a quick kiss. “I’ll be right back dear, try to get some rest, okay?” he spoke softly. Peach nodded in return as Storm followed the doctor out of the room and back into the hall.
“Are you okay, Mr. Slasher? You seem to be a bit out of sorts.”
Storm snapped his head and eyes up, he had been in a trance like state since the moment that he saw those wings.
How was this even possible? He thought to himself, firmly believing something like that is just pure dumb luck. Sure enough, his wife’s last name had shone through today.
“Uh, yes I’m fine,” he lied.
He was still panicking inside, what if she didn’t make it through the week? What if she did? How does one take care of an “alicorn” as the doctor called her? Too many “what if’s” plagued his mind, but the doctor spoke up as he tried to clear his thoughts.
“Don’t you worry, Mr. Slasher. Here in Manehattan we have the best staff on hoof 24 hours a day.”
Just then, they entered the doctor’s office. “Now please, sit down and take a load off, we’ve got a good deal of paperwork to go through here.”
The doctor leaned over his desk and pushed a button on his intercom. “Lilica?” he spoke into it. “Could you bring up two cups of coffee for us?”
“Sure thing, doctor.”
She spoke in a professional manner, clearly showing she had been a secretary most of her life. Storm looked around the office at the posters on his beige walls, a specific one caught his eye. It read ‘An apple a day keeps me away’ with a picture of the doctor sporting fake vampire fangs and a cape to match.
“Very well. Let’s get down to business.”
The next two hours were filled with questions and answers ranging on all topics from family history to known ailments that he may have had. After countless pages of paperwork, the doctor finally stood up from his chair. “Okay, I could use a 5 minute break. I’m going to release you to either go back to your wife or you can head home for the day.”
With a yawn, Storm said, “Thanks, doc.”
Storm headed back down the hall to room 202, taking in his surroundings as he went. The walls were much like the office he had been in, the fluorescent lights illuminating the patients in a manner that exhibited great care, as opposed to the hospitals back in his hometown of Cloudsdale, which felt and smelled way too sterile.
He reached room 202 and slowly pulled the door open, and as a result, it squeaked as if it were a century old. He winced, hoping it wouldn’t wake the new mother. Storm peaked his head in and looked around, Peach was fast asleep. She had earned the rest. Storm trotted over to one of the chairs next to the bed and sat down.
Looking at her now, she had seemed so peaceful as opposed to a few hours ago where her face had been red like a tomato, compared to its usual creamy colour. A lock of her deep blue mane fell across her face as she unconsciously reached up and pushed it out of her eyes. Storm Slasher thought to himself. This is the mare I will spend the rest of my life with, and I couldn’t be happier about it.
Subsequently, he curled up on the chair, ready for a good nap himself. As he drifted off into the empty wasteland that is a dream he recalled all the events of this morning. Indeed, that day had truly been tiring.
~~.~~
To: The Council.
My name is Dr. Wellman and I am writing you today to report a very significant incident here at the Manehattan clinic. This morning, our town’s gardener gave birth to a foal. Normally, this wouldn’t be considered worth your time, however, this is no ordinary foal.
Peach Luck has given birth to an alicorn. After reviewing the parents DNA, they have the specific genotypes that match up with that of Case #0. The results of that, as I’m sure you remember, were dire. So I write you asking for what course of action to take.
I will be awaiting your swift response, the situation could become critical at any moment. Please make haste.
-With great respect,
Dr. Wellman
~~.~~
Sometime later that afternoon, Peach Luck had begun to stir awake. However, as she woke, she felt immensely sore as she worked her way into a sitting position. After all, she had fallen asleep about half an hour after Storm left with the doctor. She looked over at Storm, who was napping and snoozing in the comfy chair. While contemplating how cute he looked, the doctor had entered the room.
He said, “Ah, good morning to you, Miss Luck. I was hoping you were awake. I’ll give you a minute to get your bearings. Can you wake up your husband and come to my office when you feel ready?”
Considering the doctor’s tone seemed to radiate impatience, she decided to get going as fast as possible. She moved off the bed, and over to her husband, whispering gently into his ear. He woke with a yawn.
“Hey hun, we need to go talk to the doctor, okay?” She was as gentle as could be with her voice.
He yawned. “Yeah, okay.”
They got to their hooves and stretched, preparing for the emotional overload that they were bound to encounter. Storm Slasher’s usual stoic disposition was nowhere to be found, his entire mind consumed with “what if’s”. Peach was no better off, as she was on the verge of tears. For her, there was no thought that could prevent a mental breakdown, only the presence of her husband was a comfort to her.
They walked down a barren beige colored hallway, in silence, holding each other tightly; no words need be spoken, for their years together have helped develop an almost telepathic relationship. Storm opened the door, keeping it ajar for his wife to enter first. A second chair had been placed inside the room so they may both could sit comfortably. The doctor sat behind the desk, his usual smile was replaced with that of concern and fear. It was clear to both parties this would be a very serious discussion.
“Please, take a seat.” the doctor motioned a hoof towards the chairs across from him. “We have much to discuss, mostly about the child.”
“Very well,” Storm spoke. “But before all that, I want to know… is she-”
“The child is fine, she is showing strong vital signs, nothing more dangerous than an average foal at this stage. It’s when their magic first takes hold when it becomes dangerous.” The doctor wore a grimace. “The last alicorn died in a magical discharge at just two years of age.” His words hung in the air like a thick smoke.
“But how… I mean, the last one you said it happened at two years old, there’s no way that could be possible, the average unicorn can’t fully grasp-” Storm’s words were beginning to trip over themselves as he spoke.
“I’ll assure you that this is, in fact, entirely possible. For you see, an alicorn’s magic is many times stronger than that of the most magically adept unicorn. Starswirl the Bearded himself could not compete with even a young alicorn’s magic, and as for their wings, they are temperamental. The last alicorn could not fly, however the one before him did. She hadn’t been able to control her flight path and crashed into a tree at a speed of fifteen wing power.”
“So our daughter could-” Peach began.
“Destroy the whole town? Yes. I’m afraid that is a very real possibility, and at this point there is nothing we can do, other than sit and hope. Hope for the best of little Celestia, that she doesn’t engulf the town in a gigantic spell matrix that is completely out of her control.”
The doctor was very frank in his dealings, and was not shy about telling things how they were.
“However, you should know there is more to an alicorn than that. Because of their immense skill with the arcane arts, an alicorn has a lifespan far beyond our own. But because of the self-inflicted accidents, Equestrian scientists have been unable to determine just how long exactly.” The doctor’s face did loosen, just a bit. “Some speculate that an alicorn can live forever, while other say that they may live up to three hundred years, but there’s one thing for certain, they live a very long time."
“Mentally, they will continue to develop at the average rate of any other pony. Thought and cognitive abilities will grow at the same pace as every other foal in Equestria, so no worries there. As for their physical development, well, they will develop at roughly one tenth the speed of a normal pony, and that isn’t even constant.”
“So you’re telling me that my daughter, in fifty years time, will still be the size of a foal, but she will have the same mental capacity of any fully grown mare?”
“Precisely.” The doctor stood up. “Well, that’s just about all there is to it, check in with my secretary at the front desk before you leave. She has one more form for you to fill out, it’s to schedule a time for a checkup.” He opened the door for them to exit. “If you will excuse me, I have an immense amount of files I need to sort through right now, so I will see you in a week.”
The couple stepped out and walked down the hall in silence once more, this time towards the exit. As they approached the front counter they could hear very furious typing that which the speed, if done right, could produce a novel in just a few short hours. Behind a looming stack of folders was a mare going away at the little typewriter like it was a normal day, at least in theory.
“Uh, hello?” Peach was tentative to not to interrupt the unicorn. “The doctor sent us up here…” The mare turned, her face showing obvious anger and frustration from the task at hand, but when she saw Peach and Storm together, it quickly changed to one of delight.
“Oh! You’re the new parents!" She jumped up out of her chair. "Congratulations on the foal! I heard she was a beautiful white; that was always my favorite colour. Ah yes, here you go,” she handed a piece of paper over the counter to Peach, who took it in her telekinetic grasp and looked it over. It was just a checkup scheduler, which she promptly filled out and passed back over.
Subsequently, the mare said, “Wonderful! I’ll see you next week then. Bye-bye now!”
Storm’s stoic facial features and demeanor returned to him as he stepped out into the cool night air. “You hungry, babe?” he said to Peach, realizing he hadn’t eaten since last night.
“Yeah, I could eat, nothing too heavy though. Let’s just go for some soup, I doubt I could stomach a daisy sandwich.” She held her now flat stomach for emphasis. Truth be told, she could eat her own weight in food but she doubted her ability to keep it down.
The couple headed down the street towards Manie’s Pasta Hut for a hot meal, taking in the cool night breeze as it lapped across their fur, still full of anxiety as they tried to calm down for the night.
The doctor crossed the office and dug through mail that had just dropped into the mail chute of his oak door. Flipping through bills and junk mail, he finally found what he was looking for, a message marked urgent from Canterlot. The red envelope felt heavy as he opened it. Afterwards, he pulled out the letter.
~~.~~
To: Dr. Wellman
Thank you for the immediate action regarding this matter. However, we assure you that there will be no immediate danger. We had learned of the possibility of an alicorn being born in recent days but we did not expect it to be so soon.
The council has come to a majority ruling to allow the foal to exist as a normal pony, under two parameters.
One: You must have her come in once a week for checkups. Report all findings, changes and abnormalities to us immediately.
Two: Make sure that at least one parent is with the foal at all times once they take custody. If the foal is left in the presence of strangers, the results could be DIRE. We CAN NOT stress this enough.
Enclosed is a gift for the foal from two very important members of our council. The blonde one, and the Doctor made it themselves. Ensure that foal gets this.
-Counsel Mare Taranova
~~.~~
Dr. Wellman emptied the contents of the envelope onto his desk. Out came a small necklace with a pendant attached. The pendant looked like a curved teardrop; it was white with a black dot in the middle of the larger end.