//------------------------------// // Aftermath - Part 2 // Story: Past Actions, Future Consequences // by Rill //------------------------------// Luna stood on the cloud walkway, watching silently as the workers on the factory floor installed the final pieces of equipment. Other than orders and replies, no pony below her spoke as they rushed about their duties. Though such silence should have irked the younger princess, Luna found herself wondering if the silence was because of the situation in Ponyville, her intimidating presence, or a combination of the two. Mentally shrugging, Luna turned to a nearby window, watching as plumes of smoke billowed from the forest in the distance. In her horn, she could feel the wild magic of the forest being released by the flames. If the magic got thick enough and something set it off... Luna shook her head. She would spend a thousand years in Tartarus before that happened again. Among the pillars of smoke, the lunar princess could see flashes of light as sunlight glinted off chariots as the pegasi pulling them flew over the flames. Had there been anypony in the forest when it started to burn? Had they gotten out? Shoving the thought aside, Luna turned away from the window. She’d learn soon enough how many of her citizens had been lost in the fire. Hearing a cough, the younger Royal Sister turned to the thestral next to her, the pony snapping a salute to the princess. “What is it, Lieutenant?” “Progress update, ma’am” The mare replied, giving the lunar diarch a clipboard. Luna glanced over the lone sheet of paper, “How much longer?” “Foremare estimates that it’ll take another hour to get the last piece in position and another thirty minutes to get it secured and ready.” “Not good enough Lieutenant. Tell the foremare she has half that time.” “I tried princess, but she won’t budge on the timeframe. She says that the last piece is the largest and heaviest of all of them. Even if every member of the guard here right now grabbed a rope, we’d only shave maybe ten minutes off the estimate.” The mare wilted slightly under her princess’s gaze, “Her words, not mine.” Luna sighed at the officer’s report. Eighty minutes was nowhere near good enough. How much more of the Everfree would go up in flames in that time? “Lieutenant, how much does the piece weigh?” Luna asked; looking at where the roof would eventually go. “About forty thousand pounds, ma’am.” “How soon until they’re ready to install it?” “Immediately, ma’am.” Luna slowly smiled at the mare’s response. “Tell them to clear the area.” Not sure what was going to happen, the thestral officer simply saluted before leaping over the railing and gliding to the factory floor below. Pumping her wings, Luna rose into the air as workers below cleared the floor. Ignoring the two guards that flew into place beside her, Luna hovered above the factory, taking a moment to enjoy the warmth from her sister’s sun. Looking down, she could see the final piece of machinery lying next to the factory’s main building. Igniting her horn, the princess let her magic flow over the piece of equipment, allowing her to get a feel for it. Keeping a grasp on the machine, Luna closed her eyes, calling on a second spell, one she had rarely had reason to use. To anypony watching, the princess’s eyes glowed white. To Luna, the world around her shifted slightly. Around her, she could see otherwise invisible clouds covering everything like a fog, passing through solid objects as if they didn’t exist. Next to her, clouds rolled off the wings of the guards hovering next to her. Turning to the Everfree, the world famous forest was cloaked in a cloud so thick that Luna couldn’t see anything in it. Smiling, Luna watched as the cloud obscuring the Everfree started to change, becoming an invisible stream as her spell gathered some of the excess magic and redirected it through her horn. Gathering the magic around her, Luna focused on the machine below her, slowly lifting it into the air. As if on cue, a dozen factory workers descended from above, each grabbing one of the tow lines. As gently as a pony might build a house of cards, Luna slowly moved the thing over the roofless building, her attention shifting from the machine to the foremare’s gestures as she lowered the machine into place. Pausing at the mare’s signal, Luna held the condenser in place while ponies scrambled to bolt and weld the final piece into place. With the foremare’s signal, Luna released her grip on the machine. Gliding down, the princess landed next to the mare in charge, “How much longer?” “Five minutes to secure it in place, ten to test everything. After that, all we’ll need is some water and we’ll be in business.” Luna smiled at the mare’s announcement. Taking a seat, Luna closed her eyes for a moment. In her head, she began forming the spells she’d need for the next part of the plan. Celestia stared at the room’s pure black colt. For his part, having claimed one of the room’s corners, the colt resolutely ignored the solar princess, much to everypony’s surprise. Clearing her throat to no avail, Celestia gently tapped on the colt’s shield with her magic, watching the colt slowly open an eye, only to stare at her from behind his shield. “Hello” The princess said, putting on the least threatening smile she knew. The colt said nothing, his only response being to open his other eye. Willing to take what she could get, Celestia let her smile grow slightly, “What’s your name?” The young pony said nothing, seeming to evaluate her instead. Despite his lack of years, Celestia knew he was sizing her up. It had been so long since someone had done so, that she had almost forgotten what it felt like “Where are you from?” “The Crystal Empire, or what little’s left of it, thanks to you.” The colt said, after appearing to debate whether or not to answer. The clone knew that it probably wasn't the smartest thing in the world to speak to the solar empress like that, but at the moment he didn't particularly care. What was the worst she could do; kill him? He was still angry about being created in the middle of a forest fire, only to be forced to run for his life moments later. Celestia sat back at the colt’s response and how it was delivered; the Crystal Empire? There was no possible way he was from the Empire. General Cinder had made that perfectly clear during their late night meeting months ago. Despite knowing this, she didn’t immediately dismiss what he had said. The way he had said it left the princess wondering what he meant, though it was clear he blamed her for what happened to the empire. Before she could say anything, the sound of an explosion rocked the room, causing the door to shake in its frame. As the sound growled and faded from existence, Celestia stared at the spot the colt had been laying, which was now occupied by an opaque dark yellow shield. Celestia watched with curiosity as the shield slowly cleared as it absorbed the sudden reinforcement from its caster. “You don’t have to be scared, it’s just thunder.” As if on cue, the sound of heavy rain filtered through the ceiling, despite the floor above them. “I know what it is,” The clone said, annoyance clear in its voice as the shield cleared “and I’m not scared. I just don’t like sudden loud noises like that.” Celestia watched as Zecora moved closer to the colt, her presence seeming to help him settle. “Would it be because of what happened on the Tranquility?” Celestia knew she had hit the nail on the head by the way the colt’s head whipped around at the mention of the ship’s name. “I read the report” She replied, before the colt could say anything. “After surviving something like that, nopony would blame you.” “I didn’t survive the fight.” “Um, sorry to interrupt, Princess, but what does he mean that he didn’t survive? He’s sitting right there.” Twilight said, gesturing to the colt. “I’m right here, you know.” The colt replied, noting the blush on the purple alicorn’s face. “The Tranquility is a ship that was attacked by a monster and a number of clone ships were created during the attack to distract the monster. I was on one of those ships.” “And yours was attacked?” The colt nodded. “Mine was one of the last to be targeted.” “What happened to the others the monster attacked?” “They exploded.” Twilight sat back, stunned by the colt’s story. Was this what he meant when he had said earlier that he had seen scarier? Before anypony could say anything, a series of knocks drew everypony’s attention to the room’s lone door; the handle glowing dark blue moments before Equestria’s other diarch entered. “Good afternoon, everypony.” Everypony in the room but one greeted the princess as she took a seat by her sister. “It brings me great pleasure to say that the weather factory is up and fully operational.” Luna smiled as she looked around the room at the relieved faces, her gaze settling on the colt in the corner. “Hello, my young pony.” The colt said nothing, too stunned by what he saw to move. Since he knew what Shadow did, the clone knew who he was staring like an idiot at. How was this possible when she was supposed to be dead?! Thinking quickly, the colt stood on the cushion he had grabbed from one of the room’s sofas and bowed to the lunar princess. Everypony in the room paused at the colt’s sudden attitude change. “What brings you here on this interesting day” Luna listened as her sister told her what had happened “Very well done, young one.” “Thank you, my Princess.” Looking up at the knocking on the door, everypony watched as an older unicorn stallion walked in, quickly bowing to the assembled princesses. Before anypony else could open their mouth, two mares, who had up to this point been sitting silently on a sofa, rushed the doctor, stopping within an inch of his face. “How are our sisters?” Taking a step back, the stallion levitated a clipboard, looking it over in an attempt to cover his shock at how quickly the mares had moved. Smiling, he looked both mares in the eyes, “They will be just fine.” He waited as the mares sat down in relief. “They’re being treated for smoke inhalation, scrapes and a few minor burns. We’ll be keeping them overnight for observation, but they should be able to leave by about noon tomorrow.” Leading the farmer and fashionista to an open sofa, the doctor turned at the sound of Celestia’s voice, “It’s good to see you again, Lieutenant.” The stallion smiled, bowing his head, “I’m surprised you remember me, Princess.” “How could I forget a pony responsible for saving so many from the Endurance?” “Excuse me,” Twilight waved her hoof “How’s Rainbow Dash.” “Ah yes, Ms. Dash.” The doctor turned to his clipboard, flipping a few sheets of paper “She broke her wing – again – and is currently in surgery getting it fixed. She’ll be grounded for several weeks, but should be up and flying again in no time.” “Thank you doctor” Twilight said, joining Applejack and Rarity in a group hug. “What about the colt I brought in?” Celestia felt her heart sink at the doctor’s wince, “How bad?” “Bad.” The stallion turned to his papers, “Minor cracking in his horn, broken right leg, half a dozen cracked and broken ribs, numerous torn muscles, internal bleeding, second and mostly third degree burns over half his body and three breaks in his left wing.” The doctor finished, trailing off at the end as he watched the princess’ reactions. “Forgive us doctor, but could you repeat that last part?” Luna’s attention turned to the clone as the doctor obliged the royal sister. The clone seemed to shrink under Luna’s gaze as the doctor talked. “Wait a minute.” Twilight said, jumping in as soon as the doctor took a breath. “You said he had a horn?” The doctor nodded solemnly. “Are you telling us that this colt is an alicorn?” Twilight looked to Celestia, whose face was as blank as a concrete wall. “Yes. We’re pumping him full of antibiotics at the moment. With luck, we’ll be able to keep one step ahead of the infection he’s going to get.” “Is there anything you can do, Zecora?” The zebra mare looked up at Twilight, nodding. “With such severe burns, there is one potion on which our hope turns.” “Could you make it?” “An honor, of which, I could think of none greater. Though it will not be easy, considering my home is now a crater.” “What do you need, Zecora.” The shaman turned to Celestia. “For this brew, the ingredients are few. Yet what gives the potion its power is an exceptionally rare flower. With petals of orange and stripes of white, you are lucky if this plant you sight.” “Is the flower the size of her hoof?” The clone asked, pointing to Celestia “With five petals?” The clone shook his head at the zebra’s nod. “Forget it; he’s already had that potion.” “Really?” The clone slowly stood. Dropping the shield, it charged its horn. In front of everypony in the room, the clone changed its appearance. The blackened vest disappeared along with most of the fur along the clone’s back half. Waiting for a moment as everypony saw the burns and seared skin, the clone let go of its magic, its skin and vest returning to normal within a few seconds. “Is there anything else you could try, Zecora?” Luna asked. The town’s shaman nodded, “There are a few we could try and brew.” “If you need anything, let us know immediately and we’ll make sure you get it.” Thanking the dark blue alicorn, the zebra mare turned to the clone, “Come young one, there is much to be done.” Getting over the shock of what he had just seen, the doctor turned to the two younger mares as Zecora and the clone left the room. “There is a nurse waiting just outside who’ll take you to your sisters.” Watching the two mares all but rush out of the room, he turned to the three Princesses. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to prep for surgery.” Celestia stood as the former Lieutenant saluted out of reflex. “Is there a fireplace around here?” “Administrator’s office; back left corner, second floor.” “Thank you, doctor. Could you also make sure that the bills for all five patients are sent to me?” “Of course, your Highness.” The stallion said, holding the door for the three royals. Reaching down with her horn, Twilight lifted the battered and burned saddlebag from where she had set it between two sofas. Celestia had given it to her shortly after returning from the Everfree, asking her student to hold on to it. Having grown up around the solar princess and the Canterlot court, Twilight knew from the way that her mentor had given it to her, that much was being left unsaid. Tightening the strap around her waist, the young princess marveled at the bag’s construction. Nodding her thanks to the doctor as she walked out of the room, Twilight paused as she heard her name called out. Turning, she smiled as she spotted Spike waving to her from the back of a pegasus stallion nearly as large as her brother. Trotting from her mentor, she picked the young dragon of the stallion’s back, pulling him into a hug that the dragon happily returned. “Sorry I’m late, Twilight. Fluttershy needed my help to keep her animals calm.” “It’s alright, Spike. Nothing much happened here.” She knew it was a lie, but she’d explain everything later. “What’s the situation, Commander?” “Wet and muddy, ma’am; there’s an impromptu party going on outside with ponies dancing in the rain.” Celestia saw her former student trying not to laugh at how her friend could have such a party ready to go on such short notice. “What about the Everfree?” “Steaming like a locomotive and hissing like a pit of pissed off vipers. I’ve got teams flying CAP over the forest, but at this rate everything should be cold by dawn.” “Thank you, Commander. If it’s not too much trouble, could you escort young Spike to Sweet Apple Acres so he can deliver a message to them?” “Of course, your Highness.” Nodding her thanks, Celestia ignited her horn, a sealed letter popping out of thin air a second later. Grabbing the letter, Spike snapped to attention before climbing back on the stallion’s back. Watching her younger brother disappear, Twilight turned to Celestia, following her as she and Luna walked deeper into the hospital. “Twilight, there are some things that Luna and I need to make you aware of.” “Do they have to do with the fire?” “Yes, as well as the colt I rescued.” Twilight frowned. How could the two be related? Unless… “You don’t think he started the fire, do you?” “We know he didn’t, Twilight, but he is involved with it.” Twilight looked down. If he didn’t start it, how could he be involved? “Is it because he’s an alicorn?” “Partly” Luna said. “We have been following the colt from a distance since we first learned of him. We were hoping to talk with him, but every time we found him, he wasn’t alone and we did not wish to reveal his secret to others.” Twilight nodded at Luna’s explanation. As she walked, a thought that had been simmering in the back of her mind decided it no longer wanted to be ignored. “Did either of you notice anything odd about the fire?” Celestia glanced at her sister, who returned the nervous look. “Odd? How?” "I didn't notice it at the time, but now that I think about it, there was something that felt… off about the fire. It didn't feel like a regular fire, magically speaking. I almost missed it, but underneath the Everfree's magic, there was another signature I've never felt before." As she spoke, the princesses walked into the administrator’s office, the door closing silently behind them. “What do you know about the Fire Summer?” Celestia asked; glancing at Luna who quietly nodded as her horn started to glow. "The Fire Summer, often called 'the Summer of Fire', refers to Equestria's first year after the Lunar Rebellion." The young alicorn stated, having unconsciously slipped into what her friends jokingly called her 'lecture mode'. "While not much from that period of history has survived, most reputable scholars and sources agree that while aptly named, the stories of large fires that swept the land and engulfed entire towns and villages are at best metaphorical depictions of this chaotic period." Celestia nodded as her former student look up at her "Exactly what I would expect from my former student." The solar princess's smile slowly faded as her former student seemed to glow with pride at her teacher's praise. "If only it were all true." "Princess?" Twilight frowned. "Twilight, everything that you are about to learn here tonight does not leave this room. Understand?" The frown on the young mare's face deepened. "I understand, but-" "No buts, Twilight." Celestia said, cutting her former student off. "Under no circumstances are you to mention anything said or seen in this room to anypony, including your friends and Spike. Do you understand?" Twilight understood, but why the princess was saying this left the younger pony scrambling to find an answer. With no answer readily coming to mind, the youngest princess nodded, before motioning a Pinkie Pie Swear. Nodding, Celestia turned to her sister, as Luna finished the sound proofing spell. "Would you care to do the honors, Luna?" "Gladly, sister." Nodding, Celestia turned back to her former student, "Do you remember when I showed you the dark magic that Sombra once used and what it did to you when you used it?" Twilight grimaced at the memory before nodding at her mentor's question. "The spell you are about to see was invented shortly after the Crystal Empire's fall, and the knowledge of how to cast it is known by only myself and Luna." "Why?" "Because the Fire Summer was a direct consequence of its invention." Twilight found herself left speechless by Celestia's simple statement. The Summer of Fire was real?! Holding up a hoof to stall the inevitable questions, Celestia looked the youngest royal in the eye. When she spoke, it wasn't as a pseudo-parental figure, or as a friend or mentor; she spoke as an authority whose order was not to be questioned "You are not to memorize, recreate or attempt this spell. Am I clear, Twilight?" Nodding and miming another Pinkie Promise, Twilight saw Celestia nod to Luna. Turning her head, Twilight watched the younger sister’s horn blaze as she cast the spell. Twilight could tell by the sensation crawling down her horn that whatever this spell was, Luna was throwing a mind numbing amount of magic into it. The last time Twilight could remember dealing with this much raw magic at once was during her fight with Tirek. “This is actually a modified version of the original spell.” “What would happen with the original spell?” “This whole building would be incinerated by now.” Luna bluntly replied as her horn flared once before the magic faded. “What now?” For an answer, Celestia pointed to the darkened fireplace. As Twilight watched, one of the logs began to darken as it heated up. Seconds later, the tip of a green flame started to grow. The lone flame continued to grow and Twilight had to blink several times to make sure she wasn’t seeing things. Did that flame blink? As if in response, a pair of thin green arms appeared, pushing down on the log, revealing what Twilight quickly realized was the body of a creature. “Hello, Ambassador.” The princess’s emotionless tone caught Twilight off guard. “Celestia” The creature for his part, did not seem particularly thrilled to see the princess. “Before we get started, I’d like to introduce my former student, Twilight Sparkle. Twilight, General Cinder, the fire sprite Ambassador to Equestria.” “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ambassador.” Twilight felt some of the tension she was feeling disappear as the fire sprite smiled. “The pleasure is all mine; Princess. Celestia and Luna have told me much about you and I am glad to finally meet you.” Turning to Celestia, the smile on the sprite’s face vanished. “Before we go on, I want you to know that what happened today was not sanctioned by the council or myself.” “Explain.” The sharpness in the solar diarch’s voice could have cut stone. “My subordinate, Colonel Ash, received word that the pony we are after was in Equestria. By the time I found out, he had already activated two of the companies under his command and had taken one into your world. Bravo Company never made it off the base and is currently under lockdown, and before you ask, I had given direct orders to avoid going into Equestria if the target was spotted.” “I want to talk with the colonel immediately.” “That’s going to be rather difficult Princess, considering the bastard was killed in the assault.” “How?” “The colt you rescued hit him with a stream of water. Three other Sprites were lost as well when the colonel died.” “What did the colt do?” Twilight asked. “He nearly tore a hole into our realm using a spell that shouldn’t still exist.” “When the original version of the spell Luna used was invented, it made us aware of a previously unknown realm.” Celestia explained. “To put it bluntly, the realm’s inhabitants didn’t take too kindly to the intrusion.” “The Fire Summer” Twilight said as the two dots in her mind connected. Celestia nodded. “Yes. All the stories you’ve heard about it are mostly true. Fires were appearing out of nowhere, entire towns and settlements were going up in flames, innocent ponies were dying and I had no idea why.” “How did you figure it out?” Celestia turned to the room’s lone Sprite. “General?” “As a Lieutenant at the time, I was ordered to lead an attack on your capital. I was captured while torching the princess’s bedroom during the assault on the palace. As I understand it, you can still see some of my handiwork if you know where to look.” “The then-Lieutenant and I agreed that this war had cost too many lives and had to end.” “How did you end it?” “She used the original spell to create an opening into our realm while standing next to the ocean.” Twilight’s head snapped in shock to her mentor, who looked at the floor in shame. “As much as I’m ashamed to say it, it worked. During the negotiations, other than a personal copy of the spell, we agreed to destroy all copies of the spell in return for the sprites leaving Equestria in peace.” “But now it turns out that there was another copy of the spell floating about the whole time.” “You were there, General. We both know the erasure spell did exactly what it was supposed to.” “Still doesn’t explain how the colt got his hooves on the damned spell.” “Well,” Luna said, breaking her silence for the first time since she cast the spell “Silver Star always did have a good memory. Since he didn’t consider himself one of your subjects, he may have written the spell down after you left.” Celestia rubber her forehead with a hoof; she had forgotten all about that unicorn. “What’s the situation with the council?” “Hellish.” The General said, as he sat down on a log “Colonel Ash was a leading voice against the treaty on the council. His death has left his supporter scrambling while the rest of the council is panicking about today’s events.” “How did such a Sprite become your second in command?” Luna asked. “It wasn’t by choice, Princess, believe me. The colonel was ambitious and had the connections to ensure the promotion, despite my protests.” “Where do we go from here, Ambassador?” “Despite the chaos, the council is demanding to know how the colt got a hold of the spell.” “Unfortunately, he’s not in any condition to answer any questions.” “I’ve heard reports from some of the troops involved. How is he?” “Alive, though whether he’ll survive or not is still unknown. If he wasn’t an alicorn, he’d be dead right now.” “He’s an alicorn!” The sprite exclaimed, half rising from the log he was sitting on. “That would explain why he was able to get as far with the spell as he did. That also complicates things a bit. For the moment, I don’t think there’s much we can do, at least until he’s able to talk. Until then, I’ll be dealing with the fallout from this fiasco and making sure it doesn’t happen again. Can I assure the council that you’ll keep us informed?” Celestia nodded. “Thank you, Princess. With your permission?” Seeing the elder sister nod, General Cinder stood, tossing her a salute before sinking into the log and vanishing from sight. “How many ponies know about them?” Twilight asked as Celestia extinguished the flames in the fireplace. “Other than every pony in this room? My advisor, your brother and his successor.” “My brother knows?” “As Captain of the Royal Guard, knowledge of the sprites is a requirement of the position.” Twilight nodded at the simple logic “So what now?” “We wait.”