//------------------------------// // The Legend of the Gemstone Mine // Story: Pony Legend Bedtime Stories // by The Atlantean //------------------------------// “For a thousand years, Princess Celestia has ruled over her subjects with benevolence and love. The magical land of Equestria has seen peace, with no major conflict or issue during that time.” “Except for that one time 500 years after Luna became Nightmare Moon and was banished. Yeah, that was a big one.” Twilight narrowed her eyes as she lowered a storybook with her magic. She was in her castle library, along with her niece and friend. “Seriously, Pinkie! You’re ruining the mood!” “Oh come on, Twilight, you know I’m right.” The princess sighed. “Yes, you are.” She looked at the seven-year-old Flurry Heart, who waited expectantly for her to continue the story. “However, I promised Cadence that I wouldn’t tell that story. Wait, which one are you talking about? There’s two major event from that year.” “The time Princess Celestia’s castle caught fire.” “Better than the other event, but still a bit gruesome. I’ll tell my story, if you don’t mind.” “Oh, yes,” Pinkie Pie said cheerfully as she read the book’s title. “Ooh, I love this one! Can I listen too? Pleeeease?” “Fine. just try to stay quiet. Where was I? Oh, yes. Here we are. “But before this time of peace and prosperity, Equestria was filled with many terrible problems. And so history would be like that, alternating between peace and conflict, each interval lasting only a few decades at most. That is, however, the legacy of ancient Equestria: knights in shining armor, awesome sword fights, and huge armies covering miles upon miles of open terrain….” Twilight had started to drifted off, imagining the great history which she loved to read. Pinkie tapped her shoulder and she came back to reality. She shook her head and continued: “But how did Star Swirl the Bearded, the greatest wizard of all time, find the potential of greatness in Celestia and Luna, who, despite being alicorns fillies, were the weakest ponies alive? Now THAT is a story of its own….” ----------------------------- One thousand two hundred years ago, in the blistering cold of the Frozen North’s winter. A lone Unicorn trudged through the snow, clutching his long woolen cloak as close to his freezing body as he could. A pointy wizard’s hat, complete with golden jingle bells, was held on his head with his magic. The wind howled across the landscape, blowing sheets of snow into his reddened face. Above him, the overcast sky offered no consolation of the sun’s warmth. To the left and right, the only thing to see was unending snow in either direction. After another few minutes, he saw his target: a small cave, sheltered from the wind. At the northern base of the Crystal Mountains, small cave entrances like this usually held deep-running gemstone mines. He entered the cave and shook the cave from his long, brown beard. His head drifted from side to side as he took in his surroundings. Just as he thought, this was a mine entrance. Icy wood pillars supported the permafrost above, as with rock deeper underground. Abandoned mine carts full of frozen food and polished gems littered the floor. In the back of the cave, tracks led to an anchored mirage spell that hid the mine from curious eyes. The Unicorn was impressed. It took considerable magic ability, along with several anchorage gems, to cast such a spell. Judging by its deterioration, the spell was several years old. That alone made it even more impressive; anchored mirage spells typically lasted a few days at best, even for him. He walked through the magic mirage, feeling a tingling sensation as he did. It felt like he was phasing through solid rock. His vision went dark for a second as his eyes adjusted to the dim lighting beyond the mirage. This mine was undoubtedly emptied. No lighting crystals were left buried in the walls, no torches, no nothing. Just him and the blackness. He cast an illumination spell. Almost immediately, the cavern’s hundreds of crystals reflected his face in a thousand directions. Except one. He walked down the dim hall, avoiding jumbled rocks and stalagmites in his way. His pace stayed slow, however, as the many crystals in the walls meant this was likely a criminal hideout. The jingle a cell door drew his attention. That was the mark of a prison cell, not a landmark sight in the gemstone mines of the Crystal Mountains, including all hideouts. He cautiously approached the source. It was a sleeping night-blue filly. She had the wings of a Pegasus and a long, pointy horn. She must’ve tossed in her sleep, causing the door to jingle. Beside her, a slightly older filly, with the same body build, caressed the younger one’s mane. This second filly was white, and awake, too. She looked up to the stallion with unforgettable pink eyes and said a single, tearful word. “Please.” ----------------------------- “That’s so adorable!” Twilight rolled her eyes. “Pinkie!” “Sorry.” ----------------------------- The stallion glanced around. He was alone with the two. His hoof went to unlocking the door, bashing the lock off with magic-boosted strength. The older filly flinched, but still hovered over her… The stallion assumed they were sisters. She did back off, thought, when he knelt beside her. “What happened to her?” he asked in a gravelly voice. “Luna’s cold. She’s cold and sick and she won’t wake up.” The filly had a colorful, soft voice, one meant to comfort yet still be dead serious simultaneously. “Then we must build a fire. Young filly, although I do not live in the wilds of Equestria, I still know that is the basic necessity for northern life. Were you not taught?” “No.” She was close to crying. “I only wanted to keep her warm and I didn’t know how to make a fire and she got colder and so I was next to her so I could warm her.” “Now, now, my little pony,” he soothed, running his gray hoof through her pink mane. “It’s okay. You can do this. Clear your mind. Think only of fire. Picture it in front of you, imagine the heat within you as a flame just waiting to escape.” The filly closed her eyes and concentrated. “Feel it flowing through you, like the magic inside, like the blood in your veins. Now, put it in front of you.” She scrunched her cute little face. Suddenly, the space immediately in front of her lit up in flames. Feeling the heat, she jerked her eyes open. There it was, a tiny fire. “I DID IT! I MADE FIRE!” The stallion grinned around his beard. “Yes, you did.” She moved the fire as close to her sister as she dared. Slowly, Luna opened her eyes. “Tia, I’m cold.” “I know, Luna, I know,” Tia replied as she hugged her. She smiled at the stallion. “Thank you.” “Tia and Luna,” he said, “where are your parents?” “I don’t know,” Tia whimpered. “They left for a trip up north. I took Luna away to protect her from bad ponies. Then we were taken here. I don’t know for how long. Then you came.” He stood. “Then I shall care for you until your parents do return. I am the wizard Star Swirl the Bearded, but you may call me Star Swirl.” “And so he did. For the next two years, he raised Celestia and Luna like his own, until their parents finally came home. Even then, he continued to watch over them, as a good friend this time.” “When they were old enough, he guided them as his prodigies. They learned the ways of magic from him and flight from a trusted Pegasus friend. Once they reached maturity, they realized their place as Equestria’s rulers. Had they not met Star Swirl in that gem mine, the world would never have received the benevolence they bestow on those around them.” “Celestia and Luna, daughters of circumstance.” ----------------------------- Flurry Heart shielded herself from Pinkie’s waterfalls of tears. The Earth pony, on the other hoof, bawled, “That story is so adorable!” “Yes, it is, Pinkie,” Twilight conceded. “But its true nature is still unknown. Is it true, or was it crafted by our ancestors? “We may never know.”