//------------------------------// // Table Talk // Story: The Olden World // by Czar_Yoshi //------------------------------// Starlight ran of hoof against the chalky, bumpy film that coated the walls of the Shadow District's underground palace, pressing hard enough that it cracked and chipped off, revealing flawless, translucent pink crystal beneath. The castle's aura swirled about her, in the silent air and featureless liquid she couldn't feel that rippled around her hooves, pressing gently on her heart like a giant, comforting wave. She had no doubt by now that the tree flame and its magic were benevolent, even if it had nearly torn Maple apart when she used it to attack the mercenaries in the Flame District. It coated her doubts and her worries, and though they didn't vanish, they were muffled, like a louder voice was speaking over them and whispering that things would be okay. Starlight let herself believe it. She had suggested they go down there for the magic's peace, after all. "Woah..." Amber's head constantly craned about the rooms and corridors, taking in the magically-constructed architecture, Willow at her side but walking on her own for the moment. "I've got that to say about all of Ironridge, but this place feels... ancient." "I wonder who made it," Willow murmured. "Or how. It feels like what I always imagined a castle to..." Maple wore a conflicted look, her mouth tugged into a frown, and Starlight saw it and nudged her. "There's nothing bad down here, remember?" She bumped her head against Maple's shoulder. "You can relax here. That's why we're here." "It's so strange," Maple whispered, low enough that only Starlight could hear. "I can feel the tree, like it's whispering to me and telling me to be calm. This only felt like a normal cave the first time I was down here. I didn't know what you were talking about, about the magic being calming, and just came because I wanted to get away from that conversation, but I can feel it this time. I wonder why..." Shinespark's ears perked. "Feel what?" she asked, hovering to keep her cast free from the pool that coated the floor. "You can feel it too? It feels like I'm being held by something. Like Arambai from when I was a foal, and he'd fix trouble I'd get myself into. There was this time when me and Dior put a chili pepper in the water cooler as a prank, and..." "Is this not normal?" Amber glanced between Starlight and Maple. "You talked about how much magic was down here, and so when I started to feel something, I assumed I should. It's relaxing. I feel like I could take a nap down here." "Me too," Willow hummed. "It's... not normal." Now it was Starlight's turn to frown. "I forgot about it, but when we were first here only me and Valey could feel the magic, remember? And now everyone can?" She blinked at the hovering Shinespark. "And you can use your horn! Before, none of us could, and eventually the tree let me use mine but still stopped everyone else! Did something change?" The mercenary pegasi, Rainstorm and Bourbon, were leading the way, but Rainstorm turned around and nodded. "Actually, Ironridge has had a few large-scale magical changes since the storm. The wind barrier between the lower and upper districts has vanished, and hasn't reappeared. Maybe it will with time, but so far everything has been more temperate. The Stone District hasn't really changed, but the Earth District is much cooler and the Sky District a lot warmer. You might have noticed the lack of snow drifts when you arrived. Either way, if this weather change is permanent, something must have happened to the area's underlying magical energy." "Which would probably be this place..." Shinespark finished for her, suddenly self-conscious about her hovering. "I wonder what it could be?" "Everyone's agreed it was the windigoes," Bourbon said with a smile, basking in the crystal palace's atmosphere. "It makes sense, doesn't it? Mmm... I know if I couldn't feel this before, I'm grateful for the change. The aura here makes me feel so full. It's wonderful." Starlight exhaled. It could also have been the yaks' creepy contraption, but she had destroyed that. "You said you've been down here before, while we were gone?" She tilted her head at the leading pegasi. "Was it like this then, too?" "You mean could we feel it?" Bourbon tilted her head back. "Yes, we could. None of us were here before the storm, though." "Speaking of which, it's not that far to the tree," Rainstorm added, passing through another ornamental archway. Everyone emerged into the domed room Starlight associated with being directly above the tree chamber. Its crystal table stood sparkling in the middle, and Shinespark's eyes lit up as she floated over. "What's this?" she mused, daring to poke it with a hoof and breaking into a foalish smile as the colored dots on the surface shifted with her touch. "I don't know." Starlight shrugged, walking past, eyeing the strange pattern on the table as Shinespark eagerly poked it again. The dots were arranged in an equilateral triangle, with a hexagon inscribed minimally inside it and a single dot at the center of that. "Valey liked it." "That's the Emblem of the Nine Virtues," Rainstorm quickly explained, flapping her wings and hovering above the table. "Or it would be, if you added lines. It's an important part of Yakyakistan's theology. Finding it depicted in a place this old and powerful would probably excite a lot of scholars and theologians back in the capital, Infinite Glacier. And for anyone who doesn't believe, like the griffons, this should provide substantial evidence that the faith is true." "I never understood," Shinespark muttered, poking at the glyph, "why you call it the Nine Virtues, but the symbol has ten dots." Rainstorm bit her lip. Bourbon happily shrugged. "We're mercenaries, not scholars." "The Emblem of the Nine Virtues? Yakyakistan's religion?" Amber looked at the table with a new appreciation. "I've never heard of either. How do they work?" Rainstorm cleared her throat. "The Nine Virtues are a set of traits that, when fully embodied, will lead to a perfect and utopic world. The first six are called personal virtues, are also known as the Elements of Harmony, and are expressible by individual ponies and others. They're like building blocks that you start with. Those who embody them perfectly are the ones who drive our world and change it for the better. The last three are called societal virtues. If the personal virtues are what we start with, being expressed in individuals, the societal virtues are the end goal. They can be championed by individuals just like the others, but seeing them embodied by an entire civilization will cause that society to reach the pinnacle of possible existence. The personal virtues are loyalty, generosity, kindness, honesty and laughter, and the societal ones are hope, love and knowledge." Amber watched with an open mouth, and Willow nodded serenely. Maple, though, lifted a hoof. "That was only five personal ones," she protested. Rainstorm nodded. "The sixth virtue is called the Spark. You could say its trait is bringing together the other five into a team of six, because together, the Elements are far more powerful than they are alone. But what is more technically accurate is that it is any trait that will allow an embodier to do that. Leadership, for example. Justice, compassion, tenacity... Lives are complex things, and no matter how pious or devoted, a creature will always be made up of far more than whatever virtue they try to model their life around. The Spark takes that into account, and manifests as whatever a team of individuals needs most to stay together." "Huh." Amber leaned against the table, looking impressed. "So, like... six ponies or yaks or griffons or whatever will just get together, decide who is which, try to be honest or whatever, and it will somehow make them stronger or more powerful?" "That's the idea!" Bourbon replied, looking hopeful. "...Sort of." Rainstorm held her back with a wing. "There's real magic involved in the legends, but it isn't a matter of modeling your lives after heroes in the hope of being rewarded with power. Ponies live this way because they want to be closer to an ideal world. And that doesn't involve everyone living in sixes, either. A pony who respects the virtues and makes an effort to be kind to travelers and not to lie to their neighbors is just as good as a yak who devotes themselves to never betraying a cause they've promised themselves to, who is no better or worse than a griffon who manages to form a team with five others who live for their virtues. Those who can do that are exceptionally rare. Though, the kind of trust and dedication needed to be in a team like that, combined with being honorable and dedicated to doing good, and the innate virtue of the virtues themselves frequently makes those kinds of creatures exceptional heroes, supernatural help or not. It's often said that if there were a group who embodied the Elements and was granted power for it on a divine level, it would be a sign that the fate of the world itself was changing." Amber whistled, looking impressed. "That's really cool." Bourbon likewise smiled in appreciation. "How do you know so much, Rainstorm? I don't think I could even get the names of all the virtues right." "I studied." Rainstorm shrugged. "I took a lot of night nursery shifts after I had my foal. We only had two foals who couldn't make it through the night without waking, then, so I couldn't sleep but there wasn't anything to constantly do. And I listened to our elders last time we were in Infinite Glacier." "You have a foal?" Amber tilted her head, curious. "I suppose you did mention having a nursery back in the tower, but I dunno. My idea of mercenaries has always been more... you know... Wham! Pow!" She punched at the air a few times, unsteadying herself and nearly falling over before catching herself with an embarrassed smile. "You know?" "A colt. Almost six. His name is Swift..." Rainstorm touched the bridge of her muzzle and groaned. "This is reminding me that I need to get Darkwind back for the skyport..." "We're more than just a band of fighters," Bourbon said brightly. "We're a community! And raising families doesn't stop us from fighting or doing our jobs, so long as we help each other. See?" Before anyone could react, there was a puff of wind, and Bourbon seized Amber in a flashy suplex, flipping on her back but stopping before the throw. "See?" she repeated brightly. "I could have tossed you all the way to the far wall, and I'm working on my first foal right now. Not far enough for it to be showing, but..." Starlight tuned her out at the sound of an exhale coming from beside her. "Maple?" she asked, looking over her shoulder. "Hi, Starlight," Maple said with a defeated smile. "I suppose I should just live with the fact that ponies all around me are going to be reminding me of this forever, shouldn't I?" "I guess?" Starlight shrugged back. "We are down here for a break, after all. Can you just... I don't know..." "Not worry about it?" Maple's smile strengthened. "It's easier here. I don't know. Do you want to go down to the flame room while everyone is talking here?" "Uhh... Bourbon?" Amber's voice drifted over from where the other ponies were. "You don't have to, but could you let me go? The way you're holding me is making me kind of hot..." Starlight gave them a glance, then nodded. "Yeah. Let's go down there." In the central chamber of the hollow crystal tree, the pink flame burned in its prismatic brazier, sparkles rising with the tongues of flame as it shimmered welcomingly. The blaze tinkled with pleasant warmth, and Starlight got the impression it was glad to see her. "I wasn't very happy the last time I came down here..." Maple closed her eyes, stuck a hoof out, touched the flame, and smiled. "Hmm. That feels like forever ago." "Yeah," Starlight said, sitting and watching the flame. She didn't need to touch it; the room's power already completely enveloped her, and she could feel her horn bubbling with unspent energy. It almost felt like she needed to address the flame, too. "I might take a nap," Maple murmured, laying down against the base of the flame pedestal. "If you don't mind. I'm suddenly... so drowsy... and it feels safe..." Starlight nodded, putting a hoof on her shoulder. She wasn't tired, but if Maple found it peaceful, she could do as she pleased. She watched Maple drift off, and in seconds the mare was contentedly slumbering with a smile on her face. Hello, Starlight Glimmer. Starlight jumped. Yelled, almost, but a soft force stole the sound from her breath, reminding her that Maple was sleeping. She spun around several times, noticing that a lattice of crystal vines had suddenly covered the entrance. Every sound in the room had vanished, save for the shimmering of the fire, which was now magnified a hundredfold. Don't freak out, the flame said, and Starlight was sure it was the flame. I was hoping I'd get a chance to talk to you before you left Ironridge. The door is just blocked so nobody interrupts. And don't worry about Maple, either. I made a special dream, just for her, and she's happy. You don't mind, right? So can we talk? Starlight blankly worked her jaw, a thousand responses warring in her mind. Eventually, she went with, "You sound really casual for an ancient flame spirit." Doest thou prefer us to speak like this? the flame asked. Really, Starlight, I can do whatever makes you comfortable. "...Okay. So what's the point?" Starlight frowned. "Why are you talking to me? This is weird." Lots of reasons. Mostly, I'm worried about you. I like ponies. I like helping ponies, and I don't like it when they're hurting. And I've tried my best to help you, but it's not enough. I don't understand what it will take, Starlight. I want to know how to help you. Starlight screwed up her face. "Huh?" I've soothed your worries and tried to take away your stress, the flame told her. I did my best to strengthen you and fix the hole in your magic system. I protected Maple from being destroyed when she was overexposed to the harmonic energies here. I guided the two of you back here after you risked yourself to destroy the windigoes, and put your unraveled body back together. I even changed parts of the castle here to help you get in and out. But as hard as I've tried, you're trying to settle for living in a town you don't like, with ponies who don't like you and a mother you treat like a little sister who can't make peace with her past. I feel bad for you, Starlight. You've been through so much bad stuff. So how can I help you? "I..." Starlight gulped. "I like Riverfall. And Maple is my mother! And..." She blinked. "Hold on. When I was out, after the windigoes... Did you show me that vision? The weird gray one with an older Valey and those monsters, where it was snowing?" The flame shimmered unhappily. ...That was something that exists to be forgotten, and you weren't shown it by design or choice. Please forget about it. Starlight narrowed her eyes. Starlight, have you ever noticed what you've done? The flame paused, as if hoping she would think about it. You crossed an uncrossable mountain range. Don't think it hasn't been tried before. Then you came to Ironridge and defeated a pack of legendary monsters that once destroyed an entire civilization. When you want something, I think you're unstoppable. But I don't want you to want anything. I'd like for you to be happy and at peace, Starlight. Enjoying your life, not feeling like you need to fight for every last good thing you have. But if you can get anything if you try hard enough, and you can't settle for anything less than perfect, you'll never get there. You'll keep getting closer and closer, and never stop or let yourself be happy. I'm trying my best, but I don't know how to help you be content. "Well, you just told me you didn't think Riverfall was that great," Starlight remarked, pointing a hoof at the flame. "I know it's not perfect! I know a lot of the mares there don't trust me or feel weird around me. But I'm going to like it and make myself be happy with it, because it's where Maple's friends are and it's where Maple wants to live! I don't get it. Are you telling me I should keep doing what I did in Equestria and try to improve it or find somewhere better, or are you telling me to forget about what I want and learn to be happy with what I have?" ...It sounds like you get my problem, the flame said. Both. And neither. I want you to be happy, Starlight, but it seems like no matter what you do, that's impossible! And I'm already helping you as much as I can... "...Oh." Starlight folded her ears. "I guess that makes sense." I don't know what to do, the flame admitted. I just want to be kind to you. I wish I could help you more. That's what I wanted to talk about. If you have any ideas or ways I could help you, please let me know. Starlight shrugged. "I don't even know what a weird flame spirit is capable of. What kinds of things can you even do?" I can talk to you and give advice. "Well, that's... useful?" Starlight tried to look as pleased as possible. "I just want to live with my friends and not constantly be fighting or in trouble." Or put on a pedestal as if you're better than everyone. Or feared because you are stronger than everyone. Or ignored entirely, because then you get lonely. When was the last time you laughed, Starlight? "I..." Starlight looked at the floor. "I don't remember." She could physically feel the flame's sadness. Compelled to defend herself, she added, "It's hard to find things funny when you're trying not to die of hypothermia in the mountains! Or while armed bad guys are hunting you and your mother in Ironridge, okay!?" I know. I told you, you've been through a lot of terrible things. You deserve to be helped. Starlight, I really want to help you. "Can't you... like... use your weird emotion powers, or...?" The flame danced and sparkled, almost like it was shaking its head. I can sooth your worries and tell you everything will be okay. You and your friend needed it, pretty badly. I'm probably one of the best ones you could have gotten in Ironridge. But I can't give you joy. That's Laughter's job. "Laughter?" Starlight squinted. "Didn't that pegasus just say that was a virtue, or something?" An Element of Harmony. This represents Kindness. There are trees for all of them, somewhere in the world. If you wanted, you could go find the others. We all like helping ponies, and would try to help you, too. But relying on magic that's thousands of years old to give yourself peace is... Well, it's something you would do, but maybe you should see a therapist instead? Those do exist, you know. Starlight blinked, an idea catching in her brain. "Do you know where the others are? Laughter, specifically?" Equestria. "Oh." Starlight's ears fell, that idea falling flat on its face. That was definitely off the table. I told you this isn't a good idea for how to help yourself, the flame admonished, sounding slightly exasperated. You're just a pony. Most ponies don't even need this much ancient magic to live happy, fulfilling lives, though you're admittedly not like most ponies. It's in my nature to help you, but even I'm starting to feel run a little ragged, here. Can you do me a favor, Starlight? Starlight swallowed, not sure where she wanted to take this conversation and still adjusting to the fact that she was having it in the first place. "What?" The flame might as well have nodded. I'm just a big old tree in a hole in Ironridge. I can only talk to you here, and not reach you at all in Riverfall. I know you're going to go back there. I know you're going to try to be satisfied, and I don't think it will work. But some day... I bet that some day, you'll reach a point where giving up and living with something that should be better will actually be better than the price you'd have to pay for fighting for what you want. Will you remember that, and when that day comes, will you give up and try your best to be happy with what you have? I don't want you to be struggling forever... "...Maybe." Starlight frowned, then looked away. "It depends. Some day. Not if it hurts my friends." It won't be today, the flame assured. And I can't see the future. This is just a guess. But some day, if you want to be content and at peace, you'll need to take what you have and stop fighting to make it better. I just want to know that you'll do that... "Like I said, maybe," Starlight repeated. "By the way, what are you?" An Element of Harmony, the flame replied. Don't you believe me? Starlight raised an eyebrow. Hee hee... The flame giggled, the noise tinkling in Starlight's mind. See? If I can laugh, you should be able to too, Starlight. And I've been trapped and alone for a very long time before you came to visit me. So please try to enjoy yourself. Remember, I just want to be kind to you. It would mean a lot to me. With a shimmer of moving crystal, the cover over the door dissolved, retracting back into the floor and the walls. It looks like no one came after all, the flame added. Everyone is still in the map table room having an engaging discussion about things that are making Amber blush. Maybe you should stay here for a while. If you'd like to join Maple in her nap, I can make a good dream for you, too. Starlight shrugged. She had absolutely no idea what to make of the flame spirit, and figured it was aware of that, but the fact remained that it had helped her and at least thought it was actively trying to, and she was in its domain. Resting here would certainly be safe and probably be peaceful, and if they were going to spend the rest of the day walking and touring around... Yawning from what was likely a supernaturally-induced tiredness, she curled up against Maple's rising and falling side, blackness edging at her vision until she peacefully slipped away.