//------------------------------// // History Falls // Story: Karma // by Chemtest //------------------------------// Starburst summons up a little magical image board. It has a map of Equestria on it, except most of the major landmarks are missing. Starburst smiles, “This is Equestria, right after it was created and the first creatures awoke. For this tale, we focus on a few of those first awakened. There were three brothers, all of whom awake right in the center of the map, Mount Canterhorn. There was Sombra, Spirit of Shadow. Discord, Spirit of Chaos. And Ordirus, Spirit of Order. All three ponies agreed to lead the world together. Sombra decided to become King of the Crystal Empire, leading over the Crystal Ponies to the north. Discord and Ordirus agreed to found a southern empire, one ruled in Harmony.” The map splits itself into two. The quarter of it to the north is colored in with a blue color, stretching all the way til a range of mountains. The south is colored green, stretching at least a thousand miles, if not more. It is a lot larger than modern Equestria is, for much of the land now covered by sea is shown on the map. Starburst continues on, “These three brothers were only able to get the lands they had because of their power, and managed to hold onto it with their leadership. Let’s give you some perspective on how powerful these three are. King Sombra once heard a castle servant complain about the lack of color in his empire, so he decided to make Rainbow Falls. He controls all of shadows and light, so forging a never ending waterfall of rainbows was simple. Discord was powerful enough that he created the entire Everfree Forest and all it’s creatures with a single snap. Discord rules over chaos, and so he can change everything. However, Discord could not reforge existing things, and could only make new. Ordirus once raised the Sun and Moon, and is responsible for most physical landmarks. The first time he flew, he ended up making the Foal Mountains.” Silver nods, “But didn’t Celestia and Luna raise the Sun and Moon?” Starburst nods, all the while adding more physical landmarks to the map, “Celestia and Luna are Ordirus’s daughters, and they inherited that power from him. He was a caring father as well. One time, Luna was sad because of bullying, and Ordirus decided to make the Luna Ocean in her shape. He did the same when he made the Celestial Sea, leaving Horseshoe Bay as his signature. Discord also was caring, although he was more of the fun uncle type. When Celestia and Luna set off to explore the world, Discord went with them just in case, leaving Equestria to Ordirus. In the end, Celestia ended up favoring her father, while Luna liked Discord more.” Silver leans in, “And what was humanity like around this time?” Starburst smiles, “Just like ponies. They farmed, guarded, wrote, and enjoyed the same peace and Harmony as all others. Humanity only changed once this era ended.” Silver smiles, “Well, you play a part in this, don’t you? How’d you get involved with these Spirits?” Starburst leans back, “That all begins with the greatest mage to ever exist. Starswirl the Bearded, born with the magic of an alicorn, the wisdom of a god, and the body of a unicorn. Starswirl had an abnormally long life, only becoming elderly by age two hundred. I know this well, because I was the apprentice of Starswirl. Starswirl knew he was getting old, and searched for the most magical foals in all the land. He found me when I was only one year old, and adopted me as his own son. Then, he found Clover, two years old, and adopted her as well. He was strict, but loved us all the same. He taught me every spell he knew, and taught Clover the theory behind every spell. I was the greatest mage, and she was the greatest mind. We both left to explore the world. Clover found Ordirus, and became his court mage. Meanwhile, I traveled the world, and ended up traveling with a disguised Discord. We became friends to the two brothers, and they used our powers. Both Ordirus and Discord recognized Starswirl as a greater mage than even them, and were eager to have his apprentices.” Silver nods, “So, I fell like all this division is adding up to something.” Starburst nods, “You are completely right, Silver. There was a mage, one on the same level as Starswirl. A human, or perhaps a pony, nobody ever got confirmation on what he looked like. He was a Necromancer, one who wanted to kill the entire world and bring them back as his servants. Vogrim, his name was, and he ended up marching towards Sombra. After a fight, Vogrim managed to slay Sombra, one of the three brothers suddenly missing. Discord sent Ordirus to slay Vogrim, not confident in his own fighting ability. Ordirus came back with a clean blade, saying Vogrim was already dead. Vogrim was slain, yet seemed to be missing all of his blood. Then, ponies started to go missing. Caravans, entire towns, they would be found slaughtered.” Silver leans in, “And who did it?” Starburst hesitates for a bit, “I... cannot tell you, Silver, I am sorry. It would cause a Thaum-time paradox, throwing both magic and time into chaos. What I can tell you is the rest of the bother’s story. Discord thought Ordirus was being treacherous, and decided to make a new kingdom on the west coast, based around the town of Discoria. Ordirus shot back, moving his own capital to the great city of Ordiria. Eventually, ponies went missing, and the brothers blamed each other. With no other option, they declared war on each other, splitting the world in two. Discord, Luna, and I. Ordirus, Celestia, and Clover. In the end, the only way to win the war was with a spell. It required massive energy, and came at a great cost to all of those who cast it. Clover was driven mad with knowledge, Discord was frozen in stone for a thousand years, Ordirus was put into a deep coma, and I almost died. Still am, technically. The fact that we are waking up means the spell is weakening, but not enough.” Silver looks at Starburst, “What do you mean?” Starburst looks right back, “At this current rate, the spell will fail it’s intended purpose before it fixes it’s side effects. This means humans will still be dumb, and I shall still be here. Trust me when I say that the world needs me and all of humanity. This is where you come in, Silver. You need to go back in time, and capture some of the magical energies used in the spell. Then, get the best mage you can find to cast a counter spell. Humanity shall be free, I shall come back, and we shall be able to work together.” Silver nods, “How long ago was this?” Starburst thinks, “Two thousand years ago, one day, that’s the exact day.” Silver smiles, “I’ll do it, to free humanity.” Starburst smiles back, “Oh, and take Probus with you. He will serve as the container to hold the sample of magic. Good luck, Silver.” Starburst fades away, and the broken circle in Probus’s eye comes back. Probus smiles, and passes out onto the ground.