//------------------------------// // Chapter 11: When it all fades away // Story: I've seen too much (tales of love never forgotten) // by Shadowlight Wanderer //------------------------------// When the afterglow of Twilight's teleportation faded away, Ember looked around in confusion. She and the Princess of Friendship were standing in the castle's stained glass gallery, which was excluded from the party, even though some distant music could be heard. Twilight was looking at the window depicting her and her friends (Ember was almost sure of that) blasting some dark looking pony with snake eyes "It doesn't gets any less beautiful with time " Twilight sighed, looking at the window. Ember coughed, not sure what to do now "Princess, you said that you needed me here...even though I have no idea why...except maybe politics. But your emptied gem mines close to the border really weren't our fault !!!" Twilight giggled, before dismissing Ember's worry. "No, no, it isn't anything like that ! "Her smile faded as she took a deep breath and addressed the Dragon Lord " I want to speak with you about a matter of great, personal importance. It is not the most pleasant of topics but we have so little opportunities to converse face to face...please hear me out. I have a freestyle dance to perform, so I am gonna be quick" she added teasingly Ember furrowed her brow "Twilight...I am listening" Lavender alicorn nodded "Firstly, I have a question for you" Twilight began " Did you see Celestia and Luna ? And if you did, did anything occur to you as out of place ?" Ember thought for a moment "Celestia and Luna...Celestia and Luna...ah, those are your former rulers, right ? Luna is the one with pastel mane, and Celestia is the dark one" Twilight smirked, but said nothing. "Yeah, I managed to get a glimpse of them. Out of place...oh, I know. It's the hairy-floaty-thingy. Their...manes are not moving on their own. I think they used to flow like yours does now." Twilight grinned in approval "That's right. And that is the sign of their magic residing within me. Please, come along" They moved towards the other window, this one commemorating Twilight becoming an alicorn princess. "Over 5 years ago, when I ascended to rule over an entire nation, Celestia and Luna gave all of their alicorn magic to me. I held it inside once before but this time it was left in me for far longer and besides amplifying my powers and giving me control over day and night, it also visibly changed my body." she gestured towards her long legs and flowing mane " For a while, there wasn't anything else to add to it. Until..." "Until ?" Ember asked, becoming actually interested in the alicorn's story. Twilight sighed solemnly "Celestia, Luna and myself didn't break contact after that. Because Spike was away on some occasions, we were using conventional mail delivery...much to Luna's joy as I heard. Nevertheless, among many topics there was one that was both scary and intriguing and that was the case of alicorn longevity, also known as nigh-immortality. I knew that we would have to talk about it, so I began to question it first" Even though it was night time and the stained glass wasn't penetrated by sun, they still continue to give off monumental vibe, very appropriate for the conversation. "Second question" Twilight's voice echoed through the gallery " How does Celestia and Luna look like now ?" Ember scratched her head "They look the same as they always did... I mean, my dad said that he met them when he was younger and that was one and a half millennium ago. They didn't change at all". "Right, they don't age. But I thought that it was something connected to alicorn power itself. But if that was the case, why didn't they age, even a bit, after transferring the power onto me ? Celestia didn't reply for some time. But then she revealed to me the secret: The alicorn magic wielder pays a price for the control over nature and celestial bodies. Alicorns may have greatest power, but they also lack a choice in one area. Silence fallen and after a few heartbeats Twilight uttered "The forces controlled by alicorn power are to crucial for the world to be destroyed easily or used badly as with the regular magic. That's why the user cannot die. He has no choice but to live on." She spun around, as if she was some rare artefact in a museum "Right now, I am virtually incapable of dying" Ember looked at her quizzically "So no matter what, you will come back to life ?" she asked, impressed by a peculiar news. She smirked "Let me try something !" She took in a deep breath but before she managed to breath fire, Twilight screamed "NO !" Ember gulped and forced her flames to go back inside her, with only a loud belch coming out. Twilight laughed "Before you try to burn my to a crisp and try my resurective abilities, I must tone down your enthusiasm. I can still die because of an injury or a very serious illness. I only...don't age. Thus, the wielder of celestial power needs to transfer the power into another and then there is a choice. The choice of how you would end it. Even though it seems very grim, Celestia and Luna can now choose the moment of their passing. After millennia of existence, one can become tired...even though I don't want to focus on that. But they can still enjoy life as long as they want." Ember tapped the floor with her claw in impatience "This is all cool and stuff, but why exactly are you telling this to me ? And why now ?" Twilight's voice sounded back, now having an apologetic tone "I am sorry for making this so sad. The truth about this immortality lurked somewhere in the corner of my mind...the fact that one day all my precious friends will...will..." Her voice cracked and her face scrunched in a painful spasm. All light in the corridor dimmed a little, only for a few seconds. Ember could swear that she saw a smoke evaporating from her eyes After a minute, Twilight carried on, her voice still a little shaky "Excluding the princesses, there are 3 beings in Equestria that will remain through the passing of generations: me, Discord and...Spike. As I said, this is still distant future but when all we love will go away, it will be really though. I may need some time to find myself after that and in the meantime...I am not sure if I will be able to stay the same pony I am now. Spike is loyal and affectionate towards so many and he loves Rarity and Gabby more than his own life. When the time comes...he will need the same amount of care and love as I, if not more, and I am afraid that I will be unable to give it to him. That's why..." Ember's jaw dropped as Twilight lowered her head in front of her. "Ember, I plead not as a ruler of Equestria, but as a caring older sister...take care of Spike in my place when the need arises" Ember felt her cheeks heat up a bit "What ? Why would Spike-" "I know Spike and I think that tonight's gala will be a climax of his love triangle. He will make his choice...or maybe the girls add something to it as well. Nevertheless, I also had a bizarre vision few nights ago. I inherited it from Celestia and Luna as well, it is the power to see what is happening very far away or see the glimpses of the future in the dream. In this vision, I saw Gabby showering Rarity with some golden liquid from above, in the middle of Ponyville. Rarity was standing there, all the gold dripping down her mane. She seemed to have trouble with taking a breath. Then the liquid formed a sphere and Rarity reached for it. When she did, the ticking off the clock was heard. All the world around her started to crumble and decay. Rarity started to age as well but when she finally grasped the sphere and pulled it close...she suddenly became...really beautiful, even with all the wrinkles and grey that decay left. It was some kind of magical, heavenly beauty. Throughout all of this, Gabby tried to reach her with a wild determination. Then, on the sky, two eyes opened : one blue, and one green. Then I woke up. I don't know what this vision meant, Luna told me that they can be symbolic and have multiple meanings. But something may happen...But that's the matter Spike and the girls must deal with. I am just going to watch over the situation. Either way, we both know that Spike was bound to outlive all of the ponies he knows...it was known even before I became an alicorn. When that time comes, he will probably want to be an environment that is quite...static and secure. I cannot think of any place better than Dragonlands and any better dragon than you. I could've ask Smolder but she is a bit reckless and not really bound to one place, so not really fitting for the situation described here" Ember felt strange and sudden wave of compassion towards the book loving princess. Ember and the rest of her race were raised in dragon perspective of time. She wasn't exactly planning things on years, but rather on decades, even centuries. But Twilight was just a pony, who quite suddenly gained ageless body. It will be really hard for her to suddenly start thinking like dragons or spirits. And Spike... "Ember, I know that you care for Spike, more than you realize. Your friendship and bond during the Gauntlet of Fire were something amazing and I know how much you influenced each other, I was there. Right now, Rarity is his longtime love and Gabby is someone who really got him, but if he ever comes to the Dragonlands after...many years, please accept him there. Trust me, whatever you may feel, it is in some way...or will be..reincorporated." Ember paled dramatically. Spike was raised as a pony, even if he was still aging like a dragon. He too will suffer terribly if almost all of his friends pass away. This will be really awful. Ember was more than willing to ease her first real friend when the time comes. Then her face became purple from embarrassment. Twilight suggested that she could have be a good shoulder to cry on...well, Ember already decided to get that handsome, strong, loyal dragon...and possessing other various, totally not distracting qualities. Spike was her oldest friend and she had trust in him. She wanted to give him every bit of attention she could muster as a Dragon Lord. Twilight was right, Spike was very important to her, he was...he was..." All of the sudden, her nose tickled immensely and after a sharp gasp, a stream of pink flame was shot straight in Twilight's face. The alicorn's eyes narrowed and the flame was absorbed by the invisible shield in front of her. "Still didn't lose your "feelings allergy", huh ? Does this mean that I managed to touch your heart ?" Twilight joked. "I think so" said Ember, sniffing a little "Twilight, I will be happy to help Spike when the time comes. He more than earned his honour in the Dragonlands". "Only in the Dragonlands ?" "Oh well, I would not like if that idiot do something stupid. That would be very...painful for me." "Ooooh...." Twilight nodded knowingly, with a smirk on her face. "It is not like that !!!" Ember blurted, not wanting to reveal her feelings to Spike's already complicated love life Twilight giggled and sighed, looking as if something heavy was taken from her chest " Let's get back. There is no time or place to be that sombre. I have a four-legged twist improvisation to perform" Ember grinned as well "Right !!! So many crystal bowls to eat !!!" Two females laughed, disappearing in the purple flash.