//------------------------------// // 001. What I'm to Teach You is Deadly // Story: Spirit of the Arcane // by DuskIsGolden //------------------------------// 001. What I'm to Teach You is Deadly "Some say the power of the arcane is deadly. I laugh at their pity morals. They're all morally dubious... especially the Unicorns who don't use their abilities to their fullest potentials. I have harnessed this ability from the deepest forges of every dead Unicorn I have slain, I have adopted their mindset, their logicality. I am my abilities. I am to be feared, I am not afraid of what my become of me," - The Great and Powerful Trixie. Bursts of white lightning shot out of an abandoned castle's walls, seeping through the air, seeking the air, bathing in its eternal essence. More bolts of white lightning. It pulsated with a force unknown to most ponykind. The power seemed to be alive. Whenever it shrunk down behind the confines of cobblestone and mortar, another stream would electrify the air and sent sparks flying everywhere within the room of the castle. Within the castle, beyond its various hallways and linkages, was a clearing the size of a medium sized shed. It was adorned with a grand marble floor- which surprisingly held well for being abandoned so long ago- and mostly broken down walls. But what sat in the center was an off-white Unicorn, her strikingly fire-red mane spilling over her body, her tail twitching fiercely. She was wearing a black coat the color of coal and the hat she wore was as charred as her coat. Her eyes were concentrated pits of emerald-green and under her mottled breath she uttered the spell that cast everything in the fierce and pulsating lightning. Below the spell-casting mare was an ornamentally decorated with smooth curves and inner circles, and below the glass section of the floor were ancient cogs connected to a wider outer circle. That circle was a giant gear itself, and the other, smaller gears connected to it were attached in such a way that it made a daunting triangle. They each glowed a fiery red, orange, and yellow each time a spell was cast, but the gears also moved on cog. Each spectacular spell moved the machine, and the small, blue Unicorn who sat watching her elder was in awe. One day, the blue mare thought, her eyes narrowing and her imagination flying, one day that will be me. Right after her thought had crossed her mind, a blindingly strong bolt of lightning struck the core of the machine and the white Unicorn collapsed, breathing shallowly but otherwise unharmed. The machine below her struggled to cope with the stopping of its power, but as it processed the last bolt, it churned, grinded everything it had to get going, and suddenly it shuddered once, and was moving by itself. The blue mare watched as the castle started rearranging itself and started showing signs of the arcane, the deadly. The powerful and old magic only told of in old pony-tales. Her mouth dropped, but her attention was quickly reverted back to the white Unicorn. She walked over to her and nudged her with her nose. "Are... are you okay?..." the white Unicorn looked up and smiled dimly. The machine had slowed down to a slow, working rhythm and soon, the entire Castle was transformed into a whole new world. Its clockwork mechanism raised the plot of land several layers up into the sky, and magnificent windows adorned the walls as shelves of books encased the walls as well. "Learn well, for this is your humble beginning, Trixie," the white Unicorn said as equally dim as her smile, and she slowly got up. The blue mare named Trixie gawked at the weak condition the white Unicorn was in, and she answered the gaze, "What you have witnessed will open your mind to what you can be capable of doing. I need you to understand that this magic is powerful beyond most Unicorn's conceptual beliefs and can be deadly," she made an imposing glare in Trixie's direction, "Do you understand me?" Trixie nodded and a glint of pure ferocity entered her eyes. "Yes," The white Unicorn nodded in reply, thinking, That's what all your students of said, Absinthe. All of your students have said they understand the power of the Arcane... and it's... general ferocity. Should you take such young souls and twist them? Are sure you understand what you're truly doing? Turning innocent young mares into monsters. Absinthe shook her head, the deep nail of insanity twisting deep into her skull. No! she thought to herself, That's not what I'm doing! I am teaching this art to those who wish to use it for the well-being, the balance of all of Equestria... I am teaching an art. An art... she tensed up, but then she took a deep breath and released it. Her fiery-red mane had a different luster to it. It had the look of being drenched though completely dry. Most of it was draped in a wide arc over her left eye and the rest swung around the back of her neck. Taking a deep breath, not sure of where to go from where she was standing with Trixie, she picked up the staff she had been holding and set it next to Trixie. Trixie eyed it and raised an eyebrow towards Absinthe. "So what do I learn first?" Absinthe gave an unsure smile and look towards her new apprentice. "Follow me," she finally declared, and started to lead Trixie towards the back of the refined castle, blinking out of the chamber completely. * * * Avoid your trophy collection, the voice inside Absinthe's head continued to speak clearly, or should you take her to it? Show her your madness. That nail inside your pretty little head's going to pop your brain like a cherry! Absinthe twitched as she walked with her apprentice down a long brick hallway that seemed to construct itself from nothingness, but it always formed in the process of reversed paint peeling. The entire world seems so... intricate, Trixie thought, her eyes widened at the tall, hauntingly beautiful ceiling and tall glass windows that adorned the hallway. Absinthe ignored the insanity that clogged her thoughts like a tumor and she said to her apprentice, "Do you like everything so far?" Trixie nodded and Absinthe laughed gently, "this magic is not of the arcane, but a magic that the Pegasi used to have long, long ago. I was taught by a Pegasi who learned the skill from the founding Pegasus somepony once said," she sighed in wonder. When she built this wonderful place, she had worked so hard to make it beautiful and intricate. Recalling it was a process that had nearly killed her-- twice. But once recalled, reconstructing it from memory was no problem. The world she had recalled, brought up from the earth and into the clouds was limitless. That was the magic of the Arcane- it was lesser known, but it made her able to reconstruct anything in a limited space, given you had enough skill to activate the core of your platform. "What you'll be learning first is to Phase Blink," Absinthe remarked as she pushed open large double doors to reveal a large room, adorned with empty seats. It was pentagonal in shape, and had a basic arcane circle carved into the floor. "And that's where you'll be practicing thus far," Trixie stepped into the middle of the circle and looked at all the empty seats. "What did all of this used to be?..." Trixie's voice was once again lost in awe and Absinthe forced a mind-numbing thought to the back of her head. She shuddered madly and thought nervously, I didn't mean to recall this place out of nowhere... * * * -Flashback- "It was long ago that memories become engrained in ones' mind, pressed and molded into their skulls. Such tragic events can muddle the memory, the psychological profile so delicately produced by the brain. All it takes is a little thought and it's all over. You end up murdering and plundering, losing your profile as you go. Arcane magic is powerful," a finely dressed Colt spoke, his hooves clattering the hard floor. He had teething green eyes. They were sharp and would stare directly into your soul. Whether that was magic or just simply pony nature it was never sure. The pentagonal-shaped room was well decorated; the wooden beams that held up the seats were painted a gentle green, and the supports were red. It was simple, elegant, perhaps classy. But the Colt admired the young white Unicorn at the center of the room. She was tied at the neck and had four ropes tied from it, steaming from the center of the room out to each corner, where more Earth Ponies were standing. "Absinthe," the colt announced loudly, a smirk on his face, "wanted for murder of one Ignatius Constantine. Mentor of the Arcane. Leader of the Revolt again us," he hissed, laughter stemming from it. "Do you have anything more to say?" he called over to her. Absinthe could do nothing but stand there, helpless. The Colt sighed and walked up to her and hissed in her ear, "I said, do you have anything more to say?..." he added in shortly after, "you bucking worthless foal," she couldn't react because another force was holding her down, slowly chiseling into her brain that this memory would never be let down. Soon, another Unicorn entered the scene. She glanced at the Colt. "Are you sure this is going to end well?" the colt sneered. "The machine works. Trust me," he pitched in, "I suggest you don't look at it. It might..." he glanced up at the ceiling and gave a faint nod, "... mistake you for her," and at that moment, several large light-bulb resembling objects were wheeled in below the arches of the room and began to shine. Their thin strips of light beamed onto the Arcane circle, and it glowed an unnatural shade of black and purple. Absinthe began to scream as the lights grew more intense. The Colt closed his eyes and the Unicorn who he had requested turned away. More screaming ensued as each light proceeded to shatter. Another blinding light was focused- it was Absinthe, giving it her all to prevent her ability to perform the Arcane from being repossessed. "There's no point in trying to stop it from working!" the Colt's voice boomed, "this memory will forever be lodged in your mind! It will drive you insane!" and at that, the rest of the lights shattered, the Arcane circle flamed down to a red-hot glow, and Absinthe collapsed to the ground. "Make sure she never forgets this," the Colt growled, "make sure that her next apprentice makes the same mistake. She needs to end," the Unicorn cast a sideways glance at the Colt and told him, "When you kill your mentor, you realize you inherit their soul, right? You inherit everything." the Colt didn't notice what she said, so she kicked him hard in the side and said again, "did you hear me?" the Colt shrugged. "They inherit their soul, so what? At least their powers and strengths aren't inherited, right?" the thought was only mildly comforting and the Unicorn knew somewhere that both of them were right. She shuddered at the thought of what was to happen if Absinthe really ever did get an apprentice. * * * Trixie had already stepped into the middle of the circle as Absinthe pulled herself out of her memory. This won't happen again, she tried hard to keep herself focused, won't happen again... then again, how would she know if she died?