Three days had gone by, and Pelane felt that she knew the area well enough to create a gateway. The only reason she had not just Skimmed back was she did not know how far she was from Andor and had no idea how long it would take to get there, considering that the time spent in a Skimmer was directly proportional to the distance between you and the target. Pelane looked around, noting the tree that she awoke next to when she first arrived here. Pelane then looked at Twilight, who had no idea what the One power was, but yet had some other form of magic.
"Well are we all ready?" Pelane asked of the three ponies. She had been introduced to a pony named Rainbow Dash, or Dash for short. She was overconfidant, reckless, and overall arrogant. She would fit in well at the Palace.
"Ready? I was BORN ready," Dash said. Twilight merely rolled her eyes, intrigued as to what Pelane had meant by 'Gateway'.
"So, when is this "gateway" going to get here?" she asked, having never been explained the concept.
"Just as soon as I make it Twi" Pelane replied. She had started to grow quite fond of the little purple mare. Lavender she reminded herself, remembering how Twilight reacted when she called her purple. Putting these thoughts aside, she wove a gateway with a grace, elegance, and speed that spoke of much talent and use of the Power. When she released the weave, however, the gateway simply fell apart. Pelane tried to create another, and another and another. By the time five minutes had passed, Pelane had for the first time in her life found herself unable to create the weave for a gateway.
"whats wrong Pelane?" Twilight asked, noting the look of frustration and consternation on Pelane's face.
"I don't know, but for some reason i cannot weave a Gateway...perhaps i will be forced to Skim." Pelane replied, a note of distress in her voice.
What if I cant get home using the One Power, Pelane thought as she weaved a Skimmer. Unfortunately, the Skimmer fell apart as soon as it was released as well. Pelane took on a frown and decided that she should try a basic weave to make sure it wasn't the One Power itself that was failing. She wove Air, using it to pluck an apple off the tree and float it over to her hands. Twilights jaw almost hit the floor at this.
"You can use magic!?!?" Twilight said in enourmous disbelief. "How can you use magic without a horn!?"
"Because its not the same form of magic that you use Twi," Pelane replied. "What I am using is referred to as Saidar, the female half of the True Source, which is the power that turns the Wheel of Time, as we all know"
"The Wheel of Time? What the hay is that? and why is Saidar the female half of this...this "True Source"? Can the men not use it?" Twilight asked, obviously completely entranced by this 'New discovery' that presented a new form of magic that may be usable by all ponies, not just unicorns.
"No, the males cannot use Saidar, although they can use Saidin, Which is the male half." Pelane said, having decided to tackle the easiest questions first.
"Well whats the difference?" Twilight asked in a somewhat confused voice.
"Using Saidar is often described as submitting to its will, and through this submission you are able to control it, Whereas when men use Saidin it is more akin to a constant battle for control, as if you were balancing atop a small rock in a river of lava as it constantly presses further and further against the rock, fighting you all through the experiance. It should also be noted that only a woman can channel Saidar, and only a male can channel Saidin."Pelane explained patiently.
"Allright, so what is the Wheel of Time?" Twilight asked, obviously having a much easier time understanding all this than either Pinkie or Dash.
"The Wheel of Time is what creates the Pattern, which i can see I will also have to explain to you", Pelane started, knowing full well that this discussion will take some time.
"Everyone is but a thread in the Pattern. The Pattern is All things that have been, All things that are, and All things that will be. The Wheel weaves the Pattern as it wills, and thus our fates are decided before we have yet to even discover them." Pelane explained "except in some very rare cases, which my family tries to make less rare."
"Yes, The Wheel weaves as the Wheel wills, but what i am wondering is why it weaved you anywhere near here."
The entire group turned to look at the one who spoke. It was a great white pony, with the wings of a pegasus and the horn of a unicorn.
"Princess! how nice to see you! this is-" Twilight began, but was abruptly cut off.
'I know who she is." Celestia said, her voice heavy with hatred and her eyes full of loathe.