Twilight practically sprinted to the estuary where Twilice's prison sat. As she reached the shore, she noticed the fresh water of the estuary beginning to show signs of freezing over, despite the water running quite rapidly.
Twilight skidded to a stop to look at the thin layer of ice around the edge of the water. "Oh that's right, the Lunar Solstice!"
"What?"
"Well, when it's time for winter, the pegasi usually bring the cold northern air down to the warmer parts of Equestria to make it easier for Cloudsdale to scatter it's snowflakes. But the way the pegasi do it, the winter group uses their wing power to move the wind down manually, which means the wind slowly moves it's way to Equestria. The Lunar Solstice is when the wind fully reaches Equestria. It's supposed to be the coldest day of the year, and I completely forgot it was happening so soon."
"You control the weather... on your own?" Twilice hummed.
"Well sure. We've done that since Celestia and Luna became princesses. Do you not do that back home?" Twilight asked, momentarily forgetting who she was talking to.
"No... I never even thought of doing that. The potential of coordinating armies to change the weather to our liking... why it's nearly limitless."
"Well, it's more to keep the plants and animals in balance. If it were summer every day, it'd be pretty uncomfortable for our hibernating animals. Fluttershy could probably explain it to you better than me," Twilight attempted to explain to her friend. She hovered over the running stream, trying to find a comfortable place to sit amongst the icy rocks and snow covered grasses.
"Hmm... yes..." was all Twilice could say as Twilight brushed away a small area of snow so that she could sit down in front of the massive hunk of ice.
"So, are you ready to teach me some magic?" Twilight asked with an excited grin.
"That depends on what you wish to learn." Twilice spoke patiently.
"Well... if you taught me how to use that telepathy spell you cast on me, maybe my friends would be able to hear you. If we do that, then we could have the whole team trying their best to get you out," Twilight noted.
Twilight could hear Twilice gurgling in thought. "That is a rather enticing point... Alright, I'll try to teach you."
Twilight clacked her hooves together excitedly "Ohh this is so exciting, magic from another time! I should've brought a notebook to write it all down with."
"Well this spell might end up being more... complicated than you'd assume," Twilice warned.
Twilight nodded, her face full of determination. "I'm ready!"
"Good," Twilice hummed. "Now... hmm... ah, close your eyes, and try to bring forth the Aether so that you may bend it to your will."
Twilight focused for a second, then cocked her head in confusion. "Wait, the Aether? Like the dimension?"
"Exactly. The Aether may be outside of our own realm, but many powerful creatures utilize the Aether to command extraordinarily powerful magics. Much like your... uh... ah, Starswirl the Bearded, many talented magicians know about the power that comes from learning to harness the Aether."
Twilight tried to understand what Twilice was saying, but couldn't quite put it all together. "Well now I really wish I brought my notebook."
Twilice only hummed for a moment. "Hmm... ah! You've used the power of the Aether when... sigh... when you banished... Sombra from the Crystal Kingdom."
"But that was the Crystal Heart. I didn't activate it, I didn't even retrieve it," Twilight explained.
Twilight could faintly hear Twilice grumble in annoyance. "Yes I'm aware, but surely you felt it's magic surge through you when it transformed you into your crystal counterpart, yes?"
"I... think? I remember feeling something pass through me, like a wave of something," Twilight explained.
"Well, try to remember that feeling. Try to hold it in your mind and use it as an anchor," the voice instructed.
Twilight focused on the memory that her friend brought up for her, trying to find a way to latch on to that feeling again. She tried her best to concentrate, even as her horn remained dormant, and her face turned from a pleasant purple to a strained red. Finally, after a time, she gave up with an exhausted breath.
"I can't feel it, I don't know what to do. I'm sorry, Twilice..." she stared gloomily down at the snow around her.
Twilice let out an irritated sigh. "It's... alright. Perhaps it would be better if I demonstrated it for you."
"Ok," Twilight sighed dejectedly.
She looked up at the icy structure before her, waiting for any sign of activity from Twilice. As she peered into the icy veil, she could faintly see a light from within the ice's core. It slowly grew in luminosity until it colored the entire face of the ice block with a bright, piercing yellow. The yellow light then shifted into a spectrum of colors as Twilice plucked the Aether into view.
"Do you see, now Twilight? It's all about harnessing the Aether. Once you learn to hold and influence its powers, understanding, casting, and even creating spells becomes a trivial matter." She elucidated as a rainbow of colors flickered from deep within the ice.
Twilight stared in wonder at the vast amount of magical power that flowed within Twilice's prison. She watched as it's colors ebbed, flowed, and bounced along its walls like an aurora in the sky.
"With the power of the Aether, I can sense the flowing water without having to touch it. I can feel the wind upon my muscles, hear the howling of the wind. I can see your essence from the depths of my cage. I can see animals sleeping soundly underground, and I can-"
Immediately, the light of Twilice's spell fizzled into nothingness, and the ice returned to normal.
Twilight's heart skipped a beat at the sudden change. "Twilice, are you alright?"
"... Something is watching us. It can see you."
Twilight, suddenly panicked by Twilice's ominous statement, whipped her head around frantically to find what creature was intruding upon their conversation. Suddenly, she heard a snap from above the canopy, and she looked up. As she did, something large scrambled through the canopy, running away from the estuary where the two sat.
For a split second, Twilight could've sworn she'd seen the faintest trace of green as the creature crashed its way back into the forest.