//------------------------------// // The Findings // Story: Fallen Star // by WingedGreatness //------------------------------// Twilight should probably be panicking like her friends were. Yelling and begging for the pony to release them but all she can do is stare at the magic binding them. She recognized this spell of course. It was a very complicated, hard to master spell. That solidified magical energy into an intricate chain like form. This pony, no, the alicorn, had managed to do it as an afterthought once they had gathered everyone into the room. A mere blink of the eye and it shimmered and thrummed around them, tightly holding them in place. "This won't hold us!" Aj was yelling and Rainbow as struggling, kicking her legs and trying to get her wings free from them pressed back to back. "You're messing with the princess of Friendship and her friends! She's an expert at magic, y'know!" Right, right, Twilight had magic. She raised her head up, going to charge the first spell she could think of. A teleportation one that would at least get them to the other side of the room. She had barely a moment to think about it when suddenly a golden ring was placed on her horn. Another quickly being put on Rarity's as well. Both of their magics fizzled and sputtered, sparks going nowhere and Twilight could feel every ounce of her magic be suppressed. As though someone was smothering it with a pillow. "TWILIGHT! RARITY!" The group screamed out in alarm. "Are you okay?!" Applejack asked further and Rarity shook her head violently, trying to get the ring off. "What is that?!" The earth pony turned her attention to the alicorn who sat across from them. Staring like they weren't holding them captive. "What did ya do to them?!" "It's a magic nullifier." Twilight says softly, her eyes never leaving the one on Rarity's horn. Able to make out the runes just slightly and the material it was made out of. "Starswirl had been attempting to master it..." She trailed off and then her eyes narrowed. "But he never succeeded and Celestia declared the magic to be too destructive to continue his research! Why would you have it?! Who completed it?!" The alicorn gave a slow blink. Their head tilting as their eyes narrow. A deep raspy cough escaping them a few times as they slowly stood. Now, as they moved closer, their ribs were visible. Showing that they hadn't had a proper meal in ages. The smell told them they hadn't had a proper bath either. They got closer and closer. Until their nose almost touched Twilight's and she leaned her head back slightly. "Thou knows of-" The alicorn spoke, their voice harsh from a lack of speaking but feminine in nature. They cut themselves off however, cleared their throat, and patted their hoof to their chest. "...you knows of...Starswirl." The words tumbled out like they didn't exactly know how to use them but had basic knowledge of language changing over the years. "You knows of magic." "Twilight loves magic! It's her favorite thing to learn about!" Pinkie piped up, still smiling despite their situation. One of her hooves somehow free from her binding which she just casually used to gesture with as she spoke. The alicorn straightened up a bit and then, with their head held high, looked over them. Inspecting their faces and their cutie marks. "Names?" "You first!" Rainbow bit back. The alicorn seemed to contemplate that. Her hoof pawing at the ground before she let loose a deep sigh. "Starlight...Glimmer?" She asked it, as if unsure of her own name. "Names." She repeated then, firmer. "...I've never heard of her..." Twilight muttered to herself before she lifted her head. "I am Princess Twilight Sparkle! Princess of Friendship. And these are my friends, Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie." "Why hast thou-why hast...you...come forth? Here." "It's a bit of a long story but let's just say we're here on a bit of a quest. Where even is here though? Does this place have a name?" Starlight, which they were starting to assume was a female, stood there quietly. Tilting her head again and her wings briefly fluttered at her side. A nervous tic that Twilight knew she had started to do as she grew into her own wings. "Name has been lost." Starlight told them finally. "Forgotten. No importance as..." She huffed. "Only Starlight live here." The words slowly sunk into the group, who exchanged looks of concern. It winding up being Fluttershy who asked if they could be freed first. Extending that olive branch and reassuring Starlight that they meant no harm. That they hadn't meant to intrude on her home. The alicorn didn't seem to entirely trust them but she agreed, so long as Rarity and Twilight kept the nullifiers on. Soon the magical chains fell away and they were all free to stretch and stand. Applejack cracking her back and fixing her hat while Rainbow immediately shot up into the air as far as the cave would let her. Starlight watched her fly around with wary eyes. Twilight stepped up soon after the feeling returned to her wings and her friends flanked her sides. "Starlight Glimmer." She addressed and the alicorn looked to her. "My friends and I go around the world of Equestria, helping to solve friendship problems." She paused and Starlight stared down at her, not showing any reaction. "If you're the only pony here then...we may have been sent here to help you." The alicorn immediately snorted, the most emotion she's shown the entire time they were there. Her laugh more of a mix between an airy wheeze and a witch's cackle. Her wings flicked open and everyone flinched at the size of them. "No pony come for Starlight." She said simply. A tone of finality to her voice. "All pony leave." She then turned away, making her way back to her room and stepping over the fallen objects with ease. Not bothering to clean up. "Hey! We're talking to you!" "Rainbow!" Aj hissed through gritted teeth. "Now's not the time to be picking fights. I don't think our host here is the most agreeable." "She did just chain us up instead of saying hello!" Pinkie reminded, giggling. "But that might be a custom here! Maybe that's how friends say hello!" Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Come on Pinkie, this pony doesn't know the first thing about friends! Did you see how she reacted to us saying Twilight was the princess of friendship? Didn't even question it!" "I don't think she gets out much. Maybe she hasn't heard the news?" "Are we just ignoring the fact she's an alicorn?" Rarity cut in and all eyes turned to her. She huffed. "Really girls, I think that's our first issue here." She then looked to Twilight. "Have you ever heard of a 5th alicorn princess, Twilight?" Twilight shook her head. "No, the only alicorns I know of are Celestia, Luna, and Cadence!" "And yourself!" "...r-right, myself." Twilight couldn't help but smile at the reminder but that smile quickly turned back into a confused frown. "I would think somepony would've at least mentioned her once! No one would make an alicorn and then just...forget about them right?" "Welp! Time to go ask her how she got her wings!" Pinkie piped up, bouncing towards the room but Aj quickly grabbed her by her tail to stop her. Dragging her back and getting who knows what in her mane in the process. "Oh! Or horn! Princess Cadence got a horn instead of wings right?" "That ain't the issue we should address first, I reckon." Aj huffed, letting go once she was sure Pinkie wasn't going anywhere. She looked back at her friends. "I think maybe we should ease into the alicorn conversation." Fluttershy nodded. "She seems like she needs our help." "And a bath." Rarity gagged softly. "That poor dear must have the worst rat's nests in her mane! Goodness!" "We can get to know her. Maybe offer her some help and such. Get that room of hers all fixed up and see if she needs help outta here. Then maybe we ask her about how she ended up here. And y'know, a princess." They all shared a nod. "Alright girls," Twilight smiled. "Let's make a friend." That was easier said than done. Starlight had, as Aj liked to put it, the emotional receptiveness of a barn wall smeared in molasses. Staring blankly at them for the most part and answering any attempts to get to know her with short stunted answers. She didn't seem to have any hobbies, didn't even know her own age or what kind of things she liked. She didn't even know her favorite color and deemed it pretty unimportant much to Pinkie Pie's dismay. The only thing that seemed to make her slightly perk up was talk of magic. Though it was a brief change in her stoic behavior. Her eyes would light up with new vigor before quickly going dull again and her lips never twisted into a smile. They tried asking her for a tour of the cave at one point. She had responded by leading them a few steps out of her room, gesturing with one hoof, and simply saying "cave" before ending the tour. It felt like much of a lost cause. Even when they poked and prodded every angle they could. Growing frustration mounting up until Aj tore off her hat and slammed it to the ground with a yell. "I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!" She yelled, her voice echoing off the cavern walls. "DO YA LIKE ANYTHING?! ANYTHING AT ALL?! WOULD IT KILL YA TO SHOW EVEN A TINY BIT OF ENTHUSIASM?! IT'S LIKE YA NEVER TALKED TO A PONY EVER!" Twilight cringed, Rainbow nodding and Fluttershy quickly trying to apologize on the Earth pony's behalf. Rarity gently smacking her friend with a stern look. Trying to tell her just with her eyes that she crossed the line. Starlight sat there in her bed, quietly watching them before she stood again. Towering over them with her wings spread. She took a step closer and all of them collectively took a step back. "Surely thou fears me." She said, not bothering to modernize her language. "Would thee not? That in which the lamb come forth to dine alongside the lion?" Twilight's ears fall back, taking a step forward. "Starlight, why would we be afraid of you? Have...have ponies been afraid of you in the past?" Instead of answering, the alicorn's horn began to glow. Twilight blinked and she wasn't in the cave anymore. Instead...she floated in a blue bubble, a spinning in a slow circle above a gray pockmarked stone. The sky darker than it was when they entered the cave- No...that wasn't the sky of Equestria. Because Twilight was looking down at Equestria, a land in the middle of a beautiful planet. Looking smaller than ever in her place nestled on the moon itself. Her breath caught in her throat, the atmosphere thankfully preserved in the bubble and she didn't have to adjust to the sharp change. She kicked her hooves, causing herself to spin even faster in the bubble and when she flipped upside down she came face to face with Starlight. The alicorn stood outside on the moon as if nothing had changed. Staring at Twilight with these cold eyes that screamed distrust. And Twilight blinked again and she was back in that cave, her friends rushing towards her in a panic. Asking if she was alright as they checked over every inch of her. "What happened?! Are you okay?!" Twilight struggled to find her voice, still unable to tear her eyes away from Starlight's. The alicorn had just taken her to the moon and back. Without an ounce of straining on her part it seemed as she hadn't even broken a sweat. Stoic and calm as can be. She knew how much magical power it took to send one single pony to the moon. She had heard the tales from Celestia's own mouth as her mentor confided in her after Luna's return. Tears shed as she told of her days spent in bed after, the elements doing most of the work but still leaving her drained. She didn't want to say it, didn't want to admit it but...she was afraid. A pony this powerful was simply unheard of. A figment of their imaginations. Even with all of the princesses power combined, it felt like a fraction of what was happening here. This was big, bigger than all of them. Starlight huffed softly. "See? Thou art afraid." Twilight took a deep breath, stumbling forward on shaking legs. Coming close enough that she could offer out her hoof. "I am afraid." She finally said, biting back the bitterness of what that meant to her. "But I still want to be your friend." There's obvious hesitation in Starlight now. Who stares down at Twilight's hoof as if it was on fire. Looking between it and the purple alicorn's face in question. After what feels like forever, she takes a step back. "Why?" "Because everypony deserves a friend and...and I think you and I would get along!" Twilight smiled. "You seem to enjoy magic and that's one of my favorite things in the whole world! I think we'd have a lot to talk about and I want to get to know you more." She took a deep breath, "Please don't hide away here, Starlight. There's so much in this beautiful world for you to see." Fluttershy stepped forward, her wings fluttering. "So many magical creatures." "Lots of good food!" "You must simply try a spa, dear. It will do wonders for your complexion!" "Do you even know what wonderbolts are?! What about Daring Do?!" "WE CAN THROW A PARTY!" Pinkie flings her hooves up, confetti and balloons erupting around her. "A big welcome party! The biggest ever! Everypony at Ponyville would love to meet you!" Rainbow landed then, huffing. "...actually, when was the last time you even left this forest?" The strange alicorn tilted her head, looking between the other ponies before she glanced back at Twilight's hoof. Her eyes lingering on the nullifiers she had placed on their horns. Her own horn glowed briefly and she removed the rings, setting them nearby before she finally placed her own hoof atop of that offered one. Everyone seemed to relax immediately and Twilight opened her mouth to speak. Starlight cut her off however. "A trial." The alicorn said. "Test. If thou fails...if you fails..." She glanced between them once more and her ears laid back. Her wings fluttering and a single feather falling to the ground. The rest of her sentence needn't be said. "I promise you, we will not fail you."