//------------------------------// // Chapter 22: Through a Forest Darkly // Story: The Tale of Two Sisters // by Underwood //------------------------------// The sisters steadily made their way through the oaks and aspens of the Lowlands Forest, a blanket of trees that skirted the base of the Highland Mountains. Unlike Silent Pine’s reputation for the troublesome beasts that dwelled within, the Lowland Forests were known for a complete lack of predators and an abundance of natural foods, making their passage a comfortable one. It didn’t take long for Ponydale to disappear behind a wall of trunks, leaving the pair completely isolated from the outside world once more, now bathed in the heady fragrance of fallen leaves. “It’s a good thing you woke up when you did,” Celestia began without provocation. “I was hoping the ponies of Ponydale would help you recover. Lot of good that would’ve done.” Luna snorted, though the humour of her sister’s sardonic remark was blunted by the shadow of recent events that loomed over her. Celestia had turned away the first and only friends they had ever made, and she acted as though that meant nothing to her. Meadow Flower was kind, wise, and experienced in herbal remedies; so why her sister thought some farmers could have offered better aid was beyond her. Sweet Blossom had been the kind of chatty, excitable, and starry-eyed friend she had always dreamed of—the sister she wished she’d had in the time-bubble—and now the long stretches of silence were palpable without her. And to think Celestia could turn that poor mare away, right after losing her uncle just as they had, blood-kin or not. She never even got to say goodbye. “Now’s probably a good time to rest,” the pink-maned unicorn announced, having neared a blanket of particularly plush-looking leaves, at least as far as leaves go. Their destitute travels had taught them not to be picky. “How are you feeling?” “Better now. The headache has faded. I’m worried we’ll start running out of food soon, though.” “We’ve got enough for now, but we can forage a bit after we wake up.” The sisters circled the small clearing to pick their choice spots and settle down, setting their bags aside. A light drizzle had made the ground and everything on it less than ideal to lie on, but as water-rationing travellers that had tackled not one, but two deserts, they had come to appreciate any moisture where they could find it. Without pegasi around to schedule the weather, Celestia could only assume these somewhat regular weather patterns had been persuaded out of Discord by his followers. Perhaps there’s no fun for him in drought and global famine, or he’s mortal after all, and needs to eat and drink like the rest of us… Either way, one needs others in order to sow chaos, so the extinction of all life doesn’t suit his twisted interests. “It’s amazing how long Sweet Blossom made our supplies last,” she continued, rummaging through her saddlebag as the memory of creamy mushroom and potato stew briefly graced her taste buds. They wouldn’t be eating like that again for quite some time, that’s for sure. “At least this forest has apple trees.” Saying this, Celestia retrieved a previously stowed fruit from her saddlebag and bit into it with a juicy crunch. Luna sighed, staring through the layers of freshly fallen and mulching leaves below her. She couldn’t keep this to herself any longer. “I can’t believe you left them behind,” she mumbled, not entirely committed to being heard. Celestia exhaled loudly, the front of her forced positivity slipping. They had already talked about this, why was she bringing it up again? “I told you, they would be in danger if they came with us,” she answered between chews. “We can’t foalsit terrans while we’re barely able to look after ourselves. What if Discord returned and made one of them disappear next?” Luna grit her teeth as those final, hazy memories flashed before her eyes. Informant or not, Rootin’ Tootin’ was Sweet Blossom’s uncle and she adored him, so he couldn’t have been that bad. Nopony deserves to be… ‘disappeared’. “I- I could have protected them,” she insisted, trying to convince herself as much as her sister. “If we can’t protect a couple of ponies, how are we supposed to save all of Equestria? I’m an alicorn!” “Yeah, and look what good that did you!” Celestia snapped, before turning away to calm herself. She wasn’t angry at Luna, of course. It would be easy for her to point the hoof at Discord; a black-and-white villain they need only best to right every wrong in the world. However, reality is never that simple. If her fear proves true, and alicorn magic is evil, then she was no less a victim to that same darkness germinating in Luna right now. The weapons required to defeat the greatest threat Equestria has ever faced would one day replace him; and who then would oppose those evil alicorn sisters? Their father had destroyed an entire capital city with a single strike, so by saving the world now, they were ensuring its doom later on… It was a thought that made her question everything she had ever been taught, and hate herself in equal measure. Maybe her anger was selfish, fuelled by self-preservation, but witnessing that change in the normally introverted and gentle Luna had instilled a deep dread within her. Ponies were surviving under Discord’s reign, which might not be true after they succumbed to the darkness. Were they the real villains here? Celestia exhaled, shaking her head to clear the fatalistic thoughts. Surviving wasn’t good enough, just like when Grogar enslaved their kind; this was no different. Luna didn’t remember the transformation, so perhaps the whole confrontation was staged by Discord to shake their resolve? He did seem genuinely afraid, but… No, she could debate this with herself for years; now was the time for action, not second-guessing the truths they knew. If things do go wrong after Discord’s defeat… she’ll seal the both of them away, before anypony gets hurt. “You can’t control your alicorn magic yet,” she continued with renewed calm. “But when you can—when we can—then we can consider companions, whatever good that will do. Hopefully it will all be over by then anyway.” Luna remained apathetic, laying her head on the bed of damp detritus. An awkward silence settled as heightened emotions prevented either from relaxing. As Celestia settled her head onto her foreleg, the despondent alicorn broke the silence with an unexpected question. “When do ponies get their cutie marks?” The elementary query confused Celestia, though she assumed there was a reason behind it, and so answered accordingly. “When they discover their special talent—a singular pursuit they’re truly passionate about, whether it’s skilled-based or emotionally significant. Starswirl covered this.” Luna pondered the answer she already knew. “I wonder what our talents will be.” “I don’t know,” Celestia grunted, having asked herself the same question for years. “If we’re both supposed to save Equestria, maybe we’ll get our cutie marks in that?” “Shouldn’t we already have them, then? Can you even get a cutie mark in ‘saving the world’?” Celestia sighed. “It doesn’t have to be specific. Just because a healer’s cutie mark is a heart, that doesn’t mean they literally operate on them. Starswirl’s cutie mark was for ‘magic’, but he enjoyed reading, teaching—all sorts.” “You can’t have a cutie mark in ‘magic’, Celestia.” Luna raised her head. “That would be like having a cutie mark in ‘wind’ or ‘having fun’. His cutie mark is… was… a shooting star; so maybe his special talent was astrology, and he just wasn’t able to do it in the time-bubble.” Celestia also raised her head as the pair descended into one of their old sibling arguments. “That’s ridiculous; I think he would have told us if his cutie mark was in astrology. That was… whatshisname’s field. Starswirl is a prolific incanter with an unprecedented mana pool; there’s no way his special talent isn’t magic!” “Then why is his cutie mark a star?! If his talent was magic, it should be a magic-y thing, like sparkles, or a scroll—or a horn!” “Don’t be absurd; a horn cutie mark? Do terrans get cutie marks of hooves, or pegasi, wings?! I don’t think so,” she mocked, rolling her eyes. “I don’t know; his name is Starswirl, so it’s a swirling star. What’s the mystery?” “But he was named before he got his cutie mark, so are you saying it became that because of his name?” the alicorn countered, throwing her hooves up in protest. “Does that mean my cutie mark will be, like, the moon, and yours… I dunno, stars? And what does it even mean to have a cutie mark in ‘magic’? All unicorns can use magic, and yeah he’s good, but he got good from researching and hard work! That’s why his cutie mark is for his secret passion: astrology!” “Honestly, I don’t know how we’re related sometimes. Cutie marks are the definition of symbolism! They appear when our innate magik peaks—like puberty, but a magichemical reaction—so of course the mark can be affected by our name, our interests, our emotions, whatever! It’s—magic!” the elder sister huffed, folding her forelegs. “It’s like you’ve never read a textbook.” “That’s rich coming from you, Miss I’m-Your-Biggest-Fan-Summer-Twinkle!” Luna jeered, pouting her lips and fluttering her eyelashes in parody. “Hey! That’s not fair. How’s a pony supposed to react when their favourite fictional character turns out to be real, and is currently saving them from cannibalistic tribesponies?!” Luna grimaced. “Y- You never said anything about them being cannibals. Were- Were they cannibals?!” Celestia contorted her face in thought, looking up as she recalled her well-read copy of Summer Twinkle and The Temple of the Golden Sun. “No… No, probably not. That might have just been headcanon.” “Headcanon? Cannibals?! What’s wrong with you?! Why can’t I have a normal big sister instead of some weirdo book-nerd?!” “Hey, remember which ‘weirdo book-nerd’ taught you how to count after Uncle Starswirl gave up on you. You’d be as thick as his journals if it weren’t for me.” “Hah!” A silence of mock indignation lapsed before the two princesses began to snicker, then burst into full laugher; the first time either had genuinely laughed in a long time. As the laughter faded, a more comfortable silence settled, with both mares lingering on the momentary comfort felt from forgetting their adoptive uncle was no longer with them. “Unlike puberty, I guess it happens when it happens,” Celestia mused, her tone melancholic as her smile faded. “The books all said we should have found our special talents by now… But I suppose those foals had normal lives.” “Yeah…” As Celestia sighed, the light drizzle slowly returned, pattering calmly on the leafy canopy overhead. Whatever season Discord had frozen the world in, this moment felt a lot like how the books described autumn. It was… peaceful. “I wonder when Summer Twinkle got hers?” Celestia pondered, resting her head back down on her folded leg. “Did you see it? An astrolabe, just like I imagined from the books. So cool.” Luna rolled onto her back to watch the leaves twitch above them. “I hope… I get a cutie mark in making friends,” she wistfully wished aloud, knowing her life would never be ‘normal’. “It was nice being around others for a while.” Celestia pondered this statement and her own feelings on the matter, having never stopped to reflect on the whirlwind of their lives post-isolation. “Yeah, it was,” she reluctantly agreed, though her thoughts quickly returned to memories of their late uncle. She sighed again, forcing herself to focus on the future instead. “There will be more at Pegasopolis.” “How are we even supposed to get to Pegasopolis if it’s a city in the clouds? I can fly now, but you can’t. Yet.” Celestia closed her eyes, fighting back the fresh wave of inadequacy that threatened to sour her mood once more. “We’ll think of something. We always do.” As a more lasting silence settled between the pair, Luna cast her protective spell of starry night around them, and a surprisingly restful sleep followed thereafter. The following morning began like most others. Once their odd meal of found mushrooms, berries, and apples was prepared—kept non-poisonous thanks to Meadow Flower’s reference book—the two ate in silence, sitting either side of a small bonfire. As Luna stared into the flickering flames, her mind began to wander back to recent events and dark places. Her dreams had become a bastion of fantasy and comfort since her ascension, but now it was the day that brought unpleasant memories and twisted thoughts she could not escape from. Feeling her chest sink beneath the growing weight of the silence, she forced herself to break it. “Do you… ever have nightmares?” Celestia looked up, her mouth full of an unconventional mixture of fruit and fungi. “Nightmares? … I guess? Not in a while, though.” Luna nodded slowly, hoping for a different answer. A thoughtful silence relapsed before she tried again. “Do you ever… have dark thoughts? Like, the bad side of you is talking in your head?” “What?” Celestia asked with almost judgemental confusion, swallowing her food to continue. “What are you talking about?” “Nothing. Nothing…” The young alicorn lowered her eyes and bit into her apple, held aloft by passive blue magic. Of course Celestia didn’t understand; why would she? She was relatively normal, all things considered, and there was nothing normal about feeling the hot breath of an unseen predator whispering dark promises behind your ear. As restful as her dreams had become, she could not deny that ‘it’ was still there at night, lingering in the periphery of her vision, its voice too quiet to make out. Was this all part of becoming an alicorn? Had her parents experienced this same stalking presence, testing their convictions with its twisted and selfish temptations? Was this why her father…? Luna exhaled through her nostrils, the crisp and juicy apple tasteless in her mouth as she listlessly chewed its pulp. She thought back to the recent encounter with Discord, and how it felt to lose control to her ‘other’. This dark seed had been germinating within her since she became an alicorn, but only now did its threats feel real, having almost lost herself completely to a singular moment of weakness. She would not soon forget that sensation; desperately struggling to regain control, before being swallowed whole by exhaustion and unconsciousness. She imagined it was what drowning felt like. And when she finally did awake from that black abyss, the first thing she saw was her sister’s petrified body. Had she done that—or rather, had her ‘other’? In that first second of consciousness, she feared she had lost the world, all by her own hoof. She subconsciously began to massage her tight neck muscles. ‘Its’ touch lingered on her mind like a bruise; its words staining her thoughts like ink blots on paper, seeping into every cavity and highlighting the cracks. It mocked her as only a warped mirror could; knowing her deepest secrets, exploiting her darkest fears, and showing her what skulked beneath the light and revelled in the shadows of her mind. “I represent the darkness within you, Luna. The resentment of your sister; the shackles of your imprisoned life; the burden of becoming an alicorn; the guilt of killing your mother.” Those were the scars the creature she had come to know as ‘Tantabus’ had left upon her during their thirty-year sleep, draining her will with a thousand shallow cuts. “I have left my mark on you,” it had whispered in the Temple of Chicomoztec, assuring its lasting presence by manifesting as a literal stain on her flank. Luna couldn’t help but look back at the black mark spreading across her hips. At first she had optimistically thought it a cutie mark, as undefined in shape as it was; but as time passed, and her shadow’s words echoed in her ears, she came to consider its statement quite literal. Would this creeping darkness slowly consume her, body and mind? And now that she thought about it, was her dusty-blue coat already becoming darker? “Did you have a nightmare?” Celestia asked, pulling the filly from her introspective stupor. “What? Oh, no, my dreams are pretty peaceful. I just…” Celestia raised an eyebrow. “You just…?” “Nothing.” “Alright…” Celestia returned to chewing her food. As unconvincing as Luna’s answer was, there wasn’t much she could do if she didn’t want to talk about it. “Deny me no more, and we alone shall save Equestria,” Tantabus had whispered; the last thing she could remember from their stand-off at Ponehenge. Its words hung in her mind like they were her own. “Let’s get a move on,” Celestia announced, so loudly and abruptly as to be intentionally jarring. She stood, brushing the dead flora off her lower-half, before snuffing out the fire with her golden magic. “Oh, r-right,” the blue alicorn answered in a daze, following her sister’s command without question. The pair donned their freshly resupplied saddlebags and continued their journey to the mountain range. Luna remained deep in thought as they walked, while Celestia enjoyed the companionless silence she had desired for so long. Between their isolation from society, the seemingly untouched nature around them, and the comfortable freshness of the air, one could almost be lulled into thinking that everything was normal with the world. That, of course, did not last long. “We’re lost, aren’t we?” Luna asked rhetorically, speaking for the first time in hours. As large as the Silent Pines forest was, there were frequent enough landmarks to prevent you from getting lost, even on your first journey through. The Lowland Forests, on the other hoof, felt like a kaleidoscope of nature, repeating as far as the eye could see. Between the woody trees, dense vegetation, increasingly claustrophobic canopy, forced path adjustments, and the occasional sheer mountainside, it was safe to say they had made no meaningful progress at all. “I don’t- I mean, there’s a limit to how big this forest can be,” Celestia argued, having continued to walk out of pure spite for some time now. “We have to be getting closer to the Highland Mountains, or a pass, or something. It can’t be infinite.” “With Discord around, is that really so out of the question?” Luna sighed, not really believing Discord’s involvement herself. He seemed to like the ‘personal touch’, and didn’t have any reason to delay them from fulfilling their agreement. “Why don’t I take a look above?” Celestia frowned for a moment, still not used to the thought of her sister being able to fly. Were either of them more familiar with her new wings, one might have suggested this seemingly obvious idea hours ago. “That’s… not a bad idea, I guess,” the elder sister reluctantly admitted. “We should have brought a compass or something.” “Maybe we didn’t ‘bring a compass’ because we had three companions who knew where they were going?!” “Hey, do not-” Celestia began, interrupted by a sudden buzzing from her saddlebag, which spooked her into bucking the whole lot off her back. “What the hay?!” she screeched, spinning around to face the ejected satchels. “What’s wrong?!” Luna yelped, startled by her sister’s unprompted reaction. “Th- There’s something in my bag!” The pair watched the fallen bag intently as it continued to subtly move from the vibrations; images of vengeful hornets and red-hot pyreflies filling their minds. Pooling her courage, Celestia cautiously inched toward the satchel and kicked it, leaning back in anticipation of retaliation, magic at the ready. No reaction. “Is it a bug?” Luna squeaked, keeping her distance. “I don’t know,” she replied through gritted teeth. “It’s kind of… pulsing, don’t you think?” “Eww!” With a steadying breath, Celestia used her magic to open the bag, hoping the unknown creature might leave on its own with no hard feelings. A few tense seconds passed as the buzzing continued, taking its time to slowly creep out and into the open. She carefully circled the saddlebag to get a better look at its spilled contents, only for her fear to quickly turn to confusion as she straightened her back. “What in Equestria?” “What is it?” Luna pleaded, hating the suspense. “I think it’s…” She trailed off as she approached the exposed culprit, its rhythmic vibrations accompanied by a now visible pulsing, blue glow. “It’s the stone, from before—Starswirl’s stone!” As confusion gave way to realisation, the unicorn pounced on the bag and scrabbled to grasp the vibrating pebble between her hooves. Was it some kind of communication device? Was Starswirl still alive after all, finally able to contact them now they’d found his enchanted stone? “Starswirl’s stone!” Luna repeated, at first excited, then apprehensive. “W- Wait, we still don’t know what it is yet. Why is it vibrating? Is it going to—” she swallowed “—explode?” “What? No. I don’t think so.” Celestia stood up, holding the artefact out on one hoof. “It doesn’t feel dangerous, it feels…” Not finishing her thought, the white unicorn began to slowly turn on the spot as she stared at the pulsing glow. “Celestia?” “It feels like it’s connected to something. Can you feel it?” “No, but I’m not touching it. Did you activate it?” “No.” Celestia stopped spinning. “But something did. It feels like it’s being drawn somewhere, like… magnetic attraction.” “Well, I guess you got your compass,” Luna smirked, before remembering what she had experienced in Silent Pines, and that second thread that had somehow felt so familiar. Her expression became serious as she announced with uncharacteristic assertion, “We should follow it.” The elder sister nodded in agreement, feeling as though Starswirl himself had his hoof on her shoulder, pointing them toward their goal. Had he left this otherwise nondescript stone intentionally for them to find, knowing they would have to pass through the village ruins on their way to Canterlot? And if so, to what end? The stone held no answers, only a silent vigil leaning in the direction Celestia was now facing. With a heavy breath, she nodded once more to herself, and began to follow the invisible path lay before them. Luna hesitated in following, instead closing her eyes to feel for that thin, white tether once more. She expected—or at least hoped—to find the thread guiding her down the same path as her sister, but frowned as she turned to see it leading in almost the exact opposite direction. What was it connected to, and why were these two guides so disparate? She sighed, but held her tongue. Celestia had no more answers than she did, as their journey so far had taught her. She would follow her elder sister’s lead for now, but if they hit one more dead end, it would be time to start making her own decisions and stand up for herself. Opening her eyes, the dusty-blue alicorn galloped after her sister, who was so intently focused on following the stone’s pull that she had already walked into one tree trunk, and was in danger of cantering straight into an upcoming nettle patch as well. With a small nudge, Luna guided her sibling around the danger, and toward the unknown, together. Time and space lose meaning as they walk through the labyrinthine forest, guided only by the enchanted stone’s increasing vibration and glow with every step, like a trail of breadcrumbs left in a foalhood fable. Just as their hope began to falter, the gentle twilight of a familiar sky began to crack through the treetops once more, and then ahead of them. Like a diver clawing for air, the pair galloped to the treeline and out from beneath the musky canopy that had choked them for so many hours. Gasping in relief and almost collapsing from exhaustion, the pair stumbled to a halt, torn between crying and laughing. Catching her breath first, Celestia looked up to find a shadow in the distance—but not just any shadow; a figure. She frowned at first, wondering who it could be, then stared wide-eyed at who it might be. “St-” She barely started the name before breaking into a full gallop once more toward the silhouette. It was him, it must be! Who else would have the paired stone?! Luna looked up to see her sister running ahead, then spotted the figure herself. It cut the figure of a stallion for sure, so she understood her sister’s excitement, but something about it was unfamiliar. Either way, she hurried to catch up to Celestia, who was already slowing to a stop. Arriving at her sibling’s side, the silhouette walked the remaining distance between them, revealing its features as it approached. Instead of the wizened wizard they had come to call uncle and mentor, a pale-green terran approached them in silver armour scarred from battle. “Who are you?” Celestia snapped, bitter from disappointment. “Ah should ask the same thing,” he replied, standing firm before them. Celestia pulled the vibrating stone from behind her ear with magic and looked down at it. The glow and hum were now constant, indicating the target was near. He frowned. “Where’d you get that?” The sisters returned his gaze with equal suspicion. “It was left for us,” the elder asserted. The stallion paused before reaching into his breastplate, revealing an identical stone on the flat of his hoof. The two stones were so attracted at this point that they almost moved on their own. No doubt remained that they were paired. “Mine was also left for me,” he stated, before sighing and shaking his head. This stalemate was getting them nowhere. “Name’s Little Cobb. What’s yours?” The sisters looked at each other before silently agreeing. “Celestia.” “Luna.” The well-built pony nodded slowly. “And… what’s your connection to Starswirl the Bearded?” The sisters shared another glance, this time of shock. “You know Starswirl?” Luna asked first. “Of course he does,” Celestia answered for him. “More important is what he knows.” A wry smile crept onto the stallion’s face. “You’re an odd pair, ain’tcha? Ah get the feelin’ this ain’t gonna be a short story, so how about Ah show you back to camp? You’ll catch neighmonia spendin’ too much time in that forest.” Another shared look. “Alright,” Celestia replied, her eyes still narrowed in suspicion. Little Cobb chuckled and turned around, the red plume of his helmet waving with the motion. A few minutes of silent walking passed before he spoke again, addressing the pair behind him without turning. “So, how did you know Starswirl?” “You first,” Celestia answered curtly. The stallion laughed, but it wasn’t a warm or hearty laugh—it was the laugh of a tired warrior, well used to impetuous youths with something to prove. It was the laugh of an adult; of someone who knows what they know, and has no illusions otherwise. “Ain’t a trusting pair, are ya? Probably for the best.” A few more minutes of silence passed. “Starswirl saved me once. Saved the whole village, you could say—besides the village itself. Anypony reachin’ these parts will have seen it. Ponydale. Nothin’ but a crater now. That’s why…” He paused, taking a deep breath of the crisp grassland air. “That’s why Ah came all this way when the stone came back to life. Ah thought…” He mockingly chuckled, lowering his voice as not to be heard. “Ah thought somehow he’d come back.” His voice raised back to a confident bellow. “Well, no such luck. So, when’d ya get yer hooves on that stone? You seem awful young to’ve known him.” “We found it,” Luna answered first this time, “in Ponydale.” He took a moment to process this information, giving Celestia a chance to glare at her sister, who mouthed “What?” back in confusion. “Just now,” he posed dryly; finishing her sentence rather than asking. Silence. An awkward silence this time, as if the soldier’s hospitality had suddenly run out, turning the air cold. A feeling of dread swept over the sisters that any schoolfoal who has angered their headmare will know only too well. “We were his students,” Celestia offered reluctantly, if only to appease the misunderstanding that they were interlopers. He scoffed. “If yer gonna lie, at least make an effort.” “We’re not lying!” Luna plead, her words carrying a sincerity that confused the soldier’s intuition. “Impossible, he disappeared decades ago. Unless you’re hidin’ your real ages…” He looked back with mistrust and scorn in his battle-hardened eyes, then forward again. He could smell a lie like sweat on a pig, which meant either these two were expert conmares, or the impossible was possible. One way or another, he’d find out soon enough.