An arrow bolt screamed past her head, the burning line down her shoulder indicated at least a glancing blow. “I came fifth in the running of the leaves. I. Can. Do. This.” Twilight chanted inside her head. She had little time or energy for long range teleportation and the leylines this side of the Everfree were too dangerous for an escape.
Sunlight had long retired for the Moon to shine, she had been running for hours and still her pursuers were relentless.
The terrain cleared from forest to wasteland. She was still miles from Ponyville, Canterlot or any pony civilisation. “Keep moving Twilight.” She muttered aloud, ignoring the pain of a poorly placed hoof.
Everything had been so nice when the day had started.
*
The olive green pack was stocked with a variety of dowsing and mapping materials. She had been asked by Princess Celestia to map some leylines within the Everfree. Apparently one or two ancient locations were potential research sites and she needed to know if the background magic would harm any long term researchers.
“I’ll be back before sunset Spike!” Twilight called happily to her assistant. “Enjoy a day off!” She cantered off towards the forest.
“Hey egghead! You sure you’ll be ok out in the forest?” Rainbow Dash flew overhead, catching up with the purple unicorn.
“I’ll be fine Rainbow. Zecora helped me map a safe route to the area and I have plenty of wards and spells to keep me safe.” Twilight smiled up at her considerate friend. “I’ll be back at sunset with a nice pile of data to work through.” Her eyes gleamed in anticipation.
“Ok egghead, you know the signal if you hit any problems. I’ll be there in ten seconds flat.” Rainbow grinned. Taking a quick look around for anypony she dipped down level with Twilight. “Stay safe.” She whispered and gave her unicorn a little peck on the cheek. Twilight blushed and smiled.
“I’ll be back soon Rainbow.” She said softly.
“Later Twi’!” Rainbow took a cocksure pose before flying off at top speed. She always got extra boastful after such delicate displays of affection. Twilight chuckled at her pegasine partner’s antics and carried on her trot to the ruins.
*
A sudden crash beside her brought Twilight violently back to the present. Her pursuers were keeping pace, only the frantic short hop teleport Twilight had taken far too long ago kept any sort of gap between them. If she was to falter or halt at any moment they would be upon her. As it stood their many ranged weapons ate up the distance at unexpected moments.
The wasteland was giving way to familiar sights, but with it a new set of problems. Twilight did not wish to lead this threat towards others. She was going to have to deal with them soon. But how?
*
The forest was quite pleasant in daylight, especially when the denizens knew of her friendship with Fluttershy. The map Zecora had provided was excellent and the copy she had made herself was invaluable. She had only been in the forest an hour and already the map was streaked with purple lines marking the magical paths and notations of the power leakage.
“Nearly at the ruins it seems.” The purple unicorn muttered to herself, checking landmarks and her compass. As she passed through a copse of twisted birch she saw the first signs of her goal.
*
Twilight felt herself flagging. She had made the agonising decision to turn away from the glowing beacon of a town, her charging foes a real threat to unprepared pony folk. From the positions of the stars in her fleeting glances she had calculated herself to be in the Diamond Dog mines area. Maybe the canines would be able to help her. Or at least see this intrusion as a threat and respond in force.
Gravel and dirt skittered as Twilight ran on while looking back. Her magical strength was at a minimum now, the basic shield and heads-up spells may take little power but using them for so long drained even the element of magic.
*
The pencil skittered across her page and Twilight sighed a contented sigh. “Looks like I have finished ahead of schedule!” She trilled happily. “Maybe I can take a deeper look around. Princess Celestia didn’t say anything against that.” She smiled in anticipation at the exciting sights within the ruins and stepped deeper into the cast down marble.
It wasn’t long before the studious pony was deep in thought about the tantalising fragments of dressed stone and sculpture. She didn’t notice the odd floor, a rather vegetated mosaic. The intense background magic, while not harmful and simply a normal and expected facet of the Everfree, obscured the complex spells woven into the decorative flooring.
One step further and Twilight was made very aware of the ancient spells. Within mixed vines, creeping vegetation and thick claddings of moss pre-exile statuary was coming to life, activated by an intruder.
The golems, telos or simply living statues that were set to protect this sacred place awoke to do their duty. Magical bolts began to land around and about the unknown unicorn. She suddenly teleported, escalating her threat level from pest to Eris status. The guards ancient spells kicked up a notch and they began to chase the very real threat to their monarchs.
*
The Diamond Dogs had been too deep underground or asleep. None had reacted to both her taunting shouts and the stampeding hooves of one live pony and half a dozen stone warriors. Twilight was getting very tired.
To make matters worse, Ghastly Gorge was getting closer.
“Think Twilight, think! Your beacon was too far out for Rainbow to see, so unless by absolutely minimal odds she chose to search for me here, or sent on of the girls, no one will be coming. Spike is at the library so no letters to the princess. The spells that run those statues are too complex for me to stop safely.” She groaned, the conclusion was inescapable and the little archaeologist inside her cried out in angst and hopped off for a series of stiff, strong, drinks. “I’ll just have to destroy them... All of them...” She made a quick assessment of her power levels. “In one burts... Oh Celestia, curse my boundless curiosity!”
The gorge was within sighting distance now. There was no way she could clear it and leave gravity to clean up her mess. She had to make a spell that would destroy the rock. Her mind raced.
“I need minimal energy, max effect with a short compilation and cast time. Something that hopefully won’t hurt me or anything alive out here but can crush granite. Think Twilight!” Just then, echoes came from the vast scar in the landscape and a light lit in the unicorn’s mind.
“Percussive Magic!” She shouted with glee. Twilight let herself come to a stop with a flourish and cascade of grit. She was far away from anything to hurt or damage, except her pursuers of course. She gathered the power, more than she had used as an element. Maybe even more than that first worrying burst as a filly. Now was not the time to hold back.
If the threat she faced had not been so deadly, or the harried unicorn had had time to consider facts, she would have realised that she was using amazing levels of power from reserves that had been sealed off so very long ago. As it stood, Twilight simply poured power into the spell.
Then, just as the statues closed in.
She let go.
*
Many miles away in a city called Manehatten a white unicorn with mane in shades of electric blue shot up in her bed, dislodging the grey earth pony who had been in her embrace.
“Epic Wub...” She breathed.
*
There was only a crater where the unicorn had stood, the radius was excessive, six piles of white dust and molten gold were all that were left of the chasing statues. Twilight Sparkle was gone.
*
The shockwave spread across the country. Hours later reports came from Zebrica and the Dragonlands of a noise of unexplained origin. In less enlightened territories at least two religious wars started and one was stopped. In Manhatten an excited unicorn caught the sound on tape and based a whole album of the concept.
In Ponyville five ponies and a dragon raced to the source and in Canterlot two Princesses rushed to the scene.
*
The sight that met them was amazing. Magic waveforms desiccated the light and mingled, echoing a sound so pure as to be the music of creation.
Rarity was in tears at the beauty. Rainbow Dash was just about ready to do the least awesome thing she had ever done in public. Fluttershy was awestruck, Applejack speechless and Pinkie Pie, having produced glow sticks and a whistle from wherever she kept such things, was raving.
When Luna and Celestia arrived there was a third flash in a familiar shade of purple.
*
Twilight Sparkle floated in a universe of pure sound. It was heart-wrenching, life-lifting, beautiful, ugly, chaotic, harmonious sound. “Welcome to creation little pony.” A kind voice, or communication said in what she perceived to be her head. “You have done well and claim you birthright.”
The pony moved from physical nothingness to existence in a blink.
*
“It was beautiful... It was all sound.” She whispered to the familiar voices that surrounded her. Twilight Sparkle stood up, further than before, and stretched her wings.
At which point her mind broke.