Twilight Sparkle stood in her library, books levitated around her. Each book had something to do with memory. She released her hold on some of the books which crashed into the ground. More books followed suit until Twilight had five books in the air. She opened her mouth.
"I know, clean up this mess, Spike." Spike appeared and began to pick up the books, "You have work to-" he choked and had to be pounded on the back as a scroll erupted from his mouth along with about half of the books at the Royal Library.
"I swear, Spike. I only asked for three books!" Twilight cried out, all but performing the Heimlich maneuver on Spike as he gasped and wheezed out two more books. At that moment, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Rarity arrived. Spike saw Rarity and went to say hi, only to burp and nearly broadside her with another book.
"My goodness, Spike!" Rarity effortlessly caught the book with her magic, "They have you working hard."
Spike nodded, "I've got heartburn now..."
"What is all this?" Applejack asked.
"I asked the princess for books about the mind, and I think I needed to be more specific. Lets see, Mind Games, no, Mind Power, this is a novel, no, Girls, mind lending a hoof? Where is Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash?" Twilight asked, "I want all text books on the mind in one pile and the books that are novels or games in another pile."
"You got Lu-baarp! Luna. Here's a book called Mind Fantasy. Its a novel." Spike tossed it into the growing pile of novels and games books.
"Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash couldn't come because they had a meeting." Applejack explained, "Pegasus and one Alicorn only."
Pinkie appeared from inside a book, "It says here that a racial memory is one that every pony remembers." She broke the laws of physics to vanish into the book only to appear inside a second one, "There is a collective mind shared by all of us. it remembers, and so we remember! The Pegasi remember first, then the Unicorns, and finally the Earthlings. Ooh, a murder mystery!" Pinkie somehow dove from the book she was in into the novel.
"Blarp!" Spike broke the ensuing silence as a scroll formed in a burst of emerald flame. Twilight caught it with her magic.
"Luna here." Twilight read, "Sorry for all of the books. I miscalculated the send spell and ended up sending half the Royal Library by mistake. Would you mind sending the books you don't need back? Celestia will likely banish me back to the moon if she finds out my little mistake. Princess Luna. That explains the books."
*****
This was one of those times Rainbow Dash wished the Pegasi had some kind of leader. The Earthlings had Mayor Mare, The Unicorns had Twilight, but the Pegasi had nopony. Right now, the flying ponies had all gathered on a large storm cloud. Several younger pegasi were trembling. Rainbow noticed that they had all chosen to face northeast. Why? What was coming from the northeast that had them all so terrified? The sound of wing flaps broke into Rainbows mind. She looked up to see Luna coming in for a neat landing. The pegasi all bowed before the moon princess.
"At ease." Luna folded her wings, "I take it you all are sensing it?"
A myriad of heads all nodded.
"What does it mean? Why us?" Rainbow asked.
"Tambelon is a city that sits on a storm cloud. Unlike Cloudsdale, Tambelon was once bound to the land. I bet you are all sensing it first because of the fact it moves like a storm system. I am issuing an order to all pegasi. Until the threat of Tambelon has passed, all pegasi are herby grounded." Luna replied, "It won't be long. Celestia has gone to ring the bell of liberty to send Tambelon back from whence it came. When she has returned, you'll all be allowed to fly again."
"P-princess?" Fluttershy eeped and dove behind Rainbow as Luna turned to her, "W-what a-about t-the a-animals?"
Luna smiled, "I am hoping you can bring them to the train station at midnight. I am going to send them to the Valley where they will be safe. I have already sent two teams of animal caretakers ahead to prepare."
"T-thank-y-you, P-princess." Fluttershy replied meekly.
"Princess, about being grounded, what if your talent requires you to fly?" Orion Pax raised a nearly black hoof.
"You are allowed to fly because of what you are doing for Equestria." Luna decided.
"What about weather patrol?" Rainbow Dash cried out, "We gotta fly for that!"
"Weather patrol is suspended." Luna answered, "I'm only allowing Orion Pax to fly. The less you know, the better. You don't need that hanging over your heads with Tambelon approaching."
"I need to fly!" Rainbow begged, "Its not fair that you let Orion Pax fly and not us!"
"Calm down, Rainbow." Dainty Dish put a tiny hoof on Rainbows shoulder. The little Pegasus was basically all wings. When Rainbow first met Dainty, She had actually wondered if there was even a pony connected to those huge wings. Dainty was also the fastest Pegasus alive. While she was ungainly and slow on the ground and at low altitudes, she was fast high up in the upper atmosphere where she lived. "Um, I had a question. What if you live in a cloud mansion? You kind of need to fly to get to them, and due to my allergies, I can't bring my home down here."
"Rainbow, you can bring your home to the ground and anchor it. I'll allow you to fly for that. Dainty, I'll let you fly to your home. You don't need to move it. You should be safe up there. If it gets too stormy up there, head for the ground, otherwise, do your best to ride it out." Luna smiled.
"That works for me." Dainty answered, "I may fly during the beginning of the storm to take pictures, but I'll be careful. My wings can take way more then the standard pegasus wing can."
"We are going to go to tactical alert from this moment on. Pegasi, prepare for extreme life threatening weather conditions. I want the warning bells up and running. I want to see preparations for extreme flooding and high winds. I do not want to see any of you out here fighting the storm when and if it comes." Luna laid out her battle plan.
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Celestia struggled against the storm. She was lashed by the rain and pelted by hail as she climbed higher to get above the storm. The winds came at her from all sides. Celestia's right wing snapped back, the bone snapping painfully. Before she could correct for a single wing spiral, the wind rushed her, sending her tumbling hoof over tail. disoriented, Celestia teleported toward what she hoped was land.
She reappeared in the air, hooves failing madly for purchase on land that was not there. Celestia opened both wings despite the pain in her right wing, and managed to glide. Hitting an updraft just right, she rose higher. Casting a quick numb spell on her right wing, Celestia cleared the cloud layer. Up here it was cold and calm. White clouds spread out as far as the eye could see. The sun shone brightly. Celestia landed on the cloud surface. There was no noise. Folding her battered wings, Celestia began to walk northeast.
The sun winked out. Something huge rushed past overhead. Looking up, Celestia gasped. The Demoness's large mass was a sight to behold. Resembling a giant golden alligator, it glided through the air without the aid of wings. Cold hungry blue eyes locked onto Celestia. The long, tapered equine snout scented the air. Celestia was frozen. She knew this wasn't the Demoness's true form, but her hunting form. She was riding the air currents, not flying. It lowered long equine like scaled legs to land on the cloud. Its form changed, melting into a golden alicorn with dragon like wings. Red hair flowed in the same solar wind the Celestia's mane did. The eyes changed from blue reptilian eyes to the translucent jewel eyes Celestia once knew. The mark on her hips was a raised bright golden sun set with a ruby in the center.
"You dare enter my domain again, Princess?" the Demoness hissed.
"I can't let you hurt anymore ponies, Mother." Celestia lowered her head, "I must ring the bell and send you back. I'm sorry I can't save you."
"I'm afraid I'm here to stay, daughter." the golden Alicorn replied.
"Please, Mother, don't make this harder then it is!" Celestia lowered her head, "I miss you, the old you."
Celestia was the tiny white Alicorn foal snuggled into the golden Alicorns side. She raised her tiny head which already sported a tiny horn. It was warm and cozy right here next to her mother. Celestia felt her tummy growl and began to search for more of her mothers milk. Smiling, the golden Alicorn lifted herself up to her feet so her newborn daughter could nurse.
The golden Alicorn groaned, her body gripped by a contraction. Celestia watched her mother and worried. Another contraction gripped her mother's body as the golden mare lowered her head and strained. Slowly, a dark and wet bundle slipped out of the golden Alicorns body. the sack broken open as a tiny dark Alicorn gave her borning cry. The newborn was cleaned up by a grey Alicorn stallion who was smiling. Celestia turned her head to the solid black Alicorn standing beside her.
"Did I get a sister or a brother, daddy?" the little white filly asked.
"You have a little sister, Celestia. Her name is Luna." the black Alicorn nuzzled the golden Alicorn fondly, "Another girl, my love."
Laughing, the golden Alicorn was tackled by Celestia and Luna. She tickled her daughters, and relished their laughter. Little Luna began to yawn between laughs. Soon, mother and foals were sleeping blissfully under the shade of a tree.
"You must leave, my daughter." the golden mare lowered her head, "Go, before the darkness claims you."
"I can't leave. Not until I send you back." Celestia turned to walk away. Beyond her, the golden mare followed. Celestia knew her mother was fighting to stay in control. Before long, the darkness would overtake her. It hurt that she could do nothing to save her mother.
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"I give! there is nothing in these books!" Twilight was frustrated, "How can I solve this if I have no clue as to what I am solving?"
"Calm down, Twilight. What do we know so far? The pegasi are experiencing racial memories. What are they seeing? Something bad involving Celestia, right? Let's try this. Has Celestia ever been evil before?" Spike asked.
"Celestia has never been evil, Spike!" Twilight began pulling books off the shelves with her magic, "Why can't I find anything?"
Applejack's head shot up. A distinct buzz filled the air. She, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie all paled and ran about, opening windows and piling pillows against the bookcases. Twilight continued to yank books out and toss them aside. The buzz got louder. Rarity picked Twilight up with her magic and stuffed her under the table while Pinkie dove into a book. Applejack went under the staircase, while Rarity huddled next to Twilight. Spike joined Applejack. They waited. The buzzing stopped to be replaced by the concussion of a sonic rainboom. Rainbow Dash shot through a window. Somehow defying the laws of physics, she missed all the pillows and crashed through the boards covering up the fireplace. There was silence.
"Rainbow?" Applejack crept to the fireplace, "Hey Twi, why is there no floor to this fireplace? Rainbow couldn't fall fast enough to put the hole there."
"No floor?" Twilight lit her horn and put her head into the fireplace, "There's stairs. I don't see Rainbow."
Pinkie popped out of a book wearing a safari shirt and a hat similar to what Daring Doo wore, "We get to go spelunking! I'll pack the cupcakes!"
"Spelunking? But its dirty in there!" Rarity looked at the fireplace apprehensively.
"Rainbow is down there, Rarity. She might be hurt, or worse. Ah'm going down there to find her." Applejack said.
Fluttershy arrived at the library. Pinkie Pie was trying to shove a huge bag into the fireplace which Twilight was trying to stop. Rarity had found a full body coverall and was fussing over it, while Applejack was inside the fireplace, being shoved against the wall by Pinkie's huge pink bag.
"Pinkie, that bag will not fit!"
"What if we find aliens? I need to be able to welcome them to Ponyville!"
"Consarnit Pinkie! Stop pushing that bag!"
"It's so bland!"
"That is the point, Rarity! Pinkie, there are no aliens down there! That bag will not fit! What is in that bag, anyway?"
"Ah can't breathe!"
"Let's see, my party cannon, my back-up party cannon, my back up back up party cannon,my back up back up back up party cannon, party supplies, party games, party tent, party sleeping bags, party cakes and cupcakes for any occasion, oven, counter, fridge, tables, chairs, freezer, TV, DVD player, VHS player, Blu-ray player, CD player, walk-pony, MP3 player,-"
"Pinkie, Why on Celestia's good earth would you need all that stuff?"
"I wanna be prepared!"
"Rarity, are those my bedsheets? Pinkie, you are not taking all that with you!"
"Ah still can't breathe!"
"Okay, I'll leave my back up back up back up cannon behind. It started shooting pies lately."
Pinkie reached into the bag and pulled out a giant wooden cannon. Applejack yelped. Fluttershy sighed.
"Rarity, if those are my bed sheets, I will turn your mane green for a week! Pinkie, that bag stays here!"
"Ah think Ah'm turning blue! Ah need air!"
Fluttershy let loose with with a sharp whistle, getting every one's attention. Applejack pushed the bag off of herself and flopped out of the fireplace where she laid on the floor, sucking in greedy gulps of air.
"Someone want to tell me what is going on?" Fluttershy asked.
Twilight explained while Pinkie emptied her bag. Rarity finished her coverall while Applejack started to look more orange then blue. The group lined up at the fireplace and began to walk down the stairs. The stairs were made of stone and iron. Rarity and Twilight lit their horns for light as they pressed deeper into the darkness. Twilight stumbled on a narrow step, banging her horn against the stone wall. She yelped and rubbed her horn. Rarity gasped, pointing at the wall. Magenta light raced away from the point of impact, lighting up torches ahead and behind them.
"It's the most basic light spell, and we both forgot to check for it." Rarity looked ahead, "I think I see the bottom."
They pressed on, reaching the bottom of the stairs. This time, Rarity taped her horn against the wall. Blue light raced away from the impact site. More torches lit up, bringing in more light. Everypony stopped and blinked. They were in a round room, the walls painted in a mural that showed seven ponies, four of them Alicorns, one of then a pegasus, one of them a unicorn, and one of them with butterfly wings. Rainbow Dash sat in front of the mural depicting a red and white mare with butterfly wings. Her mane and tail were red and white. Normal magenta eyes held Rainbows identical pair.
"There is very strong magic here, stronger then even Celestia." Twilight whispered, walking over to Rainbow Dash, "Rainbow, are you okay?"
"I think that is me, in a past life." Rainbow whispered, her gaze never leaving the image, "I feel sadness."
"Why do I look so much like her?" Fluttershy walked over to sit before the pegasus, "Is she me? Why is she so sad?"
The pegasus on the wall was smaller then the other pictures. She was yellow and white with yellow and white hair. her eyes were normal and blue, the same color as Fluttershy's eyes. The wings looked off. Fluttershy realized the wings were short and wide.
"What has gotten into them?" Applejack found herself being drawn to the forest green Alicorn stallion. His wings were that of a dragon, his mane and tail were green, white, and pink. The strangest of all were his eyes. They were sage green, but instead of a normal or dragon eye, they were crystal. She noticed that he was built like her, stocky and short.
Pinkie Pie bounced over to sit in front of the picture of a black male Alicorn. His eyes were the same color as her own. His mane and tail were black. They had a slight curl to them. The wings were short and broad, much like the pegasus.
"Wow! he is just like me!" She called out.
Rarity and Twilight both walked up to the picture of the Unicorn. Twilight sat while Rarity moved to the alicorn next to her. The unicorn was pink with pink, red, and white hair. her eyes were purple, the same as Twilight's eyes, except they were formed of crystal. Rarity stared at the Alicorn's blue eyes, same as her own. He was red with black hair. like the green Alicorn, he had dragon wings.
The light went out, plunging the room into total darkness. Screams and gasps rang out, but were quickly silenced. A pink glow lit the center of the room. Everypony turned to the light. Slowly, the unicorn in the picture in front of Twilight took form. She was transparent.
"Do not be afraid, Elements of Harmony. My name is Galaxy, and I am a Guardian of Magic serving under the Radiant Lady Sunstar." pink light lit up the picture of the final Alicorn, a golden mare with dragon wings and blue crystal eyes. Her mane and tail blew in a wind of its own. "Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie, remember who you used to be!" the light plunged out again as the ponies all gasped. Soon, screams rang out among them.