In order for you to understand my story, there is a pony you should have met long before I ever existed. He was young, barely just a colt, and his life turns out to be rather short. It would have been an unremarkable life too, had it not been for the day he found himself at a crossroads, the day of a ridiculous entrance exam to Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns.
Now, mind you, I have absolutely nothing against the school. It is a wonderful place. They have strange methods of evaluating students is all. So let’s return to the exam.
A cart with a single egg inside burst into the room. The sprightly colt took one look at the spotted dragon’s egg, a second look at the diagram underneath it, and knew it couldn’t be done. Why would a pony want to awaken a dragon in the first place and what was this egg doing here; where did it come from?
The sound of pencil on paper brought him back to the present moment. Four examiners scribbled furiously on their sheets even though he’d done nothing so far except get lost in thought. He only needed to take one glance at the ponies evaluating him to see that everything about them was rigid, right down to their taste in clothing.
He started to panic. After years of studying, he was going to ruin his chance to go to the best unicorn academy in Equestria. Imagine practicing for so long only to be rejected after five minutes. He didn’t have to look away from the dragon egg to know that one of the examiners stopped writing to stare at him. He could feel her eyes burning holes into his coat.
If he couldn’t hatch a dragon, he’d better do something to impress them. So he did the next best thing. He made a dragon.
He needed more to work with than the simple diagram sketch on the cart, so he imagined a dragon out of Ye Olde Storie books: long, elegant, and flowing with glistening scales, whiskers, and a spaded tail. Any color would do. No need to be particular.
A cheap parlor trick. It was the best he could do. Yellow sparks sputtered from the colt’s horn and a stream of light whipped forth like a snake. The gold color melded into purple and the creature took shape. It was but a miniature of the real thing and you could see right through it. Even so, it had such life with royal purple scales and horns and claws wreathed in gold. And, for the briefest moment, it had eyes that burned in sky blue flames. Then it was gone.
The examiners noted the wisps of ethereal light fading away and they noted the new purple and gold mark on the colt’s flank. Despite how much energy that simple spell seemed to cost, the colt raced around the room in excitement. He had a cutie mark in magic; never mind what the uptight unicorns though about his failure to hatch the egg.
He was accepted to the school.
At first the colt thought it was part of the acceptance when Princess Celestia arrived at his home that night. Imagine the scene: the most revered pony in all of Equestria speaking with the colt’s parents in hushed tones. Imagine when the majestic Sun Guide turned and approached the small pony, her great long legs forcing him to crane his head up to see her. Imagine that colt’s reaction when she told him that he could not attend the school after all. The sheer horror of that moment – the kind of terror where your heart freezes for a fraction of a second and it’s a wonder you don’t fall to the floor because your dreams are ripped out from underneath you so quickly.
She was enrolling him in private studies with one of the very best instructors in Equestria. Breathe a sigh of relief.
All of this over one light show? He didn’t understand. He was getting private tutoring from a respected unicorn mage. The possibility was thrilling, and yet…
“Why can’t I go to the School for Gifted Unicorns?”
The great alicorn’s smile never faltered. She swept a white wing over him. “My little pony, you have a very special destiny. I’ll understand if you do not want to rise to meet it and I’m happy to return you to the academy, but know this: if you accept my offer you will learn more than most ponies will learn in a lifetime. You will use your skills to protect Equestria and play a role of dire importance in the coming years. Yet knowledge and power come with a cost, and so even as you serve Equestria it will be at an immense sacrifice to yourself. I’m afraid I can’t tell you more than that.”
Special destiny were the words, terrible destiny was the meaning.
The Princess folded her wing closed. She gave her speech a few moments to sink in, but she didn’t doubt her subject’s ability to comprehend. “It’s a hard decision to make, so I’ll give you the time you need to consider it.” Celestia turned. Her gilt horseshoes clacked against the marble floor as she walked away.
The colt bowed his head and stared at the alternating gray and grayer tiles. At the heart of it, the decision was between a normal existence and one where the fate of Equestria hung in the balance.
So I ask, if you were granted the choice, would you elect a satisfying, average life or a purpose?
…
“Wait,” the colt said.
Celestia placed her hoof on the ground and stopped, a bit surprised.
“I accept.”
He didn’t know it then, but that was the day the colt died and Prince Blueblood was born.