//------------------------------// // The Golden Horn of Midas - Part 1 // Story: Twilight Sparkle, Librarian // by Raryn //------------------------------// Twilight Sparkle: Librarian The Golden Horn of Midas - Part 1 By: Raryn Twilight sat on the bed of her suite in Canterlot, musing, once again, over her journal and what had gone wrong during her mission to protect the Record of All-Things. She sighed again as she reached the ending of the narrative that the journal had kept. As if responding to her thoughts, her journal gave off the familiar glow as a new passage was added. She couldn't help but take a peek at the thing, already knowing what was to fill the new pages. Why! Why! Why! I'm useless! A failure! I couldn't even keep a book safe... “No!" she shouted as she tossed the book away. It landed, splayed open face down and she quickly jumped up to retrieve it, looking it over to make sure that no harm had come to it. With a sigh, she sat the book on the room's desk. "I did the best I could..." Her words died out as she laid down on the floor next to the desk. No matter how many times she said it, she just couldn't manage to convince herself of that. That was one of the reasons why she had decided to remain in Canterlot rather than return to Ponyville once she had returned from the Kingdom of the Gilded Trees. It had already been a week, and she still couldn't get over her failure. Maybe if she had secured Bookworm's journal properly, maybe if she had made sure the library had been locked up properly, maybe if she had been faster in her research and action. A whole lot of maybes. The other was that she knew that her friends would know something was wrong with her the instant they saw her, they were like that. She’d sent regular messages out though, to keep the appearance that all was well with her, but she knew that she couldn't keep that up forever. She needed to go back home at some point. “I'll need to actually talk to them all at some point... but what will I say to them?” She sighed again as she thought on the subject. “Ugh! I... need something to help clear my thoughts. What's worked before?” And without a second thought, she knew exactly what she'd do. “Of course, studying. I can go over all that's in the library on everything!” It had already been a week since Trixie had found herself welcomed into a strange group of ponies who claimed to be the up and coming rulers of the world. And for what it was worth, she was having trouble trying to wrap her head around the whole experience. Why had she been singled out to join? Where was she? And what was this group even called? And the answer to that question was not given to her, no matter how many times she had asked Argent Lance, or any of the other members of whatever this group was called. It seemed that, while she was welcomed in, she wasn't fully trusted yet. And it was during one of these mulling that Argent Lance found her. "Ah, Miss Lulamoon," he said as he found Trixie in the library of where ever she was. "What is that you are reading?" "It's a history book," she replied, raising her head from the book that she'd been reading. "Apparently, whoever wrote it didn't like the way things were written in other books. Everything is at odds with what I know of history." "Ah, yes." He grabbed the book with his magic and casually flicked it into a corner. "The history as dictated by one Historic Flare. Nonsense all of it, written by a certified insane stallion who believed that he could see into the past and the future. Nothing worth reading, but it's good to keep around for laughs. Now, I know I've asked you every day since you came here, but how are you faring with the change of scenery?" "And like every other time," Trixie retorted, "I'd like to know where I am, what this group is, and why I'm here?" "All in due time, Miss Lulamoon. All in due-" "That is the only answer that I've gotten!" she shouted. "I don't care who you think you all are, but I think I deserve to know some-" Her rant cut off suddenly as she found herself unable to breathe, something seemed to be grabbing directly at her lungs. "Knowledge is power, Miss Lulamoon," Argent Lance said as a pair of unicorns appeared at his side, their horns flaring with magic. They were a mare and a stallion who looked exactly alike; pale gray coats, messy white and black streaked manes, even the same cutie mark, a field of stars. "And if you wish to stay here, and more importantly, live, I'd suggest that you learn that quickly. Star, Comet." As he addressed the two unicorns, their magic cut out and Trixie managed a gasp as she was allowed to breath again. "I find you to be a useful asset for us, and as such, I shall grant you a small portion of our knowledge to sate your appetite for the time being. I will give you the name of our group. We are the Gilded Tales." “Good afternoon, Ms. Sparkle.” Cara, one of the 'normal' librarians greeted Twilight as she arrived. “How have you been?” “I've been fine, Cara.” Twilight forced a smile that she hoped looked convincing. “I'm just here to check on some things up on the top floor. There's no need to make a scene. Just go about your work as if I'm not here.” “Of course, Ms. Sparkle.” Twilight left her employee to her work and made her way up to the third floor atrium. She took her time as she went, admiring the library in all it's refurbished glory. Everything shined in the sunlight that flowed through the skylights, and there were ponies, actual ponies coming and going, looking for books and reading. It all was a far cry from what she remembered of the place, and of what it looked like less than a month ago. After setting a standing placard at the entrance of the third floor atrium saying it was under repair and placing an empty bookcase behind it, she opened the door to her secret headquarters. And she was immediately pulled into the room by the pair of light orange hooves belonging to Golden Spade. "About time you got here, Twilight," Golden said as she pulled Twilight into a hug. "I've checked in every day for the past... uh... what day is it?" "Tuesday?" "The past four days, waiting for you." "How did you get in here?" Twilight asked. "I was pretty sure that this place was locked up and that no one could get in beside me..." Then Twilight remembered the teleportation node that was lying on the floor, in the center of the room. "Right, never mind that question. Do you need me for something?" "Well, no, not really," Golden replied as she released Twilight. "I just kinda wanted to hear how your mission went and all that stuff. I assume that it didn't go too well, right?" Twilight grimaced at that and turned her head away from Golden, trying to find something that she could use to steer the conversation away from this topic. It didn't work. "I didn't know what I was getting into. I wasn't ready... if... if I had had more time or... or training or something..." "The first mission is always the toughest, especially when you don't have a mentor." Golden walked over to a bookshelf and pulled free a book. "My first mission alone was terrible. Book Worm insisted that I do it on my own, almost died several times to simple traps and wound up destroying the thing I was trying to recover." She sat the book down on the large table and turned back to Twilight. "I know what you are feeling, Twilight. I've been there too. And that is why I'm here." She reached into a bag that was sitting next to the table and pulled out a familiar looking book, this one with a pair of crossed shovels on the cover. "Take a look." Golden opened her journal to an entry set a few days ago. Golden, go and help out the new member already! You haven't had a mission in awhile and Twilight is in a bad way. Her mission didn't go too well, and you'll be able to relate to her experiences. She needs an experienced hoof, find her and talk with her, and then things will go from there. "That's... very straight forward," Twilight said as she finished reading. "Not like mine at all. Mine just seems to be like rambling thoughts or something." "Every member's journal works a bit differently," Golden replied as she flipped a few pages forward to the most recent entry. "You remember Bookworm's, his read like a travel guide and a how-to manual. But anyways, here we go, this is what I needed to show you." Twilight took a look at the pages of the journal again. New mission: Protect the resting place of the mystical Saddlevarius violin from the infamous music thief Lumina and her henchmen. The Saddlevarius Violin: The original was believed to hold mystical powers over all who listened to the music, holding them in thrall to the player. The violin also provided any who played it with the instant knowledge of how to play, but once it left their possession, they lost that information. Threat level: High Note: Bring Twilight with you this time. "You ready for some 'on the job' training?" Knowledge is power. Knowledge is power. Knowledge is power. That one line kept reverberating around Trixie’s mind after her little ‘talk’ with Argent Lance. And it was a line that made more and more sense to her the longer she stayed with the Gilded Tales. Now Trixie knew why she was being kept in the dark, why all the books here were filled with lies and tall tales. She found herself walking aimlessly through the halls of wherever she was when a familiar pair of unicorns approached her. "Greetings, Mrs. Lulamoon," Comet, the stallion, said dryly. "We do apologize for the… incident that occurred earlier." "Uh huh," Trixie replied simply. "It seems that you do not believe us," Star, the mare, said. "Well, that is on you. Everypony that comes to us eventually comes to an understanding of the rules that governs this place." "Yeah, yeah, I know. Knowledge is power and upstarts that don’t know how to follow that are dealt with severely." Trixie ran a hoof through her mane in frustration. "Is there some reason to this?" "Yes," both replied. "And that would be?" "We are here to pass a letter on to you," Star said as Comet floated over a rolled-up letter sealed with wax. "For your eyes only, from our leader." Comet dropped the letter as Trixie’s magic grasped it. "Good day, Mrs. Lulamoon." The pair continued on their way, passing by Trixie as she watched them with a weary eye in case they decided to do something like earlier again. Once they were out of sight, Trixie broke the wax seal on the letter and unraveled it to see what it was about. Greetings, Mrs. Trixie Lulamoon. I regret that I am not able to bring this to your attention in person, but your next mission has been chosen. Unlike last time though, you will have to do your homework yourself. You will still be allowed access to Bookworm’s journal, as what you will be going after was once handled by him. But aside from that, you will need to gather your equipment and plan your travels accordingly. You will be allowed restricted access to the actual library of the Gilded Tales as well as to our stores. And you may recruit two followers to assist you. Now, what you will be retrieving is the fabled Horn of King Midas. I wish you luck. ~A "I hate him so much." Trixie rolled up the letter and put it away and sighed. "Midas... why do I feel I've heard that name before. Time to find this library."