//------------------------------// // There Fell a Great Star, Burning as if it Were a Lamp // Story: Kingdom Come // by Redback Spino //------------------------------// Even for a public library run by an adolescent unicorn and a juvenile dragon, the Golden Oaks Library was unusually cluttered this morning. Notebooks, wads of paper and tomes of all shapes and sizes filled the main hall of the building, stacked up on desks, on the floor, against the walls, wherever there was space. All of these new additions bore the marks of having been in a fire, with several books and papers scorched and blackened, a few even on the verge of crumbling to ash if handled too roughly. And in the middle of all these papers and books sat Twilight Sparkle. Snout firmly planted in a large, soot-covered grimoires, a subtle redness creeping around the rims of her eyes, she barely acknowledged when Spike came in bearing a tray of food an setting it down beside her. “Find anything interesting yet?” Spike asked after clearing his throat loudly. Twilight barely raised her head. “Hmm? Oh… Uh, not yet, actually. I was hoping there would be something in any of these books they found in the debris, but so far it’s nothing too unusual. A few spellbooks, some cookbooks, and a lot of books about the proper care of gemstones, which are really fascinating you know. I bet you’d find some helpful tidbits in those…” “Maybe, but remember, these aren’t our books. No sneaking hem into the shelves when nopony else is around!” Spike added mock-warningly. “Heh, I know Spike, I know,” Twilight replied, playfully shoving him. “It’s only right that Derpy has the final say in what happens to them. But that doesn’t change the fact… some of these books would make great additions to the library if they weren’t so damaged.” Putting down a charred copy of ‘Gem-Cutting Done Easy’, Twilight indulged in the simple lunch that sat on the tray beside her. Washing down her mouthful of dandelion and daisy sandwich with a swig of lemonade, she voiced her thoughts aloud. “But we’re still no closer to figuring out just what happened to her. None of these books exactly stick out, and I’ve checked all the spellbooks and books on magic she had. They were all just basic spellbooks, nothing powerful enough to level an entire building!” Spike sat down beside her. “Well, maybe there’s something we just haven’t got yet. The ponies from the cleanup effort are still at it, so maybe they’ll come up with something soon.” “Or whatever may have held the answer got burned up along with the rest of the house,” Twilight grumbled, resting her chin on the tabletop. Spike frowned. “Aww c’mon Twilight, stay positive. You’re too smart to let something like this stop you!” He rested a claw on the unicorn’s shoulder. She looked up at him and grinned. “Ever the flatterer, eh Spike?” He grinned back. “You know it. But c’mon, you’ve been at this for days now, you need to take a break!” Twilight got up, stretching her aching limbs. “Aahhh, that feels good! You know what Spike, you’re right. C’mon, let’s go out for a walk, maybe it’ll help clear my head a bit.” “Sounds good to me,” the dragon replied. But no sooner had Spike swung open the door and stepped out into the midday sunlight, did he walk facefirst into something grey and furry. “Oof! Oh, I’m so sorry! You alright, Spike?” There at the door, hoof raised as if about to knock on the door, was Derpy. “Oh, hi Derpy,” Twilight called as she recognised the grey pegasus. “Good timing, Spike and I were just on our way out.” Derpy stepped back as Twilight and Spike joined her outside the library. “So, uh… how have you been?” Derpy hesitated a moment before answering, as the three of them strolled down the street into town. “I dunno, Twilight… I mean, these last few days have been pretty rough on both of us, Dinky and me. It’s funny, you don’t realise just how many things remind you of someone until they’re…y’know, gone.” Her smile faded, giving way to a melancholic sigh. “I can’t look at anything in our house without being reminded of poor Sparkler… A lifetime of memories, I suppose.” The three ponies came to Ponyville’s market square. As on any day of the week, the square was full of ponies going about their daily routines, shopping, selling, eating, or just strolling around town. But as Derpy came into the square, there was a subtle change in the atmosphere. Nopony would have admitted it later, but a lot of eyes were upon the poor mother. The news of Sparkler’s death had spread quickly through the town. “Yeah…” Twilight said, unsure of what else she could really say. “So, er… how has Dinky been taking it?” “Surprisingly enough, not too bad,” Derpy replied. “I mean, she’s still pretty sad about it all… she and Amethyst were really close. But the other fillies and colts at school have been helping her out and being really kind to her. I heard from Cherilee that even Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon have started being nice to her!” The trio chuckled aloud. Nopony would admit it publicly, of course, but it was pretty common knowledge among the parents of Ponyville that those two young fillies had a tendency to be a bit bratty towards other young ponies. “Well, that’s good to hear,” Spike replied. “I’ve seen her out and about sometimes, and she usually has somepony keeping her company.” Twilight smiled as they entered the town square. “And I’m betting Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo most of the time.” “That’s really sweet of them,” replied Derpy. But any further small talk was cut short as Pinkie Pie came careening into the town square with the force of a freight train. “Twilight, Derpy! Omigosh, I’ve been looking for you everywhere! I was told to find both of you, but went to the library and you weren’t there Twilight, and Derpy, you weren’t home either, so I asked around and nopony had-“ “Pinkie! Slow down,” Twilight shouted over her ramblings. Satisfied that the pink pony had calmed down somewhat, she motioned for Pinkie to continue. “So anyways, they asked me to find you two. I was down helping the cleanup effort for the explosion, and they found something!” Derpy and Twilight started, ears perked to full attention. “Really? What did they find? Anything useful?” Derpy asked. But Pinkie shrugged. “Dunno. They were still digging it out when they sent me off, but whatever it was, it’s heavy! I could see about four ponies all trying to hoist it out! They might end up needing a crane for it!” “Or a particularly powerful unicorn,” Spike replied, casting a knowing glance at Twilight. With a wordless nod, the unicorn led the way as the three ponies, and one dragon, hurried out of the town square and down the street towards the southern district of town. Behind them, a few curious onlookers followed. As the rapidly growing group came to a halt at the cordoned-off site, it was apparent that whatever they had exhumed, it was eve heavier than they thought. Eight of the burliest stallions in town (And a few particularly strong mares, Applejack included) were hauling away at a rope, which looped over a pulley system, terminating at a large iron hook. From the hook was hanging a large metal box, about the size of a dresser or a small table. Looking at the strained expressions of those lifting it, it seemed that the box either contained something of immense weight, or had especially thick walls. As it was slowly lowered down towards the ground, Twilight saw a door on the front, complete with a large dial surrounded by numbers. As she, Twilight and Spike were allowed past the barriers, Derpy voiced aloud her thoughts. “A safe?” Twilight nodded. “Looks like it. And by the looks of things, possibly magically enchanted. Even a safe as strongly built as this wouldn’t have survived an explosion like this.” “But why?” Derpy asked. “Why would Sparkler have a safe this secure?” The unicorn paused a moment, muttering to herself. “For privacy’s sake, I think we need to get this safe somewhere…er, safe, before we try to open it. Who knows, whatever’s inside might be dangerous if everypony is around when we open it.” “You mean, if we open it,” Spike muttered. Ignoring Spike, Twilight stepped forward to talk with the cleanup crew. Derpy watched as the unicorn was apparently asking them something. After a brief discussion, they seemed to come to some agreement. One of the crew brought up a large wagon, its back reinforced with metal plates, specially designed for hauling particularly heavy loads. The safe was lowered into the back of the wagon, where a pair of large stallions were yoked and ready to haul. “What’s your plan, Twilight?” Derpy asked, watching the scene unfold. Twilight nodded to the two stallions, who pulled the wagon away from the wreckage and through the crowd, down the street. “It might just be a gut feeling, but something is telling me that whatever is inside this safe has to do with this explosion. C’mon, we can try and get it open at the library… a few less onlookers and all that,” she added, casting a wary eye over the small crowd that was now gathered by the wreckage site. Derpy nodded, and the two ponies trotted off after the wagon, Spike and the others following closely behind. Spike waved goodbye to the two stallions as they hauled the wagon back into town, leaving the safe in the capable hooves of Twilight and her friends. With their combined efforts, she and Rarity were able to levitate the heavy box through the door and lower it down inside the library. By the time it was safely indoors, the sun was just beginning to dip in its journey across the sky. The assembled ponies gathered around it, eyeing it curiously. “So, how exactly will we open this up?” Rarity asked. Spike shrugged. “Beats me. You wouldn’t happen to know any safecracking spells, would you?” he asked with a chuckle. Tapping the safe, however, he found that his claw stopped just short of actually touching the surface of the safe, as if stopped by some invisible forcefield. Twilight shook her head. “Well first we need to get through that forcefield. It’s amazing how powerful this shield is! Even I would struggle to put up a forcefield spell this strong, so how did a pony like Amethyst manage it… Oh, er, no offense.” “None taken,” Derpy replied. Twilight cast a few small spells over the safe, bathing it in her magenta aura, with no apparent effect. “A-anyway, as far as I can tell, Amethyst did cast the spell on this safe, but I’ll bet that when she did, she had some sort of enhancer to her magic.” Just like when she apparently caused the explosion, she added in her mind. Her horn glowed once more, this time surrounding the safe in a cuboid shield of purple energy. On the side that covered the door to the safe, was a single hole, no larger than a grain of rice, near the bottom of the shield. “Aha! There it is!” The others looked closely at the forcefield. “There what is?” Pinkie asked. “Spike, I need you to take down everything I say now. This could be hugely important to my investigation.” The dragon obediently whipped out a quill and a scroll of parchment. “Ready when you are, Twilight!” Twilight nodded, and continued to channel her magic into the spell as she spoke. “I have revealed the forcefield spell that Amethyst cast around the safe. I was worried that I’d have to forcibly shatter the spell, which could potentially damage the safe inside. But it turns out there is a tiny hole in the shield.” “Why would she put a hole in a shield if it’s meant to stop anypony getting through?” “Because,” Twilight continued, “If Amethyst ever wanted to get to her safe and whatever is inside, she’d have to deactivate the shield spell and recast it every time. That kind of casting would even put a strain on my magic!” Stepping closer to the safe, the unicorn channelled more magic into the forcefield. The tiny hole seemed to ripple and wobble, gradually opening wider and wider. “So instead, she put a tiny hole in the shield, so that anytime she wanted to get to the safe, she could just enlarge the hole and access it through there. Like… this!” Arching her head back, Twilight let her magic flow one more time, until the hole in the shield uncovered the entire front of the safe. “Derpy… what were those numbers that she had written on her foreleg?” “Huh? Oh, they were…” Derpy tapped her chin in thought. “Umm… oh yeah, they were four, two, six, six. But what does that…?” Before she could answer, Twilight was telekinetically spinning the dial on the front of the safe. A bead of sweat trickled down her face as she strained to keep the shield open as well as put in the combination. Four. Two. Six. Six CLICK! The lock came undone and the door swung open. Twilight released the hole and the shield spell returned, covering the outer casing of the safe, but leaving the open door uncovered. The three peeked inside as Spike reached in to grab whatever may await them. Twilight liked to think she was prepared. She knew in her heart that whatever was inside had something to do with Amethyst’s untimely death. Surely it was some sort of bizarre and dangerous magical enhancer or some strange eldritch tome of forgotten magic. But neither Twilight, Derpy or Spike were prepared to reach in and discover neither artefact nor grimoire, but… “A diary?” Twilight muttered as Spike held it to the light. Indeed, it was a small lilac-coloured hardback book, held shut by a simple metal clasp on the front. Derpy gasped softly. “That’s definitely Sparkler’s diary… I’ve seen it before in her room before she moved to her own house.” Rainbow Dash scratched her head. “Wait, I don’t get it… I know Diaries are supposed to be all private and stuff, but isn’t it a bit extreme to lock it up in a safe with a shield spell around it?” Twilight nodded. “I’m guessing that there is something dangerous in this diary that she didn’t want anypony to know about. I’m almost certain it will give us a clue about what has happened here.” She lifted the diary up to reading level and began undoing the clasp, before pausing and looking to Derpy. “Umm… you don’t mind if we…?” The pegasus shook her head. “No, it’s alright. I mean, if it’ll help us find out what happened to her, then go ahead.” “Thanks,” Twilight replied. She undid the clasp on the front of the diary and opened the diary to the first page and read aloud: ‘I’ve never really been one to keep a diary before. It always seemed like a dumb idea to me. I mean, it’s all in my head already, so why write it down as well? But Lyra suggested it to me, and it sounded like it might a neat little project to do. Who knows, maybe it’ll help when I’m working with my gemstones?’ The ponies continued flipping through the pages, reading out any entries that caught their eyes. ‘So today I got a visit from Thunderlane of all ponies! He stopped me on the street and offered me this small emerald. Apparently Rumble had found it on a field trip and didn’t know what to do with it, so Thunderlane suggested giving it to me, “Since I’m Ponyville’s expert on gemstones” as he said. That flatterer! But anyway, so he gave it to me and trotted off just like that. It wasn’t anything special, just an ordinary uncut emerald. Pretty though, I’ll have to thank him later.’ ‘So I was having dinner at mom’s house when a really nasty thunderstorm came out of nowhere over Ponyville! Poor little Dinky was shaking like a leaf all night. Good thing mom was ready with some lullabies which sent her to sleep after a while. Good old mom.’ Behind her, Twilight could hear Derpy sniffling slightly. Fluttershy put a reassuring hoof around her shoulders before they coninued with a more recent entry. ‘You would not believe what I found today! I was out trawling for gemstones near the mountains when I picked up something strange with my gem-finding spell. It took me a bit up the mountainside to this tiny little bush. But under the bush there was a small wooden box, and whatever had caught my spell was inside. So I dug it up and took it back home. Inside was a tiny ruby, cut into a kite-shape. Apart from it being already cut, there was nothing special about its appearance. But there’s something about it… I dunno why but I don’t want to display it like the other gems I collect. I better keep it out of sight in my house for now.’ ‘I can’t stop thinking about that ruby! Something just keeps drawing me to it. I keep taking it out, looking at it, trying to examine it.’ The readers looked to eachother as they read more of the entries about this mysterious ruby. ‘I made an amazing discovery! It turns out that I can channel my magic through the ruby and it increases my magic power enormously! I tried it out earlier today and if I hadn’t stopped myself I could have picked up my entire house! It’s hard to explain what it felt like to use it, but the sensation was amazing. I’ll have to keep experimenting with this.’ ‘Experiments continued. I estimate that the ruby increases my magical power by over 1000%! Any unicorn who used it with their own magic could become the most powerful unicorn in all of Equestria!’ ‘I feel awful today. I was doing more experiments with the ruby, but I was interrupted by somepony at the door. Turns out it was mom and Dinky coming by to visit and see how I was. Of course I let them in and we had lunch together, but… it was horrible, part of me wanted to kick them both out, literally if I had to, and keep working with the ruby. I’d never felt that before, I physically wanted to hurt both of them!’ Twilight gulped as she read the entry. This was all beginning to sound a little familiar. And not in a good way. ‘So after yesterday’s visit with Derpy and Dinky, I decided to stop working with the ruby for a while. But by this evening things got weird. The ruby started glowing a bit, and -I kid you not- it started talking to me! It asked what my name was, I told it. It asked me what I wanted most in life. I tried to ask the ruby who it was and how it was talking, but it ignored me and asked again. I’d never really thought about it before, so I just told it about my aspirations, to become the leading expert in gemstones in Equestria, and to be a good daughter for my mom. And maybe someday take care of a daughter of my own.’ Derpy gave a tiny chuckle. “Humble to the very end, that’s my Sparkler.” ‘And you know what it said? It said it was disappointed. It said that I had so much potential, and if I wanted to, I could be the most powerful unicorn in all of Equestria, even more powerful than the Princesses! I kinda doubt that, but I let it continue. It said that it had been dormant (Whatever it meant by that) for millennia now, and it had only recently awoken when another pony found it and used its power for their own gain. It sounded almost proud of this pony, whoever they were. But apparently they were forced apart and it had gone dormant again, until I found it.’ Twilight was beginning to shake with worry. It sounded eerily like… but it couldn’t be! Could it? ‘It told me again about how I could be all-powerful and the mightiest pony in Equestria, and all I had to do was to use the ruby, and obey what the voice said to me. It sounded like a total load to me, but I think another part of me actually believed it. It sounded too good to be true, and I kept feeling this strange compulsion to put it on somehow, or to hold it to myself. I really dunno what to do…’ Twilight turned to the last entry in the diary. Looking at the date, she saw that this was the entry from the day before the accident. ‘I can’t stop it anymore. It speaks comforting words to me and encourages me. I want to try it. I will try it. I have no idea what might happen when I do try it and let the voice in, but if it goes right, I can become stronger than I ever was before. I’ll show them… Sorry, dunno what came over me there. I guess I lost my head there for a second. Anyway, I have no idea what’s gonna happen when I use this ruby. If things go wrong or something bad happens, then to whomever finds this diary I leave this message: 1. Tell my family that I love them. I may have been adopted into the Hooves family but Derpy was the best mom I could have ever asked for, and little Dinky was the greatest little sister in the history of little sisters. 2. Leave my stuff to my family. They can decide what happens to my stuff.' Twilight could see a few tears welling up in Derpy’s eyes, and gave a gentle squeeze to her shoulders. Derpy smiled back and they continued reading. '3. This is important, and I man really important. If you find that ruby, do NOT use it. Don’t listen to it, don’t put it on, don’t use it for magic. Put it away, bury it, drop it in a lake, just keep it away from people. I feel like I’m taking a huge risk by using it, and I don’t want anypony else getting hurt if something goes wrong. When I agreed to use it, the ruby changed. It actually turned into some kind of necklace, with the ruby in the centre of the pendant. On the next page is a sketch of the necklace for reference. There’s no turning back now. If things go wrong, then Faust have mercy on my soul.' Part of her mind did not want to turn the page and see what lay before them. But Twilight steeled herself and flipped the page. Her heart sank and the colour drained from her face as her fear was realised. The sketch showed a long band of interlocking square segments, forming the chain of the necklace. In the middle was a large pendant, made from some dark grey metal, in the shape of a large upside down triangle. The ruby was embedded in the centre. The head of a pony emerged from the top edge of the triangle, facing the side with a red eye made from a smaller ruby. And from the sides spread two iron wings, tipped with ruby edges. “Is that…? It can’t be…” Spike stammered as he saw the sketch. Twilight nodded fearfully. “It is… The Alicorn Amulet.” Outside the library, darkness had fallen over Ponyville. A few streetlamps glowed gently in the moonlight, shining the way home for anypony out and about this time of night. But though the streets and houses, all seemed quiet. In the southern district of town, the wreckage of the late Amethyst Star’s house lay cordoned off and still. But deep under the rubble, something stirred. A single, faint pulse of red, somewhere far below. It slowly grew in intensity, as the source of this glow rose up from among the wreckage. Finally, a tiny ball of crimson light emerged, hovering a few feet off the ground. A low voice emanated from the red ball of light, whispering ethereally in the darkness. “Disappointing,” it said. “How disappointing. I must find another.” The light rose up into the sky, hovering in place hundreds of feet above Ponyville, before gliding through the air towards the eastern mountains, and the city of Canterlot. “One more suitable.” “Out, out out!” Prince Blueblood’s voice echoed through the corridors of Canterlot Castle, awakening everypony within hearing range. An ornately decorated door swung open and a young stallion found himself careening through the door and slamming face-first into the opposite wall. He was followed shortly by a silver platter and a ceramic tea-set, which showered the poor stallion in scalding hot tea. Blueblood appeared in the doorway, dressed in a silvery dressing-gown and slippers. He frowned at the hapless bellhop, pointing an accusing hoof. “How many times must I tell you! I only take brown sugar in my tea, you useless whelp!” “I-I’m sorry s-sir… I won’t m-make that mistake again, I p-promise…” he stuttered back, picking pieces of shattered china from his mane. “You’d better not, or so help me, you’ll find yourself on the streets with the lowlife of Canterlot, where you belong!” The white-furred unicorn shouted. “Consider yourself lucky!” The bellhop bowed frantically as he began backing down the corridors “I will sir, thank you sir. W-wil that be all, sir?” Blueblood sighed, and ran a hoof through his mane melodramatically. “Yes, yes that will be all, thank you. Now just… Just go!” The young stallion galloped away, and Blueblood slammed his door shut after him with another angry sigh. Stomping through his private chambers, he flopped down on his bed, gazing up at the ceiling. “Honestly, when one is made to serve his superiors, the least one can do it get their superior’s orders correct! Brown sugar, is that really so hard?!” he said aloud to nopony in particular. Rolling over on his side, he was silent for a moment. I bet they wouldn’t have gotten it wrong if one of the Princesses had made the order. Just because they’re the rulers of the country, they get all the special treatment. But what about me? Am I not royalty as well?! And yet that foppish Fancypants holds more sway in Canterlot than myself! Blueblood grumbled to himself. “No respect at all… Why if I had the power, I’d show them all. I’d make them show me the respect I deserve! The commoners, the nobles, the Princesses, everypony…” “That can be arranged.” The prince shot upright with a start. His wide eyes scanned his room deftly. “Who said that? Is there somepony in here?!” In the low light, Blueblood could see nothing out of the ordinary. But something caught his attention, just out of the corner of his eye. Over on his desk, lying by his antique money chest, was a single, solitary ruby. “Huh, that wasn’t there before…” he said to himself, getting up and approaching the desk. But as he sat down and examined the gem, it began to glow. “Prince Blueblood, I presume.” Said the voice again, as the rub puled with a red light. Blueblood stumbled back in shock. “How… how do you know my name? And what are you?!” “All in good time,” the voice replied. “I heard what you were saying.” “About what?” Blueblood asked, an eyebrow raised. The ruby glowed again. “About your desire to be recognised as royalty, and your wish for power. I was especially intrigued by what you said about the Princesses.” “Oh no…” The unicorn gulped. “You’re some kind of spell they’re using to watch me, aren’t you! I didn’t mean it, Auntie Celestia! I was just kidding!” he shouted aloud, hoping they hadn’t taken it the wrong way. “Blueblood, I have no such connection to the Princess, don’t worry,” the voice replied. “And besides, we both know that that isn’t true, is it?” Blueblood sat down again, pushing his mane out of his face tiredly. “Yes, I suppose you’re right… I do resent the Princesses for their power. I mean, I’m royalty as well, aren’t I? Don’t I deserve some shred of respect? And who gets all the respect and power?!” He dramatically pointed a hoof at a portrait that hung from his wall. It was a beautiful painting of the royal family, with the Princesses stood in the centre. On their right stood Cadance, Princess of the Crystal Empire, and her husband, the unicorn Shining Armour. And on their left, handsomest of the bunch, was himself. “Them. The Princesses, with all the control of Equestria and all the power. The Princesses get all the power and control, and I, the Crown Prince, am the one who stands by and just looks pretty.” He grinned a moment. “I do the job well, but still! I just wish I could show them that… I dunno, that I’m capable of ruling as well.” Blueblood slumped forward, resting his chin on the desk, eyes closed. Through his eyelids, he could see the ruby glowing again. “I could make that happen.” He opened a single eye. “How? What can you do?” “I can give you all that,” the voice from the ruby replied “All the strength, all the glory, I can help you gain all that. Money, fame, power, mares, everything your heart desires.” The prince chuckled. “How can you do that? You’re just a… a talking ruby!” Never thought I’d say that, he thought. “I have my ways. So, what say you?” Silence reigned in the dimly-lit bedroom as Blueblood pondered the ruby’s proposition. It promised power, but at what cost? “What’s the catch?” “There is only one,” it replied. “If I am to help you, I need you to help me. There are others I wish to find, and give my gifts to.” “Others? Wait, you mean you’re helping other ponies gain this sort of power, not just me?” “Yes, but yours is still the strongest among them. I will make all of Equestria kneel at your hooves. And all you have to do, is kneel at mine.” The voice said. Blueblood paused once more. “But why? Why do you want to help me gain so much power?” The voice was silent a moment before replying. “Because I too have suffered injustice from those Princesses. I was once a powerful king, many eons ago. I ruled by people justly and truly. But those Princesses, Celestia and Luna, betrayed me. They challenged my rule and overthrew me. And now I want to see justice done. Together, you, me and the others can show all of Equestria just what the Princesses really are like. So, do we have a deal?” The unicorn prince got to his hooves, only to ceremoniously bow down before the ruby. As tendrils of light emerged from the ruby, turning into iron bands that wrapped gently around him, fastening the Alicorn Amulet around his neck, he opened his eyes, and saw his face in the mirror. His eyes had taken on a subtle red glow, as well as his magic aura, which now glowed crimson. Maybe it was a trick of the light, but it almost seemed as if misty tendrils of red energy were streaming out from his eyes. “Deal.”