//------------------------------// // A Light of Hope // Story: Restoring Harmony to the Cosmos // by Orfearus //------------------------------// The yellow pegasus groggily lifted her head from the forest floor, wondering why she had slept outside that night. Opening her eyes and glancing up at the sky, she noticed the full moon shining faintly through the evergreen she slept under. Why did her body prompt her to awaken under this moon? What could be so important to it? Her limbs felt too heavy to support her weight so she decided to simply lie there a little while longer. Putting her head down on the soft, mossy pillow of the forest floor, she faintly noticed an orange pony walking back into the clearing where she was lying. A few memories pierced through the fog that enveloped her sleepy brain; Applejack telling her to rest, her friend reassuring her that everything was alright. She tried to lift her head once more, to see what the pony was doing, but it felt almost too heavy. Calmly, AJ walked over to her tired body, saying "Rest Fluttershy. We're in no hurry." The calming tone of her voice soothed the awoken pony back to a deep sleep. ........ Who knew time was this easy to steal It though to itself. Only a few days left until the princesses powers would fall, until it`s master would be free once more. Because as long as the princesses have their power, the stone prison would hold. Black magical lines started to glow all around the forest, magical lines it had been meticulously crafting for the past five hours as the ponies slept. A dark mist started to thicken, obscuring all vision. It couldn't stay here forever. But they could. ......... The intricately crafted columns that lined Canterlot Castle's Great Hall glowed faintly in the light-blue light that Rarities horn emitted. She trotted along, not too fast as to miss the beautiful paintings that adorned the walls, but not too slow as to keep the princesses waiting for the brand new jackets she had designed, which were levitating in front of here. Turning back to them, she inspected her work one last time. The colors matched the princesses coats perfectly, and were well padded for the cold nights of winter. They extended down to keep the hooves warm, and up to the neck, while not covering and obscuring the wearers mane. And most importantly, they could be put on with, or without, magic. The princesses did not complain about requiring her to help with daily things, such as combing their mane or putting on the elaborate dresses that formality required them to wear, but it was clear that they were not pleased with such things either. Rarity was pulled out of her thoughts by the smells of the kitchen that wafted through the open air as she walked by. Her stomach grumbled and the delectable smells pulled her into the kitchen. Neither she, Twilight, nor the princesses had gotten lunch yet. Might as well bring them something up while she was headed that way. "Greetings Rosemary" Rarity said as she walked into the kitchen "Rarity! What a pleasure to see you!" she said. The chef was a pure white unicorn, that was one of the more sophisticated ponies in the building. And when in Canterlot Castle, that's saying something. "How's everything in the kitchen?" she asked "Not so good. With the days out of whack, I've got ponies coming to me every hour looking for breakfast. How am I supposed to run a kitchen, when ponies don't even know what meal it is!" "It's a hard task to bring proper food to each meal, but how do you manage now?" "I don't know Rarity. I just don't know." Rosemary just looked over at the gleaming kitchen she worked in. "So what can I get for you Rarity?" The rumbling in her stomach returned again in full force. "I've heard fabulous things about your soup. Would you have any made so I could take it back to the princesses." "Not at the moment, but I was just about to whip up another batch. If you come back in 15 minutes I'll have it ready. Can you wait that long?" Rarity looked down at her stomach. However if waiting led to that fantastic soup, it was worth the wait. "I'll be back in 15 minutes." Rarity walked out of the kitchen, still carrying the coats, wondering how to spend the next fifteen minutes. With every step she took away from the kitchen, the delectable smells faded ever so slightly to the back of her mind. She walked, dimly aware of where she was going, and taking in the fabulous sights, until she arrived at the large marble arched entrance into the library. Twilight always needed new books, and had made lists for everypony. Her feet must have subconsciously led her here. She levitated out the list, and started to walk to the nearest shelf, but collided with a walking column of books on her way "Oh my, I'm terribly sorry about that. I should have been watching where I was going" Rarity said, looking for just what pony she had collided with, yet nopony was visible. Rarity looked around, confused, when a rustling emerged from underneath on of her coats. Out from the coat peaked the purple head of a baby dragon. "Spike?" "Hey Rarity. Sorry about this" he said, getting up and gesturing to the pile of books on the floor. He immediately started to collect them once more, piking up Rarities list in the process. "Twilight sent you here too?" "You know her with books. Never has enough" Spike finished collecting the fallen books and looked over Rarities list. "I've got all of the books on this list right here!" he said proudly. "You don't need to worry about a thing." "Absolutely magnificent Spike!" she said, picking up her coats off the floor and giving them a quick brush down. She carefully inspected the seams for damage, and once satisfied they hadn't sustained any, turned back to Spike. "Since this seems to be in good hands, I'm headed back to the kitchen to grab the princesses lunch." she stated, walking back out of the library. Spike, who had been proudly beaming from the complement, snapped back to reality. "Rarity, you do so much for the princesses. Let me go and get their food, and you should relax." he said, hurrying as fast as he could while carrying an immense stack of books. "Spike, I'm more than capable of carrying a few bowls of soup" "You spent innumerable hours fixing the princesses manes, outfits, rooms, and everything else that was even slightly out of place" "Well, somebody needs to while they can't" "Your always running around, and haven't taken any time to yourself." "I'll have plenty of time later on" Rarity said resolutely, though unable to keep a hint of longing for the missing hours she normally did take just to herself "Go, let me take care of this." Spike shouted, taking stepping between Rarity and the kitchen door. "Really Spike? You don't mind?" "Of course not!" "You really are the best assistant I've ever seen!" The books Spike was carrying wobbled a little, as the baby dragon felt his knees go weak with the compliment. He quickly regained his strength, knowing that Rarity would not let him help if he appeared incapable. Walking into the kitchen, he quickly walked out balancing four bowls of soup on the books, his arms, and even his tail. Extending the bowl on his tail to Rarity, she gratefully took it and began to eat. "Now you can finally rest and do what you want for a while" Spike said, starting the long trek back to the princesses room Rarity looked around the gleaming white halls. She could do anything she wanted in the whole castle. She could go to the spa, or the library, or anywhere. She could do whatever her heart desired. Glancing down the corridor, she decided how she would spend the time. "Spike, wait up! Mind if I walk with you?" ......... "We've been this way before!" "No we haven't!" Rainbow Dash was furious with Applejack at the moment. First they all slept in while she was standing watch, being supposed to wake them after an hour. But at how rested her wings felt, she was sure they had been sleeping more than an hour. But AJ insisted against it. With the moon still high in the sky, it was impossible to tell who was right. Then, when they were finally ready to get going, AJ took one look at the map and headed into the forest. That was at least an hour ago, and they had passed the same clearing 3 times so far. "We're going in circles!" "Ah know where we're headed." To make matters worse, a thick black fog had fallen over the forest, obscuring most of the moon from view, the cold of the night had been pressing at them for such a long time it was eating to their bones, and every minute they spent in the forest the fog was getting thicker, causing them to be getting more and more lost. "Just give me the map. I'll fly up and find out where we're headed." "Fine. Have it." the orange pony said, stopping in the middle of the path. Rainbow Dash took to the skies, to try and get their bearings. The distinct sound of a cracking branch broke through the forest." "I hope she's alright" Futtershy said, much to afraid to go up after her "She's crashed into many branches before. And buildings, and many other things that would hurt. She'll be fine" Pinkie said, trying to reassure her friend Neither of them notice Applejack walk into the deepest part of the fog. The spell is almost complete It thought to itself. Just a little longer and these ponies will never find their way out of the forest. Than I can focus on some more pressing issues. The fog grew another layer thicker as AJ returned to the back of the group. A scratching sound started at the edge of the clearing they were in. "Oh no. Somethings coming" Fluttershy said, cowering down to the ground. She looked to the sky, hoping Dash would come back and protect them from whatever evil lurked behind those trees. "Rainbow!" she shouted to the sky. Before either of the other ponies could comfort the frightened pegasus, a rainbow blur streaked down from the sky and landed beside her. In her mouth was a map, or at least half of one. She apparently didn't notice the other half missing. "It's alright Shy. What's wrong?" "There's something there" she said, pointing at a pile of rocks across the clearing. The scratching intensified "Stand behind me!" she shouted, spitting the map out of her mouth and onto the forest floor. First a claw appeared on top of the rock, black and sharp, followed by a dark-coated black bear stepping into the clearing. It was on four legs, searching for food. Rainbow Dash tensed up, but Futtershy put a hoof on her shoulder. "Oh, it's just a bear. I'm sorry I got all frightened about nothing." she said, taking a few steps towards the bear. Rainbow Dash looked down onto the ground, at the half a map lying there. In her rush to get back, the map had accidentally ripped on one of the trees. The other half was lost in the forest behind them. "What's a bear like you doing awake at a time like this? You must be starving!" she heard Fluttershy say. "I'm sure I can find something for you to eat around here. You look starving." In all the commotion, they had all but forgotten the orange earth pony. She smiled to herself, picking up a small rock in her powerful hooves. Time to cause some chaos, and escape. The rock went flying through the air, faster than the eye could see, and hit the bear squarely in the chest. The bear roared up in a fury. Fluttershy screamed "FLUTTERSHY" Dash shouted, looking up to see the powerful claws of the bear coming down towards the frightened pony. She picked up the nearest, and strongest branch she could find, and launched herself towards the bear. It's claws landed on the branch, mere inches from Fluttershy's face. Dash was pushing the bear back with all her strength, but it was not going to be enough. "Fluttershy, MOVE!" she shouted, and the frightened pony obeyed the order. ......... Applejack had disappeared from view again. This time, she was standing just inside the clearing, out of view. Beside her was standing ... well, her. It let the orange ponies form melt away into the shadows, leaving only the real Applejack standing. I have more important things to attend to. Perhaps I can return if they ever make it out of this forest. A spark jumped to the orange pony, relaying false memories as always. It took another step deeper into the forest, and movement returned to the orange leader. Immediately, she ran into the field, shouting "Ah'm coming Dash!". It disappeared deeper into the shadows of the woods, knowing exactly how to escape. It's time to return, master. By the time they escaped from this forest, enough time would have passed. By that time, you will be free be free. ......... "Where were you?" Dash shouted, as Applejack lunged and pressed her weight against the branch. "Sorry, ah was searching for that half o' the map" she said. A faint cracking was heard coming from the branch. "On 3?" Dash said, glancing over to her companion. A silent conversation was exchanged between the two ponies, Dash's eyes trying desperately to relay a plan to AJ. "Alright" she replied with a curt nod, seeming to understand completely. If there was any doubt in her eyes, it was covered up by determination. "1" Cracks were appearing down the branch. AJ was wondering whether it would hold for the entire count "2" Splinters flew as the bear raked its claws against the branch. It stepped back and threw its entire weight towards the ponies "3" Both AJ and Dash darted to different sides, sending the bear flying forward. In unison, both ponies turned around and buck as hard as they could into the bears side. No matter how much padding the bears fur provided, it could not withstand the combined power of both ponies. It reared up, in pain this time, and fled back into the woods. "Great job AJ!" Dash said, approaching her friend with a hoof raised high "Jus like th' apple trees" she smiled, raising her own hoof to meet Dash's. "I was almost afraid that you wouldn't pick up on my plan" "Ah've known ya long enough to know ya'd pull some crazy shenanigans like that." Both ponies glanced after the bear to make sure it wasn't going to return. Confident they had scared it away for good, they turned around to take care of their frightened friends. "Are you hurt?" Rainbow Dash asked, looking Fluttershy over carefully for cuts or bruises. "No, I'm alright." she said. "Thanks to you." "Pinkie, are ya fine too?" AJ asked "Wow, that was AWESOME! Dash you were like KAPOW and smacked that bear with the stick and than AJ, you came out of nowhere and were so strong, and than both of you just hit that bear so hard, it ran away, and it was so amazing we should have something to celebrate!" she said, surprisingly all in one breath. "Ah'll take that as an 'alright'" Pinkie looked up, pulling some cupcakes from her saddle bag. "Want one?" "Ah think we best get going." "But we don't even know where we're going" Dash pointed out "Yes we do" AJ said, pulling the compass out of her bag. The needle glowed a faint orange that reminded them of the last sunset they had seen, and pointed off into the forest. .......... "Are you ready Twilight?" Celestia asked. Twilight looked around. They were at the highest point of the tallest tower of the castle, a special platform designed for taking off and landing during high altitude flights. When Twilight asked about the location, Celestia's only reply was "even a small difference can tip the scales to success". Being closer to the sun, even if it was only a hundred meters closer than the observatory, could make a difference, that was if the biting cold of a winter nights breeze didn't get to her first. She looked to her left and saw Rarity, that reassuring face she always had. At their feet stood Spike, always there for her, always dependable. On her other side was Celestia, determination in her eyes and reassurance in her smile. Luna stood on the far side of Celestia, knowing that without magic she would be little help, but still wishing to be whatever aid she could. "I'm ready" Just like always, she reached out to the sun. She was accustomed to it's position in the sky from their many exercises, and knew she could find it easily. The beam of magic she sent out was slimmer, and fast than her first try. It used much less energy this way, because she would need every ounce of magic in her body for what she was attempting to do Today was the day she tried to raise the sun The coldness of space still shocked her, and the cold winds that blew around her physical body did not help the compulsive shivers. As quickly as possible, she turned her beam in space and headed towards the sun. A familiar warmth filled her, fighting back the cold of space. The moments when she felt the sun, she felt complete. But she could not dwell on that feeling, because every second she spent in the expanse of space, was a second more exhaustion threatened to overwhelm her. She focused all of her energy into that beam of magic, collecting all of the power within her soul in an attempt to do the impossible. Every ounce of energy she had ever known collected around the sun, tendrils of magic shooting up the beam of light and trying to envelop the sun. More power than she had ever known was resting on the edge of her consciousness. Directing the power to action, she attempted to move the sun. A decision she immediately regretted. The sun itself seemed to lash back at her, pain at the immense magical exertion seared through her horn, and her body. Twilight had just enough time to retract the energy from the spell before it shattered in a brilliant display of lose magic. The sky glittered with purple from where the tiny beam had just been. The sight was quite beautiful, and the ponies could have appreciated it if it did not symbolized Twilight's failure. "I'm sorry Celestia. I couldn't do it." "I know you'll be able to Twilight. Were you at least able to recover your magic?" Celestia asked "Yes, but I couldn't do anything" she said, knowing her mentor wanted her to try again. The searing pain in her horn was starting to die down. "I placed all my energy into that spell, and the sun just brushed it off. I don't think there's anything I can do." "We've been training for this day for such a long time. I know you can do it." Twilight wanted to believe the words, but hidden underneath them she heard a faint tone of pleading. Almost as if Celestia were begging her to try again, if she were on the verge of giving up. Twilight already knew what the outcome of a second attempt would be. "I'm sorry Celestia, I just can't do it," "Than I guess I was wrong about you." she said. A tear rested on the edge of Celestia's eye. "You are not fit to be my apprentice. Goodbye Twilight" Every pony standing on the platform gasped, shocked at the news. Rarity begged her to reconsider, and Spike burst into tears. But none of this commotion reached Twilight's mind. The only thing that did was despair. Her hopes. Her dreams. Gone. Shattered. She had been abandoned by the one pony who she loved and trusted, the one pony she had worked her entire life to impress. Was it her fault? Was she too weak? Anger took over instead, anger at her own weakness, and refusal to continue. Couldn't she have just been stronger. Tried again. From deep within her welled up a fear. What would she do now? Return to ponyville as the failed apprentice? Her entire life had fallen apart with that one shocking decision. The cold feeling of hopelessness overwhelmed her. Coldness, fear, anger, despair. She wanted so badly to hold onto the love that Celestia had once given her, the warmth that filled her soul at those times. From the depths of her soul a magic more powerful than she had felt in a long time came to the surface. She may have been abandoned, but she would not forget the lessons of control she had learnt. She shot that magic out towards the sun, wanting to feel it's warm embrace once more. The frigid barrier of space was as cold as the despair she already felt. The magic within her was still building to neigh-unbearable levels. Her vision started to turn purple. NO. She would not let her lack of control deny her last chance to feel that warmth. Containing, but not dispelling the magic, she reached her power forwards to the sun. And overwhelming fire met her, but the warmth and love she had known was gone. The sudden disappointment brought even more magic to the surface, threatening to overwhelm her. All warmth had left her world. As the magic pressed in, starting to block out her senses, clouding her vision, a single spot of warmth appeared on the edge of her consciousness. Without thinking, she reached for it, pushing the magic back under control once more. The warmth grew, and started to take form. It emanated from a pure white hoof resting on her shoulder. She looked up to see the tear streaked face of her former mentor, smiling down at her. A near infinite pool of magic pressed against her mind. She took her own magic that was still threatening to overwhelm her, and joined it with that of her mentors. Together they guided their joined powers. Together, they rose the sun. ......... "Look! The sun!" Rainbow Dash shouted, as the first beams of light pierced through the barren trees. The black fog seemed to melt away under it's pure light, and it's warming heat drove off the bitter cold. "Yay, the suns up!" "This calls for a party!" "Ah knew ya could do it Twilight!" Applejack stared up into the bright beams of sunlight that signified the purple unicorns greatest success, and wished she could be there to congratulate her directly. But they had their own problems to worry about. They had a diamond chalice to find. "We better keep on goin" she said, cutting the celebration short. Now that the bright sunlight shone down upon the forest, they could clearly see the end was not that far away. AJ looked down at the compass, and then followed the needle up to the mountains that lay in the distance. ......... A blinding light took It by surprise. It looked up to see the sun rising over the horizion. But how? The princesses did not have such magic left? Regardless, it was just another obstacle for It to overcome. It looked down to see the thick shadows surrounding It fade away in the morning light, revealing a pure white... something. It was a pony, but one like had never been seen before. It had four legs like any pony, strong and powerful. It had a horn like a unicorn, through which it could access an immensely powerful store of magic. But it also had only one wing. Whether this was as a result of a magical experiment gone wrong, or it was born like this, was uncertain. Perhaps it was this defect that caused It's master to take It in. When It looked at Itself, a fear spread through It's mind. Not from this appearance, but from the dark lines that had spread all over it's body. The lines seemed to emanate from it's horn, and brought a sinister smudge to it's body. Leaning down, It touched one of the lines with it's horn. A black shock ran through It's mind, and a fear greater than the world itself seemed to press down upon It's mind for a single second. During that second It knew just what had happened. So this is what Master warned me against. I must make a point to be more sparing with my magic to stop such a curse from spreading. It turned It's head towards the mountain. So much was needed to be done, and It had precious little time to do it. It glanced at the blackness once more. How little time it had left. Running full speed across the barren plains of Equestria, it headed straight for the mountain where the Crystal Chalice was held. ......... The warmth of the sun shone down upon her. The warmth of Celestia's sun. The warmth she helped guide back to the world. Twilight couldn't feel her knees. She couldn't comprehend the feelings that she felt. So she just felt. She felt warm, overwhelming warmth, the might have been caused by relief, satisfaction, hope, love, or perhaps all of that. The emotions were so strong that they overwhelmed thought. Twilight felt her legs collapse from underneath her. She saw the floor rising up to meet her. Twilight landed on a soft, velvety red couch with a gold border. "Absolutely magnificent Twilight" Rarity said, already jumping into action. "I never doubted your abilities, but that was extremely impressive. And a bit dramatic if I might add." She glared at Celestia, who was crouched over the couch. "Don't be angry" Twilight said. "It was necessary. I would never have been able to access that magic without her." Tears streamed forth as the painful emotions welled up inside her once more, threatening to break trough the joy of the moment "It was still a step to far" Celestia said, bending down in front of Twilight to fill her view. "I should never have put you through such pain, regardless of the circumstances. I'm truly sorry for the pain I put you through" "It's alright Celestia." A shiver went down Twilight's back. "Just promise you won't do something like it again." "Twilight, I didn't know if I would be able to do it this time. Going through with that was the hardest choice I've ever made, over my thousands of years as ruler. I know I won't be able to make that choice again. Twilight, I promise I won't ever abandon you." Twilight just stared into her mentors eyes. Tears streaked down Celestia's face, tears of sorrow for her actions and tears of joy at their success. Twilight was now starting to unravel the host of emotions that plagued her. The pain from before seemed to melt away, as the warmth of Celestia's love flowed through her. Her hopes and dreams had rested with her mentor, that only a short while ago had been shattered, were now complete and clear. Only together had they overcome the impossible, and she finally knew why Celestia had chosen her. She trusted Celestia with her world, as Celestia trusted her with her sun. "Celestia" she said, looking deep into the Ruler of the Sun's eyes. "Yes Twilight" "You know I forgive you. For everything." "Thank-you Twilight. You have no idea what that means to me." But Celestia felt that somehow, her apprentice knew exactly what those words meant to her. Rarity walked up to them, apparently returning from something. As soon as she approached, a faint blue glow appeared around the area and the cold wind died down. Levitating beside here were 4 plates with sandwiches on them, and a bowl filled with rubies. "Here you go everypony. Freshly prepared and delicious, just what you need after such a stupendous success." She placed a plate down in front of each pony present, and the rubies in front of the baby dragon. Celestia took hers and took a few steps back, giving Twilight enough room to comfortably lie down and eat. Twilight started to lift her sandwich up with a faint purple glow. "No you don't Twilight" Rarity said, enveloping the sandwich with her own light-blue magic. "Rarity, I can handle myself." "Darling, you've just raised the sun. You used more magic than we even thought possible. Now there is no way that I am letting a friend of mine over-exert themselves when they don't need to. Understand?" "I didn't lift the sun by myself. I just helped to tip the scales to success." she said, glancing over at her mentor. Celestia smiled back at her star pupil. "Twilight" Rarity said. She could be down-right scary when she was determined, and Twilight didn't have the energy needed to argue. "Alright Rarity. You win." "It's not about winning and losing" she said, levitating the sandwich towards Twilight's mouth so she could take a large bite of it. "It's about helping your friends." Both Luna and Celestia appeared to have enough energy to eat on their own, with there hooves, and were sitting only a small distance away. "Hardest choice you ever made?" questioned Luna. "You didn't give me any other choices" Celestia said glumly "and not a night went by where I didn't wish otherwise." Those words struck true in Luna's heart. No matter how many times she wished the past did not happen, there was nothing that could change it. She glanced up to see the purple unicorn falling asleep under the morning sun. "There you go Twilight" Rarity said, taking good care of her friend. "Get some rest." A blanket floated over to the couch and landed on top of the exhausted friend. She turned back to the two allicorns, noticing one of them already falling asleep on the floor. She slid another blanket underneath the tired princess. Celestia looked up, appreciation flooding her eyes, and than slowly placed her head back on the blanket. Rarity placed a third on top to keep her warm, and turned to Luna. "Let's go Princess. These two need their sleep." Luna gave one last look at the sleeping pair. They had just overcome almost un-surmountable odds, and did so together. They deserved this rest. She followed Rarity off the landing platform, leaving mentor and apprentice to sleep under the morning sun.