//------------------------------// // Chapter 14 // Story: Becoming Twilight // by RandomGreymane //------------------------------// Becoming Twilight - Chapter 14                by RandomGreymane (Mike Hebel)         Loading of the airship took almost the entirety of the night.  In the morning Luna herself ordered several over-exhausted ponies to their quarters for some much needed rest.         At the first rays of sunlight, Princess Celestia lowered the illusion covering the mouth of the cavern and with little fanfare the HRS Wind Walker set off.         Passing around the mountain to the west, the enormous airship was seen by all of Canterlot and what were initially empty morning streets quickly filled with ponies waving and pointing.  Luna, Celestia, Cadance, and wisely only one of the Twilights, stood at the port rails waving back.           Before long this event was repeated when they reached the edge of Ponyville, though this time the two Twilights switched places as the well traveled one had not seen her home in quite a while.         As they traveled neither of the two Twilights could contain their delight. Time and again they were seen by many of the others crawling over every inch of the vessel in their eagerness to learn it’s secrets.         Princess Luna and Princess Celestia took one Twilight a piece, started at opposite ends of the vessel, and calmly explained as much of the construction as they were able to relate.  Upon meeting at the center of the ship the two Twilights excitedly compared notes on everything from the percentage of noble gases in the airbag to the cyclonic propulsion system.  When they finally wound down it was time for the dinner and the ship was moored to a nearby large cloud fixed in place by the local weather team.         The galley sat crosswise in the middle of the ship with stairs leading down from the deck and doors on the sides - one leading to the kitchen and hold. the other to the passenger quarters.         Magick light from the stained glass portholes created a festive atmosphere as the thermal spells of the ship kept the room from becoming too warm or too cold.  A steady stream of cooks presented dish after dish to the large table, each greeted with enthusiasm by the hungry ponies.         Upon conclusion of the meal some made their excuses and went to their cabins leaving only the two Twilights, Luna, and, Fluttershy to make their way back up onto the deck.         Standing at the bow of the ship Fluttershy stood comparing what she could see of the Everfree Forest to port and White Tail Woods to starboard.         “Anything of interest my little pony?” Luna asked, startling Fluttershy slightly.         “Well...umm...” said Fluttershy “I can’t help but notice that the Everfree Forest has this greenish glow on top that you can’t normally see.  At least I’ve never seen it!  I don’t go flying at night much...”         “Hmmm...” was Luna’s initial response.  “I’m afraid that glow doth be sourced by my own foalish behavior.  Wouldst thou like to hear how it became such?”         “Oh yes please!” said Fluttershy eagerly.  Saying nothing, the two Twilights approached and sat next to their friend to listen.         “It was my genius and my wroth that created such strangeness.” Luna continued “In the age before my banishment I was greatly enraged and jealous of my sister, unjustly so as you well know, so I looked for ways to tie the very land to my will.”         “And?” asked one of the Twilights.         “And...I created yon spell, the core of which changed the trees so that they dost feed on moonlight rather than sunlight.” Luna explained “I was foalish to believe that the ends justified the means.  The green glow you see is dark magick.”         Suddenly fearful, Fluttershy edged near one of the Twilights who put a hoof around her and held her close.         “The trees themselves were created by Discord, as you also well know, and as chaos is a blend of good and evil they responded to the evil magick and thrived on it.”  Luna said “The result is what you see here.”         “But...” started Fluttershy “couldn’t you reverse the spells?  Now that you’re back I mean?”         “Oh dear Fluttershy would that I could.” Luna said with a sad smile on her face “It’s been a thousand years since that day so any spell I would have cast is long gone now.  But while it was there it changed their very nature.  So much so that they are no longer the same trees as anywhere else.  One would have to pull the forest up roots and branch.”         “Oh I wouldn’t want that!” said Fluttershy “I mean where would Zecora get the ingredients for her medicine?”         “Exactly little one.” Luna said, her smile beaming down at Fluttershy before she looked back out at the glowing forest “I take great pleasure in knowing that some good comes out of that which I have done in the past.”         Fluttershy and the Twilights nodded their heads in agreement, Fluttershy looking visibly relieved.         Checking her internal time measurements Luna said “I believe that all aboard should get their rest now.  We still have another day of travel before we reach the desert then all that will occur there. If you do not mind Fluttershy I would be happy to escort you to your cabin.”         “Gladly!” Fluttershy said “Twilight are you coming as well?”         “Actually” said the well traveled Twilight while looking meaningfully at her twin “I want to do some stargazing for a while.”         “Okay then.” Fluttershy replied with a yawn “I’ll see everypony in the morning.”         Bidding the Twilights a good night, Luna and Fluttershy descended the aft stairs to their cabins, leaving both Twilights alone on the deck.         “So...obviously you want to talk about something...” the weaker Twilight said once their friends had gone.         “Yes...” her twin said “I have something to confess.”         “You put a geas on Scootaloo so she wouldn’t follow us.” the weaker Twilight said in a deadpan tone.         “I put a geas on Sco...hey!” the well traveled Twilight said, surprise evident in her voice “How the hay did you know??”         “Because I went to do the exact same thing before we left but found that I’d already done it.” Twilight said with a giggle “I did make one change though.  You forgot to put a canceling trigger on the spell.  If something had happened to us Scootaloo would have been forever stuck at Canterlot Castle.”         Dumbfounded the well traveled Twilight stood there considering her actions.  It was a bit before she spoke again.         “Wow.  You’re absolutely right.” she said softly “That could have been disastrous.  Well at least we know we fail in the same basic area.  Just like when we first tried to create the spell for the element pendants.”         “Eeeyup.” said her mirror self “Still we rectified it.  I’d like to think that if we were...er...of one mind this wouldn’t have happened.”         “Agreed.” Twilight said to herself “Ready for bed?”         “Eeeyup.” Twilight said again.         “Wow.  I never realized how corny I sounded saying that.” her other self said as they both headed to their cabins. ==============================================         Twilight woke in her bunk to the scent of food wafting from the galley.  Rolling over she noticed the sunlight streaming through the stained glass.  The colors of the glass shimmered against the opposing wall of her cabin.  Rising, she yawned and ran a hoof through her mane.  Searching for her hairbrush she discovered that she had left it back at the castle. Sighing she used her magick to straighten her mane and exited the cabin in search of breakfast.         As expected the galley had an array of breakfast selections beyond anything she would have normally chosen.         Looks like Tia pulled out all the stops for this trip. she mused to herself Still it’s better than I’d normally eat in my office.         Celestia, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash were seated at the table, talking and laughing in-between bites of their meal.  Princess Celestia greeted Twilight and levitated a plate of food her direction “Twilight!  Good morning!  You’re the first Twilight awake so you get first pick!”         Twilight yawned and chose a seat at random.  Reaching, she levitated several things off the proffered platter and onto the plate in front of her.  “The others still asleep I take it?” she asked around a mouthful of croissant.         “Yep.” said Rainbow Dash and Applejack in unison.  “Lazy slugabeds!” added Applejack.         Noting to herself that she was also one of the ‘lazy’ ponies in question Twilight continued chewing.  When she had finished her initial plate of food the others, herself included, had risen and made their way to the table.         “Oooh! Donuts!” exclaimed Pinkie, a tiny drop of drool hanging at the corner of her mouth.  With her usual flair she coerced several of the round morsels into her mouth and began chewing happily as she let out a contented  “Mmmmmm...”.         “So your highness” Rarity started while placing several things on her plate “when do you expect us to arrive at our destination?”         “Our projected arrival is sometime early this evening.” Celestia said between sips of her coffee “Luna and I spent time last night and this morning scrying for a suitably isolated location.  Fortunately the desert is full of them.” she concluded with a smile.         “Also fortunately” Twilight said as she filled her clean plate “we won’t need much space to preform the spell.”         “Powerful but compact.” Twilight replied in-between bites  “That will help my brother a bit as he’ll be able to better control the shield.”         “Where is Shiney anyways?” she asked while cleaning up the last of her crumbs.         “He’s eating with the others in the crew mess.” Cadance said as she joined the rest of them at the table. “I invited him up but he said he wanted the time with his fellow guards.”         “Are you sure he’s not just trying to get away from you?” Twilight said with a grin on her face.         “Or maybe you’re smothering him?” Twilight replied.         “Could be that she’s not keeping him happy.” Twilight continued.         “Such a shame!  The Princess of Love!  Unable to satisfy her husband!” Twilight exclaimed while putting a hoof to her chest in mock dismay.         “Oh the woes of married life!” Twilight said as she put the front of a hoof to her forehead and feigned weariness.         “Woes!” Twilight said immediately copying the gesture.         Princess Cadance continually kept a small smile on her face throughout the exchange but wisely said nothing.         Rainbow Dash leaned over to Applejack.  “I think that’s about the weirdest thing I’ve EVER seen.” she whispered.         “Ahm right there with ya.” Applejack replied before taking a bite of the apple cinnamon roll on her plate.         “I am SO not going to miss having two of you around.” Cadance said, a smile still on her face.         “More of us to love!” said Twilight.         “Eeeyup!” Twilight exclaimed.         “Wow. That really does sound corny when I say it doesn’t it?” Twilight said mostly to herself.         “Eeeyup!” said Twilight again overhearing her twin.         “Stop!” Twilight said as she immediately levitated a muffin into her other self’s mouth.         “Okay that’s enough my little princesses.” Celestia said “We still have a while to go before we arrive so let’s take that time to formalize our plans so we are all putting the right hoof forward.”         Both Twilights immediately stuck their tongues out at each other then laughed.         “Weirdest.  Thing. Ever.” said Rainbow Dash. ======================================================================================================         The initial planning sessions complete, the majority of those involved retired to the deck to watch the scenery pass by.  Rarity stayed below in the cool of her quarters to sketch.  Ostensibly this was because she said that her recent fashion designs had a looming deadline but in reality airship travel was not entirely new to her and she felt she could make better use of her time below decks.         Both Twilights retired to their quarters as well to sleep for the remaining trip so as to conserve their energy.  Each took a mild sedative and was fast asleep.         The remaining members of the party spent the time talking and watching the scenery pass by.         Slowly the forests and grasslands gave way to bushes and scrub then finally, almost like a knife’s edge as they passed a river, the ground turned to sand as far as the eye could see.         Still the Wind Walker sailed on over the sand.  Princess Celestia and Luna cast a locating beacon into an engraved circle in the deck near the bow of the ship.  The spell looked like one circle on the outside edge of a larger one.  Celestia ordered the ship turned until the smaller circle was in line with the prow.  As the ship moved closer to it’s goal the smaller circle eventually moved inside the larger one completely until it reached the center.         “We’ve arrived everypony!  And early afternoon as well!” Luna exclaimed “Would someone fetch Rarity please?”         “No need quite yet.” Celestia said “We still have to set down and then prepare the casting ring.  That will take some time.”         “Agreed.” said one of the Twilights, as she emerged onto the deck from the aft stairs.  Yawning she continued “There’s nothing my friends can do until we get that finished.”         “I concur.” said the other Twilight, as she entered from the galley stairs with a bagel floating besides her.         Celestia ordered the ship to land and she settled to the sand with only a slight jarring.  Heavily muscled royal guards pounded in large sand stakes using wooden mallets.  Mooring lines quickly followed and the HRS Wind Walker was secured to the ground.         Preparations began in earnest and almost the entire hold of the ship was emptied out onto the sand.  The ponies in charge of the archives testing area began using spells to turn the sand to glass in an intricate pattern before starting to construct the magickal metal ring around the outer edge.           When all was done a solid ring of bright copper surrounded a glass surface that, while only showing a foot high, reached several more feet into the ground.  The copper ring itself was at least a foot in thickness but only spanned a circle 10 feet in diameter.         The design in the glass was Twilight Sparkle’s cutie mark in full color.  Aligned with the stars in Twilight’s mark, small platforms were fastened to the copper ring.  Each platform was made of copper as well and had divots in them exactly where a pony would stand.         Having emerged from her cabin, Rarity was taken aback by how clean and proper the whole construction looked. “Not a grain out of place, nor an improper color!” she said in admiration “I couldn’t have designed it better myself!”         “Thank you.” said both Twilights in unison.  This caused a furtive glance between Rainbow Dash and Applejack.  Applejack just shrugged.  Rainbow put a hoof to her face in exasperation.         “Is there an issue girls?” Pinkie asked from behind them after having just gone down into the galley.         “Nothing!” both ponies said together in startled voices.         “Good.” said Pinkie with a slightly menacing smile “I’d hate to have to sic Gummy on you!”         With practiced skill Applejack just nodded and smiled.  Rainbow however was rather obvious in her sudden inspection of the deck under her feat.  Smiling more casually Pinkie entered the galley again - this time from the other set of stairs.         It was an hour later when the fussy archivist ponies pronounced the casting ring complete.  Upon hearing this Celestia sent a nearby crewman to round up the Twilights and her friends, the Twilights themselves being the last to arrive as they had been locked in a single cabin talking for that entire period of time.         “Now if you recall from our planning sessions” one Twilight started off.         “the two of me are the only ponies at risk here.” the other Twilight finished.         “While we shall be inside the shield” continued the first Twilight.         “you will be safe outside along the edge of the casting ring.” the second Twilight said.         “Shiney please remember that you have to make sure that your shield is as strong as you can but only in one direction.” the first Twilight remarked.         “I’m counting on you BBBFF!” the second Twilight exclaimed.         “I know how to do my job Twiley!” Shining Armor retorted with a grin “Er....Twileys.  Cadance is right.  I’m also not going to miss having two of you around.”         With the sun starting to set they made their way to the casting circle.  Each of the bearers donning their pendants and summoning their Element from the box in the hold.         As the shadows lengthened, the crew of the ship hung glowing globes on poles surrounding the casting ring.         The first to step on the platforms, much to everypony’s surprise, was Fluttershy.  She was followed quickly by Rainbow Dash then Applejack.  Rarity was next.  Pinkie Pie looked thoughtful for a second then bounced onto the last platform with a wide smile on her face.         Luna and Celestia aligned themselves at the North and South poles of the circle exactly as both Twilights entered the casting ring itself.  Cadance positioned her opposite her husband.         With a nod from his sisters, Shining Armor slowly raised the complicated shield while Cadance reached out and enhanced his magick.  When it was done his signature pink bubble enclosed the casting circle. Small swirls of blue could be seen here and there underneath the surface.  Rarity and one of the Twilights tested the shield flow and confirmed that while magick could get in it could not get out again.         “Call it Twilight.” Shining Armor said as his horn glowed with the effort of maintaining the shield.  Cadance’s horn glowed with a similar effort.         “Okay everypony!” both Twilights said “Let’s get this show on the road!”         Both Twilights stepped forward so that their heads were resting on each others’ shoulders.  Closing their eyes they concentrated and started weaving the reunification spell.         One by one the Elements of Harmony came to life and projected powerful beams of energy directly at the two forms inside the shield.  Only when all of the Elements were engaged did Luna and Celestia add their magick.         As the intensity in the circle increased the Twilights slowly became aware of their friends.  Similar in nature to their bonds with the other princesses, they could feel the emotions of their friends in a frenzy of thoughts and feelings.         Darlings no!  It’s got to be balanced!  Like a work of art!         But keep it simple!  Nuthin too complex ya hear!         Wait!  Make that part shiner!  Excellent!         Don’t forget to add safety features!         And this part needs to be RIGHT HERE so that the threads of reality don’t collapse!  That would be BAD BAKING! I hate baked bads...         As the power being fed into the spell increased so did a humming sound.  It wasn’t long before a crescendo of noise built up enough for those remaining on board ship to raise a magickal barrier to deaden the rising sound.         Twilight peaked all around them and the Twilights in the circle began to glow even brighter than they had before.  Rising slightly and floating, the two Twlights began to melt and merge.  A disharmony of noise entered the woven spell as the two ponies flowed together.         Push harder girls!         I am NOT almost losing her again!         I got yer back Twilight!         Be strong everypony!         Gotcha!         With that last thought there was an enormous snapping sound and a crackling of rainbow colored lightning.  In the following moments Cadance and Shining Armor were thrown to the ground while the shield shattered into so many dissolving fragments.         When the dust cleared there was a single purple alicorn in the center of the casting circle.  Her surrounding friends rushed to her side before being pushed back by Celestia and Luna.         “Give us a moment to ascertain her status.” Luna said in an attempt to calm them.         “Twilight?” asked Celestia tentatively “Can you hear me?”         “Pizza.” said Twilight without moving from where she lay “Canterlot Nights. Buzzing Bear Bees. The Great and Powerful Ditzy Doo!”         “Twilight?” asked Celestia again in a concerned tone.         “Sorry...green grass...tough to get a handle on it...polyphonic...dual memories...” Twilight said attempting to sit up and failing.         “Shhhh...” Celestia said while putting a hoof on her shoulder “Just rest now.”         “Eggplant.” Twilight said before slumping to the glass surface and passing out.         “Will she be all right?” asked Rainbow Dash.         “Only time will tell.” replied Luna.         Celestia and Luna picked Twilight up with magick and the entire party entered the ship as the last rays of the sun fell behind the horizon. ===================================================================