Celestia’s Prophet
Part 6: Apploosa
“Security breach! We have a security breach!” A stallion was running full tilt down the hallowed halls of the palace in the middle of the night. Rushing to the nearest balcony he seized the alarm bell by its rope and rang it furiously. Lights started coming on in all the barracks at the four corners of the palace yards. Armor crash-crash-crashed in time with its fellows as ranks and files were formed up. “Prisoner Zero has escaped!” the stallion shouted into the propped megaphone. “Prisoner Zero has escaped!”
Celestia, who had been sitting by the hearth reading, looked up from her book. Shutting it with a snap, she made her way to the door and pressed it open. It hit the butt of a mare that was stationed in front of her door. “You’d best stay in your room, Princess!” She gave a quick bow, pushing it closed into her face. Celestia stutter-stepped back a little. “There’s a dangerous prisoner on the loose!”
“Who--?” Celestia started.
“Prisoner Zero has escaped! Prisoner Zero has escaped!” the echoing voice had reached her chambers at last. Her pupils shrank and the Princess drew herself up to her full height. This was it. The Prophet was making her move. Teleporting with a crack of magic, Celestia appeared in the hallway.
“Princess!” the guardsmare yelped. “I’m supposed to keep you safe!”
“Go to the servants quarters! Tell everypony to lock the palace down and stay out of sight!” The white alicorn called over her shoulder. “Tell the guards to watch the windows and walkways!” Taking flight the Princess of the day launched herself into the starry night beyond a corner balcony. Lifting herself skyward with a few powerful flaps, she swerved high to survey the palace and grounds.
No storms, the sky was as clear as day. None of the border beacons were lit. No invading armies. No visible fires or collapsing buildings. Wait, the prophet had already said she could only create, not destroy. What was new? What looked out of place from the norm? Wheeling about and minding the patrolling pegasi directing air traffic away from the castle, her eyes at last fell on the super-structure. There was an extra tower!
It was… rather phallic, really. A bulbous tip of purple and golden filigree, it looked like it had never been touched by rain nor time. Celestia stared down at it in wonder, and at the balcony jutting out at its summit. There was a large, ornate telescope looking skyward. Next to it was a little side table with scattered papers and scrolls. “There you are,” Celestia folded her wings to dive towards it and landed with a clack of her hooves.
“Prophet!” she called with authority. “Prophet! Are you here?!” she peered into the darkened archway. Leaning cautiously, she minded the fancy telescope, as not to knock it over with her wings. Screwing up her eyes, she finally gave in and lit her horn.
Lauren appeared in the threshold just as she did so, startling both of them back. “Oh there you are! I was wondering how long it would take you to notice an entirely new wing!” she elated, patting Celestia’s nose like nothing was wrong. “Ohhhh! Smell that fresh night air!” she heaved her lungs, then hahhhh’d out spectacularly.
“You’re out of your cell,” Celestia said a little testily, walking about her. “Please, return with me so nopony gets hurt—or created.” She poked Lauren in the butt with her horn, rather insistent. “You’ve caused a bit of a panic, I’d like to see you home before--!”
“Home? You think that little hole in the dark should be my home? Shame on you!” Lauren twirled about, grabbing Celestia’s horn with her hand and shaking her head about. Celestia staggered just a little while her world rocked, but she was let go and steadied herself.
“You’ve been down there for six years, why leave now? How did you do it?” Celestia looked around quickly, hoping nopony was staring up at them. If the Prophet set her eyes on anypony she might decide to change their lives, their histories, into something they were not. Hopefully she could contain it before she got… creative.
“I’m almost done!” Lauren threw her hands up in delight, all smiles.
“Done?” Celestia echoed.
“Yes!” the red-maned creature turned and herded Celestia forward to the telescope on the balcony. “Want to see?” she gestured a little.
“See what?”
“Ever look at a telescope? You can tell a lot about it by how it’s positioned,” Lauren snickered, pointing it skyward. “Star-gazer,” she pointed it towards the horizon, “Explorer,” then downward at the city below them, “Pervert.” She chuckled aloud, slapping Celestia’s shoulder.
The Princess was not amused. “Enough, please. You’ve been dodging my questions for ages. If you’re going to cause all this panic, you will answer me!” Her patience was all but gone now. Lauren turned and looked at her with an uncertain smile. “I protect this land and all the little ponies within,” she put an authoritative hoof down, starting to genuinely frown now. “Speak!”
“I made a town,” Lauren said rather smugly.
“You what?” Celestia said, rather taken aback.
“Yep!” she tossed her scarlet hair, looking rather proud of herself. “Here let me find it, it’s a little harder in the dark.” She was aiming the telescope more seriously now, peering through it as she slowly moved it. “Equestria is so small, but you still need to get up high so you can see far enough.” There were a few moment’s pause, then she made a little squeal of delight, “Ah! There it is!”
Celestia leaned before she could stop herself, peering into the telescope’s eye. It was a sleepy-looking little western-town. It bordered an apple orchard, and had a rather impressive train station on its border. “What is that…?” Celestia murmured.
“I call it… Aaaaaah-puh-LOOZ-uh!” Lauren put on an accent Celestia had not heard before, startling the Princess a little. “Ah, God, I love that. I'm gonna hafta have somepony saying that constantly. Er-any-hoo! It’s a western border town with plenty of surrounding mines, a train station, apple orchard, and plenty of rough-n-tumble ponies to live there!”
“Oh dear…” Celestia said a little fretfully. Squinting harder… sure enough, there they were. Little pony-shaped shadows moving back and forth through the streets. The streetlamps were fireflies, and not strong enough to see at this distance. It suddenly occurred to Celestia how she was seeing for miles and miles with something so simple as a telescope. But given she was looking at a town that had not been there yesterday, she had more important questions to ask.
“Do you like it?” Lauren asked eagerly.
Celestia turned and, with a hoof the size of a dinner plate, slapped Lauren across the face so hard that the cracking sound reverberated. Lauren reeled wildly, a red hoof-mark on her face. “Stop it!” the Princess cried suddenly. “Stop making things up! Toying with our lives! Changing our fates! Making things up as you go!”
“It’s what I do,” Lauren said from where she lay, holding the side of her face. Tears were slipping from her eyes because of the pain.
“Equestria is not some piece of clay for you to fashion like some sort of—!” Dead silence suddenly fell over them both.
“You think you’re Faust now?”
“Just Lauren will do.”
Lauren gave a rather bitter smile as she watched the realization sweep over Celestia’s expression like an icy wave. Slowly sitting up until her legs were folded under her, she waited for the Princess to speak. “I… knew it would be awkward,” she offered lamely, looking at the alicorn’s hooves instead of her face. “Once you figured it out, that is.”
“You?” Celestia said softly, slowly coming down to lay on her belly. “You…? And all this time I’ve been…” she stared hauntingly at the stone floor.
Lauren reached, half out of habit and half out of need for her own comfort, and stroked Celestia’s mane. “Yep,” she said softly. “Me.”
“But I locked you away! Hid you! Kept you under guard and didn’t even feed you properly!” Celestia said. “You just let me?”
“Yep,” Lauren said softly.
“Why? I don’t understand,” Celestia said forlornly, looking up at her. “I don’t… I don’t…”
Lauren took the Princess’ muzzle between her soft hands and kissed her between the eyes. “It’s alright, my little pony. Like I said, I’m almost done. Then I’ll be out of your hair forever.”
“What?” Celestia looked up, startled. “But—!”
“It’s a lot of work to just make a world, much less a complex one with such a rich history and background details like this one,” Lauren said. “I promise that as soon as I’m done making Equestria just right, I’ll leave it and your little ponies alone.” She offered such an honest and meaningful smile that Celestia could not help but believe her and feel at ease. Looking into a goddess’ eyes could do that to a pony.
There was a long silence of Lauren holding Celestia’s head, then tucking it over her shoulder like she was hushing a fretting filly. The Princess didn’t know what to say. Her ethereal locks flowed back and forth, catching the liquid starlight and the silvery glow of the mare in the moon. “Why aren’t you angry with me? For the way I treated you?” she whispered to Lauren.
“If you didn’t treat me like a dangerous creature I’d still be out there, affecting lives and maybe messing things up. In isolation, I could keep myself out of this work of art and let it flow naturally about itself,” Lauren smiled.
“You made all this?” Celestia whispered, not wanting to believe it.
“Mhm,” she nodded with a rather proud smile.
“Did you make… me?” the white alicorn whispered. Lauren smiled in silence for a long time, giving a quiet nod. “How old am I, really?” Celestia wanted to know. “Did I just pop into existence like Flower Power? Like those colts Shining Armor and Prince Blueblood?”
“You are only as old as you feel,” Lauren teased, patting her back. “I promise everything you remember happened, and has always happened. Even if I made it up.”
“Even if you made it up?” Celestia mumbled a little bitterly. “Am I just an artist’s dream?”
“A good dream, I promise,” Lauren cooed, kissing the end of her nose affectionately. “Now wake up.” She bapped Celestia on the forehead.
=-=-=-=
Celestia sat up with a feminine gasp of horror. Sweat beaded down her temple, and she looked about herself. Rising with her silken sheets laying over her back like a gown, she peered out her chamber balcony. New tower. Telescope. She could see no figures and heard no alarms. The mare in the moon stared down at her, unblinking as usual. She had no doubts about her vision. She was keeping a GOD in her deepest dungeon.
Turning with an audible swallow, she went to don her adornments and crown. The dozing guards outside snapped to attention when her door clicked open. “Take me to the palace dungeon,” she bade them softly.
End of Part 6