//------------------------------// // Prophecy revealed // Story: Destiny Book 0: Starswirl's Nightmare // by SirScribe //------------------------------// Starswirl and Clover inched closer toward the Princess of the Sun. The Elements laid on the ground around her hooves with little color to their appearance. They appeared to be sad to Starswirl. The sorcerer knelt next to the princess and lowered his hat. He had no words for the princess. He had witnessed Luna’s banishment for attempting a coup. The power of the Elements frightened him, and the fact that he sensed the work of a time traveler in the room seemed to only fuel his uneasiness. The sense was gone the minute the Moon took a new form. The only thing Starswirl could do was place a hoof on the princess. The presence of a warm body frightened Celestia, but she knew from the distant heartbeat that the pony was just as scared as she was. She lowered her head onto Starswirl’s body and continued crying. The sorcerer, instead of giving his undivided attention to the princess, found himself staring at the Elements. While their ‘mood’ was low, he could still feel their heartbeats racing. He looked up at his apprentice. She nodded at his silent message and scooped up the Elements. Starswirl brushed Celestia’s mane. “There there Celestia, everything will be fine,” he said. “Like hell they will,” she responded. The sorcerer was shocked. “If you came when I summoned you, we could’ve found a way to stop Luna before the eclipse! You let her change, did you?!” “What?! No, I would never do that to you! I am your friend!” “Then where were you when your friend died?!” Celestia’s voice echoed through the castle, probably alerting the guards as to where she was. Starswirl’s heart broke, and Clover could’ve heard it from where she was. “You never cared for me or my sister! All you have ever done was sit in your tower conducting experiments on dark and light magic when you could’ve gotten to know the both of us! You could’ve helped!” “Princess Celestia, I will apologize when I see you deserve it, but I am not the one who outshone my sister!” Princess Celestia looked up at him with disgust. “Excuse me?!” “You could’ve acknowledged to your subjects that Luna saved you from Sombra, instead you let historians record that it was you who rescued her! You told the public that it was you who stopped Sombra, but it was both of your faults that the Crystal Empire sank into the ice. You are responsible for your sister, not me! My life was branched off from yours the minute you succeeded me in Magic Training. I lived alone!” Starswirl argued. “Nightmare’s rise could have been prevented if she didn’t feel like she was living in the shadow of your success!” Clover covered your shriek. Princess Celestia stared at the sorcerer with anger and she tried to argue, but she saw his point. Historians did come to Celestia, asking her what had happened, and instead of hailing Luna as her hero, she let them believe Luna was defeated right away. She didn’t try to change history by saying the truth. The Element of Honesty was gone from her. She didn’t give credit to her sister; she let historians give her credit for saving Equestria. The Element of Generosity was gone. Luna needed help, but instead of giving her family priority, Celestia’s royal duties came first in her eyes. Loyalty was gone. She didn’t try to cheer Luna up when she felt ill. Laughter was no more. When Luna called for help, she didn’t answer. She was too busy to meddle in Luna’s mental state. Kindness was history. What kind of friend was she? What kind of sister was she? Starswirl rose. “If you do not want me around anymore, Celestia, then who am I to stick around? I’m an old stallion who needs to rest, not your imaginary friend. I will be gone soon, you don’t need me anymore,” he said. The sorcerer began walking away from the alicorn, but Clover stood in his way. “What is it?” She shook her head. “Everypony has flaws, Starswirl. You cannot turn your back on somepony just because they made a mistake.” “Nightmare rose because nopony tried to help Luna. I am only the royal sorcerer, but I don’t think I am even that right now. Celestia can grow out of this slump just like she got over her parent’s death,” he said. Celestia began wailing. “He trusted you to ensure that Celestia and Luna would move on from that event, but for you to bring it up at this time is shameful!” “You are Celestia’s friend, you help her! I hung around so I can ensure that a peaceful transition of power would be made and the sisters mature enough to lead a kingdom on their own! I’m no longer needed now there is only one ruler and she doesn’t have the strength to move on! I’m done!” He pushed Clover out of the way and walked toward the door. Before he could make it out of the chamber, a surge of magical energy struck the unicorn. He went down, and Clover watched him. She thought he was pulling her leg, but when his horn began glowing gold, she knew that he wasn’t joking. “Starswirl!” Celestia stopped her weeping and looked over at her friend. Starswirl was bombarded with images of Nightmare returning to Equestria and wreaking havoc on the citizens of Equestria. He saw Nightmare standing in front of the alter for the Elements facing off against a unicorn. Another image flashed in his mind, this time of the Gates of Tartarus bursting open and a cloaked being walking out. The sorcerer slowly rose to his hooves, images still flashing in his mind. Clover ran to her friend and helped him on all fours. “Starswirl, what’s going on?” The images faded from Starswirl’s mind. “The chest, NOW!” He ran through the throne room with his old student behind him. Celestia managed to rise as well and chased after the royal wizard. Starswirl burst through the doors leading into his tower. Behind him was Clover and Princess Celestia. “Of course, why didn’t I see it? Those weren’t nightmares I was seeing, that was a prophecy! I should’ve realized that!” Clover sighed. “Starswirl, can you please explain?” “The chest! The chest that requires 6 keys! Why would an ordinary jewelry chest need 6 locks unless you were hiding something very important? This chest was given to me by a friend and told me to keep it safe. I had no idea I had it!” “Had what?” Celestia asked. “Magic. Raw, untampered magic! Magic that transcends time!” Celestia and Clover both looked at each other. “Ok, I’ll bite. Raw magic inside a chest? That is impossible!” “So is time travel and I managed to prove you wrong, your majesty. My Time Spells are nothing compared to what’s inside the chest! I gotta get it open. Clover, take two keys. Princess Celestia, you as well,” Starswirl said. The two ponies looked at each other and shrugged. They both grabbed two keys with their magic and approached the box. The keys entered their respected holes and a faint click was heard. All the ponies looked at each other and took deep breathes. They all simultaneously turned their keys and the tumbler clicked. Time stood still. Celestia looked at the box. Nothing was happening. The Princess of the Sun sighed. “Maybe you were imagining thin—” The room exploded with magic as the lid of the chest exploded, unleashing a huge vortex in the room. The winds of the vortex blasted all of Starswirl’s notes around and through the door. A miniature storm was raging inside Starswirl’s tower. From within the vortex, a voice rang out. It was a whisper, but it was definitely clear: On the Longest day of the Thousandth year, Rise the Dark Queen whom all shall fear, Chaos be spread as equal to all, Gates of Tartarus must fall, 6 Knights shall answer the plea, Save us from this monstrosity, The Kingdom of twilight will rise and then, Mark Equestria’s End The vortex died down and the lid was replaced. The keys were magnetically expelled from the chest. The three friends stood there with their jaws dropped. A prophecy was made, and it began tonight. Celestia had fear and hope in her eyes. Her sister would return. Clover was the first to speak. “Equestria’s End?” “Doomsday. The end of the Last Kingdom. It was written in the Alicorn Castle all those years ago. I have the warning in a book somewhere, but why is it marked after your time?” Starswirl asked Celestia. “My sister is still eligible for my throne after I pass. It will be the Age of the Sun, Age of the Moon, and I guess the Age of Twilight. We still have time,” Celestia said. “And the Age of the Sun is still burning. We have time. We need to do something,” Clover cried. Starswirl nodded and approached the box. He put his ear up to it and listened. “I hear something. There is more inside this chest, but it cannot be opened again. We need to hide it.” Celestia nodded. “And I know exactly where to hide it.”