//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 // Story: The Journal of Star Swirl // by SoulFyre //------------------------------// Princess Twilight Sparkle sat within the library of the Castle of the Two Sisters reading from a particularly large tome. This had become a habit of hers since discovering the library’s marvelous collection, even more so after the fall of Tirek. The castle provided the one thing Twilight had been woefully without since her own Castle of the Friendship Rainbow Kingdom (she really wished to work on the name) had appeared: Peace and quiet. So here she was doing two things she loved: reading and magical research. The massive tome, bigger than a filly, that lay open before her was filled to the brim with magical theory devised by Star Swirl the Bearded himself. While no actual spells were present, and she had almost reached the halfway point, the theories themselves were quite impressive. Far ahead of his time even. It was no wonder that most modern magical theory had yet to disprove Star Swirl the Bearded; he was a genius. Sure, ponies had expanded on the theories, but Star Swirl the Bearded could have easily done so himself had he lived longer. “Oh yes yes, one more page and I’m officially halfway finished,” said Twilight with a clap of her hooves. All it took was one more page and as she used her magic to surround the current one she noticed something strange; it wouldn’t budge. Twilight raised a brow. “Strange,” she licked the tip of her hoof and went to turn it manually, but found she couldn’t budge it. “Ugh, what’s wrong with this thing.” She decided to turn to the page after the other one and was able to turn it, the previous two pages were stuck together. Her eyes narrowed, “Okay book, I’ve never been beaten by one of you before and I’m not starting now!” She gripped both of the stuck pages in her magic and slowly attempted to work them apart to no avail. She groaned and, more forcibly than she intended, turned the pages and skipped the middle. “Fine, be that way.” As she read the passage on the next next page, she couldn’t help but lose focus. She glared at the page, knowing that it was the horrible offender. How could she read when the source of her problem was right in front of her. She couldn’t skip another page, that would be anarchy. Anarchy! She went back to reading the passage and though she couldn’t focus on it she did manage to catch part of the final sentence. ...and you shall find the prior shall part for your efforts. Twilight’s eyes shot open and she went to the start of the passage. I have painstakingly filled this tome so far with theorems that at present may appear anathema to current beliefs. And yet instead of spreading it to the masses and attempting to enlighten them I have done this not for that purpose. No, this is a defense mechanism. Few If any of the learned would read this through to this point out of offense or even may attempt to destroy it. Of course, my enchantments would make such impossible, but picturing the look on their face when their attempts fail brings me great amusement. But those protection charms are not the only enchantments I have placed upon this tome. I have also done so to the prior pages, made inseperable, and this page as well. You may have noticed that the next page is blank. Twilight took a moment to look to the next page and realized that this was correct. “Strange.” This is because that you are reading the last writing present in this tome. A writing that would only appear to those who had read through the previous in its entirety. This tome was not meant for knowledge; it was meant to conceal. If you are reading this then I must assume that that which is hearsay is now acceptable or you are a true scholar and the truth may well deserve to come out. This tome will be hidden away within the newly constructed castle of the Royal Sisters. Even they are unaware of this tome’s existence and if they were to discover it I truly doubt that either would bother to read it through. They can be quite lazy when not on their thrones. I will leave to you, dear reader, a vocal spell that shall appear once you finish this passage. Speak it and you shall find the prior shall part for your efforts. As Twilight read the last word, her focus finally upon it, a small flash appeared below it and the spell had appeared. “Amazing,” Twilight smiled, “I’m the first one to ever see this. YES!” With an earsplitting grin and with much vigor Twilight spoke the words of the spell. At least that was the plan, but the actual spell caused her confusion. “Shibbity doo… shibbity dah?” A flash from beneath the page confirmed the success of the spell. Twilight’s eye twitched. “Seriously?” Taking a moment to overcome the absurdity of the spell’s words she finally got to see what was hidden from her.   Twilight studied the drawing present on the rightmost page. “A magic circle?” Twilight studied it, but it seemed just so simple. Magic Circles didn’t necessarily have to be complex, but in a book with so much advanced magic theory, Twilight would expect something much grander. Nevertheless, Twilight was fascinated. Even with its simplicity the fact that this circle was so well hidden meant that there had to be some incredible spell within it. Twilight was absolutely giddy thinking of all the possibilities. She reached out with her magic and traced the circle. As she felt the magical energies coalesce she placed her hoof in the center and… Twilight came to. She slowly rose to her hooves and placed one on her forehead. “What happened?” She gave her head a quick shake and took a look at her surroundings. Or lack thereof. She was quite obviously not in the castle any longer. She also didn’t appear to be anywhere. She looked all around her and saw nothing. Nothing but an endless expanse of white. “Okay Twilight,” she said, “you activated a spell hidden away in a book without taking any safety precautions because you were too excited to use common sense,” she facehoofed, “good going Sparkle.” She took a deep breath and looked to the… sky? “Where am I?” “A book,” a voice said. Twilight’s head snapped back down and she started frantically searching for the source of the voice. “Who’s there? Hello?” “One moment,” said the voice, “sheesh let me appear first.” Right before Twilight’s eyes an earth pony mare faded into view. Unfortunately, the pony in question was yards in front of Twilight and looking away from her. “Seriously ruined my big entrance you know,” the mare said, “I get the questions, but you could’ve waited a second. Or been in a stunned silence like you were supposed to be.” Twilight raised a brow, “Um, I’m over here.” The mare turned her head to look at Twilight before letting out an exasperated sigh. The mare faded from view and almost instantly faded back, this time facing Twilight. The mare hadn’t actually moved any closer though. “You couldn’t just turn around?” The mare smiled. “When you have cool powers why waste them.” Twilight rolled her eyes. “Okay then, who are you?” “I’m the Index,” she said. “The Index?” “Yep,” The ‘Index’ brought a hoof to her chin. “Although, I guess Table of Contents would be more accurate right now given we’re before the beginning. What should I call myself?” As the mare contemplated what she should be called, Twilight looked her over. The earth pony mare had a three-toned, purple-pink mane of decent length and her tail matched. Her coat was blue, maybe pale cobalt-ish. Her cutie mark was a pink swirl around a white star and was dotted with pink and white stars. “I know I’m easy on the eyes, but mine are up here.” Twilight blushed and met the mare’s purple eyes. “Sorry, I was just-” The mare raised a hoof. “Checking me out. But that’s not important right now, what is is… my name. I think I’ll go with my real self’s.” “Real self?” The mare smiled. “Yep, I’m a fragment of the soul of the one who created this spell and wrote this book. My name is Star Swirl.” Twilight was surprised by this. Star Swirl obviously wrote the book she buried her nose in (quite literally now) for hours and the spell that brought her into the book, to what appeared to be a separate dimension so it would make sense that he’d leave a copy of himself within it. And Celestia had said that he was an eccentric but... “Okay, I’m not sure why Star Swirl would make his fragment an earth pony or a mare, or even how he could have,” said Twilight. “Oh she didn’t,” said ‘Star Swirl’, “I’m a perfect copy of the one whose soul I was taken from.” “No you’re not,” said Twilight, “Star Swirl the Bearded wasn’t a mare or an earth pony, he was an old unicorn stallion. You know, the typical long bearded, wisened elder image that all stereotypical wizards have.” “Nope,” said ‘Star Swirl’. “What do you mean ‘nope’,” Twilight said. “We have paintings and banners and artifacts how can you just say ‘nope’?” “Artifacts? How long have I been hidden away?” ‘Star Swirl’ brought a hoof to her chin again. “I was placed here shortly after Luna went all psycho on us. Well, actually I was added on to after that… twice maybe… huh.” ‘Star Swirl’ set her hoof down smiled widely. “I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m not a calendar.” Twilight facehoofed. “It’s been around a thousand years.” “With your input I’ve concluded that it’s been a thousand years.” Twilight slid her hoof down her face and sighed. “Star Swirl the Bearded wasn’t a complete whack job either. If you are ‘Star Swirl’ like you say then you must be a niece or child of his with the same name, though I’m pretty sure you’re just delusional.” “Interesting ideas, but nope,” said ‘Star Swirl’. Twilight was at her wits end with this pony. The excitement of discovery had waned and she just wanted one thing: “How do I get out of here?” ‘Star Swirl’ gave her a quizzical look. “Why do you want to leave? We haven’t even started yet.” “You’re crazy and obviously this has to be some kind of prank the princess setup. I don’t know why Princess Celestia would do such a thing, but I guess she was less restrained back then. I’ll find my own way out.” Twilight turned around and started to walk away. And then the ‘sky’ started to turn a dark grey. ‘Star Swirl’ faded into existence in front of her, the same distance as before. Her expression was different though. Her eyes were narrowed and she radiated an aggressive aura. It was terrifying. Twilight took a step back. “LISTEN,” Star Swirl’s voice echoed and Twilight winced. “You invade MY sanctuary and you have the audacity to question me?” Star Swirl moved forward while Twilight kept stepping back. “Listen well, invader, and absorb this.” Star Swirl reared back and slammed her forehooves into the ground and parts of the white expanse under Twilight wrapped around her hooves, rooting her in place. Star Swirl closed the distance and was almost nose to nose with Twilight. “I am a perfect facsimile of the writer of this book, of the great mage that crafted the spells weaved throughout, of the most respected, the most feared, mage to ever live.” “I am Star Swirl the Bearded and you, dear invader, if you so choose, will find out how this can be. Understood?” Twilight nodded slowly. Star Swirl perked up. “Good.” And just like that everything returned to normal. The white that bound her legs faded and the ‘sky’ returned to the same white as before letting the place look like one large expanse once more. Twilight’s heart was still pounding in her chest when Star Swirl spoke again. “Now then dear… I guess reader, you are within the personal journal of Star Swirl the so-believed Bearded and I am your guide. I was placed here to remove confusion, to help the one who would find this journal understand it. And I find it quite rude that you have yet to introduce yourself.” Twilight’s heart had slowed and she took a deep breath. “I’m Twilight Sparkle.” “Nice to meet you,” said Star Swirl. “You’re an Alicorn.” “Yes?” “I thought Celestia, Luna and their mother were the only ones left… not that they never lied to me…”she trailed off. “Well, there are two more of us now that they… wait mother?” Star Swirl gave her another quizzical look. “Well yeah, where do you think they came from?” Twilight thought on it for a moment. “I guess I never really thought about it before.” “No surprise,” said Star Swirl. “The old bag was a bit of a recluse. So two more?” Twilight nodded. “There’s me and then there’s Cadance, my sister-in-law.” “Interesting, moving on.” Star Swirl moved next to Twilight and waved a hoof. A pair of cushions appeared in front of them. Starswirl went to one and lay across it. “Let’s get off of our hooves and get started.” Twilight sat on the remaining cushion. “Get what started? And just where are we, how do I get out?” “You can leave whenever you want really. Just tell me you want to and I’ll send you on your way and I told you already, you’re in a book or at least you mind is.” “How is that possible?” “A spell Star Swirl developed specifically for this book so her tale could one day be told. And in answer to your next question, you’re actual body is still wherever you left it. Don’t worry though, you could spend days in here and only minutes will have passed outside. Though to be fair I doubt anyone would actually stay in here that long. Or even know it if they did for that matter.” Star Swirl gestured around her. “This place is a bit of a void, no way to tell the time.” “What do you mean by her tale being told?” Star Swirl grinned. “This isn’t your typical journal. It is the ultimate example of show, don’t tell. You’ll actually see the events Star Swirl lived through as if you were there yourself.” “That’s amazing.” “Yep.” Twilight looked up for a moment. “Do you think I could leave now? I’m kind of inside an old library and I’m not too comfortable with my body being there without me. Never thought I’d say something like that.” “Your body will be fine,” said Star Swirl, “but I can understand your worries. You may leave, but I would like it if you return to me soon. My purpose is to show you this story and you’re kind of preventing me from fulfilling it.” “I promise,” said Twilight. “This is just too incredible not to.” Star Swirl smiled. “Good, just fill the book with your magic and concentrate on returning and you’ll re-enter my domain.” Star Swirl waved a hoof and Twilight felt herself slipping away. “Hope to see you soon, Twilight Sparkle.” Twilight came to. She was back in the library no worse for wear. There was one big difference though: the large tome was gone. In its place was a much smaller, though by no means small, book; it was just the size of the longer Daring Do novels. Twilight opened the front cover and found writing on the first page: Twilight Sparkle. Fill the next page with you magic and concentrate on returning whenever you feel like continuing. “I really need to speak to Princess Celestia about this.”