Alicornae: The Legend of Starlit Sky
Part I - Chapter 2: The Chosen Unicorn
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"I'm certain that you have no end of questions for me, Starlit Sky," Twilight asked as she busied herself in the kitchen of the Golden Oak.
"That would be putting it mildly, Your... Majesty?" Starlit replied. She had never been in the presence of royalty, for there hadn't been any for as long as she had lived, and thus the finer points of social decorum were lost on her.
"Starlit, I lost the right to be referred to as 'Your Majesty' seven-hundred years ago... or was it eight-hundred? Immortality has a way of making the years run together," Twilight mused. "Either way, just Twilight will suffice."
As Twilight prepared drinks for the both of them, Starlit sat on a surprisingly plush cushion and marveled at her surroundings. The Golden Oak was as much a library and laboratory as it was a home; stacks of books, shelves as high as the ceiling, and piles of scrolls surrounded the small living space, and perched neatly atop the books and nearly every horizontal surface were widgets and doobobs of every sort. Starlit could only begin to guess what any of them did.
"Tell me, Starlit, how do you take your coffee?" Twilight asked. She was carrying a small tray with two steaming ceramic cups, a small ceramic pitcher, and a bowl full of small white cubes that she placed softly on the table in front of them.
"Coffee? I can't say I've ever heard of it."
"Oh, my apologies; I guess I've gotten so used to my way of living that I forget that the life I lead is considerably better off than nearly everyone else in the country. Now, coffee is a strong and bitter drink made from straining hot water through dried and ground up coffee beans. It can give you quite the jolt should you need it, but most ponies prefer to add cream and sugar to make it more palatable."
"You have cream and sugar?!" Starlit exclaimed. Such things were a delicacy, and just the thought of them was making her mouth water.
"Indeed I do," Twilight answered. "Shall I add some to your coffee?"
"Yes, please, as much as you can!"
Swiftly Twilight picked up one of the mugs, the pitcher, and the bowl of sugar in her magic and began mixing them all together. The formerly black liquid turned a wonderful pale brown, and the aroma was the single best scent Starlit had ever had the pleasure of smelling.
"There you go dear, one fresh mug of coffee with plenty of cream and sugar," Twilight replied as she set the mug in front of Starlit. "Careful now, it's still hot."
Carefully Starlit leaned her head forward and took a sip of the coffee. The taste was quite pleasent; it was slightly bitter to start, but the cream and sugar did an excellent job of masking it and added a smooth aftertaste that sat well on her palette.
"This drink is marvelous," Starlit said as she took another sip. "I can't believe nopony has tried to make this themselves. I'm certain that half the problems of the country could be solved if everypony had a mug of this."
"You wouldn't be the first pony to think that," Twilight answered as she drank. "This was quite the hit in my time, but sadly the war and subsequent dissolution of the country put an end to a lot of the finer things we so took for granted."
"Yes, about that," Starlit began. "I would be lying if I said I wasn't surprised to find out that you're alive. After all, most ponies these days don't even remember your name, let alone that you lived and reigned over this land."
"Well, you can thank these for my longevity," Twilight said as she removed her traveling cloak. Hidden just beneath the rough fabric was a pair of large wings that she unfurled and stretched.
"Wait, wait, wait," Starlit interjected. "You have wings and a horn?"
"Yes I do. You see, the other Princesses and I come from an ancient breed of pony known as Alicorns. We were meant to embody the best traits of all three mortal pony races, and with that sort of power comes extreme longevity; we were supposed to rule this country until the end of time. Our homelands may have been disparate, and we may have all come from different stock and walks of life, but in the end we were supposed to have one goal binding us all together."
"To maintain peace and harmony throughout Equestria, right?" Starlit said as she drank.
"Yes, to maintain peace and harmony. You've read that story quite a few times, haven't you?"
"It's the only one that gets Eclipse to sleep these days. Still, I get the sneaking suspicion that you didn't drag me out here to reminisce over delightful drinks," Starlit continued, steering the conversation away from her daughter. "What is it that you want from me, Twilight?"
"Quite the astute pony you are," Twilight replied as she set her mug down. "I suppose that you've indulged this old mare for long enough, although the heart of this matter is less about what I want and more about what Equestria needs."
"Then what does Equestria need?" Starlit asked.
"Put simply, Equestria needs its Princesses back. The country is sliding further and further into disarray and anarchy, the thestrals are growing more and more numerous everyday, and I fear that this land is about to reach a breaking point. A breaking point that the world itself won't be able to come back from."
At the mention of the thestrals Starlit set her cup down. Those ponies who had succumbed to the Wasting sickness, who had lost their minds and sentience and were reduced to little more than raving beasts... they brought back uncomfortable memories.
"Starlit?" Twilight asked. Quickly she snapped out of her self-reflection.
"Sorry, I was just trying to process what you're telling me," Starlit answered. "This is quite a lot to take in at once, you see."
"I don't doubt it for a moment," Twilight said with a quick sip. "You just learned that the Princesses of old still exist, you're sharing drinks with one of them, and now you are being told that said Princesses must be brought back into the fold before the unraveling of all things destroys us all. I'd be shocked if you weren't apprehensive."
"But why tell me all of this? I'm just a unicorn from a dirt-farm that's trying to keep her family alive, not some great warrior or magician that could do something about this impending crisis. You pulled me out here for a reason," Starlit continued, "and I think that it's high time you told me that reason."
"Yes, I suppose it is, but let me start with this," Twilight answered, her face settling into a serious countenance. "You aren't just a unicorn; you have the blood of some of the grandest wizards and warlocks of the Age of the Princesses flowing through you. Your magic has the potential to be far more powerful than any living unicorn's, were it not for the absence of the Princess' magic that once permeated the land."
"And I suppose next you'll tell me that I can fly, as well," Starlit sniped back. "I'm no great magician and we both know it; all I can do is keep a set of warding lines active for a night or two and feed some into the earth so that my crops don't wither. Even when I try, I can barely get more than a few wisps of pure magic out of my horn without a focal point for its power."
"Tell me, Starlit, when was the last time you saw another unicorn perform magic? Aside from your husband and daughter, that is."
"A few years maybe," she answered. "I don't make a habit of keeping track of everypony that I happen across in my day-to-day life, much less what they're doing at the time."
"I ask," Twilight said after a long swig of her coffee, "because most unicorns would struggle to provide even the most meager power to a warding line. Even with all the magic they could muster it would only power them for a few hours at most."
"Where's your proof?" Starlit asked, eyebrow cocked.
"You, Starlit Sky, are a very hard unicorn to please," Twilight answered. "Still, if you won't take a nigh-immortal Alicorn with magical power and intellect beyond anything you could possibly hope to understand at her word, then I suppose I could give you a glimpse into the life of the average unicorn."
With a swish of her horn Twilight projected a swirling magenta vortex in the air. Its surface was glossy and sleek like a perfectly calm lake, and inside of it Starlit could see a trio of shapes. They were unicorns much like herself, staring at a set of faded warding lines much like her own back home.
Together they stood before the lines and started to illuminate their horns in preparation to charge it. Their faces were screwed up in clear frustration and pain, and the magic trickled and sputtered from their horns whereas Starlit's had flowed evenly and calmly. Their knees began to shake and buckle, and one of the three had collapsed to the ground by the time the ritual was finished.
After the ordeal they had put themselves through, the two conscious unicorns looked down at their handiwork, chests heaving with labored breaths. The lines glowed with energy, but nowhere near as brightly as Starlit's had and with a much more inconsistent placement of the glyphs along the inner edge of the lines. Together they hoisted their friend up and carried her on their backs as the vision faded.
"That little vision of the present came from the town of Rocky Point," Twilight said as the glow around her horn dimmed. "Those three unicorns are also the only unicorns that haven't succumbed to the Wasting and can still do their job of protecting the town."
"But they have an entire town to protect," Starlit protested, shaken but undaunted. "I only have my home and lands; its barely half-an-acre."
"And Rocky Point isn't even a quarter of one," Twilight sniped back. "Believe me or not, there is something quite special about you and your lineage that makes you more adept at magic than ten normal unicorns put together. This makes you exactly the unicorn that I need to aid me; no other one would have the wherewithal to bring the Princesses home."
The pair sat in sullen silence for a time, sipping their drinks as Starlit Sky thought over her options. On the one hoof, the vision she had seen was fairly convincing; if the unicorns of Equestria were so far behind even her meager magical ability then the Princess might have a point to her story. On the other though, she already had a job. She had a family to help care for and a daughter to rear.
"But if the world is truly in danger of collapsing on itself," Starlit thought, "then it won't matter one way or the other if I spend my days taking care of my family if the ground falls out from beneath us."
"If nothing else, Starlit," Twilight said, "at least think of your family."
"I thought you said you weren't going to read my mind?" Starlit shot back.
"And the mare protests too much. I'm not reading your mind, but I know that look on your face; it's the face of a pony weighing her options, wondering which is the better and which the worse. You worry for your family, but at the same time you know that it won't matter how good of a mother you are if the world comes to a cataclysmic end. I myself faced a similar dilemma in my time."
"How so?" Starlit asked as she refilled her cup. The coffee was giving her an alert and invigorating feeling, and she was going to make sure she filched some before she left.
"You think you're the only pony that had a family to worry over? My family lived with me in the capital, and they were the light of my life. My father and mother, my brother Shining Armor and his wife Cad—"
"Wait, Prince Shining Armor was your brother? But he was Princess Cadance's husband, which would make her..."
"My sister-by-marriage, yes," Twilight interjected. "The family tree was a tad tangled amongst us, I'll admit; technically Celestia and Luna would be my aunts-by-marriage once removed... at least I think so. I never concerned myself much with our genealogy."
"And where did Chrysalis fit into all of this?" Starlit asked.
"She was an interesting case, to be sure. She came to Canterlot with a retinue of her Changeling children and asked an audience with the four of us one winter's eve. It was well over a thousand years ago when she came to us, and all she said was that she had received a missive to appear at court. She told us that her power over death would be needed to maintain balance and order in Equestria; more than that she never spoke of, but we were somewhat naïve and welcomed her with open hooves."
"I feel like there is a 'but' coming up," Starlit said.
"How astute of you to notice," Twilight replied as she took a swig of her drink. "We welcomed her to Canterlot as well as a sizable population of her Changelings, but from day one she was plotting our downfall."
"Did she start killing indiscriminately, given her power over death and what-not?"
"Oh heavens no," Twilight scoffed. "That wasn't her style, that would be far too abrupt and noticeable. No, what she did was sow the seeds of doubt and disharmony in the court and amongst Celestia, Luna, Cadance, and I over the course of centuries. It started small, just tit-for-tat exchanges and passive aggressive barbs, but as the years wore on the discord between us grew and festered. By the time the war started none of us could stand each other, and we had secreted ourselves away to our own keeps and holdfasts."
"And what of your family?" Starlit asked.
"...The first of many casualties in the war," Twilight answered, her voice dropping as she stared at her drink. "Mother and Father died during Luna's first assault on the Oak, and Shining Armor abandoned this place not long afterward to be with Cadance. I'm not sure if he's still alive, but I doubt it matters now. He made his choice."
"I'm... I'm sorry, Twilight," Starlit said, her voice hushed. "I can't imagine how hard that must have been for you."
"Well, if there's one small comfort that comes from immortality, it's that it gives you quite a lot of time to ruminate on depressing matters. I came to grips with my parent's deaths and Shining's abandonment a long time ago."
Twilight continued to stare at her cup as Starlit drained hers, the warm liquid filling her up and focusing her mind. With a resolute clink of ceramic against wood she stood up from her cushion.
"Twilight, Your Highness," she began, "if I'm to do this mission for you, I need a promise from you. I figure the request I have will be a small price to pay for what is surely going to be a dangerous journey, but if you don't do this for me then we don't have a deal."
"Name it and it is yours," Twilight replied. She quickly stood to her hooves and wreathed her horn in magic.
"I need you to swear on your honor that my family will be safe for as long as I am gone. They are all that I have in this world, and I need your assurance that they will be healthy and happy while I'm doing this for you."
"I can even do you one better," Twilight replied.
With a flick of her horn she sent a violet ray shooting up into the air. The bolt quickly passed through the roof of the Golden Oak and sailed over the horizon until it passed out of Starlit's narrow view through the window.
"I have just cast a powerful spell on your property, tied to the magic of your warding lines," Twilight said as she cooled her horn off with a quick upward breath. "That bolt will summon a force-field around your home and your family. In addition to protecting the property from outside threats and influences, it also has a time-dialating effect. As long as it is active, no time will pass under the field, and your husband and daughter will wake up in the morning with no knowledge of what has occurred outside the field."
"Are you certain that it will work?" Starlit asked. She had never heard of a spell that could halt time, and things she didn't understand worried her.
"It's part of the magic that I use to keep this old place alive," Twilight replied. "I've imbued that spell into the wood of the Golden Oak so that way it won't age or decay. After all, even a magically grown tree designed to be a home and haven is still just a tree. Your family will be safe, Starlit Sky; you have my word as a Princess of Equestria."
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