//------------------------------// // of Goddesses and Mares // Story: the D.R.A.G.O.N.s Archives // by Scout Charger //------------------------------// “… the princesses. Yeah, give me something about Alicorns!” Please say you don’t want me to tell you ALL about Alicorns. “Hmm? Would there be a problem with that?” Several actually, for once there is a lot of classified information about the princesses. Since they are the head of the state some of their actions and personal information are top secret. But more important might actually be the sheer amount of relevant data. We are talking about multiple beings whose combined lives add up to thousands of years of recorded history. Add to that the legends about Alicorns from all over the world and you got several lifetimes worth of study. “Good point. How about you tell me about what Alicorns actually are, why they are as powerful as they are and such. You said ‘Truths and Theories about Alicorns” just pick some cool and informative stuff.” Well, give me a minute. Accessing database storage zeta 17.01.01c to 19.87.45t … Access granted. Compiling information … procedure concluded. … Okay, I think first we should address the elephant in the room and make one thing very clear. Not every pony with wings and a horn is an Alicorn. Furthermore there is a huge difference between an Alicorn and one of the princesses. Now, before you even ask, yes, I know that most ponies think having wings AND a horn automatically makes you an Alicorn. Granted, superficially they appear rather similar, but from a scientific and magical point of view there are a lot of differences. I’ll start out my explanation with winged Unicorns and horned Pegasi. Those two are, by far, the most common beings mistakenly referred to as Alicorns. The thing is they are exactly what I called them, a Unicorn with wings and a Pegasus with a horn respectively. It is believed that in times before ponies formed a more or less stable society mating between ponies of different subspecies was relatively common. Not as normal as it is today, but way more common than in pre-Equestrian societies like the Unicorn kingdom, the Pegasi city states and so on. But it isn’t enough to get two ponies form different tribes to start a family. Both parents need to be true-bred specimen. If one parent is an earth pony and the other isn’t, it’s very difficult to recognize when the foal inherits both of the tribes’ traits. If a Pegasus and an Earth Pony have a foal it will always be considered a Pegasus if it has wings. Reports of Pegasi which can’t fly or are uncommonly strong often trace back to the parents being an Earth Pony and a Pegasus. Same goes for Unicorns without magic, non-Pegasi who can walk on clouds and Earth Ponies with a sixth sense or something like that. All of those phenomena are normally related to the pony in question being a hybrid of two tribes. “I heard of some of those. One of the Cutiemark Crusaders, Scootaloo, was a Pegasus but could not fly. Or the famous weight lifting champion Bulk Biceps, he was strong like a buffalo. Or … oh my Celestia … the Pinkie Sense!” All of which are good examples, yes. Though nobody really knows what the Pinkie Sense actually is and what causes it. The most commonly accepted explanation is: “It’s Pinkie Pie, don’t question it!” Anyway, let’s get back to topic. Now that we have ticked off the ‘normal’ hybrids, let’s get to the really rare ones. Because sometimes, when a Pegasus and a Unicorn decide to mate, the foal can inherit a horn as well as wings, though this is extremely rare. But if the genes have a particularly good day and whoever you think brings the foals doesn’t look too closely, it might happen. In all documented cases however, one of the related magical aspects was extremely underdeveloped or lacking completely. The only exception to this is princess Flurryheart, but since her mother is an Alicorn it is to be expected that she doesn’t follow the normal rules. All other ponies which were born with wings and horns are what modern science calls winged Unicorns and horned Pegasi. “Why would a Unicorn with wings not be able to fly? I mean, it would have wings, just like a Pegasus?” That’s a rather common misconception. The wings are essential for the flight of a Pegasus, but they are only one part of it. Basically the wings serve to channel magic, like the horn of a Unicorn if you will, only with feathers and more specialized. Without their wings Pegasi can’t fly anymore, but they still possess their inert magic and are therefore able to manipulate weather and walk on clouds. And that’s the thing with horned Pegasi and winged Unicorns. They normally display the appendages of both tribes, but have only the magic of one. Their horns or wings are basically without function. No matter how hard a winged Unicorn flaps its wings, it won’t fly. In the same way it’s pointless for a horned Pegasus to try to cast a spell. It will only lead to mild headache. Nevertheless, those beings where thought to be gods, demi-gods or divine messengers in ancient times, most likely because of observations of real Alicorns and their abilities. Because of that more than one noble family tried to produce those pseudo Alicorns with strict breeding schedules. With virtually no success I might add. But now I think it’s time to talk about the real deal, true Alicorns. The only verified occurrences of naturally born Alicorns are Princess Celestia, Princess Luna and Princess Flurryheart. Princess Twilight Sparkle and Princess Cadance, short for Mi Amore Cadenza, are what is normally referred to as ascended Alicorns. We will discuss those later. Now, a true Alicorn is not just a pony with wings and a horn. Their basic genetic structure is fundamentally different from other ponies. Within their DNA they unite all three pony subspecies. These are in perfect balance with each other so one does not overpower the others. It could be argued that because of this Alicorns are more harmonious by nature. Because of this internal balance of power they can also channel the natural magic of all three pony tribes. But this still isn’t the end of it. The different aspects of the tribes do not merely exist next to each other in an Alicorn, they are cooperating. You could say the whole is more than the sum of its parts. For example, it is possible for Alicorns to magnify their Earth Pony strength and durability with their magic. They can boost their flight with raw muscle power or magic alike. And the durability of an Earth Pony allows them to channel amounts of magic that would burn out the nervous system of arch mages with decades of experience. “Holy shit, I kind of understand why the princesses are sometimes referred to as gods.” This isn’t even the best part. The funny thing is, what I just described is just a normal naturally born Alicorn. The princesses are on an entirely different scale. Comparing any of them to a ‘normal’ Alicorn would be like having a three year old fight a heavy weight boxing champion. What you have to understand is that, while a naturally born Alicorn unites the strengths and magic of the three tribes in one body, the princesses are also linked to basic magical concepts of the universe. “What?” Bear with me for a moment, because this is where ascended Alicorns come into play. As you might already know, Princess Cadence was born a Pegasus and Princess Twilight Sparkle was originally a Unicorn. Both ascended to alicornhood when they connected to the fundamental magic of Equestria itself. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna also ascended, but already were Alicorns and therefore didn’t transform. To keep it short, the power and status of a true princess comes from hard work and a deep understanding of the world, not from wings and horns. Funny enough, turning into an Alicorn is more or less a side effect of the ascension itself. What little we know today indicates that a pony is able to connect its very soul to at least one basic principle of reality. To achieve this, the pony has to understand and master the concept in its entirety. When this connection is formed the aspect of the world and the pony, essentially, become one and the same. You could say the pony becomes the living, breathing avatar of whatever it is connected to. That ascending ponies turn into Alicorns happens because of the sheer amount of magic that is flooding their body. Under normal circumstances a pony with this much magic in its system would be burned to a crisp within seconds. The transformation prevents that. Philosophers and scientist have formed many theories why the ‘safety mechanism’ of the transformation exists. Some proclaim that a higher power deems the ascended worthy of the powers of a god and therefore grants them alicornhood. Others believe that the extreme amount of magic destroys a pony’s body, but also awakens dormant genes and the body afterwards regenerates as an Alicorn. Some even believe that Celestia causes the transformation with a spell. The princess herself though claims to have better things to do than monitoring her entire people, just in case somepony becomes worthy of wings and a horn. Anyway, what’s important is that an ascended Alicorn has access to a, theoretically, infinite amount of magic. This is the reason for their immense power, as well as their exceptionally long lifespan and all other things Alicorns can do that normally would violate rules of biology and physics. “Exceptionally long lifespan? Aren’t the princesses immortal?” That’s a difficult question to be honest. The life on an Alicorn, even one that hasn’t ascended, is very long, easily ten times that of any other pony. When it comes to the princesses though … I am not allowed to tell you how old Celestia and Luna are. But when you consider that there are more than five thousand years of recorded history since their names where first written down … yeah, they are far beyond the ten times already. But we also don’t know if they will eventually die. Sorry, but we have to delve deep into philosophy here, but the fact that an individual pony is mortal is a conclusion from the presumed knowledge that every pony is mortal. But if you think about it, the mortality of an individual can only be truly proven by its death, not otherwise. With immortality it’s exactly the other way around. You can’t prove that somepony is immortal until you have tested it under all possible circumstances, which is essentially impossible. So yeah, as long as the princesses don’t die we can’t be sure if they are in fact immortal or not. When asked if she is immortal or not, Princess Luna once stated. “I don’t know. I know I can get wounded, that I can get sunburned, that I can get ill and many more things. But I haven’t died yet so I don’t know if I can. But like all living beings I’m not eager to find out.” Well, since nopony seems to have any reliable facts, the immortality of the princesses will likely remain a theory for the foreseeable future. “Okay, but if the magic of the princesses is essentially limitless, how can they lose to the likes of Discord, Queen Chrysalis, Tirek and King Sombra?” All magic, no matter how powerful, is bound by certain rules. For example, you can’t just create whatever you want from nothing. Magic only provides the energy and tools to create things. Another good example is that you have to gather energy before you can use it for a spell or that the cause has to happen before the effect, not the other way around. The thing about Discord is that he isn’t playing by these rules, literally. Discord’s exact magical capability can’t be measured or defined because of that. A spell of his could hit you before he did actually cast it. He could release energies that would take millions upon millions of years to gather, without actually gathering them. He simply ignores the rules of the universe as we know it. Tirek on the other hand was bound by certain rules. But how do you expect the princesses, creatures whose very nature is magic, to fight something that can suck up magic like a sponge? The only feasible way to counter a being like Tirek with magic is either to ignore the rules or to overwhelm him with more magic than he can store. The former was Princess Celestia’s plan when she first sent Discord after him and the latter is what princess Twilight did when she unleashed the magic of friendship against him in the end. Even before she tapped directly into the magic of friendship, she had the combined power of four Alicorns. Tirek was not only unable to absorb her magic if she resisted, but also hopelessly outmatched in terms of magical capabilities. When it came to power and control Princess Twilight outclassed Tirek by a longshot. He only could absorb her magic because she allowed it. When she and the other Elements of Harmony later bombarded him with an endless stream of magic it was simply too much for him to absorb. He was overwhelmed and lost control over the magic he had stolen. This resulted in the magic reverting to its natural state and returning to its owners. Chrysalis and Sombra are much easier cases however. When Sombra was a normal Unicorn and no shadow consisting of nothing but fear and hatred, the royal sisters defeated him easily and quickly. Sadly, when he was banished his body got destroyed and all his hatred for the sisters and his own subjects lead to him turning into some sort of Specter. And since he was some sort of ghost, he could ultimately only be destroyed if whatever was keeping him anchored to this world got destroyed. When the crystal ponies’ fear for him was replaced by the love for Princess Cadance and then channeled directly at him via the Crystal Heart he evaporated like the puff of smoke he was. His anchor to this realm got destroyed and therefore he couldn’t maintain his form. And in regards to Chrysalis, let me ask you something. Would you appreciate Canterlot being melted down to sludge and the ponies inside reduced to nothing but ash in the wind? “Of course not, that sounds like an end time’s scenario.” Well, thankfully, Princess Celestia also doesn’t appreciate it and therefore didn’t go all out against the changelings. If she had drawn magic directly from the sun she would likely have incinerated Canterlot, the mountain it’s located on and a sizeable portion of Equestria’s central region along with it. Chrysalis only escalated it to a point where Celestia had to make a choice. But I’ll have to admit after she had taken the blast to the horn she was almost powerless. Channeling magic with a damaged horn is possible and honestly quite spectacular to watch, but also rather unpleasant for the one trying it. But with that being said I think with we have discussed the essential parts about what an Alicorn is. In the beginning you asked what makes them as strong as they are. We already said that Alicorns are stronger than normal ponies because they literally combine the strengths of all three tribes. But now let me go into more detail about why the princesses are on an entirely different scale. I think I’ll have some nice things for you about that one. “Sounds good to me!” As I said earlier, all princesses have ascended, except for princess Flurry Heart. But she has more than enough time to get that done. There is no need to hurry if you are considered in your best years if you hit your three-hundredth birthday. Anyway, Princess Celestia ascended when she first took control of the sun and received her cutie mark. Naturally she didn’t master the magic of the sun in that instant, but was already learning and mastering its magic her whole life long, even if she didn’t realize it. Starswirl the Bearded was the one who originally convinced her to try taking control over the sun. Based on what we know about his character he might already have known that taking control over the sun was all it needed to complete Celestia’s destiny and allow her to ascend. He wasn’t much of the gambling type, you know. Later he did the same for Luna with the moon, likely on the same basis. From this point on the royal sisters were connected to the sun and moon. Their magic keeps the day and night going and the sun and moon strengthen them in return. If needed both princesses are able to call upon the magic of the sun and moon themselves and channel it through their very soul. They become stronger and more like the things they reign over. The same principle applies to Princess Cadance and Princess Twilight. Cadance ascended when she brought love to even the darkest and most bitter of hearts. She became the princess of love and since then love is her domain. She can ignite the love in ponies’ hearts. It is the shield she uses to protect her charges against darkness, cold and harm. When Twilight Sparkle finally understood how strong Friendship can be and that it could change destiny itself, she turned from the Element of Magic to the princess of friendship. Her power comes from her friends and is therefore the strongest and the weakest at the same time. Alone she is still an extremely powerful mare, but she already was that when she ascended. But with her friends by her side her power is for all intend and purposes limitless. What truly makes them stand out is that they can draw in power from the concept they are connected to and use it to boost their own abilities to absurd levels. The more power a princess gathers this way, the more it changes her form and alters her very nature. They become less of a pony and more of an ideal. In ancient mythological texts those forms were called avatars. But I think this is something the princesses should explain themselves. Start recording! My name is Celestia, princess of the sun and ruler of Equestria. This recording will be classified until the ruling princesses of Equestria at the time decree otherwise. Its purpose is to inform the current government of the scale of my abilities in case I lose control and become a threat to Equestria. As you all know my little ponies, the sun is my responsibility and my privilege. My magic guides it through the sky and its magic gives me power in return. If I draw magic from the sun itself I can turn myself into its avatar. My sister once called this form The Glory. The Glory is the physical embodiment of the sun’s light, beautiful and warm one moment, but harsh and blinding the next. It takes the appearance of its host, but wears only a golden helmet and robes of purest white. If The Glory appears its light can be seen from all points on the same plane of existence, nothing can block out its radiance. It is able to push back all darkness and no shadows exist in its presence. The Glory could sooth mortals who are cold and alone with the sun’s warm and gently light, but it can also drive them blind and burn them to dust within an instant. All that lay eyes on it are bound to stare in awe at its beauty and to catch The Glory’s glare means to have your sight taken from you forever. The heat of its anger can sear even the flesh of the gods. I pray that Luna is with you if you ever have to face The Glory directly, for only she can keep it in check. When my sister isn’t with you my little ponies, hide and wait for dusk, The Glory will recede as the sun does. Are we recording yet? Yes my princess. Very good Tilion, let us begin then. My name is Luna Hanwi Ka-Ata-Killa Artemis Selardi Neaera Anumati Arianrhod Nikkal Chang’e Mayari Yemaha Mahina Selena. I am the princess of the moon, guardian of the night and warden of the dreamscape and, as my sister asked me to do, I shall tell you about the full extent of my powers, The Abyss. The Abyss is not merely the avatar of the night, it is the ultimate darkness. It is blacker than the bottom of the oceans, colder than the void of space and as merciless as the flow of time itself. It is unknowable by nature, so much that even its exact form cannot be comprehended. All living things tremble in fear as The Abyss approaches. When it draws near fires flicker and die, electric lights crackle and burst and even the light of the sun and the stars recede in respect and fear of what follows. The mere presence of The Abyss strikes mortals blind, while those of greater power and higher destiny will be engulfed by it entirely. Whoever is ensnared in The Abyss holds perfectly still in fear of being devoured by the ice-cold currents flowing through it. The poor souls that survive its embrace emerge as frail and withered husks, their colors faded to deathly grey. But most things The Abyss covers are never to be seen again. If The Abyss ever approaches Equestria do not attempt to hide, for the shadows are already its domain. Only death might be able to save you from The Abyss’ darkness and nothing short of The Sentinel will ever stop its approach. Okay, since both Auntie Celestia and Luna think this has to be done … here goes nothing. I am Princess Mi Amore Cadenza of the Crystal Empire, the princess of love and crystal princess. But you may call me Cadance if you like. Honey, this is serious business, I don’t know if you should be so informal about the whole thing. Come on Shining, it’s no fun if I have to be all serious and gloomy, that’s Luna’s thing not mine. Anyway, where was I? Ah yes, I have to tell you about The Sentinel. It’s the name the thing is called that I turn into when I draw in as much magic as I can. So, The Sentinel is the ideal of a heroic protector. It wears impenetrable armor and carries a shield that cannot be overcome by any force in existence. But at the same time it wields no weapon. The Sentinel protects anypony that stands behind it from harm. Its shield alone can protect an entire city from the fury gods and daemons gone mad. Where The Sentinel stands none can pass without its permission, no matter whom or what they are. Its defense can hold even the most ferocious forces at bay without tiring. But no matter how dire the situation is The Sentinel can never strike a telling blow, for defense is its purpose and its very nature. Always remember one thing. If all hope seems lost and the world is about to end, come to the Crystal Empire, for The Sentinel will protect it. As long as I exist, the Empire will never fall again. I have to admit, this is really, really creepy. The thought I could become nothing more than an embodied concept instead of a living pony is slightly terrifying. But as a princess of Equestria it is my duty to let my subjects know of things like this. Its ok Twilight, we all had to coop with the thought of losing ourselves in an ocean of power and we all made emergency recordings to inform whoever might be confronted with those forms about what they are facing. You are right princess. Oh sorry, I mean Celestia. … I can do it. I am Twilight Sparkle, princess of friendship and former bearer of the Element of Magic. This video recording is intended to give you a brief overview of the full extent of my power should it ever be needed. If my friends and I ever unleash too much power I will turn into something called The General and my friends will become its army. The General is the primordial avatar of war. It is abundantly armed, heavily armored and at all times surrounded by its unstoppable army. I originally couldn’t see myself as some sort of commander, but if I consider that the army consists of thousands upon thousands of versions of my friends I sort of understand it. Anyway, The General can defeat mortal soldiers by the hundreds without breaking a sweat and can smite even the greatest heroes and most powerful arch mages with ease. The General is a creature dominated by honor and courage, therefore it will never fight civilians and never use deceptions, but it will also never retreat. Since The General not only embodies war itself but also what might be considered knightly virtues it can call out an opposing army’s leader for a duel of honor. Nothing can interfere with such a duel, for honor itself forbids it. The battle will come to a halt and the armies will watch in awe as their leaders fight their duel. The General itself cannot be defeated and even if it isn’t strong enough to defeat its adversary, the enemy’s leader will invariably leave the fight with a grievous wound. If The General calls for a duel to refuse is to concede defeat and whoever was beaten by The General can’t disobey its command ever again. I beg you, always remember that The General doesn’t care which enemy it fights. All that matters are war, honor and courage. If you face it don’t try to deceive it and don’t attack it under any circumstances. The General, and therefore I, can be Equestria’s greatest enemy if handled not cautiously. But if you give it direction and guide it wisely, nothing can stand in its way and no enemy will ever threaten Equestria. “That stuff sounds too terrifying to be true.” Well, I can assure you that Princess Celestia and Princess Luna have already used these empowered states since Equestria’s founding. The parts from Princess Twilight and Princess Cadance are yet to be officially verified, but personally I don’t think they would lie. Especially since exploring such powers is extremely dangerous, there is always a probability to lose your sense of self in it. You would essentially stop being you and instead turn into the very power you’re wielding. It’s not entirely accurate but it’s like the concept overtakes your mind, body and soul. Legends have it that, at the beginning of time itself, many beings with such powers were created and that they still roam the universe. Some claim that Discord lost himself to his power and never returned to his natural state of existence, trapped for all eternity inside the embodiment of chaos. “Spike, I think I have enough of that. My head starts to hurt if I think any further about what the princesses actually are.” Understandable, it’s difficult to wrap your mind around something that is normally so far beyond anything you can draw comparisons from. But since the princesses have a hoof in most things that happen around Equestria, we will talk about them again, sooner or later. … Terminating connection to database storage zeta 17.01.01c to 19.87.45t … procedure concluded. The normally recommended topics from this point on are: - The first equestrian realm - The castle of the two sisters - Alicorn worship: Celestial and Lunar cults - The second founding of Equestria a.k.a. the era of Canterlot - Discord’s first (and only) reign - The battle of the San Palomino Plains - The Nightmare Incident - Magic But I would understand if you’d like something lighter in tone. Just let me know what you want to hear next. “It’s ok Spike, I’m pretty sure we’ll find something nice. Just give me a minute to make up my mind.”