Chapter IV
Chapter 4
Twilight finished reading the first section of the book, called Genesis. She knew that Genesis was a word from a long-dead language that meant “Origin” or “Beginning”. It was about how The Master had spoken the world, all the planets and stars, Celestia’s sun, and Luna’s moon into existence; how he had created the first night and day, the first fish of the sea, and the first stallion and mare. It even told the story of a great flood that took place, when The Master saw that the mares and stallions of the world had become evil. Although He saved a righteous stallion along with his family and two of every creature on earth, He had to destroy all the rest of His creation. Eventually, the book recounted the history of The Master’s chosen ones, how their nation was built, and how He fulfilled his covenant with them to make them a great nation.
It was all intriguing, and Twilight recognized from the very outset that The Master, though not one to mess around, loved His chosen ones, and never broke His promises. It was almost surreal to think that someone as big as He would want to have a relationship with someone as small as Twilight, or any other pony for that matter.
Twilight resolved that since there were two books, the “Elder Testimony” (in which Genesis was the first book), and the “Good News and Writings of the Redeemed”, she should read both of them “to get the full experience”. She started reading the first book of “Good News and Writings of the Redeemed”, and it wasn’t very far into it that she fully realized that the entire book was about Silver Light: how he came into the world as a foal, was raised by his earthly parents, lived a sinless life, and ultimately died on a cross for the sins of the world. There were four accounts of this, each written by one of Silver Light’s disciples on earth, and each slightly different. But the fourth started out differently.
She began to read.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with Master and the Word was Master. The Word was in the beginning with The Master.”
Twilight’s mind wandered slightly. Though she still read consciously, part of her mind pondered upon what she was actually reading. It seemed as if this book was written specifically for Twilight; for the unbeliever in her. It started out in the very beginning – the creation account – and ended with hope and warnings about the end of the world. She let her head edge down and began reading again.
“All things were made in the beginning through Him, and apart from Him, nothing was made that has been made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of all. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness could not understand it.”
Twilight remembered early in her life, when she was just learning basic levitation spells. Celestia had told Twilight how important it was for her to keep her mind pure, to never let darkness come in, and to always make sure that light dominated in all her studies. She further explained that darkness was never meant to be together with light. They were two completely different things: necessary, but opposite. In the passage that she had just read, it made complete sense, but it seemed as if darkness was personified; almost as if it as a real and living thing. Softly, Silver Light’s voice made its way to Twilight’s mind.
“Apollyon, Deceiver, Destroyer. He goes by many names, but darkness is his residence.
She was confused. If The Master created everything, doesn’t that mean that He created Deceiver and darkness, too? Doesn’t that mean that He created a haven for Deceiver to dwell in?
Yes.
She began to become angry. She was angry with The Master for creating the very idea of darkness, which scared her ever since she was a foal, and for creating… something that – that tried to kill her! If it wasn’t for Silver Light showing up in her dream, she would be a bloody, lifeless mess!
But I did come.
Twilight closed the book in frustration and set it down on its spine, but it stubbornly fell open again, to the middle of a section called “Letters to His Beloved through Isaiah.”
Out of curiosity, Twilight began reading in the middle of the chapter, awestruck by the poetic lines.
“How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low! You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of Master I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north.’”
Twilight mulled the passage over in her mind. She could only assume that “Day Star” and “son of Dawn” were two other names Deceiver carried. But he fell from heaven. Was he…
I made him, too. He wanted to take my Father’s place, to be worshipped as He was worshipped.
He was an angel once – driven mad by his own desire: the prospect of becoming God, becoming The Master; equal.
For a split second, Twilight thought about what it would be like to take His place.
She thought to herself, “To take the place of pure deity? How exciting, how divine!”
How destructive. Silver Light’s voice echoed through her mind once more. Deceiver was selfish. Deceiver was greedy. Deceiver was driven by evil. That… is why we made him leave. We forced him out. It was necessary, for heaven was not meant for his kind to dwell. A third of heaven partook in his folly, seeking royal honor which they did not deserve.
Those were the last words that Twilight heard from Silver Light for the time being - the train was just arriving at Canterlot. Twilight had so many questions to ask her teacher. Why was she purposed to be magical? Who decided that? Why had Celestia never told Twilight about Silver Light? Why was she an alicorn and what REALLY was her destiny? Who was Deceiver, and why had she never encountered him, Silver Light, or the Master before?
Twilight was still confused, and her mind was saturated with questions, but she wasn’t as depressed as she had been two mornings before.
Normally, when she needed to see the princess, she would make an appointment, or she would come to Ponyville. Occasionally, they would be together in social contexts, such as Hearth’s-Warming Eve, a royal wedding, or maybe at the Grand Galloping Gala, but coming and talking to the Princess Celestia on such short notice was generally frowned upon, though not openly by Celestia herself. This was a very rare occurrence, though, and she wouldn’t mind very much, Twilight was sure. She galloped to the castle in which the princesses almost always were, completely ignoring the fact that she was a princess and she should hold herself as such. The task ahead was much too important to let such trivial matters get in the way.
She approached both double doors and opened them slowly with her magic. They were heavier than Twilight remembered, probably because of her high stress levels. She trotted through and approached the princess, whose throne was at the end of a long strip of red carpet, fit for royalty alone.
“Princess Celestia?”
The princess looked up and sighed in what seemed to be much relief.
“Twilight…”
“Is… something wrong?”
She waited awhile before responding, as if she was trying to decide how to respond in the first place. After contemplating, she trotted to a pillar which was beside her throne and magically picked up a rolled-up scroll. “Spike sent this to me yesterday.”
She didn’t bother reading it to Twilight, but instead, gave it to her directly to read for herself.
“Dear Princess Celestia,
I know that you are proud of Twilight and of her accomplishments, and I’m glad to have been her assistant during the times that she has been learning. I myself have done my share of growing – mentally and emotionally both. But I am worried. Twilight has fulfilled her destiny. I know she will still need me. Just because she’s a princess now doesn’t mean she’s invincible, but she hasn’t spoken to me at all, almost as if I simply don’t exist. I’m not offended, but I am bothered… and worried. She seems to have something on her mind, and I doubt I can help. What in the world can I, or should I do?
Sincerely, Spike.”
Twilight finished reading the letter, but didn’t look back up. Instead, she kept reading it over and over, trying to figure out how to ask Princess Celestia the questions that had been wracking her brain for the last two days. It seemed the letter she had just read provided a perfect venue through which to respond.
As if on cue, the princess spoke up. “I’ve been worried about you, too, Twilight. What’s going on? I want to help you, to understand what is happening, and I know you’ve grown, but I also know that sometimes, others are not meant to grow alone.”
Twilight almost started crying again. She not only had the princess’s full attention, but she also had been invited to ask every question that she had. She had the gift of time, and she needed it. But she couldn’t spew words, hoping they would come out as rational thoughts. No, she had to take this slowly.
She began by telling the story of the past two-and-a-half days, starting by explaining what had happened the first day: the feeling of being incomplete, and the same feeling being present in Apple Jack. She then explained Apple Jack’s storming out on Grannie, AJ’s divine experience the next day, and her own experiences just hours earlier. There was so much to tell, but Twilight told it all. Celestia listened intently and kindly, taking in every word, every syllable.
It was a long tale, and despite how much stress Twilight had been under, she managed to tell her tale with very little incongruence.
The royal hall was silent for a long time after Twilight finished her story. Finally Celestia mustered up some words.
“Do you still feel empty, Twilight?”
“Well… come to think of it, no… not as much, ever since I talked to Silver Light.”
“He was an earth pony. Wasn’t he?”
“Um… yes,” she answered, though she wasn’t sure why Celestia would ask that.
“Twilight, before I explain anything, I want to tell you something. I know that I told you that I am no longer your teacher in the same way as before. Now, this world is your teacher, just as you are this world’s teacher. But I know something that you don’t know. I want to tell you about what you are; what I am; what Cadence and Luna are: The Essence of the Alicorn. Did Silver Light give you a book that looked like this?”
Celestia looked beside her throne and pulled a book from a small box similar to that which held the Elements of Harmony.
“Yes, he did. That… looks just like –”
“He gave me this… long ago.” Celestia swallowed hard and carefully opened the book to the beginning and began to read. Her voice was firm; powerful.
“In the beginning, The Master created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And The Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.”
Celestia spoke again to Twilight. “The Master is the father of Silver Light, who is the son figure of what we call God. But there is a third: the Holy Incarnate. He guides, He corrects, He instructs all who follow The Master.” The Master, Silver Light, and the Holy Incarnate are all God. There are three, and they are one: the Triune. Similarly, there are earth ponies, Pegasi, and unicorns. They are three, but we are one: the alicorn. We have been put in place as rulers to guide, to teach, and to correct, much like the triune Godhead would.
“The concept of the alicorn is simple. We possess the strength of an earth pony, the magical abilities of a unicorn, and the freedom of flight of the Pegasus. But the earth pony, Pegasus, and unicorn represent so much more than just abilities and gifts.
“The Pegasus represents the Holy Incarnate. It gives life, moral guidance, and freedom, much like flight does to us and our fellow Pegasus friends. Your friends Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy are perfect representations of this. Rainbow Dash possesses the gift of freedom of flight, while Fluttershy, though not one to use her wings, was given the gift of effortless communications with animals, a type of freedom very few possess. But ultimately, the Holy Incarnate gives us the ability to access a part of God once reserved only The Master’s chosen ones."
Twilight nodded.
“The unicorn represents the father figure of the trinity: The Master. The unicorn is the representation of the aspect of creativity that The Master possesses. Take for example, your friend Rarity. She has a creative mind when it comes to fashionista. She can create a new outfit for somepony in just a few days, and it can always look different! Or take yourself. You completed the spell that Starswirl the Bearded could not, because you possessed a greater ability to create; to complete something not ever completed before."
Twilight leaned forward in anticipation, but her eyes welled up. She had waited too long for this.
“The earth pony; so plain, so simple. And yet, so divine. The earth pony represents Silver Light, the savior of the world, born into the world as any other, as an earth pony. He was born to serve, much like Pinkie Pie and Apple Jack. Pinkie serves. She serves her friends, and she serves the Ponyville community. And while her job, a mere baker, may seem like a less-dignified occupation, it is how she uses it that is so wonderful. She uses her talent to give back to her town, to try to become the friend of all, and ultimately to serve. Apple Jack is much the same way, in the sense that she uses her intuition to know when to do what on Sweet Apple Acres. She has the ability to get down and do the dirty work that others –”
Celestia chuckled.
“–that others, like Rarity, would shy away from. AJ does work in much the same way as Silver Light would have done it during his time on earth: selflessly and carefully, but with an ultimate purpose in mind.”
“I – I never thought–”
“I had the truth revealed to me,” the princess interrupted. “I thought I had fulfilled my destiny, and in a sense, I had, but I had no idea who Silver Light, the Holy Incarnate, or The Master even were. I, too, was once in the place you are in now.”
Twilight mused on what Celestia meant, finally settling on a truth that she would have never previously thought possible: Princess Celestia, her mentor and teacher, was just like her.
“Twilight,” the princess began again. “We were put in place by God to rule all the different types of ponies. He chose us because He knew we would do so with the same intent that He would: to rule in love, to hold a firm grasp on order, and to protect our own. THAT is what makes friendship magic, Twilight. You were called to fulfill your destiny from the very beginning. The Master qualifies the called. He doesn’t call the qualified. You weren’t qualified, because you didn’t understand friendship like you do now, but through an understanding of friendship, you became qualified to fulfill your destiny, which is–”
“To rule with love, grace, and purpose, just like Silver Light, The Master, and the Holy Incarnate would,” Twilight blurted.
“…You truly do understand,” Celestia smiled. “I am so proud of you, Twlight.”
Twilight grinned like she never had before. She still had many unanswered questions, but she didn’t need the answers. Not yet. Those questions, elusive as they may be, would be answered in time. She knew. She knew why she was purposed to be a ruler, and ultimately, she knew her purpose in life. She knew her destiny, and destiny now called.
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Hey, that was pretty clever. I never would have thought of alicorns as representing the trinity. Glad to see Celestia was in-character. (The only other time I looked into a Christian story featuring her, she was portrayed as the anti-Christ as I recall...) And Twilight continues to be solid.
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I was actually really worried about her being out of character, since the dialogue always seems to sound different to the author than it does to the reader. It's nice to see that it worked though!
Oh, hey, and thanks for being loyal to my story. You've been there since chapter one, and it really means a lot.
2770092 That was a great chapter! I was curious how you were going to handle Celestia, but you did an amazing job!
Okay, here's my critque: (it's longer than yours, but stay with me.)
Well, overall, the story most reminded me of the Chronicles of Narnia.
I don't mean to sound weird, butr getting rid of that part were you describe a human hanging on a cross should be eliminated , unless you put on the human tag, and explain why Silver Light has two forms.
Explain who Alicorns REALLY are. Maybe they are angels.
Maybe don't use the earth term "angels" you might want to use a foreign word like "Mal'lak" which is the Hebrew word for angel.
Explain why Silver Light and God only reveal themselves to certain people. (IE: Why does it take a vision and an appearance of God to know that he exists and to get his holy word.)
I think that Discord should have a bigger role in this. Maybe he IS apollyon, only he is pretending to behave himself for the time being. And isn't he supoosed to be at Canterlot as it is? Maybe Twilight meets Discord at the castle?
I think you may want to include the Equestria Girls canon in this, since it deals with the alternate human world. (Note: EG takes place after season 3.)
If you don't know already, Princess Cadence was originally a Pegasi, according to the spin-off novel: "Twilight Sparkle and the Crystal Heart spell."
Maybe yu should make a distinction that all good magic comes from God, and all bad fom apollyon.
2856490
Wow. Thanks for being honest. That's what I've been trying to get people to do, but nopony wants to offend anypony else.
Anyway...
You see into the plot too well. There's actually an obscure TCoN reference coming in Chapter 5 which I'm almost done with.
The lazy way would be to just add the human tag, which I think I won't do. I'm going to do some editing in about 2 weeks after I get all my college classes registered for and such.
I need to be a little more clear about who Alicorns actually are, but they really are just ponies with gifts from God (or another foreign-sounding word for God). If Alicorns truly were angels, then Shining Armour would have married an angel, which is biblically inaccurate.
Surprise, surprise! Fluttershy (is best pony) is next and she doesn't get a vision. The visions have been geared toward those of the Mane 6 who have been the most convinced that God didn't exist. I'm still working on a few details, but not all ponies need a vision to knock sense back I to them.
Apollyon actually isn't Discord. I probably need to be a little more clear about this too, but I think of Discord as a mischievious being, not a downright evil one, and still very capable of human (or pony?) emotions, as clearly demonstrated in Keep Calm and Flutter On.
I've seen it, and I started writing this long before I even heard it was coming out. I'll probably include that in my editing to-do list.
I haven't read that, but ive heard of it. When I introduce Cadence, I'll explain that. Somehow.
Once again, I haven't been very clear about that. I made a mention of that in either chapter 3 or 4, but it was a bit obscure.
Overall, thank you for your critique. I will certainly be making some changes, and I will look at revamping some of the dialogue to make it more clear.
Thanks, F-ShyAustin
2857153 Oh, and another thing, you might want an in-depth explaination of who the chosen of him are.
Since Tara Strong is Jewish, it might make an intresting plot point (no pun) for Twilight to discover her Pony ethnicity as being that as the chosen of him. (Sort of like how Final Fantasy VII's Aerith discovers that she is half Cetra, or how The Wheel of Time's Rand Al'thor discovers he is half Aiel. And I'm sorry if you are into either series, and I spoiled major plot points for you.)
Of course, that would be basically saying that Unicorns would be the chosen ponies, which MIGHT explain their haughtyness.
But then again, if you were to have a famous brony who is Jewish OC in the story, you would have to make them all unicorns. But the only famous Jewish brony I can name is The Living Tombstone. (But be careful on using Real people's OCs, because, say you used his OC and his OC became this fan fic's equivelant of saved, he might become angry with you for whatever reason.)
And, actually, about a couple chapters into my story Anthology, I noticed that I was coping off the beginning of "Prince Caspian" without knowing. Celestia is Caspian, Solaris is Miraz, Artemis is Prunaprismia, (but neither are evil and want to see Celestia dead) Luna is Caspian's cousin, and either Goethe or StarSwirl are Doctor Cornelius.
In fact, do you happen to know why I named the Red maned and white furred Alicorn OC with the ink and quill cutie mark "Goethe?"
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I'd still like to keep a degree of originality, so I won't be using other people's OC's. The only OC's I have used as of yet are Silver Light (who wasn't actually my creation, I got permissions from Saint to use Him), and The Master, who doesn't even have a manifestation yet.
Why did you name her Geothe? I thought it was creative, but I don't know why, or what the backstory is.
I think it's kinda funny that you named the manifestation of Satan Deceiver. I had an idea some time ago (it was much more allegory than your story) where the main incarnation of evil was also named Deceiver.