Chapter 24: City of the Unborn
Princess Celestia had seen many things in her long life, both strange and terrifying; but nothing, not even her one journey into the void at the purveyor's side could have prepared her for what she found in the depths of the empty crater city.
They were countless. No matter how long she traveled the dark tunnels and how deep she went, the walls were lined with countless chambers of glass and metal; and inside she saw what was going to be the creation of a new race upon Equis. Little, fragile bodies suspended and unmoving in a substance she could not discern. Suspended in time for seemingly all eternity.
Slowly, she traveled on; her own light casting eerie shadows along the tunnels as she stole glances at the little faces. She knew that there was no life in them, for no matter where she looked and how far her senses reached there was only silence to be heard. No movement, no sounds other than that of her own hooves on the hard floor. And yet, it almost felt as if they all were watching her pass; waiting for their creator to return and bring them life.
It was terrifying to her. Celestia had hoped her aimless walk would calm her troubled mind, but every chamber she passed made her more and more aware of the impact her pact with the purveyor would have on her world.
And even with her thoughts and doubts already in turmoil, she still found herself unable to believe what she was seeing when she finally reached what could only be the main chamber.
At first, the only thing her light brought forth was a railing; heading off both to the left and the right with the walls holding more chambers as the path slowly disappeared out of her light and into the darkness. Beyond the railing only black, empty space greeted her both upwards and downwards.
For a short moment Celestia paused to take a breath and calm herself, her light dying down before bursting to life once more with new-found vigor; a shining, miniature star that shone from her horn before detaching itself and starting to travel forwards and upwards. And as the light grew brighter and brighter, Celestia could finally see the true expanse of the purveyor's work.
It was a huge shaft; wide enough to make it hard for her to see the other side and deep enough so that even with her renewed light she could not see the end of it in both directions. And all over the walls of the shaft, stacked upon seemingly endless levels in rank and file were more chambers; every one of them carrying an empty host waiting for a soul.
"I see you found your way into one of the main shafts," the sudden break in the silence caused her to whirl to her left in surprise. There, barely at the edge of her light the purveyor stood motionlessly; his mask of polished glass the only thing showing clear form in the darkness. "Has your curiosity been sated?"
Celestia stared at him, unable to find an answer at first but then allowing his words to sink in. "One of the main shafts?" she whispered with dread. "How many more are there?"
Mine...
The purveyor stepped forward, detaching himself from the darkness and slowly walking towards her. "There are eight shafts in total... holding two-hundred-fifty-thousand and six-hundred-thirty chambers."
Children...
"Two-hundred-fi-" Celestia stopped herself from repeating the word in her shock and let her gaze travel over the countless chambers again. "So many," she whispered in silent disbelief before turning back to him. "How will all of them survive in this land? It will be chaos!"
"No, Celestia..." Zaeres shook his head. "Only so few. There are millions that followed me here, millions that still cling to me and all of them wait for a new life." He turned his head towards her after a short glance at the bottom of the pit. "And they will not awaken all at once. There will be a delay... to ensure that their numbers do not get too large at once."
"And those that remain without a body?"
"I will find a way to bind them to this place," Zaeres quietly spoke. "They will become the souls of the newborn, as will those that die. Reincarnation, if you will so. Once their numbers grow over those I brought with me... new souls may be born."
Creation...
Celestia turned her attention back to the pit, trying her best to suppress a shudder and ignore her dry mouth. "And how will they find their way out? There is no light in these tunnels."
"They will find their way by instinct," he replied. "Also, there is a fluorescent algae living on the surface of these walls. The light they supply will be faint at most, but it will be sufficient."
"How did you do all of this?" the question caused Zaeres to turn back to Celestia. "How did you build all of this within only a few days? Even with your power, the knowledge all of this requires is-"
"Not of this world?" The purveyor allowed a tired laugh to escape him. "I was a scientist, before my..." a bitter smile found its way onto his lips as he spoke the word. "Duty. I was among those that planned and built the old city... and I was the first to find how to bind the void." Zaeres took a moment to allow one of his hands to trail the railing and push back his pained memories. "But even so, this is the best I could do."
Celestia felt a strange shiver run down her spine as he started to approach her. "Now," the purveyor spoke with a strangely anxious voice. "Are you ready to begin your work and finish mine?"
Completion.
"Serra'lhi... Serra'ihl?" Twilight shook her head in distress. "No! That can't be right!" she rubbed both sides of her head with her hooves, trying to wake her tired mind as she sat hunched over countless papers and more ancient writing. "Why is this so hard?!" She slammed both hooves onto the table, surprising herself at her sudden outburst and cringing as the sound echoed through the huge library.
"Spike," she mumbled through closed eyes and a growing headache. "Can you-" she broke off as she looked up, only to find herself alone. "Oh..." she hung her head as she was once again reminded that Spike was no longer here. He had returned after a brief time of absence; only to bid her goodbye and leave again. He had headed back to Ponyville and left her behind; sad, depressed and at a loss of what to do or how to feel.
Twilight sighed in dismay, Spike's departure had left her with a feeling of emptiness she could not describe. Her friends, her brother, her family; all of them had left her and now, Spike had as well. Was it something she had said? Had a word spoken without care sparked all of this long ago, or had it simply been a matter of time for this to happen?
She couldn't decide how to feel. She felt many things; guilt, sadness, and even anger. For some reason, even though she repeatedly told herself that she should respect his decision she could not help but feel betrayed. Was her entire life going to be spent in solitude? In servitude of a being she did not know for certain she could trust or even understand?
Twilight had spent hours searching her feelings in vain, but only found more questions. And when she had finally decided to calm her mind by continuing her research she had quickly found another brick wall to her thoughts.
It was a list of commands for the golems, she was sure of it. One of them had brought it to her after she tried to communicate in vain. Yet no matter how long she tried to decipher the commands and work on the pronunciation, the silent beings of stone and marble did not respond. They simply continued to move in silence, passing her table unheeded of her words and only stopping occasionally to set down a new book or taking back one of those she had already given up upon.
"This is hopeless," she groaned. "I'm going to have to ask him for help with this." A heavy sigh escaped her at the thought and she looked at the page in the book with a small flash of anger. "Why couldn't they have written it in a simpler way? How am I even to know which letters are silent and which are-" she deadpanned as she watched the word before her and remembered something. "The 'h' in Mel'anch is silent..." she whispered to herself.
Twilight looked up in time to see one of the golems silently put a crystal cauldron filled with water onto her table along with a delicate glass. She looked down at the word before her, then up again as the golem was about to take its leave.
"Serra'i."
The golem stopped in its motion, turned around to face her; and then without a sound, it knelt on the ground before her and stopped moving altogether.
For a short moment, she could only stare at the unmoving being. Then, a small laugh escaped her. "The 'h' is silent.." she whispered again with a small smile before quickly grabbing a quill and making a note on a piece of parchment. "Serra'hi [Serra'i]: Kneel."
Twilight looked up at the golem with a smirk and then reached out to pull the book closer to her. "Let's see," she mumbled as she searched the words. "How about this one?" she gave the golem an expectant look. "Mer'ja."
The golem did not move.
"Mmm." Twilight looked at the word again and furrowed her brow. "Maybe," she looked up again. "Mer'jal?"
This time, the golem showed reaction. No sooner had she spoken the word, the golem stood up again; arms pressed against its sides as it stood straight and motionlessly before her once more.
Twilight smiled and made another note. "Merh'ijalh [Mer'jal]: Stand," she gave the golem a short glance and made an addition to the note. "At attention?" she chuckled at her own uncertainty, feeling slightly better about herself for the time being. It was a success, a small one, but still one she would treasure.
"Let's see now," she returned her attention to the book and searched for the next word she would try. "This one looks promising." She looked up at the golem with a smile and gave a determined nod. "Zean'et."
The result was to this was suprising to say the least. The golem stood silent for a moment, then simply walked off along a corridor framed by two of the countless book shelves; but before a corner it stopped, and looked back at her.
"Is it.." Twilight furrowed her brow "Waiting for me?"
The figure made from marble kept silent, its features unmoving as it remained standing, the empty face turned towards her.
She pushed herself of the chair she had been using, and silently she began to follow the silent guardian of the library; the golem leading her along shelf after shelf.. and finally down masterfully crafted and decorated flights of stairs, deeper into the depths of the ancient library.
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Oh snap. Is that one of the souls the Purveyor brought with him? Looks like some of them might have ideas of their own on how to proceed...
ooo twilights got a mystical body guard this is gonna get interesting
Things are getting interesting now!
ooo... this is getting intersting!
It's Alive!!!!
garbolaughs.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/itsalive1.gif
was no longer here.
4119522
The spike was indeed longer here.
razorbladeproducts.com/xcart/files/images/LSS-SPK2-all_lg2.jpg
Why does this new character you have introduced put me in mind of the twins from "The Shining"? This is really starting to hot up!
You know, this is the second story released today where Twilight nearly gets liquidized by a golem, the first one being Princess Twilight's Profoundly Peripheral Protector by Chengar Qordath. Is this becoming the new vogue, Twilight almost getting turned into princess pate by a sorcerous automaton, only to be saved at the last second?
Got a quick correction for you, in the first sentence 'live' should be 'life'.
well least the old souls are willing to help out twilight got lucky with there intervention that time and maybe if she lucky she have a new possible friend to learn from.
The Life support worked all systems 100% and ready for action.
Precisely how many humans will become active in the first 'wave', so to speak? And why is it this whole story has a Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica feel to it?
static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/madoka-magica_9819.jpg
By the way, those who want are now curious, let me warn you that this show is not about puppies and rainbows… shudder
This chapter is proof that pronunciation and grammar CAN kill.
Soul of the void? Careful, lest the Purveyor rekk you.
what language is it from anyway? dragon?
"Zean"
NOO GAH IS SO SHORT AND IS TAKES SO LONG T UPDATE GAH I MUST HAVE MORE!!!!
Well, that's creepy as heck.
Why do I get a 'sister, daughter or wife' feeling from this new development?
4120142
So it seems kiyube has appeared in the form of a small girl... This.. This will not end well...
This keeps getting better and better. Keep up the good work!
4121629 Kyubey*
4134606
Woops. My bad
4120347 Grammar can already kill!
Let's eat grandma!
Let's eat, grandma!
One with a fatal consequence, one with a not so fatal consequence (Unless you count eating with an old person fatal(You'll probably just lose a few braincells))
Ooooookay.
The purveyor has a ally it seems. A creepy, small, immortal, supernatural, ally... The purveyor really know how to pick his friends, doesn't he?
Anyway, what is happening to the purveyor? He seems to fade in and out of existence, and have a voice in his head that can influence his decisions. And he have a prophesy after himself that put fear in dragons, deity's, forest creatures and gods. And he's making someone resurrect his species, his messed up species.
Hmm. A shit storm is brewing, that I'm certain about. The only thing that could make things worse is if someone says, "what could possibly go wrong?"...
Does it count if I said it?
4119306 Well, considering that the last one's tried to kill her twice, I don't think this is one gonna be much better.
Ahh! Creepy lady!
I'm fairly certain it's the Purveyor's daughter at the end there.
If you lost a child, wouldn't she be the first one you would bring back?
4162269 Well, HE can't bring any of them back. Not per say, anyway. And I don't think that he would place her anywhere near a pony who would kill to learn more, like the identity, history, name and more of a certain purveyor for example. And finally, she and the others wouldn't have their memory, remember? They would dream about it, and that would be it. Want me to go on?
I think that the creepy girl is more likely someone or something that's related to when the purveyor discovered how to bend the void to his will, if her powers is anything to go by. Though this is really all just theory, I have to little info on the creepy little girl as of now to pull any certain connections.
4207022
The Purveyor stated the part about them only being able to glean flashes and glimpses in dreams.
He's also recreated bodies for millions.
Now, of all the people that he has met in his life, his daughter would be the best shot at actually stirring emotion within him.
(Now, this part I am a bit fuzzy on, so this may not be accurate, but) Wasn't his daughter one of the ones who died in the process of becoming a purveyor?
And even if she weren't, it would make sense that the purveyor would want his daughter to help him, by repeating the process (and after all those countless eons, he easily could have perfected the alteration process just by puzzling out what he could have done differently, given his "new"found knowledge of the void).
Also, as regards the young age, I know quite well that a parent often tend to think of their child as still being that little kid (3-10ish, depending on each individuals most cherrished moment in there child's life).
Therefore I wouldn't be surprised if he made her with a childs body (Though I don't recall any mention if she was an adult before earth's imminent destruction).
Regardless, it all boils down to the fact that Zaeres is playing the roll of a god (in a good way, kinda...), and he is -by definition- "A god".
(On the part about the definition of a god, see bottom of post.)
Who knows what the limit there is (if any) to his power?
Heck, Gnome himself may not have even decided on that.
~Please note, the underlined part is the definition of "a god", as opposed to "God" or "god" (Yes, capitalization of the spelling of "god" changes the meaning), is the important part in which I am referring to.
Full Definition of GOD
1
capitalized : the supreme or ultimate reality: as
a : the Being perfect in power, wisdom, and goodness who is worshipped as creator and ruler of the universe
b Christian Science : the incorporeal divine Principle ruling over all as eternal Spirit : infinite Mind
2
: a being or object believed to have more than natural attributes and powers and to require human worship; specifically : one controlling a particular aspect or part of reality.
4211819 That last part is more of a deity, or avatar in my opinion, but I see what you mean. But remember, he is a "god" when INSIDE the void, where he is at his prime.
"and after all those countless eons, he easily could have perfected the alteration process just by puzzling out what he could have done differently, given his "new"found knowledge of the void." He has found out a way to bring them back, it's just that HE can't do it with HIS powers. The void is literally the opposite of life, existence and everything else. He can't GIVE life, not anything beyond a ghost that we saw translate for Celestia. And that is, in my opinion at least, hardly worth being called life. In short: he can make a body, but he can't give it a mind of its own or a soul.
And about the part when you said that "he would want her to help him," is incorrect. When Celestia told him they would dream about their past's the purveyor thought, "he wanted her to be free of her past," therefore, free from him. It's pretty obvious at that point that he want her to live on in ignorant bliss of her past and him.
And I don't think that he would give her a body of a child (assuming she wasn't just that), because if you haven't noticed his not exactly a normal parent. He deals in stone-cold facts. If his daughter was a grown women then he would likely give her a grown body.
Finally, how can she even be THERE if Celestia haven't resurrected her yet?
This is looking more and more like the prequel to a Dark Souls: Prepare to Pony fic by the chapter.
Also, a pre-Silent Hill Ponyfall fic.
Y u genius?
4211896
"Finally, how can she even be THERE if Celestia haven't resurrected her yet?"
Simple.
She is the voice.
4255878 ... Really? Are we REALLY going there?
Firstly, if she was the voice in the purveyor's head then he wouldn't be so moody about her death.
Secondly, when the purveyor was talking with the voice he said, "learn all the words you want..." It's learning words and the meanings of those words.
Thirdly, the purveyor said, "are you still watching?" If the voice is simply watching, how can it be THERE in front Twilight? And before you say, "he doesn't know," remember that the purveyor can see EVERYTHING as long as a shadow is nearby. And in that huge-ass library, there's bound to be hundreds of shadows.
Fourthly, the interaction I mentioned before with the voice, the purveyor was, quite frankly, pretty cold. And when he thinks about her he gets sad and remorseful. One hell of a mood-swing, wouldn't you say?
And finally, the purveyor made it clear that she was still dead, as in dead dead. As in, her soul is among the other millions of souls that won't get of his back.
I'm going to assume that, since you didn't comment on my other remarks, that you have no way of responding.
Anyway, on another matter. Are we cool? As in, we don't hate each others guts? I'm sorry if I upset you in any way, if I did it was not my intention.
4258276
"Firstly, if she was the voice in the purveyor's head then he wouldn't be so moody about her death."
He is only moody about her death because he was unable to keep her from dying, a weakness on his part. He mentions this to Twilight in similar words at some point, but he didn't specifically mention his daughter.
"Secondly, when the purveyor was talking with the voice he said, "learn all the words you want..." It's learning words and the meanings of those words."
Words like the ones she helped Twilight out with?
"Thirdly, the purveyor said, "are you still watching?" If the voice is simply watching, how can it be THERE in front Twilight? And before you say, "he doesn't know," remember that the purveyor can see EVERYTHING as long as a shadow is nearby. And in that huge-ass library, there's bound to be hundreds of shadows."
He also has to be specifically paying attention to it, like he did when he listened in on Twilight and Celestia's conversation. He's too busy resurrecting a chunk of his race to be paying attention.
"Fourthly, the interaction I mentioned before with the voice, the purveyor was, quite frankly, pretty cold. And when he thinks about her he gets sad and remorseful. One hell of a mood-swing, wouldn't you say?"
He acts cold towards the voice (his daughter) because he doesn't want her to have any involvement with him so she can live her new life without memories of him. That's why he wants the memories of all of the souls, especially hers, wiped out. He's also keeping interaction to a minimum so that, when the memories are wiped, there's a slightly lower chance that any memories will be retained. Celestia said there would be a chance some memories would stay.
"And finally, the purveyor made it clear that she was still dead, as in dead dead. As in, her soul is among the other millions of souls that won't get of his back."
The other millions of souls that speak, scream, and whisper at him? Like the voice is doing?
"I'm going to assume that, since you didn't comment on my other remarks, that you have no way of responding."
You assumed wrong, smartass.
"Anyway, on another matter. Are we cool? As in, we don't hate each others guts? I'm sorry if I upset you in any way, if I did it was not my intention."
0 fucks given.
4258524 "He is only moody about her death because he was unable to keep her from dying, a weakness on his part."
Hmm. The way you make it sound it seems you think that it was the weakness itself that saddened him, not his daughters death. But I will just assume that was a miss-spelling. But yes, I can see your point. However, I belive that, after outliving a couple of worlds, he have had the time to get over the fact that he couldn't save her, rather then her death, though this is just a theory, nothing to be considered fact.
"Words like the ones she helped Twilight out with?"
I think you missed my point. The voice was STILL learning PHRASES, while this girl speak FLUENTLY. And judging that the voice only learned a few words at a time, I don't think it have learned that much.
"He also has to be specifically paying attention to it, like he did when he listened in on Twilight and Celestia's conversation. He's too busy resurrecting a chunk of his race to be paying attention."
Correction: CELESTIA is resurrecting his race, the purveyor isn't resurrecting shit. I will admit that he's probably too focused on overseeing Celestia resurrecting his race, otherwise you're correct.
"He acts cold towards the voice (his daughter) because he doesn't want her to have any involvement with him so she can live her new life without memories of him. That's why he wants the memories of all of the souls, especially hers, wiped out. He's also keeping interaction to a minimum so that, when the memories are wiped, there's a slightly lower chance that any memories will be retained. Celestia said there would be a chance some memories would stay."
You're missing something. He said, "Are you still watching?" His answer was, "Always watching," he replied, "Learn all you want, I'll still remain in control."
This creepy girl said something between the lines of, "if you die he will be very displeased. I won't let that happen." These two lines counteract each other, one wants to control him, the other wants to please him.
"The other millions of souls that speak, scream, and whisper at him? Like the voice is doing?"
He was able to mute them to a degree, the voice was able to speak to him, and being heard above the others. Again, it was learning new words. His daughter could more then likely already speak, she was very unlikely to have died at birth, because then he should have mentioned his wife at some point. In the prequel, he mentioned that he remembered the hope in her eyes, and as he had crushed that hope. This support that she couldn't have died at birth.
"You assumed wrong, smartass."
I'm assuming that you're not gonna be polite about this. How mature.
"0 fucks given."
Good to know you won't hold a grudge then.
4258746
Okay then, I guess she's just some random human slut that the alicorns made even though they had never seen one. Or she's another void person thing, even though they all died. Because those make so much more sense.
4258758 Who is to say she's human? She has a "similar" form to the purveyor. There are a lot of those. And she doesn't necessarily have any DIRECT history with him. She could have known that he existed like that dragon deity what's-his-face. She might have been at the meeting with the other deity's, just remaining hidden. The dragon might have known she was there, but he choose not to point out the purveyor, so he might not have bothered. And the rest of them? When you are that powerful you are bound to grow arrogant, regardless of your nature. Or she might be a renegade purveyor, decient or otherwise, who sees a opportunity of some sort. Again, all theories. None of this is solid data, but then again nor are your theories. We both might be completely wrong, spot on, close, there is no way to tell until this story updates. Now, unless there is something you'd like to add, I'm done.
4258824
Or she could be the actual void incarnate- and it doesn't want it's host to be angry. Or harmed. She could be the void that our good immortal friend merged with, which would explain the voice OLDER than him within his mind, and why she can also control the void. After all, one can always control themselves.
4751840 I'd argue that, but I feel like one argument is enough for one story, much more so then but a single chapter. Let's simply say that I disagree and leave it at that.
4752102
Understood. Opinions differ between man- hence why we're able to be so creative.
4752109 Wise words, I approve.
4752116
Why thank you. That little nugget of wisdom came from simply understanding how the internet works at times- stating strong opinions leads to people rushing to shred you apart, each saying something different.
Why do i have the forboding sense that the girl is the purveyors daughter...
whelp seems like this is either dead or on a veeery long hiatus, buuut im still going to fav it due to it interesting me enough to pull an all-nighter ...
Poor Twi
4917660 so you state the sense that the girl is Maya? Am I correct to assume so?
Holy fuck that thing at the end is fucking creepy. I realize, it has barely done anything, but still, holy fuck, the implications
Please sir, may we have some more
Just finished binged reading both these stories and I have to say this may be one the most enthralling stories I have ever read. Well done sir, you've had me giddy as a school girl countless times threw these stories and even if this story is dead I still enjoyed every second I spent reading.
Nearly a year.
5859317 ...huh.