The Elements of Honor

by Flanagan

Prologue pt5: Peace and Reflection

Many years had passed since Destruction’s defeat and all seemed as it should, Omnipotent had been teaching his daughters how to raise the sun and moon. Sure, he helped both of them from time to time, but they really didn’t need it. He was just happy they didn’t grow up too fast, though at times it seemed to him like it was only days ago that he was tucking them into bed and telling them stories so boring that they would eventually go to sleep. He smiled to himself remembering those days always made him smile, despite the loss of his beloved Aurora. Oh, how he missed her. If she could only see Celestia and Luna now, she would be so proud of them. After all, and as he thought very fortunately, they did get their looks form their mother.

As he thought back on those times, he stepped out further onto the castle’s balcony, looking down towards the beautiful garden. There he saw his oldest, Celestia, walking amongst the flowers and small animals that inhabited it. She was just enjoying the beauty that the garden provided, but Omnipotent did notice something out of place.

Celestia was wearing an elegant, silver dress, the expertly cut rubies and the golden lining made her seem to glow with even more beauty in the sun than usual. Omnipotent wondered why his daughter was so dressed up, what was the occasion. He never missed any occasion, or maybe it was her own special occasion. So he flew to the garden to investigate.

Celestia had just picked a rose and placed it in her mane as Omnipotent began to speak. “You look lovely today, Tia.” He said, seemingly startling his daughter.

“Father! You shouldn’t sneak up on me like that… Thank you by the way” She replied trying to cover her now blushing face with her mane.

“I apologize about that Tia, but I saw you wearing that dress and I couldn’t help but wonder if I didn’t remember today being a special event.” Omnipotent said trying to hide his smile.

Celestia’s face turned an even brighter red. “Oh… uh, this old thing? Well… I-uh, I just saw it ling around so I thought I would just try it on, you know, to see how it fit…” An awkward attempt at a smile came across her face, but it only made it harder for her father to contain his laughter.

“Oh I see,” Omnipotent said with a small smirk and a cocked eyebrow as he walked past her, “So…” he began casually, “what’s his name?” he said as he looked back at her.

“Onu…” Celestia’s hoof quickly covered her mouth as her cheeks grew a colorful red, and as if on cue, Onus swooped into the garden, a dozen assorted flowers in his arms. After the brief awkward silence that fell on the three in the garden, Onus was the first to speak.

“So…” he said looking away from the two alicorns, “nice weather today, huh buddy?”

“Oh yes, yes it is,” Omnipotent was no longer trying to hide his smile, “Celestia made this day especially delightful.” He shot a glance at his daughter, who was now a shade of red that even he hadn’t seen before.

“Father, I-I… I, uh…” Celestia said, trying to find the words to explain to her now chuckling father “well… you see, we… uh, we-”

“It’s alright, Celestia,” Omnipotent said raising his hoof cutting his daughter off mid-sentence, “there is no need to explain, your life is your own and you are an adult fully capable of making your own decisions, besides I’m glad that you found somepony to make you happy.” The look he gave at the two was one that made them see that his words were sincere.

“Well, that’s a weight off MY shoulders,” Onus said wiping the sweat off his brow, “now then, my dear, shall we be off to the opera?” he extended his lion-like arm towards the elegant white alicorn.

“Yes, yes we shall” Celestia said letting out a sigh of relief as she extended a hoof towards the draconequues, “I will be back soon, father.” she said as the two flew off.

“Just be back right before sun down!” Omnipotent shouted at them as they continued on their path.

As they faded out of sight Omnipotent just smiled, Celestia had grown so much. She had fallen in love with all life and was even, to his surprise, starting to take suitors. Though Onus was nearly twice her age, he realized that she was nearly three hundred years old and more than capable of taking care of herself these days. She would have avoided the whole awkward moment in the garden if she had just told him sooner though, that was one thing that made him sad, and though the two were still very close they had been drifting apart for the past several hundred years.

Just a part of growing up, he thought to himself, but a frown came across his visibly aging face. He wished they could have stayed as close as they were when she was a filly, all those times that she followed him into places that nopony in their right mind would enter, all the times they would watch the sunrise together. When he actually taught her how to raise the sun, the day she did it by herself for the first time and when she got her as Luna called it ‘Cutie Mark’. Those were the days he thought, looking up at the sun, and those days were over. He lowered his head, a small tear forming in his eye, but he had to not look back at that, because there was an appointment that he had to keep with another alicorn. One who over the years had done the opposite of her older sister.

“You were almost late, daddy,” Luna said playfully trotting up to her father and wrapping her forelegs around his neck. “We were getting worried that you had forgotten.”

“Luna, my sweet little Luna,” Omnipotent said as he stroked her sky blue mane, “How could I forget such an occasion? After all this is the first time you get to lift the moon completely unassisted.”

“Where’s Celestia?” Luna said, with a small look of concern on her face, “She said that she would be here to see.”

“I’m sure that she is on her way, Luna,” Omnipotent said trying to reassure his youngest, “she would not forget a day this important to you.”

“I hope so daddy, after all I was there when she lifted the sun by herself…” Luna said still a bit of concern in her voice.

Omnipotent could just smile as his youngest began preparing herself for her big night. Like Celestia she had grown so much, but she still had that foal like playfulness and spirit. Her love of knowledge had made her grow closer and closer to her father, who was more than happy to show her almost everything that he knew. The time they spent together was mostly that of him showing her the wonders of his creation and her asking how it all worked, but from time to time a playful game or two was had between them. He loved the games the most; they actually tested his wit from time to time, for Luna had become a trickster of sorts. A smile came across his face as he remembered one such game that actually got Dante covered in tree sap.

“Daddy?” Luna’s voice snapped him out of his memories.

“Yes Luna, what is it?” Omnipotent asked as he saw a small frown come across her face.

“Before I do this,” Luna began, “can we talk about, you know… mom… just for a little bit, you know? Just until Celestia gets back?” She lowered her head kicking the rocks beneath her hooves.

The question came as a truly surprising one to Omnipotent, in all of the years they had been this close, she never asked him about her, not even once. He just looked at his youngest daughter; her normal playful manner had turned into one of slight sadness and seeming guilt. He knew had no other choice about what to do with the question that was asked.

“Of course, Luna,” Omnipotent said lowering himself to her eyes, which were still gazing towards the ground. “What do you wish to know?”

“Well,” Luna began, “how did she come to be?” Her eyes looked toward the loving eyes of a knowing and understanding father.

“I made her,” he answered, “from the clay of my creation and my very own flesh.” He said as he lay down in front of Luna, to better be at her level.

“D-did it hurt?” she asked as she averted her gaze toward the far right.

“Yes, it hurt very much Luna,” he responded, Luna had a slight look of surprise, in all this time, Omnipotent never admitted to feeling any kind of pain, ever.

“Then why did you make her?” Luna asked, still gazing down and away from her father, “Why make something if its creation hurt you so much?”

“Luna,” Omnipotent began, placing his hoof under Luna’s chin, pulling her face towards his so she could look at him while he answered, “because what is life if you live in a perfect world, if you live in it without another to enjoy it with?”

“I-I don’t know, daddy,” Luna said brushing off Omnipotent’s hoof as she laid down in front of him still staring at him, “I guess living like that would not be a life worth living.”

“You said you didn’t know, Luna,” he said with a small smile growing across his face, “that is exactly why I created her; I wanted to live for something.”

“Live for what?” Luna asked, her eyes beginning to water.

“Love,” Omnipotent answered, lightly stroking the mane of his youngest, providing comfort, “it is the one thing that makes a life worth living, because without that you can’t have anything else.”

“Like Celestia and myself?” Luna asked as a tear began to run down her cheek.

“You are a very beautiful and clever little mare.” Omnipotent responded, wiping the stray tear away from his daughter’s face.

Luna’s voice began to stutter as she asked the most painful question for the both of them. “H-how did she d-die?”

“Your mother grew very ill, Luna.” he said softly, trying to stay the tide of tears in both their eyes.

“Why?” Luna’s voice began to whimper, “w-why did she get sick so daddy, what made her so ill?”

“Luna, though we are very powerful in the ways of magic, we are limited in the amount we have…” Omnipotent’s voice grew soothing and warm as he tried to explain it gently to his youngest, “your mother, she… she just used too much magic to make all ponykind.”

Another lone tear ran down Luna’s face as she began to speak. “W-was there anything t-that could have been done for her? C-could she still be alive today?”

“Luna… Dante, Onus and myself used almost all the magic we had trying to save her, I’m afraid that no matter what, she would have not regained her health before it took her.” Omnipotent’s face was met with a single tear; running across his muzzle before it fell toward the ground.

Luna could not hold back anymore, she rushed towards her father, tightly wrapping her forelegs around his neck, tears running down her face without restraint. Omnipotent did the only thing he could do, he returned the embrace, softly stroking Luna’s mane as he fought his own tears, trying to give comfort to the one who was closest to his wife when she died.

“It will be alright Luna,” he said in a tender, soothing fatherly voice, “she never really left you know, she lives on in you and in all the ponies that adore you.”

“B-but I just want to see her, j-just… just one more time!” Luna’s voice rushed between the torrents of tears that cascaded from her eyes.

“I know Luna,” Omnipotent said, tears beginning to trickle out of his own eyes, “I do too.”

Omnipotent held his youngest in his forelegs while she released every tear that she had been holding back. It seemed like hours, but finally the last tear had fallen to the ground and not a moment too soon. Celestia landed just several minutes later, hoping that she didn’t miss her little sister’s big moment. It didn’t take long for Luna to recompose herself so she could raise the moon. Omnipotent watched in silent pride as Celestia lowered the sun and Luna used all of her ability to raise the moon. After several minutes Luna was exhausted, but when she looked to the sky she saw a large pale sphere floating in the sky and that wasn’t even the best part. Celestia pointed to her sister’s flack revealing a dark mark with the shape of the moon in the center. Not only had Luna raised the moon but she had also received her Cutie Mark, their elation was second to none that evening, but as with all good things, it had to end.

Comments

[dormagio]

"though at times it seemed to him like it was only days ago that he was tucking them into bed and telling them stories so boring that they would eventually go to sleep" And as you can see here on Fig. 14a the hydroelastic power coupling is composed of a thin coating of steel 4 micrometers thick...

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