Out of the Darkness

by SergeantShenanigans

Ch 16: Sisterhooves Social

Inside the library was a wreck, there were things scattered everywhere as far as he could see and he suddenly heard maniacal laughter coming from somewhere inside "Who are you and what did you do to Starswirl!" he shouted

"Who is there, what is this, maybe it is old Starswirl's apprentice?" the insane sounding voice said and the door slid open

What he saw was some kind of mixture of about every kind of animal he could imagine, it looked like a pony, a dragon, a griffon, and a great deal many more "What are you?" Star asked

"I am chaos of course! But you can call me Discord!" the creature said

"What did you do to my master!" Star demanded

"Well, wouldn't you like to know?" Discord taunted

"Yes" Star said flatly throwing off Discord

"Do you have no sense of humor or something?" Discord asked

"I have a sense of humor, but you are changing subject, now, where is Starswirl!" Star demanded

"I would love to tell you, but I have got to go. You know how it is, Rulers to overthrow and kingdoms to topple. Tata!" he said disappearing in a puff of smoke

"NO!" Star shouted pushing open the door and tackling at the puff of smoke just to pass through it

"I have to warn the Princesses!" he said running back out the door and closing it behind him

Star suddenly regained consciousness from his flashback and heard a worried voice "Rainbow, are you sure that this has happened before? He has been unconscious for ten minutes" said a voice that sounded like Twilight's

"I'm sure he will wake up any minute" Rainbow said confidently

"It could take longer, usually he has flashbacks that last all night" Fluttershy pointed out

The door to the library had not completely opened, it was still only open ajar, he looked over and saw the other six ponies in a group a few feet away from him. They had built a fire to see and keep warm, seeing as Star could take a while before he woke up. He decided to listen to their conversation because he knew that they would talk more freely without him around to hear

"Ah'm surprised Rarity, ya haven't complained 'bout the dirt or anythin the entire time we've been here" Applejack commented

"It is actually surprisingly clean in here, I wonder if they put a dust repelling spell in here, and I wonder if I could be taught how to use it" Rarity said hopefully

"The dust just can't stick to the smooth surface of the cave, it can still accumulate dust, but it doesn't because all the dust that gets accumulated in here gets blown back out because of the wind" Twilight explained

They sat in silence for about another minute and Star contemplated getting up and letting them know that he had awoken, but Rarity decided to speak up "So, it is obvious that he won't wake up for a while, I would like to know what you girls think about him"

"What do you mean "what we think about him"?" Twilight asked

"None of us know him all too well, even he doesn't know himself too well, I would just like to know what you girls think of him" Rarity asked simply

"He is a little frustrating, he doesn't get mad about anything" Rainbow said

"He likes cupcakes and muffins!" Pinkie threw out

"He only thinks of the situation at hand, he doesn't think about anything else as relevant" Twilight said

They all nodded after she said that "But, he is really nice, and he is honest" Fluttershy pointed out

They also all nodded at this "He's a hard worker, and he doesn't complain for anythin" Applejack threw out

"Why are we analyzing him anyway?" Rainbow asked

"I was wondering if there really was a possibility of him being controlled by Discord, and by your reactions, I don't really think that he is" Rarity said

"He does overreact a bit though, he doesn't need to hide his face all the time" Twilight added

"His scar isn't that bad, although, it is the first thing your eyes jump to" Rarity admitted

"I think it makes him look like some sort of hero, maybe he was fighting Discord when he got it" Rainbow said

None of the other ponies had thought about it like that before "I thought that maybe he got it when he was in the Everfree forest" Fluttershy suggested

"Maybe" Rainbow admitted "but it seems more likely that he was fighting Discord when he got it, I mean come on, we are all pretty sure that he lost his memory because of Discord"

"But the question is, was it voluntary?" Twilight asked

They all sat in silence for a few seconds until Fluttershy spoke up "I trust him, I don't think that he is a bad pony, or that he ever was one"

"Ah agree" Applejack contributed

The rest of the ponies nodded in agreement "I am glad to know what you all think of me" Star said finally speaking up

"How long were you listening?" Twilight asked a little annoyed

"When you all "analyzed" me" Star admitted

"Why didn't you just get up and talk to us?" Rainbow asked

"Because you wouldn't have been that honest if you would have known I could hear" Star explained

They all went silent, they knew he was right "It still wasn't right of ya to listen in on other ponies conversations" Applejack said

"It was wrong" Star admitted "But if any of you were in my position you would have done the same thing, I don't think that I could trust all of you without all of you trusting me"

"Can we please just get the door open? I have been waiting patiently but I want to see that library!" Twilight said urgently

"Sure" Star answered walking back to the very large double doors

He walked over and pushed the door expecting it to stay in position, but instead it moved and they walked into the library. Everypony gasped at the sight, there were ashes and rubble strewn everywhere. Twilight ran over to one of the book cases and started looking for anything that may have survived, Rarity and Fluttershy volunteered to stay outside because it scared Fluttershy and Rarity wouldn't even come close to the door after she had seen what was inside.

Star looked around to get a good look of the library. It was a room that was obviously carved out of the mountain, it was big enough to house more than one full sized dragon, though only a small portion of it was taken up by actual clutter, the majority of it was taken up by nothing, most of the room was empty besides the stuff they found not far from the door. Star assumed that the rest of the cave was used as a testing ground for spells that Starswirl was inventing.

What was there was all destroyed, there were two book cases that were so large that Twilight commented "Would put the Canterlot library to shame" most of the books were strewn about and burned beyond repair.

After a few hours of searching they found a few things, firstly they found two books that were still intact, they found a locked chest that was about two feet wide and four feet long, and they found another cave that lead off from the main library cave that, they decided to explore another time.

Twilight was eager to get back to town so that she could inspect the two books so they didn't waste time getting there. As soon as they arrived at the library each of the ponies said their goodbyes and left, leaving just Star and Twilight in the library to study the two books.

Twilight excitedly opened one of the two title less books and groaned aloud "These books are written in the same symbols as the book you have!"

"Really?" Star asked her before checking for himself and sure enough, the books were also written in the same strange symbolic language "That's disappointing, I guess that I will have to work on translating the writings"

"I guess so. I wish I knew how you translated those things" she hinted

"I don't know myself, I just brought out my amulet and it did it itself. I don't know if it is my magic or just the magic that is already in the amulet" Star admitted

"Oh, well, if you do find out, teach me how so that we can translate them faster" Twilight said disappointedly

"Alright, I will take them with me, I will see you later" Star said walking out the door

His mind wandered over the events of the day so far, he had found two books and a small chest to add to his group of mysterious items. He had learned that his friends trusted him, he didn't want to acknowledge it, but in the back of his mind he couldn't help but think that they might turn on him at any time because of his connection to Discord now, he knew that they wouldn't.

He looked up and saw that there were still a few hours of daylight left and contemplated what to do with the rest of his day, he decided to spend it trying to translate the books. He soon got to his home and lay down in his bed with the three books and took out his amulet "Translate these books" Star thought to his amulet.

He looked through the books but nothing was translated "um… please translate these books?" he thought to the amulet and again checked the books to no avail "I thought that would work"

He sat in silence and just stared at the books not knowing what to do, he just decided to give up and go to sleep, he hadn't gotten much the night before.

He woke the next morning and it was still dark outside, so he decided to go for a walk through Ponyville. He walked through the peaceful town as the sun started to rise, it was peaceful and there were no sounds at all. His walk soon took him from Ponyville to Sweet Apple acres, just as he was turning back he saw Applejack kicking apples off of the ground and Applebloom catching them in a basket on her head, wondering what they were doing Star decided to go ask.

As he approached the duo they did not notice him, and Applejack accidentally knocked an apple right into his head "Whoops!" she said as she saw Star get knocked down "Are ya okay Star?"

"I'm fine" he said getting up and dusting himself off "I was coming to ask what you and Applebloom are doing"

"We're practicin for the Sisterhooves Social!" Applebloom said in delight

"Sisterhooves Social?" Star asked questioningly

"Tomorrow, we're gonna be holdin the annual Sisterhooves Social here at Sweet Apple Acres, we're practicin to win" Applejack explained

"Sounds fun, will there be anypony else that I know competing in this competition?" Star asked

"Sweetiebelle is going to try and convince Rarity" Applebloom chimed in

"This is going to be interesting, when are you going to be setting up for the event? I would love to help" Star offered

"We'll be settin up in the afternoon, sometime after Applebloom gets home from school" she explained "ya can come and help then"

"Sounds good to me, I will see you then Applejack" Star said leaving the sisters to practice

Once again Star found himself walking in the serene silence that was Ponyville before most ponies woke up, there were a few ponies here or there going about their business, but otherwise it was completely silent, that is, until he was yelled at by a certain pink pony "Hey Star! I need to ask you something!" Pinkie yelled to him as she bounced towards him

"What is it Pinkie?" Star asked

"When's your birthday?" she asked

"I don't know, I don't even know how old I am right now" he answered with a shrug

"Oh, I was hoping so because I am updating my birthday calendar of everypony in town and I was hoping to find out when yours was so that I could throw you a party for it, but I guess that it will have to wait!" she said hopping off to do who knows what

"Ok then, that was weird, I might as well go and get some breakfast" he said to himself walking towards Sugarcube Corner

He soon arrived at Sugarcube Corner and saw that it was empty besides Mrs. Cake at the counter, which wasn't surprising because it was still early in the morning "Hello Mrs. Cake, I would like to order three blueberry muffins" Star asked

"That will be five bits" she said happily walking into the kitchen to get the muffins

Star reached into his saddlebag, took out his pouch of bits, took out five bits and put them onto the counter as Mrs. Cake came back out with three blueberry muffins on a plate "Thanks" he said giving her the bits

He soon took his usual seat in the corner of the store and settled down to eat his breakfast. After eating his breakfast he thought of what he was going to do that day until he could help with the Sisterhooves Social, he could help Rarity and Sweetiebelle with their practicing, he could try to decipher the books again, he could explore the library some more and hope to find something to help him remember more things about his past, he could just hang out in town today and do nothing. He was thinking so deeply that he didn't see the purple unicorn approach him with an anxious look on her face "So, did you decipher the books?" she asked him which made him jump in surprise

"Sorry, I was lost in my thoughts" he apologized "I didn't actually, I will try at it again today, or I might actually do it right now if you want, I don't actually have anything to do today until about four" he explained

"I would like it if you would try to decipher them now" Twilight said hopefully "but if you don't want to you can just do it later"

"I will do it now, I have nothing else to do anyway" he said walking towards the door "I will go grab the books and meet you at the library in a few minutes"

After a short trip to his house and back he found that Twilight was waiting anxiously at the door for him "There you are, what took you so long?"

"I was only gone for a few minutes" he said "What has you so anxious?"

"I am excited to find out more about one of the greatest magicians of all time!" she said almost bouncing in place "so let's get started!"

Star took the three books out of his bag and then removed the amulet from around his neck and stared at the books "Alright amulet, will you please decipher one of these books? I would appreciate it- wait a second, I am acting as if the amulet can understand me. Alright, now focus" he though focusing on deciphering the books this time instead of asking his amulet to do so.

Soon, the middle book started to shift a small bit as an aura the same color as Star's eyes covered the book and it revealed a title that was not there a moment ago, the title read "Starswirls Journal"

Twilight gasped "is that what I think it is?" She asked excitedly

"It looks like it" Star said "Let's take a look inside"

They read the journal as far as it was deciphered and learned three things, first Starswirl actually DIDN'T have another apprentice besides Star, he had hired somepony to act the part of his apprentice so that nopony knew that Star was his apprentice, which made them wonder why he didn't want Star to be known. Secondly Starswirl only wore the bells on his hat so that other ponies thought that he was insane and they wouldn't bother him. Thirdly, he mentioned something about a key that he hid in a secret compartment in the library

"I thought that Starswirl wore the bells to help him concentrate" Twilight commented

"I wonder why he didn't want ponies to know that I was his apprentice?" he thought out loud

"One thing is for sure, we need to find that key, I bet that it is the key to the box that we found" Twilight suggested

"I think so too" he agreed "I would decipher more, but I am guessing that it only deciphered this much for a reason, I don't think I could do more if I tried"

Star proceeded to look outside and saw that it was about time that he head down to the Apple farm and help with setting up the Sisterhooves Social event "I have to go now, we will talk more about this later Twilight, feel free to examine the books further while I am gone" he said leaving

He arrived at the apple farm after a short trip and saw that Applejack and Big Macintosh were setting up some sort of obstacle course "Hey guys, I am guessing this is the event that everypony competes in?" Star asked

"Eeyup" Macintosh answered

"Is that all you ever say Macintosh?" Applejack asked

"I have only ever heard him say that one other time besides now" Star defended Macintosh

"Ah guess" Applejack said dropping the matter "now Star, ah want ya ta help set up some of these baskets and hay bales"

They worked on the course for six hours before they finally finished "That was a lot quicker than it usually is!" Applejack said happily "Thanks for your help Star"

"It was my pleasure" Star said looking up to see what time it was "I better get going, I will see you here tomorrow"

"Ah will see ya tomorrow then" Applejack agreed

He left after that and went to check on Twilights progress, when he arrived he was informed that she had learned nothing new. Taking the books Star said goodbye and made his way back home long after the sun had set, he decided that he would try to decipher the books again tomorrow, after he had a good nights rest and saw the Sisterhooves Social competition.

The next day he woke up and saw that it was near noon so he headed off to Sweet Apple acres. When he arrived there were a lot of other ponies there too. But he didn't see Rarity, he only saw Applejack, Applebloom, and Sweetiebelle. He approached them and was about to ask about Rarity when he was given a warning look from Applejack

"Hey girls, you excited for the race?" he asked

"Yes! I get to race with Applejack today!" Sweetiebelle said excitedly

Star gave Applejack a questioning look and she gave him another warning look so he dropped the matter. Star saw Granny Smith and Big Macintosh approaching the stage "looks like you guys are about to race, better get ready"

"He's right, come on Sweetiebelle" Applejack agreed

They walked over to the starting line and Granny Smith gave an introduction before starting the race, they all started off well, but Applejack immediately fell into the mud, when she got back up, Star saw that her eye color had changed from her usual jade green to a sapphire blue "Wait a sec, isn't that Rarity?" Star thought as he saw right through their charade

After the race ended he saw Applejack exit the pool of mud and Rarity reveal herself, after an explanation of what happened Sweetiebelle hugged Rarity. Star decided that it was time for him to go home and he also decided that he was going to try and decipher more out of Starswirls journal

After saying his goodbyes he made his way home where he started to decipher the journal, which he got one more line uncovered it was on the last page of the journal and all it read was "Despite what Star thinks, I am going through with it, tonight I either succeed and live, or fail and die"

Star blacked out and found himself in a flashback like state as he had many times before, but this time he saw himself in a small house facing down Discord who glaring at Star angrily "Did you come here to try and save Starswirl? Well, you are too late because he is already dead!