Chapter Two: Bring Me to Life
An Icy Existence
Chapter 2: Bring Me To Life
By DigitDaemon
~~~~~
Twilight felt like she was drifting in an endless sea. She had found solace in the emptiness, the silence. Bitterness over her decision still clung to her, but she knew this was for the best. If Equestria, her friends, family, all the ponies she cared about, if they were to remain safe, then she must remain safely locked away.
The Goddess of Magic brought herself out of her tireless slump and turned her senses to her environment. Her memory of this place was so vivid, it was as if she could feel the rough stone of the building, the charred remains of the structure that was once her family's vacation home. Memories, both happy and sad flooded into her mind at the touch of the old home. It was here that she discovered the raw power of fire and its dangers. It seemed like a fitting place for her to be now.
The other presence in Twilight’s mind stirred at this, but thankfully remained silent. Twilight brushed her thoughts aside and went about checking the wards she had placed around the area. She feared that somepony, someday might find her and release her from her prison, but deep down, she also knew the in the end, hiding was fruitless. A weapon will always be a weapon, whether it is locked up for an eon or exposed to the world.
The sound of hoof steps broke Twilight out of her contemplation as the large white form of Celestia came to view in front of the frozen purple alicorn.
“I have to give you credit Twilight, I was expecting to find you underneath your bed,” Celestia gave a sad smile, “But, you're hiding place is still too personal if you don’t want to be found.” Celestia continued to walk around the block of ice. “Your family’s vacation house? It was clever, seeing the apparent change in your magic, that you would choose someplace with such burning history for you.”
Twilight was aware she was bad at hiding, but she had hoped that she would at least be able to go for a few years without discovery. Twenty-seven hours was still a personal best, but disappointing regardless.
"Why hide your power? She should be begging at your knees for forgiveness."
Twilight mentally glared at the voice in her head. "Why would she apologize? I am the only one who has done anything wrong."
"She failed to recognize your power and superiority!"
Twilight's internal voice transitioned from annoyed to angry. "My superiority?! She has spent countless lifetimes learning and building her wisdom. What do I have, an angry sword stuck in my metaphysical stomach?!"
"Her knowledge is meaningless without the power or conviction to use it. You can be so much more than her."
"No!"
Twilight's rage incandesced into a bright blue glow before shooting outwards, shattering her self created prison.
Celestia was caught off guard and only able to throw her wing up as the sheet of razor sharp ice hit her. She bit her lip as the shards bounced off and clipped her. After it was over, Celestia took a quick look at her damaged feathers, which were now torn and stick at odd angles, nothing to worry her. What did worry her though, was the lavender princess in front of her. Twilight was standing on the remains of the ice block with her eyes glowing and her legs braced, as if casting a spell.
With a quick test of the magical flow in the air, Celestia confirmed her fear that Twilight was generating a cyclical magic build up by charging magic and then recycling it back into itself. If she continued much longer, the build up would become unstable and detonate.
Celestia carefully approached the tense form of her student, while resisting the painful, icy, tingling sensation that surrounded Twilight. As gentle as she could, she placed her wing over Twilight’s back and whispered gently into her ear.
“Starswirl’s First Law states that all magic is derived from finite energy. Starswirl’s Second Law states that all magic is recycled into the environment…”
Celestia paused as she heard Twilight began to mumble along with her. Seeing that it was working, she continued.
“Starswirl’s Third Law states that all magical energy cannot be destroyed nor created.”
Twilight was now following each word coherently, but her channeling loop continued.
“Starswirl’s Fourth Law states that ducks do not know how to eat peanut butter.”
Twilight's concentration snapped, and there was a rather large bang as the built up energy was dispersed rapidly into the air around the two princesses.
“No it isn't, Starswirl’s fourth law clearly states that…” Twilight realized that she was about to start lecturing her mentor on low level magical properties. “Oh...Sorry.”
Celestia gave a chuckle and brushed some of the ice chips off of Twilight's nose, “It’s okay my faithful student, I’m just glad that you are okay.”
“But I’m not okay,” Twilight pulled away and began pacing back and forth through the dark room.
Celestia sighed, visible worried about the events that have transpired. “Twilight, there is something I need to tell you.”
Twilight stopped and turned back to her mentor, confused at what Celestia could possible have been hiding from her.
“Do you know what makes me the Princess of the Sun, or Luna the Princess of the Moon?”
“Yes, your magic was strong enough to collect ambient energy until your’s became heat and Luna’s became gravity.”
Celestia shook her head, “That's the most truthful explanation we could give without threatening the balance of Earth.”
Twilight looked even more confused, but she waited for Celestia to continue.
“There are many different forces that affect this planet. Each and every one of them has an anchor or aspect if you will.”
Twilight nodded.
“Now, most of these aspects are objects, long forgotten artifacts.”
“Like the Tree of Harmony!” Twilight exclaimed, happy that she was beginning to understand.
Celestia in turn gave her a proud smile, “Exactly, but a few of them are not held inside objects.”
“Then where are they?”
“In us.”
Twilight gave her teacher a skeptical look, “They are shared among ponies?”
“No, they are each held by specific individuals.”
Twilight’s mouth formed an ‘O’ in understanding, “So, I have the Aspect of Magic?”
“Indeed you do, as I hold the Aspect of Light and my sister of Shadows.”
“So, why would it be dangerous if others knew about this?” Twilight asked.
“Because, just like physical objects, the Aspects can be stolen and traded and given away. And indeed there was a time, a time before ponies or griffons or dragons, that just that happened, but this is history the predate even this old maid.” Celestia said and chuckled a bit at her self teasing.
Twilight adopted a more serious look, “So you are afraid that someone might abuse the ability for these Aspects to be moved from one being to another?”
Celestia shook her head, a grim shadow falling over her features, “I am not afraid that someone might, I am afraid someone has already begun.”
The realization struck Twilight, her eyes widening in comprehension, “The sword? You think that Luna put an Aspect inside of it?”
“Yes, and I believe that what you have encountered are the after effects of just such an act. Long ago, before the Endless Night that took my sister from me, My sister also held the Aspect of Death, as I still hold the Aspect of Life. When she returned from her prison several years ago, she held it no more.”
Twilight sat down and stared worriedly at Celestia, unsure of what to think of the information she was receiving.
“I am sure if you asked, Luna would tell you what happened, but she has seen fit to lock herself in the grand archives, claiming to be doing research. So, I will tell you what I think happened.”
Twilight shivered involuntarily before getting up and sitting back down next to Celestia. Celestia replaced her wing on Twilight's shoulder, pulling her close in order to comfort both her purple pupil and herself.
“One thousand years ago, my sister was being consumed by jealousy. She knew that she needed to expel her frustrations or the consequences would be terrible.”
“I suppose she failed then and started a war?”
Celestia shook her head, “No, she succeeded. By going to war with Equestria, she was able to blow off enough of her power that she could be imprisoned in the Moon and her emotions could settle. The Nightmare Moon you fought upon her return was born of a lack of social contact. It is regrettable that it had to be done, but it really was for the best”
Twilight raised her right eyebrow. “But so many died in that war, what could be worse?”
“Like myself, my sister holds two Aspects, though she did once hold three. The other Aspect she posses is that of cosmic power, the massive gravitational force that binds the universe around us together. Had she not went to war, she may have destroyed much more.”
Twilight shivered again and Celestia pressed up against her in an effort to keep her student warm.
“I see…” Twilight started to feel very tired, though she had been completely comfortable inside an iceberg, she was starting to feel far too cold to function.
“I...I can’t feel my…”
“Twilight?” Celestia asked with great concern.
She lifted up her wing and found that Twilight was unconscious and turning pale.
“Twilight!”
Celestia gathered her magic with haste and teleported straight into the Canterlot Royal Archive.
Luna had spent the last eight hours reading through the final entries in an old research journal that had lost the name of its author long ago; Luna vaguely recalled calling the being Mr. Dusty, but she figured it was probably long before she had matured into an adult. The journal itself was only really a collection of pages from the original book, rebound in a modern hardcover binding. Additionally, it was written in a script that was almost as old as creation itself, forcing Luna to take great pains in her reading to ensure the accuracy of her translation.
In fact, it irked the Princess of the Moon that she had to do research at all. She had been quite fond of her vast and almost limitless knowledge of magic, but once again, circumstances seemed to have proved her wrong. There was a time that Luna thought that she could control the forces of existence, a time she believed to have transcended the limits imposed by nature on her. Yet, even after a thousand years, she was still paying for her hubris.
Luna shut the book delicately as to not damage the ancient pages, her desire for information still unsated though. It seems that nothing like what Twilight has been experiencing had ever been recorded before.
“Damn thee, why must you stick in my flank as a thorn, dear General?” Luna sat silently, almost hoping for an answer to her question. Instead She heard the pop of a teleportation spell and the urgent cry of her sister.
“Luna!”
The princess of the night jumped into the air and quickly flew down the wide halls of the archive, ducking through passages that had gone centuries without visit, and stirring up waves of dust as she rushed towards the sound of her sisters voice.
When she arrived at Celestia's side her heart almost stopped in fear. Twilight lay motionless on the floor in front of the Sun princess, and despite the fact that the humidity in the archives was almost zero, icicles had started to form on her body.
Celestia turned and Luna could see the panic on her sister’s face as tears silently ran down her cheeks. “I tried, but I can’t warm her up…”
Luna sat down next to the deathly cold alicorn and scanned her mind for any signs of life. She had a feeling of what she would find, an empty skull, but was ecstatic to discover that Twilight’s mind was still fully functional.
“Fear not sister, she is only asleep.”
Celestia gave her sister a look that was equal parts relief and confusion, “But her heart is stopped?”
Luna gave the Princess of Magic another contemplative glance, “It seems as if she has gone into some sort of forced hibernation. Normally, I would not suggest such an approach, but I think that perhaps I should join her in her dreams and perchance discover the cause of this behavior.”
Celestia joined her sister in contemplating the icy form before her, “Indeed it would be a breach of privacy, but I think that in the interest of Twilight’s personal safety, we must do everything we can.”
Luna nodded and she lowered herself into a sleeping position next to Twilight's frozen body as her horn lit up and her eyes closed.
Twilight was standing in a field of snow. The wind around her was laced with the powder substance that covered the ground and gave everything a softer look. For a moment, perhaps the first in several days, Twilight was almost calm. The white landscape reminded her of the trips her and her family would take during the holidays to visit her grandparents in the mountains. She would follow her brother around and try to hit him with snowballs, but he was always the better tactician. The moment faded quickly though; with nothing but white, the purple pony found it hard to to tell distance or form around her, and she began to feel as if the calm was just a veil hiding something far more sinister. Even though there was nothing around, the featureless landscape was starting to make her claustrophobic.
“Well isn't this a lovely surprise?”
Twilight turned in circles to try and identify the speaker, but it seemed like every word came from a different direction.
“You know, I was like you once,” came the voice. It sounded so close that Twilight jumped a little. It was soft, strong, and something twisted about it.
“How?” Twilight replied, picking a direction to address.
“Righteous, naive, believing that I could change the world.” The voice added a grim chuckle to the end of its sentence.
“But I can change the world, everypony...everyone has that power!” Twilight shouted back.
“No!" Twilight fell to the ground from the sudden intensity of the voice, the hate and anger overwhelming her. She felt as if she was on the brink of destruction as evil powers closed around her, and just when she thought the end was near, it stopped. She felt a sudden warmth from inside, and gentle whisper at her ears.
"My dear, those are but lies fed to you by your beloved teacher and her treacherous sister. Trust me, I know. I use to think I could trust them, even care for one. But in the end, I was betrayed - left to die at the hooves of the Sun."
“Enough!”
Twilight uncovered her eyes and looked beside her. Standing tall was the dark blue form of Princess Luna.
“Show thyself, so that we may settle this with civility.”
The cloak of falling snow seemed to vanish and a single figure emerged. It was clearly the form of a large stallion. He was completely white and ice clung to his coat. To Twilight, his eyes seemed to penetrate her as her leveled his icy blue gaze on the two of them.
“Hello again mistress,” the pony hissed, his voice dripping with venom. “How may I serve you today? You have taken my body, trapped my soul; perchance I can give you my eyes, that way you can see my agony? Or maybe my ears, and you can hear my screams!”
Much to Twilight's surprise, instead of meeting the challenge, Luna dropped to one knee and bowed before the imposing figure.
The Princess of Dreams spoke softly, “Frostmourne, my dear general-”
“Please, spare me the pleasantries.”
“I will not pretend I did not hurt you, abandon you and curse you, all because I thought I could control nature. I betrayed you in a way far too great to receive forgiveness, and I will have to live with the consequence of yours and a thousand other lost souls.”
Frostmourne eyed Luna suspiciously.
“But those actions were my fault. It was I that led thee astray, not my sister and certainly not the noble Twilight Sparkle.”
“Look at you, so bold and arrogant.” Frostmourne gave a snort of contempt, “You think you can apologize and suddenly I am at your beck and call again. Unfortunately for you, I have a new master.”
Luna nodded and stood up again. She locked eyes with Frostmourne, intent on getting her own message across, “You do have a new master. That is plain to see, but who will that new master be?”
Frostmourne broke his deadpan for only a moment, but long enough to give away his own curiosity at where Luna was going with this.
“One that uses you as a toy, something to be thrown around as is pleased or the one pony that I think still has a chance of becoming your friend…”
The icy figure laughed, “You would presume to know what my struggles are? You think you have me all figured out, is that it?” Frostmourne spit at the ground and then dug his right hoof into the built up snow. “Well, I have news for you. Twilight’s mind is my home now,” He pulled his hoof and a out from the snow came a perfect replica of the wicked blade from which he had come, except carved from ice. “And you aren’t welcome.”
Twilight was too shocked to react as Frostmourne charged the Princess of Dreams and slid the shard of ice into her torso. Luna however stood resolute, even as her image faded from the fields of snow.
Frostmourne turned to Twilight, giving her an almost concerned scowl, “We have a lot to discuss, but I don’t think you can handle what I have to say at the moment.” With that, Frostmourne rushed forward and buried the shard of ice into Twilight’s chest before she had a chance to react. Twilight tried to call out, but as she faded from the dreamscape, so did her ability to speak. Soon Twilight was adrift in a dark, dreamless sleep.
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3734744 Do you have a particular song in mind? to hum that is.
Joking aside, I hope you enjoy my re-imagining of the Warcraft characters and story.
3737532 I never thought of it like, I'll change that right now.Thanks!
This updated, and I didn't get a notification... wtf FIMFiction.
3798013 It says you don't actually have the story favorited, maybe that's why?
3799127
Currently, that must be the reason. In the past, I've had it and other stories attached into the "read later" section and I swear that I've received story update notifications through it.
All well, problem solved.
3799530 Yeah, I remember that as well but they are always making changes to the site though.