The Quill of Eternity

by Written Dreams

Chapter 2 - Canterlot

“Discord… you‘re not getting away with what you did…” Twilight lets out an annoyed huff looking forward and seeing Canterlot is still far away she stops walking, slowly looking around before sitting with a sigh, “I‘m feeling so drained… and my hooves are hurting.” Twilight had been walking for three hours without resting, and after her sobbing and everything that had happened that day she wanted to continue but the unicorn lets out a deep sigh before she enters the bushes off to the side of the path.

Twilight lays down under a bush and curls up, closing her eyes as she breathes slowly, “I don‘t even know if I can be safe here…” Her breathing slows as she eventually drifts off to sleep, giving her body some much-needed rest.

A few hours pass before Twilight awakens to a hoof nudging against her stomach. The unicorn looks up sleepily, her eyes steadily adjusting to the darkness of night around her, “The sun went down…?”

“Of course the sun went down, Twilight. Now get up because Trixie is getting you to that castle!” Twilight’s eyes snap open and she stands up quickly. Standing across from her is none other than the light blue unicorn herself, the self-proclaimed, Great and Powerful Trixie, “Where are your little friends, Twilight?” Twilight pauses, seeing genuine concern in Trixie’s face as she looks around. Twilight looks down sadly, closing her eyes,

“They… we confronted Discord with the Elements and… he turned them all to stone… even the princess. She shielded me from the Elements of Harmony when Discord used them.” Trixie takes a step back looking stunned and she shakes her head,

“There’s… there‘s no way that‘s true Twilight! How could Discord wield the Elements anyway?!” Twilight sighs as she opens her eyes again, meeting the gaze of the unicorn,

“The Elements of Harmony are magical artifacts and since Discord has much stronger magic than both Celestia and Luna… he must have been able to tap into their power by corrupting them in some way. That‘s what I think at least… I bet the princess would know…” Twilight then gasps as Trixie slaps her across the face,

“Get a grip Twilight! Your friends and Celestia are gone now! What you need to do is keep a clear head and do what you need to do. Quit this moping around and do something!” Twilight looks down for a moment, saying nothing for a few moments before nodding,

“Y-you‘re right Trixie… but… what are you doing here?”

“Twilight, Discord‘s powers have spread far wider than Ponyville. I knew that Discord‘s statue was in the gardens and once all of this chaos began happening, Trixie decided to come to Canterlot to set him straight.” Twilight nods as she turns and walks out of the bushes followed closely by Trixie,

“It‘s going to be really dangerous Trixie… we‘re going to the castle to try and find Princess Luna. Are you sure you‘re up to this? I have no idea where Discord is now…” Trixie walks out onto the road, the same aura of magic cloaking her hooves preventing her from sliding on the soap,

“We‘re in a world of chaos now Sparkle. There is no room for cowardice. I‘ve been working on my magic to compete with you ever since I saw you last. Now let‘s go, the sooner we get to the castle the higher the chance of us being able to rescue Luna if she‘s in danger.” Twilight simply nods in response and the two unicorns begin galloping up the hill towards Canterlot, Trixie’s purple cape blowing in the wind as they run. They continue running for another hour, Twilight soon skidding to a halt as both she and Trixie gasp.

Canterlot is made up entirely of chocolate and various other dessert items. The path under their hooves had turned to bricks of white and dark chocolate, the unicorns looking around slowly as they enter through the gate, “This is… Trixie has never seen anything like this!” Twilight slowly nods as her eyes continue scanning the area,

“Trixie… where are all of the ponies?” Whilst Canterlot was made up of desserts, the entire city is deserted and not a single resident walks the streets,

“It‘s possible that they‘re inside of their homes. Let‘s check it out before heading to the castle!” They both nod to one another before opening the doors to various homes along the city street, both making the same discoveries that shock them to their cores. The ponies were all inside of their homes, but each and every one that the two unicorns found were made of chocolate, horrified looks permanently frozen on their faces. They hurried back to one another, both panting and trying to keep from vomiting at the sight. They both let out slow breathes before looking up at Canterlot Castle above the city,

“Discord did this to everyone… Colts… Mares… even all of the fillies…” Twilight growls stomping her hooves on the ground shattering the chocolate bricks under her, “They were just innocent ponies!” Trixie remains staring at the ground, clearly distraught over what she had just seen, “Trixie… you see what kind of a being we‘re dealing with now… If Discord has done this to Princess Luna as well he now has control of most of Equestria!” Trixie growls shaking her head rapidly before stomping her hoof,

“Then what are we standing around here for!?” They nod to each other and turn, running towards the castle, both with determined looks on their faces, passing chocolate forms of the palace guards as they get closer to the castle.

Both unicorns arrive at the front doors of the castle, seeing the two guards out front in determined, battle stances, both turned to chocolate like the other ponies in Canterlot. They hurry past the frozen guards and continue looking around, both of their horns lightly glowing as they cautiously walk down the halls of the castle. Twilight stops walking, putting up a hoof in front of Trixie as her ears twitch, “Trixie hold on…”

“Twilight what is…” Both of them watch as a black and starry trail disappears into one of the doors off to the side. Trixie nods and points off to where the trail disappeared,

“Luna must be alright!” Twilight takes off and opens the door, quickly motioning for Trixie to follow her,

“Come on!” The light blue unicorn quickly follows and as they enter the door closes, the two running through a dark hallway, their eyes fixed on a fading trail before they both slide to a halt again, many doors lining the edges of the hallway as they both look around,

“What now Twilight? Discord is obviously chasing her!” Twilight pauses as she looks around slowly before her gaze snaps back to the end of the hallway, a solid wall standing in their way,

“Right, and being a princess there has to be some kind of safe place in case of a takeover like this.” Trixie lays a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder and she shakes her head,

“Twilight what if this is a trap?” The light purple pony shakes her head, looking forward with a gaze of determination as she suddenly runs towards the wall,

“There‘s a very powerful magic spell on this wall. Something Discord would never be able to find!” As Twilight touches the wall at the end of the hallway there is a bright flash of light and she disappears leaving Trixie wide-eyed,

“T-Twilight?! How dare you not wait for Trixie!” She hurries to the wall disappearing in a flash as Twilight did.

Trixie appears a few feet off the ground. Shaking her hooves rapidly before hitting the floor with a thud, “Where are we…? Twilight?” Trixie pauses, looking at the walls around them, made of hard stone instead of the chocolate of the rest of the castle as she stands up. She looks ahead, seeing Twilight looking towards the other end of the room and follows her gaze, seeing Princess Luna laying on a pile of hay looking at them with a gentle smile on her face,

“Twilight Sparkle, we are overjoyed to see you managed to escape Discord‘s powers.” Trixie silently walks forward to join Twilight as they both stand before the Princess, “We… my apologies… I was with my sister when she was writing the letter you undoubtedly now have in your possession.” Twilight slowly nods as her horn glows and the letter slides out of her bag, “As I thought.” Twilight gives a sad sigh as she hangs her head, the letter returning to her bag,

“Princess, Discord has taken over the entirety of both Ponyville and Canterlot… all of the ponies… they‘re all chocolate.”

“I know Twilight. I witnessed Discord‘s invasion…” Luna looks down and off to the side, a tear sliding down her cheek, “I heard their screams… every one of them running into their homes… that monster just walking down the street shooting these beams of light at the buildings… then it was all over, all of that screaming was ceased. I could do nothing but watch.”

“Princess what should we do now? We need to get out of here!” Luna pauses as her gaze turns to Trixie,

“You must be Trixie. Twilight spoke of you quite a long time ago and if you are here I trust you‘re here as our ally. Now then, there is something that needs to be found before we can depart this place and you will have to work together to obtain it.” Twilight tilts her head looking curiously towards the princess,

“And what do we need to find so we can get out of here?”

“There was a book I was unable to find before Discord got into the castle. It was brought here a few months ago by the one my sister mentioned in that letter to you.” Twilight pauses as she thinks for a moment before taking a step forward, her eyes widening,

“You‘re talking about Written Dreams aren‘t you? And the book is… ‘The Quill of Eternity’ right?” Luna simply nods in response to Twilight’s words, Trixie remaining silent as she takes in the information, “Written Dreams isn‘t here then. Where is the book?”

“When he was here, Written Dreams was staying in the suite at the top of the castle, you remember where your friend Rarity stayed while she was here?” Twilight nods, both of the unicorns with looks of determination on their faces, “Twilight Sparkle, Trixie, getting to the top of the tower means you‘re going to have to pass through most of the castle which means there is a high chance that you‘ll be confronted by Discord. We need that book if we‘re going to have any hope in finding that Pegasus.” Trixie looks back at the wall behind them watching it shimmer slightly,

“Are you going to be coming with us princess?” Luna shakes her head as she slowly stands up,

“I cannot as it is far too risky for me to leave this room with Discord searching for me like he is. Go now ponies, move quickly and do your best to remain undetected and under no circumstances are you to teleport. That kind of magical output would bring Discord to you immediately.” They both turn and hurry out through the magically sealed wall appearing back in the chocolate walls of the castle. The two of them hurry down the hallway, peering around corners before heading up the main stairway and across to the second level of the castle seeing battle-ready guards frozen in chocolate form periodically along the way.

Trixie remains almost silent as they continue down the hallways, ever vigilant that they could run into Discord at any moment, “Trixie.. You seem, I don‘t know, quiet.” The light blue mare walks to the end of a hallway with her and pushes the door open, looking up at a tower room at the top of many stairs,

“We‘re almost there. Come on Twilight.” The only sound around them is the light clopping sound of their hooves against the bricks under them as the unicorns ascend the stairs silently,

“Trixie…? What are you thinking about?” Trixie looks over to Twilight as they continue walking,

“I‘m just thinking about all of these things that have happened… it‘s all such a nightmare…” Trixie looks down with a light sigh as they begin to approach the large doors of the suite,

“Okay, here we are… the book shouldn‘t be hard to find at all.” Her hoof reaches out, pushing the door open and both of them walk through the threshold and into the room, a very sinister laugh filling the air as the door slams shut behind them.

Discord is sitting on the bed staring at the two of them with his head laying in his bear paw, “You‘ve come all this way Twilight Sparkle. For nothing but the princess I can only assume…” Discord slides off the bed and stands, towering above them as he grins darkly, “If Luna were here I would have gotten rid of her already.” Twilight growls as her horn glows brightly and her hoof hit’s the ground like a bull preparing to charge,

“Discord how could you do such horrid things to all of those innocent ponies?! And where are my friends and Princess Celestia?!” Discord raises a finger, shaking it slowly a few times,

“Twilight Sparkle after everything that has happened are you truly still trying to stop me? Oh and I have a question…” Discord casts his eagle claw out to one side, it glowing brightly and Trixie flies into his grip, a book falling from her grasp and sliding across the floor over to Twilight, “Who are you?” Trixie struggles in the Draconequus’ grip, Discord smiling and laughing at her attempts, “Well aren‘t you a feisty one!”

“Unhand me you beast!” Trixie growls as she flails around, yelling loudly before she bites down hard on Discord’s claw, the spirit of chaos recoiling and dropping her to the floor as he shakes his hand. Trixie lands and jumps back a few feet facing Discord with a growl. Discord snickers darkly as he stares down at the small unicorns and his claws begin glowing brightly,

“That‘s it! I‘ve had enough of you two!” Trixie looks back to Twilight with a yell,

“Twilight get out of here! I can stall him while you escape!” Twilight takes a step back, shaking her head as her expression turns to one of dread,

“Trixie you can‘t do that!! I can‘t abandon you! I won‘t leave!” Trixie’s horn glows brightly as she growls, “No time for a goodbye speech Twilight! I pity you won‘t get to witness my finest hour!” A powerful surge of magic fires from Trixie’s horn blasting into Twilight and she’s teleported from the room along with the book. Trixie looks back to Discord, seeing the Elements of Harmony shimmering brightly as he smirks looking down at her. Trixie stands her ground, glaring up at Discord,

“You don‘t honestly think a few pieces of flashy jewelry are going to be enough to defeat the Great and Powerful Trixie do you?!” She stamps her hoof, her horn glowing brightly as the blue unicorn charges with a yell, her starry purple cloak blowing behind her.

Twilight appears in a flash of light back on the first floor of the castle. She looks around quickly before looking up towards the tower, “Trixie!!” A tear slowly slides down her cheek, landing on the ground before she slowly turns away and runs back towards the magical barrier, “I can‘t lose anyone else…” She reaches the barrier quickly and slows down to a slow trot. Twilight reaches the wall and reaches out her hoof to touch it, a high-pitched scream of pain echoing throughout the halls and sends a chill down the unicorn’s spine, her ears pinning back as she looks down at the floor, walking through the barrier and she appears in the hidden chamber once again before she collapses to the ground sobbing uncontrollably. Princess Luna stands and slowly walks over to her, leaning her head down and nuzzles the unicorn lightly,

“Twilight… there is going to be a lot of sacrifices as you continue down this road… did you manage to retrieve the book?” Twilight sniffs a few times as she wipes her tears and slowly stands, her head hung low as she slowly nods, her horn glowing softly as the book raises from her bag and lays on the floor,

“This… this is so hard princess… I don‘t want to lose anyone else to Discord… especially when all they want to do is help me…” She looks up sadly, staring into Luna’s eyes, “Luna… please don‘t sacrifice yourself for me… I can‘t be alone again… It‘s just too painful.” Luna’s horn glows and the book raises up,

“Twilight Sparkle… I am going to do all I can to aid you in defeating Discord. During our quest I may fall but I need you to be strong and continue on no matter how hard this becomes.” Twilight lets out a slow sigh but nods to her, watching as Luna raises the book with her magic and it slides into the princess‘ own saddlebags on her waist, “For now we must escape this place. Once we are far enough away from Discord we need to find a safe place and then read that book, using it, we‘ll find any leads we can on tracking down Written Dreams along with the Quill.” Luna’s horn begins to glow brightly and she looks down at Twilight, “We‘re going to teleport a good distance away, get ready!” Twilight nods with a strong look as her horn glows and a powerful blast of magic engulfs the two of them, leaving the room bare.

Luna and Twilight appear back near the beginning of the road leading towards Canterlot, Twilight slowly looking around before she gazes up at Princess Luna, “Are we far enough away yet?” Luna pauses and looks up at Canterlot in the distance before shaking her head,

“Not quite yet. Discord would have noticed that kind of magical burst. We‘ll head through Ponyville and get into the Everfree Forest.” Neither of the mares say another word as they gallop through the chaotic town, the moon hanging high in the sky as they continue approaching the forest in the distance.

A few minutes of running later the two stand at the edge of the forest, both gazing forward as they walk inside. The dark trees twisted and decayed, looking much more haunted than they ever had before, “Princess… what did Discord do to the forest…?”

“From the looks of it he brought to life the fear that the forest places in ponies… we must be so much more careful if we‘re to get through because in this forest… I feel as though Discord would be a welcomed sight.”