The Evolution of Harmony

by Thornwing

Chapter Two - Secrets

“You can’t be serious.” Rainbow Dash shook her head. “Why go and cancel the fair because of some monster you saw in a dream?”

With everyone assembled in the throne room, Twilight paced back and forth in front of her seat. “It wasn’t a regular dream. I’m sure it’s much more than that.” She repeated herself once more to try and bring her point across. “I’ve had the same vision every night for the past week. Each time, I fly closer and closer to the mountains, but never cross the peaks. Last night was different. Something drew me in.”

“Can’t this wait until tomorrow?” Rarity hunched over in her chair and caught her reflection in her newly polished hooves. “I was so looking forward to tonight.”

“So was I.” Twilight turned and sat down on her throne. “If my hunch is right, we’ve got a huge problem that we need to deal with. Princess Luna fell ill after fighting some kind of monster in my vision. She might know more about what’s going on, so we need to go to Canterlot and talk to her first. From there, we’ll have to figure out our next move.”

“But what about the party?” Pinkie Pie rested her head on her hooves, scrunching up the corners of her mouth into an awkwardly forced smile.

“This is more important, Pinkie.” Twilight rapped her hoof on the arm of her throne. “We could be facing a crisis of Tirek proportions.”

“Not another Tirek.” Rainbow Dash sunk backward into her chair. “We just got done fighting the last one.”

“Tug your bridle, sugarcube,” Applejack said straight-faced. “We don’t know anything for sure. Maybe we could just write a letter to the Princess and ask her to clarify things. There’s no need to go off on a wild pegasus chase just yet.”

“I know what I saw, Applejack. It felt real—much more than just a simple dream. Luna suddenly falling ill can’t be a coincidence.” Twilight reached up and adjusted the crown on her head. She still hadn’t gotten used to wearing it all the time and only brought it out on special occasions. Her first official meeting in her new castle, with all the Element Bearers of her court gathered to discuss a potential crisis, certainly qualified. “I’m not sure exactly how it works since this is my first one, but as a princess, I can’t ignore these kinds of visions. It has to mean something. I have to do something, I just know it.”

Fluttershy raised her hoof in the air, politely indicating she had something to say. “How about you go to Canterlot and talk to the Princess, and we stay here and handle the book fair? That way we don’t have to cancel the event and disappoint all my little animal friends—they’ve worked so hard getting ready to perform.”

Twilight rose from her chair and paced out to the middle of the room in serious consideration of the notion. “That sounds like a good idea, Fluttershy, but are you sure we should do that? From what I saw in my vision, it’s going to take more than magic to stop this threat. We might need all the Elements of Harmony to bring it down.”

“Now you’re talking.” Rainbow Dash flapped her wings and rose up on her hind legs. “Let’s go find this monster and blast him back to Tartarus with our Rainbow Powers. Easy peasy, and we’re home before dinner.”

“Not so fast, Rainbow. We need a plan. Our Rainbow Powers should only be used as a last resort.” Even with the Element pendants returned to the Tree of Harmony, Twilight held that she and her friends still possessed a potent magic ability. A situation culminating in the use of their recently realized Rainbow Powers required serious consideration. “We’ll need to work together, but I think we should get some direction first. I guess it’s okay if you guys stay here and take care of the fair. I’ll go to Canterlot and find out everything I can about this threat. We definitely need answers, and we need them fast. As the Princess of Friendship, it is my—”

Twilight stopped mid thought when her horn began to glow and the entire room began to shake. “Hey, I didn’t cast any spell. What does my crazy horn think it’s doing?” Her wings fanned out and she lifted off the ground. The strange sensation from her dream returned: she wasn’t in control anymore. In her head, an ethereal voice spoke directly to her: Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship, please accept this humble gift. May it help you find the answers that you seek.

“I don’t know, Twilight, but could you please m-m-make it-t-t s-s-stop?” Rarity’s chatter echoed the general feeling in the room as everything around them seemed to be shaking apart. They all rocked noticeably back and forth on what should otherwise have been perfectly stationary crystal thrones. Their cutie mark symbols on each chair began to glow, starting with a deep golden hue, and then all six emblems blazing to life, bursting with a fiery eruption.

Twilight’s eyes glowed white. A loud boom followed by a series of cracks split the air, punctuating a deep rumble from below. A section at a time, Twilight’s starburst symbol on the throne room floor sunk into the ground, each segment dropping a little farther down than the last.

Once the final section dropped into place, the room stopped shaking. Slowly recovering from the experience, Twilight descended and came to rest at the top of a large spiral staircase descending into the dark. The ponies gasped at the sight of a secret passageway having just opened up before them.

Pinkie Pie hopped off her chair and dove to the edge of the steps. “What do you think’s down there?” She stuck her head over the lip and squinted into the darkness. “Hello?” Her voice echoed down the stairs.

Rubbing her horn and flexing her wings, both back under her own control, Twilight didn’t take long to decide her next action. “I don’t know, Pinkie, but we should probably find out.” The voice in her head fed her curiosity while remaining innocuous enough to blindly trust. The thought of danger lurking in the heart of her own castle crossed her mind only briefly before being summarily dismissed. “Let’s go take a look, girls.”

The others lined up and followed as Twilight led the group down the winding staircase. Golden sconces flamed to life with every alternating step, lighting the way ahead. Coming to the lower landing and finding herself in another room directly below the open throne room above, Twilight’s eyes grew wide. Her smile slowly broadened as it stretched from ear to ear. She twirled about as she stepped fully into the space below and shouted back toward the group still navigating the stairs. “It’s a library!”

The ponies all continued to file down the passage and eventually spread out into the new, surprisingly cramped space. Pinkie batted a hoof at some dust bunnies floating in the air beside her. “Wow, just look at all these books. And look at all the dust. I don’t know if there’s more dust than books, or books than dust. Do the books create the dust or does the dust attract the books?”

Rainbow Dash shook her head. “The world may never know.”

Fluttershy coughed, holding a hoof over her mouth. “I guess we won’t need all those donations from the book fair after all.”

There were a lot of shelves; there were a lot of books. So many shelves and books, in fact, that the outer and inner walls were completely covered from floor to ceiling—every surface overflowed with all sorts of dust-covered tomes. A long stone table provided a workspace in the center of the otherwise literary zone. Glass beakers and assorted laboratory equipment garnished the slate.

One exception to the floor-to-ceiling shelving loaded with more books than Twilight could currently count was a giant pedestal on the far wall opposite the landing. Draped on a chair in front of the stand were a star-splotched robe and hat rimmed with tiny golden bells. With the joy of a thousand birthday parties rolled into one, Twilight succumbed to the rush of jubilant discovery. “This can’t be possible!” she shouted.

The group fanned out to inspect the ancient trappings. Rainbow Dash poked at a dust-filled beaker while Applejack wiped down a stack of books. Pinkie Pie made shadow puppets of bats and spiders in the sconce light, which frightened an unsuspecting Fluttershy. With a nudge from Rarity, Pinkie changed course and brought out the butterflies and birds. Fluttershy smiled sheepishly at the change in wildlife and crossed over to help Applejack.

Twilight felt drawn to a small book that lay closed on the ancient stone lectern ahead. Reflecting on the condition of the room as she approached the stand, she marveled at the amount of dust coating every surface except the one tiny book. The entire castle had only recently materialized, yet this room seemed to have been left to the ravages of time, undisturbed for what looked like a few centuries in the least. The singular article felt out of place in the room that itself begged the same question. She asked herself, where had all of this come from?

Excitement building to a fevered crescendo, Twilight reached out and lay a hoof on the cover of the dust free book, examining the title written in flowing golden script: Origins of the Alicorn Race, by Starswirl the Bearded. She took a step back and ran her other hoof down the fabric of the robe draped over the chair next to her. Turning her head back over her shoulder, she called out to her friends, “Girls, I think we just found the long lost study of the greatest pony wizard to ever live!” A collective gasp sprung from the entire group. Coughing followed, owing to the unhealthy amount of dust in the air.

It didn’t take long for the ponies to recover from their initial shock. They all hurriedly gathered in around Twilight as she prepared to peel back the cover of the mysterious little book. Though free from dust, the musty old tome still looked rather delicate. Aside from Twilight’s gentle prodding of the cover, the book began to shake, somehow taking on a life of its own. She drew back immediately.

Caught in an unnatural fluorescent green glow, the book floated up from the pedestal and hovered in mid-air. It shuddered and twitched. A bubble in the binding slowly ballooned out from the spine. The lump floated around the cover as it grew, eventually splitting in two. Two bubbles, still just protrusions from the cover material itself, chased each other as they grew, then reared back and collided. Instead of reforming a single mass, they hinged at the base, elongating even more, becoming less like a pair of bubbles and more like a mouth on an angled pony muzzle.

The strange looking mouth protruding from the small glowing book, still floating in mid-air, began to speak. “Who goes there? Identify yourself!” The group took a step back in surprise. Fluttershy joined Rarity in taking more than one.

Twilight relaxed her gaping jaw, cleared her throat, and responded. “M-My name is Twilight Sparkle… uh… erhm… I mean to say, Princess Twilight Sparkle, and these are my friends...” She pivoted about and gestured to the five other ponies holding position in a rough semicircle behind her.

The pony-muzzle-faced book didn’t respond right away. It pivoted to the left and then back to the right. Twilight surmised it was inspecting everypony present in some way. After a few moments, it delivered a welcoming reply. “Princess Twilight Sparkle—you may proceed. May you find the answers that you seek.”

The book slowly descended to the stand and the glow subsided. The eerie looking book-mouth absorbed back into the cover. Twilight looked back over her shoulder at her friends with an expression of bewilderment. In return, she got looks of confusion mixed with outright fear. From Pinkie she got a huge smile and an encouraging nod.

Applejack took off her hat and held it in front of her chest. “I’ve seen some pretty amazing things in my life, Twilight, but that has got to be the weirdest thing I ever saw.”

“You got that right. A talking book—who saw that coming?” Rainbow Dash added.

Rarity raised a foreleg in question. “Twilight, do you think it’s safe? I mean, books don’t normally talk or ask for identification, now do they?”

Twilight paused and thought for a moment before responding. “It says right here that this book was written by Starswirl the Bearded, the greatest Unicorn wizard in pony history. It’s probably just his way of making sure the only ponies that read it are the ones he wanted to—a magical lock of some sort—kind of like the one on my diary.”

“You have a diary?” Rainbow Dash said, snickering in the background.

Still cowering behind the group a bit, Fluttershy whispered, “Are you sure you’re sure? That doesn’t sound like the kind of thing we shouldn’t be sure about.” Fluttershy looked visibly shaken by the whole talking book ordeal. She clung to Rarity’s mane throughout the entire exchange.

Twilight attempted to calm her fears, while at the same time trying to reassure herself that she wasn’t also afraid. “It’s okay, Fluttershy. There’s no need to fear. I’m sure that we were meant to find this book, and that whatever Starswirl wrote in it will help us in some way. Let’s take a look.” Twilight spun her head back around to the front and proceeded to pull back the cover. She turned to the first page and began to read as the others sat in rapt attention.

“Origins of the Alicorn Race, by Starswirl the Bearded. Written in 20 A.U., or more formally, the year twenty, After Unification.” Turning past the title and diving into the content, the ink practically leapt off the yellowed and wavy paper:

“Not long after the three pony tribes overcame their differences and joined together to create the first unified pony nation in more than eight centuries, Brightwing, a Colonel in the 4th Air Battalion of the Royal Pegasus Air Force, journeyed to the new Equestrian Capitol, Canterlot, to act as the Pegasus Ambassador to the High Pony Council. Commander Hurricane believed the task should fall to one of his subordinates, as he himself was still thawing from the aftermath of recent events. It was in that capacity that Colonel Brightwing first met the Unicorn, Una.

“Una was an aspiring mage, invested in postgraduate studies at the newly established Canterlot Academy of Magic. It happened that the two met, rather by accident, during an official tour of the facility undertaken as part of the ambassador’s official obligations. Una had been preparing to demonstrate a difficult and powerful spell that could potentially deliver water from a terrestrial source directly to the new Rainbow Weather Factory in the Pegasus city of Cloudsdale. It would have been a major breakthrough in Unicorn magic sciences had she succeeded—the resulting magic effectively eliminating the need for Pegasus wing-power to aid in the weather making process. Unfortunately for her, she miscalculated the spell trajectory.”

“Well, duh,” Rainbow Dash said, interjecting on the story. “It’s not like you can just replace wing-power with magic. Everypony knows that.”

“Be quiet, Rainbow,” Rarity said, chiding the interruption. “We’re trying to listen to the story.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow and continued.

“Caught up in the watery vortex and flung far from the Academy testing grounds, Una found herself plucked out of the sky by Ambassador Brightwing himself. The funnel had tossed the poor Unicorn many leagues from the city, and even though Brightwing was known to be an impressive flier, it is unknown exactly how he was able to manage the rescue in time. Regardless, they both returned safely to the ground. Instead of immediately flying back to his official duties, Brightwing walked the many leagues back to the city, all the while engaged in deep conversation with the rescued Unicorn. They quickly became the best of friends—an inseparable pair from that day forward.

“The two ponies would, at first outward glance, seem to have been complete opposites. Brightwing’s coat was entirely white with an impressive golden mane and tail. Una’s coloring was black as pitch, a rarity given the standard pony color types. Her tail shone with a glossy reflection that almost made it seem clear instead of opaque. Still, while some of the younger generation would be quick to overlook their tribal differences, old rivalries remained a prevailing force among the elders. The idea of having a Pegasus and a Unicorn together, as a couple, remained quite the oddity.

“Beside all of that, the most remarkable distinction to be had with the pair happened to be that their cutie marks were both the same! In all of pony history, there had never been a recorded instance of two ponies with a singular cutie mark design. Their marks both depicted a single tree with two main branches forked in the middle—only one variance separated the two: Brightwing’s cutie mark was black, and Una’s was white. It was, perhaps, a foregone matter that the two should meet and fall in love, fate driving their union.”

Twilight paused for a moment, glancing over to the facing page, and closely examined an included drawing of the pony pair. Their cutie marks stood out quite plainly. The sight of the tree emblazoned on both their flanks was an image she wasn’t soon to forget. She turned the page and continued reading.

“Some would say that their love was destined to be; others remained hesitant. During the period of tribal strife leading up to the great migration, it was completely unheard of for two young ponies of different races to share a bond, and especially unheard of for one such pair to be married. The entire kingdom came to celebrate the momentous occasion of their wedding. Once Brightwing and Una exchanged their vows, they embraced in their very first kiss as husband and wife. In that moment, something magical occurred. The two simply vanished. No pony knows where they went or what happened to them while they were gone. Neither participant ever shared much in the way of details of that period of time when they went missing.

“They reappeared the following day, floating down from the clouds in a shower of sunlight creating a rainbow across the heavens. Sure enough, both Ambassador Brightwing, the Pegasus, and Una, the Unicorn, now each had their own distinct sets of wings. Not only had Una grown a pair wings, Ambassador Brightwing had now acquired an impressively long Unicorn horn of his own. The pair had become the first known Alicorns ever to exist, a feat that has yet to be replicated by any unnatural means attempted.

“All the ponies in the land cheered and sang, laughed and hugged. The love of these two young Alicorns brought the ponies of Equestria together in ways nothing else ever could. A motion was made and a High Council vote was taken. Ambassador Brightwing and his lovely bride Una, being the first two Alicorns in existence, were made King and Queen over of all Equestria. Nopony could think of a better way to represent the bond that was formed by the coming together of the three pony tribes, the union of our three tribal traits, than by entrusting the greatest governing power in the land to those who had demonstrated an ability to embrace the notion and live as ‘one’. The previous Unicorn King wasn’t all that excited about the change in governmental powers, but he got over it soon enough. His daughter had a bit rougher time with the transition, however.”

“I had no idea royalty could be voted out of office,” Rarity said, visibly disturbed by the notion of democracy intermingling with monarchical rule.

Rainbow Dash raised a hoof to her muzzle. “Shhh! We’re trying to listen to the story.”

Twilight couldn’t help but smile. Shaking her head and rolling her eyes at the pair, she continued reading.

“The new King and Queen’s magical prowess soon became stuff of legend. Their power grew stronger than even I could imagine. Una was no longer my student, she was the teacher. Brightwing himself, not being able to use Unicorn magic until his glorious transformation, quickly became more of a wizard than even I.

“Una spent much of her time with Brightwing discussing their transformation, and I quickly followed her lead in trying to soak up all the information I could. But alas, there was too much that I simply could not comprehend. I tried for years to recreate the magic that led to their transformative event. Even with the help of the young King and Queen, my master spell never came to fruition. There seemed to be an element of their transformation that none of us truly understood.

“In the years that followed, they had two daughters. The firstborn, white and majestic like her father, her countenance beamed like the light of the sun. The second daughter, dark and beautiful like her mother, had a reflective glow about her that shone with the intensity of the fullest of full moons. The two sister foals were named, respectively, Princess Celestia, and Princess Luna, the amazing Alicorn trait manifesting immediately in both of them.

“Shortly after the birth of their second daughter, King Brightwing and a small group of royal guards left on a mission to the far western regions. An ancient evil had risen up in the old valley and the duty of protecting the kingdom fell to our young leader. Brightwing kept only the Queen’s and my own council on the matter taking with him only those he considered to be his closest friends. The royal guard that rode out consisted of two blazingly fast Pegasi, two powerful Unicorn wizards, and two incredibly strong Earth Ponies. He would risk no more, even to face such a dangerous foe. They were never seen or heard from again.”

As Twilight paused between paragraphs, the momentary silence was shattered by a crunching noise. Spinning around, she found Pinkie Pie two hooffuls deep in a box of popcorn.

“What?” Pinkie said. “The story is finally getting to the good part.”

Under Twilight's glare, Pinkie put the box down, grinning sheepishly. Sighing as she rolled her eyes, Twilight turned back to the book and began reading again.

“With the passing of the following lunar cycle, Queen Una also quietly left the castle. She slipped away under the diminished light of a new moon and traveled alone, only entrusting her secret with me. She commanded that I stay behind and look after her daughters. Should anything happen to her, she ordered that I commit to their defense, whatever the cost.

“That was the last I ever saw of Queen Una. Some believe that King Brightwing was killed; others believe he was captured. Most tend to agree that Queen Una was somehow able to communicate with her husband across the great distance and knew that he was lost or in trouble. Heartbroken, they felt, she left the castle in a futile search only to succumb to the Kings’ fate herself. All the kingdom ever knew for certain is that neither of them ever returned.

“Only I know the truth.

“To this day, I continue to raise the young princesses myself. I haven’t lost hope that the King and Queen will one day return, but I cannot be certain of when that day will be. I know for a fact that their mission was a success, but the princesses must never be told what fate befell their parents. In time, they will either forget, or else the King and Queen will return. Until then, the foals will grow and remain safe with me in Canterlot. I sense that they have a higher purpose that awaits them, and I cannot deny the world their promised blessings.

“I now seal this book and all the records pertaining to the King and Queen of Equestria along with it. One day, when the time is right, it may be beneficial for some future purpose to learn of this and understand a small part of what I alone know. I admonish whoever is found worthy of reading these pages to prepare yourself, for the time may be close at hoof. The great evil sleeps, for now. It shall not remain as such forever. Seek out the King, and may the blessing of the Royal House shine upon you.”

“Starswirl the Bearded, High Wizard of Canterlot.”

Twilight closed the book, and the back cover bubbled to life. A smaller version of the previous muzzle quickly appeared from the binding. “Prepare yourself for the journey, and may this knowledge serve you well, Princess Twilight Sparkle.” The mouth sank, once again, back into the cover.

Twilight rounded on her friends, magically levitating the book in tow. “We all need to go to Canterlot and speak to the Royal Sisters, immediately.” The other ponies nodded in unison as they turned and charged up the stairs into the throne room above.

Comments

[Sunlight Blaze]

So they begin packing for their trip.

She thought it best to leave out the details and send a short message informing the princess only of their intent to visit. The rest could be delivered in person once they arrived.

Sheesh, Twilight; Celestia is really rubbing off on you...

After telling Spike to watch over the castle, Twilight heads to the train station and we get some Rarity luggage shenanigans.

“What do you mean it won’t fit?” Rarity stomped her hoof.
“I mean, you’ve got too much luggage miss.” The train conductor shrugged his shoulders in a defeated expression.
“Why that’s impossible. It simply must be brought aboard.” Rarity stomped another hoof. A pile of crates and boxes and bags piled up higher than the train itself lay at the edge of the platform.

*sigh* Okay, I'm going to say this right now: My least favorite out of the Mane Six is Rarity. And THIS is one prime example of why. (Good impression, by the way. Writing: +1)

So they finally convince Rarity to lighten her load and they begin the train ride to Canterlot. Twilight ends up reading the ancient book the entire time (I'm assuming she's trying to memorize it).

They arrive and bring the book to the Princesses, still in Luna's room. After questioning whether or not they should try to read it, Luna attempts to open the book.

The book, however, quickly took on its own green glow and began, once again, to levitate and bubble as before. The creepy pony muzzle appeared on the cover and bellowed its order at the princess. “Identify yourself!”
Without a second thought, Luna responded. “I am Princess Luna, Ruler of the Night and sister to Celestia.”
The book’s glow suddenly changed. Instead of the warming green glow that previously surrounded it, a bright red flame engulfed the book. “Princess Luna, you are forbidden to read this tome! I bid you a fond, farewell!” With that, the book disintegrated on the spot leaving nothing but a small pile of grey ash on the otherwise black satin of the bed.

......Oh, for the love of.....REALLY!?!? Really, Starswirl!? Look, I know you were the wisest Unicorn of your time, but I think it's fair for the Princesses to know, after a thousand-plus years, exactly what happened to their fking parents!!!

So Twilight offers to recite the book, since she spent the time on the train to memorize it (NEEEEERD!!!!!!), but Celestia trusts in Starswirl's judgment in hiding the information from her and Luna. (Personally, I'd be offended that my teacher and freaking foster parent withheld information from me pertaining to my own flesh and blood!)

Anyway, so Celestia tells Twilight that she trusts her completely to make the right decision and the Mane Six leave to accomplish the task they have been set with...
...Okay, since Celestia doesn't exactly tell, I'm guessing that their task is to locate Celestia and Luna's parents.

Interesting story so far. I actually like how you portrayed Starswirl as very thorough with his protection spells, though I think destroying the book was a bit much...
Oh well; it's your story; I can't change it; I'm just here to criticize it where I can. NEXT CHAPTER!!!

[BenRG]

I'm thinking that maybe Twilight should have realised that the book's AI security would have a failsafe mechanism to stop the Sisters from reading it. That said, Twilight does seem to have this naive certainty that Celestia is so all-wise that she can solve any problem. Maybe she thought Celestia would know a master unlock password or something.

[Swashbucklist]

Hate to say it, but it doesn't look like you have much skill in writing contextually. That book didn't sound at all like a centuries-old account. It sounded like a fanfiction writer explaining the history of his/her headcanon.

[Cerulean Voice]

“You can’t be serious.” Rainbow Dash shook her head. “Why go and cancel the fair because of some monster you saw in a dream?”

A character echoing my sentiment. Just what I wanted to see.

How about you go to Canterlot and talk to the Princesses, and we stay here and handle the book fair?

best pony

Wow, this is really feeling like it could be a legitimate episode!

Starswirl the Bearded!

And ya had to go and spell his name like Rainbowdash.

“Twilight, do you think it’s safe? I mean, that book just asked you for some kind of password.”

It did? I thought it just said

“Princess Twilight Sparkle—you may proceed. May you find the answers that you seek.”

I am confuse

It says the book was written by Starswirl the Bearded, the greatest Unicorn wizard in pony history.

What says? I'm actually really lost now. There seems to be some missing information in this scene.

Interesting headcanon exposition dump history for the Royal Sisters. Pretty creative, if I say so myself. It even sorta ties in with Journal of the Two Sisters (intentional or not, I appreciate it)!

[Commander Darklight]

Pinkie Pie made shadow puppets of bats and spiders in the sconce light, which frightened an unsuspecting Fluttershy. With a nudge from Rarity, Pinkie changed course and brought out the butterflies and birds.

wait how the FUCK do you make shadow puppets with hooves

[Monty Python]

6863793
its Pinkie Pie