The Leatherbound Journal: A Tourist's Guide

Several days ago, a royal patrol stationed at the base of the Crystal Mountains returned to the Empire with a peculiar discovery: a thin, crumbling journal that had been saturated by snow and appeared to be extremely old. The cover is made of soft leather, which would seem to be a true testament to its age as the production of leather was banned throughout Equestria at the beginning of Celestia’s rule approximately two thousand five hundred and eighty seven years ago, meaning that this book was either produced illegally or is older than most of the cities in Equestria. Historians examining the journal determined that the latter was the most likely case, pointing to the unorthodox dialect found both engraved on the cover of and scrawled inside the journal (a form of ancient Unicorn which was annexed completely shortly after the founding of Equestria due to the merging of the Three Tribes) as well as the contents of the journal as proof of its age, though some of the historians are making an argument that a number of scholars still study this ancient language and could have produced something like this as a prank or for attention. The court magician, however, examined the book and detected traces of a very powerful (though dissipating) protection spell on it, which he confirmed would have allowed the book to have survived for such a long period of time.

Out of an estimated two hundred to three hundred pages; only thirteen were successful recovered. Three were blank and four contained extremely detailed and complex diagrams as well as instructions regarding various alchemical processes (many of which would be undecipherable to the average reader). The remaining six pages, however, contained short entries (except for one, which was rather large and took up both sides of its page) that all seem to have been written by the same pony. However, these entries also contained large gaps in between when they were written (judging by the content), and there is not, as far as we know, any way to determine the exact time. There are likely many entries missing from this journal, but the ones that were recovered have been translated and recorded for you to view at your leisure. The gaps in between words, punctuation (or lack thereof), and misspellings of non-translated words have all been recorded as they appear on the pages they were written on.

ENTRY ONE(1)

…and I am bleeding quite heavily as I write.(2) I will be dead before this is found, posibly [sic] before I finish this. I -- document here the truth of the tyrant Celstia [sic] in the hopes that this will be found and she will answer for her actions

Celestia ordered my work destroyed ------------ arrest me. I escaped with nothing but this journal, which has most of my research inside. Celestia feared my magic ---- that I would be greater than her and that I would threaten her rule.

------------------------------------------will be killed if I return to Crystalton(3). I was struck with multiple spears as I fled and despite my magic I am becoming weaker. Celestia cannot win

If this is found, show to Luna. Luna, I love you with all my heart I wish for nothing more than for us to be together like we used totalk about but Celestia is too protecteive [sic] of her power. ------------- her magic, but you ----- overthrow her, you are the better magician ! I taught you all I knew and discovered, but ---- will never be together now. I ------------------------------ you don’t live in her shadow anylonger as I did, and I paid for my naivety.

I love you
Sta---------(4)

1This entry was poorly scrawled as if the author was in a great hurry, and several words were blotted out due to smudges of liquid throughout the text. Words that are illegible for whatever reason were omitted, and lines (------) were placed instead to signify this.

2The first few words of this line were blotted out with what appeared to be drops of blood. Interestingly, there are no bloodstains anywhere else in the journal. The drops did not even soak through the page, it seems.

3Crystalton was the original name of the hamlet which later became the Crystal Empire. Originally inhabited by only a small number of mages and their companions and families, it did grow relatively larger throughout the years. However, it remained Crystalton until it was seized by King Sombra. During this period, the king ordered the construction of many larger buildings, and eventually Crystalton became known by the common folk as the Crystal Empire. Obviously, this name stuck.

4The author appeared to have signed his name, but this section of this page was so badly weathered that nopony was able to decipher the remainder of the signature.

ENTRY TWO

-8.42 SR (5)

Widened the cave today. It was too narrow and I couldn’t stand up in it properly, but one of my enlargement spells took care of it. Now I can get to the back and drink from the stream; the water was never this cold and fresh in Crystalton, or anywhere I’ve been. Stalagmites(6) still a problem though. I’ll remove them sometime next week, hopefully before another one falls on me while I’m sleeping. Hurts, but at least it didn’t give a scar like the spear wound.

Going out to find more berries in a few minutes. Love the way they melt on my tongue. These mountains are much more serene than I would have expected, and with my magic I would be perfectly happy living out the rest of my days here. Plenty of time to think, no one to bother me. Should have moved here years ago. Miss Luna, but that’s all.
Might write more later; the suns [sic] going down and I want to get the berries and go for a walk before it gets too dark. Don’t want to get lost again like I did last week. I’ve seen signs of frost wolves up here. Their howls are actually very comforting, though.

-S.S.

5None of the historians studying this journal could determine what the numbers or letters presented here or elsewhere in future entries mean. They are still a mystery, and have been dismissed by most as meaningless, even though they are likely far from it.

6It is assumed that the author confused stalactites (which grow from cavern ceilings) with stalagmites (which grow from the floor). Furthermore, a cave in the Crystal Mountains would not be likely to possess true stalactites, but instead large icicles, which are not made of rock as stalactites are.

ENTRY THREE

-6.84 SR

Saw all forty-seven of the Harallhoof [sic] constellations(7) tonight. Second time this ever happened. Marked up the star chart. Thank goodness for my magic; couldn’t record anthing without it. Might try to spot them again tomorrow night but it will be difficult because Crystalton will celebrate their founding and customarily fill the sky with bright lights. Irritating. Might pay them a visit later, if I’m feeling up to it.

Getting a bit bored of the sights here. Without access to my equipment and spellbooks, there’s not much I can research or study. Guess there’s not much point. I’m getting pretty old.

Going to go swim in the river, maybe ride down one of the waterfalls. A bit cold tonight, though, so I’ll have to heat up the water first. It’ll be good for getting my mind off things. Not in the mood to look for more constellations now.

-S.S.

7The author is referring to the Haranhoof constellation; a large cluster of stars loosely resembling a pair of pegasus ponies and named after the legendary war hero Haranhoof and his companion Cloudspinner in which approximately two dozen smaller constellations have been officially found and named. It is assumed that the author discovered and named his own smaller constellations within the Haranhoof constellation, in addition to the ones that had been previously discovered.

ENTRY FOUR

-4.172 SR

They’re all dead. Didn’t think I’d see anymore [sic] of the crystal ponies. Guess I was wrong. Random patrol; why they were all the way up here I don’t know. They must be breeding like flies down in Crystalton. There was a fat one, a loud unicorn, a blue mare and one that used a sword that was much too big for him. Took their equipment, threw their bodies down into the Hole(8). Don’t know where it leads, but they won’t be found. Not that it would matter if they were anyway.

Not sure what to do with all their belongings. Might use some of it to decorate. Still have some of their saddlebags to go through, though. I’ll finish this once I check those.

I’ve been a fool. Living up here, wasting away, forgetting all about what used to matter to me. One of the ponies had a letter signed by Princess Luna with him, a letter that instructed the patrol to see if they could find any trace of me. She remembers me, but over the years, I forgot her.

No more. I’m going down to Crystalton to finish what I started. I’ll take their spellbooks, their notes, their equipment, and I’m going to continue my research.
I’m going to find the connection between crystal magic and alicorn magic, and I will become more powerful than Celestia. I will defeat her and take my place at Luna’s side, and we will rule Equestria together in harmony, forever! And if she will not have me, well(9)

-S.S.

8The Hole mentioned here may be indicating a large pit that was officially brought to public light about twelve years ago in the adventure novella “Daring Do and the Ghostly Gully” by critically acclaimed author A.K. Yearling. In it, pegasus explorer Daring Do investigates a steep ravine in the middle of the Crystal Mountains in which she discovers the remains of four pony skeletons on the shore of a narrow underground river as well as a number of other adventures. Though this is a fantasy series, the discovery of this journal has made a number of ponies involved wonder if there is perhaps more to this imaginative storyteller than was once believed. The Crystal Empire Historical Society is not in any way affiliated with A.K. Yearling or her “Daring Do” book series.

9Inexplicably, the entry cuts off here. A few scribbles came afterwards, as though the author began to write down something else and then crossed it off in frustration, but there are no more words to this entry.

ENTRY FIVE(10)

-1.280 SR

White Crystals- Decrease in body temperature, rapid increase of heart rate. Causes moderate to severe discomfort, nausea, dizziness, hallucinations, and temporary loss of memory. Does not seem to provide any beneficial effects. It is probably safe to assume that these two crystals are incompatible with each other due to the fact that their base effects counter each other (11)and thus will likely not be experimented upon again.

Blue Crystals - Rapid decrease in body temperature to a near fatal level, combined with momentary intestinal pain and disorientation. Did, however, provide a comforting clearing of the mind after these effects wore off in a few moments, during which I fell into a trancelike state for around an hour. Does not provide any exceptional or lasting effects, but does make for a good stress relief method.

Red(blood) Crystals - Increases body temperature to the point where the ice I was standing upon began to melt rapidly. Then produced a high fever and internal inflammation, which resulted in me taking a much needed break to cool down in the steam. However, I found that my horn was now radiating extremely hot bolts of energy which would make for a decent offensive tool if there were not already dozens of spells which proved more effective and less dangerous to the caster. Will probably not experiment with again.
Update: also appears to have created a painful, rather oozy red rash on my right flank which I did not notice until I sat down. Will certainly not experiment with again.

Purple Crystals - Irritated my nose when I mixed it, resulting in me sneezing and blowing the powder everywhere. The residue of purple crystals does not seem to agree with my nose. Once ingested, nothing peculiar seemed to happen outside of the normal effects of both crystals, but on the bright side, no negative effects appeared either. It would appear that this combination is a dud.

Yellow Crystals - No noticeable effects whatsoever except for those that originally came with ingesting the black crystal. Yellow crystals are useless.

Black Crystals - Intense increase in energy and the rapid death of everything else living nearby. Of course, this has only been tested in an area in which very few living things are present (a few plants and a couple of fish inside the stream), and would likely only make a pony or similar-sized creature violently ill. Will need to conduct future tests around larger creatures, if possible.

Green Crystals - See further notes below

These are the effects of all the known crystals when mixed with the residue of a crumbled black crystal. The mages of Crystalton always focused on directing their spells at the crystals to see what would happen, or creating talismans out of crystal shards through which they would channel their magical power. None of them ever thought to ingest the crystal itself. Ordinarily, of course, such an action would be extremely foolish as even the bluntest shards could easily tear open one’s esophagus, but when reduced to powder form, they can be mixed with water and easily swallowed.

With the proper spell, it is possible to reduce even the most stubborn of crystal shards to a fine powder. I am keeping the remnants of all these crystals in their own separate containers so that I may run individual tests on them, but seeing as the black crystal is by far and away the most powerful of all the crystals(12), I have been experimenting with all the possible combinations including them in order to see which mixture provides the most potent effect.

The results of these tests are listed above, but despite most of them being failures, I discovered one combination that proved to be most shocking. Green and black crystals mixed together produce a unique, unanticipated result: the sprouting of shards of black crystal all over one’s body. Though the effects may be different on a crystal pony, the sprouting is, as far as I can tell, uncontrollable and extremely painful as the shards seem to take root in and emerge from the bloodstream, causing a massive amount of pain and the rapid loss of blood, obviously the result of dozens of glasslike shards ripping through the flesh simultaneously. I thought I may end up dead the moment it began and I passed out after a few seconds, but when I regained consciousness, I felt like I never had before. The bleeding had stopped and the crystals no longer caused any pain, even when I pressed down on them or broke them off. I felt energy far greater than any I had ever experienced from experimenting with black crystals in the past coursing through me. Looking at myself on the ice wall, I could see that literally hundreds of tiny black crystals along with several much larger ones were protruding from my body, some in horrifying areas and a few on the bottoms of my hooves to prevent me from walking properly. My horn was distorted and bent horribly, sprouting dozens of crystals including an extra sharp one at the very tip. My beard, mane, and tail had disintegrated as had all of my fur, but so many crystals were emerging from me that it would be next to impossible for one to notice, and the areas of my skin which did not have crystals on them had turned into an uncanny shade of pitch black(13).

Fortunately, the crystals on my horn did not hamper my magic; in fact, they seemed to make it much stronger. I used my magic to successfully trim off the jagged pieces of crystals that were causing problems, though it took hours and I still looked like a mess when I was done. I had noticed that the effects of all the other combinations of crystals had worn off at this point, but this one had not. If anything, I appeared to have become even darker, with more crystals sprouting from me everywhere. I’m just glad they did not cause the pain they did when I first ingested the mixture, or I may not be writing this now.

As soon as I finish this, I will be attempting various methods of removing the crystals, provided this can be accomplished, and then I will try to find a way to replicate the process more efficiently. The process will be recorded in a separate entry.

I should be terrified, but I am not at all. Quite the opposite actually. This is without a doubt the closest I have ever come to creating something that could almost be considered a mimic of alicorn magic: false life. The crystals grew from me and they nourished me, providing me with more energy and power than the use of naturally occurring black crystals. If there is a way to replicate the secret magic the alicorns perform, it lies within the combination of these two crystals. I am sure of it.

-S.S.

10Along with the four pages of alchemical diagrams, this page proved quite insightful to the scholars of crystal magic. However, the study and/or manipulation of black crystals (except in the cases of a few specific certified mages) has been banned by decree of Celestia ever since the rule of Sombra, which has caused some minor issues. Two amateur mages have been caught experimenting on these crystals and were detained (the crystals were confiscated and destroyed), and Princess Celestia expressed her concern that these findings may cause an escalation of illegal crystal trade (which is, believe it or not, an actual issue in the north). Princess Cadence, stewardess of the Empire, insisted that the guards were doing an excellent job of removing these harmful crystals from the city and claims that these findings will soon be forgotten by the ambitious mages, after which things will return to normal. Only time will tell if she is correct in this assumption.

11The black crystal’s primary effect is to drain the life force from its surroundings and transport them directly to the wielder, thus making one weaker whilst the other becomes more powerful (hence all the controversy). Meanwhile, the white crystal’s primary effect is to restore energy and cure physical wounds when combined with the magic of the wielder.

12The black crystal is actually considered to be one of the weakest of the known crystal types by SGEC (Society for the Growth and Enhancement of Crystal Magic). Red, Green, Blue, White, and Purple crystals are all considered to be more potent and practical than the Black crystal, which ranks only ahead of the virtually useless Yellow crystal in terms of power.

13A pony displaying the exact same physical features as described here was apprehended attempting to flee the Crystal Empire a week after the discovery of the journal was made public. She is currently incarcerated in a high-security cell beneath the castle, and a group of scholars and medical professionals are studying her to see if this process can be reversed.

ENTRY SIX(14)

-0.001 SR

It is finished. My lab has been demolished, and the crystals I studied throughout the years have been returned to the mountains. I have no need for them anymore. I write this last entry for anypony who dares brave the slopes of the Crystal Mountains as that foolhardy patrol did all those years ago so that they may observe my journey and my struggles, and they may bask in the light of the knowledge I have brought forth. It matters not who comes across this; by the time they do, they will be under my hoof and powerless to stop me. I have discovered and perfected the secrets that Celestia sought so gravely to protect, and I now have all the time in the world; I will be able to sit back and watch history unfurl before me as the alicorns have done without fear of extinction. But now, there is something for them to fear.

I now have complete control over the two types of crystal magic that flow through my veins. The nurturing growth of the green crystals combined with the vampiric powers of the black crystals make for a more potent combination than anypony could have realized, and as soon as I made the discovery, I worked tirelessly to master all of its secrets. Now the powers of life and death, growth and destruction, famine and bounty are all mine to manipulate at will. Celestia herself could not fathom the powers of the crystals, but she will soon see them displayed, just for her. Perhaps I will trap her in a prison made of black crystals and watch them suck away her life until she is nothing more than a bitter husk of the lovely alicorn she is now, or maybe I shall simply have her bound as a slender crystal is inserted between her eyes, and then another, and another. No matter; that is a decision for another day.

I have practiced my newfound spells for weeks on end, and reduced most of the landscape around me to rubble, or to stacks of crystal. After a final rest in the cave which served as my abode for the last eight years, I will make my way down to Crystalton. I do wonder if they will remember me.

Finally, I write again to my dearest Luna, the only fond memory I still hold on to. If this is ever found, let Equestria know that you were the one who inspired me, who made me into what I am now, and I thank you for this. Thank you for helping me unlock my true potential, and thank you for giving me the motivation to cross the boundaries put in place by the cowardly crystal mages and discover what will allow us to be together forever. As soon as Crystalton bows to me and Celestia is imprisoned by my hooves, I shall make you my empress. The empress of the night and the emperor of darkness.

And we shall have a long and prosperous reign.

Warmest regards,

Lord Sombra (15)

14This entry is the only one which was written in the exact same tongue as the one you are reading it in, and thus did not need to be translated.

15The name you see here, which was displayed as an elegant signature on the paper it was recorded on, has easily caused more controversy than anything else in the journal. Many claim that the last paragraph before the signature is the work of somepony who detests Princess Luna and that it is all a lie, but there are just as many who believe it is an authentic signature and that it was truly the work of the infamous king.

CONCLUSION

There was much controversy at first as the journal was thought to be some sort of hoax or prank, but upon studying the four remaining pages of alchemical diagrams, mages of the Crystal Empire were able to reach a small breakthrough regarding crystal magic and have stated that they may be on to another. These four pages have been removed and turned over to the mages to further their research (though they are being highly supervised to ensure their practices do not get out of hoof); the remaining pages were handed over to the Crystal Empire Historical Society by Prince Shining Armor, where they have been put on display. Princess Celestia herself later arrived at the Empire to respond to the discovery, and she denies any involvement or knowledge of this journal or its writer. Princess Luna refused to accompany her sister, and gave no comment, though both princesses are still being harassed by reporters and journalists for more information. Is the journal nothing more than a hoax, or did it once belong to the dark lord who once ruled over us? We may never know for sure.

Oh, you want to know what I think, do you? Well, seeing as this is a scholarly article/report and I am not authorized to interject my opinion at all…let’s just say it takes more than a couple of blows to shatter the crystals. Heh.

Author's Note:

This story will not affect the canon of my future works.

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sgtnolisten

sgtnolisten #1 · Aug 8th, 2014 · 2 · ·

"Takes more than a couple blows to shatter crystals..."

...no...

0_0

Mixolydian Grey

Mixolydian Grey #2 · Aug 9th, 2014 · 2 · ·

I'm going to assume that you're open to review/critiques/commentary. If that assumption is incorrect, disregard all but the first and last paragraphs of my comment.

This comment contains spoilers, if you're worried about that sort of thing.

The main idea is entertaining. The execution would benefit from polish. And when I say that, what I really mean is that it has flaws which can be fixed without completely tearing the thing apart.

One major flaw is a series of excessively byzantine sentences in the "academic" sections. Perhaps leaning in that direction fits the piece, but if you go too far in that direction, it becomes difficult to read and understand. There were sentences there that broke off halfway through to give a multiple line description before going back and finishing the original sentence. To give a concise recommendation for fixing this, I would present the following idea: There is great power in subtlety. A few "academic" word choices would give the impression, without needing a whole labyrinth of sentences. Note Rarity's speech in the show... it's not all that fancy. It's just her use of "darling" and a few other phrases that give that impression, and people perceive it as fancier than it really is. I guess human psychology exaggerates differences.

A second flaw, which you may or may not even consider as such, is that it's rather obvious where the story is going. Maybe that's of no consequence to you. I didn't mind so much, even knowing very early on where it was going. Maybe that was intentional. If so, you accomplished that. If you want it to be less obvious, I would suggest the obvious: take a look at the hints you're dropping. An ancient pony named "Sta---" can only be Starswirl. If you want to be more subtle... maybe Starswirl was a nickname, not his real name. Maybe he signed it differently. Let the mention of his beard melting away be the hint at his identity... the reader is already preoccupied with thinking about the crystals at that time. The name at the end of an entry is pretty plain... it isn't hidden in other details like the beard thing. A second example: when you're talking about the ancient Crystal Empire, and then you show descending numbers with "SR," the first guess it that they're dates measured backwards from Sombra's Reign. Would Sombra really be that egotistical as to use a dating system with his own name in it? Maybe, but maybe there are alternatives that are less obvious... Using a date like "-1.280 CE" (Crystal Empire) is subtly more distant from "Sombra," especially if you also play around with the paragraph explaining about Crystalton/The Empire. Those are just some ideas I'm throwing out there, in case you find them useful.

First person journal entry stories are pretty hit-or-miss for me. I liked this one... though I could be biased. I sorta have the feeling that I would have liked one or two more short entries. Perhaps one about the work/magic/science/experiments and one about surviving in the cave, to add further immersion and maybe distract from the hints a bit more.

In my opinion, the mix of journal entries with academic commentary was interesting and effective in most cases. While they both could use polish, as mentioned earlier, I felt that they supported each other (aside from a handful of cases) rather than distracting from each other.

I'm glad to see you finally post something, Tommy.