CkHaPPtü RRe πhî5√
Rainbow’s hooves clunked loudly against the library’s wooden floor as she paced back and forth anxiously. “Are you sure you sent them those letters?” she asked Spike for the umpteenth time.
Spike sighed in ill temper. “I’m sure,” he said, fighting the urge to snap. “They probably just have something else that they’re doing. Or maybe they just couldn’t understand them.”
Dash snorted and glanced out the window, her wings flaring unconsciously. There was actually a fair chance the letters’ meaning had escaped their recipients. Seeing as both her and Spike had lost the ability to transfer words to a page, they’d had to make do with pictures. And neither of them was particularly good at drawing.
“We both agreed that what we drew looked like the library,” she protested. “I mean, how many other trees have been turned to houses around here?”
“Zecora’s hut, Fluttershy’s bear friend’s place...” Spike started, ticking them off on his claws.
Dash groaned. “You’re right. I should have just gone to find them all. This was never going to–”
She was cut off when someone banged on the door. Dash sprang up, grinning widely. “There we go!” she exclaimed. “I told you it’d work!”
Spike just rolled his eyes as the pegasus mare raced to the door and flung it open. Without preamble, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity and Pinkie Pie filed in.
“So you figured it out okay?” Dash said breathlessly. “I know I’m not the best at drawing, but I figured it was close enough to the library, and...”
Applejack and Rarity exchanged an amused glance. “Well,” Rarity replied, “we really... couldn’t tell what that... ahem... rendition was supposed to be.”
“Ah honestly thought it was some kinda giant mushroom,” Applejack cut in.
“But since it really just appeared out of thin air, we were able to reason out where it came from.” Rarity scowled at Pinkie. “Mostly.”
“What?” Pinkie replied. “There’s totally a bunch of giant mushrooms around here! You just have to know where to–”
Applejack cut her off with an upraised hoof. “Anyway. We’re here now. Where’s Twi?”
Dash shifted. “Well, that’s the thing. Twilight’s not here. She left for Canterlot early in the morning, according to Spike. She said it was to pick up a book order, but now I’m thinking that she’s there to do some research on this problem everypony’s having.” She looked around. “I mean, you’ve all forgotten how to read too, right?”
Rarity gasped. “Rainbow, you can’t just ask somepony if they can read or not. At least pretend at some semblance of propriety.”
Applejack rolled her eyes. “Put a sock in it, Rare,” she snapped. Ignoring Rarity’s indignant glare, she went on. “No. None of us can read or write any more. However much some of us migh’ refuse to admit it.” She shot a pointed look at Rarity, who looked away, her cheeks colouring. “So, do you have a plan?” she asked, returning her attention to Rainbow.
The pegasus puffed her chest out importantly. “You bet I do!” she exclaimed. “The way I see it, the Elements of Harmony can fix basically anything, as long as we hit the source with them. So, since Twilight’s probably busy finding the source of all this, we just bring the Elements to her and let some good, old-fashioned rainbow-death-wave-thing do the rest!”
She looked around, seemingly disappointed at the lack of applause. “What? Is that not a good plan, or something?”
“No, it’s an excellent plan,” Rarity replied. “It’s just... well...”
“You ain’t exactly known for thinkin’ things through,” Applejack supplied. “We were just surprised, is all.”
Rainbow frowned. “What’re you talking about? I put plenty of thought into things. Like that time when... uh... okay, but there was that...” She paused for a long moment. “Okay,” she finally burst out. “So I’m not very good at planning. That still doesn’t mean this is a bad plan!”
“There’s one problem, sugarcube,” Applejack said. “Twilight’s all the way over in Canterlot, and we’re here. And last I checked, there’s no train there for a couple days.”
Dash grinned, flapping her wings. “You think I haven’t thought of that?”
Applejack blinked a couple times, and her eyes widened as she abruptly understood. “Uh-uh,” she said, shaking her head. “No. No way! There is no way Ah’m going...”
“Is it just me, or was this actually a good idea?” she asked Rarity a few minutes later, as Pinkie Pie’s hot air balloon lifted off the ground. Ahead of them, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were checking the knots on their tow ropes.
“What did you think?” Rarity asked with a raised eyebrow. “Rainbow was just going to fly us to Canterlot on her back?”
“What if Ah did?” Applejack snapped. That was exactly what she’d been thinking, but there was no way she’d admit it with Rarity there. In all honesty, she’d completely forgotten about Pinkie’s balloon.
Rarity said nothing for a long moment, looking away. After a moment, Applejack realized she wasn’t thinking of a reply. She was just trying her best not to laugh.
“Laugh it up,” she muttered, glaring at a nearby cloud. “Let’s just hope Twi hasn’t run into any trouble.”
----------
Twilight froze, trying to will the blood back into her face. Just stay calm, she told herself. If you look nervous, she’ll know something’s wrong.
Easier said than done! her instincts shrieked back. You have a stolen book from a secure archive right there in your saddlebag! Just run!
Crushing the urge to flee, Twilight turned around, forced her mouth into a pleased smile, and looked her mentor in the eye. “I was just looking around,” she replied. “I wanted to find...”
She faltered for a bit, when she saw Celestia’s face. The warm smile was still there, but it seemed strained. “Is something wrong?”
The Princess’ eyes betrayed nothing. “No, nothing’s wrong. I’m just surprised to find you here, and not in the Archives.” She directed a pointed look at Twilight’s saddlebags. “That’s why you came here, is it not?”
The stolen book seemed to become a few hundred pounds heavier. Twilight forced herself not to wet her lips. “Actually, I’m picking up a book order for the library back in Ponyville. I stopped by at the palace to...” She glanced around, covering it with a cough, trying to think of something as close to the truth as possible. Her eyes lit on the tapestry she had just come through. Perfect! “I wanted to examine some of the tapestries,” she continued. “I was wondering if the ones in less-used corridors lasted longer, or not as long.” There. If that’s not airtight, I don’t know what is.
Celestia glanced at one of the hangings. “Well, I suppose I can save you some time. The tapestries are protected by simple, self-sustaining wards that prevent them from decaying. They don’t even need to be cleaned.”
“Really,” Twilight replied, trying to act surprised. In truth, she’d found out the answer nearly a year before leaving for Ponyville.
Celestia kept eyeing the tapestries, an odd expression on her face. Twilight followed her gaze, her heart leaping into her throat as she realized her mentor was staring at the tapestry she had come through. In her frantic flight through it, the hanging had gone slightly askew, and the edge of the hidden doorframe was just visible around the side. “If you don’t mind me asking,” Twilight said frantically, hoping to attract Celestia’s attention, “Were you looking for me? I mean, it seems like a bit of a coincidence that we’d both be down here at the same time.”
Celestia glanced back at her, smiling ruefully. “No, I wasn’t looking for you. I wasn’t even aware you were in Canterlot. I was simply searching for a book I thought was stored in the Depository.”
“Did you find it?” Twilight asked cautiously.
Celestia shook her head. “I was sure it had been stored there, but it seems I was mistaken. It was just a passing fancy, in any case. Nothing important.” Her eyes started to move back to the tapestry.
Desperate to draw her attention away, Twilight blurted out the first thing that came into her head. “Who was Cognitus?”
Celestia’s face smoothed into an unreadable mask. “I don’t know who you’re talking about,” she said coolly. “Where did you hear that name?”
“I read it somewhere,” Twilight replied vaguely.
The Princess’ eyes narrowed a fraction. “Did you?”
Twilight wet her lips. Her mouth had suddenly gone dry. Stupid! she berated herself. What if that was the only book Cognitus was mentioned in? You might have just told her you stole it!
“Now that you mention it, I might recall something,” Celestia said carefully. “It was... stars, has it really been that long? I had thought that name forgotten.”
Twilight relaxed by a hair. “So you know who he is? I’ve never encountered a mention of him before, and he seemed to have been held in high esteem.”
“I knew him,” Celestia replied. “Quite well, in fact. As well I should. He was a personal pupil of mine nearly six hundred years ago.”
She looked back at Twilight, who was gaping openly, with an expression of mild amusement. “Don’t look so surprised. You and Star Swirl weren’t the only students I’ve had over the years.” A shadow swept over her face. “Cognitus, on the other hoof... well, some things are meant to be forgotten.” She gave herself a shake. “I suppose Cognitus wasn’t one of them. Follow me. We should discuss this in a more comfortable setting, I think.”
Twilight followed the Princess silently, her mind racing. Cognitus. When just reading it, it had just seemed to be another name. But hearing it aloud... something resonated. Like a half-faded memory, just on the edge of recollection. For a moment, she’d remembered a darkened library, rows of toppled shelves and books that turned to dust at a touch – and then it was gone. Still, she couldn’t shake the feeling that the name was somehow important.
What did you mean, Princess? she thought. Why was he supposed to be forgotten?
----------
The balloon’s gondola lurched as a sudden updraft caught the balloon. Applejack groaned in tandem with the creaking of the ropes, trying to curl herself into a tighter ball and clutching her stomach. “Did we have to fly here quite so fast?” she moaned.
“Just focus on breathing,” Rarity replied. “It helps if you stand, really. Keep your eyes fixed on the horizon.”
Applejack poked her head over the gondola’s rim, just as it lurched again. With a nauseous belch, she sat down heavily and put her head in her hooves. “Ah like it better down here,” she moaned.
“Just hold on for a little bit longer, AJ” Pinkie called from where she was perched on the balloon’s frame. “We’re almost there!”
The gondola gave another jolt as it met the paved streets near Canterlot’s train station, and then was still. Pinkie leapt onto the ground, holding a length of rope in her teeth, and proceeded to secure it to a nearby lamppost. Applejack followed a moment later, and began frantically kissing the ground. “Ah’ve never been so glad to be somewhere in all my life,” she gasped between kisses.
She glanced up at Rainbow Dash, who’s face had turned a curious shade of purple. “What in the hay are you lookin’ at?”
That was too much. The pegasus’ knees collapsed and she pounded on the street, laughing helplessly. “No wonder you never wanted to hang out in Cloudsdale!” she choked. “You get airsick!”
“Maybe Ah do,” Applejack said, recovering most of her composure now that the surface she was on no longer moved. “But keep in mind, Ah know where you live. And Ah don’t think it’d be too difficult to use for target practice.”
Still giggling, Dash clapped her friend on the shoulder. “Your secret’s safe with me, buddy.”
“I hate to interrupt,” Rarity chimed in, “but aren’t there usually more ponies here?”
Rainbow frowned, looking around the square. The only thing that could have made it seem more empty would have been a tumbleweed. “Are there? I dunno.”
“This isn’t exactly a peak travel time,” Rarity replied, peering into the empty ticket booth. The sign on the door simply held a crudely drawn picture of a clock and a question mark. “But there are usually a few ponies here. And at the very least, someone in the ticket booth.”
“There aren’t any birds here,” Fluttershy suddenly said.
Rainbow glanced over at her. “Flutters, you’re my pal, but what does that have to do with anything?”
The yellow pegasus have a squeak and hid behind her mane, mumbling something.
Abruptly, Rainbow flicked an ear. “Anyone else hear that, or am I just losing it?”
“Ah hear it too,” Applejack said, frowning. It hadn’t been noticeable a moment before, but now a distant roar echoed off the empty buildings, growing steadily louder with each passing heartbeat.
“I’m gonna go check it out,” Rainbow started to say, but before she could dart out, a mob of ponies emerged from one of the streets and flooded across the square. The five friends froze, dropping into defensive postures – well, Fluttershy hid behind the gondola – but the mob ignored them and stormed into another street.
“Was that...” Rarity started.
“An angry mob? Looks like it,” Rainbow finished for her.
“Where does a pony even get a pitchfork in these parts?” Applejack wondered out loud.
“More importantly,” Rarity interjected, “Did they look like they were heading to the palace to you?”
Rainbow blinked. Then blinked again, her eyes widening. “Oh,” she said. “Oh. That’s bad.”
----------
As Twilight followed her mentor and the silence stretched, her mind began torturing her with questions. Had Celestia’s suspicions been roused at all? Why had she asked about Congitus anyway? What did it really matter? It was just the name of some long-dead pony. Finding out who it had belonged to wasn’t worth the risk of being discovered!
She continued berating herself until they reached a nondescript set of oak doors that Twilight recognized as the ones leading to Celestia’s private study. Tucked away in a secluded corner of the palace, its location wasn’t known to most of the palace staff, and served as a place to let the Princess think without distraction.
“We will talk in here,” Celestia said, opening the door.
Twilight hesitantly followed the Princess in, taking a seat on a cushion at Celestia’s gesture.
Celestia ignored the tidy stack of cushions next to her desk and settled herself down on the floor. “Cognitus,” she finally said, “is a chapter of my past I’m not altogether proud of. He was not only a former student; he was the last pupil I took on before you.”
Twilight shivered. For some reason, the thought of Celestia teaching other ponies, the same personal tutoring she’d received... it just felt odd. Like learning of a stallion’s previous marefriends.
“He didn’t show your promise, of course,” Celestia continued. “In fact, his magical strength was relatively weak, on a level similar to your friend Rarity’s, in fact. But he showed a surprising aptitude for magic concerning the mind. He couldn’t quite see into other ponies’ heads, but some of the things he could do were... well, taking him on was more a matter of necessity than because I saw potential. Those kinds of talents can be easily misused, and I wanted to make sure he took them in the right direction.”
“What was he like?” Twilight asked.
“You would have liked him,” Celestia remarked, glancing at her pupil. “His love for books was almost a large as yours.” Her lips curled in a smile. “Almost.” Faint heat rose in Twilight’s cheeks.
“He was a brilliant student, surpassing all my expectations. Before long, I learned that he was pursuing his own research alongside the tasks I set him. I should have intervened, but pride clouded my judgement, and I let him continue. Then, one day, he vanished.”
“He ran away?” Twilight asked.
Celestia shook her head. “He had locked himself in his rooms for a week, refusing to come out, and not letting anyone in. He said he was close to something, and that the slightest interference would undo months of work.”
She closed her eyes, and was silent for a long moment. “I’m sorry,” she said, after a deep, shuddering breath. “I have... difficulty telling this. I had thought the pain would fade, after all this time, but...”
“You don’t have to go on,” Twilight said, guilt flaring in her chest.
“No!” Celestia replied with unexpected vehemence. “You need to know.” She took another breath to compose herself. “The first day he didn’t respond, I thought he’d exhausted himself and needed rest. The second day, I began to worry. The third day, I forced my way into the room, and...” She squeezed her eyes shut, as if she was trying to hide from the memory. “He was gone. There was not a mark on him, but he’d been dead for just over three days.”
Twilight shivered. “What happened to him?”
“I never found out,” Celestia replied. “I never even found out what he was working on. He was very protective of his work, and encoded all his notes with a cipher that I was never able to crack. But whatever he was looking for... I’m fairly certain he found it. And whatever it was should have remained hidden.”
She let out a heavy sigh. “I ended up keeping those books found with him in his room. To remind myself of my pride, and what came from it, and to protect others from a similar fate.” She chuckled mirthlessly. “A couple years after that, an earthquake struck Canterlot. Several major structures, the old Archives included, collapsed into the crystal mines under the city. Over twenty thousand books were lost, including several volumes Cognitus wrote himself, but those few books I had kept were left untouched. It’s as if the land was mocking me for failing to keep him safe. Ridiculous, I know, but I couldn’t help it.”
She looked over at Twilight and smiled. “Don’t worry. I am not blaming myself. Cognitus likely knew full well what he was getting into, and pressed on regardless. But let it serve as a lesson to you. Knowledge is power. But never doubt that it can be dangerous. There are some things that ponies simply aren’t meant to know.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Twilight said faintly. Stars above! I can see why Celestia doesn’t go telling everyone who’ll listen about that. Who’d want it known that one of their students got themselves killed? "Did you at least get an idea what he was working on from the books he had?"
"I pored through all of them," Celestia replied. "The closest thing they had in common was that most mentioned theories on melding two consciousnesses into one. Nothing but wild suppositions, of course. But no, I never found out what it was that killed him."
Twilight swallowed. "I'm sorry," she said.
"Don't be," the Princess cut in. "It was well before your time, and you had no way of knowing who he was. The last thing I want is for you to feel guilty."
The stolen book weighed heavily on her side. Despite what her mentor had said, or perhaps because of it, guilt flared deeply inside her. I lied to her. She confided in me, and I lied to her face. "Celestia," Twilight said, licking her lips. Her mouth had suddenly gone dry. "There's something I need to tell–"
Celestia glanced at a clock on the wall. “Oh, my. It seems I’ve lost track of time. I’m afraid I’ll have to cut our discussion short.”
Twilight blinked. "This'll only take a–"
"No buts, Twilight," Celestia said, cutting her off. "I'm running late as it is, and I'm sure you have matters requiring your attention. We'll continue this at a later time."
Twilight rose unsteadily and bowed. “You’ve given me a lot to think about,” she said.
“Just remember what I said,” Celestia replied as Twilight turned to leave. “Oh, and Twilight?”
Twilight looked back. The corner of Celestia’s mouth turned up in a smile. “Make sure to put that book to good use.”
The unicorn froze. “I’ll... I’ll...” Without further response, she all but fled the study, heart pounding. She didn’t stop until she was outside the palace.
----------
Celestia watched Twilight go, smiling sadly. I am so proud of her, she thought.
Off in the corner, a bookcase rippled and vanished, and Princess Luna stalked out of the shadows. “Are you sure this course of action is wise?” she asked. “Even we do not know what she will face.”
“She has an idea,” Celestia replied. “It’s better than what we have.”
“And Cognitus,” Luna said. “Why did you tell her about him? ‘Tis in the past!”
“Why do we learn history, sister?” Celestia asked. Without waiting for a reply, she continued. “We learn it because it repeats. The names and faces may change, but those too foolish to learn the lessons of the past make the same mistakes. I will not allow Twilight to suffer that fate.”
Luna fidgeted. “I feel... tense. Like something terrible is about to happen.”
Celestia chuckled mirthlessly. “Your instincts are not what they used to be, sister. It’s already happening.” She cast her eyes over the books sitting against the wall, and over the meaningless symbols that now covered their spines. If anyone knows what’s going on, it’s you, Twilight, she thought. For my sake, and for yours... don’t let me down.
End of Part 5
To be continued...
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MOAR!
This is getting really interesting.
Oh, thank goodness. Looks like Twi is in less trouble than I thought.
I really wonder who that figure was in Twi's dream. Did Cognitus insert himself in Twi's brain through time? If so, does that mean Twi is unwillingly casting the spell?
This is really good! I actually think the ballon is Twilight's, though, not Pinkie's. Other than that I love everything!
Oh, she's good.
It's funny, though. In the beginning, I bet we all thought this would be a lighthearted tale about Twilight blowing things out of proportion. Then we find out that there IS something going on, but it seemed more like a little prank by a minor spirit or something.
Now this is getting pretty Lovecraftian.
Damn it this is so epic. I want more.
Starting to feel just a little trite. I think a lot of that will clear up now that Celestia's gone again.
Seriously, she is impossible to write. I highly suspect that's why she only ever gets cameos canonically.
2666305 In less trouble with Celestia, perhaps. But to me it sounds like she's in a more dangerous position than we had at first imagined.
Oh, and I suppose I owe you a "told ya so".
Celestia is good. A pinpoint strike when the guard was down and in just one line that carries a paragraph of information.
2667074
I guess. :P
I feel like there should be a section break here. Or at least begin the second paragraph with "A few minutes later." It feels rather jarring as is.
Encoded, or enchanted? Any language you can't read is an indecipherable code by definition.
In any case, the tension is nicely coming to a head. I look forward to seeing how Celestia plans on defusing the mob, and how Twilight will fix everything. Until then.
Due to an unfortunate combination of this story's villain and some... "external factors" that arose around the time those half glimpsed shapes and almost heard sounds came up, I now cannot sleep.
Congratulations on doing creepy right.
This is really intense! Looking forward to reading more!
Great job! I look forward to more!
True story: I use this fic's updates to mark the passing of the years. Don't update faster, or I'll get confused and not know how old I am anymore.
This serious side has come as a welcome surprise to this story. Celestia's tale was quite interesting, and I can't wait to see how Cognitus ties into all this. The latter scenes of Celestia telling the story to Twilight, and Luna appearing and speaking with Celestia, really stood out to me. The dialogue was absolutely spot-on; I felt like I was watching a well-acted movie.
Oh, and I thought I'd mention that I noticed two places where there appeared to be a space lacking between paragraphs. First was here:
And the second is here here:
It could just be the spacing getting messed up on FimFiction. It's ha
I fully expect chapter 16's title to be written in zalgo-text, and the story to be followed by an "Epilog".
By the way, Pinkie doesn't have a balloon. It's Twi's.
2675469 Fine, fine. I get that it's Twilight's balloon. Bit late to fix it now, in any case.
His books fell into the crystal mines?
Calling it now, Changelings are involved.
I so love this story
>>>“What?” Pinkie replied. “There’s totally a bunch of giant mushrooms around here! You just have to know where to–”>>>
Next chapter, Pinkie Pie visits Mr. Moochick.
i934.photobucket.com/albums/ad183/elven_kitten/Animation/My%20Little%20Pony/MLP%201984/Moochick5.jpg
Or maybe the Smurfs...
We're not gonna suddenly have grimdark are we?
Raging mob, dark magic secrets, now a mysterious death hundreds of years ago...
How's Twilight going to read book if she can't read? My out there guess is that this indecipherable code might have had something to do with needing to invent a new language to get around a similar roadblock to the present issue. Pity the rest of the books were lost.
So I assume that we're ignoring Sunset Shimmer in this story, right?
2812117 Sunset who?
2812128
Y'know, Sunset Shimmer, Celestia's student before Twilight, main antagonist of Equestria Girls, pretty evil...
images.wikia.com/mlp/images/8/8f/Sunset_Shimmer_package_back.jpg
derpicdn.net/media/W1siZiIsIjIwMTMvMDUvMjYvMDdfNTJfNThfNjgyXzMzMzk0MF9fVU5PUFRfX3NhZmVfYW5pbWF0ZWRfZXF1ZXN0cmlhX2dpcmxzXzUxMmU1M2FlYTRjNzJkZDM5ZDAwMDVlMy5naWYiXV0/333940__safe_animated_equestria-girls_512e53aea4c72dd39d0005e3_smug_evil-grin.gif
2812164 Haven't seen it, paid very little attention to the canon contained therein.
So yes, I'm ignoring her.
2666364
According to the toyline and the markings on it it is Twilight's.
According to how it is used it is a rental vehicle for anypony who can afford it.
Maybe Twilight is being efficient by hiring somepony to rent it out rather than letting it lay around unused most of the time?
I'm not usually given to correcting minor grammar like this, but I feel it's appropriate in this story...
"Seeing as both her and Spike had lost the ability to transfer words to a page, they’d had to make do with pictures. And neither of them was particularly good at drawing."
'Her' should be 'she.' Her didn't lose the ability speak, but she certainly did.
To counter my grammatical wheedling, I wish to say that I am quite enjoying your story; it's a lot more serious than I gave it credit for based on the title, which is nice to find.
How did celestia Know about that book that twilight had in her Book pouch?
i mean it doesn't make sense, How did she even know it was a book in the first place??? I really want to know how she knew. 
If its something that tipped it off and i didnt notice, i would just... just... Ugh i got nothing! 
Nothing. 
>She glanced up at Rainbow Dash, who’s face had turned a curious shade of purple
*whose
Oooh, backstory? Curiouser and curiouser.
I also can't help but think the [Comedy] tag doesn't seem quite appropriate. I mean, sure, there are moments where the story is quite amusing, but that's all they are: moments. The tag implies the moments are more prevalent throughout the story than they currently are.
WHOSE face
Should be, "poured."
2877293 Celestia received a letter previously from Twilight concerning a mistake in a friendship report, and then a bit later, a mistake in her own reply was pointed out to her. Later on, when she herself found herself unable to read, she went looking for that book, suspecting she might find clues within the writings of her former student. When she entered the depository searching for the book, and was unable to find it. Also, she heard someone within the depository, and she knew of only one who would be sneaking into the place. The very same pony who first noticed what was apparently going on.
Pacing the clues together, she surmised that Twilight was the pony she had heard, and that she had been the one to remove Cognitus' book from the shelf. Twilight asking about Cognitus only confirmed Celestia's belief that Twilight was already on the case.
2739514 it appears that Twilight still has the ability to read, for some reason.
2667482
In this situation, encoded would be the correct term. An example of a very simple substitution cipher would be the Word Jumble found in many newspapers across the nation. A much more complex cipher would be the 128 bit encriptions commonly available for those who desire keeping their e-mails and files secret.
7288719 "Pored" is the only correct spelling to refer to intently perusing books. "Poured" is a very common misspelling.