The Flames of the Phoenix

by FrostTheWolf

24- Aftermath

The Flames of the Phoenix- Aftermath

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In the days that passed since rescuing everypony from the hive and since then, everything was slowly beginning to return to some state of normalcy. Many of the ponies that were captured by the changelings originally were able to return to their daily lives, while those that did remember only recalled small bits and pieces of what happened after being released from their cocoons. Applejack and the rest of her friends were rather thankful that Ember and the others came to rescue them, while also surprised at the transformation that took place among the changelings. As for the mancer, she was glad that everyone was okay and that the former queen’s plan didn’t fully come to fruition.

However, not everyone came out unscathed. For it was when Chrysalis was outnumbered and on the verge of defeat that something else intervened. A ghost from Ember’s past that thought that the only way that the former queen could atone for the sins she committed against her own people was through her own demise. Sylvanos, the wrathful incarnation of the Everfree and nature itself. While Ember prevented him from killing Chrysalis, she did not come out unscathed. For Sylvanos’ intervention tore away her left leg and left her scarred. Both physically… and possibly emotionally.

Instead of being taken to Ponyville’s hospital, the former queen was taken to Twilight’s castle, where her guest room was converted into a care facility. Since then, Amaryllis and Ember had come by so that the changeling could visit her sister and try to help with her recovery. However, this was a process that needed time in order to work effectively and it was not something that could be accomplished overnight. Yet, she still wanted to try and help anyway that she could.

Though, it was on the second day that the two of them were at Twilight’s castle that the two of them came across an unusual sight. That being that Princess Celestia was waiting for them by the Cutie Map. Though, she didn’t give off the friendly and welcoming presence that was seen the previous times that Ember had seen her. Instead, she looked to be rather serious.

“Oh good, you’re here,” the princess spoke.

“Celestia?” Ember asked, looking over to Amaryllis for a brief moment, before looking back at the diarch of the sun, “Is everything okay? Did something happen?”

“No, nothing’s happened,” Celestia assured them, “Though, there is something important that I wish to discuss with you if you’re not busy.”

Just from that alone, the mancer felt a small chill down her spine. She didn’t like it when the warm and welcoming alicorn was being ominous. It could mean that she wanted to talk about something coming up that wasn’t that much of a big deal… or something that was more serious.

“Is this involving my sister?” Amaryllis now asked, a bit of concern in her voice. The first thought that came to her mind was that something had possibly gone wrong with her sister’s care.

“Sort of. To avoid any misconceptions, your sister’s recovery has been going rather well. There haven't been any problems with the process so far. In fact, she’s resting right now,” Celestia clarified for her, which helped put the changeling’s mind at ease, “However, what I wanted to talk about was not your sister exactly, but the creature that’s responsible for doing this to her. Something that Ember knows about.”

That immediately raised some red flags, and the mancer did not like this. “How-?”

“Before she took some time to rest, Twilight and I asked her some questions regarding what happened after she was taken away and you pursued her,” the princess explained, “She also told us of the beast you encountered in the Everfree. How you alone stood against it… and how it called you ‘mother’. At first, I wasn’t sure whether or not to believe her, but the fear in her eyes when recalling everything told me she was telling the truth.”

After she spoke, Celestia let out a deep breath, before asking one simple question. “Ember, I’m only going to ask this once… Who is this creature? Why do they know you?”

The question might’ve seemed simple to Celestia, but to Ember, it wasn’t something that could just simply be answered. Yet, she still had to try regardless. If she did nothing, then Celestia might do something reckless and get other creatures hurt in the process. Yet, the mancer had to be straightforward with this in order for the princess to really see how serious this was. No cutting corners or leaving out any bits of information.

“That creature is Sylvanos. The first timberwolf, the embodiment of nature and the wrath of the Everfree,” the mancer began to speak as clearly as she could, “Born from my anger and rage when I set the badlands ablaze thousands of years ago. He sees me as a mother for that reason and that reason alone, but his methods and ideals are far different from mine. He sees himself as one that must correct what he perceives as the natural balance, even if it means having to kill anything that might as well threaten it.”

At that, both Amaryllis and Celestia looked back at her in shock. It was one thing to learn about the creature, but both of them did not expect for Ember to be the reason why such a beast existed in the first place. But, there was still a question that didn’t make sense to them, “W-why would he go after Chrysalis though?”

“To him, the suffering that she had caused on her people was an act that could not be forgiven under any circumstance and went against the balance,” the pyromancer continued, “However, my guess is that the anti-magic barrier from Chrysalis’ old throne prevented him from enacting his wrath on her sooner. When we went to rescue everyone and the throne was destroyed, nothing was holding him back anymore. If I didn’t step in… her fate would be a lot worse.”

“Dear me,” Celestia swore, “To think that such a being even existed…”

“Emmy, if I may,” Amaryllis now spoke up, “If this Sylvanos is as dangerous as you say he is, why can’t you just… well…”

“Kill him?”

“I was going to say burn them to ashes, but I think you get what I mean.”

“Well, that’s the thing,” Ember replied back as she turned to her wife, “You can’t kill him and hypothetically, if you did, it would come at a great cost. Nature is the cycle of life and if it were to stop, all life not just here but throughout the world would cease to exist. Reformation is also out of the question too, for I once tried that a long time ago. Yet, not only did it not work, but everything that he experienced basically did more to try and prove his point.”

“S-so you’re saying that at any point, he can just-” with a motion of her hooves, some magic and a ‘poof’, Amaryllis had a small cloud of smoke go off while she was talking, “-show up and attack somepony?”

“Fortunately, no,” the mancer let out a small sigh, “Like with many other creatures, Sylvanos is territorial and will get aggressive if someone unknowingly enters his domain. Not only that, but from my understanding, he only goes against those that are trying to break the balance, not correct it. Applejack had told me before that she and her friends had gone into the Everfree before on several different occasions and based on what she shared, none of them had encountered him before.”

That comment surprised Celestia, especially considering the amount of times that Twilight and her friends had ventured into the Everfree for the last few years. “Really? Nothing at all? Which ones did she tell you?”

“Pretty much everything. Some of the more notable ones being the Summer Sun Celebration with Nightmare Moon’s return, when Trixie first came to Ponyville, Zap Apple Season, something she called the ‘Plunder Vine’ incident, when they started looking around the old castle, Lord Tirek and a few others. Most of them had to deal with creatures that call the Everfree Forest their home or those who trespassed through the Everfree, but not deal with Sylvanos specifically.”

“What do you mean by correct though?” Amaryllis then asked, “That’s the part I’m having trouble understanding.”

At that, the mancer took a moment to catch her breath before she answered the changeling’s question. “With each one of the events I’ve mentioned, there’s one similarity. With every instance that something bad happens that could throw the world out of balance, something else happens that prevents it from doing so. When Nightmare Moon returned, Twilight and her friends awakened the Elements of Harmony and defeated her, while also bringing Luna back from her banishment. When Lord Tirek attacked Ponyville, Twilight faced him in order to try and prevent him from destroying Ponyville.”

At that point, Celestia realized something, “Neighton’s third law.”

“What?”

The princess then looked back to the confused changeling and tried to help clarify something. “Back in the early days of me being a princess, there was a unicorn in Canterlot named Isaac Neighton. A brilliant mathematician who made groundbreaking discoveries in the fields of science, mathematics and astrology. One of his greatest works is the three laws of motion, with the third law being that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.”

It took a couple of moments, but after a bit, Amaryllis realized what she was implying. “Oh! I get it… So, you’re saying that if an event that throws things out of balance is an action.”

“Then whatever is done to correct it is a reaction,” Ember added, “Of course, I would think that there’s another part to it as well. That Sylvanos would only act if no one else does anything to address whatever tips the balance out of line. In the case of the hive, after everything that Chrysalis had put her people through and all the unanswered pleas for change… since no one else answered their cries for who knows how long, he’s the only one that did.”

“But that’s only in the Everfree, right?” Celestia replied, “Since that’s his territory.”

“I would hope so. Though, from the sounds of it, he’s not making any promises,” the mancer retorted, “He told me ‘I dwell wherever nature dwells’, which could mean that he’s preparing to make some kind of move outside of the Everfree and set up territory in different areas across Equestria. However, given how cryptic he phrased it, it’s really difficult to tell.”

“And just when we thought that things were actually starting to turn around as well,” Amaryllis let out a groan. With everything that happened over the last couple of days, including the changelings being reformed and Thorax becoming the king of the changelings now, she thought that things were actually going to get better. However, the more that they talked about Sylvanos, the more that she became concerned that something awful was going to happen. It even made it sound like littering in a public park is punishable by death.

Of course, there was one more question that Celestia needed to ask. “So, Ember, what do you plan to do now?”

Yet, the pyromancer’s answer was something both of them honestly did not expect, “I need to head north.”

“North? To the Crystal Empire?” Amaryllis asked, “Why? What seems to be the problem?”

“During my encounter with him, Sylvanos mentioned something to me that sounded rather concerning,” she explained, “He may be many things, but one thing that he is not is a liar. There’s something that I need to look into and make sure that it’s not what I fear it is. I’m not leaving today, but first thing tomorrow.”

“What exactly did he say that would make you so concerned?”

That had Ember look back at Celestia as she folded her arms, “That one of the threats that I have yet to confront might spell disaster for everyone if they aren’t stopped now.”

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End Chapter 24

Author's Note:

There's no point in sitting around when there's still work to be done. Now it's time for Ember to head north and confront what she finds.