63. Towards Greener Pastures
!Important Author’s Note!
Just as a heads up, this is the last chapter of this story! More details in the Author’s Note at the end, make sure to read it! You’ll also find a link to the sequel there.
Scholar Arc
Year 32, Month 8, Day 2
Atlas pulled a red book out of the shelf, which was coated in a thin layer of ice. The spine of the book suffered the same fate, although, luckily the pages seemed to be alright for now. He put it into his saddlebags, which were bigger on the inside thanks to a spell he learned from Doc Brown quite some time ago. With a sigh he took a look around the royal library, which had become depressing to look at. Barely half of the shelves even had books on them anymore, the royal librarians having taken as many with them as they possibly could.
The winter had gradually become worse over the years, forcing the kingdoms occupants to completely evacuate and migrate towards the newly founded Equestria. It took Princess Platinum and the others almost two years to find it, and only recently had the last ponies moved out of their homes in the no frozen kingdom. By now, the cold and snow had become so bad that there was a never ending storm raging outside, making it almost impossible to go anywhere, except for the few experienced mages that lingered. It also didn’t help that the Windigoes actually started attacking ponies that were out and about.
Most of the windows in the kingdom had shattered relatively early on when the temperature fluctuations had been extremely dramatic, and the giant windows of the royal library were no exception. Thanks to the efforts of Atlas and his friends, they were able to make it somewhat livable though.
Snow was swirling around the inside and thin layers of ice covered almost every available surface, forcing everypony present to constantly keep up warming spells if they didn’t want to freeze to death.
Atlas heard the sound of hoofsteps approaching, before Starswirl appeared from behind a nearby bookshelf, a stack of books lazily trailing behind him in his magic.
“I think we have just about everything now,” Starswirl said while inspecting one of the books for damages. “Besides, I think there aren’t any useful books left around here, now that we have what you wanted.”
Starswirl closed the book he had been inspecting and stacked it on top of the rest before floating them into another saddlebag that was resting nearby.
“Hear anything from the other two?” Starswirl asked, looking around to try and spot their companions.
“Not yet, I’m sure they’ll return soon enough,” Atlas replied, closing his saddlebags and putting them on. “We’ve taken too long to gather the books from our lists as is, we’ll need to leave as soon as we can. The Windigoes are growing more agitated by the minute, and I’m pretty sure we’re the only targets they have left in the kingdom to feed on.”
“I whole-heartedly agree with that sentiment,” Amethyst Blade called out as he approached from the direction of the entrance. “They seem to be growing restless. If we don’t leave soon, we might get trapped for good.”
“I guess we should get a move on then,” Starswirl said. “We got what we came for, no reason to stay any longer.”
“Agreed,” Atlas said, looking around for their last team member. “Discord!” He called out, trying to get the young draconequus attention.
“Present,” Discord answered appearing out of nowhere, floating on his back a few feet above the ground. “And empty handed. There was nothing of interest in the east wing.”
In human years, Discord was now an adolescent, although one wouldn’t be able to guess just by looking at him. While he did grow a bit, there wasn’t that much of a difference. If Discord wanted to, he could still comfortably ride on Atlas’ back.
“Bummer, but no big deal,” Atlas answered. “Anything else would have just been a bonus anyway. We just decided that it’s high time to leave, get ready.”
Discord did a mock salute and disappeared again, probably to collect his things from the east wing. The group of friends had spent the better part of the last year visiting almost every library in the kingdom, looking for particular titles that were either forgotten or deemed unimportant by their respective librarians, gathering up an impressive amount of books. By now they could probably open a complete library once they got to Equestria with what they salvaged.
The royal library was their last stop, otherwise they would have probably been denied access by the last present librarians, even if they came to “rescue” some of their books. They didn’t exactly plan to return them after all.
Once Atlas told Starswirl about his plan to stay behind longer than everypony else and steal together enough expensive books to last a lifetime, he immediately agreed to help out with the endeavour. Together they compiled a list of books that seemed important, that or they just wanted to get their hooves on for some reason or another. They were aware of how dangerous this project would become the longer they stayed behind, so Atlas asked Amethyst to help and protect them, to increase their chances of success against the Windigoes, should they decide to attack.
Discord technically had to stay with Atlas as well, since they were an adoptive family. Blue Current and Crimson had offered to take Discord with them when they evacuated, but Discord protested heavily against it, much to Green Lantern’s disappointment and Atlas’ mirth.
Amber was among the first guards that were sent towards Equestria, tasked with guarding the ponies that were supposed to get an early start on constructing new villages.
Looking out of a nearby window and into the overcast sky, his thoughts went towards Vibrant Colors. Even though he’d promised to return and visit her someday, he never actually did. Things just kept happening and he never found the right timing to go on the long journey. All he could do right now, was hope that Vibrant had heard of the safe-haven, Equestria, and went there a long time ago.
Discord popped back into existence, a tailor made blue saddlebag strapped against his midriff. “All ready to go.”
“Alright then, let’s head out,” Atlas said, earning him nods of approval from his companions.
They started to trot towards the giant, purple-painted double doors that were the entrance into the library, passing by hundreds of almost empty bookshelves on their way. The royal library was huge, to say the least. Over hundreds of years, an extensive amount of knowledge had been gathered here. Every new book containing virtually anything known about magic was once collected here, the library representing everything the kingdom stood for.
Yet, little more than an empty, frozen husk remained of it, perfectly mirroring the desolate tundra outside.
The Crystal Kingdom, once a grand city, full of life and happiness was now as still as the grave. No ponies roamed the streets under the proud gaze of the mountain it was built upon, and only snow and ice remained in their stead.
The Windigoes proved to be a near cataclysmic event for the society that ponies knew, forcing them to abandon their homes, their history. Yet Atlas was not sad at the prospect, since he knew that from the ashes of this fallen civilisation, a new and better one would rise.
It may not be there for quite some time, but Equestria would one day be a unified country built on goodwill and understanding, the three tribes’ bleak history a footnote on the road to something better.
“Okay, listen up,” Amethyst said once they reached the exit. “We’ve got a long way ahead of us and it won’t be easy. You all know that the snow is ever present and unrelenting now, making travel nearly impossible. We’ll assume our usual formation and travel as fast as we can, ideally we’ll leave the city border behind before the day comes to an end.”
Keeping track of time had become somewhat of an issue, since the days just sort of blurred together into a sea of grey and white. Some magical ingenuity from Atlas and Starswirl allowed them to build a crude timekeeper, notifying them of the rough position of the sun. Of course they could tell whether it was day or night, simply by the fact of being able to see, since at night it got pitch black, but having a rough estimate of time helped them survive. It was almost unimaginable, but it got even colder at night, which is why they tended to avoid being outside and unprotected during the nighttime hours up until now.
A luxury they couldn’t really afford going forward.
“Atlas, you’ll take the lead, clearing a path for us with your magic, followed by Discord. Your job is the keep the winds at bay. Starswirl will follow, keeping an eye out and helping out where needed with me taking up the rear. I’ll fend off the Windigoes as best as I can, should they decide to attack.” Amethyst explained.
By now everyone in the group knew their roles by heart, yet Amethyst always insisted on drilling it into their head before every new trip. Usually they just let it go in one ear and out the other, but today was different. It would be their furthest and most dangerous trip yet, so everypony was paying attention.
“The Windigoes seem mostly focused on the city itself, probably because a lot of negative emotions still linger in the city. If we make it past the city borders we should be relatively safe from them. The challenge will be actually getting there, but I believe with all my heart, that if we work together, all of us will make it out in one piece.” Amethyst continued, earning nods of approval from the others. “If Atlas' theory is right, then our friendship should be enough to keep the windigoes at bay. I’ll miss this place, but I think if I never see snow again I’ll die happy.”
“I sure know I’ve seen enough snow to last a lifetime…” Starswirl muttered, causing the others to chuckle as they moved into their respective positions.
Atlas and Starswirl dropped their wards on the libraries interior with practiced coordination, causing all of them to be hit with the extreme cold that raged all throughout the city. It didn’t take long before Discord snapped his talons and the winds abruptly stopped billowing around them, much to everybody's relief. Starswirl started warming up the air bubble Discord had created. It wouldn’t be enough to make them comfortable while moving, but together with the absence of wind, it counteracted the cold enough to prevent them from freezing on the spot.
“Move out!” Amethyst called from the back, now in complete military mode, and their little progression left the royal library.
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The group was moving slowly, their progress hindered by the copious amounts of fluff creating an endless snowbank to the horizon. Atlas did his best to clear the snow in their path, but conserving his mana reserves meant he couldn’t clear all of it from their path. Using his magic like a snowplough, he pushed away the snow in front of him to the side, creating walls taller than himself that loomed next to them. They still had to wade through knee-deep snow, excluding Discord who just opted to float along. All of the unicorns had spells running that helped ward off the cold to some degree, but they could still feel the cold sapping their heat and chilling them to the bone.
Since the royal library was situated inside the royal palace the way down was treacherous. The usually safe paths were hidden beneath mountains of snow, the raging storm not helping visibility. One wrong move on Atlas’ part could’ve sent them tumbling down the side of the mountain, potentially killing them all in the process.
The trip that usually didn’t take more than twenty minutes took them almost four hours to complete. When they finally arrived at the foot of the mountain, Amethyst ordered them to rest, while Atlas focused on clearing the snow from a nearby building to get to the door. Atlas’ and Starswirl's wards went up almost immediately upon entering, causing everybody present to let out a sigh of relief as the cold momentarily abated. The wards were definitely useful, but sadly they were stationary.
“We’re making good time,” Amethyst told the group while looking at their makeshift clock. “We probably won’t make it past the city limits before night fall, but we should push on anyway. Every minute we spend within could be the one that calls attention to us, and if the Windigoes decide to attack, we’d be in deep trouble…”
“The storm became even more violent around an hour ago, I believe they’ve definitely found us,” Starswirl agreed. “I don’t think the question is if they’re going to attack… it’s when.”
“It looks like they’re content to just observe us for now,” Atlas supplied. “If we’re lucky, they’ll leave us alone. They’re not exactly known to take direct action, after all.”
“I’d very much like to believe that,” Amethyst said, “but I’m not gonna take any chances. We need to get out of here fast, so eat something and replenish your strength. We’re gonna need it once we set out again.”
With a round of agreements, they all took off their saddlebags and started looking for the foodstuff that was hidden away. They had packed a lot of reserves, enchanted to keep fresh over a long time but their were reaching the limit of their inventory all the same. Even if they hadn’t found all the books they wanted, they’d have had to set out sooner or later anyway.
While they all silently munched on their various fruits and grains, Atlas took a look around the room they were in. Like everywhere else, the room was covered in snow and ice, but he could still recognise that this must have been the living room of a family’s home at one point. A table with four chairs, all currently occupied by a member of their group, was located in the far right of the room. He could see various bookshelves, one of them had fallen over, leaving a few books sprawled over the ground. His eyes were drawn towards what looked like a fireplace, a small amount of snow drifting in through the hole caught his attention.
On the little sils above the fireplace rested a picture, portraying two adult unicorns with a small filly standing proudly between them. She stood slightly to the side, her eyes fixated on her flanks, leaving Atlas to believe the family had taken the picture to celebrate the fillies newly acquired cutie mark.
Seeing the picture really drove the point home for Atlas, that a massive amount of ponies had to just up and leave their home. In a perfect example of the butterfly effect, what most likely started as a slight disagreement between the tribes ended up almost becoming a war and instead called down a cataclysmic event from the heavens.
If he didn’t know that this was “supposed” to happen, Atlas would be sure that this was a set-up by the gods.
If Hades message was to be believed, he was now well and truly trapped. It didn’t seem to make much of a difference for Atlas, at least not in anything he could physically feel so he didn’t care too much about that little piece of information. What was more important to him was that Zeus and his lackeys were apparently losing interest in watching him everyday, which would prove to be invaluable for what came next.
According to Hades, he’d have to play some part in their usurpation of the divine rank structure and runes were the key to all of it. With the gods’ watchful gaze gone, Atlas would be free to explore and learn all he wanted until he figured out what he was supposed to do. The books they had salvaged would help immensely in this process, as he’d decided that others shouldn’t be privy to his potentially world-rending research, barring a few close friends.
“Alright, time to move out,” Amethyst said, ripping Atlas from his ruminations.
They geared up and once again assumed their positions before braving the storm, one last time.
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“Discord! What’s going on with your enchantment?” Atlas called frantically against the winds tearing at his face and mane.
“The storm has become too strong!” Discord replied desperately. “It’s just powering through my shield!”
Discord struggled against the winds, his elevated position becoming a disadvantage and forcing him to land, almost completely sinking into the snow. The storm had suddenly grown more violent around the halfway point out of the city, causing Discord’s enchantment to fail. Now, more than ever, it became clear, that while powerful, Discord was still a child.
“Incoming!” Amethyst shouted from the back, which Atlas barely heard over the howling winds.
The world around them was illuminated in a bright purple as a giant shield construct appeared over them, narrowly deflecting what looked like a giant snowball. The snow it was built out of exploded in all directions, building the snow walls around them even higher and forcing the group closer together. Once they stood back to back Amethyst boxed them in with a series of flat constructs, building a small room around them. The wind died down immediately, although it was still trying to rip apart their safe space from the outside.
“This can’t be a coincidence! They must be targeting us!” Amethyst said, his eyes flicking to and fro, trying to spot one of the ethereal equines.
“What are we supposed to do?” Starswirl asked, at the end of his wits. “If we stay here we’ll be sitting ducks!”
“We’ll have to make a run for it,” Amethys said gravely. “It’ll be dangerous, but it’s our only option.”
“It won’t work, they’ll tear us apart as soon as you lift the shield,” Atlas countered, his eyes searching for any signs of their enemy as well.
“Can’t we just, like, friendship them away?” Discord asked nervously.
“It’s worth a try…” Starswirl said, looking at his friends expectantly.
“Alright, huddle up and think happy friendship-y thoughts!” Amethyst commanded, pulling Discord and Starswirl into a bearhug and beckoning for Atlas to join them.
Atlas did so with the barest hesitation and began to remember all the good times he had with his present friends. Amethyst, Starswirl, Discord… Doc Brown. He knew the others were doing the same, since a warm tingly feeling was starting to fill up his heart. The air around them seemed to warm up slightly as a pink tinted shockwave seemed to propel itself outwards. Atlas remembered as hard as he could, causing the building power around them to explode outwards, banishing the ice and snow around them.
He could feel grass beneath his hooves as more and more area around them was cleared and they could hear pained whinnies from somewhere within the storm. As more and more memories flitted through Atlas’ inner eye, he suddenly remembered something incredibly important he had forgotten.
“No homo, though.”
“What?”
Three confused stares centered themselves on Atlas as everyone lost their focus. Whatever pseudo-spell they had been casting petered out leaving them with a few hundred feet of cleared area. No snow had remained, revealing houses and ground alike. They had successfully created a small spot of spring surrounded by winter.
“Whatever! This is our chance!” Amethyst reminded. “Run!”
The construct around them faded from existence and the group started booking it in their original direction. They most likely wouldn’t have much time before the Windigoes returned, so every inch counted. They barrelled through the streets of the Crystal Kingdom unchallenged, but soon enough they approached the border, the sudden change between spring and winter looking unnatural, an invisible shield separating the two.
“Stay close!” Atlas called, activating the full reserves of his magic, cleaving a path through the piled up snow.
Discord and Starswirl activated their usual spells as well, shielding them from the wind and the freezing temperatures. Without any care for pacing they tore through the streets, and draining their magic stores with abandon. Everypony knew if they didn’t make it out of the city before the Windigoes returned they’d be done for.
And there was no guarantee that they’d stop pursuing them when they left the city.
The buildings around them started to spread further apart, signalling that they were approaching their goal. Their hopes raised with their target in sight, the group redoubled their efforts. Even though their lungs were burning from the long distance they’d run to get to this point, they pushed on relentlessly.
“Incoming,” Amethyst called again, letting the hearts of everypony present fall like a stone.
Once again, the world was painted purple as Amethyst’s shield floated protectively over them. Atlas looked up to see another giant ball of snow hurtle towards them. He breathed a sigh of relief as he realised it would miss them by a good margin and continued his running. Just as predicted, the projectile missed them entirely. Unfortunately, it landed only a few feet in front of them, the resulting explosion of snow sending a vertical avalanche their way.
Atlas stopped his advance immediately, bracing against the incoming white death and conjuring up an angled shield to redirect the snow. Discord, Starswirl and Amethyst caught up to him, huddling behind the shield, the latter two joining their magic into the shield spell to make it bigger and stronger. It didn’t take long for the avalanche to hit their shield with full force, causing its casters to groan with effort. It became apparent that there was simply too much snow, so Amethyst once again conjured up constructs to box them in.
“We’re so fucked…” Atlas said, watching as the snow piled up around the walls, just barely stopping short of completely burying them.
“This certainly is a bad situation we’ve found ourselves in…” Starswirl said, looking slightly claustrophobic.
“Options?” Amethyst said, at the end of his wits.
“Can’t we just do the friendship thing again?” Discord asked.
“I seriously doubt they’d let us, but we can try…” Atlas said half-heartedly.
They once again started hugging in a completely heterosexual way and started recalling their friendship. Just as Atlas predicted, the Windigoes were wary of them now, proven by the two snow bombs landing close to them, shaking the ground and causing them to lose their footing as well as their focus. Amethyst had to extend the ceiling of his constructed box to avoid them being completely buried from the resulting masses of snow rolling over them.
“What else we got?” Amethyst asked, dejected.
Discord was just floating slightly above ground, a sad look on his face, while Atlas and Starswirl racked their brains for any ideas. Between the four of them, they had a vast array of spells available to them but in this situation all of them became useless. Atlas didn’t even consider using runes, since whatever they’d end up using would have to be mobile.
“I think nothing short of a teleport will save us now,” Starswirl said. “There’s just one problem…”
“What is it?” Amethyst asked, clinging on to their new plan.
“None of us has enough magic left for any significant group teleports,” Atlas explained with a monotone voice. “Teleporting more than one pony is magic extensive as is, but also making it long range? We’d barely make it a mile at most…”
Starswirl nodded gravely as an uncomfortable silence fell over the group.
“What if all of us support one caster?” Suggested Amethyst. “Would it be enough?”
Starswirl and Atlas exchanged a look, both thinking it to be a possibility. Atlas cast a simple spell from the school of life, which allowed him to roughly see how much magic everybody present had left in their respective pools. He was running the calculations in his head when another exploding snowball shook the earth they stood on, forcing Amethyst to expend more mana by extending their protection upwards once again. Taking into account the magic Amethyst had just spent, as well as how much he was using to keep his spell going Atlas came to a conclusion and shook his head.
“It would just take too much mana.”
“What about your runes? Can’t you use some to extract ambient magic and add it to your own?” Amethyst suggested further.
“Already thought of that, but the runes would take too much time to gather sufficient mana… Time we don’t have…” Atlas answered.
Once again, an uncomfortable silence fell over the group, Discord growing more anxious by the second. By now all of their lives depended on finding a solution to the conundrum they’d found themselves in, and while Discord was very smart for his age, he had to trust his guardians to find one. He felt useless right in this moment and cast nervous glances to the three ponies who were all deep in thought, not daring to disturb their focus by speaking up.
“What…” Amethyst slowly looked up from the ground. “What if you’d only need to teleport three of us?”
“I suppose it would be barely enough… why?” Atlas asked, confused at first before he realised Amethysts intentions. “No! Absolutely not, we’re not leaving anyone behind!”
Starswirl looked on in stunned silence as he too came to the same conclusion as Atlas while Discord bore a face of confusion, not following what was going on.
“But it’s our only chance!” Amethyst rebuked. “Three out of four seems like a pretty good deal to me, if the alternative is us all biting the dust!”
“You know perfectly well that I can’t die!” Atlas said heatedly. “And I’m pretty sure Discord can’t just be killed either!”
While Discord and Amethyst were in on this secret by now, Starswirl had never heard of this. “Wait, what?”
“So what, the two of you being icicles down here for all of eternity will help nobody and will take out one more pony than my plan!” Amethyst rebuked, ignoring Starswirl completely.
“No, seriously, can we go back to the part where Atlas can’t die?”
“I’ve lost a close friend once already due to a mistake I made! I’m not going to lose another because I wasn’t strong enough!” Atlas shouted back.
Amethyst recoiled slightly, shock apparent in his eyes. “Then how do you think I’d feel about leaving you and Discord behind? You’re not the only one who was hurt by Belle’s death...” He said in a hurt tone.
Atlas was already halfway to a heated reply when Amethyst’s words sank in. Doing his best impression of a fish, Atlas froze, not knowing what he was supposed to say to that.
“Please, if you blame Belle’s death on us agitating that dragon, then I’m just as responsible as you are,” Amethyst said sadly. “Besides, I’m a guard, a decorated member of Teras even! I’m supposed to sacrifice my life to rescue civilians. And since you completed your service two years ago, you count as a civilian as well, so don’t even try that argument.”
Starswirl looked on between the both of them, he had a lot of questions but felt it was a bad moment to ask them right now. Instead he shot Discord a questioning look, who just shrugged at him.
“But if you supply your mana and stay behind… There’s no way you’ll make it…” Atlas said with watering eyes.
“I’m well aware,” Amethyst said, his eyes hardening, resolve visible on his face. “But at least I’d know that my death had a meaning. The most honorable death a guard could wish for.”
Atlas stared directly into Amethyst’s eyes, who met his searching gaze with an unwaverable glare of his own. Desperately, Atlas tried to think of a counter-argument or find some weakness by looking deep into Amethyst’s purple eyes. After a while, Atlas let out a defeated sigh.
“If… If that’s what you truly wish for… Then as one of my closest friends I’ll honor it.” Atlas said, his sight starting to blur as they started to water, although he did his best to not outright start crying in an attempt to respect Amethyst’s wish.
Starswirl and Discord were all but forgotten, both of them not daring to disturb the moment, although both of them looked like they wanted to protest. Seeing the resolution on Amethyst’s face and the sad defeat on Atlas’s made them hold back their words though. Atlas used his fetlock to wipe at his eyes, drawing a deep, chilling breath into his lungs.
“Then I will promise here and now, that I will carry your name and memory to the end of all eternity,” Atlas stated, standing straight. “I shall never forget all that you’ve done for us and always remember you as a hero… and a dear friend.”
Another explosion rocked their shelter, being largely ignored by everyone present as Atlas started charging a teleportation spell into his horn. Starswirl took this as his cue and started to supply as much mana as he could spare into Atlas’ spell. Discord, not yet able to share his mana pool due to their vast difference simply decided to settle on Atlas’ back and give him a supporting hug to his neck, letting him now that he was there.
The purple light around them disappeared as Amethyst cancelled the constructs protecting them. Since the snow was tightly pushed against it until just before, a solid tunnel remained, even without the support of Amethyst’s magic. The lack of a closed roof meant that the cold wind could reach them once again, sending cold shivers down everyone's spine.
“That’s all I could ever ask for,” Amethyst said, lighting up his horn as well with a smile on his face. “Be sure to say hi to Crimson and Blue Current for me and give Green Lantern a hug, will ya?”
Atlas nodded solemnly as he felt Amethyst’s mana being poured into the spell. He didn’t really care about the exact calculations and only focusing on sending them as far away as possible with the provided mana. Soon enough the mana stream from Starswirl came to an end, the blue unicorn panting slightly as he apparently had expended most of his mana pool. The influx of energy from Amethyst ended a few seconds after, causing Atlas to adopt a hopeless frown.
“It’s not enough...” Atlas said shocked, his voice barely a whisper.
Atlas had calculated the minimal safe distance to teleport an adult and a child, and the mana currently charged into his horn was not enough by a significant margin. At this rate, even if they teleported, the Windigoes would be upon them in a matter of minutes.
“Then, take all of it,” Amethyst said, causing Atlas to snap his head towards him, a smiling face meeting his surprised gaze. “I won’t need it anymore after this.”
Under considerable strain Amethyst powered up his horn once again, the stream connecting them once again established. At first it was only a miniscule amount that seemed to come over the connection, before Atlas felt like he was being hit by a truck made of pure energy. The otherwise invisible stream of mana suddenly became visible, jumping in a high arc between their horns bathing everybody present in a purple light.
As Atlas was wondering where Amethyst had hidden such vast reserves of mana and why he didn’t use them before, he felt his body tingling all over from having so much mana at his disposal. His eyes started to shine a bright purple, a clear sign of an immense amount of mana being discharged by a unicorn, even though they usually shone a bright white color.
Atlas was riding on a high, feeling like he could do pretty much everything he wanted right now. While the amount still wasn’t enough to teleport all four of them, he could teleport three to a safe distance and then some! Just as he was thinking this he could already feel some of the excess mana being flushed out of his pathways, since it was just too much for him to hold, so he hurriedly activated the spell, not wanting to waste Amethyst’s sacrifice.
In the last moment between Atlas casting his spell and them actually disappearing, Atlas shot a last look towards Amethyst wanting to thank him.
When he did, he found Amethyst barely being able to stand, his eyes appearing dull and his fur seemed to have lost it’s vibrant color. Just before the signature white flash of light blinded him, Amethyst seemed to collapse like his strings were cut by some invisible puppet master, a small smile still plastered on his face.
An instant later, Atlas, Discord and Starswirl were assaulted by the harsh cold winds of the winter tundra they found themselves in. Since he still had mana to spare, Discord immediately threw up another protective barrier around them. Facing the foot of an imposing mountain, Atlas spun around trying to see the Crystal Kingdom through the considerably less violent snow storm, yet all that greeted him was a vast expanse of white in the direction the Lonely Mountain was supposed to be.
Atlas stared towards where he believed the kingdom to be, the image of Amethyst collapsing refusing to leave his head. He didn’t know how long he spent trying to catch a glimpse of the elusive city but eventually he felt a soft tap on his shoulder. Turning his head, he found a worried looking Starswirl, as well as Discord floating closely behind him.
“We’ll have to find shelter soon… It’s getting dark.” Starswirl said solemnly.
“Yeah… you’re right,” Atlas replied in a monotone voice, starting to walk towards the mountain with his head hanging low with only the hope of finding a cave and some solace keeping him going.
Starswirl and Discord simply followed the gray unicorn, deciding to give Atlas some time to process everything. Besides, neither of them really felt like talking, since they too, just lost a friend.
As the scene of Amethyst collapsing played in Atlas’ mind over and over again, he could feel the first tears starting to roll down his face, before freezing halfway down his cheek.
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Scholar Arc
Year 32, Month 8, Day 20
Atlas and his friends scaled yet another mountain on their journey towards Equestria. The path was thin and seemed unstable at some points, forcing them to walk in single-file. At least they’d left the Windigoes domain behind and only had to deal with the regular cold and snow that came with being on a mountain. After spending almost a full year in the freezing temperatures Windigoes brought with them, this almost felt like spring to the group.
They had now been trekking over mountains and through valleys for a little over two weeks, making good time despite the rough terrain. Their travels were spent mostly in silence, since they more or less exhausted the topics that didn’t lead back to what happened to Amethyst.
Atlas still felt very conflicted about Amethyst's sacrifice, and even though he knew that it was what Amethyst wanted, that last view of him falling over like a sack of potatoes haunted his thoughts at day and his dreams at night. Amethyst had smiled in his last moments, but all Atlas could think of when he thought back to it was how lifeless he looked. Lacking his usual coloration, coupled with those dull and dead eyes just seemed unnatural and sent shivers down Atlas’ spine.
They rounded a small bend on their path, sending a few small rocks tumbling over the edge and into the abyss below them, before being greeted by the sight of yet another mountain that waited to be scaled.
Probably the weirdest thing to come out of all of this was the fact that Atlas felt that his mana pool had grown significantly. He had shared his findings with Starswirl and they came to the conclusion that the immense amount of magic that was stored inside of Atlas, even if only for a moment, had figuratively stretched out and expanded his pool. Whether this was a permanent or a temporary change remained to be seen.
What he didn’t mention to Starswirl was that after the fact, Atlas had gained the sixth and last Affinity of Magic. While at first it was just a feeling of something having changed inside of him, a secretly conducted test at night had soon confirmed his suspicion. For Atlas, there was no pride in the newly acquired affinity. It felt wrong to have gained something from the death of a friend.
And for some reason, he felt like the bigger mana pool and the final affinity was not all that had changed.
Atlas had had a lot to think about recently, and as a result had grown somewhat introverted and silent during their travels. He could tell that Starswirl had a lot of questions he wanted to ask, and Atlas knew that he’d eventually have to face them, although it felt too early to reveal the full truth about himself just yet.
So they spent yet even more hours of silently wandering up the mountain they were currently on. None of them really knew how much further they had to go still, but every time they crested the ridge of a new mountain they hoped it would be the last. The bleak gray and white landscape was beginning to drive them crazy, as they all longed to see the supposed fertile valleys of their new homeland.
Hope once again flaring up, they approached what seemed to be the highest point of the path they were taking, which had started to widen considerably, allowing them to walk next to each other. The sun was already going down, so this would probably be as far as they would get today before having to make camp.
Cresting the top, their eyes were momentarily blinded by the sun going down on the horizon, bathing the world before them in gentle orange hues.
Atlas felt his breath hitch at the sight that greeted him, Starswirl and Discord experiencing much the same reaction. Discord stopped floating and sat down on Atlas’ back, using his mismatched hands as support.
Before them, was their new home. Equestria. Lush forests seemed to sprawl in all directions, only disturbed by the occasional mountain or lake. Rivers flowed freely towards the open ocean which dominated the far flung horizon. And amidst all the beauty, stood one mountain that towered over all the others, reminding everybody present of the home they left behind.
Atlas immediately recognised it as the mountain where Canterlot would be built, and for the first time in weeks, a smile graced his lips.
“Is… is this it?” Discord asked unsurely from Atlas’ back.
“Yes, Discord,” Atlas replied. “This is Equestria.”
“Our new home.”
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He will not be forgotten. What he did for them won't be forgotten... I was... I never expected that we'd be don't one more. Oddly enough, now I'm wondering if reincarnation is a think in this setting. It more or less a closed universe, after all. A magical simulated reality. In any case... This is one of the few times I've seen a story touch on being in the full Windigo attack. And it was pretty daunting. (I was gonna say chilling, but then I realized the pun...)
How adorable Kid (Teen) Discord looks is my saving point though. And I can imagine how confused Starswirl must feel from that major slip/drop of information about Atlas and Discord.
I await the next book with baited breath, but you already knew that.
Well I cried. 10/10
This...
This was...
Absolutely fantastic! Can't wait for Divine Indifference
I joined the update list a while ago and this was amazing to read. But yes, awesome!
I know Amethyst's death was necessary, but... He was there since Atlas enrolled in the school! An old friend...
Well, I definitely want to see more of Discord growing up and the beginnings of Equestria, so write on!
Allons-y!
I await with baited breath for the sequel.
Damn son... thats some pretty heavy stuff...
Just a quick question my I read what u have done so far if so you can email me the password if not then I understand
My prayers have been answered! Bless your kind soul, you beautiful fucking awesome bastard!! You my friend just made my day!!!! praise the great NavelColt!!! Hallelujah! Can't twait for more. Don't keep us your loyal readers waiting now you here me
That discord is causing diabetes
Sad to see Amethyst go, especially before they got to see their new home.
Amethyst will never get to see all that he has fought for.
Also, that is a great depiction of pre-civilization equestria! Nava you are too good!
Edit: you also spelled "Navanastra" wrong in the a/n.
Dude you left off the password
Yes! Equestria!
And Amethyst... that was sad. But I understand.
Oh, and I also noticed a bunch of small grammatical errors near the beginning, but there were too many of them, and I'm a bit lazy at 9:00 at night.
Still, I am one of those weirdos that actually enjoys editing, so if you need anyone for Divine Indifference, just PM me. (I won't be offended if you say no.)
One more thing: for the Divine Universe group, you mentioned stories that we could make in the same general universe. Does this also include stories that use the same sort of premise because yougettotheideafirstdammit?
Just checking.
I... I demand you make the rest of Atlas friends immortal! That will solve ALL the problems.
Frankly I can see present day atlas chewing his "son" discord out
You keep killing them!
Although Amethyst was kind of inevitable...
I don't understand why you bothered introducing Atlas's group of friends you made such a big deal out of it like they were to be the first mane 6 then proceed to kill half of them off if they are were all going to die with barely any plot development for them why bother in the first place. Not including Belle, Which btw what happened to her being a princess or something and being a assassination target? Feels like you just completely switched directions in the story.
Inb4 Amethyst survives to become Sombra
8172193 The characters did have development, earlier in the story. The group of friends, although important, are not the main focus, Atlas is.
The fandom were the people who speculated the group being the early mane six, nothing of the sort was mentioned by Orthoros. Another point I would like to state is that the characters would have died anyway, they were important, but not important enough to be made immortals or something of the like.
The last point I have is if a reflection of your question; if characters in any story are inevitably going to die, plot relevant or not, why bother introducing them? Because they are important to the plot. I would agree that apart from Belle many characters are not fully developed, but the reason for that is that they are no longer plot relevant.
8171673 My eyes watered. Not quite tears. Belle got a sobbing mess though.
8171661 After reading of belle's death and attitude Pinkie is the reincarnation. (Just think) Pink? *Check* Likes to laugh? *Check*
8172193
8172065 Mane 6 reincarnations?
8172277 I beg to differ. (look above)
love it
Well. That's one leg down. Now for another few thousand years.
…that image looks like it's drawn from the south facing north, cute Discord aside. Aren't they heading south?
8171993 You mean the premise of a titans soul inhabiting a human, which leads to salty gods imprisoning said human in pastel colored pony world? Sure, go ahead?
8172363 Considering that the sun is going down and I generally use the same cardinal directions as RL, I'd say that's east facing west. Not sure if I ever mentioned where Equestria is exactly in relation to where they started, but you should just assume that it's a heavily stylized pic and not take it too seriously.
8171788 It's actually the story approvers that are keeping you from reading the new one. We're all at their mercy :D
Well this was an interesting chapter. I was a shame that Amethyst had to apparently die, but I suppose that it was for the best of Atlas because he would always remember him in his prime, like Belle and not wither away, sense most of the people he first has know well over fifty by now. Still, with people finally settling down again, people will probably now be start to ask questions about how come Atlas still has his baby face despite his age. It is interesting to see Discord being helpful at the moment.
Othoros, thou magnificent person........gg....
Does Starswirl remind you of anyone?
And thus, tnis story is finished. ONWARD, YOU MAGNIFICENT BASTARDS!!!
Atlas had gained the sixth and last Affinity of Magic. I know the first three, but what about the other two? Can I have a chapter number/how he got them?
8173591 not sure about the number, but the chapters are all named after an element of harmony(f.e. Honesty). Except chapter 63, where he gets magic.
8173860 and that's what happens when your gDocs and Fimfics don't match because you changed shit around... thanks for pointing it out, it's back to over a thousand years again.
Dat Starswirl booty tho.
I have to say this was a fantastic story!
itude meter! You better believe that i'll be reading the sequel! 
It had everything that a good story should, and more! I don't think that i have to say much more than: 10/10 on the
8172444
I didn't even think of the sun, I was going by landmark (mainly the Canterhorn being attached to the right coast)
Congratulations on finishing your story.
I have twenty chapters to read through, but I'm sure it will be well worth the wait.
Then, in a moment of silliness, I shall snare all your kitchen wisdom and secrets so you may not profit from it. I will first hide the fact my ideas are a pale knock off with maddening directions like telling the roundsmen to make a biscuits using 1/3 of a teaspoon of baking powder, when I know very well no one has a 1/3 teaspoon measure. Then, I shall alter every mention of two cups as a pint (or visa versa). Naturally, I use the imperial system of measurement. But, since I am attempting to disguise a forgery (or it's cooking equivalent) I will use both metric and a reversed grading systems. Still, should you catch me, I will suggest you do not know the difference between a crepe and a pancake- Becasue, everyone knows the French chef's really are that finicky, and who they are going to believe will be based entirely on directions.
rip Asmathaps :(
8176464 Sorry, someone already beat you to correcting me.
A kingdom without Frozen? Sign me up!
sills
Hades'
Saw that this was finished so I went and powered through it in two days.
One of the best fics I've read in a long while.
8181135 aww, thanks! Glad it's good enough to binge :D
Well, this was one hell of a wild ride. After reading the last quarter of the story I feel like the sad or tragedy tags should be on this. That was some depressing shit.
Good job man, you made it. I'm interested in knowing how Amethyst will be remembered, but for now, *slow clap* congratulations.
This was pretty great.
I kind of hope he runs into Vibrant in the sequel. She was his first pony friend, and hasn't seen her in over 30 years now.
Actually, I don't think he has really made much of a note of his friends aging. Surely after 30+ years of knowing Crimson, he has to appear a bit older? How long before others remark on his youthfulness? Of course, he might be able to write that off to unicorns (esp. heavy duty mages) just living longer, and aging more slowly. That hasn't been mentioned in this story as being true, but it easily could be.
Hope the sequel doesn't take over a year to be written.
I never call anything cute but that discord isn't cute in the picture
8198163 your comment leads me to believe that, yes, you've somehow missed affinity four and five entering the fray. Also I'm not sure I get that second paragraph...
8198836 ah, well, Adventure and Comedy tend to clash with each other sometimes... Don't worry, it won't happen again... or will it?
8216726
Ah, right.
Headcanon: Atlas turns into the Tree of Harmony
1,000th Like!
1k likes for an awesome story!
Booyah!
This was great! Definitely Faving it.