Family Lesson
"You did what?" Shining Armor shouted.
"Captain!" Luna replied as a warning that it wasn't a proper tone to address a princess.
"It's alright Luna," Celestia said while interposing herself between the two ponies.
"You let my little sister teleport away to face those... those dangerous criminals!" He screamed with wide eyes. He was close to a nervous breakdown, first his parents went missing in what appeared to be a magic battle against terrorist unicorns and now his sister ran away after them.
"Captain!" Luna shouted back.
Celestia rolled her eyes. "Luna, please step back. We are in this room so the captain can speak his mind." Celestia wasn't too keen on the protocols coming with her status of royalty. She understood the need for it and accepted its burden, but never cared much for it. Ponies speaking their mind openly, once in a while, were refreshing. In another epoch, things were stricter and if asked, she would admit to have helped loosening them over the centuries.
"But... she... she's..." the captain babbled.
"One of the most powerful unicorn in Equestrian history," Celestia finished for him with a nod.
"She's my little sister!" he pleaded. What the Princess said just hit him. "What did you just say?"
Luna growled at the lack of respect the captain was displaying. Celestia rolled her eyes at the unwanted tension. "You heard me right, Shining. After me and Luna, she is currently, without doubt, the unicorn with the biggest magic reserve and the talent to use it. In time, and with a lot of training, I have no doubt she will come to rival us." Seeing the captain's display of skepticism, Celestia sighed and sat down. "I guess some explanations are in order. The Elements of Harmony don't grant any special power and they are not magic batteries," she said while slowly shaking her head. It was the first time in centuries that she had to explain how some of the mysticism behind the legend of the elements was unfunded. "They are a conduit for those using them. They merge and shape the magic coming from their users. If the bearers don't have that magic in the first place, the elements are as good as six weird shaped rocks… or jewelries"
"I... huh..." the captain replied, more confused than ever. The discussion had taken a turn he wasn't expecting and he had a hard time to see where the princess was going with it.
"The bearer of the element of magic has a special role in this; to provide most of the raw arcane power. The other magic streams are there to shape the spell into something that brings harmony. If the bearer of the element of magic is weak, the spell won't be any stronger," she explained while shooting a look at her sister, happy that the princess of the night was once again calm. The fact that her own student, Azure, followed Twilight in this adventure explained why Luna was restless. Celestia didn't want to think what could happen to the fragile mental stability of her sister if something was to happen to her first real close friend in ages. However, she was surprised that Luna didn't rush after Twilight and Azure.
Maybe she's starting to act her age?
"It's like a stream of water," Luna added. "Twilight is a river and..." Both Celestia and Shining Armor stared at the princess of the night which looked away and pouted. "Whatever."
Not a chance.
"I understand that she grew up but..." Shining Armor started while bringing his sight back to Celestia.
"Your brain does, but your heart doesn't. She is still, to you, the little sister that needs protection from the world." Shining frowned at Celestia's words. "Did she ever tell you what happened at her entrance exam to my school?"
The captain slowly nodded. "Yes, but somehow I feel there is more to it, right?"
Celestia smiled as she remembered that day. "It is a well-known secret that the school requests something impossible from potential students. The goal is to see how the potential students would react while facing impossible odds and how imaginative they get. Sadly, from that point of view, Twilight would have failed. But it is only the first test among others. Twilight never took the other tests; the teachers didn't want her to. I wonder why." She chuckled. "They sometime used dragon eggs because they are highly resistant to magic. Dragons in general are very hard to handle with magic, but their eggs tend to nullify or reflect it. They are not immune to it, nothing is, but to force a dragon to hatch by sheer brute force? It should be out of reach of any foals or most unicorns for that matter." She shook her head. "I doubt any of the teachers present that day could have hatched Spike."
Shining's eyes were wide in amazement as the princess what giving her own point of view on those events. “Where… Where those eggs come from?”
“As you might have noticed, dragons aren’t a really peaceful species. Their political structure is in constant flux from continuous conflicts. Eggs are very valuable as they spell the future of a flock. While not really fragile, they take decades to hatch. They are often stolen or used as bargaining chips between rival flights and alliances are sealed with them. A weak group can buy protection from a stronger one with their eggs.” Seeing the look of disgust on the captain’s face, she continued. “Don’t take it like that. For them, there is nothing more valuable than a dragon egg. The worst crime you could perpetrate is to destroy an egg. A dragon or any creature for that matter that would destroy one is marked as a monster to be killed on sight. As for how we got some… It happened a few times that a flock in danger of extermination would send some eggs to be safeguarded here. In some other cases, we managed to seal truces with powerful flocks in exchange for protecting their eggs.”
“And Spike?”
“Dragons have a very large sense of family. A hatchling is taken the greatest care, no matter where his egg came from. Since a dragon takes centuries to mature, no chance is taken when it comes to the young’s protection. As for Spike, I’m afraid I don’t know. Considering the lack of information, I would guess his egg came from a flock that was exterminated.”
“That’s… sad,” Shining said while looking away.
Celestia nodded back. “I agree, but I know he got the best with Twilight. I’m sure you agree that discretion is important in this matter.”
He nodded.
"Now back to the exam… What was probably missing from what you heard is how your parents and the teachers were unable to remove the spells cast on them. Or how that tower became a very hazardous place as raw magic ran in its frame. We actually had to take it down as it became structurally unsafe. The panel of teachers was not weak by any measure and yet..." Celestia stopped as she remembered the very awkward meeting she had with the teachers the day after the exam. "They were not so fond of the idea of teaching a filly that could render them powerless so easily. They were very happy that I was taking her as my personal student so they wouldn't have to do the practical classes with her."
The captain actually had to put a lot of effort to prevent his jaw from dropping.
"That day, at the exam, I placed a powerful seal on her magic reserve. It was the easiest and safest way to stop her magic from running amok. Since that day, she was only able to use a small fraction of her real potential. It is also why, since I took her as student, I've taught her not only spells, but mostly control techniques." Celestia smiled. "Of course, it was up to the moment she came in contact with the elements. Since then, the seal has been weakening. In a few months, maybe a year, it will be all gone. It also depends of how often she will use the elements as they tend to push a pony to her limits."
"How," the captain started unsure. "How powerful are you talking about?"
"You remember when you placed that force field around Canterlot? If Twilight was in full control her power, I think she could create one that would cover both Ponyville and Canterlot at the same time," Celestia explained.
"Really... she's..." Something ticked in Shining's mind. "Did... Did I become captain of the guards so you could keep me close... To use me as a leverage if Twilight went rogue? Did I get promoted... because... because..." His sight drifted down.
Any trace of happiness left Celestia's face. "Honestly, I did push the recruitment for you to get admitted faster. The first few years, I was really worried of what could happen with Twilight. Yes, I did see you as a safeguard in case the worst was to happen. However, I soon realized that she is not the kind of pony to hurt another. She doesn't care for power, and if she has a vice, it's her thirst for knowledge." A weak smile showed up on her face. "As for your promotion, you earned that on your own. I might command the army, but not its internal structure or promotion system."
Feeling his honor was safe, Shining came back to the topic of her sister. "But... she could be killed," he said softly.
Celestia took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "Do you think I don’t know that? In my life, I've seen so many ponies killed before their times. However, it's even worse if you try to protect them from everything. How do you think your parents took it when you joined the army?"
"I... they probably..." Shining started but was unable to finish. He wasn't stupid, the idea crossed his mind a few time in the last years, but not at first, when he joined or trained. Back then he was so focused on his passion, he didn't give a thought about what his parents could feel. How did Twilight feel when he left for the training camp for recruits? Probably she felt as bad as he was at that moment. Leaving like that... Was he a reason she stayed away from making new friend? He grounded his teeth in discomfort.
"Even in peace, the army is hardly a safe job; help in case of natural disaster, border protection or simply defending this country from the unknown. Compared to other jobs, soldier is still one with the highest death rate. The changelings’ invasion could have ended far worse than in did," she explained. "Your parents knew if they were to stop you, you would never reach your potential or your dreams. Growing is painful and dangerous, and for some pony, it is more than others." She smiled in compassion. "You and your sister are on a path to have a particularly bumpy growth."
"So we do nothing?" he asked, disappointed how the discussion turned out.
Celestia shook her head. "Of course not! We stay ready in case Twilight needs help. She is not stupid, if she needs it, she will find a way to call for us. Also, an assassin managed to gain entrance to the castle. If he got help, there's a traitor among us. If not, the security measures would require a major overhaul."
He sighed in despair. "Being as old as you are, does it get any easier?"
Luna's mane and tail stiffened at the lack of respect. She would have to talk to Celestia about the captain of her guards. Back then, they sent ponies to jail for less than that. Celestia put a hoof in front of her mouth to keep from chuckling at her sister's reaction. She had accepted her special age a long time ago, and couldn't care less. From her point of view, every pony was very young, her sister included.
After a moment, Celestia's eyes drifted out of focus as she thought about the question. "No captain, it doesn't get easier by any means. The more powerful or older you become, the harder it gets."
The captain left the room, not fully reassured, but at least he had a specific task ahead of him. When the door closed behind him, Celestia turn toward her sister and waited for her to speak first.
“The captain was completely out of line!” she finally said.
A grin showed up on Celestia’s face. “I warned you things were different now.”
Luna didn’t look convinced. “In the three years since our release from the Moon, we never saw any pony act like this to us.”
Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Going back to the royal ‘we’?”
Luna sat down. “Sorry.”
“I’m sure you would agree that we made some pretty big mistakes a long time ago. Like wars that shouldn’t have been, among other things.”
Luna looked away and nodded.
“Those mistakes could have been avoided,” she let out plainly. Luna stared at her sister. “If a pony trusts you enough to tell you his or her concerns, you can get an insight in things that would be impossible otherwise due to our positions.”
“Ponies trusted us back then too,” Luna replied.
“They respected us. Trust is something that take years to build and requires that they understand that we aren’t better than them,” Celestia explained calmly.
“But we…”
“Are no better than them,” Celestia finished. “Older… More powerful… But not better when it comes to things that really matters.”
“I don’t understand.”
Celestia laughed. “You will when you get older.”
Luna pouted, making her sister laugh even more. “Do you really think Twilight Sparkle could become that powerful?”
Celestia stood up and walked to the door. “Do you remember how hard it was to seal Discord?” She asked without looking back.
“Of course! It was a long fight and we were exhausted for weeks after.”
“One day, you should ask Twilight how hard she felt it was to reseal him once she got rid of his mind control,” she said while leaving a puzzled Luna alone in the conference room.
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Another big thanks to Shutaro for the correction.
'Tis getting good.
This story is getting SWEETer than Pinkie's cupcakes.
Keep up the awesome work. It's amazing.
I could praise you and your story but meh... most of it was already said before soooo....
Twilight is really powerful here, talk about op, but well, it does make sense i quess.
Moar Azure otherwise good chapter :D
i suddenly have the urge to head butt a group of very evil unicorns... despite the very apparent risk to my brain -.-
A relatively good story. Unfortunately, the whole premise rides on having Princess Celestia carrying the Idiot Ball for close to a thousand years. She would have to be on a diet of loco weed to give a bunch of treasonous unicorns power over her government---- not just power over her government but nigh absolute power as an invisible conspiracy!
1497562 I'm not... at least that's not my feeling, or what my goal was. Only expanding on what was said in that episode. It was a theatrical play after all, nopony ever said it was a 1:1 representation of reality. The total absence of Celestia/Luna from that "historical" play was a bit weird for me. Was it before or after Discord?
1497616 Well, in her place, you would have continued a war that would end up with costing her her life?
1497636
As opposed to giving power over her government to those already plotting to kill her? Neville Chamberlain may have been stupid in dealing with Nazi Germany, but he wasn't stupid enough to give Hitler a position in his cabinet in exchange for a promise of peace!
1497838 She didn't give them power, at least not directly. Are you saying a
peopleponies elected council is similar to granting direct power to someone? You know, when I see the US politic right now, it feels the same. It's "elected" and comes with lot of good intention. But...>1497852
Celestia said, in your story, that they wanted an elected council that they could control from the shadows. Celestia also said that she knew that this was what they were after.... that in substance she knew that the elected officials would not represent the will of the populace, but of the shadow council--- and she went ahead with it anyway.
If this is not what you intended for your story to suggest, then your story is in desperate need of some drastic revision.
1497925 Because she isn't stupid, and they were already waging a war and there was casualties. Before that, Celestia had no real way of communication with the population and from that point of view, it was only fuel to the terrorists engine. She wanted an elected council, knowing fully that the "war" would now be waged by politicians and words. Only a fool would think that democracy could work out of the box without any kind of supervision.
You have to remember that before any country is formed, the "rebels" are terrorists to the government in control, US Patriots included. Automatically assuming that a "terrorists" who has political views that are not represented fairly is a monster that cannot be negotiated with is a very reductive vision.
I'm pretty sure the US founding fathers knew very well that while being "elected", anyone can be influenced. Like the US president... He represent the will of the populace, otherwise he won't be re-elected, but up to some point. Rotation of power is crucial in any political system, as it prevents influence and stagnation from taking deeper roots. Which is now a real problem with the US, as all political parties are getting old and corrupted. Take any party, give it enough time and power, and it will become corrupted.
You may point out that currently, the "terrorists" in that story have no real ground as they are technically represented in the government... Yes, you may.
You may want to take a look at pluralisation, seeing as how often that (at least in my opinion) seems to be a problem. Maybe get a prereader (or one more?) As for the story itself: I like it, I can't say why exactly, I just do.
1498418 Happy to say that I had one for the last 3 chapters.
But I wouldn't look too deep in anything before.
1503413 I so did not see this coming.
Yep, that reaction would be priceless. I'd love to see it.
Great story, just read both stories. Some minor possesive issues (mare's and the like) being in the wrong form (should've been mares'), but all in all, a very good read. Have a pair of faves and thumbs (one for each story).
1497356 Nutting a unicorn can't be a good idea, I fractured my skull when I nutted a kid who was picking fights with me. Twas a great day. Shame I didn't break his nose. But anyway, picture nutting a unicorn, then remember what makes them different from the other Pony races
1570175 dont worry i am aware (Also how good it feeds to headbutt a bullying ass!) ;D i haven't got much of a brain left to ruin so despite being extremely painful im sure i'll survive, or we could all just ask AJ to buck them!
Cap.
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I love the interactions with Shining Armor! He's cool.
I don’t know where the others come from but I know where Spike’s did.
Um...