S2 Ch 8: Artificial sun
“Oh wakey wakey eggs and bakey,” a voice said into Twilight’s ear. The mare groaned and slowly opened her eyes. Only to shriek when she realized it was DISCORD whispering to her. Worse, he had turned into her pillow. She flailed and then rolled out of the bed, hitting the ground with an oof.
“O-ow. Was that REALLY necessary?” she snapped at the spirit, who reformed into his true form a moment later.
“Can you two keep it down, I’m trying to sleep,” Spike muttered. “And good morning, Discord...”
“Yes yes. All very exciting. But do you know what today is?” he asked with a big, happy grin.
“… Another day in paradise?” Twilight asked, shaking her head and slowly trotting towards her mirror. She picked up her brush and started working on her mane. To her annoyance, Discord’s face appeared on the back of the brush.
“Nope. Today is another day of fun and excitement!” he said gleefully.
Twilight sighed, then blinked a few times. She put the brush down. “Discord? What are you up to? You didn’t just come here to annoy me and torment Nightmare Moon, did you?”
“Well, of course I did. Why else would I be here? I--”
“Perfect! If you have no other pressing affairs, I need to ask you a favor.”
“… A favor? Of me?” he asked, disappearing and reappearing as Spike sized, bouncing on her pillow a few times. “I am touched, truly. Whatever could I do for you, oh glorious Princess of Books?” he asked in a mocking tone, a small scepter of gold, with her face on the end, appearing in his hand.
“… What? PLEASE don’t call me that. Ever. The last thing I need is Nightmare Moon hearing that and thinking I’m planning some… Coup or something,” she said with a shake of her head.
“Fine, fine,” Discord said with a laugh, tossing the scepter away. “You did need something though, yes? So what is it you wish of me, the glorious ruler of all things chaotic?”
“Your life story.”
Discord stared at her for a few moments. He then sighed, before shaking his head. “Truly? The greatest powers of all Equestria at your disposal. Chaos incarnate itself, at your beck and call. Magics beyond anything you ever thought possible… And you want my story? That’s it?”
“Of course,” Twilight said with a nod. “I’ve already started Tirek’s. If I had yours, it could help--”
“Foster good will and help all the cute little squeaky ponies be oh so not afraid of the big, scary Discord!” the spirit said in a mocking sing song voice. He shook his head. “How have you managed to be even more annoying without a horn?”
“What?”
“Very well. Shall we--” Discord froze, his entire body going still.
Low, haunting, icy cold laughter filled the room. Slowly, the door opened and Nightmare Moon stood in the frame, her horn glowing. “We admit, Discord. You are quite… slippery. But we have been waiting for this moment,” the alicorn said with a wicked grin, her grin growing, revealing her fangs. “The moment when we can finally get our hooves on you. Even you are struggling in the grip of this spell, aren’t you?”
Twilight stared at him. “Your… your highness? What happened to him? What did you do?”
The ruler glanced to Twilight and laughed. “Why, we have merely applied a binding spell to him. Holding him captive, bound to our will. Our power. Entrapped… oh. Do not worry. He is very aware of what is going on around him. But he cannot move, cannot speak, cannot cast any of his foul magics.”
The earth pony nodded. “And… what… will you do to him?”
“Is it not obvious? We will take all of his magic for ourselves. We will bind him and trap him, and use his magic to--”
“Guhhhh!” Discord said, his entire body twitching, before he popped like a balloon. The spirit of chaos appeared in a nearby portrait, shaking his head. “You’ve gotten better, your highness. You were oh so close. Alas, there’s no prize for second place.”
“Discord!” Nightmare Moon yelled. She turned to the spirit, her horn glowing with a dark purple light. However, the spirit was already gone. She let out a growl. “Next time you show your face around here, you’re ours. Do you hear us? WE WILL TEAR YOU APART!” she yelled, stomping a hoof. “WE WILL MAKE YOU BEG FOR MERCY! WE WILL--” A loud crash filled the room when the window shattered from the voice, making the alicorn pause and stare. She then glanced back at Twilight.
The earth pony was in the corner of the room, sitting and holding Spike protectively to her chest. Both staring wide eyed at the ruler of the night. Finally, the mare coughed and turned. “We apologize for this disturbance. Please, continue on your matters.”
Twilight nodded, though she didn’t move from her corner until after the mare had left the room. Once the other mare was gone, she let out a sigh of relief and gently placed the dragon down. “How do you feel?”
“I have a massive headache,” Spike muttered. “Other than that, fine. I don’t think I need to sleep any more, though. Like, ever.”
“Me either,” Twilight whispered. She sighed and walked to the bed, sitting on it. “She’s… huh?” When she sat, she heard a light crunch. She reached under the blanket and pulled out a tie dyed letter. She stared at it, her mouth open while she read. “That...”
“Huh? What is it?” Spike asked.
“It’s a-- EEK!” She shrieked, tossing the letter away moments before it exploded in a puff of confetti, dousing the two of them in the colored pieces of paper. She gave a sigh. “A letter from Discord. He won’t be coming here any more, it seems. Though...”
“What?”
“He… mentioned Applejack got hurt, at the end. And that I should check on her. Then that the letter would explode. He’s kind of rude. But...”
“But?”
Twilight sighed. “This means I have to go and get permission to go back down to Ponyville. Come on, let’s go.” The earth pony took a long, slow breath. She could do this. Spike trailed along behind her while she walked.
“It’ll be fine,” he said with a smile. “She adores you. Also, she probably still feels a bit guilty over the whole… Discord thing.” He paused and shook his head. “Do you think Discord is telling the truth?”
“I don’t know. I hope not. But with him, there’s no way to know until I investigate myself. He might be lying just to screw with me, or he might be telling the truth and hoping I’ll ignore him and NOT check on my friend. Or any number of a thousand other things. That’s the problem with dealing with a spirit of chaos, he doesn’t have to have a reason for anything he does other than to annoy me. It’s like having a toddler with too much magic. But, well… hopefully Nightmare Moon will be okay with this. Even if she likes me a lot, it... still doesn’t make it any less nerve wracking when I speak with her. She’s a bit...” Twilight shook her head. “I used to take classes for magical chemistry, things were far less stressful and explosive there. And most of those components reacted to everything. Including air.”
“… Magical chemistry? Why would… wait. Let me guess. You have a minor in it?” he said with a low chuckle.
Twilight sighed. “Of course. It’s really fascinating. Chemistry is wonderful and has created so many different applications that help all of pony kind. But magical chemistry operates on a whole different--”
“Nope nope nope. Too early for a lecture. La la la la!” Spike cut her off.
The earth pony snickered at the dragon’s antics, giving him a fond smile. “Fine. Let’s talk about another topic. What would YOU like to talk about?”
“I don’t know,” he said with a shrug. “What do you think happened to Applejack?”
“I’m not sure. Whatever it was, it must have been recent or the other girls would have likely sent me a message. That, or very minor and Discord is just trying to get me riled up. Ugh. Probably the latter. Either way, I’m hopeful that--” She yelped and stumbled back when Nightmare Moon came storming down the hall, a crystal orb held in her magic. She paused and glanced down at the pair.
“Where are you two heading in such a hurry? Has Discord shown his deceitful face again?” she asked, baring her fangs.
“N-no,” Twilight said nervously, backing up a bit from the royal’s rage. The alicorn didn’t seem to notice, however. “I was actually looking for you.”
That, however, softened the ruler’s gaze. “Yes, bard?”
“We uhhh… I’d like permission to head down to Ponyville,” she said quickly, gulping nervously when the gaze on the Alicorn’s face only hardened.
“To Ponyville. And why is that?”
“I think one of my friends was hurt and I want to check on them. I received a letter. Err… If that’s not--”
Nightmare Moon sighed, before glancing down the hall. Finally, she nodded. “Yes. But you will go with an escort of a few of my guards. Is there any objections?”
Twilight shook her head quickly. “Nope! I shouldn’t be gone too long, and guards sound fine.”
“Perfect. We will dispatch them as soon as we have settled this matter with Discord. He thought he could escape… oh, but he was wrong.” The alicorn then continued on, heading up to Twilight’s room.
“… She looks… happy,” Spike mumbled. “Still, we can go, at least.”
Twilight nodded. “Exactly, and with just a small escort, it’ll be fine. We shouldn’t be there more than a few hours, so it’ll hardly be noticeable.”
------
Twilight tried to stop herself from face hoofing. Instead, she relented by staring up at the moon with a mix of annoyance and embarrassment. The ‘small escort’ was a borderline platoon. A dozen lunar guard, two of which were pulling the chariot. And two shades who were sitting at the back of the rather large vessel. She was fairly certain it was Nightmare Moon’s chariot, as it was far, far bigger than she herself needed. She could have housed all of her friends and still had space for a few board games.
Her only consolation was that it was night time, and therefore their darkened convoy was likely all but invisible in the night sky. However, when she came closer to Ponyville and, more importantly, Sweet Apple Acres, her heart skipped a beat.
A quarter of the fields had been wiped out. The remains of the trees still glowed a light red, the embers not fully out. Torches illuminated the area as ponies were working to salvage what they could. Still, the earth pony couldn’t help but stare in horror at the destruction. “Take me down, there,” she said softly. The ponies quickly diverted themselves, flying down to the ground and skidding to a stop.
In the air, at least, they hadn’t drawn much attention. But now that they landed? She couldn’t help but feel almost every eye was on her.
“Cutie mark crusaders diplomats!” an all too familiar voice called out.
Twilight glanced over and saw the three little fillies from the gala racing towards her. She quickly went over their names. Applebloom, Applejack’s little sister. And the other two… now that she thought about it, she didn’t know if she ever HAD gotten their names. She knew one of them was Rarity’s little sister, though. And it wasn’t hard to guess which one.
“Yer highness, we can… Twilight?” Applebloom said, skidding to a stop in front of the chariot. “What are yah doin’ here?”
“I heard Applejack got hurt, but… I hadn’t heard anything about this...” she whispered, looking around. “What… happened?”
Applebloom sighed, shaking her head. “Oh. Well… oh! Right! Ah ain’t introduced yah all! This here is Twilight Glow! Twilight, these here are mah best friends. Scootaloo an’ Sweetie Belle. Together, we’re the Cutie Mark Crusaders!”
The earth pony nodded, unable to stop a small smile from sprouting on her lips. “A pleasure to meet you three. I’ve heard a bit about your antics, I’m happy to finally meet you all.”
“Hey… so ummm… is it true that...” Scootaloo started, staring at her with nervous, yet excited, anticipation.
The earth pony sighed and felt her joy begin to crash. She readied herself to explain that no, she was NOT in fact evil for working for Nightmare Moon, nor was she planning to terrorize anypony, either.
“You thought Big Mac was a monster and locked him out of the house?”
Twilight froze, slowly her cheeks turned a bright scarlet. “I-I mean, technically that’s--”
“Ah told yah. Hidin’ like a filly. Yah shoulda seen how pale she gone an’ got. Yah’d think he was the boogie mare.”
The earth pony could hear her entourage snickering behind her, though she tried to tune it out. “Yes, yes. It was all quite humorous. Applebloom, the matter at hoof. What happened here?”
The filly gulped and nodded. “Yah best come with meh. You an’ Spike would be fine but... Errr...”
Twilight nodded and glanced towards her escort. “I hate to ask, but would you all be willing to help while we do this? I won’t be going any further than the house.”
One of the guards nodded and they scattered. Twilight let out a sigh of relief, unable to keep a small smile off her lips. All of them had to serve this new ruler. But in the end, they were all ponies and acted as such. Of course, with all the torch light she couldn’t see the shades, but she suspected they were still following her. She couldn’t deny that while the creatures were unsettling, they did make a useful and subtle entourage when needed. “Okay then. So, what happened?” she asked again. “And is Applejack okay?”
“Well… mostly. She’ll be fine, though,” Applebloom said with a shake of her head. “It was really cool, she was up on the stage durin’ it all.”
“The stage? What?”
“Yeah, she was right up there when all the fire works started,” Scootaloo said with a nod. “It was super cool! I still can’t believe she bucked it into the lake in one buck!”
“Eeyup, that’s mah big sister for yah. Those Flim Flam brothers ain’t gonna wanna show their faces around here for a loooong time,” Applebloom said with a laugh.
“Who?” Spike asked.
“Oh, buncha scammers,” the earth pony said with a roll of her eyes. “Good thing they didn’t come here a few weeks back. Probably woulda made the town hall even worse.”
Twilight sighed, shaking her head. “What happened to the town hall? Did it burn down, too? Or…?”
“Nah. Jus’ got a bit wrecked due to some issues we been havin’. Big sis was gonna try an’ get the money tah repair it by winnin’ at the Equestria Rodeo. Unfortunately, it gone an’ got itself canceled due tah all the stuff goin’ on with… well. Yah know. But a whole herd of them uhhh… were ponies came by. Took care of it. Made themselves mighty useful, real good of them. We even got to insert a window!” Applebloom said with a nod.
“Cutie mark crusaders construction workers!” the three fillies said in unison, giving hoof bumps, before sighing.
“Though none of us got our cutie marks for it,” Applebloom said, dejectedly.
“You’ll all get your cutie marks in time, don’t worry,” the earth pony said with a smile. “There’s no need to rush it.”
“Easy for yah tah say once yah got it,” the filly said, before stopping outside the house and shoving open the door. “Big sis!” she called out.
“What is it, sugar cube?” Applejack called back from another room.
“Twilight came on by with Spike! Mind if ah send ‘em in?”
There was an exasperated sigh. “Yeah, fine.”
Twilight glanced to Applebloom. “Ummm… why the…?”
“Oh, everypony been tryin’ tah come see ‘er since she gone an’ saved the town an’ all. After Pinkie’s visit, she tol’ us not tah let anypony in. She don’t like bein’ all fretted over,” she said with a light snicker. “Go on, have fun!” she said, before giving the earth pony a nudge.
Twilight nodded and stepped into the house, the door closing behind her. There was a scent in the air of lotion. “In here!” Applejack’s voice came from the other room. “Now, before yah get worried, ah’m fine. Doctor already looked at me, an it looks worse than it is.”
The earth pony nodded. “Of course, we--” She stopped when she made it to the front room and her eyes fell on Applejack, who was laying on the couch.
“Are you okay?!” Spike asked, his eyes wide with horror.
“Ah’m fine!” Applejack said with a shake of her head. The mare was on her stomach, her back legs out straight, entirely bandaged. Her trademark hat was on the stand besides the couch, the edges blackened. However, the most shocking thing of all was her back side, what wasn’t bandaged. Her tail and mane were half burned off, the ends blackened, and her flank was bare of most of its hair, covered in a heavy dosage of lotion.
“How can you call this fine? What happened?” Twilight asked, walking forward. “Oh my gosh… I… do you need a doctor? Do you--”
“Ah told yah, ah’m fine,” the earth pony said with a roll of her eyes. “Didn’t Applebloom tell yah what happened?”
“Nope. She got side tracked. A lot.”
Applejack groaned. “Well. Yah promise not tah go off an’ write some story about it? Ah didn’t do nothin’ fancy, really.”
“I promise,” Twilight said with a smile. “Just… please?”
“Ugh. Fine. Couple ah charlatans by the name of Flim an’ Flam came on by. Brought somethin’ they called an ‘artificial sun’. Buncha idjits. Ah of course thought it was all hog wash, but ponies wanted tah see it all. An’, at first, it actually seemed tah work. Ponies were overjoyed tah be gettin’ all sunny an’ warm an’ stuff. Were talkin’ about installin’ ‘em all over Ponyville. But… wellll… Only place with enough room for a proper demonstration was out by our fields...”
“… Oh dear...”
“Yup. It caught fire. Darn thing nearly exploded, worked too much. Not only that, it was catchin’ EVERYTHIN’ on fire. It was horrible. Ah had tah gallop up on stage an’ buck it as hard as ah could. Right inta the lake,” she said with a shake of her head. “Burned mahself doin’ it, ‘course. Doctor says mah hooves were half melted jus’ from the impact. Our fields caught on fire as well. Ah told ‘em it was a waste of time. It ain’t the sun.”
“Where are they now? Flim and Flam?”
“High tailed it out of here while everypony was workin’ tah put the fires out. But well… ah’ll give ‘em this. When those two make a fire, they make a good one,” she said bitterly. “Ah ain’t ever seen anythin’ like it. Buncha healthy trees, fwoosh,” she said with a sigh. “If ah ever get mah hooves on them...”
“If Nightmare Moon ever gets her hooves on them, there might not be enough left for you TO get,” Spike said with a shake of his head. “An artificial sun? Do you really think she’d be okay with you installing them all over town.”
“Ah know, right?” Applejack said with a roll of her eyes. “The whole thing was basically a glorified heatin’ lamp! Ain’t no way it was safe, an’ yet, well...”
“Ponies miss the sun,” Twilight added.
“Eeyup...”
“Are you in a lot of pain?”
“Pain? Only with every single breath.”
“Anything I can get you?”
“Not really. Jus’… yah saw the damage out there, right? Ah think ponies are tryin’ tah stiffle it for meh, but ah need the truth. Jus’ how bad is it?”
“… You’ve lost almost an entire… a quarter of the trees, I think.”
Applejack growled. “By Celestia’s right hoof, ah swear… it’s goin’ tah take us ages tah recover from this. An’ we jus’ got so much of our stuff sorted, if we jus’… gahhhh. Those idjits!” the mare snapped, her hoof lashing out and crashing against the couch hard enough it almost cracked.
“I know. I’m sorry. I’m really, truly sorry,” Twilight said gently. “It--”
“Is a disaster,” a voice came out that chilled both of the ponies to their bones. They turned to the kitchen, where Nightmare Moon stood in her full regal stance. The CMC were by her hooves, the three fillies looking as pale as shades. “Of your own making.”
“Y-yer highness,” Applejack said quickly, starting to get to her hooves.
“Don’t stand, or bow, or… whatever it is you are trying to do,” Nightmare Moon said quickly, motioning the mare to remain laying. “Bard. The most interesting report just arrived. Once we realized what it was of, we knew we had to come and see for ourselves.” Her eyes then turned to Applejack, who gulped. “We hear this entire… incident was caused by something ponies call an… artificial sun. Correct?”
“Y-yes, yer highness,” the earth pony said nervously.
“And… it was your invention… correct?” The rage was beginning to make itself known. The way her eyes narrowed, the way she ground her hooves into the ground. The way her wings opened, just a smidge, enough to make herself look larger.
“What? Ah ain’t never made nothin’ like that! It was the Flim Flam brothers. Buncha scam artists came moseyin’ on into our town, talkin’ up their glorified heat lamp as if it was some great invention.”
“We see. And you allowed them to use your fields to… test it?”
“Err… w-well, ah mean. They needed a clearin’ an’ half the town wanted--”
“Did you, or did you not?”
“… Ah did,” Applejack said softly, giving a nervous gulp.
“We see… and the damage has obviously been quite extensive. You are aware that such an invention borders on treason, are you not?”
“… No… ah… wasn’t...”
“An artificial sun?” Nightmare Moon asked, cocking an eye. “You wish to forcefully do away with our precious night, and you believe it is NOT treason?”
“W-well, ah mean. I-it was just a doo-dad. Not anythin’ of--”
“You wish to banish our night. To banish US. And yet, you think it’s a toy?!” Nightmare Moon asked, her wings going out to her full width.
“I-it wasn’t her idea!” Applebloom snapped, quickly moving in front of the ruler. “She didn’t--”
“Applebloom, shush!” Applejack cut her off, shaking her head.
“No,” Nightmare Moon said, her eyes focusing on the little filly. “Let her finish. How wasn’t it her idea, little one?”
The filly gulped, quickly realizing she had the ruler of the night’s full and undivided attention. And how terrifying that was. Scootaloo and Sweetie quickly moved to either side of her. “W-well, ah mean… err… it wasn’t her idea. She didn’t want tah have it here at all. But… everypony in the town wanted tah see it. An’ once they gave a small demonstration, they were demandin’ it… We didn’t want it, but, err, we knew if we didn’t, ponies would go an’ get mad an’… err...”
“I see,” Nightmare Moon said, shaking her head. “So an entire town of treasonous ponies.”
“Y-your highness...” Twilight said softly. “They aren’t… nopony wanted to--”
“Nopony wished what? To banish our night? To bring back the sun, even an artificial, weak one?” she asked, giving a low growl. “Of course they did. It is quite obvious, quite apparently what all of you ponies want,” she said coldly. “To return us back to the moon and bring back the mare you idolize. To betray us. Even a couple of… ponies of falsehood, who bring nothing but destruction and lies, so easily captivate all of you. We see clearly what happened here. You fell for their lies, so desperate you were to escape our hooves. And we will treat it as such.”
Twilight gulped, staring at the ruler. She wanted to reason with her, but she doubted her words would be noticed now. The feelings of betrayal were too strong, too fresh. And this was just another sign of how much ponies valued her sister over her.
“For this, our judgment is clear. Or… would be,” the ruler said, before shaking her head. “Except it seems punishment has already been given. You have been burned. Your fields torn asunder. We will not add to this punishment, though you have brought it down on your own heads and surely deserve more.”
Applebloom opened her mouth to speak up, only to have Spike race forward and yank her back, covering her mouth with his claw and shaking his head.
“Instead, our punishment is simple. The royal coffers will not aid you in your relief. You will face this disaster you have brought on yourselves, by your own hooves. And may the sting of this destruction ever remind you of who your true ruler is. And why there will never, ever be another sun to replace our glory.” She gave a low, calming breath.
“As for this Flim and Flam… when we get our hooves on them… all will hear of their plight. They will suffer for this deed.” With those words, she turned and stormed from the home.
Applejack let out a sigh of relief. “Welp. That… went better than ah thought it would.”
Applebloom finally shook Spike off her. “Giddof! Big sis, yah can’t let her talk tah yah like that! It ain’t our fault that--”
“No, it ain’t. But somepony’s gonna have tah suffer for it. An’ as long as this counts as the punishment, ah’m fine with that,” Applejack said with a shake of her head.
Twilight sighed. “I can talk to her once she’s calmed down. It--”
“Nah, don’t. It’ll be fine. Lots of ponies realized… well, how terrible things have gone. An’ as much as ah hate tah accept it, ah know the town will be more than happy tah help out a bit. Us ponies, we know how tah stick tagether. So… it’ll be fine, somehow.”
The earth pony nodded, though she couldn’t help staring at her friend and feeling this well of guilt within her. “Is… there anything I can do?”
“… Jus’… try an’ keep yer energy up. If she gets her hooves on Flim and Flam? Well… ah don’t wanna imagine what she’ll do tah them.”
The earth pony cringed, giving a nod. “Right. I… guess that’s going to require some maneuvering. A lot of maneuvering.”
“Mmmm hmm. Yup,” Applejack said, shaking her head. “Either way, though. Ah’m really kinda pooped after all that’s happened. An’… well. The royal visit. Yah mind if ah go an’ get some shut eye?”
“Oh! Right, yes, of course,” Twilight said with a sheepish smile, nodding. “I’ll leave you to it. And thank you for seeing me.”
“Anytime, Twilight. Yah know, while yer here, yah might wanna go an’ check on Trixie.”
“Trixie?” she asked, then her eyes widened. “OH! Right, yes! I should. I haven’t seen her since… right. If you need anything, anything at all, send me a message. Okay?”
“Ah will,” Applejack said with a nod.
Twilight walked outside and shook her head. “Well… that went pretty good, all things considered,” Spike said with a smile.
“It really didn’t.”
“What?” he asked. “Nopony is going to get punished and the trees--”
“A lot of trees were destroyed. That means the harvest for the next few years, at least. On average, a standard apple tree takes about six to ten years to grow. That’s in ideal circumstances. Without the sun? It may take even longer. That’s six to ten years operating at only seventy-five percent capacity. Maybe, if they’re lucky, they can replace some of the trees sooner. But this damage is pretty severe.”
“O-oh...”
“And the town will help for a bit. But before you know it, there will be other issues. On top of that, they’re a bit… too prideful to accept hoof outs, I expect,” she said with a shake of her head. “While I doubt they’ll lose the farm, the damage is...”
“Yeah...” Spike mumbled gently.
“And Nightmare Moon knew it. So did Applejack. Her punishment is almost as severe, normally for an event like this, there would be some aid offered. I’m not sure how the Apples will deal with this. How they’ll...”
“They’ll recover,” he said with a shrug. “They seem tough. For ponies.”
“Heh, I hope so.”
The two walked in silence, soon being greeted by their escort. Twilight informed them of the trip to the library and, to her delight, they offered to meet her back at the farm once she finished. Occasionally she’d see the two shades that trailed her, appearing in the shadows and disappearing in the torch light. So while she wasn’t alone, she was at least being given some privacy. They were halfway to the library when the small dragon spoke up again.
“Is… that what happens to ponies?”
“Huh?”
“When you’re burned. Is that what happens?”
“… Yes. You’ve never… oh dear. You’ve never seen a burn before, have you?”
“Not on a living creature, no,” Spike mumbled. “We aren’t exactly flamable.”
“Yes. That’s what it looks like. If you’d like, I could show you some medical books about burns, they are quite--”
“Nope!” he said quickly, shaking his head. “I just… when the Dragon Lord invades...”
“If he invades. The last dragon to show their face here was turned into a squirrel. Hopefully, they won’t try anything else.”
“Yeah, but that’s just one dragon. If there’s a whole army of them…” he mumbled softly.
She nodded. “There will be a lot of burnings, then. We’re… hoping it never comes to that, though. Maybe.” She glanced over to him. “You’re worried, aren’t you?”
“… Kinda… yeah. I mean. You’re just ponies. But… as ponies go… you’re pretty okay.”
“All of us?”
“Most of you,” he said grudgingly.
Twilight couldn’t help but smile, giving a small nod. “Well… I hope we never have to go to the point of war. I have only met one dragon, but you’ve definitely helped me become quite fond of the species. The last thing I want is for Nightmare Moon to go on a rampage and try to eliminate all of you.”
He gave a shudder. “Yeah. I think that’s the last thing any of us want.”
The earth pony nodded, before stopping outside a large tree with the words ‘Ponyville Library’ emblazoned on a sign. She gulped and gave a knock. Nothing happened. “Ummm...”
“… Don’t ponies normally just walk into libraries?” he asked, cocking an eye.
“O-oh! Right. It just looks so… homey. I guess. Right.” She opened the door and stepped inside.
And almost face hoofed upon seeing the blue unicorn sleeping on a couch. She trotted over and gave a very loud cough. “Ahem.”
“Mrgl… go away… the Great and Powerful Trixie is sleeping...” the mare grumbled, rolling so her back was to the annoyed mare.
“Aren’t you supposed to be the librarian?”
There was an exasperated sigh. “If you want a book, just grab it and--” The unicorn had turned to see who it was talking to her and almost instantly froze. She gave a nervous gulp. “Errr… You’re… Miss Twilight… Glow!”
Twilight nodded. “We’ve met, yes. I just wanted to make sure you were doing we--”
“Absolutely perfect!” the unicorn said, a fake, hollow grin forming on her face before hopping to her hooves. “The gre-- Trixie is more than happy to help you in any way you need! I merely--”
“Nightmare Moon isn’t with me, nor will she be hearing about this visit. You don’t need to worry.”
“Oh,” Trixie said, all her fake cheer disappearing. “In that case, what do you want? Listen, if you need a book, just write down your name and then take it. I’ve got more important things to do than monitor your reading habits.”
Twilight sighed. “You’re the librarian. Your job is LITERALLY to monitor reading habits and predict--”
“Oh give me a break,” Trixie said with a roll of her hooves, before trotting off to a small stage that now stood opposite the door. “I get about three, maybe four, checkouts a week,” she said flatly. “In case you haven’t noticed, there’s not a whole lot of reading going on here. Ponies in this are are hardly what you’d call well-read,” she said with a shake of her head. “Now, if you have anything important to discuss, the Great and Powerful Trixie is preparing for her next show!” the mare said dramatically.
Twilight blinked a few times, her mouth falling open. “Show? What… kind of show?”
“Why, a magic show, of course,” the unicorn said with a smirk. “I’ll admit it has gotten quite a bit… trickier, since I’ve lost my actual magic. However, a TRUE show pony never sweats the small stuff.”
“What kind of magic can you do?” Spike asked.
“Hmmmm? Ah, of course, the little dragon. Card tricks, rope tricks, why, the Great and Powerful Trixie does them all!” the unicorn said with a flourish, gripping her cape and hat off the side of the couch and tossing them on with a single movement.
Twilight nodded. “I see. But that still doesn’t fix the issue of nopony actually… getting books. A proper town should be--”
Trixie rolled her eyes again. “Is she always like this?”
“You have no idea,” Spike said with a shrug.
“Listen, Sunset.”
“Twilight,” the earth pony corrected her. She felt a little crop of annoyance flood in. That HAD to be on purpose.
“Right, Starlight. Before I came here, they didn’t even HAVE a librarian. Aside from a bit of dusting, there’s nothing really to do here. The selection is small and Canterlot is less than a day away. Most ponies who want books just get them from there, since the selection is better,” the unicorn said with a shrug. “Probably. I don’t know, I haven’t really been paying much attention,” she said dismissively.
“You can’t turn the library into a… a stage show! Library’s are supposed to be quiet and--”
“Boring?” Trixie said with a shrug. “Fine, I’ll tell you what. If you have so many great ideas, have at them.” She then motioned over to the counter by the door. “All the records and… thingies are over there. If you come up with some amazing way to spread the, gag, joy of reading, go ahead. In the mean time, I have a show to prepare for.”
“I don’t… I wasn’t… I… guh!” Twilight said, turning and storming out of the library. She couldn’t BELIEVE that mare. Using the library as a showcase for her magic tricks! She slammed the door behind herself so hard she almost hit Spike with it.
“Careful!” he yelled at her.
“Sorry. I just… guh. I can’t believe her. A librarian, slacking off? She can’t just--” She barely stopped in time to avoid running into another earth pony with an amber coat and a very light streaked mane. “Oh! Mayor Mare! Its been a while! Err...” She glanced to Spike. “Ummm. This is Spike, my assistant. Spike, this is Mayor Mare. She’s the mayor.”
“… Wait, your name is Mayor Mare?” Spike asked the earth pony.
“Yes,” the mare said.
“… Did you change your name after you got the job?”
“The fact I am the mayor is a total coincidence. My sister, bless her heart, is Princess Mare. And don’t even get me started on my younger brother, Corporal Stallion.”
The dragon blinked. “What… do they do? Royal guards?”
“No, she’s a plumber and he’s a dentist. Now, Twilight! I’m absolutely overjoyed to see you here. I saw you land earlier and I’ve been just dying to speak with you for a moment.”
“Is this about Trixie? Don’t worry, I’m already on it. I know she’s doing an--”
“Amazing job? I know! I could hardly believe it myself. But you were right, having her work the library has been wonderful!”
Twilight stared at her. “I’m… sorry? It has?”
“Of course! Why, since she’s come here, our reading program has almost tripled,” she said proudly, giving a small nod. “And I’ve seen ponies who’ve never even touched a book coming home from her shows with small stacks. She’s doing wonders!”
“She… is? But she’s… just using it for shows and...”
“Oh, I know! I was shocked at first, but you can’t argue with results,” the mayor said with a nod. “You were absolutely right. Putting her there was the perfect location for her to be! I’ve been trying for years to find a way to make reading fun and exciting for ponies, to imagine she put all my works to shame in her first month here! I’ve never seen our little library so full as when she’s performing. She’s truly a blessing of Celestia.”
“But… but...” Twilight said, having to sit down and stare at her. “She’s… a blessing?”
“Err… yes. She is. Are you alright, dear? You look a little… pale.”
“But… but...” Twilight mumbled.
“Don’t mind her, she’s just having a meltdown at the idea of ponies being at a library for reasons other than the books,” Spike said with a shake of his head. “So, what did you want to talk with her about?”
“Oh, right! I wanted to talk about YOUR newest book!”
“Huh?” the earth pony mumbled. “Who…?”
“Your book. Dear, are you sure you’re okay? You’re really pale. Almost as pale as your escort,” the mayor said, motioning to the two shades who were standing off in the shadows. “Well, okay, not THAT pale but...”
“Huh? I’m fine. What about my book? It… errr… it hasn’t been causing any issues, has it?”
“Oh, no, quite the opposite!” the mayor said with a nod. “I’ll be honest, I was a little… concerned when it first came out. I was afraid it’d be a whole propaganda work. But it has been doing marvelous to keep ponies happy and stop them from getting… well. TOO anxious about all of the going ons right now,” she said with a small smile. “Is… it all true?”
“Of course!” Twilight said firmly, puffing her chest out a bit. “I gathered all the information I could and would never allow something full of lies and… and slander to get out with my name on it,” she said, her voice shaking with emotion. “But… its really been helping?”
“Of course. And… that’s actually what I wanted to speak with you about. I… don’t suppose there will be a follow up, will there?” the mare asked, unable to keep a look of hope on her face.
“A follow up?”
“Indeed. As one of the many ponies who are, ahhhh, navigating the current political landscape, I must say it has proven to be an invaluable tool. Not just for your information on our new… esteemed ruler, but all of your information on the vampire ponies, the wereponies and the shades. We’ve actually had quite a few move into town and I was terrified it’d end up causing an incident! But your book has really helped to relieve quite a bit of… the unknown, if you will. I think nearly every pony in town now has a copy.”
“It has? They do?”
“Okay, Miss Glow. Can I get you some water or something? You look like you’re going to fall over.”
“She’s fine,” Spike said with a wave of his claw. “She’s just amazed that she did some good with her book.”
“Amazed? Why would she be amazed? It’s incredibly well written.”
“It’s a weird writer thing, I think,” Spike said with a shrug. “I wouldn’t worry about it, she’ll come out of shock… eventually.”
The earth pony nodded. “Well, if you’re sure. Either way, I should get going. It has been a delight speaking with you though, Twilight! Perhaps we can speak again, okay? Oh… and that reminds me… in the event you do write a follow up? I don’t suppose you could find it in your heart to give me an advanced copy?” The mayor gave her innocent smile, grinning up at her.
Twilight stared at the pony. “Uhhhh… I’ll… see what I can do?” she offered, nodding to the mare. Was all of this really just to get an early copy of her next book?
“Wonderful! Well, have a wonderful day, Miss Glow,” the earth pony said, trotting away with her head held high.
“You know, she was right though. You are incredibly pale,” Spike said with a shake of his head. “Maybe you should go lay down for a bit,” he said with a frown.
“I just… but ponies LIKE it. It’s HELPING ponies!”
“Well, duh. That’s the whole reason you wrote it.”
“But… I didn’t think it’d actually work! I mean, I thought it would get the information out there. And work in that way. But I didn’t think ponies would really… listen. I just thought they’d think I was a sellout or a traitor or… But they like it? They’re really trusting it? I only thought a hoofful would but… but...”
“So? Ponies are reading your book. Isn’t that what they’re supposed to do? Can we go back, now? I wanna pester the cook for some more gems.”
Twilight nodded. “Right. Yeah. Let’s go get some,” she said, turning back towards the farm. Her heart felt lifted, though.
She’d hoped they’d listen. She’d hoped so much that ponies would read it. That the information would get out there. She expected her reputation to have been shattered, or at least if she’d had any reputation left it would have.
Instead ponies were taking the information. They were learning about the new world they were in. It was helping ponies. She felt her heart swelling, new hope flooding her. She really was helping ponies. She really COULD help ponies from her position. Not just by helping to calm their new ruler. But by giving them the information they so desperately needed. She could make things better. Improve things. She felt small tears rising in her eyes and quickly had to wipe them away.
“Twilight? Are… you okay?”
“I’m fine. Sorry. It’s just… it’s… a bit emotional whenever you hear one of your works is doing well. Y-you know?”
“… Man. You writers are weird,” Spike said with a shrug. “Are all ponies like you?”
“I don’t know. I doubt it,” she said with a shrug. “I’d hope most writers were a bit more confident about their works. And less worried about making enemies of the entirety of Equestria over it.”
“Fair,” the dragon said with a shrug. “… You know, I’ve heard ponies talking about it, a few times. Some of the guards. They… seem really happy with it too. So I wouldn’t worry too much. Ponies like it. And you’re helping.”
She nodded, before sighing. “I think I’ll work on my next Fuzzles book. Something… light. And easy to read. Maybe something about accepting all kinds of ponies, even if they’re different,” she said before glancing back at the shades trailing behind her. “Very, very different.”
“What about Tirek?”
“Heh. I can work on both books. Besides, maybe I’ll lend him one about sharing. I’m sure he’d love that,” she said with a snicker. “He might do with the whole collection.”
------
Tirek suddenly jerked up, a chill cold as ice going down his spine. What in Equestria?
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Being a consumer rather than a creator myself, I relate to Spike in this chapter. I'm happy that Twilight's book was so successful, and I'm happy that people are coming back to read this story again.
They need to come up with a spell or potion to make ponies nocturnal, that would make them far more comfortable with the night as it would become a natural state. Though it would have to be somewhat voluntary as forcing it on the population would probably go rather wrong.
That's liquid pride, Don't lose it
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Wow, this had a lot of events to take in, the most important is that this chapter didn't take a year to be released. Anyways, I feel bad for Ponyville & AJ. They suffered major loss due to the fires, AJ is pretty much out of commission til her legs recovered... Damn those scamming bastards!
two chapters in a week? Now you've gone and spoiled me!! Jesus this was such a good read. I mean almost all the chapters you write are good reads to me. I'm really excited to see what happens next and I'm really glad that this story is back. I missed it a lot and I was actually thinking about it the other day.
9652277
Yup. Now, there will always be ponies who hate it but, for the most part, ponies like it. And oh my gosh yes. I am overjoyed I didn't lose all my fans during my hiatus.
9652314
They do, in fact Fluttershy was one of the first to take it! Okay, vampirism isn't the answer, but that is an idea.
9652325
Hopefully I never do.
9652336
Not to mention her cousins, Sheriff Mare and Doctor Stallion. Ironically, she's a doctor and he's a sheriff.
9652540
Eeyup... Those two are just loads of fun. Just pity them if/when Nightmare Moon gets her hooves on them.
9652699
You were? Awwww. <3 Any story that can get all of you thinking about it between chapters is a story I am giddy to write. I hope you continue to enjoy it. <3
Good chapter. Now hurry up so we can get to another year-long hiatus so I can readjust my time allocation.
Hehe, we see what you did there. Sunset, Starlight, indeed!
Speaking of missing persons, looks like Fluttershy's efforts in conjunction with Twilight's are certainly helping integration.
Wonder what our elsewhen villains are up to, it's high time for some more darker personalities show up...
See what a trip out of your box can do, Twilight?
Keep going! ;)
9652793
Yeah I had to say it
9652784
Yeah, a real pity indeed
9652834
It had to be said and it was
9653133
Indeed
Glad you're back.
THIS IS SO NICE AAAAA
Honestly I was expecting a negative reaction to her book, too. Your story has never shied away from the bleakness of the situation they're in, but at the same time you skillfully lighten it with hope and humor and reminders that good things not only CAN happen, but they DO. And this is the most heartwarming, hopeful example yet! To see Twilight’s first and biggest goal from the beginning of the story bear exactly the kind of fruit she barely dared to hope it would is really, really wonderful. And it’s a very nice counterpoint to the tragedy of the flim flam catastrophe. Very nice chapter, and so soon after the last one! Keep up the great work!
*hands you a box of tissues*
9652793
In general, I expect it's a mix of enjoying the story enough you wait and the recognition that we can't really do much about it. In my particular case, there's also hypocracy to avoid and empathy to offer.
Awesome chapter! Thanks for writing.
In Norway, we have an law that said that libraries are an public meeting place. It’s up to the librarian to interpret the law
I like the joke, but alas, I have a friend who hates starlight so much she can't even stand to read a story that so much as mentions her... now I can't rec this story to her...at least, not as is...:(
Doom, thy name is Sharing!
9658317
He is exceptionally spoilit
I've just caught up with the story!
(I mean, finished re-reading the chapters I've read before the hiatus. Again.)
After just seeing the titles of the chaprers to come, I can't wait to read them!
Sadly, we aren't having eternal night here, so I can't read any more today, for I need to get some sleep before the sun rises. Meh.
"Hammer!". "Hammer." "Hammer".
:-)
Mmmm, nothing like being the power behind the throne.