Triplicate

by NeverEatTheLemonsAlone

Set 3, Chapter 1 - Dusklight

A deep blue unicorn mare trotted into the mouth of the cave. Around her clanked a great series of mechanics. Enormous cogs of brass and steel ratcheted around each other and gouts of steam belched from deep within red-hot pipes. Unfazed, she trotted onwards through the lonely cave. The steam wound around the ceiling in long wisps before condensing and dripping back onto her head. She flicked her ears in irritation.

"Oi!" Her voice was rough and somewhat brash, a Low Edean accent evident. "If you don' get ou' here right naw, Cee, I'll knock yer rear to Cogfol'!"

From the depths of the cave, echoing from far in, came a separate voice. This one was far smoother. It was a refined voice, with a distinct High Edean. "If you would stop threatening me with violence, Ell, that would be most appreciated. Give me a moment, please!"

Ell stamped the ground with mounting frustration, fiddling with the saddlebag on her back. "Ugh! Com' on, Cee! This is importan'! Fer real this time!"

A long pause filled the air before Cee replied. "Alright then, Ell, but if this is another silly diversion, I'll have to get back to the mainland. I've lost enough time on my project as it is." Out of the depths of the cave trotted a white pegasus dressed in mechanic's clothing, oil and grease staining her pink mane. "Alright, Ell. Spit it out, what d'ya have for me?"

Slinging the bags off of her back, Ell rummaged through the left one a moment before triumphantly holding up a large black-and-white stone that glowed fervently in the dim light. "You told me to be on the lookout for stones like these, right?"

Cee's stern expression melted. "Oh, Ell, why didn't you tell me you found an Eclipse stone?" She rushed over, nearly knocking Ell to the ground as she yanked the stone from her grip. "There's enough magic in one of these to keep the machines running for another week and a half!"

Ell's eyes slowly began to slide half shut as Cee continued rambling about thaumodynamics and energy harnessing. She'd never been all too interested in the brand of technomancy explored by her sister and the engineers in Cogfold. She was more interested in High Magic, which had been all but lost many years ago. She tuned out, thinking about what else she'd found while plumbing the depths of the nearby ruin, one of many on Edea. As her sister dove back down into the vast mechanical guts of the island, she withdrew a small stone tablet, curiously staring at it. It depicted a unicorn like her, head raised to the sky, horn wrapped in what seemed like an aura of compressed energy. A sword floated near her in a similar field.

She found this immensely interesting. High Magic had been thundered into obsolescence centuries ago. These days clockwork and technomancy held the power. Sighing, she made to put the tablet back into her saddlebag, but her hooves fumbled and she dropped it.

Inside Ell's mind, billions of synapses all fired at once. Electricity raced around her brain, ricocheting off of every cell and sending her body reeling to the ground. Flashing lights pulsed in front of her eyes as the current raced through her head and into her horn, igniting the long-dormant magical circuit that lay within. A flash of violent blue energy exploded through the cave, followed in rapid time by a pained howl from Ell as ignition pains set her head ablaze. She threw herself to the ground, writhing, never once noticing that the small piece of stone had been caught by a field of energy that looked just like the one in the tablet.

"Ell?! Sun, Moon and Stars, are you alright? You sound like something's tearing your leg off—"

Cee's jaw dropped as she took in what lay in front of her. Her sister was unconscious on the ground, forehead ignited in a blazing nova of cobalt blue, and above her floated a piece of stone, suspended there seemingly by magic.

No. Not seemingly. It was magic. High Magic, the kind that had been outmoded for centuries.

---

Hours later, Ell awoke with a headache so bad that she immediately wished she could be unconscious again. Her horn in particular was a nexus of pain as long-disused nerves fired in tandem within. Her throat was dry and a glass of water presented itself to her. Still half asleep, she reached out to it, only to find herself spluttering as it wrapped itself in a cocoon of blue light and hurled itself at her, drenching her face. The pain in her horn redoubled. Groaning, she flopped back down, then immediately wished she hadn't as her headache grew worse.

Hearing the crashes and groan, Cee trotted in, eyes wide. "Ell?" she murmured to the prone unicorn, "are you alright?"

Ell groused a moment. "M' head feels lika swarm a' angry hornets are buzzin' in it. Othern' that, I feel fin'."

Despite herself, Cee chuckled. "If you feel well enough to be annoyed, you'll be fine." Her face grew serious. "I'm sending you to Cogfold, sister."

Ell jackknifed upright, alarm written on her face. "Wha'? Why?!"

Cee grimaced. "Because quite frankly, I can't teach you anything about magic. Somepony in Cogfold might."

All at once, Ell tried to bolt and found her hind legs tied. She succeeded in nothing but an undignified flop. Face written with betrayal, she stared at Cee as the older mare walked out of the room. Sighing, Ell settled down.

The Cogfold Collectors would be arriving soon.