All Behind Celestial Rays

by Cosy Purity

Finally, But Don't Ever

Celestia followed Spring to the cavern-room where her family was staying.

Finally, Spring knocked on the illusion-spelled door and the doctor Spring had mentioned earlier opened it. Celestia plodded in to find her mother laid in a makeshift bed, her eyes sagging with weariness. Vibrant mustered a weak smile as Celestia moved in, and in her mother’s pale blue eyes Celestia caught a glint of delight at the sight of her daughter.

Then Celestia turned to see the doctor carefully holding her baby sister with an arm.

Celestia smiled as she took in the appearance of her new sibling.

The little filly had flecks of purple-ish blue hair (looking basically bald) and a darker blue coat, and a tiny face that made Celestia’s heart stretch with joy.

“Well?” The doctor said, his eyes bright and lips curved into a broad smile at the sight of Celestia’s overjoyed expression.

“She looks nothing like me,”

Celestia breathed.

The doctor’s smile receded a little for a second, then he shrugged it off and carefully trotted over to Vibrant Sunrise, hoofing the baby over to her with the utmost gentleness.

“Hey there,”

Vibrant whispered, her voice laced with silky warmth, “I’m your mamma.”

Celestia hesitantly tiptoed toward the side of her mother’s bed.

“Hi, little me,” Celestia whispered, looking at the new arrival with immutable affection, “I’m your sister.”

---

Celestia lay in the back corner where her father was sleeping. Her head was rested lightly on his shoulder and she had twined her hoof around his arm. A small, happy smile was permanently set upon her face.

She looked up at the doctor who was silently pacing on the right of the room and said quietly,

“When did he fall asleep?”

“Oh, soon after your mother gave birth… I’m not surprised. They were both weary, especially with taking care of the kingdom. Neither of them seem to get a lick of rest.”

“He must be really tired,” Celestia murmured.

“Ah, yeah,” the doctor confirmed, “I don’t know how he does it… not to mention Princess Sunrise.”

“I wish they didn’t have to,” Celestia said even more quietly, almost not wanting the doctor to hear, “Maybe then I would see them more.”

She nuzzled her father’s cheek and curled her hoof more tightly around his arm.

Soon she fell asleep.

It was what felt like a moment later.

She could no longer feel her father’s presence beside her.

Celestia slowly opened her eyes and saw he was standing in front of her, but not facing. He was pointed towards the door, but looking up.

Suddenly the room shook violently.

Celestia toppled over and sprawled on her side.

“Gyyyaaaah!” She exclaimed.

“They’ve made it inside,” Nebula whispered after recovering from a stagger, “We have to go.”

“What do you mean?” Celestia wailed, her eyes filled with fear.

A moment later she felt herself being levitated. Nebula quickly placed her onto his back, in between his wings, which were unraveled and spread in a defensive position.

He seemed ready to fight something.

Suddenly she noticed she and Nebula were the only ones in the room.

“Where’s Momma?” She asked, wrapping her hooves around her father’s shoulders and clutching tightly, her fear rising.

“The doctor took her and your sister outside. Everypony is trying to figure out a way out of the castle without being caught before the tunnels topple on us.”

Celestia’s eyes widened.

“I … Well, I think I have an idea,” She stammered, “But I don’t know if it could work with so many ponies.”

Nebula’s eyes lit with surprise.

“At a time like this, anything will be useful. What do you got?”

“Teleportation,”

Celestia replied.

---

“Starswirl, I need you to show the alicorns how to perform that teleporting spell,”

Celestia said briskly, the room vibrating as the creatures above, having entered the castle, were attacking the floors in order to crush the alicorns below it.

Starswirl’s eyes were wide as harvest moons.

“But … but…” He stammered, “I don’t know how to… I mean… do you think they’ll even listen to me?”

“Look, even if you and the alicorns are not besties, they know how powerful your magic is. It’s super important and it depends on our lives - how willing are you to get us out of here and save us from being covered in dirt?”

Starswirl’s eyes narrowed.

That had pretty much convinced him.

Letting out a loud, nervous sigh, he stepped hesitantly toward the midst of the group of alicorns who were muttering anxiously, exchanging ideas and attempting to comfort one another.

“Um,”

Starswirl began. None of them heard.

Squeezing his eyes shut, Starswirl’s horn lit with a bright yellow and from it exploded large shards of magic residue which shot in every direction and contacted with the walls, bursting into a million tiny sparks and disappearing to the floor.

The buzz immediately disappeared from the room.

Everypony had his attention.

Starswirl cleared his throat and began,

“Listen up. We’re all in an awful situation right now, and I think it would be smart to take any idea we’ve got that has even the slightest chance of working - and I’ve got one. I’ve figured out a spell that allows a pony to teleport to any place they can picture in their minds. I can do my best to teach it to most of you. Some are gonna have to hold on tight to another if they want to get out of here safely. I’ll divide you up and give whom I’ve chosen some lessons on how to do this spell. Hopefully it won’t take too long. Are you all with me?”

Everypony nodded.

“Okay,” Starswirl said, “Let’s go!”

Soon after he was picking out alicorns to learn the spell. He sent the others in a corner to wait it out. He would be instructing the ponies he had chosen as one big group. There wasn’t time for individual lessons.

During all of this, all Celestia could do was gape. She could only think one thought:

I didn’t know Starswirl could deliver speeches…!

She’d been sorted to the group waiting for the others. She was fine with this - enough alicorns were in the learning group already.

Like Starswirl had said, it didn’t take long. The alicorns caught on and had teleported as per Starswirl’s instructions to the other side of the room.

Nebula walked over to Celestia as the group disbanded and everypony began to form a chain in the pattern of ‘alicorn aware of the spell, alicorn unaware’.

“Hi, daddy,” Celestia squealed as she looked up into her father’s purple eyes.

“Hey, Tia. Come here.”

He gestured closer towards himself as if he wanted to tell her something more private.

“Look, daddy’s not gonna be teleporting with everypony else,”

He whispered.

Celestia’s eyes widened, and quickly he continued,

“I’m going to go with a few of the alicorn commanders and some soldiers and try to talk it out with whoever is up there.”

Celestia wrapped her hooves around her father’s dark blue leg and clung tightly.

“No!” She said, “stay here… You might get hurt.”

Nebula stroked her mane affectionately with his free hoof and kissed her forehead.

“Trust me, Tia,” He murmured, “I’ll be back here. Look after your mamma and sister, alright?”

Celestia pressed her cheek against his leg and squeezed her eyes shut tightly.

After a little pause of hesitation, she breathed,

“Okay…”

“Good. Don’t worry about me, sweetie. Everything will be alright.”

He smiled at her warmly, and she nodded, breaking away and plodding over to the long chain of alicorns. She linked her hoof with a dull, pale-teal coated stallion with a light tan mane and blood-orange eyes.

He nodded to her then turned his attention to Starswirl who had begun making instructions again.

“Alright,” He said, “All of you imagine that large forested area off in the Unnamed Land. I know we’ve all been there at least once. It’s just in between Bewildermist Gorge and Skyfall Mountain. Everypony got it pictured?”

Celestia looked along the line to see everypony nodding. She narrowed her eyes in frustration, trying to picture the thick patch of undergrowth. But all she could think about was her father, and as her worry plagued her more and more, soon images of him going to talk with Nightfall was all she could visualize.

“Okay!”

Starswirl called,

“Light your magic……”

He took a moment before everypony had done so.

“Aaand…. teleport!”