2. Meetings
Princess Celestia was beside herself in worry. In fact, anypony who would see her right now would be hard pressed to recognise their serene princess under those blood-shot eyes, matted fur and ruffled feathers. And who could blame her? In the space of less than an hour, she had banished her student in a rare case of tantrum, found another one and discovered that the former had not taken her banishment well and had apparently disappeared off the face of this world.
For the last sixteen hours, the princess divided her time between needless self reprimand, poring over huge stacks of notes left by Starswirl the bearded, gazing at a nearby crystal ball or at a book with her student’s cutie mark imprinted upon it.
The day had been a downhill ride for Celestia. Feeling ashamed of herself for losing her temper and banishing Sunset from the castle, she had been thinking of ways to recall her student and reconcile when she felt the humongous magical surge from one of the towers after the passing of a Sonic Rainboom. Arriving at the chaotic scene, she calmed the filly Twilight Sparkle down and was struck by what could only be described as a ‘eureka’ moment.
With the desire to quickly find her former student to introduce to the enthusiastic Twilight Sparkle, Celestia was surprised and horrified to discover that Sunset had not only stayed within the castle premise but was last seen heading to the chamber of the Crystal Mirror. Sending the little filly back to her family with the promise of coming to pick her up as soon as the situation was solved, Princess Celestia arrived at the chamber only to find no trace of her student’s passing and the Crystal Mirror shattered, its broken shards lying uselessly on the floor.
Eyes travelling to the crystal ball, the very same crystal ball that captured the scene of her student sneaking into the restricted section of the library, Celestia watched the footage within for the umpteenth time.
She watched as Sunset walked up towards the mirror, as she turned in surprise, as the shockwave passed her by and thrust her into said mirror, and as the mirror exploded into hundreds of pieces.
Tears welled in the princess’s eyes as the film played over and over before her, a constant reminder that all this would not have happened if she had not sent her wayward student away in a fit of anger. A constant reminder that this was not the first time such a thing had happened, that she had lost another loved one in similar circumstances all those years ago.
Ever since her discovery of what happened, she had ordered a cadre of her best mages and guards to set about gathering every piece of the ruined mirror, while she retrieved the notes left by her beloved mentor, preserved carefully in the Canterlot Archives, to find a method to fix the mirror or at the very least, contact her pupil on the other side.
“Princess.” Celestia looked up to see Kibitz, her dutiful Butler, enter with another trolley of notes. “Miss Inkwell has sent me up with these,” he indicated the trolley, “she also told me to inform you that there only lies one section of the archives that was not yet searched.”
“Thank you Kibitz,” Celestia replies gratefully even as her eyes scanned the details of the scroll before her. It was a passage detailing the various test ran on the mirror by her mentor, informative but useless for now, “please help Inkwell when she begins her task on that section.”
“Princess?”
“Yes Kibitz?” Celestia tossed the current scroll aside as one might a piece of junk before pulling up another.
“The last section is the foal’s section.”
“Foals?” Celestia blinked owlishly, “you don’t mean…”
“I believe it is the section containing foal stories since the founding of Equestria, princess.”
Celestia took a while to ponder that statement, before the actual weight of it came crashing down upon her like a wave of realisation. It means that all that was left to go through were the notes that she had yet to see in this very room.
“I see.” She turned her attention back to the scrolls at hoof, only to have it broken by Kibitz clearing his throat.
“Yes?”
“Forgive me Princess, but I must remind you that the sun is due to rise in two hours and that day court begins in four?”
Celestia frowned. Had she really spent that long researching? It felt as though she had barely begun. A quick glance at the clock on her table belied this however, confirming that she had indeed spent hours here. Biting her lips, Celestia quickly ran her mind through the various possibilities and solutions.
“Kibitz, please remind me to raise the sun in an hour and a half.”Celestia ordered, “and cancel day court and compile their requests so that I could read them when I’m free.”
“Understood, princess.” Kibitz bowed and promptly exited the room. Tired eyes watching him go, Celestia found her gaze drifting towards the inconspicuous book with her student’s cutie mark. A simple spell to make whatever that was written appear on its twin made the diary a useful communication tool.
It had originally been used as a way for Sunset to confide in the princess and ask her for help wherever the two could not meet. However, down the years, it slowly devolved into a tool used by her pupil to make periodical reports on her academic studies.
“Useless nag,” she cursed herself, “you could rule a kingdom but couldn’t even notice your student walking away from you.”
Where… no… when had it all gone wrong? When had she failed to notice that Sunset was no longer that little filly all those years ago? How could she have not noticed that her student was slowly becoming more distant, and failed to reach out to her before it was all too late?
Was she always this blind when it came to her loved ones?
Reaching out with her magic, she flipped open the diary to its last entry, an entry written by her. It read:
Sunset Shimmer, where are you? I am sorry. Please reply to me.
When Sunset awoke, it was to a mind numbing pain that one had when they stubbed their hoof on the edge of the railing, or stairs, except this was on her face. The constant pain that the injury was giving her felt almost like that one hungover she had gotten when she had mistook Celestia’s mug of fine wine for her own cup of grape juice.
In truth, it was not just her head, her throat feels dry and parched and her limbs feel not only weak and weird. Opening her eyes, she immediately regretted it as a flood of bright light intensified the pain she felt within her skull. Instinctively, she pulled her hoof out from what was most likely a blanket to touch the wounded area, only to flinch when she felt the unfamiliar touch of fleshy, spindly digits.
“What?” She opened her eyes carefully to behold an alien claw-like appendage before her. More out of shock than from any other reaction, she reflexively attempted to push the appendage away, only to realise that the claw mimicked whatever response she had expected her hoof to do.
“Wha…?” Sunset begun, only to fall into a continuous coughing fit, her dry throat giving out. She had never felt this weak before in her life, in fact, what had happened to cause her so much pain?
“Oh my!” A feminine voice exclaimed from out of Sunset’s vision, but before she had time to dwell on it, an ape-like creature wandered into her line of sight. A quick glance from Sunset confirmed that they both had the same appendages on their forearms, so that probably meant that they were the same species. Unfortunately for the unicorn, any further train of thought was quenched by the burning desire for more water.
The mare, or at least Sunset believed she was from her voice, quickly brought up a bowl of water with one appendage, and precariously held a spoon in the claw-like digits of the other that dipped into said bowl before offering the liquid to Sunset.
Normally Sunset would scorn being fed like this, but as she was right now, she needed assistance and she was in no position to complain. So, with her pride forcefully thrown out the window, she lapped at the elixir of life within the spoon greedily, letting the refreshing liquid run down her parched throat.
“Careful,” the mare cautioned in a soothing voice, “don’t choke on the water.” Once the spoon was empty, she immediately refilled it and continued feeding Sunset until the bowl was empty. It obviously was not enough, and Sunset’s throat was feeling well enough to make it known.
“More.” She croaked out. Urgh, she sounds like a toad!
The mare nodded patiently, and Sunset found a bit of her vision refocusing, at least enough to make out how her ‘nurse’ looked like. She looked like an ape, but with much more refined features, and almost no hair or fur of any sort on her face. A mane of golden hair adorned the top of her head, flowing down its back and side gracefully, it had apparently been well-groomed. However, what caught her attention were those emerald eyes so full of compassion.
She was in good hands, of that Sunset was sure. As the mare stood up, presumably to begin to find more water, Sunset find her memories returning much more easily. There was the argument with Celestia, and she escaped her escorts to find the mirror. Then what seemed to be rainbow colored shockwave pushed her into the mirror. And she was now probably the same species as the mare before her. Groaning aloud in realisation, Sunset cursed mentally at her ill fortune.
So much for making me a princess, stupid mirror. Sunset thought as she watched the mare panic at Sunset’s groan, apparently mistaking it for a sign of discomfort. Sunset watched with curiosity at first, as the mare raised a claw, bringing two of her digits together to make a snapping sound, then in fascination, as she produced a waterskin from thin air. That was magic! There was no mistake, the slight tingle in the air, the telltale sign for Sunset to know when magic was being cast was faint, but she definitely felt it.
“I hope you don’t mind conjured water.” The mare gave Sunset what was probably an apologetic smile. “It doesn’t taste as good as spring water, but I don’t think that you’ll mind as you are now.”
Truth be told, Sunset would have minded, but her mind was now too occupied by the blatant way the rules of magic were broken in front of her to pay attention to the taste.
“Wh- Who are-” Sunset began after a tough time swallowing a mouthful of water.
“I am Jaina.” The mare said, already understanding the question. “Apprentice to Archmage Antonidas.”
“That sp-spell…”
“Oh that?” Jaina smiled, apparently okay with sharing what seemed to be a secret spell with a total stranger. “Just a minor conjuration I found two weeks ago.” She leaned in and whispered conspiratorially, “truth be told, I was embarrassed when I found I haven’t learned it yet.”
Sunset’s mind was awash with thoughts. Only an apprentice, and Jaina was already capable of feats Equestrian mages would find hard to replicate. What were the mages in this world capable of? And what of the Archmage who was supposedly her master? In equestria, Archmages were titles granted to those who stand atop their peers in both power and influence. Assuming that things were the same here, what was this Antonidas capable of?
“And how about you? What’s your name?” Jaina asked.
“Su-Sunset.”
“What a lovely name.” Jaina smiled. “Don’t worry Sunset, you’re safe here in Dalaran.”
“Da-Darawan?” What was that?
“Dalaran.” Jaina corrected her gently. “City of the mages, and home to the Kirin Tor. You can be one of us, if you’d like. Master Antonidas is seeing to it right now, he thinks you have great potential.”
So this Antonidas had already assumed that she would want to join? Normally, Sunset would be peeved at others making her decisions so easily for her, but in all honesty, after what she had just witnessed with her own two eyes?
There was only one answer.
“There’s no clear answer to this…” Archmage Drenden, member of The Six, mumbled as he pondered what Antonidas had presented to them. The leader of the Kirin Tor had called for a meeting between of The Six to not only inform them of Jaina’s first assignment and also the strange but clearly powerful young girl that had been discovered during the mission.
Of course, they reacted as mages are wont to do, with lots of scepticism, apprehension, and/or suspicion.
The Six, dressed in simple Dalaran violet robes met in a humble chamber, a simple undecorated room save for the round table and six chairs for the current occupants. Of course, being mages, they could easily conjure up new furniture for visitors, and even embellish the room if there was a need,or want, to awe whoever they were hosting.
“While I would happily induct her into the order based on her abilities alone,” Archmage Kael’thas, Prince of Quel’Thalas, the Kingdom of the Elves, tapped his fingers on the table as he mused, “I fear somewhat for her mental state. You said, you found her in the basement of this rogue wizard? Naked and injured? Who knows what form of trauma she would have developed.” His graceful features darkened in barely contained distaste, “trauma that may interfere with her training.”
“Indeed, poor dear.” Archmage Modera muttered worriedly. “Is there anything that could be done for her?”
Archmage Antonidas frowned, though not because of her expressive concern. While such compassion was often seen as a weakness that most mages would be too happy to exploit, Modera was in fact the most professional one among them when it came to separating her work and personal lives. Small wonder that she was the most popular among the Kirin Tor, and the best choice for a political ambassador between Dalaran and the other Kingdoms. What with most mages being too arrogant for their own good when dealing with the common minds
“I believe that whether or not her mental state could be treated was not the concern here.” Archmage Krasus, the foremost dragon researcher of Dalaran raised his hand in defense against Modera’s scandalized look, “while I of course grieve for the young girl’s plight, the question that Antonidas still presented to us has yet to be answered.”
“I, for one, believe that this discussion is meaningless.” Archmage Kel’thuzad, Lead Researcher of Dalaran, claimed aloud. His glassy eyes observing his fellow councilmembers, he continued, “whether she joins our ranks or not is meaningless, this girl must be observed and kept under watch in this city!”
“Now, we can hardly put her under house arrest until we can determine if she would be a threat.” Admonished Krasus.
“No, we can’t.” Agreed Kael’Thas, “but to put us back on track, the question remained, would she join us?”
“She has no family, literally no records from what my investigations turned up.” Drenden contributed, turning to Antonidas, who nodded at him. He had seen the findings, being the one who had requested Drenden to find out all he could about the girl. “In the three days since Antonidas requested me to look into this and I have nothing to show for it.” He frowned, “no family had reported a loss of a red-headed child, and there was no record or hint of how she was brought into that house.”
“So either Drenden is losing his touch, or this child have no ties that could be traced.” Kel’Thuzad mused, ignoring the glare his statement had provoked. “By the Light, this is like the second coming of Aegwynn...”
Aegwynn, the legendary magus who had protected the world from demon incursions over multiple centuries as the Guardian of Tirisfal. Despite her fall, of which the truth was kept mostly hidden from the masses of wizards and people who had deemed themselves important enough to know, she was still regarded widely as the most powerful mage to walk the earth after her son and successor, Medivh. To liken a mere child to her was either the greatest insult that one could offer the late Guardian, or a sign of true potential.
“There also lies the question of who would tutor her should she accept.” Kael’thas interjected, “A child like her could not be left to the mages in our charge.” His eyes flashed, “It’ll have to be one of us.”
“I am willing.” Krasus said. “I have no apprentice at the moment.”
“No,” Antonidas interjected, “the debacle with Grim Batol a few years back still have eyes on you and young Rhonin. It will be best to not draw attention to the child anymore than necessary.”
“I,” Krasus made to object, only to catch a glance from the leader of the Kirin Tor before nodding. “I see. Very well.”
“I would love to,” Modera piped up, “but I have my position and responsibilities, which are not the ideal situation to train an apprentice. I would not mind taking over her training when she had covered the basics though.” She added hastily.
“Nor can Kael’Thas and I.” Drenden interrupted. He flashed an apologetic grin at the Elven prince who made to protest. “I have assignments from Antonidas that would interfere with the training. And I would not put any sane female near the prince, lest they fall for him mid-training.”
“Now that’s not fair,” chuckled the prince of Quel’Thalas, “I have only eyes for one. And I would hardly court my own student, if I would be given the choice of tutoring her.”
“Nor I.” Kel’Thuzad stressed. “My research sites are no place for a young girl!”
“On the contrary Kel’Thuzad, I believe that having her among researchers for her basic training would do her good.” Antonidas pointed out, “not to mention that it would let her integrate into Dalaran society among peers, rather than as a standout.”
“And have an incompetent child potentially mess everything up? Absolutely not!”
“Come now,” Drenden chimed in, “it’s not that tough. You merely need to have one of your assistants keep an eye upon her and check in on her from time to time. With the occasional teaching and test.”
“If it was so easy, why wouldn’t you do it?”
“Because I have work for him.” Antonidas replied, a stern look upon his face, “and you would not be the only one tutoring the child. The rest of us will be aiding from time to time, taking her measure, seeing if she is a threat, finding out where she came from and molding her into a proper mage of Dalaran.”
Kel’Thuzad blinked, his eyes practically glowing with realisation. “You’re talking about a successor. You really believe she is the next Aegwynn?” He asked in wonder.
“No,” admitted Antonidas. “But I could feel the power within her, and power unguided is dangerous. I intend to guide it to the benefit of our city, for all of Azeroth.”
“I.. Very well.” Kel’Thuzad grudgingly conceded. “But I will only accept her if she wishes to join our order.”
“Then we best get down to it,” Krasus smiled. “We haven’t even learned her name.”
The comment caused most of the gathered mages to smile, some even let out a chuckle.
“Well then,” Drenden clapped his hands together, restoring silence to the assembled six, “let’s hope that she accepts out offer. If not, we will just find her a job at the nearest gnome workshop where she’ll hopefully be killed by an explosion, thereby ending all our issues with her.”
Antonidas shook his head ruefully at the remark. And they call me morbid.
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Really digging this story so far, excited to see more.
Is sunset turn to be a human
I really like this so far! I hope you'll continue this story, I'm really curious how Sunset's involvement will change the course of Azeroth's history!
And what do you know, speak of the archmage and he appears. I look forward to seeing the ripples that come about from the intersection of Sunset Shimmer and Kel’Thuzad.
Kel'Thuzad is still one of the six,. This is before the First War?
I really like the detail of Sunset referring to Jaina in "pony" terms (ie Mare). Good job!
Now now Krasus, your MUCH too busy, you have your duties at the Kirin Tor when your not tending to your OTHER duties.
BTW, Good Job Rhonin, Krasus got that Booty Call he is overdue for.
giving her to KT that's an interesting play
9831003
iirc Kel was pushing the boundaries of what is "Acceptable" by the Kirin tor for a while, he was not ousted till about the 2nd war/the plague. Jaina is an apprentice, seems like roughly the time she would meet Arthas for the first time, this helps in placing it, so likely the first war has happened or very close. But this just makes me worry for Sunsets teaching if shes under Kel'Thuzad. Shes obviously strong, and not above researching into dark topics...
Edit: went back and checked, Jaina was born before the first war, she became an apprentice around the second war. Havent read any other chapters yet!, but more will be revealed in later chapters.
Aww, it's all the VIP mages! I like this story already.