Twilight and the Jewel of Life

by King Ice

Ready for Appleloosa

“We don’t have much time since we have to get to Appleloosa quickly,” Twilight started as Luna, and her friends stood around her. “We won’t have time to go to Ponyville and prepare stuff for our journey; fortunately, Princess Celestia gave us enough bits to spend in procurement of anything useful: food, bags, books and clothes…” Twilight listed while the others listened carefully. “We’ll split up and get the supplies we need, then see you at the train stations going for Appleloosa,”

“Oh, I’m so buying tons of candies!” Pinkie exclaimed in ecstasy as Twilight gave to each of them a bag of bits.

Twilight indicated what each one of them had to buy, then went to the closest bookstore. She was planning to find a book that could give her more clues to the Jewel’s location since the one Princess Celestia gave her wasn’t really specific enough. Moreover, what the Princesses told her earlier didn’t help her think at all; it was quite shocking to say the least… Twilight sighed and tried to forget about it until she finds the Jewel. She looked around and saw a bookstore close to a small bakery. She inspected it closer, then nodded as she felt satisfied of the store. It was big and had numerous books. She was sure to find some that could help her in her quest. The store owner seemed to be reading a journal, ignoring the Princess of Friendship completely.

Twilight didn’t mind and simply walked to the history section, then planned on going where the books on old tales were. It was still possible that an event like this could be seen as a myth by many. Since she couldn’t read now, not having enough time. She grabbed the books that aroused her interest the most. The books referring to the oldest events and myths, plus a book referencing all the known magical artifacts. She’d have to read them all on the train to Appleloosa.

Meanwhile, Pinkie Pie and Applejack came in a grocery store close to the train station; it not only had cakes but also sweets. There also was sandwiches, fruits and vegetables; they really did have everything! Not that it bothered the two mares; it was exactly what they were looking for.

“Good afternoon! What can I do for you?” The stallion behind the counter greeted them.

“We’re preparing food supplies for a travel, I think you have everything we need!” Applejack answered while looking around.

“Well of course I have! My shop is the best in Canterlot, by far!” The store owner exclaimed as he smirked. “Go at the back of the shop; there are sandwiches and…”

“Oh, you don’t need telling us!” Pinkie interrupted as she jumped in front of him. “We’ll purchase everything!”

The stallion blinked a few times, rehearsing the words in his head. Then opened his mouth. “Excuse me, but what did you say?”

“I said: we’ll purchase everything, thank you!” Pinkie Pie repeated while the stallion stumbled, keeping himself from fainting.

“Now, Pinkie, I’m pretty sure we don’t have enough money for that,” Applejack interjected as she ran to the shop owner to help him stand. “We’ll just take the bare essentials. If we need more, we’ll just buy at Appleloosa. We don’t even know how long this journey will take anyway,” She added, reassuring the stallion.

“Oooooh… okie dokie!” Pinkie replied, slightly disappointed at first, but then got over it quickly.

The stallion sighed in relief, happy that his business wasn’t ready to collapse yet. He spent the next minutes helping Applejack and Pinkie Pie select their food. The pink mare kept repeating they were on a journey to save the world from a bad guy. Although the stallion couldn’t help but doubt it since they both seemed to be too laid back for something so dangerous.

Rarity and Luna walked through Canterlot, seeking a clothing store. Unsurprisingly, Rarity had thought they may need warm clothes if one of the locations Princess Celestia indicated was in a cold place. However, asking Princess Luna for more information wasn’t possible since she couldn't place all the locations either. It seemed that her sister has been inside her room for days and hadn’t come out once! When she did, she had prepared everything and gave the book to Twilight. Rarity didn’t ask further; she did want to know what happened to the Princess of the sun to cause her to behave like this, but thought it was none of her business. Truthfully, she feared it was because of an argument between the two princesses; if one of them got possessed by the nightmare… it would be a disaster!

Rarity didn’t spend much time with the Princess of the moon, so she didn’t know her that well. However, she was surprisingly lovable!

“Oh my, you are magnificent in this dress, Princess!” Rarity smiled as she clapped her hooves.

Luna wore a dark blue dress matching the color of her coat and her mane. A few ponies in the shop stared at her with eyes and mouths wide open in bewilderment to see one of the princesses here; trying dresses no less! However, Luna didn’t have as much enthusiasm as the white unicorn. When she looked at herself in the mirror; she admitted she was beautiful! However, she wasn’t the type of pony to love and try a dozen of dresses a day, especially when Equestria’s fate was at stake! Besides, did these ponies have to stare at her like that? It was getting really uncomfortable…

Simultaneously, Twilight had a few books in her magical hold while she read the titles of the books still on their shelves. So far, she has picked: “Equestrian History”, “Myths and Legends: should we believe them?” and one of the most popular: “Encyclopedia of Magic”. She already read them all of course, but she could have missed something. Moreover, she wasn’t seeking anything specifically when she read them the first time or the… 5 other times.

Suddenly, Twilight heard the flapping of wings, a flapping she’d recognize anywhere. She narrowed her eyes, then turned around and stared at the pegasus sneaking behind her.

“Rainbow! What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be helping the others?” Twilight asked, annoyed and curious.

“Well… I figured I wouldn’t be of any help, so I came to buy one or two Daring books, you know…” Rainbow Dash answered while looking away.

Twilight facehoofed; first at the castle and now this? Was it all a joke to them? “Rainbow, can’t you be a little more serious? Don’t you realize the situation we’re in?!”

“Of course I do! But come on! It’s like the gazillionth time this happened! We always find a way to save everypony and get everything back to normal!” Rainbow Dash replied while crossing her legs.

“I’m sorry you don’t care, but that’s not the case for me! I take this very seriously!”

“That’s weird, it reminds me of the Storm King’s invasion… You know, when you yelled at us for the same reason?” The rainbow-maned pegasus retorted, making Twilight step back.

“Oh, no… You’re right! I am doing it again!” She grunted as the books in her hold dropped on the ground. She just had to remember how she gave up on friendship that day. It was something she never wanted to relive again.

“Hey, I didn’t mean to make you feel guilty! I’m sorry, it’s just… We have to protect Equestria every single time! I don’t want to put my life on the line while Princess Celestia doesn’t get her butt off of her throne!” Rainbow Dash complained while she helped Twilight pick up her books.

Twilight looked away, thinking of Celestia and the talk she had with the princesses. “She can’t do anything Rainbow, and there is a good reason. There always is… And hey, there’s Luna with us this time! See? Celestia did do something… technically,” Twilight retorted as Rainbow stopped to think about it.

“I guess you’re right…” Rainbow replied as she scratched the back of her head.

Twilight smiled, then grabbed the books again. When Rainbow was about to go, a book teleported in front of her in a flash of purple. She raised an eyebrow, then looked at the cover and read: “Daring Do”. Twilight winked at her before looking for more books again while Rainbow flew to the counter, ready to pay.

Far from the two mares and the bookstore, near the train station, Fluttershy stood alone. She was calling for someone; someone that could help them and save Equestria easily.

“Discord!” She called. Usually, a ordinary pony wouldn’t know when someone is calling their name; however, Discord was no pony! He was the master of chaos, and saying his name was enough to invoke him… when he wanted to at least. “Disc…”

“Did you call me, my dear Fluttershy?” A voice said as Discord appeared out of thin air in front of the yellow pegasus. The mare stepped back in surprise and fear, then shook her head to come to her senses. Discord smiled playfully.

“I’m so happy to see you!” Fluttershy said as she hugged him. “We need your help! There is something…”

“Yes, I know. I’ve seen it,” The master of chaos interrupted.

“Do you know what it is?” Fluttershy asked impatiently.

Discord rubbed his chin as he thought about it. “It is quite surprising, but I don’t have any idea! It looks like it’s some sort of destructive waves of shadows,”

“Can you do something about it? Please,” Fluttershy pleaded hopefully.

“As you would expect I can! I think… maybe…” Discord answered hesitantly while scratching his neck. “Anyway, I won’t help you; I’m sorry. You and your friends must learn to do those things on your own!” He added, making Fluttershy drop her ears. “Well, I have to go! I have a party with Spike and Bic Mac! I Can’t wait for our next tea party!” He said as he disappeared instantly.

Fluttershy could only sigh; it looked like they were on their own on this one. She guessed she’d have to wait for the others, then they’ll finally go to their first destination.

Meanwhile, the guard from earlier walked through Canterlot, wearing a big cloak that covered all of his body. He looked around, making sure nobody was following or observing him. After a few minutes of walking, he entered in an alley beside a grocery story. He finally arrived in front of a door, then he knocked four times.

“Who is iiiit?” A voiced asked playfully in a singing tone. The guard almost facehoofed.

“It’s me! Stingy! How many times did we say that four knocks mean it’s one of us?” He whispered loudly in annoyance. However, he only met silence.

“Stingy who?”

“Let him in! You buffoon!” Another voice shouted from the inside.

The door finally opened as the guard, named Stingy entered. The first person he saw was a pegasus with a pink swirling mane and a purple coat. Looking more closely at his cutie mark, it was a big brain surrounded by a blue circle. The pony was smiling and closed the door after Stingy came in.

“Hi, Stingy! Where have you been?” The pegasus asked cheerfully.

“Ignore him. You know very well Star Brain isn’t the smartest among us… or among all the ponies of this city for that matter…” The voice from before said.

Stingy looked at him, the one that gave him a home and a purpose; he still recalled how they met. However, it was no time for memories. They both have grown up stronger. His friend, and leader was a unicorn. He had a short black mane with silver colored strips. His coat was royal blue while his cutie mark was a pile of stone.

“I come with fantastic news, Silver Mane!” Stingy said while his leader nodded for him to continue. “The princesses and the elements of harmony entered the castle; they’ve talked about what you sought for! They started tracking it!” He added, widening Silver’s grey eyes.

“No… It can’t be… Is it the Jewel of Life?!” He asked as he jumped in front of Stingy. “TELL ME!” He screamed in excitation.

“It is!” Stingy merely answered.

“After all these years… Placing you as a spy wasn’t a mistake after all!” He said in joy while Stingy smirked.

A green aura surrounded the guard; when it faded, the guard left his place to a changeling, black and covered with holes in his body. One of the last ones that haven’t been “reformed.” One that didn’t feel like betraying his nature. One that has already betrayed his previous queens.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t understand…” Star Brain muttered as Silver facehoofed.

“How do you don’t get it yet? I do the same ‘evil speech’ every day!” Silver Mane shouted at the pegasus, who scratched the back of his head in misunderstanding. Silver rolled his eyes, then summoned an ancient book in his magical grasp. “This is a book that has been passed down through the generations of my family. Long ago, my ancestor: Blue Horn was the leader of a small team of unicorns that worked relentlessly to develop the most powerful item that Equestria has ever had! The Jewel of Life, an artifact that could bring an end to all of our enemies!” Silver Mane explained proudly as he opened his book. “If the princesses are seeking it, then that means the same threat all those years ago has come back! The Jewel was created to destroy it, and it did.”

“Why did the Equestrians from the past hide this item?” Stingy asked, seeking an answer to something that Silver has never explained.

“Because it was a power they feared! Feared that it would fall into the wrong hooves. Equestria would have been unstoppable... Blue Horn’s name has never been mentioned in any of the history books… He was omitted after all the things he achieved! This artifact wasn’t the only one that he invented… He made many, then wrote them in this book with their history! My family always kept it, protected it with magic, so we would forever remember what a great hero he was! However, none has ever believed us… We were shamed and mocked even though we were a family of heroes that saved Equestria!” He screamed in hate as Stingy and Star stepped back.

“Does this book tell us the location?”

“Regrettably, it is something that was lost. My ancestors and even my father searched to find as many artifacts as they could; however, many were lost forever, including the Jewel. My family has saved Equestria -no- the whole world… But what did the princesses do? They became alicorns? How stupid!” He yelled in reply as he closed the book. “We should have been rightful kings; it is time I accomplish my destiny and bring back the honor of my family,” Silver answered, calming himself down.

“You are right… We three are unique, I’ll help in whatever you desire, and we’ll rule these lands!” Stingy said in excitation.

“We’re going to be kings? That’s so cool! My mom is going to be so proud!” Star added as he clapped his hooves.

“We will use the elements to lead us to the Jewel, then I’ll destroy them using one of the strongest artifacts that Blue Horn created. My father found it before his death. There were many replicas of it, but here is the real one,” Silver Mane said lustfully as he summoned a new item with his magic. It was an amulet that bore the effigy of a black-and-gray winged unicorn, along with a massive black gem. “The Original Alicorn Amulet,” He announced.

Stingy and Star widened their eyes in wonder and admiration, the aura of the amulet alluring them.

“It multiplies the power of the wearer, but as you can see: its power is dark and corruptive. I will wear it in case of emergency only,” Silver explained as the amulet disappeared in a flash. His underlings shook their heads, coming back to their senses. “My time has finally come,” He smirked.

Comments

[ILikeFanfiction1234]

this looks interesting can't wait to read this

[King Ice]

9971866
Thank you!

[SonicStreak5344]

Sounds similar to Arceus and the Jewl of Life movie.

[King Ice]

9972183
I thought about that movie when I thought of the title It was a coincidence, but then I noticed the similarity

[SonicStreak5344]

9972185
Yeah I noticed that.