The Immortal Dream

by Czar_Yoshi

Descent to Madness

A pall hung over the group as they continued descending, Faye's ears folding in an attempt to block out the memories of fiery destruction. Those would be returning to haunt her dreams, she knew. But it was no use.

How could she reconcile this with the way she had made Halcyon? The previous world had done a fantastic job destroying itself on its own, without the help of its gods, and then they returned to seal the deal. There was no way to interpret the fight she had seen benevolently. But Halcyon...

In the days before she was taken, Halcyon had been increasingly unstable as the pillars of her identity were chipped away. She fixated on the goal of finding Starlight, ignored her friends and tried to run from her troubles with Corsica. Part of this, surely, was because chasing the light spirit had been a foundational goal Halcyon was made around, and fate itself had conspired to give her more important things to do. But the most generous way to interpret the vision she had been given was that gods were unreliable.

Faye didn't want to think about the conclusions a cynic could draw.

Either way, she resolved to herself not to share the memories of her time in this place with Halcyon, whenever they were reunited. Halcyon wouldn't be thrilled if she ever found out, especially after they had been making an effort to be closer together, but this was important. Maybe once Halcyon was more stable, she could better handle it.

"Not that I wanna jinx anything," Rainbow Dash said, hovering alongside the group, "but the mood in here is kinda... not what I was expecting from a Crystal Palace expedition."

"You think!?" Twilight burst out.

Rainbow backed off, holding up her forehooves. "Woah-"

Twilight finished. "This is all wrong. There is nothing harmonic about a place where golems intrude on your private thoughts, arrogant ponies ruin science's good name, we get haunted by mysterious cloaked giants, and random staircases show apocalyptic visions of the end of the world! A place like this existing somewhere in the world, sure, that's one thing. But not in the middle of a sanctum for harmony! If the Princesses knew about this and built their castle here, why didn't they do anything about it? Why doesn't my element's flame do anything about it? What can I do about it? And why here, of all places? There's too many questions, and none of this makes sense!"

"Well, there's a whole barn full of context I'm sure I'm missing," Applejack announced. "But at least one part of this makes a whole lot of sense to me. I bet you anything the state of this place is related to those black vines what invaded Ponyville when we had to give back the Elements to the tree."

"Hypothetically speaking," Rarity added, "suppose you tried thinking at this from a different angle. If someone had a supreme amount of ancient chaos they needed to seal away, what better place to keep it neutralized than one of the most harmonic locations in the world? Perhaps Luna and Celestia built their castle here not to have close access to a resource, but to stand guard over a threat?"

"Hopefully that wouldn't mean the flame is busy, and can't help us with my own flame," Fluttershy murmured.

Faye tried to focus again on the core of emotions rising up from below without getting pulled in, which was a lot like trying to look at the sun while a crowd of paparazzi were firing off camera flashes from all directions. But it was still the same solemnity she had felt from the surface, bereft of aggression of malice. This place was a monument, not a jail. And if it was a jail, it was for something that remained here of its own accord.

But Twilight looked mildly heartened by Rarity's suggestion, and there was no good way to talk about the emotions she was sensing without risking outing herself as a changeling queen, so she held her tongue.

"Starlight?" Pinkie asked. "You aware of any giga-baddies forgotten by conventional history who could randomly happen to be locked up down below?"

"The world is full of things like that," Starlight said, her face stony. She didn't elaborate.

"...What about you two?" Rainbow looked back at Seigetsu and Nanzanaya. "Either of you got a clue why this place is the way it is?"

"Legends of this time persist amongst my people," Seigetsu confirmed. "After so many years, it is difficult to separate fact from myth. However, none of them speak glowingly of the ponies of this era. Perhaps the master of this place desires a reminder of what ponykind was before coming under its influence."

"Mmm..." Nanzanaya mused. "Well, if you can kill or evict a Flame of Harmony, maybe you can corrupt one as well?"

Applejack put a reassuring hoof on Twilight's shoulder. "If that's the case, then maybe we can purify it again?"

Twilight squared her shoulders. "Whether we can or can't, we won't find out by lingering on this staircase. Come on, everyone!"

The group started moving again, once again with her at the lead.

---

By the time the stairs ended, Corsica had been going down for so long that standing on flat ground felt like going uphill.

They were in a wide hallway that stretched to the left and right, lined with support columns and geometric decorations in the crystal. It was just as heavily ornamented as the atrium up above, albeit with a lower ceiling. Nondescript doors studded the walls, and the ends curved gently out of sight.

"Well? Which way now?" Twilight glanced at Fluttershy.

Fluttershy pointed at the wall directly in front of them. "Still that way. We're very close."

"You think this hallway might be a circle around wherever we're trying to go?" Rainbow asked.

"Shouldn't be too hard to find out," Applejack said.

Rainbow saluted and sped off.

As she disappeared around the curve, everyone else seemed inclined to rest their hooves after the staircase. Instead of joining them, Corsica opted to check out one of the doors that lined the hall - all closed, and all giving her an office vibe. Each one had a ring.

Experimentally, she gave the first door's ring a tap.

"Welcome," said a familiar voice as her special talent winked into existence in the ring. "You have reached the office of Inquirarch Andromeda. What is your business today?"

Yup. Office space. "Can you open this door?" Corsica asked, tapping on the crystal.

"Inquirarch Andromeda is available by appointment only," the ring responded. "Your identity does not appear to match any registered appointments. Would you like to apply for an appointment?"

"When would he be available?" Corsica asked.

"Inquirarch Andromeda has her first opening seven months, one week and four days from now, a twelve-minute slot at four thirty-seven AM. Applicants are required to submit to a background check and all meetings are subject to administrative approval. Would you like to apply?"

Classical bureaucracy. "Is that actually the first opening?" Corsica asked. "Or is this a pre-set 'go away' message for anyone who doesn't try to reach your boss through the proper channels?"

The ring was quiet for a second. "Touche," it eventually said. "In order to reach the administration with inquiries too urgent or complex to be handled by this Macrothesis automated support system, please go to the Office of the Secretariat on the fourteenth floor. In the future, please remember that, while capable of understanding humor, this Macrothesis automated support system is not a toy. Have a nice day."

Corsica's talent faded from the ring of its own accord.

"Huh," she said aloud, staring at it for a moment longer. "Strange machine."

Cursory checks of the next few rings revealed that all of the doors belonged to Inquirarch offices: Antlia, Apus, Aquarius. Before Corsica could go too far, though, Rainbow Dash returned, flying in from the opposite direction she had left in.

"Yep," she confirmed, skidding to a halt with a salute. "It's a ring. There are four big windows that show what's in the middle, the closest is just back that way, and I bet it's exactly what we're here for."

That caused the mood to lighten a little. "Excellent," Twilight insisted, jumping to her hooves. "...How did it look? Good omen, bad omen...?"

Rainbow just waved her along with a shrug. "Come on and see for yourself."

---

Looking out the panoramic window, Faye felt as if she was staring into the eye of an emotional storm.

The hallway was a ring, and she could see its other windows interspersed along cardinal directions in the distance. It was supported by great crystal pillars that grew up from the ether river just a stone's throw below. In the middle of the ring, a shallow cluster of slick, shiny black rocks broke the river's surface, never rising more than a foot or two above the river, their surfaces cracked and weathered like pine cones, as if they had been shaken and hammered and just barely not broken apart. And in the middle of the cluster of rocks, there sat a small, dilapidated church, completely undecorated yet made from large crystal bricks that glowed with a faint rainbow sheen.

That church was the heart. And in the space immediately around it, Faye could sense nothing but calm.

"Usually, there's a tree trunk there," Starlight muttered, barely audible. "But that's the core. There's no mistaking it."

"But how do we get there?" Rarity asked. "This is quite a nice view, but it makes it rather apparent there's no way down there."

"The way is there for those who seek it," said a voice bent and broken with age. "It is right in front of you."

Faye spun around, along with everyone else. It was the hooded giant.

Part of its robe lifted, revealing a wizened talon. The talon snapped, and the window retracted slowly into the ceiling as the ether river began to ripple. A bridge of rainbow crystal broke the surface, snakelike and winding, rising into place to connect the window ledge to the dark rocks below.

"Who are you?" Twilight asked the giant as it withdrew into its robe once again.

"I am the keeper of this place," it said, turning toward the church. "Come. My house is just ahead. I have looked into your hearts, and all of you are welcome to enter."

Faye followed its gaze... but when she looked at it again, it was gone.

Rainbow tapped the bridge, still hovering. "Seems solid enough?"

Single-file, the group proceeded.

Faye stepped off the bridge and onto the rocks at the end. Slick and shiny, they somehow provided impeccable traction, bare inches from the river of ether. Ether flowed through the tiny cracks in the surface, and through the bigger cracks between stones, and she followed the group carefully as Starlight picked out a path toward the church that involved the least jumping from stone to stone, keeping the number one rule of working with ether from Icereach in her mind: if you were a batpony, don't fall in.

The surface of the river would actually feel solid, and she wouldn't sink. But physically touching the river itself was a sublimely addictive experience, and only the most iron-willed of sarosians could willingly leave it again without the aid of friends to pull them out and keep them from ever returning.

Climbing across the rocks, trying not to slip on the impossibly rough footing, felt like walking upside-down on invisible black clouds across the midnight sky. Faye leaned in out of curiosity, the river so close that she had to mind her tail to avoid it dipping in, and a spangle of constellations more vivid than any she had seen from afar greeted her, humming with energy, occasionally flaring up with ghostly wisps and tendrils of green. She wasn't touching it, but could feel it in her mind already, a shadow of the force that intoxicated other batponies and refused to let them go: an infinite, steadfast potential and hope, a determination to clutch at the future and shape it as she desired, an indomitable and inextinguishable will to survive. It was so pure and singular that it almost - almost - drowned out the force of the Crystal Palace's heart, here at the center where that emotion was still.

Or perhaps it was because of the steadying influence of the river that this place was still at all.

The church was set low on the rocks, no foundation to raise it above the ether. Even the slightest ripple in the river's mirrorlike surface felt like it could intrude over the lip of the door, and yet this place was too peaceful for that to ever be possible. It was an enforced peace, as if Faye's heart itself was holding its breath to avoid disturbing something truly ancient and slumbering. But despite the precarious positioning, she knew this place was safe.

Ironridge's palace, with its dying flame, hadn't felt at all like this. Was this how every intact palace felt? Or was this one different still?

Inside the church, a single aisle was flanked by three rows of pews, leading up to an open space with an altar: a flat, circular crystal table. She felt like she had seen its like before, in the Ironridge palace, though this one was connected to the river at its base through shallow channels carved into the crystal floor. High on the wall, at the back of the room, was an emblem depicting a dragon and an equine embracing each other in harmony. And beneath it stood the hooded giant.

"This is..." Twilight whispered, standing at the forefront.

"Welcome, Blood of the Shackles," the giant said, its voice reverberating. "I am Convergence. The flame of this palace and the first Element of Harmony."

"You're a Flame of Harmony?" Twilight whispered. "But you have a body."

"Long ago," Convergence said, "the world was beset by two intractable calamities. One was the destruction of the physical realm, spurred on by entropy and the war of the gods. The other was the collapse of society, as ponies lost the ability to trust one another and could no longer agree on a vision for the future, or even their reason for living. The ultimate solution to these problems was the creation of a new world, underwritten by new natural laws that provide guidance and a universal moral compass to ponies in their lives while also holding the ravages of entropy at bay. Laws with which you and your friends are intimately familiar."

"The Elements of Harmony," Twilight said.

"The World of Harmony is all that any of you have ever known," Convergence continued. "Even you, dragon, whose people do not partake in the cycle of purpose. Even you, zebra, whose fathers and forefathers before them live in a land where those laws have broken down. Even you, children of the north, where society bears many traces of the one that necessitated this change. To all of you, the Elements of Harmony are immutable, the laws of this world absolute. But they were not handed down from on high. They were chosen as lodestars by ponies as flawed as any other. Throughout the millennia since this world was given life, philosophers have debated why the Elements are what they are... as well as the true nature of my own. Twilight Sparkle, what is your answer?"

Twilight took a step back. "What do you mean? What do I think my Element is? Why do I think the other Elements are laughter, kindness, loyalty, etc? As opposed to anything else?"

"Yes."

"My Element brings my friends together," Twilight said. "The other Elements. That's why you called yourself Convergence. It's a wildcard, the glue that adjusts for our uniqueness as ponies and becomes what we need to compliment each other's strengths and bridge across our differences. And their Elements are what they are because those were all things that are missing in the city out there. No one listens to each other, or apologizes when they bump into each other. No one is happy. No one gives each other the benefit of the doubt. But why do you surround yourself with this?"

"You are... correct," said Convergence. "And yet also incorrect. The tenets that constitute absolute good in this world were but lucky guesses, stumbled upon by desperate ponies in search of any answer that could save them. But what of the evils you fight against? Experimentation produces successes and failures alike. Chaos was originally created as a corrupting agent by those in search of ways to invert the problematic aspects of our natures. In your world, oriented by design around an absolute truth, such inversions are usually deleterious. But in these days, it was seen by some as a possible avenue toward the salvation of their minds."

Applejack narrowed her eyes. "You sure about that? Because it sounds an awful lot to me like a way for some ponies to make others fall in line."

"Such concerns were numerous," Convergence said. "And played a large role in why that experiment was ultimately regarded a failure. Others met with failure as well. Long before the world's desertification became regarded as apocalyptic, ponies tried to ignore it, or else responded to it using more conventional means. One of those means, as resources rose in scarcity, was to prioritize their own well-being over the other peoples of their world. This formed the beginnings of a rift which culminated in events well-enshrined in your own history."

It focused on Seigetsu.

"You are referring to Saint Tadashi," Seigetsu said. "Who stole power from the ponies and used it to carry monsters and dragons safely through the calamity."

"The legends," Convergence breathed, "are accurate. And the consequences endure even today. Many of the foes faced by the Elements are Abyssinians, whose nation and history can recall no time when things were any way but the way they are now. One of the greatest failings of this new world was that it was created only with ponies in mind. Its creators had not anticipated that other forms of life would endure. And, in this world's early days, their newfound peace was fractured nigh instantly by those unsettled grudges, carried over from the last world."

"But my people now hold Equestria as esteemed allies," Seigetsu pointed out. "Despite our ancient history, Cernial showed mercy on the refugees of Unicornia two thousand years ago, and that faith was repaid in multitude."

"A commendable act," Convergence told her. "Once they learned of this history from me, Equestria's rulers were also determined to make amends. But even though you have bridged one ancient rift, another opens to replace it. Now you war ceaselessly with your Abyssinian kin."

"...Yes," Seigetsu admitted. "We do."

Twilight swallowed. "Where are you going with this? You... must know why we're here, right?"

Convergence focused on Fluttershy. "You come in search of succor for my injured sibling."

"We do," Fluttershy said, staring into the void of its hood. "We don't know what it will take to save my flame, but another Crystal Palace was the best hope we had."

"...You are correct," Convergence told her. "The energies of another flame, administered within their seat of power, will be sufficient to return Kindness to a self-sustaining form."

"So you can help us, then?" Twilight's ears rose. "Can we get right to it? I know I'll feel a lot better about this once we have what we came for."

"No," Convergence said solemnly. "I am uniquely unsuited for that role."

Twilight's eyes widened. "What do you mean?"

Convergence looked at her. "Because... of all the failed experiments endured to create this world, I am by far the greatest."

Twilight took a step back. An audible shudder ran through the room.

"What do you mean?" Twilight whispered.

"The Elements of Harmony were created to bridge a paradox; to meet two requirements in stark opposition to each other," Convergence said, its words echoing out from beneath its dark hood. "We had to embody rigid and unchanging ideals that would not become deformed by the flow of time. We also had to be equine enough that we could be applicable to ponies' daily lives, and not an abstraction only relevant to philosophers and the world's physical laws. Ultimately, this was achieved through a process involving the sundering and tempering of souls. While complete souls are both too flexible and too weak to endure the one-dimensional demands of our duty, it was discovered that souls could be split into more rigid, less complex parts that each embody a facet of the original person. This technique became the basis of the construction of the flames: souls stripped of everything unnecessary to their duties and identities as Flames of Harmony. We were people, once. But we became something lesser, so that on our backs, the world might be reborn."

Everyone listened with wide eyes.

"I was a prototype for that process," Convergence went on. "The first successfully created flame. However, the only purpose in my creation was to prove the soundness of the process. Prior to this, the plan that resulted in my genesis was only regarded as one fool's errand among many. The framework for what principles ponies wished to be guided by had not yet been established: there was no concept of Generosity, Laughter, Kindness, Honesty and Loyalty as all being guiding forces in the lives of ponies in the future. Though I was created with all the power of my siblings, my purpose was chosen purely for ease of experimentation. It had no philosophical significance beyond that single fact."

It bowed its hooded head. "I am Convergence: the desire of a fractured soul to become whole again. My creators believed that if this desire was isolated first, then it would not be present in the rest of the soul, making it easier to remove and manipulate. Twilight Sparkle, you have used this power to draw the other Elements together and hold them in an orbit around yourself. They are stronger together. But the true nature of this power is to mend shattered souls and make them whole again. It can return the Elements of Harmony to their original, whole states... and in doing so, unmake them, and deprive this world of its very foundation."

Twilight was perfectly still.

"This is why I cannot aid you, even in the salvation of my sibling," Convergence said. "Were she to be remade by my power, Elemental Kindness would cease to exist, and the world would crumble. You must seek another way."

"My Element is..." Twilight whispered, staring frozen at the ground. "The power to unmake other Elements? Drawing them together is just an accidental consequence of that? The first step in the process?"

Convergence watched her.

"Does that mean I'm a threat to my friends?" Twilight asked. "That if I-"

"No," Convergence said. "The Elements were designed to be incorruptible and singularly focused, to never stray from our duty. But I have already told you of another tool designed to change the course of all it touches."

Its cloak began to shimmer, and then tear, except it was less like the fabric was tearing and more like the space around it was being rent by a thousand needles of time. And when it was gone, a thing remained.

It could generously be called equine, but was far too long, its body hunched and coiled up into the rough shape of a giant despite being lithe and graceful. It had a white mane, twice as long as Princess Celestia's, and black eyes with white pupils. Mismatched horns grew from the top of its head, and its body was covered in a zebra pattern of black and white, except the white was dragon scales and the black was fur.

"That looks like Discord!" Applejack gasped.

"No way..." Rainbow breathed.

"Harmony is anathema to chaos," Convergence said, its voice echoing with power and age. "Chaos is anathema to Harmony. But to a being that was created to contain a paradox, a balance is yet possible. Every minute of every day, I make a choice to affirm that balance. And in return, that balance gives me a choice. I cannot change the nature of my power, but I may yet set its course. And I choose to remain here, surrounded by this reminder of the reason for my existence, so that every night, I might choose for the world to see another dawn."

"Then those vines-" Rarity began.

"The product of a minor disturbance in the balance," Convergence told her. "Yours is an age of great change in the world. One that makes it all the easier to question my path. But seeing your own conviction and willingness to sacrifice your power for the benefit of those around you reminded me of my duty to do the same. You have nothing to fear from reclaiming your Elemental stones and wielding them once more."

"Will the necklaces be able to help us restore Kindness, even if you can't?" Twilight asked.

Convergence considered this. "...Perhaps. However, there is another possibility."

Fluttershy rocked on her hooves.

"I have many siblings," Convergence said, its eyes sweeping the room. "Some of them reside still in their palaces, flung far across the world. Others have been displaced, and wander far from home. Had you the aid of such a transient flame, you would need only a suitable place to perform the resuscitation. And though my power itself is unsuitable for this purpose, my altar could still safely avail you. Have you the determination to try such a plan?"

Twilight shuffled awkwardly. Rainbow rubbed the back of her neck.

"I assume you mean the flame brazier," Starlight said. "Where is that, anyway? This looks like a map table room, but we're at the bottom already. The Lifestream is right there." She pointed at the channels in the floor where the ether river flowed in.

"...I will show you," Convergence said, raising a wizened talon and snapping it.

The round table crackled with black energy, and then began to turn gray.

Twilight and all of her friends froze, but Seigetsu and Nanzanaya leaned in curiously. The table lost all color, and then began to sag, its edges sloughing off and falling to the floor in clumps of ash. Some of them landed in the ether channels, melting away like snow in running water.

The table continued to collapse, its edges falling off or slumping in until it was an indistinct mound of melting gray. It crackled a few more times, shrinking more and more as the ether ate away at its base, until it was barely a hill.

Underneath it, instead of floor, was more ash. The ether pooled in the middle of the room where the table had been, and the floor kept sinking... until suddenly it gave way.

With a rush of ether, the ash was finally consumed, washing swiftly away and leaving a hole in the center of the room.

Faye stepped closer. It was a staircase.

Carved entirely from that glassy black rock, a thin stream of ether cascaded down its steps, the stairs steep and narrow and the headroom frightfully low. Two mares could fit side by side, but not two stallions. Light itself seemed unable to penetrate the tunnel, a bleak, glistening passage beneath the bottom of the world.

"My place of power," Convergence said, "lies below."

"That goes beneath the river," Corsica pointed out. "What's even down there? Nobody at Icereach could ever detect anything at all."

"You will have to see for yourself," Convergence said. "But I will warn you. The way back up will remain open for you, but the way ahead is shut. Since it was sealed, no mortal has ever glimpsed the end. I offer you this chance because, perhaps, you will be different, and because I wish greatly for my sibling to be revived. But do not rely on the prospect of reaching my altar. Against this trial, my duty forbids me from assisting you."

"If it's a trial that awaits us..." Twilight swallowed. "We'll just have to succeed. But I have one question first. You said... the Elements are made from souls that have been narrowed down. Is that all that gives them their power?"

"...No," Convergence said. "It isn't. On its own, a sundered soul is nothing more than a person who has been deliberately shaped toward a purpose."

Twilight nodded. "And how were the original people who became Elements chosen? Were they picked from society for exemplifying their virtues? If so, who did you used to be?"

Convergence glanced to the wall, at the crystal sigil of an equine and a dragon. "That is a question you must discover the answer to yourself. I can tell you are dissatisfied with the balance I have struck, the purpose to which our power is dedicated. But once before, ponies set out to change the nature of their world, and ultimately met with success. If you think your ancestors' work was not good enough... then change it again."

Twilight hesitated, then nodded again, almost jumping toward the staircase. "I think I understand. Come on, everyone!"

"You know, you're rolling with this better than I expected," Rainbow admitted as she started to descend. "But don't you think there's someone important whose permission you should be asking before we go ahead with this plan?"

Twilight hesitated.

"It'll be fine," Starlight sighed, moving to follow them. "It'll be absolutely, completely, perfectly fine."

Everyone continued to file down the staircase, Seigetsu having an awkward time with the roof but also an easier time with the footing. Faye brought up the rear.

As Corsica's tail disappeared into the gloom, she hesitated, looking back up at Convergence. "You said..." She tried to keep her voice low. "About... the nature of your power, to put shattered souls back together..."

"I cannot see the composition of your soul," Convergence told her. "Around you, my sight is hindered. But I know what you believe to be your circumstances. You have the opportunity to choose your own path. Whether or not there exists a correct one, the choice is yours."

Faye sighed, and continued down the stairs.

Comments

[Sharp Quill]

"This is why I cannot aid you, even in the salvation of my sibling," Convergence said.

Of course not, for otherwise the story would be nearly over. We haven't even hit a million words yet!

[ZanyZapper]

"It'll be fine," Starlight sighed, moving to follow them. "It'll be absolutely, completely, perfectly fine."

Narrator: "It would, in fact, not be perfectly fine."

[Venlinelle]

It’s bonkers that chapters like these are in the same universe as the more grounded, silly character interactions we get sometimes. I feel like I’m sprinting to keep up with all the information presented.

[Alchemik]

There's too many questions, and none of this makes sense!

Ah, Twilight is reading the same story we are, then. Don't worry Twilight, we received many sweet, sweet answers this chapter.

[sploopy slooder]

beyond anything else i just want faye/halcyon/procyon to stop being so broken and cowardly. Whether that means combining back together or not matters little to me, i just want our mc back to "normal".