Dawn of a New Era

by kamijeceleek

The Council

"So you found somebody from a race that nobody's heard anything from in thousands of years?" Alex asked.

"Yep, pretty much. Dad's really excited but I'm a bit skeptical. I mean, before now, I've never even heard of them."

"I have," sighed Aurora. "They're one of Dad's favorite things to research. I've been hearing about them since I started living with him and Honeycrisp."

"What do you know, then?" Gemma inquired.

"Not much, but nobody really knows more than that. Supposedly they were the race that ponies came from, and they're somehow related to the Breezies? At any rate, the fact that they've been taken over is a little weird, too, considering that before they left unicorns, pegasi, and Earth ponies to fend for themselves they had enough power to raise the sun and moon without issue."

Magnus looked at the door to the throne room.

"Princess Twilight want us here. Why?"

"Because there's a chance we might need to accompany Niamh to check on the situation. According to her, the only Sidhe who aren't under the control of whoever conquered them are her, the princess, Granny Ciara, and the princess's uncle."

"Ooh!" Moon started jumping in place. "I hope that's it! I'd love to go on a big friendship quest with all of you! Mr. Midnight always said it's what brought Princess Twilight and the Council so close!"

The door opened and Starlight waved for them to come in.

"Luster," Twilight greeted her pupil. "I understand you're the one who found Niamh?"

"Yes." She nodded. "I had no idea that she was a Sidhe. I didn't even know what one was until a few hours ago."

"Very few do. Even what I know about them is limited. But then again, there aren't many books that mention them in the first place. Tír na nÓg, their homeland, isn't even on any of our maps."

"Not even the cutie map!" yelled Pinkie.

"I must say, the idea of anybody having butterfly wings like this is quite fascinating," Rarity commented, looking at the wings of the Sidhe. "I had them for a short time myself, years and years ago. Long before Twilight was even a princess."

"Magnus want wings!" gasped the young yak excitedly.

"The ones I received were rather fragile, especially compared to poor Niamh here. Hers took a beating but thankfully we had some remedies to fix them."

"So why are we all here, exactly?" Ember asked, looking massive compared to the other beings in the room... except, perhaps, Princess Twilight herself.

"Well, as strange as it sounds... I'd like to send Luster and her friends with Niamh."

"S-so, you're sending all of them. Instead of an army. To fight an invader?" Thorax inquired, shaking a bit.

"I'm not so sure this is a good idea," Gilda agreed. She'd taken Grandpa Gruff's place in recent years, mostly due to the fact that he was too old to make the trip through Equestria nowadays.

"I worry about one of our own going so far," mused Rain Shine of the kirin.

"Magnus brave yak!" bellowed Rutherford proudly. "He my son!"

"I think they should go," Ember stated. "This is important, and I'm sure they can have some way to communicate with us."

"This is up to each individual leader and the guardians of the students," Twilight spoke up. "However, I do believe that the more time we spend discussing is more time that the Sidhe are being oppressed and harmed. I can give you all until sunrise tomorrow and we will reconvene then."

With that, the meeting was adjourned.

---

Far away from Equestria, a dark unicorn sat atop a throne made of precious stones. He chuckled as his new subjects did as they were told, lest they incur his wrath.

"King Sombra," the lead guard, a Sidhe named Fionn, spoke up as he entered.

"Any luck locating her?"

"No, Your Majesty. There is no sign of Princess Eimear."

"Keep searching, then. Do not stop until she is found. After all..."

"She is yer bride," finished Fionn.

"Yes, and your queen, if you can find her." Sombra waved his hoof to dismiss the captain. "Send in Conor when you leave."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

After the white-haired Sidhe had left, one with a dark brown mane entered. His wings were much bigger and grander than that of the regular Sidhe, a sign of his royal status. In fact, Sombra was reminded of Celestia, Luna, Cadance, and that upstart Twilight Sparkle. Yet another reason that he hated the former king of the Sidhe. The only reason the stallion was still alive was because he was the only link they had to Princess Eimear.

"So, you still have no idea where your daughter is, correct?"

"Aye. My mum took her somewhere and I still have no clue where."

"She hasn't tried to contact you in a decade. I find that hard to believe."

"Believe what you will. Even if I was too weak ta stop ya, my girl isn't."

"Might I remind you that you surrendered without a fight?"

"Because you are far more powerful than I and I was not willing ta risk the safety of my subjects."

"Oh, how noble."

Conor raised his chin defiantly, looking down his nose at Sombra in a manner that infuriated the king.

"You absolute fool. Get out of my sight."

Conor trotted out of the room.

Eimear... stay safe. Do not let him find you.

---

As the sun rose over Equestria, Luster felt a sense of trepidation as she approached the throne room.

I might follow in Princess Twilight's hoofsteps. Or I might have to stay here while guards go with Niamh. Will they let me go on this quest? I hope they do.

"There she is," Twilight sighed as Luster entered. "Now we may begin. I hope that you have all come to a decision."

"We have," Ember replied. "Or at least, I have. I decided yesterday that allowing Alex to go is the best choice."

"Hm. Thank you. And for the rest of you?"

"I have to agree with Ember," Thorax spoke up.

One by one, the other representatives agreed. Only Rain Shine hesitated.

"Rain Shine?" Half Moon whispered.

"Can you assure me that Half Moon will be safe?" the leader of the kirin asked.

"I can never make that assertion, but as long as she's with her friends she should be fine," Twilight assured her.

"Then it's settled," Ember stated. "My only problem is there will be two ponies going and only one dragon."

"Aurora knows of the Sidhe and she can fly," Midnight argued, pulling his winged daughter close. He seemed not to notice as she pushed him away and rolled her eyes. "From what I've read of Tír na nÓg, it's in the middle of the sea. Yet another reason we haven't been able to contact them in over a millennia."

"Now isn't the time to fight," Gilda interrupted. "So two ponies are going. I say the more, the better. Besides, there isn't a hippogriff going, either, and Queen Novo isn't complaining."

"She never show up," Rutherford grumbled. "Hippogriff keep to herself."

"Rutherford," Pinkie said in a slight warning tone.

"Pink pony right. Need to be nice."

"Since we're all decided... they will be heading out as soon as Niamh is completely healed," Twilight instructed. "All of our students should prepare for their journey in the meantime."

Luster couldn't hide her smile. None of her friends, could, either. They'd seen the power of friendship firsthoof and it would be amazing to take it on a journey like that Princess Twilight and the Council had undertaken all those years ago.

---

"You're quiet. It's not like you."

"Oh, you noticed?" Starlight sighed as Sunburst sat down on the couch next to her.

"Of course I did. What's wrong?"

"I'm... worried. About Luster going on this trip." She took a deep breath. "She's still young. Really young. When we started doing all this we were a lot older. We had more experience. She's always either been here or in Canterlot. I mean, I didn't have the best experiences prior to my friendship studies... but I traveled. I learned about the world. Luster hasn't had that experience yet."

"So what better way to get it than by traveling across Equestria to save a long-lost civilization?"

"You aren't worried about her?"

"I am. I'm always worried about her. But she's not a filly anymore. We need to let go, or we'll become..."

"Stellar Flare and Firelight." Sunburst laughed.

"Yeah. Our parents. We've done better. Luster wrote to us while she was living in Canterlot, which is more than either of us did."

"I just wish there was some way we could check up on her, talk to her. There's not going to be a lot of letter-writing opportunities..."

"We'll talk to Twilight and Luster before they leave, I promise."

"Mom? Dad?"

They looked to see Firecracker in the doorway. He had the same white socks on his legs as his father and grandmother and looked so darn adorable as he rubbed his eyes.

"Oh, it's your bedtime, isn't it?" Starlight sighed. "Come on, sweetheart. I'll tuck you in and tell you how me and Thorax saved the changelings."

"Where's Luster going?"

"She's... she's going on a journey for Princess Twilight. Remember Niamh?"

"The pony with butterfly wings?"

"Yeah. Luster and her friends are going to help Niamh save her home," Starburst explained.

"But she just came home!"

"She'll be back. I promise. And she'll spend even more time with you then."

That seemed to satisfy the colt and Starlight carried him to bed while Sunburst headed to the library.

Luster's going to need all the help she can get...

Author's Note:

A short Starburst segment to end it.

I'm probably going to write a Starburst oneshot at some point. I don't have as many ships for MLP as some probably do, but Starburst and Fluttercord are two of my favorites.

Keep an eye out for the next chapter!

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