End of an Age
Author's note : I've got a lot of help before and after publishing the first two chapters and I want to thank them all so here I go in chronological order. First I want to thank a friend of mine who is my first pre-reader and goes by the pseudonym Idilsur. Then I have to thanks y1fellas and IceColt who helped me tackle the most jarring grammatical mistakes in the first chapter. And finally I want to thanks Null and Kasune who gave me a lot of advices on how to improve this story. Again, thank you all.
1930 A.D
Chapter 1 : End of an Age
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1117 B.D, Summer
Twilight Sparkle woke up to find herself in pitch-black darkness, a headache pounding at the base of her horn. Trying to get up, she saw that her back hooves were restrained by some sort of chains, preventing her from moving more than a few steps.
Ignoring the ache, she tried to illuminate the tip of her horn, but a violent spasm of pain sent her back to the ground, shaking violently. A couple of minutes later, the pain became manageable once again, allowing her to think straight.
The head low, Twilight tried to take stock on the events of the past few months, when her train of thought was stopped by the sound of an opening door somewhere to her left. She heard the clatter of hooves on stone, and light started to spread in the corridor in front of her. Now that she could see her surroundings, she understood that she was in some sort of underground cell. The clatter grew louder and louder until a gray coated earth pony in shining armor appeared behind the bars. From what Twilight knew, he was an officer.
What the gray stallion saw was the most pitiful thing he ever witnessed. Before him was a frail, aged and tired unicorn, with a grayish-purple coat, and a somewhat darker mane with a large, gray streak in the middle. The most disturbing thing in the before hom scene however, was her horn, or more appropriately, her lack of horn, which had been severed at the base of her skull.
“I am truly sorry for what they have done to you” the stallion said pointing a hoof to Twilight head, looking effectively pained, “we are not barbarians, but we couldn’t let the most powerful unicorn alive to be able to free herself...”.
Twilight paled and started to shake as the realization of what happened struck her. For the first time in years, she did something she had never allowed herself : she gave up, the despair of her condition sapping her last strength. In shock, she wasn’t able to do anything, be it to cry or to try to escape, and the room remained silent for what seemed like hours.
Then another pair of clatters came from the corridor and the stallion turned is head in it’s direction, frowning.
“I guess it’s time to go now.”
The gray stallion opened the door of the cell with a pair of keys that were hanging to a piton ridiculously close from the cell door. Twilight force a sad smile on her when she saw the stallion grab the key. If they hadn’t mutilated her, freeing herself would have been the easiest of her feats ever. If she still had the will...
A light blue mare and a brown stallion appeared in the corridor. They were wearing golden armor that must have been shining brightly a long time ago, but now they were tarnished and scraped all over. The new guards flanked Twilight before putting her on her hooves, and then proceeded to take off her chains. The head low she let them guide her in the corridor. Soon they were trotting in a vast dungeon designed like a maze to prevent escape, the officer taking the lead. Fifteen minutes later, the procession reached a massive wooden door. When they saw their superior, a couple of guards pushed them open with grunts of effort.
The light that came through brought back Twilight headache and forced her to close her eyes, her vision weakened by her time spent in darkness. But this did not prevent her from hearing the clamor of the crowd, roars of hatred, insults and cries of victory...
The guard to her left pushed her forward, and Twilight forced open her eyes and as a last act of defience, watched the crowd with a fierce glare. She had been led in some sort of arena, a block waiting for her in the middle of the open space. Near it, an executioner with a leather cap covering his face waited for her with an enormous axe in his teeth.
The last thoughts of Twilight went to her long lost friends, as she hoped to meet them on the other side.
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Tuesday, April 17th 1923 A.D, 16:43
“... after her defeat, the execution of Twilight Sparkle was closely followed by the self-exile of Celestia, marking the end point to the golden age of Equestria.”
Jack carefully closed the book with her hoof, doing her best not to damage it. Looking at the back cover, the earth pony saw a symbol similar to the one on some of the wall of the ruin, a quarter moon in a starry sky. The light provided by the oil lamp was flickering now, and Jack wondered how much time she had passed down there.
“Winthrop, are you here ?” a flash of light danced in the ancient library, revealing long aisles filled with books and scrolls worn by the time, as Marc Vecquer appeared at the entrance with a worried expression.
“Ah, Jack, here you are !” Said the earth pony, his face lighting up with relief. The stallion was clearly in its fifties, and the dust on his mane made him look even older.
Marc approached the young mare, careful not to blind her with his flashlight.
“I was searching for you for hours ! Don’t ditch the team like that, you never know if there has been a collapse in these damn ruins.” Marc stopped in it's tracks when he saw the book in Jack hooves.
“Did you find something ?” he asked, excitement showing on it's face.
Jack hoofed him the book carefully while partaking in Marc's effervescence, and proceeded to sum up its content.
“Well, it’s a miracle that this one survived all that time ! I don’t know how but it is better preserved than any other book in these ruins. Almost every other one crumbled to dust when I tried to pick them up, and when they don’t, most of the time they are illegible.” Jack stated, pointing to several fragment of books and rotten wood on the nearby shelves.
“Anyway, this one is incredible. It’s written in ancient Equestrian, so I had some bad times deciphering it , so I sticked to it's end and peeking here and there. From what I've read, I think it recount the discovery and the lives of the prophets. I don't know why it also call them 'the last bearer of the elements of harmony'." Jack continued her exposition with a growing enthusiasm. "But there is more ! It clearly contradicts all what we knew about them before!" She was on the verge of jumping around like a foal, as always when she let her passion take control.
Marc had always been amused by his assistant antics, although this time a frown crept on his face.
“What ?” asked Jack, shooting him a stern look.
“Oh, well, you did a good work Jack, and the Church will certainly shit their pants when they'll learn that we found the ‘history’ of their prophets, but I hoped for, you know, something more... historically accurate” said the old pony, tapping gently Jack’s back with his hoof. Irritated by the diminutive gesture, the mare smacked his hoof
“It’s not because this book is focused on religion that it doesn’t contain any useful information !” countered Jack, “If one reads between the lines, we could make some major discovery ! Besides, as I told you, it seems totally different from what we knew !” She was more upset by her mentor patronizing demeanor than it's disdain for her discovery, but did her best to stay calm.
“Well, if you say so, we should celebrate ! I’m pretty sure I still have one of those bottle of Bourbon I brought from London” concluded Marc with a wide smile, trying to defuse the situation at hoof.
“Anyway, our guide told me that a sandstorm is heading our way, we must go back to the camp. If the storm passes over the entrance, we’ll be trapped in there and the team will never be able to find us before it’s too late. Come on” added the aging stallion, pushing Jack toward the exit.
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1066 B.D, Fall
“Where are you Tia ?” thought a dark blue alicorn, looking in the distance.
“Did the pain go away after all this time ?”
It has been fifty years since Celestia was gone, unable to put up with her loss, and that Luna had to rule the realm on her own. Ruling wasn’t the hardest part though. Now Luna had to carry their plans alone, no matter how difficult.
“Your Highness ?” an earth pony with a charcoal coat appeared before her and bowed in reverence.
“The transfer of the royal records in the new royal library of Ponyville is progressing well, your Highness, we have good hope that it will be complete in less than two days now”
“Thank you counselor, you may go.” responded the princess, trying to mimic her sister calm and regal manner, complete with a smile of her own that she had practiced a long time.
Luna looked once more at Canterlot from the balcony. Her old residence was still magnificent, but even from here it she could see how empty the city was. There was no chimney smoke, no pegasi coming and going. The alicorn emerged from her reverie, shacking her head slowly. It wasn't the time to feel nostalgic, a new order had to take place and even if she wanted, she couldn't go back to those day.
The princess refocused her attention on the book she had just finished writing. Placed on her desk, the book had on its front cover the emblem of the sun of Celestia, while Luna’s moon was on the back.
“Here is my message in a bottle into the sea of time” the alicorn thought aloud.
Luna knew that the very existence of this book was dangerous, but since the departure of Celestia in exile, she had not many things to hang onto, and it had kept her from falling apart. Besides, she always felt than her sister's plan was relying to much on luck and needed a little help.
Luna grabbed the book, put it under her wing, and headed to the corridor. She went down stairs after stairs, before ending up at the entrance of the royal library. Two guards were standing there, impassible.
“Leave me.”
“Yes, your Highness !” The guards bowed before quickly climbing the stairs.
The princess pushed open the door and walked past many different bookcases, full of the history of Equestria from the foundation of the realm to today, before stopping herself in front of the largest one.
She put the book to her lips and whispered : “By these words you will be protected from the ravages of time until the moment comes where your knowledge is sought.”
The words helped Luna to focus the spell and soon she was satisfied by the result.
She then put the book on one of the shelves with her telekinesis. When she was done, she panted slightly and started to sweat, the effort having take more from her than she thought. She waited a couple of minutes to compose herself, and headed upstairs.
The two guards were waiting there, and bowed again when Luna approached.
“You know your orders, when the last records from Canterlot will be secured, you will seal and hide the entrance. After that, no one must enter, was I clear?”
“Yes, your Highness !”
Luna walked in the direction of her room, an image of her bed in mind, when the counselor from earlier ran to meet her.
“Your Highness, rebels are causing troubles at the edge the Everfree forest, the general Hoofstrong request your presence in the war room !”
“Thank you counselor” replied the princess before changing her path and speeding up her pace.
“They aren't ready yet, they still need me, but one day, they will have to be” Luna thought bitterly
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Saturday, September 8th 1923 A.D, 19:15
“Afraid Jack ? You shouldn't be, tonight we will just enter history, no big deal.” whispered Marc with a chuckle.
Jack shot him one of her glare. She always had the feeling that she was making a fool of herself under the spotlight, and today wasn't an exception. In general, while not asocial, she was more comfortable with books than in a crowd.
Suddenly the lights went out and a spotlight illuminated a pony in formal attire.
“I guess it’s our turn.” said Marc with a smile.
“Fillies and Gentlecolts, make a standing ovation for the ponies who found the ruins of the ancient city of Oshan, retrieved the tales of the prophets of the goddesses, and generously offered them to the Church of the royal sisters : Mister Marc Vecquer and his assistant Miss Jacqueline Winthrop !”
The audience began to applaud heartily, and the spot was directed to Marc and Jack as they walked to the microphone.
“Thank you !” began Marc while walking on the stage. He waited for the cheers to calm down before continuing.
“Thank you for being here tonight ! This adventure would not have been possible without the generous contributors who put their faith in us, and I am happy to see that most of them are with us tonight...”
Jack wasn’t listening, she just waited the end of the show, smiling and laughing at the jokes thrown here and there by her mentor, hoping it wouldn't last too long. Thirty minutes later, they were in the audience, assaulted from all sides with questions and invitations to talk about their trip. Jack ended up separated from Marc and was pinned down by a very talkative mare in the fanciest outfit she has ever seen.
“Oh darling, what an experience it must have been !”
“Well yes, it was really interesting...” said Jack.
“And the adventure ! Going into exotic places, living with savages, exploring dark caves full of wonders !" interrupted the mare with little noise of excitement.
“It wasn’t exactly like that, in fact...” She tried to correct the mare.
“Oh yes, there must have been a lot of danger too ! Did you met somepony like Allan Quatermane to lead the expedition and protect you from beasts and bandits ?” asked the mare, more and more excited.
“No we just...” Jack was starting to loose patience toward the rude, and clearly ignorant mare who kept interrupting her when Marc appeared.
“Ah, Jack, here you are !” Marc never knew how much Jack was grateful to him that night. Would she had stayed a little longer alone with that mare, an incident may have occurred.
“I got a little distracted and lost you for a second” continued Marc, totally oblivious to the precedent situation.
The excited mare looked at Jack, confused “I may have misheard the announcer, but Isn't your name Jacqueline ?”
“Well, yes, this is my actual name, but my father always told me that I was the tomboyish filly he ever saw, and kept calling me Jack. Some sort of private joke for him. Anyway for goddesses know why the name sticked and now that's what my friends call me.” answered Jack cooling herself. Luckily for the other mare, she didn't interrupted her this time.
“Well that’s, really interesting darling, really ! Well, I could use some refreshment right now, don't you? I’ll see what is available at the buffet. Have a good night madam.” said the haughty mare with one of those fake smile practiced by every socialite, before vanishing into the crowd.
“Well young lady, how about we start enjoying the party in our honor ?” asked Marc, clearly already enjoying himself.
“Keep away every pony like her, and I'll follow you everywhere.”
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Saturday, September 8th 1923 A.D, 23:09
“Here we are m’am, t’will be 25 bucks”
“Thanks” answered Jack while hoofing the money to the cabdriver.
She had been dropped just in front of her apartment in the suburbs of the town.
“I hope Marc won’t wait two week to pay me this time, I’m nearly broke” thought the young mare grimly while inspecting her empty wallet.
“I know you considered this book purely theological, but why did you give it away for free, we haven't even studied it !” She remembered yelling to Marc when she learned about his ‘generous donation’ to the Church.
“We are running out of fund and it was the only valuable things we found back there ! Don’t worry” he tried to reassure her, “It will make us good advertising, I'll find us sponsors in no time you will see”
“Well it’s too late for me to act anyway...” Jack mumbled while searching for her keys.
"The end is nigh!”
Startled, Jack jumped out of reach of whoever shouted and almost dropped her keys in the process. Right by her side was a bum waving a sign totally illegible.
“Repent for your sins, for the return of the goddesses is inevitable ! The book of revelations has been found. The world will be purified by the flames and will reborn from its ashes. Only those with pure soul will be saved! " shouted the crazy pony.
Jack hurried to the door of the building and opened it faster that she ever has. She rushed inside and slammed shut the door behind her, still shaking from the shock.
When she realized what had just happened, she let out a nervous laugh, feeling stupid for her reaction.
“Everything is alright ?” Came a voice from the first flour. An old mare was heading down the stairs in a dressing gown, a worried look on her face.
“Yes miss Marble, everything is fine, just a little scare, sorry.” Said Jack with a reassuring smile.
“Oh, It’s you Jacqueline dear ? Be more careful next time, you could have woken up the neighbors !”
“Yes miss Marble, I promise I will”.
The old mare was sweet but a little tiresome from time to time. Beside, Jack didn't want to upset the owner when she wasn’t sure she could pay the rent this month.
Once inside her small apartment, she dropped immediately her traveling saddlebags with a sigh. She had been on a really long trip this time and now she literally had a mountain of mail waiting for her on the table in the living room, brought here by the owner miss Marble.
But Jack, who was tired by the party and the earlier scare, didn’t pay much attention to it and instead went to the bathroom to take a shower before going to sleep.
If she had paid attention however, she could have seen that on top of the ‘mountain’ was sitting a strange package with just her name on it, with no stamp or return address.
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1066 B.D, Winter
The edge of the forest was covered in snow. The old unicorn, tired by her long walk, sat down on a stump and looked around her. She was on top of a little hill, in the open. In front of the forest, at about eight miles from there, was Canterlot, the beautiful city magically hung to the side of a mountain. On the left, as far as the eye can see, were more hills and valleys covered in snow. One of those was the destination of the old mare.
Time had not been grateful to the unicorn, but decades ago she was a lovely mare with a light lavender coat and a pale blond mane, completed with golden eyes.
A chill put the unicorn out of her reverie and she got to her hooves, decided to reach her destination as fast as possible.
Almost two hours later, she was there. Before her was a hillside filled with graves, but the one she wanted to see was at the top. She began her ascent, tiring with every step, but soon she reached it. The grave was covered in snow, like every other one, but she knew with no doubt that it was the one.
Suddenly, a deafening roar echoed through the hills, and when the mare looked in its direction, Canterlot was nowhere to be seen. The side of the mountain was bare, but at it's base was a huge cloud of dust, and one could see destroyed spire, tower and buildings inside of it, all from the city that was Canterlot minutes ago.
The unicorn hung her head low and turned her gaze to the grave, tears streaming down her cheeks.
“Sorry mom, we tried, but we couldn’t stop them.” she whispered.
The unicorn was tired, she had fought for a long time, and the weight of her age was suddenly heavier, she needed to rest for a while.
Dropping down on the grave, she curled herself closer to her mother.
“I just need a couple of minutes, no more” did she though, but she never rose from where she lied down.
When she leaned on the tombstone, some of the snow covering it fell, showing the partially erased name of it's occupant.
G . N . . AL
D . RP . H . OV . S
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1156 B.D, Spring
The party in the library was in full swing, Applejack and Spike were showing some wicked moves on the dance floor and Fluttershy was trying to “pin the tail on the pony” while Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash were watching, snickering slightly when their friend pined it just under it's chin.
“What is bothering you darling ?” asked Rarity, approaching Twilight who was sulking on her balcony.
Twilight had been distant from the beginning of the party, and when Rarity saw her alone, she jumped on the occasion to talk to her friend.
“Nothing, it’s just that since we've beaten the nightmare again, princess Celestia seem preoccupied” answered Twilight, staring at Canterlot in the distance.
“Do you think there is something wrong ?”
“I don’t know, maybe I am just making stuff up, but she don’t speak to me as much as before...”
“Well, she is a princess, she has to rule the entire kingdom, maybe she just had a lot of work lately.” Rarity said with a smile, trying to reassure Twilight.
“Yes, maybe.” answered the purple mare, smiling lightly in return.
“Come on dear, or we will miss all the fun” said Rarity heading towards Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, who were picking the next player.
Twilight followed her, thankful to be able to spend some good time with her friends, hoping that it would never change.