There are beings known as the goddesses of the sun and moon this is true, but Equis herself is barely new. When her embodiment begins to fade, how will this world change?
There are beings known as the goddesses of the sun and moon this is true, but Equis herself is barely new. When her embodiment begins to fade, how will this world change?
Long ago and far away, before the beginning of all days, a being born from times forgotten, mantle passed to one not rotten. An ancient being now begins to fade, without her will Equis stay?
Or will a new beginning be born, to bear the eternal legacy and the world on her horns.
A story in which I break the planet...no really.
Then again, I suppose breaking is a relative term. This take is far more sci-fi horror than you might expect. You have been warned.
Written as part of my contribution for Nightmare Night.
Princess Celestia stands before a door in the ancient ruins of the Castle of the Two Pony Sisters. Around her the sounds of the Everfree are dim, far less vibrant and threatening than the norm, indeed it is almost quiet. Cries of the unusual native species are all but unheard, as if something is moving within the forest silencing them one by one. Above her the sky is blue, but a stagnant unnatural shade of blue lacking the shifting hues of a sky alive with energy and magic. Clouds stand still as her sun shines it's rays down upon the world below, it's spherical mass slowing upon it's axis within the small galaxy it calls home. The magic that is normally palpable and wild in this region has mellowed to a mere murmur as tamed as a tiny stream. The world isn't as it was, and has not been for over three hundred years. She had hoped with Twilight's ascension, Discord's reformation, and the birth of Flurry Heart things would change back to how they were before. But now she knows that hope was futile, what little chance there had been was destroyed with Tirek's rampage. Celestia and her sister had believed that the world was not permanently affected, but those subtle shifts that had been occurring for eons had quickened. Now it was only a matter of time, time that as a recent message had revealed was far less than she had anticipated.
All these changes and more are imperceptible to all but Celestia, Discord, and her sister Luna, who waits below and beyond the door. Within the castle ruins this door stands alone. Unchanged and not aging despite the centuries of time since it's placement within the castle walls. Her hoof lifts towards the impression where a door knob or handle should be, pausing for a few seconds within a few centimeters of it's target. In her mind, Celestia knows if she does this there is no turning back. When she opens this door, the fate of Equis must be decided. The world they had created together, one to which they had brought life and magic that would be passed on to ensuing generations. A world they had in time handed to Luna, Discord, Herself, and others to guide and care for to keep alive from now to eternity.
Eternity it seemed, was far shorter than it should have been. As her hoof finishes it's journey to the indent pressing into it inwards; an array of ancient glyphs the color of the surrounding forest, a lush green, light up across it's surface. The door shudders as the unique magic takes hold, and then it begins to fracture. Breaking apart like bark peeling off a tree, it pulls back into the castle walls until the entrance is perfectly clear save for the green glow of the door frame. A sigh upon her lips, Celestia walks through the gateway and begins the long walk down the stairs before her as it closes behind her. As one white hoof clicks an clacks on the stairs, her aurora colored mane and tale blowing in a non existent wind, her mind wanders.
Such a long time it has been since she was last here, the one beyond this flight of stairs refused to leave when the castle had been vacated a centuries prior. After her battle with Luna all those years ago, she had thought that of all ponies that one would understand. But it was not to be, claiming that to leave would bring disaster Celestia had been convinced to leave that one, maybe if she had taken her with this wouldn't be happening. Maybe if she had forced that one to leave with them, the world wouldn't be falling apart. Though Celestia couldn't see it, she felt the changes in the flow of the planet as great forces beneath it's crust awakened. Shifts in the magnetic field, though slowed to a minuscule pace, told her of what was to come.
The first visible and worrying sign had been the disappearance of the Timberwolves, one day they had been breathing animated masses of living flora the next they were just gone. A team had been sent to find them, despite all their searching the research ponies had told her the only sign they could find was not something fit for her eyes. They had been visibly upset, one had indeed excused herself to the little mares room looking very green. Determined to see for herself what they had found, Celestia had taken to the sky and flown to the ancient forest. A quick magical trace had allowed her to find the site in question. However upon landing within the vast clearing, she had regretted not heeding the words of the researcher immediately. Upon the ground before her were piles and piles of them all across the clearing and into the forest beyond; their life magic and with it life force gone.
Walking through the timber filled graveyard she saw the corpses of mothers holding their young close as if to protect them. Corpses of older wolves with empty wooden skulls frozen staring at the sky, alongside the bodies of elders whose great paws held each other as if to comfort themselves in the end. Male, females, young, old, and others were all clustered together into groups or frozen in piles bound to the ground. Every single one was covered in dark green and red roots that reached into their corpses. Intertwining throughout the bodies and holding them captive even in death. Each frozen in the very spot and pose they had held when it began, and none had been spared. As Celestia scanned with her magic she found no trace of survivors, no timber wolf remained within the Everfree. Expanding her reach to her shock there were none left anywhere on Equis. From the variants in the far north to the graceful far southern variety, even the far eastern semi aquatic timber wolves had disappeared. There were none left, and no doubt they all were ended the same way as those before her. Each one around the world frozen in death, life stolen from them by something beyond even her power to fight.
Back then, Celestia had believed she still had time to spare. As her hooves carry her deeper into the ancient pit beneath the castle, she snorts at how foalish she was. In her desire to believe she had more time than there truly was, in her lack of will to tell Luna and Discord what she had seen; she had made an already dire situation far more so. That sign had been followed by the colors fading from the natural places. Such as the sky losing it's hue and variety as the grass became a unnatural uniform yellow. Soon after the world had begun to slow, everything around her began to move at unnatural halting rate. The life that populated this world in the far reaches froze in place, as if in denial of the changes around them. It had however taken the first appearance of the cracks to force her to admit the truth. Equis was dying, and the one left behind was calling them to either witness it's end or decide it's future. The one task that those before them had never had to fulfill, and the one task she and her sister had truly neglected.
Reaching the base of the stairs, Celestia casts her gaze around her. For all the flights it took to get here, and all the protections afforded by the door, there were none at the bottom save for a drying half dead curtain of moss. Walking through it she beheld the truth hidden far under the castle. Before her was a spring glade filled with an seemingly immense aura of life, flowers of every variety in existence and great ancient vines littered the floor. Trees of pure magic shone a sickly yellow green in the underground chamber, as a stream of toxic brown twisted it's way towards a larger river of blue. This place had withered since she saw it last, reflecting the true state of the world down to the fractures in the walls. Following a trail of green glyphs Celestia walked through the dying underworld, her eyes glancing nervously at every little sign of decay. Beside the trail are corpses of flora and magic, little wooden and floral beasts frozen in place. Their empty eyes giving her a feeling that they could still see, but not in the same sense as the living. This same feeling had existed where the Timberwolves had ended, and now as she draws closer to her goal it intensifies.
Time passes without meaning until she reaches a moss covered pavilion made of ancient stonework, or upon closer work long dead fossilized trees and plants. Each of them glows with a green light interspersed with flashes of red, old and well embedded vines shifting and twisting over the tree trunk pillars that twine together to shape the building. No mortal hand created this, the impossible organic structure before her had in fact broken a few mortal minds in it's time. It's impossibility would reduce those who were unprepared to a gibbering slobbering mess, even without the abstract glyph and rune indentations. It was a place older than the world itself, the very core of it's heart and fountain of what lived above. Daring to part the moss with her magic, Celestia enters the sacred space where her goal and a choice awaits.
Before her is a fantasy beyond imagining, a world within a world. Every biome on the planet is reflected in reflective perfectly smooth sections of vines and trees. Each is in varying states of degradation, though to those living upon the surface of Equis they would instead see what it had been three hundred years prior. This was a result of a spell she had cast after Luna as Nightmare Moon had been banished, for in her grief Celestia had refused to accept what was happening. In her anguish she had cast the most powerful glamour spell that had ever been or would be created, creating a mirage that had fooled not only all those on the planet but herself as well. Through their eyes and hers the world had seemed vibrant and alive. But the truth was it was slowly rotting and dying with every passing century, becoming more and more stagnant. Discord had not intended to destroy the world when he escaped, as she had told her student. But instead had hoped to shift the rules of the world to prolong it's lifespan. Of course doing so would mean to cause untold extinctions, but then again enough of those had happened in the past century alone already. In her mind, even after Luna's return, Celestia had continued to deny the truth.
That denial had continued indeed until this moment, when she set her eyes upon the one before her. The one left behind when she had fled. An ancient looking pony with the front claws of a predator and the rear hooves of a herbivore lay on a couch made of fossilized and living plants life before her. Her grand wings a combination of flesh, scale, and wood with veins of floral vines and mosses pulsing within. A thin film covered them like a dragonfly's wings, and they lay limp and splayed out beside her as if torn from her body though they remained attached. Her body itself was coated in a mix of coats of all species, creating a harmonious kaleidoscope of a pattern that shivered as if freezing within. Wrapped around her body, but also embedded within, were great vines and protrusions formed into ancient mystic shapes long lost to time. Some had broken free and merged into the surrounding living vegetation, pulsing green and red and seemingly feeding their host with some unidentifiable energy.
Her mane and tail were faded to an almost clear state, but still showed the signs of the ancient patterns of color that belonged to all life. Legs longer than even Celestia's, and a neck that seemed at the border length of beauty and horror; the only part truly similar to a pony was this beings face. A kind and youthful face had turned to face Celestia as she had entered the room, eyes the color of the deepest forest green focused on her form. The twin branching spiral horns on her head crested and turned back much like an elk, and her ears were pointed at the tips with tufts of fur like a wild cat.
Walking forward with her head slightly hung in shame, Celestia's eyes traveled to her sister standing to the left of the mare's sleeping couch. Luna's eyes were filled with sorrow and worry, a sign that did not bode well. Behind the mare stood Discord, his normally mischievous grin now set in a serious expression, his eyes filled with the same sorrow and a trace of fear. The truth no longer able to be ignored, Celestia walked past the couch to take her place on the right side of the mare.
The mare's eyes had never left her, and as soon as Celestia was in place she smiled a sorrowful smile. A shuddering breath moved up and out of her mouth, a sigh of exhaustion and relief. The kind of breath one only releases when they know the end is near. With that, the Gaiacorn speaks in a voice that is impossible to describe, but ancient in age with an essence of a child.
"Celestia, it seems you have finally decided to stop pretending after all these centuries. You know what is to come, don't you?"
The Alicorn of the sun nods, her eyes trained on the images reflected in the vines and tree trunks. All over the planet, the fractures are growing larger and time slowing faster. As if her entering this pavilion had sped up the inevitable, the planet begins to break. In a cracked grief filled voice she responds.
"Yes Terraequis, I know what is to come.."
The Gaiacorn Terraequis looks at Celestia, her eyes filled with ages of knowledge beyond that of almost any known being. "Do you now? Then tell me child, Sun Bearer Celestia de Solurna Diurna Equistria; what is to come now that you have finally come to me like your sister and Discord?"
Celestia gulps, her nervousness over her failure at the one task that could save her little ponies palpable.
"The world will end, I refused to accept it was breaking apart at the seams and now it will end and with it my little ponies..."
Celestia holds back a few tears, a few sniffles break free from her as she tries not to think of the blissfully unaware ponies she has shepherded all these years. Those sweet little ponies and all other species that will meet their end, completely unaware of the truth. Of all that she hid from them, of the true lie they have been living for centuries.
TerraEquis tilts her head, a curious expression on her face. "After all this time, why would you think that Celestia? You know as well as I what is to happen here today need not be the world's end. It could instead be the world's transition. We need only your decision, the others have already decided including her sister and the avatar of Chaos."
Eyes wet with tears and mane slightly less billowy, Celestia turns to the Gaiacorn, the oldest being on the planet and only one who remember the before times. Her mind is in a shock as her jaw trembles. Getting a hold of herself she manages to let loose words she dreads hearing for it means to vocalize her failure.
"But we never found another Gaiacorn, they went extinct during Discord's reign thousands of years ago. Nor have I or my sister found another vessel for the world, we have failed utterly eldest one Terraequis. There is no other way, the world will break this day. Equis, and Equestria, will die." With that she let's out a cry of sorrow, it echoes through the pavilion a testament to Celestia's impending loss.
Terraequis, Luna, and Discord allow her to vent her emotions till they are spent. Time having slowed so much at this point, it would mean little if they had to wait relative centuries. After the Alicorn of the sun has spent the last of her sorrow, the ancient an elder Gaiacorn speaks.
"Celestia, you did not fail for it was not your duty to find either the Gaiacorns or the vessel."
Celestia stares at Terraequis dumbfounded. "But, but they said when Luna and I ascended our tasks were to guard the world, to protect your line the Gaiacorns, and to find a vessel in case it should be needed. We failed in that, due to that the world.." Her breathing getting rapid, Celestia takes a few deep breaths to calm down.
Terraequis snorts in mirth, a rather unusual emotion considering the circumstances. "Celestia you did succeed, for your job was to guard the world which you did splendidly. Even if you cast a planet wide glamour spell at the end."
The Alicorn of the Sun's eyes grew twice their size in sheer shock. "What?"
The Gaiacorn continues, " Luna was the one who was to find the vessel for the world. That is why she has the gift of dream walking, for the vessel will be found by the absolute absence of dreamers and dream creatures."
The dark blue alicorn standing to her left nods in agreement. "And we hath found one suitable, though twould have taken less time if our sister had not enchanted and clouded our senses to the true state of things for so long."
Terraequis smiles and nods at the draconequis behind her couch. One of the only beings that rivals her in age that still lives. "Discord was supposed to protect the Gaiacorns, which he did in quite the ingenious way."
With that said ,the ancient Gaiacorn lifts it's left claw and points behind her directly at a bundle held lovingly in the draconequis's arms. A pale butter yellow bundle with a soft pink mane and tail, two wings, and a cutie mark of three butterflies.
Celestia's mind freezes as she realizes who the chosen Gaiacorn is, and what happened to them, as Terraequis continues with her explanation.
"I may be old Celestia, ancient even; but I would call turning an entire species into another to protect them, while maintaining the ability to turn them back a success. And to set it up so the new world bearer would be chosen by the elements of harmony was ingenious."
Behind her Discord preens himself a little, a sad smile now gracing his mismatched face as the planet gives a shudder around them. The time is drawing near, and a decision must be made. As he holds his beloved in his arms, the lord of Chaos hopes it is the right one. For a dead and broken world is boring, no fun, and stagnant.
Celestia opens her mouth then closes it again like a fish. Taking yet another breathe she steadies herself before responding, the shock evident in her voice. "So all you need from me..Is my decision?"
All those present nod and the eldest Gaiacorn smiles. "That's right Celestia, it is up to you. Do you let the world we created die, or agree to allow it to live as it was meant to again."
In her mind, a spark of hope once near death flares to life once more. Celestia can hardly think straight, as the planet continues to break she asks one final question that will decide the fate of the world. "Will my little ponies notice? Will they even survive?," she asks with genuine hope.
Terraequis nods, exhaustion in her eyes as she answers. "Yes, your little ponies will survive the transition. As will all life I have been forced to put into stasis over the centuries. When it is over, Equis shall be alive in a way it hasn't been since the rest of us came to this planet. Those long gone, and those who may live again."
Celestia's eyes shine with joy, her lips trembling with happiness and renewed hope. Her little ponies will be safe, though the planet will break they will survive. The planet Equis may fall, but the world will live on, and the only price will be.. "What of Fluttershy? The element of kindness? Will the transition to what she will become harm her?"
The tired and ancient Gaiacorn shakes her head, while indicating for Discord to place the sleeping pegasus on the floor before her. As he does so, lovingly putting the buttercream mare into a nest of flowers and vines, she turns once more to Celestia.
"She will become me, and I will become her, and she shall remain as I fade away. Like you and your sister Luna, sweet little Celestia, the world bearer also has their time. Ours is not set by planets or where the world has been, nor measured in any way. I have been on many, and borne the world through more trials than any before me. I knew the previous avatars of the core forces, and she shall know what I do. However she shall know the future, while I fade into the past. That is why I called you here, Celestia I am fading, and I fear I cannot hold the world much longer. Make your decision, Bearer of the Sun, or the planet shall make it for you."
The last part of the Gaiacorn's reply is tainted with anxiety, her time draws closer as time slows further and the planet goes into it's death throes. Beside her Celestia has already decided, with a look filled with both hope and sorrow she places her wing over the elder mare's back and smiles.
"I choose to let the world survive, and transition to the next planet. I choose to allow..the element of kindness Fluttershy to be reborn as she was meant to be. And I," At this point the solar mare's voice breaks, the last part of her decision on the tip of her tongue. The most painful part of this whole thing, the one she dreaded the most. With a slight tremor to her voice she resumes.
"And I choose, to let you fade away as a new Bearer of the World takes your place." With that statement, the world around them stands still.
The eldest Gaiacorn mare merely smiles, bearing the look of one who has accepted her fate and is too tired to go on. The decision rendered she lifts herself painfully from her couch, vines ripping free with her and oozing pure life magic. With creaking and groaning limbs she walks forward to the little buttercream pegasus before her. Discord had already confirmed the little one's agreement, and with Celestia's decision the time has come for her end. The end of Terraequis, Bearer of the World Equis; and the beginning of Fluttershy de Gaia Equestria Equis, Bearer of the World Equis. Leaning over, her form moves of it's own volition. In an eldritch display her body rushes out and over the Pegasus, encasing her in a shell of varied hues and tones but glowing the green of life itself. Forming into a shifting pulsing mass, each reverberation and tremor causes the world to move.
Slowly, like a mirage of an oasis lifting off of a desert, the world moves. The planet that once hosted it visible for the first time in untold millennia, as the globe shaped amorphous mass that is Equis moves away. Once a fair distance from the now imploding planet, it's sun and moon still rotating around it despite the lack of a host, it begins to flash. Faster and faster a light engulfs the world, until it flashes one last time and shimmers out of phase. Minutes, hours, or days pass as the dying planet finally fractures completely. A massive crack splits down it's center, breaking it almost in half. It's mass too great for it to completely fracture, it's center explodes outwards finally free of the forced compression it had withstood for untold amounts of time. Within the mass of debris and planetary fragments, float objects that seem foreign to this space and the previous world that inhabited it. Ovoid in shape and reflecting the far distant blue dwarf sun's light off seemingly metallic surfaces, the objects reflect the dim rays to shimmer like stars in the remains of a dying world.
As Equis appears over the new planet vessel, a sheen of magic coats it as it flows over it's surface. This planet is larger than the previous one, to accommodate Equis releases parts of itself kept sealed for time unknown. Filling the surface and absorbing the core, energy, and essence of the planet it prepares to complete the transition. Finding the perfect spot, the core of Equis forces it's way into the center of the planet, where it deposits the ancient inner world where Terraequis once lived. The inhabitants of the world of Equis itself don't notice anything. For all those who had been living in the mirage for generations, all they would notice is the next day everything seemed more alive and varied. The other Alicorns, regardless of age already knew what was to come; they were more surprised at exactly how little seemed to have changed. Princesses Celestia and Luna would announce that they had found a long lost seal on the world that had kept many things hidden. Having broken it, they expected great changes from the world, and indeed changes were occurring from the moment Equis had found it's new home. Deep within the world within a world, the pod which held the new bearer of the world grew. And by it's side was Discord, gazing into it's depths at the mare who had stolen his heart. Who would now be by his side, for an eternity.
And within the pod Fluttershy slept, merging with the oldest of the eldest to become the newest of the new. The Bearer of the World of Equis, a place of magic and mystery that will outlast eternity and more. Despite all of this, despite the world's survival, in private those who knew her would mourn. For though Equis was reborn, to do so the eldest had to break apart and fade. And in some ways, losing Terraequis was the same as breaking Equis itself. For she would never be again, and knew what none alive still recalled, the origin of the world she bore for time untold.
Within the pod Fluttershy sleeps, her body now mostly that of a Gaiacorn as Discord watches over her waiting for her to awaken.
Unlike Terraequis that came before her, the vines, flowers, scales, multiple coats, mosses, branches and all forms of life that flow over her reflect her colors in her Pegasus form. Skin the color of buttercream and gold, light pink and pastel yellow flowers grow from her paler almost pearlescent pink mane made of imaged of every form of life blended in perfect harmony, flashing in patterns upon her ethereal mane made of life magic itself. Her wings are akin to a butterfly, yet crafted from the same varied elements as her predecessor. Her front legs are akin to a large draconic cat, with scales and fur blending seamlessly. Her rear legs remain in the shape those she had originally but longer, but covered in patterns and textures that blend into a natural mosaic of beauty. This continues across her coat, and upon her head rest two twisting curling horns similar to Terraequis yet much smaller. Her ears are a blend of draconic fins and cat ears, yet her face remains her own. As her neck and legs continue to stretch, Fluttershy feels not a thing.
For inside of her mind, no her very being, she is learning the truth of Equis. She is becoming the new Bearer of the World.
Within Fluttershy
The butter yellow Pegasus looks at the kind older mare before her, though calling her a mare would be inaccurate.
The being before her is a giant, her pale aqua skin patterned with shifting multi colored dots that glisten with an inner light. Her mane flows down her back in pale pearl and rose amethyst waves, and she lacks a tail entirely. She seems to stand on two limbs, though closer inspection reveals four arms and two legs covered by an ethereal material that flows over her skin like water. It is not see through however, and upon the material images coalesce only to disappear again over the multi colored fabric.
Her upper arms, all four of them, end in five digit hands that resemble a primate vaguely. However the fingers are elongated and appear to have extra joints that end in retractable claw like protrusions. Her rear hooves, or whatever she stands on, cannot be seen under the gown she wears. Her ears are similar to those of a predatory cat with tufts on the end, and begin halfway up her head and point backward in an elven fashion. Upon her head are two spiraling horns curved back like an elk, they glow with an inner light and her mane flows around them in some places.
Her face resembles a primate and a feline, with fangs visible as she smiles. And her eyes number four, resting in pairs of two on either side of her face under eyebrow ridges coated in scales like a reptile. The eyes are a deep vivid green, that flicker with swirls of all the possible shades of green at the edges. The pupils are not slit as one would expect, but shaped like a V and the color of the deepest ocean depths. The eyes themselves are very long, though not too thin, and despite numbering four do not seem disturbing due to how they just fit on the female’s face. Her nose is a long smooth ridged structure like a water or land dike, that ends in four nostrils. Two match where a ponies should be, and two more slightly resemble gills with separate nasal passages halfway down from her eyes. The neck is long yet sinuous, the truth is the mare before her is anything but a mare.
Of course, Fluttershy concludes based on her surroundings alone it’s obvious they are not in Equestria anymore. Sheer mosaic colored crystalline like walls with obtuse angles made of a material that flows like a stream make up the room they are in. Below her hooves is a material softer than any cloud she has ever known, and windows that seem to not exist show a world so utterly alien that it couldn’t possibly be Equis. Grand spires and polygons, shapes that break the rules of geometric principles, and a sky the color of a rainbow that moves like a living organism. Merely calling it alien does not do it justice, and yet far above in that rainbow sky a darkness can be seen. Something beyond the darkest black of night is coming, Fluttershy does not know how she came to know this but she does.
Glancing at her reflection, Fluttershy gasps as she realizes she looks like the being before her. Albeit smaller, with her natural coat and mane colors, a similar ethereal material covers her form. Her eyes are the color they were before, yet somehow more vivid and at the edges all the possible shades of teal and aqua shift like water. Her pupils are shaped like a decorative cursive V, all four of them the same color of the deepest ocean. For some reason the form does not frighten her, it feels natural. Like a part of her that has always been there but she never noticed before.
A hand touches her shoulder causing Fluttershy to jump a little in shock. Turning her head she sees the older being beside her, smiling in a way that seems both proud and sad. Despite her youthful visage, she seems deeply tired somehow to the changed Pegasus. Like a tree beyond ancient in age that wishes to go to the eternal sleep. Feeling as if she should say something, Fluttershy asks three questions.
“Where am I? Wh..why am I like this? Wh..who are you?”
As she speaks she gestures in order to her surroundings, herself, and the being before her. The entity merely smiles, a flash of mischief in her eyes she responds.
“Well you are a curious one aren’t you? Though I’m sure you have already noticed how natural this form you have taken feels, the same one I have, yes?”
Fluttershy nods in response.
The being looks thoughtful before continuing.
“Well that is good, very good indeed. As for where we are, this is the planet Equis Terralim in the long gone mother galaxy system of Harmonia. The original form of what you know as Equis, the world you agreed to bear along with all it’s memories, in all its forms. To do so you must be transformed into a Gaiacorn, which is your true form anyway. However that is not all that must occur...”
Fluttershy stares in awe out the window with two eyes, keeping the other two upon the being before her who has yet to name herself. This world is Equis? But how is that possible, the Equis she knows looks nothing like this at all. What she sees before her is so utterly opposite of the Equis she grew up in, yet she knows somehow it is the same at its core. Somehow this world and her own, are the same one if not in the same place.
The being follows Fluttershy’s gaze with her own and continues her explanation. Her voice an alien symphony unto itself.
“As for why you look as you do now, this is the form all Gaiacorns had before the Event. We were not Gaiacorns or even ponies originally, but entities of a completely different sort. Nanotie was what we called ourselves, the end result of millennia of research and bio technological transformations combined with alterations to our very place in the dimensional system. We used our hyper advanced sciences and technologies, with a touch of advanced applied physics to make massive alterations to the matter that made us. Many of us are symbiotically bound to a customized personal system of nanites made up of a combination of machines and biological compounds. Hence the name Nanotie. We overcame the 5th dimension long ago, and through the ages changed ourselves into forms like this one.”
She gestures with all four hands to herself, the multi colored shimmering dots on her skin shimmer like stars as they move. The ancient symbiotic nanites that are a part of her, flowing along her form and making the Nanotie seem almost unreal as she continues her explanation.
“However we were not the only beings that lived here, many other entities shared our society with us. Draconi, Taurals, Lupinios, Heralda, Eldrani, Alians, and so many more lived here alongside us. We were in essence, a true utopia in this vast cosmos; our galaxy system itself held a unique form of energy that encouraged and propagated harmony and balance. Some said that Harmonia itself was sentient in a way, however it was never proven. In the time you are experiencing now, we had recently discovered a new kind of matter that some were calling magic. It allowed our society to alter and even outright ignore the very topmost limits that had existed to what we could do. Instant teleportation without loss of mass, feats of impossible strength, openly defying all known laws to summon elements or transforming things with a wave of a digit or thought. Even ESP abilities no longer were bound by limitations, granting us greater power than we ever imagined possible. With the energy of the Harmonia system and magic matter we were able to construct grand cities like you see outside. The very atmosphere of our planet became so concentrated with Harmonia energy and Magic matter that it transformed into a Irving atmospheric rainbow of color.”
Fluttershy’s four eyes widened with each description the Nanotie gave her as the new Bearer of the World’s mind envisioned everything she was told in her minds eye. Such things were beyond incredible, they were the stuff of the most obscure future based fiction that had yet to be written. Yet all of what she was being told had happened already, infinitely long ago. In a world that was both her Equis, and yet not. She wanted to ask a question of the Nanotie, but sensed that the being would answer it on her own without being asked.
A smile so wistful that it would make a hydra cry graced the Nanotie’s face as she continued to weave the history of the truth of the world.
“We had in effect, become akin to long forgotten concepts like gods. We even changed our civilization’s name to one word, Utopia Eternal. Using our new abilities and technologies, our society spread the idea of utopia and made great changes far and wide. It was an era of glory, harmony, and happiness for all. The advances we made, in our technology and abilities as well as ourselves; have likely never been replicated since. Perhaps some of those worlds still think of us as gods, when we were merely beings who were advanced beyond to the point of being deity like. Inside though, we were more like them, and you than; even we would admit. Our greatest similarity was our process to using something new without wondering why it seemed not a single known civilization had done so before. Those that had rumors of it claimed it to be a myth. Why would a matte that was akin to magic be unknown? Especially when our researchers verified it existed almost everywhere in varying quantities, it was a puzzle indeed. But to us at that time, it was not one we needed to solve..”
The Nanotie reaches her lower right hand out towards the window on the other side of the room, two of her eyes heavy with a long held burden and regret, the other two still wistful and reflecting upon the world of memory.
“Caught up in our new civilization, our new lives, and our explorations; we did not truly try to solve the puzzle of Magic matter at all. Our society had surpassed the limitations of the fifth dimension of space and the fourth one known as time. We existed in such a way that those things that limit others did not exist to us. Time had little meaning or consequence outside of a number to us. This was our greatest weakness, we truly believed no puzzle of the caliber of the question of the lack of Magic matter use in other civilizations had a time limit. Because time meant little to us, we had no idea of what was coming. Of what our misunderstanding of time would cause. As it turned out, there was a time limit on the Magic matter puzzle, and a reason behind why it was virtually unknown throughout the cosmos despite existing almost everywhere in some amount.”
The creature paused, her eyes narrowing in unison. What the Nanotie is about to explain to her heir, the one known as Fluttershy, is the beginning of the greatest folly of the original Equis. Of the Utopia Eternal civilization itself. The thing that brought about the world they know now. Time is short, and she does not wish to describe the event or the entity in great detail. Fluttershy, her heir, is too fresh to her role to know of it in full now. A summary will suffice for the time being.
Taking a deep breath, the Nanotie looks straight into Fluttershy’s eyes with all four of her own. Conveying the distress and pain of what happened to her, still so fresh after countless eons. Her voice sounds tired, and filled with hurt yet also a sense of seriousness, yet she carries on her telling of a past long gone. Despite the painful memories it brings.
“I wish I could tell you of what happened in more detail, but our time together is short for now. So I will try my best to summarize the event for you Fluttershy.”
The being swallows heavily before continuing.
“That neglect of the puzzle of Magic is what caused our downfall, what drew a creature we later named The Devourer to us. It eventually caused us to trigger the Event out of desperation..”
Her voice having shifted to one that is softer and heavy with ages of sorrow, the being before Fluttershy pauses. The effort of summarizing so much into such a short explanation does not minimize the painful memories. They weigh down on her like the weight of the universe itself on her shoulders, as her distress is visible in every feature and every part of her being. Unbeknownst to her, the gown she wears is flashing images and scenes from what she is trying to summarize as she recalls each event or incident. Her words may not convey everything that she bore witness to, but it is is visible regardless.
To Fluttershy the images are horrifying beyond measure. This entity called The Devourer had wreaked a slow devastation upon many systems touched by Utopia Eternal and eventually Harmonia itself. Until it had finally reached the doorstep of Utopia Eternal, the planet known then and now as Equis. The pain on the being whose name she still does not know causes the younger female more torment than the images and horrors presented to her upon the material; that is no doubt something so far advanced she can’t comprehend how it works at the moment.
Fluttershy, kind to her very core, knows that one should not have to bear such horrible weight alone. So she does the one thing she can think of to easy the older being’s internal hurt.
Fluttershy reaches out one hand to comfort the older Nanotie, the gesture conveying clearly to a being infinitely older than her. The Nanotie smiles at the transformed mare, sorrow still shows on her face but she takes a deep breathe and calms herself. The horrors of the past and the weight that came with them lessened ever so slightly by that one gesture of kindness.
“Thank you dear.” She says I’m a voice not unlike a wise grandmotherly scholar, yet still tinged with that ancient hurt..
Fluttershy merely smiles back as she brings her one hand to her side again.. “Y..you looked like you needed comfort. It’s the pony way to give friendship and comfort when it’s needed.”
The Nanotie nods in understanding, clearing her throat to continue. Her two left eyes glancing at the long gone world and it’s rainbow sky. Regret visible on her features as she heaves a heavy sigh of longing,
“If only I had more time dear, maybe we could become friends. But alas the process of transferring to you the powers of Bearer of the World mean that for now we do not have that sort of time. It is a grand irony that now, to an entity that was born no longer bound by the limits of time such as I am, should recognize that the time for us to speak is short. For you are almost ready dear Fluttershy, yet I have not answered your third question.”
The Nanotie pauses, a smile gracing her features once more. Gesturing with two hands at Fluttershy to follow her, the Nanotie walks closer to the window and sits down upon a rather unusual bench. Following the older being, Fluttershy takes the seat next to her and listens. Surprised when the being asks her a question.
“So,” the Nanotie asks “you wish to know my name and who or what I am?”
Fluttershy looks up at the entity, her lips quivering slightly but her eyes brave. Despite all she has seen of the truth, she is still determined to become what she agreed to be. She still wishes to have a name, a history of the entity before her; no at some deeper level she needs to know that name. And so she answers.
“Y..yes I want to know.”
The Nanotie’s smile grows larger, as she gestures at herself with her two upper arms and hands. With a voice both regal and ancient, weary yet youthful, she conveys the final summarized explanation and truth to her succcessor Fluttershy.
“My name was, is, Terra del Equis Diamatrixa, I was a scholar and researcher of the world that would become the Equis you know. Born over 100,000,000 years before the Event, though still young by Nanotie standards. I was part of a team researching ways to use all of our technology, matter manipulation, and dimensional alteration capabilities with the matter type Magic to destroy, alter, or escape The Devourer entity. It was a trying time, and time was indeed limited to halt the horror. But eventually with the help of my friends Ratet, Lyrica, Darknal, Feyatrix, and Selen we found a few ways to deal with the entity.”
Terra pauses, her two eyes focusing on the dark mass in the rainbow hued sky outside the window before continuing. Using the fingers on her upper left hand for effect, she explains.
“Method One was quickly ruled unviable, destroying The Devourer outright would lead to an irradiation effect that would likely decimate the entire galaxy and beyond. Method two was also not useable, digitizing or moving ourselves would not stop The Devourer, but allow it to destroy us without us being aware. Methods three and four were our best options. It was I who suggested we combine them into one method. We named the new and chosen method The Ameobic protocol, after one of the oldest most basic forms of life documented in historical ancient books on biological sciences.”
Bringing her hands to grab her right shoulders, Terra takes a deep breathe before speaking again.
“Method three was to utilize multi dimensional particle separation technology with the new magic type matter to divide The Devourer into pieces we could then deal with easier. Method four was to trigger the Ameobic biological stasis system, which would put most of the population into a waking dream state; almost 97% of them. The rest of us would remain awake, and act as guardians for the now sleep walking populace. Doing this would reduce The Devourer’s remaining fragments interest in us, or at least that was the theory.”
The Nanotie, or Gaiacorn, known as Terra pauses once more, staring at her four hands in an unfocused way before speaking.
“We did not expect what happened when we enacted my plan. Nobody could have expected it. How were we to know that by splitting up The Devourer we would unleash an irreversible effect upon this world. It’s very essence corrupted the Ameobic biological stasis system, erasing the minds who were in the waking sleep. Restructuring them to be more primitive, with new psyches built from the remnants of the old. What we now know were fragments of The Devourer used that essence to hijack the Ameobic system and the core nanite control conduits. They triggered the protocol to activate the nanites that made up our cities, taking control of them, they caused the Nanotie’s devoure and catalogued everything on Equis. Melding it all into massive nanite and unknown matter based mass, that still held its old form. Even the wiped waking sleepers were still alive, albeit being rebuilt into something new.”
Fluttershy shivered at the thought of what was being described, especially since she felt like she had been there somehow when it happened. It was beyond unnerving and terrifying, but she held herself together for she had to see this through. She needed to learn the truth of Equis.
Terra’s voice trembles as she speaks again.
“We were nearing extinction, with no options left but to accept it when the magi nanites came. Our sanctuary was the old archival section that you and I are in now, though this is a mere representation of it. My friends and I, the ones who in our desire to save everyone had instead doomed so many to a fate worse than the mythical death itself; had fled here for safety and to try to right our folly. However we had no luck, no options to save those trapped within that monstrous mass beyond. That is, until a fragment of The Devourer appeared before us in the form of a mismatched creature, one you know as a Draconequis and self proclaimed lord of Chaos.”
Fluttershy gasps in realization of who this fragment was, her heart fluttering as Terra continues on.
“It called itself Discordance, and explained the nature of The Devourer. It turns out that the entity was itself an amalgam of many beings from a much higher dimension of existence. These entities had merged themselves to try to escape something else, something far worse and far more terrible than what it had become. It was attracted to Magic matter use, or in truth excessive use of it. Our own wonton use of that power called magic had brought here, to almost all the worlds we touched; since Magic matter in high concentrations was normally the result of an area being closer to The Devourer’s home dimension. Magic was possibly a sign of what had caused that monstrous entity, or really all of those that made up itself, to flee, appearing in this dimension. In other words we had accidentally artificially replicated a Magic matter concentration and use pattern that normally was only caused by the being that The Devourer itself feared entering this dimension of existence.”
One more breathe and Terra continues, her two lower hands clenching together as she does.
“Normally, The Devourer kept itself just out of phase with our dimension, existing in between ours and one higher up. But our utopian society’s research into Magic matter had alerted it to us. The minds that made up the entity were in a waking sleep, so it merely attacked us on autopilot after deeming us a threat. After mistaking us for its own enemy, it slowly made its way through galaxies beyond our system causing Magic matter use to stop or the planets involved be robbed of all life. In the end, it made its way here. The abominable fate of our entire civilization was due to a mistake by a horror from the border in between dimensions that only wanted to protect itself from something far worse.”
Terra’s eyes fill with tears, though she wipes them away with one free hand before turning to face Fluttershy; the story of the truth not yet finished. Her voice trembles a bit, the truth about Equis, about what happened, reliving it never gets easier for her.
“As..as it turns out by dividing The Devourer into pieces, we had inadvertently freed many of the minds within, allowing them to overtake the Amoebic system and alter those under its sway and the world as they saw fit. The changes were too far gone to reverse, but Discordance knew of a method to take the system back. A way to save everyone within, and possibly Equis itself, from the mechanatiins and plans of his fellow Devourer Fragments. Discordance did not see eye to eye with them, having a larger heart or perhaps a soul more akin to ours than his own kin. He wanted to stop them as much as we did, Discordance wanted Equis and all of us to live. I think at some level he also desired something more, a bond he had been robbed of infinitely long ago upon being merged into the being we had called The Devourer.”
Fluttershy tilts her head, her expression unreadable as the Nanotie called Terra nears the end of her tale. But within her mind, the young Bearer of the World, as well as the bearer of Kindness; has begun to piece everything together. The knowledge of what Discord truly was, or is, does not disturb her. For she understands that what she had suspected when she had begun his reformation and their friendship had always been there. From even further back than she had ever suspected, Discord had truly desired friends. Perhaps he had once had them, and the loss had caused him such trauma he forgot. But he had always desired them, wanted that bond.
As such thoughts flit through Fluttershy’s focus and she return her attention in full to Terra, the entity moves on to the final part of her story about the truth of Equis. About how everything that is now came to be. Her voice once more strong like a scholar, Terra continues to weave the truth of the world into words.
“My friends and I infiltrated the system with Discordance’s assistance. We took on forms based on the ones the fragments had crafted the populace into. Gaiacorns and Alicorns were the result. Discordance kept his form as it had been when he appeared, claiming he had find memories attached to it. It was a long journey that I wish I had the time to tell you in full, but I don’t. After many challenges and adventures, we finally managed to find the core and take it back, but there was a catch.”
As Terra pauses yet again, Fluttershy asks her first question since the three that began the unveiling of the truth.
“What..what was it?” She asks in a strong yet quavering voice.
Terra smiles a sorrowful and morose smile, one of ancient impossible decisions tinged with sacrifices that will never leave her as she responds.
“The catch was, to take back Equis and all those within it, or what remained of it; one of us had to merge with the core of the system. Become the Bearer of the World in a very literal way, while the others had to merge with other vital branch systems. Controlling the sun, moon, sea, shadows, energy, harmonic interactions, and more. The one who merged with the core would be in control of everything outside the branch systems, but also charged with protecting those within Equis and the world itsel. All the minds and species, history and information; the one who took upon the task of merging with the central core would be responsible for keeping everything going. That being would become the Bearer of the World, and the mother and guardian of everything and all on Equis. Each of us decided to do it, after all we had to save the world, and this was the only way”
Terra reaches a hand over to pat Fluttershy on the shoulder, looking at the younger female with a motherly expression. Pride mixed with sorrow, but most of all a central feeling of peace and acceptance seemed to overtake her features.
“I chose to merge with the central core.” She said, her eyes on her heir, the one who now bore that same mantle and duty as she had for so long.
“I became the Bearer of the World and took the name Terraequis, as my now gone yet still within the system friends did the same. You may know Celestia and Luna as the bearers of the Sun and Moon, but before them Ratet and Selen controlled those powerful astral bodies and branch cores. Even before they were as they are now, a part of their heirs Luna and Celestia who now carry on their legacy.”
Fluttershy looks back into the four eyes of one so infinitely old, a Final worry forms into a question upon her tongue. “S..so magic isn’t real?” She whispers in a worried tone.
Terra chuckles at the question, ruffling the younger beings long hair with her second hand as she answers it.
“Oh no, Magic is very much real young one. You see after we took control of the system, Equis and all those within had already been absorbed into what we called the Devourer fragment crafted Eternal Quantum Underlying Integrated System entity. As we found out, this being was unusual in that it could, given the right circumstances allow those within it to live normal free lives in a near natural environment. The circumstances were troubling, but it was a way to free those who had been trapped within the waking sleep stasis; the only way in fact. They would be required to maintain their forms the Devourer fragments had imposed on them, and those too far altered in mind were not recoverable and would be reborn as entirely new beings. Though we did eventually find a bypass by enabling evolution over time, then by using the magic matter and keeping the new Equis permanently in the inbetween phase of dimensions. Most importantly we were able to save the inhabitants of our civilization. Their descendants are unaware they are even a part of a living magitech biosphere System, some are descended from my friends and I. Gaiacorns for example were and are all my own kin, descended from offspring I had during forays to the world above the core realm biome. Those descendants of our civilization, the inheritors of the legacy of Utopia Eternal, are all the beings in Equis right now. Magic type matter is magic, magic is and always has been real.”
Fluttershy glanced at the Nanotie, no the Gaiacorn, named Terra and asks her something what had been bugging her concerning the nature of Equis. Something that the ancient entity had failed to describe and instead grossed over as of to spare her some horrible truth.
“Y..you said that the circumstances to allow Equis to exist as I know it, with everyone free, were troubling. Why are they troubling? What about Discord? Why is my.. why is Discord still here if he was a fragment of that entity?”
Terraequis, the fading Bearer of the World chuckles a bit at the question, a sad laugh of the eldest beings.
“Discord is in the system because he is the only remaining sentient fragment of The Devourer that controlled the system before we took Equis back. The Devourer itself was an amalgamation of beings from a higher dimensional plane, as I mentioned before, beings that embodied and channeled their own unique force of existence energy. He really is Chaos, or he embodies and channels it anyway. Discordance, or Discord, is also my only remaining truly alive close friend in existence. He helped us take Equis back, and watched over my beloved remaining Gaiacorns for millennia. Going so far as to hide them in plain sight to protect them. Also he never forgets to visit, outside the time he was turned into a statue; and has proven himself time and time again to be at his core a true friend and good natured being. Even if on occasion the power and nature of the other fragments corrupts his being, Discord always returns to his old self. He is an integral part of the world, and I see him as a friend and brother who is irreplaceable in so many ways. He cares as much if not more for my Gaiacorns as I do too, and for in particular I believe he has much deeper feelings.”
Terraequis glances at Fluttershy with a sly look on her face, like one who knows a great mystery that will shock another. “Fluttershy, you do realize,” She begins, pausing for dramatic impact as the buttercream and pale pink younger bearer turns to look at her with a questioning curious expression. Terra them drops the metaphorical bombshell she has been holding back.
“You were born a transformed Gaiacorn dear, just in the form of a Pegasus.”
Fluttershy’s shocked and flabbergasted expression triggers another series of chuckles from the ancient being. A wry smile on her face, she muses on about her oldest friend while letting Fluttershy come to terms with what she has always been.
“He’s nothing like the others, and he is quite funny in his own way. I’m going to miss Discord so very much. He even helped craft the rainbows of light and darkness from the remaining energy of the Harmonia galaxy system after we took back Equis; when he wants to be he is extremely helpful. The rainbow of light would eventually be embodied by the Tree of Harmony and the Elements Of Harmony including yourself my dear. Though I’m not sure of its possible to be both the Bearer of the World and the Element Of Kindness at the same time. I suppose you shall find out when you fully awaken from here if such a thing can happen at all.”
She sighs, memories of the draconequis’s antics flashing through her mind in flickers across time. Her expression quickly turns dark though, as she answers the other question Fluttershy had asked. The one she had been intentionally trying to avoid explaining, but that she must answer for the truth of Equis to be fully unveiled to her heir. Biting the corner of her lip, she answers the one question she fears will cause Fluttershy the most pain and worry out of all the truths of Equis.
“The troublesome issue with the system, and the only way to free those within it and allow them to live and exist as they do now; lies in the circumstances to allow that freedom in the first place. So long as Equis has no vessel, all within it are in a state of suspended animation stasis or they get pulled back into the world itself. The Equis Entity Organism requires energy to allow that freedom, and that energy comes from planets it uses as vessels.”
Fluttershy gasps in shock and anguish, putting her four hands to her chin in horror as she voices her greatest fear brought on bu this revelation. . “Are you saying that for us to..to live. Whole planets with living beings on them must..die”. The last word comes out as a terrified squeak.
Terraequis shakes her head in utter disagreement, crossing her to lower arms in an X shape in emphasis of this. Her voice is both reassuring and worried as she answers, the worry is entirely for Fluttershy and her current terrified state.
“No, no, I can guarantee you that no planets with living organisms have ever been selected as vessels. The only planets that are chosen are those with no minds capable of even the simplest dreams on them, and with energy that is not conducive to life. They are also completely void of magic matter. Dead, non living, empty planets only are allowed to be vessels. Luna even found the newest one, so if you trust her you can trust me when I say that no planets with living beings have been destroyed to sustain Equis. Not ever.”
Fluttershy sniffles a bit, her worry and fear having caused her to cry over something that she now understands she didn’t need to worry about at all. However it is impossible to truly shake that fear alone. Her four eyes glisten at the edges with tears as she looks to the older being to reassure her that her fears are invalid.
“Are you absolutely sure that no living planets are chosen Terra.. I need to know that it’s impossible for that to happen or I couldn’t bear to live with myself when I wake as... as the new...Bearer of the World.” The last part of her sentence comes out in a tone unlike her usual one. More serious with a touch of worry, she looks at the being beside her hoping that her worst fear will be nullified by the response.
Terraequis nods enthusiastically, sure in her answer as she has been since the Equis Entity Organism began its journey so long ago. As she responds, she speaks from experience of untold eternities of guiding the world and bearing it from one vessel to the next.
“I can without a doubt verify that no living planets have ever been used as vessels for Equis. No being can exist without the forms of energy we rule out on the vessel planets, so you can relax Fluttershy. There is no need to worry or fear the circumstances of Equis’s journey of existence, I made sure of that personally eons ago.”
Fluttershy smiles, glancing outside at the rainbow sky above as her worries and fears are washed away. Inside herself, the only remaining barriers that kept her from truly accepting becoming the Bearer of the World disappear allowing her body and essence to embrace and merge with the core. Outside, within the pod, her body finishes the final transformations into a Gaiacorn who is the guardian, mother, and bearer of the world organism called Equis.
However within her, in this place of memory that is both hers, Terraequis’s, and the world itself’s; she turns to the older being with a curious expression once more. Her eyes are bright, brimming with the energy and magic of life that being merged with the core brings.
“So... now that I..I know the truth about Equis, what happens now? Fluttershy asks of the being who has unveiled so much to her.
Terraequis gets up, walks in front of Fluttershy, and kneels down grabbing her four hands in hers. A smile on her face she answers.
“Now dear Fluttershy, you wake up as the new Bearer of the World. You hold the power over the Equis Core now. It is up to you to protect and nurture everything, and everyone, in this biome.”
As she smiles at the young Gaiacorn before her, she is shocked to see fresh tears running down Fluttershy’s face. The new Bearer of the World looks at the old and asks.
“D..does this mean you are going to d..die?” She manages to get out between light sobs.
Shock runs through Terraequis’s system, she hold the hands of her successor tighter with three hands, and lifts one up to hold it before Fluttershy’s face. In a caring and calming voice she responds reassuringly. “No, no, I am not going to die dear. Dry those tears. There you go, no I am just going to rest. I’ve been the Bearer of the World for so long, an eternity and then some. But I’m not going to die, just like my old friends I’ll always be here. Right here.”
Pointing an index finger she places it on Fluttershy’s forehead, a smile on her face. “If you ever need advice, or are in a bind. You can always find me, because I am now a part of you Fluttershy.”
As the world around them fades away the ancient being smiles a genuine smile with no sorrow or pain. Fluttershy feels the pull as her mind returns to the body of the Gaiacorn she has become. The being before her, Terraequis, speaks one last time.
“I will always be here dear Fluttershy. But I have one thing to ask of you. Could you care of Discord for me? He loves you, and despite his quirks; Discord is one of the most caring beings out there. Promise me you’ll be there for him Fluttershy.”
And as her mind pulls her away from the world of old, the ancient planet memory of the original Equis; Fluttershy answers the plea of the old original Bearer of the World who is now a part of her.
“I will take care of Discord, I promise I will. Because.. because I love him too Terraequis. I love him, and I’ll always be there for him!”
The last thing she sees as she slips into consciousness within the pod, is the ancient entity’s genuinely happy and thankful smile.
Inside the new vessel of Equis, within the pocket biome of the core.
The pod shifts alerting Discord to its occupant’s awakening. His mismatched claws grasp and twist each other in anticipation and worry, hoping that what Fluttershy has learned won’t make her hate the world. Or more importantly hate him. The Draconequis still remembers when he was freed from The Devourer, how he found friends so long ago, their adventures, and how he then lost them over time. How it turned him bitter, and caused him to cast a spell reverting his age so he could forget that time and live a new life. Of course you can never truly forget such things, not when you are a being like he is. Like Fluttershy has become.
As the pod retracts it is absorbed into the body of the newborn, or really newly transformed, Gaiacorn form of Fluttershy. Discord stays as still as a statue as his worry reaches its peak. As her eyes open, filled with all the knowledge of her predecessor and an entire world long gone; his claw wringing begins anew. As his beloved looks at him, her new form so different and bearing an invisible power and weight within her; his legs begin to wring themselves in a fit of anxiety as well.
As she leaps from the ground and throws her newly formed catlike paws around him in an affectionate hug, her newfound height putting her head at his shoulders; Discord freezes in shock. But as her soft voice reaches his ears, her hug conveying the message before her words; he relaxes and hugs his beloved Fluttershy back. Listening to her as she reassures him, melting his greatest fears like cheese butter being melted by flaming candy corn.
Fluttershy says to him, “I love you Discord, even though I know the truth about Equis, about you; I still love you. Promise me you’ll never leave me and will always be there for me.”
As she nuzzles his chest with the face that is still her own, the lord of Chaos and sole remaining sentient fragment of The Devourer responds while holding her tightly and rubbing her now transformed shoulders affectionately.
“I love you Fluttershy, I’ll never leave you. But are you sure you are fine with me, with us..especially now that you know what I really am.” His voice still carries the weight of his greatest worry, the one that has plagued him ever since Terraequis merged with Fluttershy. No it has been with him longer still, and the lord of Chaos needs his beloved to reassure him once more to wash away that worry and fear upon his mind.
The nuzzles stop, and two teal blue eyes stare up at him. Two eyes filled with so much pure and true love for not just the world, but for him. A smile is on Fluttershy’s face as she says the words that will last millennia within his very being. Echoed in the darkest of times to keep the lord of chaos from falling again to the dark energy of his no longer sentient, but still powerful, fellow Fragments of The Devourer.
“Discord, when I say I love you...I... I mean I love you and everything you are. Even if you are the fragment of an ancient eldricht trans dimensional abomination of an amalgamation and the lord of chaos; you are still the Discord I care for and want by my side. Please..please tell me that you..”. Her eyes begin to tear up a bit, “That you feel the same.”
Discord hugs Fluttershy, resting his muzzle on her shoulder as he whispers into her draconic cat ears. “Of course I do, I’ll love you for eternity and longer still Fluttershy. You are the love of my existence my sweet kind caring Fluttershy.”
The new Bearer of the World smiles as she whispers back. “And you are mine too.”
Within the core of the vessel that hosts the system called Equis, a bond of love is born that will last an eternity and then some. As the world around them is growing and reforming, the two beloved beings hold each other within the pocket realm that makes up the core. Within the core of the Equis Entity Organism, the legacy of a grand folly and the home of those who live within the ideal waking dream that journeys across the universe, no multiverse and all it’s stars.
Eternally guarding those who dwell within it, and housing the single largest concentration of Magic in the dimensional layers it exists in and below where Equis travels. So much magic in fact, that it can ignore the rules and limits imposed on everything else within that dimension. Making an undeniable light emanate from that traveling world, that legacy of great loss, where Discord and Fluttershy hold each other in happiness and love.
A light that is invisible to most, but that one can feel in their very being when it is close enough, no matter where they dwell.
In a dimensional plane, far above and further beyond where Equis now lies upon and within its newest host vessel.
An entity of unreadable shapes and forms opens uncountable eyes of madness inducing varieties in an endless gray void.
It stirs, something in a lower plane has alerted it to a change. Time within its realm has less than no meaning, to this being the last time it felt something like this seems like yesterday. When it was chasing the ones who dared rebel, who dared defy it. But this feeling is different, it doesn’t seem the same. No matter, the being can wait for some time yet before pursuing this thing that has wakened it from its slumber. After all time has no meaning to entity’s like it. It will wait, then when it is ready, it will hunt.
This time, there will be no escape for the one it has hunted for since that time so long ago.
I feel it is important I give my final thoughts on this particular story. As one of the first I wrote for this site, it deserves a special note considering the story itself has its origins much earlier in time. Indeed though I have adapted it for FIM, and in my mind it works out splendidly; it’s origins lie in a dark sci-fi horror dream from long ago. One that was in the vein of more obscure titles from the golden age of sci-fi horror.
It was in third person, and I watched as a being called Terra and those before her went through scenes to tried to convey in the final chapter and the first. Their world, their society, was advanced to the point of being as gods to others. They were a force of positivity and learning upon the multiverse. That is another story altogether, and would make for its own book series if and when I tell it in full.
However, in their hubris these beings overused a type of energy or matter they found that allowed them to ignore all the laws of physics and existence. Unknowingly bringing a force of destruction upon their civilization and most of those they aided, a force that was itself merely acting out its long running protocol to defend itself and prevent a greater from coming down upon the dimensions and multiverse.
Terra and her friends did as I described in the story, meet a being that was a fragment of the destructive force. It was not called Discord, though he matches the role and most of the character fairly well. Unlike Discord, the original was more withdrawn from its time as a part of that amalgam of beings. Unlike Discord, this being was younger in body but ancient in mind, in many ways barely an adult. Unlike Discord, this entity played a greater role, actively fighting the other fragments with its newfound friends. Also unlike Discord, the original had no gender. The similarities between the two are important where it counts, the original like Discord went by a name meaning chaos. The original’s name was Xaos Devou, the Chaos of the Devourer.
The end result was the same as in this story, Terra and her friends merged with the core and branch cores saving what remained of their civilization and planet. They used dead planets, or what they thought were dead planets, as vessels and energy to allow those within the world to continue to live on. The story picked up when I had the dreams “Sequel” dream a few months later. In it Terra and her friends must choose successors to their duties, and all but Terra find and merge with those successors after many trials. Terra would unknown millennia later find her successor, though Ratet’s successor Solara tries to prolong the chosen heirs “mortal” life to the point of almost causing the system irreparably damage. Like in the story, this is thwarted by Xaos, Selena, and the new Bearer of the World herself.
The ending is the beginning of a new arc in the dream sci-fi story saga.
The second chapter and first chapter of Equis is Breaking is derived from that “Chosen Heir of the Core” arc of the dream tale. It is its own story however, do not think it is modified from the saga I described above. Though I took inspiration from this story series I have yet to pen that came to me in a dream so long ago, Equis is Breaking is its own entity. It is set in its own realm, its own world, and stands on its own. The dream saga and Equis is Breaking may share some similarities, however in the end they are wholly different. I intended it that way.
I left out much detail and many adventures and saga sections in this story, but I hope most of it was conveyed as accurately as possible within the limits of the medium. Maybe one day I will write a sequel to this tale, or perhaps I will let it be and instead write the saga that inspired this story instead. The latter is more likely, considering this is my least popular tale and I have so many more I must devote my time to for now.
For now, Equis is Breaking is complete. I am happy that after almost a year this is so, and though I know for many this is not their cup of Fimfiction tea; I am still proud of completing this science fiction dark horror work.
If you wish a sequel to be made, be aware that I will not be able to write it for some time. I do welcome any fanart of this or my other stories, though I do not expect it.
Thank you for reading Equis is Breaking, Glen Gorewood
