An arrow bolt screamed past her head, the burning line down her shoulder indicated at least a glancing blow. “I came fifth in the running of the leaves. I. Can. Do. This.” Twilight chanted inside her head. She had little time or energy for long range teleportation and the leylines this side of the Everfree were too dangerous for an escape.
Sunlight had long retired for the Moon to shine, she had been running for hours and still her pursuers were relentless. The terrain cleared from forest to wasteland. She was still miles from Ponyville, Canterlot or any pony civilisation. “Keep moving Twilight.” She muttered aloud, ignoring the pain of a poorly placed hoof.
Everything had been so nice when the day had started.
*
The olive green pack was stocked with a variety of dowsing and mapping materials. She had been asked by Princess Celestia to map some leylines within the Everfree. Apparently one or two ancient locations were potential research sites and she needed to know if the background magic would harm any long term researchers.
“I’ll be back before sunset Spike!” Twilight called happily to her assistant. “Enjoy a day off!” She cantered off towards the forest.
“Hey egghead! You sure you’ll be ok out in the forest?” Rainbow Dash flew overhead, catching up with the purple unicorn. “I’ll be fine Rainbow. Zecora helped me map a safe route to the area and I have plenty of wards and spells to keep me safe.” Twilight smiled up at her considerate friend. “I’ll be back at sunset with a nice pile of data to work through.” Her eyes gleamed in anticipation.
“Ok egghead, you know the signal if you hit any problems. I’ll be there in ten seconds flat.” Rainbow grinned. Taking a quick look around for anypony she dipped down level with Twilight. “Stay safe.” She whispered and gave her unicorn a little peck on the cheek. Twilight blushed and smiled.
“I’ll be back soon Rainbow.” She said softly.
“Later Twi’!” Rainbow took a cocksure pose before flying off at top speed. She always got extra boastful after such delicate displays of affection. Twilight chuckled at her pegasine partner’s antics and carried on her trot to the ruins.
*
A sudden crash beside her brought Twilight violently back to the present. Her pursuers were keeping pace, only the frantic short hop teleport Twilight had taken far too long ago kept any sort of gap between them. If she was to falter or halt at any moment they would be upon her. As it stood their many ranged weapons ate up the distance at unexpected moments. The wasteland was giving way to familiar sights, but with it a new set of problems. Twilight did not wish to lead this threat towards others. She was going to have to deal with them soon. But how?
*
The forest was quite pleasant in daylight, especially when the denizens knew of her friendship with Fluttershy. The map Zecora had provided was excellent and the copy she had made herself was invaluable. She had only been in the forest an hour and already the map was streaked with purple lines marking the magical paths and notations of the power leakage. “Nearly at the ruins it seems.” The purple unicorn muttered to herself, checking landmarks and her compass. As she passed through a copse of twisted birch she saw the first signs of her goal.
*
Twilight felt herself flagging. She had made the agonising decision to turn away from the glowing beacon of a town, her charging foes a real threat to unprepared pony folk. From the positions of the stars in her fleeting glances she had calculated herself to be in the Diamond Dog mines area. Maybe the canines would be able to help her. Or at least see this intrusion as a threat and respond in force.
Gravel and dirt skittered as Twilight ran on while looking back. Her magical strength was at a minimum now, the basic shield and heads-up spells may take little power but using them for so long drained even the element of magic.
*
The pencil skittered across her page and Twilight sighed a contented sigh. “Looks like I have finished ahead of schedule!” She trilled happily. “Maybe I can take a deeper look around. Princess Celestia didn’t say anything against that.” She smiled in anticipation at the exciting sights within the ruins and stepped deeper into the cast down marble.
It wasn’t long before the studious pony was deep in thought about the tantalising fragments of dressed stone and sculpture. She didn’t notice the odd floor, a rather vegetated mosaic. The intense background magic, while not harmful and simply a normal and expected facet of the Everfree, obscured the complex spells woven into the decorative flooring.
One step further and Twilight was made very aware of the ancient spells. Within mixed vines, creeping vegetation and thick claddings of moss pre-exile statuary was coming to life, activated by an intruder.
The golems, telos or simply living statues that were set to protect this sacred place awoke to do their duty. Magical bolts began to land around and about the unknown unicorn. She suddenly teleported, escalating her threat level from pest to Eris status. The guards ancient spells kicked up a notch and they began to chase the very real threat to their monarchs.
*
The Diamond Dogs had been too deep underground or asleep. None had reacted to both her taunting shouts and the stampeding hooves of one live pony and half a dozen stone warriors. Twilight was getting very tired.
To make matters worse, Ghastly Gorge was getting closer.
“Think Twilight, think! Your beacon was too far out for Rainbow to see, so unless by absolutely minimal odds she chose to search for me here, or sent on of the girls, no one will be coming. Spike is at the library so no letters to the princess. The spells that run those statues are too complex for me to stop safely.” She groaned, the conclusion was inescapable and the little archaeologist inside her cried out in angst and hopped off for a series of stiff, strong, drinks. “I’ll just have to destroy them... All of them...” She made a quick assessment of her power levels. “In one burts... Oh Celestia, curse my boundless curiosity!”
The gorge was within sighting distance now. There was no way she could clear it and leave gravity to clean up her mess. She had to make a spell that would destroy the rock. Her mind raced.
“I need minimal energy, max effect with a short compilation and cast time. Something that hopefully won’t hurt me or anything alive out here but can crush granite. Think Twilight!” Just then, echoes came from the vast scar in the landscape and a light lit in the unicorn’s mind.
“Percussive Magic!” She shouted with glee. Twilight let herself come to a stop with a flourish and cascade of grit. She was far away from anything to hurt or damage, except her pursuers of course. She gathered the power, more than she had used as an element. Maybe even more than that first worrying burst as a filly. Now was not the time to hold back.
If the threat she faced had not been so deadly, or the harried unicorn had had time to consider facts, she would have realised that she was using amazing levels of power from reserves that had been sealed off so very long ago. As it stood, Twilight simply poured power into the spell.
Then, just as the statues closed in.
She let go.
*
Many miles away in a city called Manehatten a white unicorn with mane in shades of electric blue shot up in her bed, dislodging the grey earth pony who had been in her embrace.
“Epic Wub...” She breathed.
*
There was only a crater where the unicorn had stood, the radius was excessive, six piles of white dust and molten gold were all that were left of the chasing statues. Twilight Sparkle was gone.
*
The shockwave spread across the country. Hours later reports came from Zebrica and the Dragonlands of a noise of unexplained origin. In less enlightened territories at least two religious wars started and one was stopped. In Manhatten an excited unicorn caught the sound on tape and based a whole album of the concept.
In Ponyville five ponies and a dragon raced to the source and in Canterlot two Princesses rushed to the scene.
*
The sight that met them was amazing. Magic waveforms desiccated the light and mingled, echoing a sound so pure as to be the music of creation.
Rarity was in tears at the beauty. Rainbow Dash was just about ready to do the least awesome thing she had ever done in public. Fluttershy was awestruck, Applejack speechless and Pinkie Pie, having produced glow sticks and a whistle from wherever she kept such things, was raving.
When Luna and Celestia arrived there was a third flash in a familiar shade of purple.
*
Twilight Sparkle floated in a universe of pure sound. It was heart-wrenching, life-lifting, beautiful, ugly, chaotic, harmonious sound. “Welcome to creation little pony.” A kind voice, or communication said in what she perceived to be her head. “You have done well and claim you birthright.”
The pony moved from physical nothingness to existence in a blink.
*
“It was beautiful... It was all sound.” She whispered to the familiar voices that surrounded her. Twilight Sparkle stood up, further than before, and stretched her wings.
Nothingness is a strange thing, especially when being experienced by a cognizant being that was used to the physical plain. All at once she could feel her body but also feel the lack of body. She was sure the experiences were pouring in to her brain via the usual medium of her six senses through the regular channels. However she also had the awareness that her consciousness was suspended uncontained in the wherever she was. The whole thing was giving her a mind ache.
Everything was sound, so logically there had to be some medium it was travelling through and she had to have some kind of aural sense to know there was sound but she couldn’t actually feel her ear while knowing it was there at the same time…
“None of this makes sense!” she shouted, setting of another logic chain. Sometimes Twilight Sparkle hated being so analytical.
“Hello my little pony.” A voice sang through the music.
*
“Wake up my little pony, please wake up.” The urgent voice of her mentor roused Twilight from the blanket of blissful sleep. She opened her eyes and the blurred white blob focused into the concerned visage of Princess Celestia.
“Hmm, Princess… I had a very strange dream…” Twilight grinned lazily and stood up slowly. Whatever had happened had happened outside and she was lying on the floor. She stood higher than usual and there were two extra limbs making themselves known.
“She’s going to faint again.” The voice of the Lunar Monarch said, a slight lilt of amusement in her voice. “Ah got pools on her getting’ to five.” Applejack chimed in.
“Applejack! How could you! She’s our friend.” There was a pause. “I say six, I am well acquainted with dramatic swooning.” “Spike, don’t you object to this at all? She is your guardian after all.”
“You kidding? With the commission I’ll be in ice-cream for a month!” Twilight glared at her young charge, the dragon was handling a stack of bits from the bets.
“I would appreciate a little more consideration.” She groused. As she took stock of herself the thought of being a princess now caught her un-awares and she keeled over again.
*
“Is this a dream, a memory or something else entirely?” Twilight requested of the unusual space she resided.
“A little bit of all three.” The voice said, amusement clear in its tones. “They have no meaning here really.”
“Where is here?” Awareness was beginning to make sense to the new alicorn now. But it was still very odd not to have a physical form with which to act.
“This is… Creation, in its basic name. The place of all things; inspiration, magic, power.” It was a kind voice and teetering on the edge of recognition. As that which identified itself as Twilight continued to exist, she began to see colour take shape. Colour and sound played together and with colour came form. Twilight gave a sigh of relief as she looked at her hoof from eyes that resided in a head. “Why is everything changing here?” was her errant thought.
“Well, you are here now. Something and someone always bring form to nowhere and nothing.” The voice was achingly familiar.
“Can you show yourself to me?” Twilight sat on a rapidly occurring islet in the swirling colours.
“Not just yet dear. You have a lot to learn and discover first.” The voice had a chuckle behind it. “I don’t want to shock you too badly until you are further along.”
“Further along? What’s that supposed to mean?!” Twilight stood quickly, her speed of movement made the “world” waver. “Sorry little pony, we’ll have to speak later.” The world went dark.
*
This time Twilight awoke in a bed, an unfamiliar bed but a bed nonetheless. She was seeing through her eyes and generally sensing though physical conduits. That was a relief to the strange shifting place she had recently been waking in. A sound to her left indicated a door had opened and somepony was approaching. “Hello my faithful student. How are you feeling now?”
“Princess?” Twilight shifted to look at her mentor. “My wings ache and I didn’t even have wings yesterday!” She groaned. “What happened to me?”
“We aren’t quite sure Twilight. Spike told me you went to the ruins and the girls said they went looking when you weren’t back by sundown.” Celestia gave Twilight a reassuring nuzzle, just as she had done when her student was just a filly. “I’ve also been having reports of a percussive wave travelling the continent and beyond.” She smiled, “that was some powerful magic you cast.”
“I was being chased.” Twilight sat up, arranging newly lengthened limbs awkwardly. “There were six statues from the ruins, they fired bolts of magic shaped as weapons.” She tapped a hoof to her chin as she thought. “I ran for most of the late afternoon until evening.” She sighed. “Then as night fell I reached the wasteland, the Diamond Dogs weren’t around so I kept running away from anypony... At the gorge I made my plan and fired off the spell. I can’t remember much after that.” “It’s ok Twilight” Celestia soothed, “You’re fine now.”
*
A sonic boom rushed through the palace catapulting Celestia from her reading. “Luna?” She shouted over their telepathic link.
“I know not what this is sister.” Came the reply. “’Part from ‘tis powerful magic.”
“I can locate it, give me a second,” Celestia dropped the link and probed her kingdom. The magic came from Ghastly Gorge, a worrying thought until the signature blazed across her mind. “TWILIGHT!” She shouted, shocking Philomena from her perch and startling the guards in the castle, without a second thought she teleported from the palace.
“Sister?” Luna burst into the room only to find the remnants of a teleportation. No slouch in tracing spells herself, the lunar monarch followed her elder with speed.
The scene that confronted them was unexpected, a huge crater, some anonymous piles of rubble and five shocked and breathless ponies accompanied by a dragon.
There was no sign of Twilight and Celestia became frantic for the few moments between their arrival and the return of, albeit slightly altered, Twilight Sparkle.
*
“We arrived as quickly as we were able.” Celestia said, seating herself beside the bed. She kept a tight lid on her true emotions, nothing good would come of worrying Twilight, especially a Twilight who had un-quantified magical power in tandem with her prodigious ability. “Then you reappeared in this form.” She smiled to see Twilight flare her wings experimentally. “You fainted a few times and we brought you back to the palace.”
“So no reasons for this change? No clue as to why I suddenly became,” she fluffed her wings and lit her horn, “an Alicorn?” Celestia looked pensive a moment. “We, Luna and I... We’ve been trying to figure it out ourselves. You slept the night and a day through so far and all our research has turned up nothing.” She smiled at Twilight to relieve the concern she was holding. “We have checked, you are an Alicorn for certain. Earth Pony, Pegasus Pony and Unicorn Pony all rolled into one.” Twilight sat up neater in the bed. “Does this mean I have to be a Princess?” She wasn’t sure how that would work out for her, especially where her burgeoning relationship with Rainbow was concerned.
Celestia once again looked microscopically worried for a brief moment. “As of now, nopony but myself, Luna and your five friends know what has happened. We blamed the boom on a magical eddy in the wastelands. No one has investigated further.” She sighed. “However it is likely that once your... ascension becomes public knowledge we will have to crown you as a princess.”
Twilight froze. She could see it now, her mane a sparkling flowing field of cosmic purple as the official cerements and crown were placed upon her. Her parents looked on proudly. Shining standing to attention as the captain of the guard and her friends stood to the side, resplendent in gowns designed by Rarity and their elements around their necks. Luna, awake as it was officially Twilight, when day changed to night, Celestia handling the coronation...
A touch to her cheek drew her from the trance. “Twilight? Are you quite alright? Your eyes were looking a little strange for a moment there...” Celestia was once again regarding her with concern. Which was a silly thought, considering that for the first time ever there was nothing really that could hurt her.
“I’m fine princess, just a stray thought. I still feel a little odd, what with all the changes and everything.” Twilight smiled as a niggling feeling in her mind suggested that she hadn’t been imaging the sequence of events that had so enraptured her. “I think I just need some more rest.” She said aloud to banish the thought.
“Of course Twilight, I’ll let you rest. We will call you if any progress is made on figuring out how this happened.” Celestia rose gracefully and walked to the door. “Would you be up to your friends visiting you? They’ve been begging since we took you to this room.”
Twilight smiled happily. “Of course Princess.”
With a final smile and wave the princess left the room and Twilight alone with her thoughts.
“Am I going to end up here every time I drift off?” Twilight complained, she was at least in a physical body and sat on the island of earth and rock that drifted in the sound and colour.
“I’m afraid so little pony. This is our realm after all.” The voice was more musical than before, happier and thankfully less mysterious (She was privately sure that whoever it was speaking, they had been putting on the tones).
“Our realm?” Twilight sat comfortably on what appeared to be manifesting as grass over the grey earth.
“Yes, our realm. Yours and mine. Us. We.”
“I get it! Moon and stars!” Twilight groaned, whoever this voice was, they could sure be annoying. “So do I get to see you yet?”
“No sorry little pony. Not right now.” The voice had a hint of apology.
“Ah well,” Twilight could feel herself leaving. “I guess we’ll speak later?” As she withdrew she noticed the island had grown and was decorated with grass dotted with small purple flowers.
“Goodbye little pony.”
*
“Wakey wakey sleepy head! Aunty Pinkie has some cure-all cupcakes!” An excitable pink pony was jumping up and down beside the bed, defying physics, a plate and cupcake upon her back joined in with each jump.
“I’m older than you.” Twilight groaned, rubbing her head. She sat up to receive her guests and smiled gladly when Spike and Rainbow shot either side of her. Twilight lifted her wings to embrace all her friends. “Oh girls! I’m so glad you came.” She sniffled and hugged them tighter.
“Twilight, darling, we are glad you are so happy to see us but... we need to breath!” Rarity squeaked, pushing a little to get some air.
“Oh, sorry... New strength. Heh” Twilight blushed and released them all.
“Hooowee, that’s some grab y’got there Twi’” Applejack whistled, clearly impressed. “Ah can see that y’got some earth pony in there now.”
“And wings! That-is-so-COOL!” Rainbow squeed, her eyes shimmering. “I can so teach you how to fly!!” She did a flip. “THIS IS AWESOME!”
“So can I get turned into an Alicorn? Then I can have parties EVERYWHERE.” Pinkie nearly exploded. She began to draw one of her extreme breaths.
Twilight took one look at that and encased Pinkie in a bubble. “Are you ok Twilight?” Fluttershy came closer and looked carefully at her friend.
“I’m... I’m fine. I just spent an afternoon running for my life, created and cast the second most powerful spell I have ever attempted, sent myself somewhere unknown and unknowable and return with two extra limbs and magic I’ve never trained for...” Twilight’s eye twitched, everyone ran for cover.
“Darling... I think you’d better calm down.” Rarity said, taking refuge in the wardrobe. Mumbles of agreement came from a light fixture (Pinkie), under the bed (Spike), the other side of the door (Fluttershy) and from inside a large chest (Applejack). “Yeah Twi’, I think she’s right.” Rainbow remained beside her, nestled under a wing. “I mean, you have all this extra power and stuff. You don’t wanna get all nuts about anything else we might end up in a crater instead of a mountain.”
Her hair began to unwind and spring into odd shapes. “It is a little hard to calm down... Not only have I single hoofedly altered the safe status quo Equestria has existed in for millennia, I created a massive magical explosion by accident! I have wings!!!” As her agitation grew and her wings fluffed awkwardly while her voice became higher pitched. Noticing the worry present on all her friends. Twilight made a snap decision.
Five ponies and a baby dragon found themselves in the royal spa, the other side of the palace to Twilight’s current residence. There was an almighty popping sound. “Quick! We have to get back to Twilight!” Spike shouted, hurrying ahead on his own two feet until Applejack scooped him up during her own gallop.
Outside there was panic and shouts from castle staff, guards and servants rushed hither and thither. Up in the sky the princesses flew. “We better get to the tower.” Applejack called, the girls nodded and as one galloped in the direction of their friend.
*
As they approached the tower something decidedly strange occurred, it seemed the tower was gone, replaced by Kumquats of all things. Pinkie had just begun a squeal of joy when the tower returned to its previous state. “That didn’t look good.” Spike mumbled.
*
“Oh my, that was a large number of Kumquats dear.”
Twilight groaned, she was back in the shifting ridiculous place. Her head hurt and a hoof did indeed rub it, so at least she was once again physical instead of some kind of floating headache. There was grass beneath her hooves and peculiar pink flowers had sprouted too.
“Why Kumquats though?” The voice enquired once more.
“Pinkie had been reciting it recently, she does love such strange words.” Twilight muttered icily.
“It does feel pleasing on the tongue doesn’t it?” There was a disembodied chuckle.
“Shut up. If all you are going to do is tease I would prefer to sit in silence.” Twilight stretched out on the comfortable grass. “Unless you have some answers for me?”
There was silence a moment. Twilight sighed, “So I’ll take that as a no?”
“Sorry, sorry... I was checking if this was the right moment. Lots of notes to look through.” The voice was less of a mystery, more distracted actually. If Twilight really thought about it, it sounded a little like her mother.
“Checking?” Twilight puzzled aloud.
“Never you mind,” It was certainly a similar reply to what her mother would have given. “Ah! Here, yes... I can tell you where you are. In a way. Did I already call this place Creation?”
“Yes, well more precisely you said that it was the “basic name” whatever that means.” Twilight sat up a little; her horn was feeling better now and the promise of answers was welcome.
“Well, yes... Creation is the basic name. But then Pony is your basic name.”
“I think things are a little more complex than that.” Twilight retorted. As they spoke more ground had gathered, it too sporting a healthy crop of grass.
“Indeed. You are unicorn pony for a start, well, alicorn pony... Right away more than simply “pony” anyway then we have your personal name: Twilight Sparkle. That is a name that to many ponies means many things. You have a title, Element of Magic. That holds even more information than all your other names yes? Yet Pony can still apply to you without being incorrect.”
“I’m a librarian.” She groused in reply. “I know a lot of words.”
“Ah, yes you do... Well, if you promise not to freak out too much...” The voice sounded nervous.
“I won’t promise anything. I just grew wings, I turned a tower into kumquats! Just tell me and then clean up afterwards!” Twilight thumped a hoof against the ground.
“Ok... I uh, better do this bit in the flesh, so to speak...” The voice ceased to be all surrounding and a physical form became. The pony was an Alicorn, a dusky purple with a waving mane in shades of indigo, purple, pink and a hint of black. Her cutie mark was a familiar purple star surrounded by sister stars in white, oddly the purple star also held and odd symbol. The Yin-yang but with a pentagon and golden apple instead of circles within. The alicorn coughed and ruffled her wings. “Hi, I’m Princess Eris... This, ah, this is our realm. Chaos.” She grinned nervously.
