[center][b]Chapter One [/b] [i]Three Months Later [/i] ---- [img=http://fc06.deviantart.net/fs49/i/2009/181/8/b/Empty_shelves_by_latinoman.jpg] ---- [/center] Archmagister Twilight Sparkle of House Moon and Stars was not happy. She had not been happy for a long a time now. Now and then, of course, there had always been a tremor of giddiness. A slight of mirth. A hint of glee. At 12:17 in the morning, one of her hoofmaidens has roused her from her sleep and notified her of the break in at the Vault of Princess Platinum. By 12:22, she was fully dressed in the robes befitting her station. By 12:23, the magical artifact known as the Element of Magic had been summoned from the Right now, she was standing in a large dark, circular room somewhere deep within the depths of the fortress city of Canterlot. Over a dozen ponies sat on raised platforms, their faces lit by the pale glow of the crystals that danced in front of them. From this room, the Scryers of House Moon and Star could survey the whole of her dominion. But now, as the crime wave across Moon and Star territory swept, panicked voices and reports overlapped each other. Chaos was the tone of the surveillance center and the lack of any credible information blinded them. Arch Magister Twilight Sparkle of House Moon and Stars was [b]not[/b] happy. “Clover’s Vault has been ransacked as well!” “This is impossible…” the Scryer’s brow furrowed in confusion. “This is saying the seal on the vault was untouched!” “How are they getting by our defenses?” The reports of the damage came in by the minute. The Canterlot Library. Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. The Tower of the Arcana Council. The Crystal Embassy. The Canterlot University of the Magical Studies. The Museum of Equinology. The names were an obituary list of the great centers of Equestrian learning and magic. The loss of the knowledge held in the tomes of the Vaults was immeasurable, let alone the artifacts, tapestries, and treasure. But this? The loss was impossible. Catastrophic. Even Twilight Sparkle’s extraordinary mind hurdled trying to process it all. Each and every one of them had been stripped bare within the span of an hour. “T-they’re just gone!” a pony stammered. “Everything is just gone!” “We have unauthorized moment on subfloor seventeen!” a pony suddenly shouted from across the room. Twilight’s eyes widened in realization. “The Royal Archives…” With a mere thought, Twilight ripped her form from physical spare, blinking out of the scrying room without another word. As reality snapped back around her, now twenty-six floors beneath her prior position, her mind was already chewing through possible scenarios and culprits. Whoever had breached their defenses had done so with subterfuge. Earthborn and Stormwing, Twilight decided as she swept down the hall, crackles of arcane magicks snapping around her, both lacked the tact for this endeavor. Everfree had no use for the knowledge of books. Which left only the spies of Whitegold… or the Cult. Twilight forced down the sense of repulsion at one of those… [i]things[/i] touching even touching a single page of her collection. The two unicorn guards who usually guarded the entrance were instead gagged and pinned to the wall alongside of it, black chains bolting them to the solid stone. She strode by them without a second thought. The Canterlot Archives had been founded centuries ago by Princess Celestia and buried within the depths of the Castle. Only the most valuable of writings ever found their way into its depths; history, academic research, spells, arcane theory... among other such things. It was meant for books that were too valuable to be destroyed, yet too dangerous to ever see the light of day. Within it held forbidden tomes of dangerous magic Twilight passed row after row of empty shelves and empty aisles. She quickened her pace. A figure in gray cloak crouched in the back aisle, the hood covering the majority of his head. Yet even in the darkness of the archives, she could see his sand colored plumage and strong muzzle. Before him on the ground was a satchel, lined with gold thread and runes around its surface, spread open. Here, to Twilight’s relief some books remained, though not for long. The books were plucking themselves off the shelves, one by one, with remarkable speed. Each followed the one before it, practically bouncing in the air as they moved . As they neared the mouth of the empty bag, they shrunk in size to join the already growing pile of stolen goods. “Hockety pockety wockety wack abracabra dabra nack,” the stallion, judging by his voice, chanted in a whisper. “Shrink in size very small, we've got to save enough room for all. Higitus Figitus migitus mum pres-ti-dig-i-ton-i-um!” the pegasus paused to catch his breath. The books paused in mid-air, as if patiently waiting him to continue. “Clover you belong to the "C's", alphabethical order please,” he gently chided the book. Said book zipped to the front of the line “Ali-i-ca-fez bal-a-ca-zez malacamez meripides diminish diminish dictionary those words in your vocabulary.” Twilight stepped forward, her hoof clacking against the stone floor. The thief turned to see the Archmagister of Canterlot staring at him from the other end of the aisle. Unbridled cold fury was etched into her eyes. He turned to run. Twilight fired. One bolt fired straight through the through the stallion’s body, coming out the other side with a spray of blood. The ones that followed hit their mark, tearing holes and craters into his form and flinging him against the wall. His remains slid down against the wall, leaving a trail of viscera and bone fragments in his wake. Twilight Sparkle starred down impassively at the body, her anger slowly cooling. This… this was what has breached the defenses of Canterlot? This was what was causing so much chaos? Just another piece of pegasus filth? Then the sand colored pegasus stirred from the pool of [i]gold[/i] blood. “That hurt… a lot…” he grunted, rising to his hooves. Twilight watched as [i]magic[/i] began to stitch his internal organs together, flesh smoothing over vacant spaces “Should’ve kept an eye on the door… I’m such an idiot.” The pegasus rose to his full height, and Twilight could now realize that he absolutely towered over her. His now ruined hood falling away to expose the spiral of ivory crowning his forehead. “You…” She could not believe what she was seeing. “But you’re not…” “Who were you expecting? No, I am not,” he agreed with her. Her spies had reported whispers to her. That a being with the wings of an pegasus and the horn of a unicorn lurked within the depths of the forests. Another who traversed the countryside, bringing good harvest and fresh rain/ There was even a rumor smoldering in the ranks of her navy about one such figure who played pirate and was responsible for the recent setbacks of the slave trade. These were not the first stories to surface. Years ago, there had been ‘sightings’ of the Sisters everywhere from the Crystal Mountains to the Zebran Desert and Twilight Sparkle had investigated each and every one of them. It all came to nothing. A map filled with strands of colored yarn, scraps of newspaper, and red ink scribbled in late hours of the night as candlelight guttered on its wick. Some of the stories so ludicrous, some of the locations so ludicrous, that she had merely dismissed them. It was simple a trick or ploy by one of the other Houses, a story created by the slaves to instill hope. “Are you here to punish me?” “No,” was the simple reply. “What are you?” The beings eyes met hers, and the mare felt almost childlike in his gaze. His body was that of a stallion in his prime, and yet his eyes… as grey and cold as iron spoke to her volumes of countless winters and summers gone by. Twilight had stared into magenta eyes like those a long time ago. [i]“For alicorn is named both your horn and your kind, / And the heart of a dragon lord easily can it pierce." [/i] He was real. He was [i]here[/i]. The magic in Twilight’s horn slowly dimmed as she began to lower her guard. “Do you know what has happened to Princess Celestia and Luna?” she asked him. She was painfully aware of how tiny her voice had become in the great expanse of the archives. “No,” the Alicorn said again, “Though if its of any consolation, I am promise you they are still alive. [i]Alive.[/i] The word echoed itself through her entire being. The Archmagister’s eyes widened, and then misted over. With a shaky breath, she slid down to the floor. “I always knew…” Twilight trailed off softly. An incomprehensible feeling swelled in her heart. A tremor of giddiness. A slight of mirth. A hint of glee. “I always knew that one day you... one of you would return.” “Forgive me, my Prince. Had I known… I never would have… We have so much to discuss!” Twilight exclaimed. She wore a smile that threatened to break her face. “I’ve worked hard to make sure that everything is perfect for when you came back!” “Prince?” The Alicorn blinked in surprise. “I’m not prince of anything. Now if you’ll excuse me, unicorn,” the alicorn said dryly as he walked by her. “I believe I am almost done here.” There was a sudden burst of light as Twilight blocked his path, an amethyst hoof pressed against his chest. The gunmetal eyes stared down impassively at her. “Aren’t you going to stay? There’s so much we need to do!” Twilight urgently cried. He couldn’t leave now. Not after all this time. “We need to end the War! We need to find Princess Celestia and Luna!” she pleaded with him. “We all need you… [b]I[/b] need you to rule.” “Why in Mother’s name would I ever want to rule?” he asked with great curiosity. “If I did that, then I would have to bother with trying to undo all the damage your actions had caused. No, I have no desire to rule to over the pathetic scraps you have carved for yourself.” His words fell like a hammer to Twilight’s each, each word a blow to her already wounded heart. “Was that what you were hoping for, unicorn?” he continued. “If the Sisters came back, was everything just supposed to go back the way it was? Could the little village you had drowned be restored? Did you really think it would be that simple?” Twilight’s silence was all the answer he needed. “No unicorn,” the alicorn affirmed, focusing on the last few remaining books in the archives. “This is triage. I only here for the only things of value… oh! The Occultus Modis Harmoniae,” he remarked softly in surprised as he picked up a rather ancient looking tome. “I’m surprised you haven’t burned this book as heretical, unicorn. Or is that the job of your Inquisition? Either way, that’s definitely a keeper.” The book quickly shrunk to the size of a postage stamp and disappeared into the bowels of the satchel. The alicorn picked up. “The Pony Sutra, first edition from Saddle Arabia,” he flipped the book open to a random page. “With pictures none the less! Such perverted tastes you have…” He turned the book vertically, his eyebrows lifting in surprise, a slight blush tinting his cheeks. “…and who knew that Celestia was that flexible in-“ “SHUT UP!” Twilight finally unleashed her spell. For the first time in decades, the calm demeanor of the archmagister shattered and with ghostly clanks, series of purple spectral chains appeared out of nowhere and entrapped the alicorn, wrapping around his horn, his wings, his legs, and the rest of his body. With no small bit of satisfaction, Twilight tugged a chain around the bloody alicorn’s snout particularly hard. “I am not just a Unicorn! I am not pathetic! My name is Twilight Sparkle!” A spiraling disk of light appeared underneath the stallion, who didn’t even try to struggle against the chains seemingly anchoring him to mid-air. The Element of Magic burned hot upon her brow. “Don’t you tell me it wasn’t those fools’ fault that Ponyville was destroyed! They should’ve known better than to be such arrogant fools in the first place! Everything was fine! I could have kept them safe! But they let their pride get the best of them, and an innocent town paid the price!” Four pale columns slowly emerged from the portal, surrounding the alicorn. “But I can change it! I am the scion of the Solar Invictus! I have devoted myself to the Arcane! I made friends! I am the one who bears the Element of Magic! I am the one who kept Canterlot from falling into Chaos! And now, I’m the only one who is doing what needs to be done! To end this War and bring about true Divination!” The ends of the chains, previously hanging in midair, all latched themselves to the four pillars. As soon as they were secured, the columns and the chains began to sink back into the portal, forcing the god down as well. “You left this world! You abandoned us! The archmagister’s horn glowed brilliantly from under her hood. The prison kept sinking without a hitch, but the alicorn’s eyes were still visible – mocking her. Twilight grit her teeth and focused harder. Finally, the chained alicorn was out of sight, and the portal began to shrink. Yet, Twilight refused to release the magic until she saw the portal shut off completely. There was a moment of silence. She blinked as she realized what just happened. She, Twilight Sparkle, had just imprisoned the first alicorn to be seen in Equestria in over twenty years! For a moment, she felt like her chest had swelled up so much that she could balloon off at any moment. She didn’t need him. She was stronger than they were now. She was at last ready for Ascension. She was- “Impressive.” And then the moment ended. Twilight teleported away just in time to avoid the massive black chain swung down at her. “A seventh-tier arcane binding utilizing an extra-dimensional pocket,” the alicorn went on, levitating four bundles of chains. Silver runes and glyphs glowed upon each link, with more being produced each second from the black tendrils of smoke pouring off his body. The alicorn’s black mane was in complete disarray, and even his robe seemed more threadbare than it was before. “You even added a bit of chrono distortion; centuries could pass in that place while only a few hours passed here. I’m surprised at your mercy, leaving your opponent to die of old age like that. I commend you, unicorn Twilight Sparkle,” the alicorn acknowledged her in a raspy voice, Twilight noted, by name for the first time. “That was the finest bit of binding magic I’ve seen in millennia. Even I would’ve been hard-pressed to manage that without any prepared runes or circles. The Element of Magic must be more powerful than I thought.” Two of the chains shot through the air at Twilight, who teleported out of the way again. “H– How did you escape?” she gasped out, as the alicorn approached her. The binding have taken no small amount of her energy to accomplish, the drain costing her precious seconds to recuperate when she had none. “Oh, it wasn’t easy, I can promise you,” the alicorn smirked humorlessly. “It took me well over a decade to pull your seal apart. Don’t worry, I won’t hold a grudge.” He swung one of the chain bundles in front of him. Twilight quickly threw up a barrier to deflect it. Instead, the chains wrapped fast around the prison, and he was quick to throw his remaining bundles. The chains tightened around the purple dome, and storm of fiery sparks flew from the friction. “You let your insecurities get the best of you. You let your anger blind you…” “तुम एक झूठे देवता हैं. सूर्य की एक ठग!” Twilight shouted, nearly mangling the words with her harshness. “Don’t patronize me,” he chastised her in her own tongue. He did not know where she had learned their tongue. Her teacher perhaps? “I’ve had a decade to sit and mull this over.” Twilight struggled to hold her barrier against the ever increasing pressure. “Pitiful, really. For all your talk of power, of achievement… of [i]Divination,[/i]” the alicorn scoffed at the last word. “…it’s still just talk,” he continued steadily. “Your form was perfect. Your spell casting technique? Flawless. Any mortal would have been imprisoned for eternity. Even one of my kin would have tremendous trouble freeing themselves. But why try to crush an ant with a boulder?” “I never underestimate my opponents,” she answered, as she released her shield. “Especially with imposters like you!” There was a bright flash as she teleported, leaving his chains to tighten around nothing and appeared behind him. A wave of fire ripped from her horn, screaming in an arc towards the alicorn. Arcon tilted his head around to look at it. His lips were a thin line set into his face, lit aglow as the arc set the air on fire around him, consuming the alicorn’s form. It rippled against the grey shield he conjured a fraction of a second later, dispersing against the wall behind him. A twinge of panic ran through her as something tightened around her leg. A [i]fifth[/i] black chain, hidden by the shadows of the darkened archives, fastened itself around the limb. It trailed back to a bundle Twilight now realized what coming from the alicorn’s back. She reached for the part of her mind that held the spell to teleport, and the thought died midstream. It simply was not there. Try as she might, something had [i]sealed[/i] that part of her within. “I am not an imposter. My name is Arcon,” he declared, wrapping the chain which held her around his hoof to secure it. The silver glyphs on it glowed bright. “I am an Alicorn… and you are [i]just[/i] a unicorn.” With an inarticulate scream, her magic ripped the closest bookcase from where it was bolted to the floor, and hurled it at the stallion. It shattered against his form, a shaft of wood lodging itself deep within his back. “You’re trying to prove yourself to me. Prove that you’re adequate to sit on the Throne of Canterlot. All you’re trying to do is fill the Sisters’ shoes,” Arcon hissed as his shoulder knit itself back together. One wing dragged itself on the ground, useless for the moment and spilling golden ichor. A black chain tightened around Twilight’s neck like a noose and lifted her off the ground. He reeled her in closer and held her up so their eyes met. Her hat, and with it, the Element of Magic fell to the ground with a clatter. “You're quite a pathetic replacement. You’re a failure of a student ridden with guilt over an event twenty years ago that was out of your control, and you’re filled with the constant need to feed your ego to make up for your inferiority complex.” Her reply was several bursts of raw magic that ricochet uselessly off the shield he conjured and vaporized the bookcases and stonework around them. Stone melted into slag around the hooves of the alicorn and the air was thick with plasma and heat. When the dust at last settled, the two of them were standing in a fairly decent sized crater in what used to be the rear of the Royal Archives. In the far off hall, the exhausted archmagister could hear the faint clopping of approaching ponies running towards her. “I have what I came for,” Arcon said at last, looking towards the shattered and empty shelves. There was a clatter as his body finished forcing out the wood, and he extended his now healed wing. He placed the satchel securely across his chest, and straightened the tattered remnants of his cloak. The chains around Twilight’s neck dissipated into wisps of black smoke, dropping her to ground. “I will withdraw for now. Otherwise, this will never end,” he said, a hint of exhaustion in his voice. The sound of approaching hoot beats grew louder and the alicorn moved to a nearby door that said “Janitor” on the plaque, favoring the side that hadn’t been just impaled. The archmagister rose to her hooves, a hoof tenderly massaging her sore throat. Her magic immediately began to kick in, healing the damage. “I don’t know how you got in…” she rasped. “But you’re not leaving. The entire city is on lockdown.” “Where there is a lock, there is always a door,” he said. For a few moments, there was only silence as the archmagister and the god stood each other down. His horn glowed briefly. Twilight moved. She did not need to think about it. Merely react. She was faster on the draw than he was. A single bolt of magic escaped her horn before she needed to raise her defenses. Something whipped from the inside of Arcon’s robes. Her barrier, an impassible dome of purple, surrounded her. A golden key [i]clinked[/i] against the surface, not even stirring a ripple, and fell to the floor. Arcon ducked as the stonework above him was torn apart in an explosion of shrapnel, nicking his exposed face and cheeks. He glanced back at the purple unicorn, his eyes filled with disappointment. “You are all still just… foals,” he whispered in bitter resignation. The door opened with a quiet click behind him, golden light within spilling out onto the stone floor. “If one day you ever feel you wish to learn again, come find me, disciple of the Solar Invictus,” Arcon bade her as he stepped into the door. Twilight caught a glimpse of an impossibly large chasm within the depths of the closet. For a split second, she saw racks of artwork, fields of statues, and a labyrinth of book cases. “Next time, however, I shan’t hold back… and I believe, neither will you.” Then the door was slammed shut. A few seconds later, Trixie stormed into the archives, magic flaring and backed by a score dark cloaked and masked forces of the Inquisition. Twilight picked her hat back up, absently brushing off some imaginary dust before. “What took you so long.” The show mare looked at her superior as though the unicorn had grown a second head. “Trixie was dealing searching the rest of the castle against potential threats, as is protocol,” she stressed. Twilight turned to the door that Arcon had disappeared into. All that greeted her was the sight of a few brooms and buckets. The space was only a foot deep, not even enough for a pony, let alone an alicorn of that size to fit in. Twilight closed the door again, and turned to the azure unicorn behind her. “Bring the prisoners to the interrogation hall immediately.” “Trixie regrets to inform the Archmagister that there were no prisoners.” “So it was a complete slaughter then?” Twilight replaced her hat with a tired sigh and banished the Element of Harmony to her personal chambers. “Very well. I would have preferred had we taken one alive, but what done is done. Prepare the bodies for examination.” When Trixie did not move, Twilight gave her an irate glare. “Well?” “No casualties either,” she stated impassively. Silence. “Excuse me?” “No casualties. Enemy casualties, or friendly.” Twilight released a very tense breath. “Explain to me the cause of this momentous failure.” “While Archmagister Sparkle was… [i]busy[/i] with the Archive, Trixie and her Inquisition were attempting to secure the remaining strongholds,” Trixie said icily, as she took in the damage surrounding her. “Eye witnesses have identified some of the perpetrators as known exiled blood traitors and we are working to identify the exact type magic they used to elude us.” So the alicorn was not working alone. Was he with one of the houses? Or were there new players in the game… “Leave me,” Twilight said at last. “Search the rest of the archives. See if there is anything that remains.” “Archmagister,” Trixie acknowledged as she and her forces dispersed, leaving Twilight alone with her thoughts. She rapped a hoof against the door, listening to the noise. It was simply solid oak. The entire thing was a Twilight opened the door. It was still just a broom closest. She closed it, waited a few moments, and then opened it again. Still just brooms. She picked up the key that the alicorn had given her, closely scrutinizing it. It had no runes, no symbols, not even a scratch. Scans with her magic revealed no enchantments, latent or otherwise. It was… just a key. She looked back up at the closet door. To the keyhole beneath the handle. Did it have a keyhole before? Twilight could not remember. It fit into the lock perfectly, as though it had been cut for this exact door. It turned with a quiet click. Twilight opened the door. Beyond the door was an impossibility. Beyond the door was a great room filled with empty bookcases and broken stones, filled with shadows and dusty memories. Beyond that door was another Twilight Sparkle. She tilted her head to the side, and the reflection copied in perfect sync. She reached out a hoof. A hoof pressed back against hers. ---- Arcon stepped out into a ring of stone arches. He was not along. Nearly a dozen other ponies stood chatting happily, with more arriving by the minute as they stepped out of the archways. Torches flickered along the stone walls. The entire place was a honeycomb of caverns and tunnels. A massive set of galleries and platforms had been carved into the walls above, serving to provide even further face by the collection which grew daily. Stolen from libraries, universities, homes and stores, they originated from every time period from every corner of Equestria. Tapestries, paintings, books, sheet music, statues, artifacts, mosaics and frescos; they were all here, their numbers in the millions, and each had been methodically organized and preserved for future generations of ponykind. “Lord Arcon, you’ve returned!” a cream colored unicorn shouted, running into the stone ring. “And you have them! Oh thank goodness! Thank you! Thank you!” Silent Dawn was a good underling. Arcon had found him outside the gates of Manhatten with his three daughters, hidden away in the slums of the outer city. The unicorn had once been the archivist of the very place that Arcon had just robbed, having been forced to flee with what little of his collection his could carry when he spoke out against the Inquisition. “Careful with those,” Arcon said humorlessly as he levitated his satchel to the archivist. “I’m fairly certain some of those spell books will explode if you jostle them around too much.” With a much gentler hoof, and no small amount of trepidation, Silent Dawn accepted the satchel and hugged it against his chest. “My life’s work… I cannot thank you enough, my lord… ” Silent Dawn whispered, looking up at the alicorn with pure adoration. “Did the satchel’s spell matrix work? Was it able to hold everything?” “While the lyrics were utterly ridiculous… the enchantment worked perfectly. A masterwork weave, Head Archivist.” Arcon slipped off the remains of his woolen cloak and allowed a pair of mares to redress him in a fresh one, leaving them to bowing in his wake as he walked away. “It was actually my daughters who came up with the words…” Silent Dawn admitted with embarrassment as he followed the alicorn. “You know how hard it is to resist them.” “I do,”Arcon lied dryly. They continued to navigate the maze of shelves and display cases, climbing higher into the mountain. “The operation?” “All of those weeks of planning have paid off,” the unicorn declared proudly. “We cleared out each location within the hour. What was in the Vaults alone… we’ll have to spend the next year just going through all of it!” the unicorn exclaimed excitedly. He then dropped into a more morose tone. “We… do have a few injured. Some guards caught a pair of runners as they tried to escape.” Arcon blinked uncaringly. “Pity,” he mused. “Was anything they were carrying damaged?” “Uh… no my lord,” Silent Dawn said uncomfortably. “Also about… that one particular statue retrieved from Canterlot…” Silent Dawn trailed off. The alicorn’s nostrils flared for a split moment, the only sign of his distress. “Place it in the center of the High Security Vault and seal it. I will add further protections once I have rested,” Arcon paused for moment. “Also inform Marzipan that I am going to need about a dozen troughs of water and a double feast. I ran into some trouble with your Archives. The Archmagister did not appreciate me taking her books.” Twilight Sparkle knew hundreds of thousands of spells. Spells to conjure anything out of nothing, to bend time and maneuver space. The least of which could shatter bones or turn his blood into fire. He counted himself lucky she had been to lucky to remember them while she was angry. He had several thousand new books that required reading and he wanted to get started as soon as possible. Still… next time she would be prepared. As would he. “Lord this is… I’m not sure if it is a pressing issue, but certainly a strange one. There’s a… hawk at the perimeter of the outer barrier.” Arcon paused, a look of frustration on his face as he stared down at the stallion who shrunk under his gaze. “Why, Silent Dawn, are you wasting my time with something as trivial as the local fauna?” Silent Dawn gulped. “The uh… the hawk hasn’t moved in the past few hours… and its emitting magic… and its transparent… that’s… important right?” There was a pregnant pause. “I will be right back…” Arcon muttered with a tired sigh, as he teleported to the edge of his realm. A few minutes later, the alicorn was back… and considerably paler. “….” “Lord Arcon?” “After the last of the runners return, activate the emergency barriers and seal the gate. Prepare all external defenses. The Hall is going into lockdown mode. Nopony enters or leaves other than me, Silent Dawn, is that understood?” “Y-yes Lord Arcon... but whats this all about? Is it that hawk? Did it say something?” the archivist fumbled in shock. “Yes.” “What then could have you so worked up?” “[i] ‘Hello Sweetie’ [/i]“