Sins of Harmony

Volume 0: Starswirl's Legacy

Chapter 1: Old Friends

Footnotes of Starswirl's personal Journal, date July 3rd 1008 ANM [After Nightmare Moon]

Starswirl the Bearded, born February 19th 950 BNM [Before Nightmare Moon]

The Legend, the Legacy, the Secrets.

Many things in life confront and oppose goals set out by the self.

Ambition for greatness bred many things: Gluttony for sustaining it, Lust to acquire it, Sloth to avoid any act not useful to the cause, Greed to gain more than others, Wrath against those that hindered it, Envy for those that for now had more, and Pride in achieving those ambitions.

Sometimes the greatest evil that opposes us time and time again is the one we once called friend, ally.

When the self alone falters, what remains is to see what can be learned from those around us, to better ourselves.

It began so long ago, and yet the effects have only just in recent years come full circle by 1008 ANM, nearly 2000 years after I set out, after my life took a turn to another path.

I suppose it would be best to start from the beginning.

Long ago

War and infighting drove many from the 'Old World'.

Many centuries had passed since the Great Century War began in what would become 1245 BNM, which had consumed the European continent, and spilled over into neighbouring nations on the greater lands to the south and East. Equine kingdoms and clans, Gryphon barbarians and provinces, and Minotaur hordes and armies fought for control, glory, and amidst the fighting, the reason why was lost.

Equine races and Gryphons, keen to avoid the fighting, set their sights West across the treacherous Muttlantic waters. In time, they found Great North Western lands, and the Gryphons established their presence in the mountainous and colder north eastern regions.

The Equestrians favoured the lowlands and north west plains, and they gre to prosper rapidly.

Local Bison, Dog and Cattle races contested, sometimes made peace and broke peace, with the Equines and Gryphons, but the new arrivals quickly established a foothold there that would endure.

As the Gryphons kept to themselves, the Equines began infighting as they braved the harsh, but rich lands, the Unicorns, Pegasi and Earth pony factions debating continuously, until a particularly harsh winter banded them together against an influx of Windigos.

Peace settled onto what was now known as Equestria.

A hundred years had passed since Equestria was formed, the unification of the clans of the land influencer, economic Earth Ponies, the Sky moulding, militant Pegasi, and the Magic wielding, culturally inclined Unicorns.

There was still some remnant of the old disputes, a 'hierarchy' of sorts. Unicorns often led, while the Pegasi were the militants, and Earth ponies were viewed as the 'muscle', stereotypes, but there were always outliers.

The old leaders, Chancellor Puddinghead, Princess Platinum, and Commander Hurricane, along with their notable seconds Smart Cookie, Clover the Clever and at the time of her death, Captain Pansy, had succumbed to old age.

But one who taught Clover the Clever had many tricks, and endured, him and a few others.

For even among Unicorns, there were the exceptionally skilled who could stave off old age and the ravages of time, though not forever. They would endure longer.

It wouldn't be the first time exceptional magic users would prove to have the power of longevity.

800 BNM

12th March

Oracle Mount

Every year, magic users gathered on the Oracle Mount in central Equestria's mountain ranges, where the most notable of Oracles in the nation would be present along with Magical academics and higher pupils.

Like the Wizards and the mare equivalent Magii, the Oracles were long lived by their magic. Unlike the Wizards and Magii, the Oracles never left their sanctuary for the sake of the stability and consistent environment helping them more easily hone their powers of foresight and mind reading.

Only once every 10 years did the Oracles open the doors to the outside, and only to those they deemed 'worthy', by their foresight.

This year, 6 Wizards, 3 Magii, and 5 students of them had attended, all in all 14 had come to the Mount. But they mostly knew each other already, as their communities had close connections to each other.

But among them, there were two that stood out from the others.

Late Afternoon

Oracle Mount

Monastary halls

The talk was small, as Starswirl the Bearded, a grey furred, brown maned Unicorn wearing a blue robe and pointed hat, finished speaking to the wise old Magii from Equestria's less explored Western coasts to turn and greet a Student of a younger Wizard that had respectfully nodded to him as she came up to him.
"Starswirl, it is a privilege."

With a polite smile, Starswirl asked pointedly to the young, blue furred Unicorn filly: "You're Constellar's apprentice aren't you? I recognise his coat of arms on your robe."

"Yes, Quirt Symphony sir. Is it true you consulted Clover the Clever herself? How have you lived that long and look so young?"

"I perfected the longevity spells you all use, that and I avoided creating enemies, positioned myself politically enough to not be a target."

For a while they spoke, until the door opened to reveal a trio of last arrivals to the Oracle hall, as the door pony let them in quietly, another monastery worker offering to take their outer robes.

Two were from the south, dark yellow furred, the Magii Surcingia Nova, and her student, the young Unicorn stallion Xenophillos. But the third was the one Starswirl had been waiting for.

Walking over after politely bidding Quirt goodbye, Starswirl made his way over to last arrival, a lanky, less thoroughly built Unicorn stallion with black fur and a white mane, who looked up with a faint, subdued smile in greeting.

"Siral, I trust your travels were fine then? But I thought you'd miss this like last time."

"Nothing of note. I wouldn't miss this two times in a row."

With a faint chortle, Starswirl embraced Siral in a friendly manner, the more socially cold Unicorn able to loosen up around Starswirl.

Starswirl the Bearded was renowned for being more active in political circles, offering wisdom and advice more freely than his colleagues. Clover the Clever and Princess Platinum, and their current descendants, were well acquainted with the Unicorn Wizard, himself considered 'Young' with his magic, despite already being 150 years old.

Siral the Savant, more reserved, quiet, shy, but uncompromisingly brilliant in his wisdom and theories. He experimented, ignoring orthodox principles of magic, and some spells he had produced, while not as numerous as Starswirl's in more 'acceptable fields', were well known. Perhaps more than any other Wizard or Magii, Siral's skill lay in potions and alchemy.

Starswirl was older than Siral, who was only 90, not born when Equestria united at Starswirl's 50th year, making Starswirl 60 years his senior. But they grew to be good friends, their quest for knowledge and wisdom uniting them, only diverging in their approaches.

Yet despite their differences, the Bearded and the Savant were remarkably good friends. They debated, they explored archives and mysteries, and they made a good team. Starswirl was out in public more, while Siral worked behind the scenes.

Evening/Nightfall

Oracle Mount

Monastary mountainside

The Wizards, Magii and 5 students had settled down for the night, taking leave to head for rest before the fortunes began to be shared to those that requested them or were asked to have them.

The torches lit the stone masonry of the monastery's buildings, from the halls and store rooms of the lower hillside, to the lonely circular hall further up, where the oracles lived and saw the future, unseen past and present combined.

Striding quietly across the rough mountain grasses, Starswirl felt the lukewarm mountain air and smelt the grasses, and a very faint waft of incense from the oracle chambers higher up the hills.

Beside a lonely tree on the hillside, Starswirl saw a faintly flickering red light, and knew he'd found him.

"Still stargazing as usual this time of night?"

All but gliding across the hill, Starswirl offered the quip to the Unicorn sat down before the magic imbued, blood red fire. The fire did not consume the wood, and would not burn if touched, but was warming as any other fire was.

Looking up, the black Unicorn drawled as he brushed a tuft of white mane out his eye, having been hunched over a diary of his, drawing in some star charts:

"I relax when I am busy Starswirl. Don't think you're any less guilty of that trait than I am.."

"True, but you make me look lethargic at times with your habits." Starswirl reasoned, sitting down beside Siral as he got out his pipe. The Savant looked at the pipe, offering with a slight gesture:

"Allow me."

With a flicker of his red hued horn, Siral's red fire before them extended a wispy length to the pipe's opening, sparking brighter as it lit the pipeweed inside like a normal fire would.

As the fire resumed to normal, and Siral settled back to gazing skywards to alter his starcharts, Starswirl quietly remarked: "Thank you old friend."

Stiffly nodding, Siral focused from his gazes as he mapped the stars on his journal's charts again. Looking over at the pages, Starswirl remarked:

"You have yet to finish them?"

"I must keep track of them. I have been trying something new, tapping into the power these stars and bodies emanate. Yet I find that some are stronger than others, even those not marked as significant by astronomers."

"I read this from you, but you think that some stars are more powerful than others?"

"Yes. How and why I do not know, but that power being drawn from a specific source could be useful, not just from all around us in an unfocused manner."

"And you think such knowledge could make more complex magic feasible?"

"I know it can, but it is a very long way off before I am certain. Keeping track of the stars is a challenge enough." Siral remarked with some aggravation.

Laughing slightly, Starswirl laid a hoof on Siral's tense shoulder, the slightly shorter grey Unicorn offering these words to the lanky black Unicorn:

"Calm yourself Siral. We have many a year ahead of us all, and I have a feeling mapping the heavens can be done by others, leaving you to work from that."

"But you must admit you and I, let alone the others here on the mount tonight, have an edge over the lesser of this realm, and other realms."

Frowning slightly, Starswirl reminded Siral with a slight tap on the side: "You must not think of those lesser than us in magic as lesser in general. Others have skills we shall lack, and everything has its place and use in this world."

Finishing, Starswirl remarked: "We are merely the highest ramparts of a great structure, and those you view as 'lesser', are the foundations and structure that we stand above. Unlike some nobility Unicorns, we must keep in mind that the strongest forces are often the most lowly and base, be they nature's wrath, or the sleeping giant that is the 'commoners'. Others will catch up to us 'elites' in time."

Siral nodded with some mild regret, as he then added: "By that time, if you and I are still around, I wonder where we shall a stand compared to them? Perhaps greater than I can conceive if they catch up to us, Starswirl the Bearded and Siral the Savant."

Laughing slightly, Starswirl took another puff on his pipe, remarking: "Your grandiose predictions of the future can match the oracles at times Siral."

As Siral shot Starswirl a sour look at deflating his thoughts of potential, as Starswirl blew a magic imbued puff from his mouth, the pipe weed smoking slightly as the puff of smoke spun in the air to reveal a wispy Pegasus shape flying towards the sky, trailing out beneath the hanging half moon on the horizon.

Staring out, Starswirl heard Siral murmur: "So, did you get asked to be here, or are you here just to catch up like I am?"

"Actually, I was asked for by the Oracles themselves. You were not?"

"No, and I don't wish to know the future in advance. I make my own future."

Siral always distrusted any fortunetelling, unless it came from himself, though he only ever tried to see a month into the future, no more. But Starswirl had consulted the oracles enough to trust the mysterious ones and their fortunes.

But never before had he been specifically asked here, even if he came out of habit each decade like the others, except Siral the previous decade.

Whenever they asked specifically, it was usually important to the one they consulted, perhaps even life changing.

But for now, just him and a long time friend on the hillside beneath the stars, observing the quiet central Equestrian valley far below and the stars and moon above amidst a red magic fire, Starswirl and Siral enjoyed their company in their own ways.

Their relationship would endure for a very long time in history, but as with all things, time would change them very greatly.

The oracle of Equestria, like the Eoropean/Grecian based Oracle of Dalphe [not Delphi], is a monastery that is opened once every ten years to the magic learned elite of Equestria, a secret society of sorts.

Starswirl is a more politically involved member, but merely offering guidance and tutoring those that would become involved in politics, such as Clover the Clever.

Siral the Savant is more withdrawn, a behind the scenes, less of a socialite, less politically involved than even any of those less involved than Starswirl.

Unlike the other 3 volumes set after this, which had many characters POVs, Vol. 0 shall be primarily from the perspectives of these two, Starswirl the Bearded and Siral the Savant, and at times the ones they directly interact with.

This story shall be open to review input for possible things for Starswirl and/or Siral to encounter in their travels during this story, before it culminates with the Equestrian civil war.

Please review/critique as one would, detailed reviews welcomed.