.....Priceless

Heartspan sat in his new lab, in what was once his cellar. He had only been back in Ponyville for a week maybe two and in this time he had put together a fine magical laboratory and a fine jeweler's work space. His recent experiences had lit a fire in him. He had met some wonderful ponies, and he had grown as a stallion. He would now immortalize it all in the one medium he was most familiar with. He had poured through every book he could find, he had pulled together every memory and every ounce of training. He would now set about the creation of a gemstone so magnificent that it's equal would never come into being.

He spent the nights studying the stars, and the rising moon that he might capture the true beauty of the night and it's mistress. He recalled every detail of every conversation, every sweet face that he could remember. He studied all of his most favorite things. The gathering of storm clouds, lightning, and all manner of ill weather.  Every quiet moment and every secret dream, all were brought together focused under the glaring light of his azure magic. He had drawn every rune with careful patience until the entirety of his lab was wrapped in the twisting designs of his spell. Not one precious moment wasted, every action carefully rehearsed as he crafted an incomparable magic. There was now but a single thing that was missing, the equivalent exchange for his spell.

He gathered all of his finest treasures laying them in the center of his spell. The last of his ancient gems, his blades, and every gift that had ever meant anything to him. Yet even with all of these things he had not enough, and so with quiet patience he rent open his right foreleg with the tip of his gleaming horn. Allowing crimson droplets to alight on each item, sealing in each drop the specific memory the item represented. With the loss of those sweet moments he would gain a treasure beyond comparison and so he smiled as he worked.  

Once all was complete he allowed for the passing of seven heartbeats before summoning the fullness of his magic. His horn lit with a blinding blue light. Every fiber of his being hummed with magical energy that traveled out from him to set each rune aflame. He had never before felt such immense power. It lifted him a few feet into the air and burst forth from his eyes. He felt as if he were magic itself as he hung suspended over his spell.  

He watched in awe as the magical fire spread from the runes consuming the entire interior of his home. Replacing it with a brilliant blue fire.




Winterdream wandered down the lane toward her brother's house. Her head hung low as she walked. Her saddle bags hung heavy with her possessions and she felt more than a little upset. She had such a terrible fight with her mom and dad, she felt so angry even thinking about it. They had even spanked her. A frown covered over her face as she remembered the feel of being hit. In that moment she hoped they were sad that she had run away. She was glad to be free and her momentary sadness was burned away with rash anger.

She stumbled forward as a gust of wind suddenly sprang up. It tore down the lane carrying various autumn debris along in it's wake. The chill made her shiver despite her jacket, and her beautiful mane flung out in all directions. She forgot all about her parents as she struggled not to be forced into a run by the wind.

As she neared her brother's house great bolts of lightning seared across the sky and blasted into the ground. The dull autumn clouds quickly darkened to a greenish-blackish color and Winterdream shivered with fear and cold as she burst into a run, allowing the wind to carry her along. Soon she dashed into the yard and as she did it felt as if her whole body began to hum. She sucked in deep breaths, glad to see the familiar blue light of her brothers magic emanating from the windows. She intended to wait until he finished whatever spell he was doing but a nearby crash of lightning convinced her to rush through the unlocked portal.

The sight that greeted her was out of  a nightmare. Where there had once been a home there was now only a creepy blue fire. Amid this her brother hung suspended by unseen forces as all around him whirled trinkets that slowly burned away with blue flames. She gasped in surprise and her brother turned at the sudden intrusion. Winter's eyes filled with tears at the site of him. White light burned from where his eyes should be and a grim smiled curled across his lips. He seemed consumed and the look of it terrified her.



Heartspan floated in the midst of a world of fire. Watching as trinket after trinket burned into oblivion. Soon they would be reformed but even as he thought this a gnawing suspicion crept into his being. As the spell progressed the feeling grew more strong. Then in sudden revelation and cold horror he realized the grave mistake he had made. He could feel the magic, dissatisfied with his payment, beginning to rebound. He knew he had to reestablish the balance of his exchange or his transmutation would spiral out of control. Then as if Luna herself had stepped in, a sudden muted light cut across his spell. A gasp, small and sweet, followed in the wake of the light. He turned to the fearful face of his sister. His smile was cold as he saw his most valued treasure. He loved this one deeply. She was priceless and such a valued treasure, he knew, would bring balance to the power he had unleashed.

Even as he thought all of this, a part of him free of the all consuming power of magic, reeled at the thought of such a loss. Such a terrible and irreversible act chilled his spirit, but only for a moment. He was in the thrall of his spell. The power he had unleashed ate away at the edges of his sanity. He felt all powerful and this momentary unease was quickly forgotten.

With little more than a thought he redirected the magic. The flames caught her up easily. Her terror and pain lost in the sapphire light of his spell. As she was consumed the light grew in brilliance as the spells balance was restored. Then slowly the flames began to gather in front of him. spinning and swirling as they formed themselves into a small gem the size of an apple. The gem pulsed with energy as more and more flames got sucked into it, leaving only the charred walls of his ruined home in their wake.  Then gradually the spell ended and Heartspan drifted to the ground. His hooves soon rested atop the ash covered floor of the cellar and in front of him a gemstone of unsurpassed beauty.  He lifted the blue-black gem. Within it's myriad of facets it seemed as if a thousand nights sprang to life. Starlight, Moon glow and a peculiar bright blue swirled within the depths of the gem while all along the surface winter white shimmered with each flash of lightning that seeped in through his open door. He turned from the gem wondering why his door was open and grimacing at the destruction his spell had caused. All the while, deep in his heart he felt a deep deep loss that seemed to have no real origin, and looking once more at his gemstone he wondered what mistake he might have made.

~~~OC: Logik~~~

Logik had just been returning home from the Ponyville Public Library. For the past hour or so he had been reading up on various stories and legends based on the Panacea, a mythical elixir said to cure all illnesses and prolong life. He had always been taught by his old professor to never believe in what such documents said and to not bother wasting time with them, but he had learned from experience that a fair amount of legends and epics did in fact have a fact or series of facts that they were based off of. It was for that reason that he had been reading through such sources: in order to find out if this mythical concoction could be recreated and modernized in order to advance the field of medical science. If the, although many times purely superstitious, descriptions of the object were to be believed, it could greatly assist in the treatment of such 'incurable' diseases as Hay Fever and Cutie Pox.

In any case, as the stallion was walking through one of Ponyville's residential areas, he noticed something that was a fairly uncommon sight, especially in this secluded town. As he was moving along, he saw a house that seemed to be glowing with a magical aura. He halted when he spotted this. A bright blue light was emanating from the windows and open doorway of the home, and he could basically feel static electricity running along his fur. From his peripheral vision, he could also see that black thunder clouds were forming in the sky above, confusing a few pegasi that were flying by, and he could feel unnaturally strong winds as they buffeted him.

Within seconds of his arrival, however, this all stopped. The bright blue light emanating from the house, which seemed to be the source of the strange weather as well, disappeared, and the wind and clouds cleared up to accompany its dematerialization. The small handful of pedestrians that happened to be nearby simply looked towards the house with curiosity or annoyance or simply ignored the whole scene, assuming that some Unicorn's spell had gone awry. This wasn't terribly surprising, as, according to what he had heard in the past, the oh-so wonderful element of magic that lived in this town was not always as skillful in the arcane arts as she was now, which had lead to somewhat numerous magical phenomena to take place in less recent times.

However, Logik was not completely ignorant to the properties of spellcasting, as many of these Ponyvillians were. Knowing that light was always excess magical energy produced by the inefficient traditional method of spell-casting, he could easily tell that the spell which had just been cast was a powerful one. An extremely advanced one, possibly even distinguishable as forbidden magic. If a spell like that had gone wrong, it could lead to disastrous consequences, either immediate or gradual. He decided to investigate, to make sure that everything was alright.

Logik began walking again, approaching the front entrance to the house. He quickly reached the building and, standing just outside the doorway that led inside, could see that the material forming it was lightly blackened around its open windows and the portal he was facing. Destruction School? No. Any flame-based spell of that magnitude would either leave the house untouched or consume the whole construction...

After a slightly hesitant first step, the Unicorn walked forward until he was standing in the doorway and looked around the interior of the house. Everything was blackened and covered in ash from what he assumed to have been flames, and aside from that the room itself seemed to be...bare. It lacked any items of value or reminiscence, exhibiting only furniture that would be found in any other home. In the center of the space stood another Unicorn. A stallion, with a white coat and somewhat lean build. He was holding a blue-black gemstone that was, simply put, beautiful; amazing. Just from its visible properties, though, Logik could tell that it had been formed by magic. It also seemed to emit a...strange, aura. But surely something so...simplistic...would not be the product, or source, of such power...

After a second's pause, the stallion addressed the other pony, stuttering as he usually did in the presence of unknown individuals. "E-excuse...me...is...is everything a-alright here?"

"E-excuse...me...is...is everything a-alright here?"

The voice ripped into Heartspan's mind pulling him from his thoughts. He looked up slowly from the gem to the tall, thin stallion standing in his doorway. Still dazed and not immediately recognizing this unicorn he searched back in his mind. Hoping to place a name with the face. His brow furrowed as he found huge tracts of his memories had simply vanished. A small smile curled on his lips as he realized they had been part of the payment exacted for his transmutation.

“ Ah, yes, everything seems fine.” he replied feigning nonchalance “ You will forgive me I hope, but I cannot seem to recall your name my good fellow.”  

At this he rose and gave a semi-bow in apology. His eyes lingering on the gem. It's beauty was dazzling but somehow it still seemed to unnerve him. Where it should have elicited profound amazement, this stone instead left with him a feeling of deepest sorrow. Realizing he had stared into it's surface a little too long he returned his gaze to this new arrival. He would need to analyze his new creation and more importantly to take stock of the damage caused by it's creation.  If this stallion were an old acquaintance then it would be of some value in the process, but it was not at all uncommon for strangers to pop in, this was after all a very small community. In either case there would be something to be gained.

The other stallion slowly tore his gaze away from the gem he was holding in order to look at Logik with something of a lost expression. His brows furrowed for a second, but a small smile shortly appeared on his face.

"Ah, yes, everything seems fine... You will forgive me I hope, but I cannot seem to recall your name, my good fellow."

The stallion bowed slightly, seemingly as a sign of apology. His eyes were once again drawn to the strange gem in his hooves, his expression turning somewhat...distant. He stared at the object's surface for a few long seconds before ripping his gaze away and facing Logik once again.

Logik cocked his head slightly, an expression of slight puzzlement crossing his face. Deciding not to mention the other Unicorn's strange...affinity, for the gem, he thought back to try and remember when or where he had met him in the past, but he could not recall ever seeing him before, or at the very least ever meeting him before.

After a few moments' pause, he spoke once again. "A-actually, I...don't believe w-we've...been acquainted...before....."

"A-actually, I...don't believe w-we've...been acquainted...before....."

Heartspan sighed in relief. He had not wanted to admit it but the thought of not knowing ponies he should know was both unexpected and frightening.

“ Ah well, that is good for certain.” he replied ignoring the puzzled looks of his guest as well as the subtle pulse of power coming from the gem held in his hoof. “ So..er...i guess introductions are in order?”

Heartspan surveyed the damage to his home a little as he spoke.

“ My name is Heartspan. “ he said “ I would invite you in but as you see my house is in a state for sure.”

He looked over at the unicorn gracing his entryway “ ...and you are?”

((https://mlp-fim-oc-rp.rpg-board.net/t2564-on-the-subject-of-spontaneous-disappearance#33910))

The other stallion sighed with what seemed to be relief, and then spoke once again. "Ah well, that is good for certain." ...It is...? "So..er...i guess introductions are in order?" Subtly surveying the damage to his own home, which seemed to be a new development on his part, the other Unicorn continued. "My name is Heartspan. I would invite you in but as you see my house is in a state for sure." He looked over at Logik once again. "...and you are?"

After a slight pause, he responded. "I-it's...good to...meet you...Heartspan. I'm...I am Logik." He nodded once. "W-well met... I-I hope you don't...mind...but m-may I ask what...occurred...here...?"

" Well....in answer to your question...it was the by product of a spell I cast." Heartspan replied slowly as he thought.

He dug deep into the recesses of memory. For the life of him he could not quite pull together the reasoning behind his impromptu spell making. here and there a small snippets presented themselves. Nothing whole, nothing complete, but even so he took those small threads of memory and wove together a sort of reasoning, a direction for this work he had undertaken.

His eyes narrowed shrewdly as he looked at his new companion.

" I was practicing a new way to use a very old talent" he continued " it simply required more effort than i had planned for."

" Well....in answer to your question...it was the by product of a spell I cast." The other stallion took some time to seemingly think of a response. He seemed to be searching for some thought, some memory, as if he didn't even know what he himself had done. "I was practicing a new way to use a very old talent. It simply required more effort than i had planned for."

That is...vague... "I...can...see that..." But this magnitude of destruction... Nothing short of forbidden magic, or at the very least the highest-tier spells, would be able to do something like this... "Well...am I...am I right to a-assume that you're...skilled...in the practice of the...the arcane arts? This does...not seem like something a...an amateur would be able to...do..."

Heartspan thought for a moment before replying.

" Well, i suppose that depends on how you classify arcane skill." he returned politely " I have taken a great deal of time to learn a very, very small collection of spells and with those ....well, yes i am skilled, but with other things, other spells or schools of magic i am not at all skilled ...an amateur really."

he took one more look around his place and then another long look at his seemingly confused companion.

" Look, you are so curious about this......damage....so i will tell you upfront." heartspan declared. " I decided to use transmutation magic to turn memories and impressions into a physical object. Unfortunately I miscalculated as far as i can tell and so i apparently was forced to compensate with.......some....things.....I am not even sure to be perfectly sound since i have burned large tracts of memory away in the process."

Heartspan sighed heavily thinking about what he was missing and what he might discover was missing when he had relaxed.

" This here." he said heavily as he held forth the gem " This...is ...just practice for a greater goal. Just testing a theory ...you follow?"

" anyways, you seemed so concerned i figured i owed you this much at least, for the trouble of checking up on me." Heartspan concluded.

"Well, I suppose that depends on how you classify arcane skill. I have taken a great deal of time to learn a very, very small collection of spells and with those...well, yes I am skilled, but with other things, other spells or schools of magic I am not at all skilled... An amateur really."

Logik nodded a few times. As far as he was concerned, the other stallion was indeed fairly skilled at magic. Especially considering the fact that most Unicorns couldn't do much more with their magic than levitate small objects.

After taking one more look around his home, the newly met acquaintance spoke once again.

"Look, you are so curious about this...damage...so I will tell you upfront. I decided to use transmutation magic to turn memories and impressions into a physical object." A strange idea, but not a thoughtless one... "Unfortunately I miscalculated as far as I can tell and so I apparently was forced to compensate with...some...things...I am not even sure to be perfectly sound since I have burned large tracts of memory away in the process."

Logik gave one slow nod.

"This here," He held up the gem, "This...is...just practice for a greater goal. Just testing a theory ...you follow?" Practice for a theory? What more could this possibly lead to? "Anyways, you seemed so concerned I figured I owed you this much at least, for the trouble of checking up on me."

A few moments of silence, and Logik decided that the other stallion's answer was already more than he had come for. "V-very well... If everything is...okay, here, then...I suppose I will be...going..." He stood there for a moment more, before nodding once and turning around, ready to depart to wherever he had been headed before.