Seeking Eternity

Chapter One: Birthday Blues

It was the birthday of Princess Luna's husband, Gothic. There was much celebrating from all the royal family, as Twilight and Cadance's family had come to help celebrate. Even Discord was in attendance, having suddenly shown up on the grounds that he "could never miss a good party."

"Happy birthday, daddy!" Constell hugged.

"Thanks, sweetie." Gothic smiled. "Another year older, huh?"

"And yet, you still look as handsome as you did the day we met." Luna smiled.

"And you're just as beautiful." Gothic smiled.

The two kissed passionately.

"Awww." Dusty Speck beamed. "Isn't that sweet, Blue?"

"It sure is." Blueblood smiled.

Their one-month-old twin colts, Pureblood and Vito, were enjoying some cake, though they were getting more of it on them then in them. Right beside them, Celestia and Shine's daughter Miracle was eating a little more delicately.

"Oh, boys." Blueblood chuckled. "That is no way for royalty to eat."

"Come here, you messy colts." Dusty smiled, producing a cloth to clean them.

"Gotta admit, I didn't think I'd see the day when you became a day, Blueblood." Gothic chuckled. "And with a commoner, no less. Remember when Constell was born?"

(Flashback)

It was the middle of the night, and Luna and Gothic were in bed together, sleeping. Suddenly, Luna shot upright.

"Aah!" She groaned, clutching her swollen belly.

"Whutzgoinon?" Gothic sat up.

"The foal's coming!" Luna yelped.

"Oh, okay." Gothic laid back down, then a few seconds later, sat back up. "The foal's coming?! Now?!"

"Yes!" Luna cried.

"Okay, don't panic!" Gothic jumped out of bed. "I'll get the night guardspony to take you to the hospital, and tell everypony else... just stay calm!"

"I shall follow your example." Luna said sarcastically.

Soon after Luna and Gothic got to the hospital, Celestia and (a very reluctant) Blueblood followed.

"It figures that aunt Luna's foal would come out in the middle of the night..." Blueblood yawned.

As dawn broke, Luna and Gothic emerged, Luna carrying the infant.

"Say hello to our daughter, Constell." Gothic smiled.

"She's beautiful, isn't she?" Luna sighed.

"Just like her mother." Gothic embraced Luna.

"Oh, they look so wonderful together, wouldn't you say, Blueblood?" Celestia smiled.

"Hmph." Blueblood shrugged.

"Come on, Blueblood, how long must you be so against Gothic?" Celestia groaned.

"Sorry, auntie, but as far as I am concerned, they have further polluted the gene pool of royalty." Blueblood declared. "And the fact that I lost hours of beauty sleep for this does not make it any better."

" One of these days, you will be eating those words." Celestia smirked. "Who know, perhaps one day, you will fall in love with a commoner."

"Yeah, right." Blueblood scoffed. "The chances of that happening is the same as me befriending a psycho who goes by something like 'O'Malley'."

(End Flashback)

Blueblood was trying to open a wine bottle for Dusty.

"Do you need help, dear?" Dusty asked.

"No, no, I got this." Blueblood grunted

"Let me try." Caboose took the bottle. "HUZ-ZAH!" He said in O'Malley's voice, breaking the top open. "There you go." He smiled, using his normal voice.

"Thanks." Blueblood smiled.

"Look at you, Gothic." Shine smiled, "Now forty-five, a prince, with a beautiful wife, and a beautiful daughter…you are living the life, my friend."

"Oh yes, and to think in eighteen years, that will be you." Celestia nuzzled Shine.

"Enough reminiscing." Discord conjured up a turntable and speaker. "Time to kick this party into overdrive!"

"Let's dance, everypony!" Mist cheered.

All the royals got out on the dance floor, and started dancing up a storm. While Shining Armor and Cadance slow danced, Twilight and Flash Sentry went into Twilight's trademark dance, much to their children's embarrassment.

"Check this out!" Gothic declared.

He pulled off a complicated dance move, but pulled something in the process.

"Ah!" He gasped, hopping on his other hooves.

"Stop everything!" Shining Armor yelped, as they all gathered around their friend.

"Are you alright, dear?" Luna asked.

"I'm fine." Gothic winced. "I used to be able to pull that move off perfectly..."

"Well, no offense, but you aren't as young as you used to be." Blueblood pointed out.

"Maybe you should sit this one out, dad." Constell offered.

"I'd prefer to... walk it off, instead." Gothic sighed "I'll be back in a little while."

As Gothic left the room, his wife and daughter looked on worriedly.

As Gothic walked into Canterlot, he found that the pulled muscle was easing off, but Blueblood's words still ran through his head.

"It's prince Gothic's birthday today, you know." He heard somepony say.

Peeking around the corner, he saw two nobles talking.

"Ah, yes." One said. "I have to give him credit. Marrying an immortal princess, knowing full well, she'll outlive him, is quite a feat."

"Unless he didn't think it through." The first noble noted. "I for one, don't know if I would chose such a life."

"Just think." His companion prompted. "In another forty five years, the prince will be old and grey, while the princess remains the same. That would put quite a damper on their love life, wouldn't you say?"

Sighing heavily, Gothic walked back to the castle. He then stopped as he passed a mirror. Looking at it, he noticed the wrinkles on his snout, and the gray streak of hair running through his mane.

"My gosh, I'm getting old..." Gothic sighed.

"Hey, come now, it's not the end of the world." Gothic''s reflection spoke to him.

" GAH!" Gothic jumped back.

The reflection walked out of the mirror, turning into none other than Discord.

"Discord!" Gothic snarled. "Why the hay did you scare me like that?!"

"Geez, don't have a heart attack, grandpa!" Discord chuckled.

"What do you want?" Gothic frowned.

"Well, I was just concerned about you." Discord said, putting on a serious face. "You seemed so sad and lonely out here by yourself."

"Well, don't be concerned." Gothic huffed. "I'm fine."

Gothic turned away, but Discord instantly appeared in front of him.

"Don't be so grumpy, Gothic." Discord told him. "I can understand why you're so sad."

"I highly doubt it." Gothic snorted.

" But I do." Discord declared. "It's not easy being married to an Alicorn who will still look beautiful and young while you grow old, feeble, and lose all your teeth in hundred years." Discord emphasized his point by turning old and feeble.

"How would you know?" Gothic huffed. "You're not married to one."

"No." Discord turned back to normal. "But being an immortal myself, I sometimes feel sad knowing that in a century or two, my friends will be pushing daisies. Even sadder that one of them will be Fluttershy." He let out a sad sigh.

"Oh... I guess you do understand." Gothic said, feeling guilty. "I'm sorry. It's just... look at me." He gestured to himself. "For more than twenty years, I have devoted myself to Luna, gave her a child, and stood by both their sides. My two girls both look young and beautiful, with an eternity ahead of them. Me? Well, as you saw at the party, I'm getting on in years. I have reached the midpoint of my life..."

"Hey, that's something to be proud of, right?" Discord asked. "The big four-five?"

"Yeah... it also means that I have only a few more decades before I..." Gothic started.

"Kick the bucket?" Discord offered. "Go six-feet under? Push up daisies?"

"Yes." Gothic growled. "I sometimes envy Shine... he got married to Celestia at the prime age of 25 and had a child with her shortly after. He still has a lifetime to be with his family."

"Yes... but even then, Shine will grow old and feeble like you will." Discord noted. "It sure makes you wish that there was a way to...I dunno, extend your lifespan infinitely and maintain youth, right?"

"Yeah... if only..." Gothic sighed. "I would give anything for a chance to live forever. Stay young forever with Luna and Constell..."

Well, Gothy... what if I were to tell you if there was a way?" Discord smirked.

"If this is another of your practical jokes, I'm not laughing." Gothic glared at Discord.

"No. I am being serious. See my serious brow?" Discord pointed to his brow, pushing it to look like an angry brow. "I just so happen to know of a very special artifact that could solve your little growing old problem..."

"...Really?" Gothic gasped.

"Yes." Discord nodded. "It's a gold statue, known as 'the Golden Phoenix of Immortality'. Legend has it, whosoever bathes in the light of the gem on it's chest will live forever, and it just so happens that I know where to find it."

"You mean it?" Gothic asked. "No kidding?"

"Not this time." Discord nodded.

"Great!" Gothic cheered.

"Gothic?"

Shine came in, and noticed Gothic and Discord.

"What's going on here?" He asked.

"Ah, Shine, you're here." Discord smiled. "I would like you to get in on this as well..."

Gothic explained what was going on.

"What?!"

"You heard me right, Shine. According to Discord, there is a golden phoenix statue that has the power to grant immortality to bathes in its light."

"I got that part. But what does this have to do with you or me?" Shine asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Gothic smiled. "Shine, we could use that statue on ourselves… we could live forever."

"I don't understand, Gothic." Shine declared. "I remember Prince Dusk telling me how you had come to terms with Luna being immortal. Are you meaning to tell me that that was a lie?"

"...Look, I really thought I had come to terms with it." Gothic admitted. "I mean, the last twenty years have been the greatest of my life. But recently... I've been thinking of what life will be for Luna and Constell when I'm gone... and how sad they'll be..."

"Gothic, you're not the only one who has that thought." Shine told him. "I think about what will become of Celestia and Miracle almost everyday. And I'm sure Shining and Flash thinks the same thing as well."

"Shining and Flash don't have to worry." Gothic declared. "Unlike our wives, Twilight and Cadance aren't immortal. Only those who are born pure-blooded Alicorns have immortality. They're the lucky ones."

"Why is this even a issue?" Shine asked. "I mean, even after we're gone, our family will have memories of us to keep with them forever.

"Of course... but what happens when those memories fade away?" Gothic retorted.

"Excuse me?" Shine asked.

"It has been said that 'everything fades away with time'." Gothic quoted. "Luna and Celestia will miss us when we are gone, sure... but how about a hundred years after that? Will they still remember us?"

"That's crazy talk!" Shine decried.

"Is it, Shine?" Gothic asked. "Think about your daughter. You think that about 80 years or so will make enough memories for Miracle to remember you a century later?"

"I... don't you turn this around on me, Gothic." Shine said, flustered. "This whole subject is crazy! Discord is crazy!"

"Shine, think about this." Gothic urged. "If there is a way to achieve immortality, Celestia and Luna wouldn't have to cope with losing us. Neither does Miracle and Constell. We could end all the pain and suffering before it can begin."

Shine looked at Gothic with uncertainty.

"I... guess it wouldn't hurt to try." He shrugged.

"That's the spirit." Gothic smiled. "But I think it'd be a good idea not to tell anypony. Just in case we don't manage it."

"Agreed." Shine nodded.

"Agreed!" Said a voice from behind a bush.

"Caboose?" Gothic turned. "Is that you?"

"Yeppers!" Gothic leapt out.

"Why were you hiding in that bush?" Shine asked.

"Oh, no reason." Caboose shrugged. "Just doing what the writer wants me to do."

"Now what?" Shine asked Gothic. "He heard everything."

"Well, since Caboose can't keep a secret to save his life, we'll just have to take him with us." Gothic declared. "Discord, could you keep him from going anywhere until we're ready to go?"

"Consider it done." Discord smirked. With a snap of his fingers, he turned Caboose into a tiny wind-up toy. "That should keep him quiet."

"Okay, we meet back here first thing in the morning." Gothic declared. "Discord will fill us in on where we need to go, then we get moving."

"But what about our wives?" Shine asked.

"We'll just... tell them I invited you to visit some old friends of mine." Gothic declared.

"Okay... I just hope we know what we're doing…" Shine nodded.

"Good. Now, why don't you ponies run along to your party, and I will tell you everything you want to know tomorrow. I promise you, by the time you're through, you two will never grow old and leave Celly and Lulu." Discord smirked.

And so, the two princes returned to the party. The next day, they would embark on the most important quest of their lives...

To Be Continued...

(My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic and all associated characters are the property of Hasbro.)