I can't help it. Somehow I'm drawn to it. Knowing there's a church out there dedicated to worshiping me is just something that I cannot get out of my head. I spent the whole week thinking about it, barely focusing on my day court unless it was something important. My guards did notice that something was off, but to their credit they didn't ask. I think that Captain Blaze knew what was bugging me anyway. I'm kind of transparent like that. I haven't quite gotten a hang of the stoicism and the poker faces that the other two alpha alicorns have.

So there I was, the next Sunday drawn back to my church like a moth to the flame. I was disguised as the pegasus mare Star Shine once more, and actually wearing the cutie mark necklace. I don't know why, really, I guess I would just feel out of place if I wasn't wearing it, but at the same time it would tell Snap Feather that I'm an Antarian, when in reality... heh, I'm the pony they're all worshiping.

So I left Captain Blaze in charge of my court once more, though I was thinking of implementing a rule where I don't have day court on Sundays period, save for major emergencies, and flew down to the church. As before, the churchgoers were filing into the church, while Snap Feather was standing in the doorway, greeting them all with a smile and a hoofshake, and maybe a pat on the head for the foals. I landed near the doors and began filing in with the rest of them.

When I reached the doors, Snap Feather naturally noticed me, and he fixed me with a beaming smile. "Star Shine, you're here!"

I sheepishly smiled and flattened my ears. "Yeah, well, I guess I'm drawn to this place somehow. I wanna keep investigating, you know?"

"Well I think that's wonderful," Snap Feather said as he shook my hoof. "And I notice that you're even wearing the necklace I gave you."

I shrugged. "Yeah, well, I didn't want to seem out of place by not having one. Everypony else has one."

Snap Feather's smile faded and he raised an eyebrow at me. "Indeed?" I nodded and he gave a quiet sigh. "Star Shine, that's not the point of the necklaces. They aren't so that you can fit in; you wear them because they mean something to you personally. I mean I'm glad that you've come back to see more of what we do here, but I don't want you to wear that because you feel you have to otherwise we'll secretly judge you. Wear it because Princess Antares means something to you personally." Snap Feather's fatherly smile returns and he puts a hoof on my shoulder. "We don't judge here. We don't require that you 'fit in,' whatever that means. We're here to be a community in worshiping our glorious Princess Antares. We don't pressure ponies here."

A small smile crossed my face and my ears perked back up. "Well, I appreciate that."

"Think nothing of it," Snap Feather said with a wave of his hoof. "It's your right as a pony to believe what you want. You don't even have to go in if you don't want to."

I shrugged again. "Well, I do want to. Like I said: I want to get a better idea of what this is all about."

"Well then you are welcome here." Snap Feather bowed and pointed inside with a hoof. "Service will begin soon. I hope you enjoy it."

I thanked him and went inside, moving towards the pew that I had occupied the last time in the very back corner of the church. Given that I'm sure Snap Feather wanted everypony to feel involved, even the most obscure of pews was still pretty open. As a matter of fact, I found a family of five already there. I sat down at the very end close to the aisle. The father turned to me when I sat down, a wide smile on his face, and extended a hoof.

"Hello, there. I haven't met you before." I reached out and shook his hoof. "My name is Building Code. I make sure everything is up to snuff around Baltimare architecturally speaking. You are?"

"I'm Star Shine. I'm a scorpionologist."

Building Code raised an eyebrow and tilted his head. "You study scorpions?" He gave an amused scoff. "Well then you are truly blessed to have the mark of our glorious Princess Antares! You study the creature of the Scorpion Princess."

I gave a nervous chuckle and weakly shrugged. "Yeah, I guess I do."

The organ music, which I realized was an organ version of The Number of the Beast, something that I found more than a little weird, stops, and Snap Feather takes his place at the pulpit. "Good morning."

"Good morning," the crowd responded.

"It pleases me to see so many of you here. I see many old faces, and one or two new ones, and to all of you I say welcome. Now let us pray." Snap Feather opened up the book that he brought up to the pulpit with him and bowed his head. "Our heavenly Princess Antares. We thank you for this glorious day and the protection that you give us. We ask that you bless this service and our weeks going forward. We pray for your reign forever, and that you help us follow in your ways. Amen."

"Amen," the ponies chorused.

"Right." Snap Feather turned his head down to the book and flipped a few more pages. "Now, if you could all grab your Liber Sanctus, I want to read a passage from The Book of The Element of Kindness." He cleared his throat. "Chapter four verse three."

I looked around and noticed that most of the ponies were pulling out a blue book of medium thickness with onionskin pages. I heard Building Code clear his throat, and saw that he was holding a Liber Sanctus of his own. He pointed to the back of the pew in front of me and I saw a few spare books on the back. I picked one up and glanced over at Building Code's book to see the page number of The Book of the Element of Kindness. I opened it up and flipped to the correct page, already feeling a little sick to my stomach.

"Now then," Snap Feather began, "is everypony there? Good." He cleared his throat and looked down at the book. "Chapter four verse three. Of all of the relationships that a pony is blessed to have in his or her life, sibling, marriage, parent-to-foal, or friendship, friendship is the greatest of these, as it provides the basis for the rest. We must strive to live by the tenets of friendship if we are to truly blossom and grow. These are kindness, generosity, honesty, laughter, loyalty, and magic. Even ponies who do not possess a horn are bound to the magic of the world, and the magic of friendship flows through us all."

Snap Feather closed the book and looked out into the crowd. "These words give us a wonderful direction for our lives. The Prophets of Princess Antares, the Elements of Harmony, who joined together in friendship to bring our wonderful Princess Antares to us, live by these tenets and are stronger for it. Their friendships are the most powerful in the world. It is those Elements that chose our beloved princess to ascend. The Elements do not choose lightly, and their wielders are surely her prophets."

Heh, yeah, well, I think they'd all have something to say about that.

A prophet in your religion? I guess that's worth some study. Maybe I can come to one of your services to see what that's all about.

A prophet? Me? Nah, Ah'm just a farmer, thank y'all very much.

Aw yeah! That's so cool!

A... what? Oh my... uh... *squeak*

Awesome! We can have prophet parties now!

Indeed? Well, no pressure on me, then! How is a prophet in your religion supposed to behave? Are there ceremonial robes of some sort that I have to wear? Though now that I think on it, it may be a nice increase in business.

Or something like that.

The thought crossed my mind to just... leave. I mean, Snap Feather wouldn't mind, I'm sure, and this was getting uncomfortable for me. Still, I knew it would be rude to just up and go in the middle of the sermon. Besides, if I wanted to know what was being taught about me then I would have to stay for one. Maybe I'd also keep a copy of my holy book to read, just to really get an idea of what this was all about.

Gaaaaahhh, I have a holy book devoted to me. This may sound completely crazy but bubguhfugfbfubu!!

But I digress. Snap Feather is still talking, so I have to pay attention to him.

"Now, there are difficulties in maintaining friendships, but our prophets have dealt with that too, as detailed by Prophet Twilight Sparkle's friendship writings shown in The Book of the Element of Magic." Snap Feather closed the Liber Sanctus and stared out into the crowd, some of whom I noticed were taking notes. "Now, if Princess Antares were here now, what would she say?"

She wouldn't say anything. She'd run around like a chicken with her head cut off and her mind blown, screaming about the pressure you're putting on her. But go ahead, I'd love to hear your perspective on what I'd do.

"Firstly, she might give some sarcastic quip about the nature of strains in friendship. She might then warn us of the dangers of letting strains fester until they shatter that most holy of bonds between ponies." Snap Feather walked out from behind the pulpit and stood in front of it. "But most of all, I think she'd ask us to help those less fortunate than ourselves, which we do in such ways as taking a tithe to donate to both the upkeep of our church and to the causes that our glorious princess champions. We also do so by donating more than just our bits, but our time. Volunteer at the local orphanages, get immersed in Operation: Hearth's Warming Foal when it comes around every year. Be a good pony by helping others. Be kind to the less fortunate, be generous with your time, be honest about your intentions, share the laughter in your hearts, and show loyalty to Princess Antares by living by her words and the words of her prophets. Do all of this, and the innate magic that flows through all ponies will unite us, and we will be the ponies that Princess Antares needs us to be."

Well, I guess I couldn't argue with any of that. Maybe? I guess? I hadn't really thought about how my actions could be turned into theology, but I did have to consider tightening up how I acted around ponies. If my actions were to be taken as sacred and perfect, I could get something across that I didn't really care to, and that would cause all sorts of problems.

Having said all of that, though, I didn't really know what they were teaching in the first place beyond the basic.

"Now, enough for the introductory sermon. It's time for the snack break, after which we will sing praise songs and tell of how Princess Antares has influenced our lives." Snap Feather motioned over to a table laden with food, and I'd bet my cutie mark that most of the food bore said image.

Man, I tried to make it farther than that, but after seeing my holy book I decided that I had enough for the day. I stood up with the rest of my followers but went towards the doors while they lined up for food. Just like last time, Snap Feather noticed me and began walking towards me, that paternal smile still on his face. I stopped just after reaching the doors and turned around just as Snap Feather walked towards them.

"Just wanted to get your perspective, that's all," he said as he reached me. "You went a little longer this time." He motioned with his head towards my right wing. "I see the Liber Sanctus interested you."

I looked down and flattened my ears when I noticed that I did indeed still have the book. I must have absentmindedly tucked it under my wing when I got up to leave.

"Er... sorry. I didn't mean to steal."

Snap Feather scoffed and waved his hoof at me. "No, no, think nothing of it, my dear. As a matter of fact, I was going to offer to let you keep it. I assure you we have plenty."

"Right." I took the book out from under my wing and stared down at it. "So... who wrote this thing? I noticed that The Book of the Element of Magic is made up mostly of Twilight's friendship letters which makes sense, I suppose, but what about the rest of them? The other Elements don't have that kind of thing, do they?"

Snap Feather shook his head. "No, but that's not to say that more than a few of them haven't spoken or acted publicly. What we know about them makes up six of the books of the Liber Sanctus, while Princess Antares' speeches and public deeds make up the seventh and final book."

"Okay, but who collected everything? Who decided what made it into the book?"

"The church elders mostly. There are about half a dozen ponies higher up in the church than I am, and they gathered everything and wrote out the rest."

"Okay." I took a deep breath and nodded. "Okay. Yeah, I think that I will keep this book. I want to see what this is saying about everything."

"Like I said, you're more than welcome to do that." Snap Feather put a hoof on my shoulder, his smile comforting. "I merely want you to understand what this is all about, and from what I know of you, you do as well, and I think that is wonderful. The best way to do that is to come to services and read from the Liber Sanctus. If you have any questions please feel free to come to me and I'll be happy to answer everything."

"Well, I don't have a ton of time to come here, so is it possible you could come meet me?"

Snap Feather nodded. "Most certainly. Just say when and where."

"Two o' clock next Friday. The royal palace."

"The palace?" Snap Feather raised an eyebrow and tilted his head. "You work at the palace for Princess Antares?!"

A hint of a smile played at my lips and I shook my head. "Not work for."

"Oh, you just live there?"

I tilt my head in a single nod. "Yep. I've lived there ever since my coronation."

"Your coro..." Snap Feathers eyes widened and he let out a loud gasp. He dropped flat on his face and began raising his forelegs in a bowing motion.

I sighed and rubbed one of my temples. "You don't need to do that, Snap Feather. This conversation is just between us, and I'd like it to stay that way."

Snap Feather sprang up to his hooves, his head still bowed. "Yes, Princess Antares! I... I... uh..."

"Relax, you're not in trouble or anything. This is mainly to make sure that the doctrine you're teaching to these ponies is one that I agree with, and so far it's good." I gave Snap Feather my own comforting smile and put a hoof on his shoulder. "You didn't do anything wrong. In fact, if you've been as good to your congregation as you have been to me, then I'm sure this church is a wonderful place. I just need to check on everything, that's all."

"O-of course, Princess Antares." Snap Feather looked up at me, his eyes wide. "I will not be a minute late!"

I inclined my head in a bow. "I appreciate it. I look forward to meeting you." I extended my hoof and he took it, but instead of shaking it like I intended he kissed it. Well, whatever. Close enough, I suppose. "Goodbye. I will see you on Friday."

With that, I took wing, the Liber Sanctus in my mouth just as the box had been the week before. I was definitely going to give this a very thorough look through when I got back to my palace. This took my worship to a whole new level. Heck, I wasn't sure how I was going to break it to the Elements that they were revered as prophets in my religion. I had my guesses, obviously, but I could never tell with them.

I reached my palace and turned back into my normal form just as I flew through my window. I deposited the Liber Sanctus onto my bedside table, where I was sure to take a good look through it when I retired for the evening. With that finished, I walked out of my room where, Captain Blaze was waiting for me. He must have seen me flying through the window. He inclined his head in a bow.

"Princess Antares, the Element of Loyalty is here to see you."

I raise my eyebrow and tilt my head. "Rainbow Dash? What does she want?"

Blaze shrugged. "Dunno. She said something about a wedding and something freaky."

I pursed my lips and nodded. "Okay. Is she in my throne room?" Captain Blaze nodded. "Alright I'll go talk to her."

I went to my throne room and opened the doors where, sure enough, Rainbow Dash was pacing back and forth, her wings slightly extended and one ear twitching. She looked up when she saw me coming through the doors and gave me a half smile. I returned it with a full one of my own. "Good afternoon, Rainbow Dash. You need something?"

"Heh, sorta..." Rainbow Dash's wings fluttered a bit. "The weirdest thing happened to me and I was kinda wondering if you knew what it was all about. Uh, a couple of ponies came to me yesterday and asked if I could officiate their wedding. Said they were Antarians, or something like that. I thought that that was pretty close to your name, so I came here to see if you knew anything about it."

I nodded and gave Rainbow Dash a reassuring pat on the back. "Yeah, I do. It's nothing that you have to worry about, per se, but you might want to talk to the other Elements about this. It's just that, some ponies here in Baltimare founded a religion worshiping me and they're calling themselves Antarians."

Rainbow Dash nodded and folded her wings. "Okay. I guess that makes sense. I know Princess Celestia and Princess Luna have ponies who worship them too." The corners of Rainbow Dash's mouth curved down slightly. "So what does that have to do with me?"

"Well..." I gently cleared my throat and scratched the back of my neck. "Since it was the Elements who caused me to ascend, the Antarians... er... think of you and your friends as prophets in my religion. You personally have a whole section of my holy book devoted to you and the Element of Loyalty."

Rainbow Dash's eyes widened and her wings flared out to their full span. "WHAT?!"

Author's Notes:

Would have gotten this out a touch sooner were it not for this.

http://slicer4ever.deviantart.com/art/The-Manor-The-Flash-version-441112811

Also FimFiction went down for me, so I had to play Team Fortress 2 for a while.

(my Steam name is AntarestheWrathoftheStars for anyone interested in taking a sniper round from me.)