Eternal Darkness

That recipe for Elxion Chlorik is the most complex thing I have ever read. Ashes, blessed water, alicorn hair, molten glass, ground diamond and something called Flare rose. How in Equestria will I possibly get all of that? I don’t understand how the pony who wrote that three centuries ago even thought of that!

Twilight’s thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a pony clearing his throat to get her attention. She turned her head to find a royal guard, dressed in gold armor that bore the Canterlot seal upon it. His coat was white while his eyes were green, the horn protruding from his head showed that he was a unicorn. “Lady Twilight Sparkle, the princess is ready to speak with you.” he announced, annoyance in his voice which meant he had been standing there longer than she had known. She blushed slightly with embarrassment before nodding for her reply; she then rose to her hooves and proceeded towards the twin doors, pushing them open with her right hoof before proceeding inside.

Twilight had spent all her life learning magic, it being her passion and her talent while she grew up. When she was just a filly she had been given the privilege of joining Princess Celestia’s advanced school for gifted Unicorns where she soon reached the top of her class. Celestia was impressed by the talent and potential she possessed and one day took her on as her very own student; because Twilight grew up in the lower class section of Canterlot she had been shocked by how her lifestyle had changed so quickly. Originally her parents had to work two jobs in order to pay for both her education and her brothers but once Celestia took Twilight under her wing everything since then had been provided for her family. Twilight was taught by members of the upper class on how to be polite and how to be a lady. She did not care much for the lessons but they were useful when she socialized with ponies of high class.

As she neared adulthood she was approached by Celestia and asked what she wished to do with her life. Twilight replied that she wished to serve the princess till the day she died which is when Celestia offered Twilight the option of becoming a royal advisor, a position only available to those with a high intelligence but could still only be reached by being chosen by Celestia herself. Twilight had accepted and since that day she had dedicated her time to her studies, learning as much knowledge as possible.

Her coat was a pale light mulberry while her mane was a moderate sapphire blue with moderate violet and brilliant rose streaks. Her eyes were moderate violet while her cutie mark was of a large pink star with much smaller white stars around it.

Her hooves echoed through the throne room, breaking the silence each time they connected with the white stone floor as she trotted down its length. She felt a claw of nervousness grip her heart but upon seeing her mentor her nervousness evaporated. Excitement flooded through Twilight’s being as she trotted towards the throne slightly faster, eager to speak with her idol. Twilight did not simply see Princess Celestia as a monarch or a teacher, she idolized the princess and attended all celebrations with her mentor, enjoying the princess’ company over any ponies in Equestria.

Celestia smiled as her most talented student approached her throne. Wishing that the important matters that she wished to discuss with Twilight were kept private she leaned to her left to tell the guard to vacate the room with his fellow soldiers and await to return outside. The guard gave a small nod, knowing that a verbal response was unnecessary. He trotted down the throne room, passing Twilight and leading the other seven guards out of the room, the twin doors closing behind them and leaving both Twilight Sparkle and Princess Celestia alone.

“Twilight Sparkle my most faithful student it is nice to see you this fine day.” Celestia greeted as Twilight gave a respectful bow in front of Celestia’s hooves, rising once more afterwards, a large smile on her face that emitted joy for all to see.... though in this case it was only the two of them.

“Thank you princess it is a pleasure to see you as well! I understand that you have something you wish to talk with me about?” Twilight mentioned, her grin still plastered on her face. Celestia was much larger than Twilight; she was an Alicorn, a pony that possessed both a horn and a pair of wings. Pegacorns possessed these as well however they did not possess immortality and were similar in size to ponies while an Alicorn was about three times taller. Alicorns also possessed incomprehensible amounts of power, an example of this being the ability to raise both the sun and the moon daily.

Celestia had a clean white coat and a mane of different light shades of green, pink and violet. Her mane unlike any other pony that Twilight knew of sparkled with what appeared to be stars and naturally ignored gravity, appearing to flow in a light breeze constantly. Her eyes were a pale light greyish magenta that both held kindness within them and authority. Worn on her hooves were pink shoes made from an unknown metal that was a mystery to everypony and a secret to her; her cutie mark being a blazing sun. Her posture was perfect and her beauty was unmatched within the borders of Equestria.

“Yes I do; as you know, I am attending the celebration of harmony in Ponyville in two days. However there is a more pressing matter than a celebration centered around peace.”

The Celebration of Harmony was a yearly celebration in Equestria where the sun rose and did not fall on the horizon for a full twenty four hours. The sun stayed on the very edge of the horizon, making the twenty four hours a constant sunset that blanketed the land in beauty and peace. Following half a year later was the celebration called Nightmare Night where the night lasted for a full twenty four hours. Twilight enjoyed the Celebration of Harmony and Nightmare Night but prefered the Celebration of Harmony due to what it meant.

The Celebration of Harmony was a day to be thankful for everything you had, a day where all worries were gone and you could be happy that you lived in such a lovely place where hunger and war did not concern you in your day to day life. Nightmare Night was a night where ponies dressed up as different creatures of darkness such as Changelings, Timberwolves, Ursas, Zombies and even in some cases, Nightmare Moon herself. Only one statue was in existence of Nightmare Moon, its location hidden within the edge of the Everfree Forest. It was believed that if a young filly or colt did not present the statue with candy Nightmare Moon would gobble you up instead, forever trapping your soul in a realm of nightmares. Twilight knew her mentor hated the celebration from a comment one year that she had made, insulting it by calling it a complete mockery to Equestria’s history. In recent years she had even began to consider cancelling it.

“There is a fortress hidden within the Everfree Forest. This fortress is guarded by a special division of the guard tasked with defending Equestria’s most powerful weapons and to prevent Discord, one of Equestria’s most powerful enemies from returning. Discord as you know ruled Equestria in a state of pure chaos, causing everypony in Equestria to live miserably and in constant fear. I one day discovered the Elements of Harmony and rose up to defeat him, imprisoning him in stone forever. The Elements of Harmony and Discord now would counter each other, making both useless in the case of him returning which is why we cannot allow this. If Equestria were to have a horrible chaotic event Discord could overpower the elements temporarily, allowing him to escape his imprisonment but the moment he did so the Elements and him would become useless, allowing other evils to enter Equestria; those who wish harm upon the ponies and who seek power by controlling all those under my rule.

I request that you go to the Ponyville Fortress to both make sure that the Elements of Harmony are still there and that Discord’s imprisonment is still solid. I also request that while you are there awaiting my arrival that you meet with each individual who is in charge of contributing something to the celebration. Here is a scroll that contains both your instructions and a seal that will give you access to the fortress, without it the guards would place you under arrest so do not misplace it under any circumstances. Half of the ponies on the list have already been confirmed to be ready and are marked by a line through their name. So Twilight Sparkle, do you accept this request?” Celestia wondered after her explanation. Twilight’s face brightened with excitement.

“Of course!” Twilight exclaimed happily, her ears perking up at the idea of helping her mentor. Celestia smiled before rising to her hooves and walking with Twilight back down the length of the throne room.

“I am glad Twilight. I would go there myself to check the Elements and Discord’s imprisonment but I cannot at this time.”

“I understand princess.” Twilight responded as the two reached the twin doors once more though before Twilight departed Celestia gave her the scroll.

“You’d better get your things packed then. Consider your previous duties for the next three days cancelled.”

“So wait where are we going?” Spike asked as Twilight packed her things into a saddlebag.

Twilight turned her attention away from her books to her baby green and purple dragon friend who was tapping his clawed foot while he awaited an answer. “Ponyville, its the closest town to Canterlot, we will be taking a chariot to a fortress though to attend to the more important task that the princess gave us.”

“Hello Twilight.” A kind soft voice that Twilight would recognize anywhere spoke. Twilight turned around quickly before her jaw dropped for a moment but then turned to a look of pure excitement.

“Cadence!” Twilight shouted with excitement, galloping across the room quickly to hug her childhood foalsitter, now though one of her closest friends. Cadence or Princess Cadence Mi amore Cadenza was a pegacorn who was the descendant of a king who ruled what was now known as Manehatten. Through her family tree there had been many Unicorns and Pegasi, causing the most recent generations in her family to be Pegacorns. Cadence possessed a bright pink coat with a light violet and pink mane. Her cutiemark was of a heart made of crystal while her eyes were pink; atop her head she wore a gold tiara that bared one amethyst atop it.

“I heard you and Spike are going to Ponyville to make preparations for the arrival of Celestia and the other ponies from Canterlot. Also I hear you are going to inspect the Elements of Harmony; out of curiosity do you know anything about them?” questioned Cadence as she sat herself down.

“Yes I’ve read a lot about them. They protect Equestria from darkness and are in a way our last defense against powerful foes.” Twilight responded, a small smile forming on Cadence’s face before she shook her head softly.

“No, sadly that is not one hundred percent accurate. In many books they hide the truth to not create fear among the population. Evil can enter Equestria, the only evil they prevent constantly is the one who challenged their power. I am telling you this so you don’t drop your guard out there, many ponies will view you as a target.” Cadence warned which brought a confused look upon Twilight’s features.

“Target? What do you mean?”

“Someponies wish for Discord to return or the evil that the Elements keep away. They are cults that wish the death of the royals, specifically Celestia and if you were harmed it would hurt Celestia. I am just asking you to keep your eye out alright?” Cadence explained, receiving a nod from Twilight.

“Got it.” Twilight responded confidently before the two gave each other another friendly hug.

“I’ll see you in Ponyville Twilight.” Cadence stated as she departed, waving her hoof before she closed the door, receiving a wave back from Spike.

“So who exactly are we meeting with when we get to Ponyville?” Spike wondered before Twilight handed him the scroll for him to read it himself.

“My most faithful student. You are to meet with the following ponies and confirm that they will be ready within two days. Vinyl Scratch and Octavia Melody are in charge of both the modern music and the classical music. The next two ponies are named Applejack and Pinkie Pie, the two making the treats for the celebration. Pinkie pie is also in charge of decorations while a pony by the name of Rarity is in charge of the fashion. Additional entertainment by animals trained to do certain activities is being handled by a pony named Fluttershy.” Spike read out loud for Twilight to hear which caused her to roll her eyes in annoyance. I already know what it says Spike, I just read it ten minutes ago. She thought with annoyance as she continued to pack their things.

“Why are most of these other names and the instructions following them scratched out?” Spike wondered, pointing at the various lines on the scroll caused by a quill striking through sentences.

“Those are the ponies we don’t have to meet with.” Twilight responded before closing her saddlebag once more.

“Hey Twi, I’m hungry.” Spike announced, looking down at his scaled belly which Twilight heard growl.

Celestia help me...

“Nice and sunny.” Captain Brave Heart commented happily at the sight of the almost clear sky. As he turned his head he noticed a chariot approaching in the distance; colored gold and being pulled by two Pegasi he knew it was from Canterlot. By the size of the chariot he knew it wasn’t Princess Celestia which made him wonder who it could be.

“Chariot approaches!” he bellowed to his soldiers, gaining their attention away from what they were doing to pass the time. Almost immediately the soldiers restrapped their helmets on and galloped to their posts, ready to follow more orders; spears in hoof and shoe blades ready in case of combat. Unlike the armor of the Canterlot guard, the Ponyville guard and all garrisons near it wore black armor with the Equestrian seal in gold. This particular division however was special in that it was tasked with guarding the Elements of Harmony. Due to the weather and dangers of the Everfree forest every guard within the fortress wore full suits of armor covering every inch of their bodies except their faces, underbellies and wings. Beneath their armor they wore black gold trimmed tunics to protect them from the Everfree Forest’s weather and to keep them warm during the cold nights. On the right armored shoe that they wore, on the right side were compact blades designed for combat; normally not visible unless the guard hit the side of their hoof against something hard, which would cause the blade to snap out and lock into place, only being returned to its hidden position by a hidden trick that would unlock the blade and allow the guard to put it back.

They all stood to attention and awaited orders from their commander who watched the chariot as it touched the ground. He grabbed his helmet, it bearing much more decoration to present his rank. “Front row with me!” he commanded as he descended from the walls, reaching the ground and proceeding towards the door. The first six pegasi guards followed directly behind him, the fortress’ thick wooden doors opening ahead of them, followed by them exiting the fortress and proceeding towards the chariot only a few hundred hooves from their current location.

“This is a restricted area! On whose orders are you here?” a deep voice demanded, gaining Twilight’s attention from tieing her saddlebag on herself. In front of her were seven guards, the one who spoke being the commander. He possessed battle scars across his muzzle, his coat brown and his mane black while his eyes were blue.

“I am here by orders of Princess Celestia; she has requested for me to examine both the Elements of Harmony and the statue of Discord. I present you with this document as proof.” Twilight responded confidently, her magic moving the scroll over to the captain who snatched it with his left hoof. He began to read the document, leaving only the sounds of the forest between them. After a moment he gave a small nod.

“Welcome to the fortress Lady Sparkle. We apologize for our rather rude introduction.” The captain apologized, allowing Twilight to take the scroll once more with her magic. “Shall I give you a tour?” he offered, receiving a small nod from Twilight before he noticed Spike. “Is that dragon with you?” he questioned, eyeing Spike suspiciously.

“Yes, he is my friend.” Twilight responded, crossing her hoof across herself before lowering it back to the ground.

“He must stay, only one civilian under the princess’ orders may enter, its protocol.” The captain explained before Spike went to protest; Twilight’s hoof prevented him however as she gave him a glare that told him to shut up.

“That is fine.” Twilight agreed before following the captain back up the small hill to the fortress. The air was much fresher here than Canterlot, each breath seeming to cleanse Twilight while the cool breeze from an unknown origin made her even more relaxed, her previous annoyance and problems disappearing as she followed the captain. The fortress’ walls were a smokey grey color, years of erosion giving each stone an uneven appearance yet the wall from what Twilight could see was as solid as a rock. As they entered the fortress the wooden platforms that the guards stood on became visible and the main building where she guessed was where the elements were laid in front of her. It was one floor and was longer than it was wide. Thirty guards stood attention, all of their left hooves across their foreheads in a respectful salute.

A few guards followed her with their eyes while others stood stone faced, initially telling Twilight which ones were more experienced than others. The two of them neared the main door that entered the building, the captain opened it, allowing Twilight to enter first before he followed, closing the door behind them before proceeding to lead the way for the two.

“Princess Celestia created this branch of the Ponyville guard to specifically protect the Elements of Harmony. Only the best guards in Equestria are placed here with most never leaving these positions. I have been here for thirty years, guarding this fortress with my life and passing upon my judgement on those who attempt to get in.” Captain Brave Heart explained as the two trotted down the corridor; the corridors being dimly lit by torches along the walls. A sweet smell filled the air, reminding Twilight of yeast bread. “The Elements of Harmony are located within my quarters, secured in a safe whose combination has only been known by the captains of this garrison. Discord’s statue is located on this floor within a locked room that only I possess the key to. The door is made from solid steel so unless a pony could melt their way through its impassible. Are there any questions Ms Sparkle?” The captain asked, turning his head to give a look of curiosity.

“Yes, how many soldiers do you have within your ranks?”

“As of right now: thirty seven.”

“How many are Pegasi and how many are Unicorns?” she questioned.

“Seven unicorns, thirty Pegasi. The Unicorns are brought here in order to provide extra firepower against creatures or ponies who decide to attack.”

“Ponies have attacked?” Twilight wondered, her voice rising slightly without her notice at the thought of ponies committing such treason.

“Yes, many times in fact. There are cult groups dedicated to seeing Discord’s return. I pity their ignorance and their fate once we arrest them. Princess Celestia has given us full permission to execute those who attack, you being Celestia’s student you know how rarely Celestia will give that option.” He stated, receiving a nod from Twilight.

The two came to a much larger room. The room possessed a bookshelf, a few tables with chairs, a doorway leading down a pair of stairs to a lower floor and finally in the corner of the room was the iron door that possessed Discord behind it.

“This is where you live?” Twilight questioned, doubting that guards with this level of skill would only have this for entertainment.

“Yes, it is not much but we usually will make the best of it. Usually somepony will tell a story or we will have a card tournament, it all depends on who is on that night shift that night and how eventful the day is.” He responded before leading Twilight across the room to the steel door.

He pulled a small key from underneath his front armor plate before slipping it into place with his teeth, finally turning it with his hoof, bringing with it a *click*, signalling the door being unlocked.

The captain pushed the door open, revealing to Twilight the chaos that once was Discord. Twilight at first stared with surprise at the sight but as she continued to look at it she felt confused, her ears dropping a little atop her head. “He is the one who did all that chaos to Equestria all those years ago? His body doesn’t even make sense!” Twilight examined at the multiple pieced creature, its base species unknown to her.

“That’s the point, he is so chaotic that he himself is chaos in flesh.”

Twilight examined it all over once more till finally remembering what her original purpose for being here was. She began to examine the actual stone itself, seeing if she could find a crack or two which would show signs of weakness. All around the statue it was solid, a chip not even in sight which surprised Twilight but she knew it was a good thing. “We all done?” The captain wondered before Twilight gave a nod, followed by the captain closing the door and locking it, the key being nestled safely within his armor once more.

“Now are we off to see the Elements?”

“Yes.” The captain responded, giving a slight nod with his answer before he began to lead her back the way they came, stopping halfway to take a left and take her down the staircase. As the two proceeded deeper into the fortress they came across a bunk area. Forty bunks filled the long room, the floor being carpeted unlike the rest of the fortress; each bunk possessing personal items of each guard including family pictures, books, clothing, uniforms and anything else you could think of from what Twilight saw. At the end of the room was one final door, it being made of wood and possessing a simple iron lock on it.

“This is my office and quarters, secretly it is also where we keep the Elements of Harmony.” Captain Brave Heart explained, opening the door to reveal a small desk, a bed similar to the ones behind them, a bookshelf and a few belongings. It wasn’t what Twilight had expected which explained the confused look on her face. In Canterlot an officer was given a much larger bed and a desk that could sit three ponies. Usually the officers quarters would possess both a lounge area and a sleeping area along with a fireplace, but this room possessed none of these features, it resembled more a common ponies room after moving into a new house.

“The personal room is enough for me, I do a lot of my planning in here and write all my documents on that desk. Though it isn’t much I do enjoy it.”

“But you’re guarding the most important artifacts within Equestria, why is everything so....barren here?” Twilight questioned, receiving a small chuckle from the captain.

“I’m guessing your friends in the guard of Canterlot never told you about the different conditions depending on where you are stationed correct?” he wondered, receiving a shake of the head from Twilight. “Your living conditions are not determined by who you are, it all matters on where you are stationed. In the Ponyville guard we do not have that much spending money, so what we do use it on is repairs when we get it. In Canterlot every guard is babysat by the nobles and have everything paid for you, heck I wouldn’t be surprised if the armor they wear is made of real gold for fuck sakes.... excuse my language Lady Sparkle.” he apologized for his vulgarity.

“Its fine.”

With that the captain lead Twilight to the desk which he proceeded to tip over. Beneath the desk’s resting spot was a small square of carpet a darker shade. The captain proceeded to push the square of carpet away with his hoof, revealing a small safe a few inches below the floors level.

The captain began to enter the code while Twilight continued to examine the room, the bookcase catching her interest but quickly losing it as she realized that she had already read all the volumes present on it. It amazed her overall that this is how the Royal guard worked, sometimes requiring its soldiers to put in half their salary in order to fix their living conditions sounded horrible to her. If they enjoyed their job she was glad to hear it but she still didn’t like that idea.

*Click*

Twilight turned her attention to the captain to find him pulling a small chest out of the safe. Deciding to lend a hoof, she took the chest with her magic; setting it down on the ground gently. He opened the lid for her revealing the most anticlimactic objects ever; the Elements of Harmony were nothing but rocks.

“You’re kidding me.... right?”

The captain began laughing, not a fake laugh but one of genuine humor. “Nope, these here are the six Elements of Harmony.” he responded with no sign of a lie within his voice.

Twilight faced the Elements of Harmony once more, a puzzled expression forming on her face. How could rocks defeat such powerful foes? Her thoughts were interrupted by the Captain closing the chest once more. He then proceeded to pick it up, and place it within the safe which he closed and turned the dial, another *click* sounded, indicating the lock was secured.

As Twilight left the living quarters and once more found herself outside she found the soldiers now standing guard along the walls or flying patrols in the air above. “Lady Sparkle, before you go I am assigning a soldier to guard you while you are visiting Ponyville.” the captain stated, earning a curious expression from Twilight.

“Why?” she asked with interest.

“Since you are a student of the princess some ponies.... some insane ponies mind you might wish to cause harm upon you. Therefore I will be assigning Rainbow Dash to your side; tell her what you need for the princess and she will take you to all the different stores within Ponyville.” he explained before looking around.

“Private Rainbow Dash!” he shouted into the sky before in a black and blue blur a pegasus appeared. She was a mare around Twilight’s age with a very light cerulean coat. Her eyes were a moderate cerise while her mane was not one color but all the colors of the rainbow. She didn’t have any style in her mane or tail which was unusual for Twilight, considering every mare in Canterlot had their manes styled. “You are to escort Twilight Sparkle around Ponyville and defend her with your life, understood?” The captain questioned, receiving a salute from Rainbow Dash.

“Yes captain!” the mare responded before the Captain gave a nod, followed by turning and trotting away to attend to his other duties.

Twilight looked away from the departing captain to the pegasus who was now her bodyguard to find her with a smile. “I’m Rainbow Dash, call me Dash or Dashie, its how everyone refers to me.” Rainbow Dash said, extending an armored hoof which Twilight shook.

“Twilight Sparkle, nice to meet you Rainbow Dash. We need to make sure that the orders will be ready for the Celebration of Peace, I hope you know where all the places are.” Twilight hoped which brought a nod from Dash.

“Yep, I know where they are probably, I’ve been to every store in Ponyville since moving here from Cloudsdale.” Dash said as the two began their approach towards the chariot which brought Twilight here in the first place.

“Good, how long do you think it will take?”

“If you were a Pegasus, an hour. Since we need to walk, most likely four.” Rainbow Dash responded which was better than what Twilight had hoped for.

“Well, at least we are off to a good start.” Twilight said happily, her new ally giving a small smile before Spike ran up to the two.

“Who’s this?” Spike asked curiously.

“Spike this is Rainbow Dash, Rainbow Dash this is Spike. She is here to protect us and show us around Ponyville.”

“Nice to meet you Spike.” Rainbow Dash greeted, extending here armored hoof which Spike shook. “So how in Equestria did you get a baby dragon?” Dash wondered; dragons being considered a danger to Equestria which usually meant ponies didn’t keep them as pets.

“Its a long story, I’ll explain it to you on the way.” Twilight stated while they climbed into the chariot.

“Sounds good, guards please take us to Ponyville.” Dash ordered, the two Pegasi guards giving a nod before they began to take off.