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                    The Bearded Journal                    
                    -by Heretic_Morgan-                    
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                         Chapter 1                         
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Chapter 1
"The Origins of Changelings and Gryphons are actually quite similar. Both are the offspring of Discord and an Equestrian, but the way they are created differs. A Changeling is made when the Equestrian gives birth to the child, but a Gryphon is made when Discord gives birth to the child. As the supreme being of Chaos, Discord has no sexual preference, and so, whenever he craved male companionship, he would simply turn himself into an attractive female Equestrian."
Starswirl's notes on the Origin of Species.
"Come on, Starswirl!" Pinkamena said, obviously frustrated, " We were supposed to leave 5 cycles ago!" (1 Cycle = 1 rotation of sun and moon, varying amounts of time, due to Discord's chaotic mood swings.)
"Relax, Pinkamena," Shattered Silence said, nuzzling against her neck, "It's not like it's been that long. I was only able to count to 6 after all."
"Still, it's the principle of the matter!" Pinkamena shouted, "We should already be well away from here! I don't want to be anywhere near here when that bomb goes off!"
"Relax," a unicorn said as he walked up, "The bomb won't go off for another 10 Cycles, so we should have plenty of time."
"Took you long enough," Pinkamena said, "And for your information, Starswirl, we just had 5 Cycles in a 6 count."
"Well then," Starswirl said with a smirk, "I guess we have 5 Cycles to get to the minimum safe distance, don't we?"
"Let's go then, shall we?" Silence said, quite amused by his friends banter.
Turning together, the three friends walked away from the building they had left the bomb in. Once they had reached the minimum safe distance, they turned around to watch. Luckily, they didn't have to wait long. Almost as if it was waiting for them to turn around, the sun and moon went through 5 Cycles in 3 seconds.
Bracing themselves for the shockwave, the friends were stunned when they were hit by enough icing to make them look like life-size pony cakes.
"What the buck?" Pinkamena said, confused as to why her bomb hadn't gone off like it should have, "Where did all this icing come from?"
"Wait a minute," Silence said, thinking, "I really hope I'm wrong."
"What?" Starswirl and Pinkamena asked in unison.
"This result is not what we expected. It wasn't even predictable. And where the unpredictable happens…"
"Discord soon follows," They finished for him.
Looking around, the three searched for the tell-tale signs that the Spirit of Chaos was nearby. And sure enough, after a few seconds, buildings on the other side of the town started to float off the ground, or in some cases, pull the ground with them. The ponies inside the buildings simply continued on with what they were doing, used to the chaotic whims of their ruler.
"And what do you three think you're doing?" a voice they knew all to well said right behind them.
"Run," Starswirl said, "RUN!"
Discord only laughed as the ponies ran from him. With a snap of his fingers, the land underneath them started to break and float away, creating a treacherous maze of crumbling paths and dangerous pitfalls.
Pinkamena and Silence spread their wings, flying above the dangerous ground, while Starswirl used his magic to allow himself to run on every surface like a spider.
"Psst," the whisper caused Starswirl to stop as he looked for the source of the noise.
"Down here."
Looking down, Starswirl saw an earth pony hiding in what appeared to be a sewage pipe. The pony motioned with his front right hoof that Starswirl should follow him.
Using his magic to telekinetically grab his friends, Starswirl jumped into the pit, dragging his friends along with him. Once he finished sliding down to the bottom he released the magic and ran into the sewage pipe, following the earth pony. Pinkamena and Silence weren't far behind him.
Summoning a ball of light in front of him, Starswirl walked through the pipe, following their savior.
"Who are you?" he asked the pony, attempting to start a conversation.
"Tha names Applebuck," the pony said with a distinct country accent, though his somber tone stole any hint of joy from the three friends.
"Why did you help us?" Starswirl continued.
"It wasn't mah choice. Tha Directors wanted ta see ya. If it were up at me, y'all woulda been left for Discord, what with all the chaos y'all been causin'."
"Directors?" Pinkamena said, "Who the heck are the Directors?"
"Y'all ain't really observant, are y'all? Tha Directors lead tha Resistance. It's them that wants y'all to join us, though y'all won't be doing anymore fieldwork, near as I can tell."
"If we aren't doing fieldwork, then how can we help the Resistance?" Silence asked.
"There's a lot more ta tha Resistance than just open attacks against Discord. Y'all will be joinin' tha R&D division."
"The who-se-what now?" Pinkamena asked.
"Research and Development. Y'all'll be helpin' ta find better ways ta combat Discord."
"And just where are you taking us?" Starswirl asked.
"Ta R&D Headquarters, of course. Y'all are gonna meet tha Directors in person. It ain't very often that tha Directors leave their labs, so ya better be polite and proper, ya hear? Otherwise, there'll be lots a ponies wantin ta put ya under, if ya catch mah drift."
"And how much longer until we get there?" Silence asked.
"We're already here," Applebuck said, while stepping to the side and motioning with his hoof for them to look.
The sight was like nothing they had ever seen. There was a sense of order to the place, from the systematic layout of the buildings, to the perfectly symmetrical architecture of each individual building. And that wasn't all that was orderly. Everywhere they looked, they saw ponies conversing with each other, helping each other accomplish tasks that they couldn't do alone, whether it was something difficult like lifting an iron beam for a building under construction or something simple, like trying to climb one of the many apple trees. None of the three friends had seen such beauty in their entire lives.
"Ahem," the sound of somepony clearing their throat snapped the friends out of their stupor.
Turning towards the sound, the three friends were greeted with the sight of two unicorns whose coats were exact opposites of the other. The unicorn with the white coat, obviously the older of the two, if size were any indication, opened her mouth to speak.
"It is good to finally have you here, Starswirl, Pinkamena Diane Pie, and Shattered Silence," the unicorn's voice sounded benevolent and calm, almost the way you'd imagine an angel's voice to sound, "My sister and I have long awaited your arrival, ever since the three of you attracted the attention of our scouts, not to mention the attention of our 'King'. For years we have watched you, waiting for the perfect opportunity to bring you here, and so, here you are.
"But where are my manners. My name is Solis Caeli, though you can call me Solar. And this is my sister, Selena," she said, indicating the Midnight Blue unicorn next to her, "We are the Directors, and the founders of the Resistance."
"We know you have questions," Selena said, cutting off Starswirl as he opened his mouth, "but there is a very strict schedule down here, and it is almost time for lights out. We will answer all your questions tomorrow. For now, please follow Applebuck. He will lead you to your quarters. Good Night."

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                         Chapter 2                         
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Chapter 2
"There have been many inquiries about the origin of Chrysalis, the so-called Changeling Queen. She is violent, overbearing and powerful, much like her mother. I'm glad she's the only one of her kind. Never again shall an Alicorn mate with Discord. This has been decreed by the Royal Sisters, in response to the Chrysalis problem."
Starswirl on The Genealogy of The Changelings.
"Pinkamena, here are yer rooms," Applebuck said, indicating the door in front of him, "Ah hope ya find everythin ta yer likin."
"If you'd seen some of the places I've slept in, anything with a bed is a luxury."
Starswirl and Silence made to follow Pinkamena into the room, but were halted by Applebuck.
"Opposite genders are not allowed in tha same room unless they're family, either by blood or by marriage."
Starswirl looked at him incredulously, "The three of us have always slept in the same room. It's been that way since we were fillies."
"Ah'm sorry, but that's tha way it is. Follow me please. Y'alls rooms are this way."
Applebuck started walking away, leaving the three friends standing there, unsure of what to do.
"Go on," Pinkamena said, pushing them after him, "I'll be fine. It's just one night."
"I still don't like it," Silence said, watching Applebuck as he disappeared around a corner, "It just doesn't seem right. We've never been more than a few hooves from each other for as long as I can remember."
"Come on," Starswirl said, "I'd rather not spend my first night here on the streets. We don't know anypony here, which means that they could be waiting for us to let down our guard so they can jump us. Let's hurry up and get to our rooms."
"Fine. See you tomorrow Pinkamena."
The two colts started galloping after Applebuck, who was patiently waiting around the corner.
"That was faster than usual," he remarked.
"What do you mean?" Silence asked.
"Ah mean, usually it takes longer for new ponies ta accept tha fact that they can't be in tha same living quarters anymore. Y'all are probably tha fastest ta adjust ta tha system here."
"How long does it normally take?" Starswirl asked.
"About an hour, on average."
With that, Applebuck started walking again, Starswirl and Silence following close behind.
Eventually, Starswirl broke the silence, "So why are colts and mares not allowed to room together? I assume it has something to do with Order?"
"You are correct. By keeping tha genders separate, unless they are family or married, we cut down on tha amount of fillies who don't know who their father is. Ah'm not saying we've eliminated tha problem. Far from it. It just helps ta keep tha population in check down here. We can only support so many ponies before we start ta struggle."
"So instead of having fatherless fillies, you'd rather there be no fillies?" Silence asked.
"Let me ask ya this: Do you know who yer father is?"
"No."
"If ya did, do ya think ya'd be down here, joining tha Resistance because yer life was miserable, or up there," Applebuck pointed with his hoof towards the surface, "livin tha happiest life ya could with yer dad in that chaotic wasteland?"
Silence was silent, honestly not knowing the answer.
Starswirl, however, had an answer, "I knew my father. He was a drunk. Almost every Bit we could scrounge up went into his bottle. And whenever he wasn't drunk, he was abusive. I didn't know what happiness was until one of Discord's mood swings caused his death. Unfortunately, that same mood swing killed my mother. That's why I've been trying to bring Discord down. Not because Equestria will be better off without him as our king, but because I want revenge. I want him to pay for my mother's death."
"However tha case may be, yerself had best find a better reason ta be fightin' Discord. Revenge is never a good motive fer overthrowin' a ruler, no matter how evil. It will only result in yer death. I suggest ye try feelin a bit of compassion fer all the other ponies who've lost family ta Discord. If ye can't do that, then fight ta prevent what happened ta you from happening ta any filly ever again."
Starswirl was dumbfounded. Never before had someone been so blunt with him.
"Ah. Here are y'alls rooms," Applebuck said, standing before another door, "Don't ye worry none about space. There's enough room in there ta house twenty ponies and still have ¾ of the house available."
"Thank you," Silence said.
Walking into the house, the two were absolutely awestruck by the interior. The last time they had seen such extravagance had been in the old ruins of Everfree Castle. The front entryway looked like a hotel foyer, with a chandelier hanging above an oak wood floor. On both walls of the room was a staircase, about 6 ponies wide, that lead to the second floor, with a banister that was covered in crenellations and embellishments.
All of this was in a building that was no more than a 10 hoof by 10 hoof cube.
"How is this possible?" Starswirl asked, "The dimensions of the building don't match the interior. This shouldn't even exist."
"Well now," Applebuck said, "There's a mighty big difference between shouldn't exist and does exist."
Silence, just wanting to sleep, pulled Starswirl inside before he could start asking more questions.
Applebuck, turning around, spoke once more before leaving, "Ah expect y'all are wantin ta sleep? Bedrooms are up tha stairs. And unless y'all plan on sharin a bed, ah suggest y'all take separate rooms."
Closing the door, Silence spoke, "If the front entrance looks like this, I can't imagine how the bedrooms look."
Surprisingly, the bedrooms were very Spartan in appearance and use. They were simple, with no additional flourishes or decorations. The beds were little more than cots, albeit they were softer than anything the two had ever slept on before. The 'dresser' appeared to be two filing cabinets pushed together, though the drawers were more spacious than they appeared, much like the house.
"This is much better," Starswirl said, having always been a pony who loved simple things, despite his curiosity, "Good night, Silence. See you when I get up."
With that, Starswirl shut his door in Silence's face before promptly passing out on the cot.
"Yeah," Silence said, suspicion in his voice, "Good night."

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                         Chapter 3                         
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Chapter 3
Silence woke up a full 1800 count before the magical lights lit up the underground cavern. He went to go wake up Starswirl, but was surprised to find that he was missing. Expecting the worst, he galloped down the stairs, headed for the door. Before he could open it, though, he was distracted by a smell coming from behind him.
Following it to an open door, he was greeted by the sight of Starswirl magically applying jelly to some toast.
"Well good morning, sleepyhead," Starswirl said with a laugh.
Silence only stared at him disbelievingly. Starswirl had never woken up before him before. Usually, he was the last one up.
"Oh, relax, would ya? It's not like the impossible has happened," Starswirl said.
Silence finally collected himself and walked towards one of the empty seats around the table. Turning to Starswirl, he used his wings to blow the jelly into Starswirl's face.
"You and I both know that's a load of crap," he said laughing as he watched Starswirl attempt to wipe the jelly off his face with his hoof.
This only succeeded in smearing the jelly all the way from his eyebrows down to his chin. With another flick of his wings, Silence caused a sizable amount of jelly to fly up Starswirl's nose, prompting even more laughter from Silence. That is, until Starswirl snorted and sprayed said jelly all over him.
"You're entirely right," Starswirl said, "With us being down here, we have no idea what's happening on the surface. The impossible might very well have happened. Though I suppose the correct question would be How many times has the impossible happened already."
Silence, smartly, grabbed a napkin before attempting to wipe himself down, "Still doesn't explain how you woke up before me."
"That's easy. I didn't sleep last night."
"I call BS. You were out like a light as soon as your head hit that pillow."
"You forget so easily. Magic is my specialty, and one kind of magic in particular. Could you perhaps remind me what it is?" Starswirl asked, giving Silence the most obvious 'how dumb are you?' look that he could.
"Illusions," Silence said with a sigh, "So, if you were up all night, what were you doing?"
"Follow me and I'll show you," Starswirl said as he rose out of his seat and started walking away.
Seeing no choice, Silence got up and followed him. After passing several dozen doors 'How big IS this house?', he and Starswirl finally stopped before a solid stone door, emblazoned with a rune circle about 3 hooves across.
"Before we enter, I must warn you not to touch anything. How long can you hover?" Starswirl asked, his tone deadly serious.
"Don't be insulting. You know I can hover indefinitely," Silence said with a mock look of hurt on his face.
"Very good. Now, let me show you what I've done," Starswirl said as he magically levitated himself.
Placing his hoof in the center of the rune circle on the door, he floated there as the runes began to spin faster and faster. Slowly, they started giving off smoke and sparks as they sank into the door. Once they had drilled about a foot into the stone, the runes didn't go any further. Instead, they seemed to stretch back to the surface of the stone, creating a rotating cylinder of magic around the stone inside the circle.
As the rune cylinder spun, the stone inside seemed to change. It went from the white of the surrounding stone, to the gray of twilight, and then to a black that was darker than any night. Soon after that, it appeared to fade from Silence's sight all together.
"Please follow me," Starswirl said as he floated into the void where the stone had been, his body disappearing as it entered the limits of the rune cylinder.
Silence, hesitantly, flew into the void, shutting his eyes and bracing himself for some kind of resistance. When he felt nothing, he opened his eyes. What greeted him was beyond imagining. Right before him was Equestria, but it was nothing like the Equestria he knew. Where his was plagued by floating pieces of land and chocolate milk rainstorms, this one was calm and peaceful, with rolling hills covered in the greenest grass he had ever seen as far as he could see.
"Hmm," Starswirl said from behind him, "So this is what the inside of your head looks like. At least, the good part of the inside of your head."
"What do you mean?" Silence asked without even turning around, "How could this be inside my head? I've never even seen Equestria like this."
"I guess it would be more accurate to say that this is what you want most, more than anything else in our world."
"This can't be right then," Silence said looking around, "Something's missing."
It was then that he noticed the cottage, seemingly in the middle of nowhere. Playing outside it were two foals, both pegasi, and standing in the doorway was Pinkamena.
"Ah," Starswirl said, still floating along, "My sister. So this is what you want most in the world. A family."
Ignoring Starswirl, Silence flew towards the house, where he embraced the two foals in a hug. Immediately, the sky began to darken as thunder rolled across the sky. Discord appeared above the house, laughing. With a snap of his fingers, Pinkamena and the two foals were pulled inside the cottage as it caught fire. Silence found that he couldn't move, and so he watched helplessly as the cottage burned down.
"What happened?" He finally managed to ask after what seemed decades.
"I warned you not to touch anything you see in here. What we just saw was your worst fear: losing everything you care about in this world. Do not worry. Everything that happens in here, stays in here. Upon exiting, this place will, for lack of a better term, reset. Which means that next time you come in here, it will look exactly as it did when you first came in here. Unfortunately, you can't get in here unless I unlock the door," Starswirl put a comforting hoof around Silence's shoulder and led him away, "Come on, let's get out of here."