Author's Note

A note from the Historian:

Most of the following chapter is 'historical fiction.' I've had to take a few liberties, as the legends and stories of this adventure are... Missing pieces. But as I felt this was a necessary moment, though it is one often overlooked by fellow chroniclers, I worked at great length to cobble together what I could, and fill in some small gaps to the best of my ability.

Crystal

Adoria, Princess of Equestria, sighed and bowed her head. After decades of searching and helping their ponies recover, she had finally tracked Harmonia down to her hiding place.

And the door was barred.

Adoria growled and raised a bright red hoof to pound once more at the heavy oaken gate. "Harmonia? Sister, we need you. The ponies need you. Please come out. Surely you've found what you were looking for by now?" Silence rang on the other side. Adoria, never long on patience, shrugged and glared. "Fine! If that's how you want to play, Sister, I'll play!" Her wings flared as she summoned a burst of magical energy, long pinions spreading as they stretched. With a grunt, a bolt of rose-colored light smashed into the door, shattering the old wood, leaving only a few scraps of wood dangling from the hinges.

Adoria, sheepish, hunched her shoulders and trotted inside, head low. "Whoops... Harmonia? Harmonia, where are you?" Her hoofsteps rang hollowly back off the walls of the cavern, echoed by the steady drip of water from stalactites. "Haarmoooniia? Sister?" Chills crawled up and down Adoria's spine as she peered around in the dark. Taking a deep breath, she called up a faint glow of magic--But the pale red wash only served to amplify the mare's apprehension. "Sister? Where are you?"

Adoria rounded a corner, and stumbled backwards, blinded. When her eyes had finally adjusted, Adoria was left blinking in the pristine white light of a crystalline tree. The long, crooked branches were bare, save for six buds, like new flowers or leaves. The trunk was emblazoned with three symbols-- A sun, a moon-and-star, and Harmonia's own magical starburst. Adoria frowned, childishly wondering why the soft blue heart on her hip was unmentioned.

A breath of air, reminding Adoria of Harmonia's familiar chuckle, stirred the dust of the cave. One of the branches stretched downward, creaking, to present a particularly full bud before the crimson Alicorn. To Adoria's astonishment, the bud bloomed before her eyes, turning into a glittering azure flower, with a heart forged of crystal nestled among the petals.

Adoria lifted the heart and looked at the tree, fear and astonishment in her eyes. "But how...? Harmonia? What... What happened to you?" Then, terrified, the confused Alicorn fled the caverns, bursting out into the forest beyond.

That night, Adoria related her findings to the Princesses Phota and Nebula, her younger sisters. [1]

Phota's pale yellow brow furrowed, and her amber eyes gleamed with skepticism. "You're... You're saying Harmonia turned into a tree?"

Adoria groaned, tossing her flowing, pink-and-white mane back. "No! Well, maybe. The tree's there and she isn't. I know it sounds crazy, but you've gotta believe me! She -- it -- gave me this!" Frantically, Adoria thrust the heart forward. "I don't know what it does, but maybe it holds the key to bringing her back!"

Nebula blinked and prodded the crystal with a navy blue forehoof. "... Addie? It's a rock. Just a rock. And how could Mony turn herself into a tree anyway? You're not making any sense."

"You're not making any sense," Adoria snapped. "Look-- I'll show you, okay? Tomorrow, I'll take you to the cavern and you can see for yourself!" [2]

The next day, the three set off, Phota and Nebula sharing uncertain glances. Adoria led them over miles of untamed wilderness, finally landing in the bottom of a small canyon. Phota and Nebula touched down behind her. All three stared blankly at the smooth stone wall.

"I don't understand," Adoria gasped. "The door was right here! Where did it go?"

Phota snorted and glared at Adoria. "As I thought. Harmonia has disappeared, and we need to hold together until she comes home. Now put your rocks away and let's go home."

Adoria spun on Phota, ready to fight, but a warning gasp from Nebula distracted them. "What," the eldest of the three growled. As she followed the silver-maned filly's gaze, she felt her own cyan eyes widen.

Harmonia, spectral and transparent, stood before them. "I can't stay long, Sisters," she whispered, and the strain in her voice was clear. "I have to return to the Tree soon. The way will open again when the Tree is ready, and not before. I love you all, but I do not believe there is any hope for me. Go, and rule the ponies in my stead. And remember... Six will come one day... Descendants of a Dream..." Harmonia was fading fast, struggling to get the words out as her time ran short. "Six! To... Receive... The... Gifts..."[3] Harmonia's image faded into a wisp of pale purple-gray smoke, and drifted back into the stone.

Adoria still insisted there was some way to put Harmonia back in her own body. She refused to be called 'Queen,' but relented to 'Empress,' and never stopped searching for a way to restore her sister. As a result, she began to neglect her duties to her people, and this led to a split between the Sisters. Adoria took her research, her crystal heart, and her few loyal followers, and turned north. There she founded the Crystal Empire... But that's a story for another time.

[1] And so ends the first large swath of story I could gather. The following conversations is... Heavily ad-libbed, but I tried to stay as true to what I knew of the first Princesses as I could, using ancient writings about and by them as a reference. The Royal Archives were extremely handy for all this.

[2] That's the end of the biggest missing piece in this story; most modern histories completely skip the argument, but I thought it was necessary, to help explain why Her Highness Adoria left her younger sisters.

[3] The full prophecy reads: Six will come, Descended from a Dream, to receive the Gifts I bear and be my Heirs upon the World. It's a little spooky and ominous when you first read it, but this likely refers to the Elements and the six Knights of Harmony (When counting Queen Twilight Sparkle, of course.)