Return to the Tree of Harmony
The Crystal Empire, a glimmer of life and light in the harsh environment of the far north. Legends say it was lost long ago to a great darkness that not even the crystal ponies would speak the name of. Once upon a time it was home to a kind princess and her family, now it housed the only kind delegate left in Equestria. Millennia's had whipped, grew, and shaped this crystal paradise, the only place where Crystal Ponies lived in abundance. Very rarely were they found amongst earth settlements, only the bravest staying away from their glistening sanctuary.
Today the city was alive, tents set up, food being prepared in big kettles and pans. Ponies from all around Equestria came, prejudice and hatred left at the front gated. It was a time of pride, to see which kind was plentiful with the power of harmony. A large stage had been set up in the main square, the crystal heart spinning slow and careful. It was a time of gentle panic amongst the crystal ponies, when citizens went missing from the grounds themselves. Even with preventative measures ponies were lost, the Empire Congress disturbed by the shocking numbers.
For a few hours the crowds gathered, a low hum of whispering plentiful all around. They made bets and snide remarks, pointing to others and giggling with friends. Unconsciously the crowd was segregated, with the native ponies allowed their own security for safety reasons. When the sun hit high time there was a great silence, an elder pony walking to the microphone. He was an old dapple blue unicorn with a white undercoat. His mane had since faded grey, the remains of his pastel green hair clinging to a few strands in his tail. His mane was short and pulled into bands, his tail pulled tight in a braid that was folded in on itself. The poor old pony's knees wobbled with each step to the platform, the audience growing silent as time went on.
" Hello all!" His voice was old and high, wobbling with his poor knees with each syllable. " it is an honor to have the tribes gathered here together...in peace and harmony!" His voice rang over the speakers, an eruption of cheers coming from the crowd. He waited a moment for the noise to die before continuing, " Today we are gathered for the reveal of the next holders of the Rainbow Power! It is a time of honor and great responsibility! Now as some of you may know, the outcome is unknown to all but those of the Congress of the Crystal Empire. We ask you all to please withhold from causing an uproar within the crystal walls!" He took a short look to an elderly mare standing to the left of him behind the curtain. They both had seen whole mobs over hurt feelings during the reveal. The ratio of earth ponies to unicorns to pegasus was always random and with tensions high between them, the reveal was always a time of stress. There were stories of wielders being murdered for being the wrong kind, outcasted, or held prisoner as an example.
The old unicorn sighed and continued, " We begin the reveal, please welcome my colleague Peach Pie!" An old peach colored earth mare with deep orange hair and five peaches for a cutie mark walked out. She was much younger then her counterpart, but she was clearly still elderly. Her body was just beginning to show signs if age, deep wrinkles and creaky knees betrayed her beauty. She had an envelope in her mouth, her teeth holding it gently in front of her. She stopped before the mic and pulled the envelope out with her hoof, gently opening it up and pulling out the paper. The crowd took a collective heavy gasp, the sudden silence deafening and eerie. She inhaled to speak, her eyes going over the list and halting her. She seamed to be in shock, her silence way longer then it should have been. The old unicorn stared at Peach Pie in concern as she attempted a gallop back to him. She held up the paper for the others to see, the crowd remaining silent. A few spoke with worry in hushed tones, pegasi trying to fly closer to the venue only to be denied by guards and magic barriers. It was around five minutes before she went back out with just the paper in hand, the crowd getting restless yet silent. She inhaled again and cleared her throat, holding out the list and getting close to the mic.
"The first element is the Element of Kindness!" She paused mostly for effect, " Fleecy! " a wave of butterflies were released from just below the stage as a smaller earth mare walked up with a hop in her step. The section of both earth and crystal ponies cheered loudly, the pink mare standing on her hind legs to wave at the crowd. She was highlighted on the crystal facade above like a jumbotron, her powder pink hair consistently curling into her face to the point of annoying her visibly. She came down on her front hooves and shook her head, looking over at the announcer to see who would be announced next.
"The second element is the Element of Generosity!" She did her pause again and looked at Fleecy who was gently bouncing in anticipation. " Minty!" As the mint green earth mare walked onto the stage an explosion of diamond magic glamoured the air around the stage. There was a heavy amount of grace in her step, silver shoes on her manicured hooves and golden ribbons braided into her white hair. It was clear where her family fell on the higher end of the class pyramid. She stopped and bowed to the crowd before taking her place besides Fleecy. The crowd was somewhere between overjoyed and outraged; two earth ponies in a row spelled trouble. Peach Pie prayed for a miracle of some kind, they could not handle a crowd of this magnitude rioting.
"Please...please quiet down..," Peach Pie was beginning to panic a bit, but the stallion behind the curtail edged her on. They had to do this, it was unwritten law, if not then what? These six would hold the last true old magic Equestria had left, no one knew what would happen if it disappeared.
No one wanted to find out.
"The Element of Laughter!" The crowd became so suddenly silent that Minty's ears clearly went back like someone had shouted at her. Peach Pie nodded to her in an attempt to calm her as she kept reading," Snuzzle!" The audience waited as the mare strolled out, standing still as ice as she revealed herself, an explosion of magic balloons flying high. She was a little turned off by the sudden silence as the crowd drank her in. She was a happy filly, never not smiling or sharing joy with others. This though, this was mortifying. Her mother had warned her of the dangers of this ritual and very angry ponies made her very uncomfortable. She tool a few steps foreword , her light grey coat shining bright in the midday sun. Magic tied the bow that was wrapped in her powder pink mane, her horn surrounded in a light pink aura. Suddenly the crowd erupted, leaving her unsure how to react. Naturally she bounced and took her place besides Minty and smiled big and proud. She was well aware why they were cheering, everyone on stage knew.
Peach Pie lifted the list to read again, " Rosedust!" A pale yellow unicorn fluttered out from behind the curtains, landed, and turned once." Loyalty!" The crowd screamed for her as she kicked her long pink tail, her hoof gently displacing one of the many rosebuds tied into it. She was taller then the others, but not by much, her head
Almost stallion like. Most mistook her for a very short horse, something she took offense to. Her wings were long and pastel in tone, going from the yellow to a light pinkish red. The pegasi section of crowd finally lit up, throwing flowers and horseshoes up as tokens of relief. She ducked as one flew for her head, pulling Snuzzles down to avoid another. She was shocked, horseshoes? Really? She motioned for Peach Pie to continue, she couldn't stand to her them call out for her. The explosion of symbols was delayed for her, a crazy storm of lightning in many colors booming over her.
Peach Pie fumbled a moment. Trying to find where she was. "The Element if Honesty, Silver Dreams!" A unicorn dressed like a carousel horse came out from behind the curtain, her gait a dressage trot with legs pulled up high and her body bouncing. She was quick to sit besides her fellow elements, no time to let the others take her in. The crowd was silent, searching for features to make her distinct. She turned her head and let off a burst of magic, the crowd erupting with an explosion of shimmer false apples. Another unicorn, leaving one pegasi amongst the others. One section of crowd became restless very fast at this revelation, an angry stallion reflected off the forcefeild. The turquoise mare ducked and yelled in fear causing Rosedust to frown at the whole situation. She stood foreword and took the mic.
ENOUGH!" The crowd went quiet, " My fellow pegasi, need I remind you we are GUEST! All of you are acting like-" she wasn't allowed to finish, several stallions and mares got close to yell back. She was gently led to her spot by Peach Pie who wanted this to be over.
"The final element! Magic! " the crowd hadn't settled, in fact it only got louder. The poor old mare wanted to cry and run iff stage but her unicorn co-worker gently pushed her to keep going from the side. "SILVER SWIRL!" She finally shouted. The crowd paused so suddenly at the site that followed, a mare with large wings and a body unlike any other. She was as tall as the tallest stallions, slim and long faced. With long flowing white hair gently high lighted in gray and eyes as blue as sapphires she landed on plenty manicured hooves. The crowd erupted as stars engulfed her, the mare eating up the attention. She waved and made her way to her spot, swishing her tail and bowing to them. She barely looked at the others, her gaze going to Peach Pie so the ceremony could be ended.
The crowd roared at the decisions and announcements in glee, there was a balance within the race of the elements! No one had to be killed, no one was overtly angry, all were thrilled. They almost missed the distributing of the "keys" which led to the reveal of their power. With a flash of pastel colors their hair became decorated and large, wings were multi-colored, hooves gradiented and covered in their cutie marks. They raised up above the stage and took off, leaving a path of color as they came back around a minute later. As they landed the empire came to life, tge crystal heart erupting with glee and spreading a wave of good magic across equestria. Everyone was in aw, no one in the crowd had seen the heart do that; not even the older ponies in the crowd had ever seen the burst of love. As the mares landed the crowd dispersed to celebrate, flowers thrown at the stage as well as other things from rocks to wedding rings. The elder council quietly led them off the stage, leading them behind the curtain.
The silence behind the curtain was aided by a deafening spell meant to drown out all noise. A small area of solitude or those chosen, they stopped to catch their breathe before the silence was terribly obvious. What would they talk about? Some were raised in a society where only one kind was superior, where others were biased but not particularly influenced otherwise. Silver Swirl was the first to show where her opinions lied, shifting to the other pegasi in the room. Rosedust got a bit closer in response, but only because she was herself scared. Tensions could be cut with a butter knife they were so thick, but Peach Pie was having none of it.
"Alright girls, gather round. We need to distribute badges and have your waivers signed." The old pony hobbled to the center with a box in tow. He opened it and pulled out different colored chest plates which were placed to the mares chests. There was no time to rebuttal as they were also adorned in sashes and small necklaces, each their respective elements color. Minty was the first to comment, her eyes on their necklaces.
"May I ask what these are made of? The gems I mean..." Her voice was deep for a lady, but not so deep it was unattractive. It had an authority to it, strong, poised, maybe a bit of a twang to it that was was both southern yet very very proper. It was as if she was a duchess of some kind, even in the way she held her gem was she proper and gentle.
"Crystal..." The old stallion piped in," they are made of old crystals that have since lost their story. He hobbled over before clearing his throat," I am Little Dipper. It is my duty to gather the elements of harmony once the time has come for me to do." He watched the others before going to Silver Swirl ," Tradition has it that the element of Friendship is the one who holds diplomatic leadership amongst the six of you. Does anyone have any questions?"
" Yes!" Silver Dreams spoke up, the others staring at her quickly, " uh... Why friendship? Why not generosity or honesty?"
"Hm..." Little Dipper stopped to think on this one, the mares staring down Silver Dreams real fast. " I don't know really, it's just the way it's always been." Papers were brought for him to fill out as the girls began to get restless over the response. "Now, since you are the elements of harmony, you are now representatives of the three races of Equestria along with the land as a whole. You are official diplomats as of this moment on, required to be there when called upon and in our time of need."
"Time of need?" Fleecy tilted her head and quickly sort of ran in place in excitement. It was strange that she was the element of kindness, her energy suggesting laughter.
"Yes, but it's all formal jargon at this point. Technology has made it that we no longer need magic as it once was. You all knew this though did you not?" He glanced at Fleecy who seamed to deflate a bit at this response. " However you will be summoned to official summits as well as the Equestria Games. "
There was a collective stare amongst them, Silver Dreams speaking up with her head gently elevated. " What are our duties for the festival? " Her accent was trans-atlantic at best, however Silver Swirl squinted gently in her direction.
"You are to head the banquet and feast with those of higher standing, mingle with royalty and have a good time of course! " Peach Pie piped up from the far side of the room, walking over to relieve her co-worker from speaking. " The festivities begin at sundown, till then you are free to roam the castle. " she left the others to skulk at the response before they too dispersed; the three races sticking to their own kind as instinct told them to. The crystal ponies within the castle walls began to gossip, their voices inpossible whispers in the silence. The girls ignored it for now, there was no need to worry about the servants whisper. The mares didn’t get too far into the castle, all of them caught up in one issue or another
A pregnant pause collected before the two pegasi opened their wings and took off and out the door. The four mares left behind stayed for some time before they too separated and went off in separate directions. A maid who had been nearby made note of this and sighed heavily. There were scrolls in the old library that told tales of the three races and how they lived once in harmony. Hell there were even books! She shook her head at the thought of one of them, a biography of sorts from a pegasus named Pound Cake. The mare had been told once by Peach Pie that these books were a rarity, many official libraries no longer featuring such diversity and friendship. Dusting one last candlestick she walked out, hooves echoing on the crystal floor just to amplify the loneliest. Little Dipper came back in to say one last thing, instead he was greeted by the maid.
"They Left Sir." She spoke with a rather flat tone, just of sadness lingering there.
" I see. Where did they go off to?"
"I do not know sir, they said not one thing."
"I see...you are dismissed Miss..." He looked to her and rolled his hoof in air, looking for a name.
"Opal Drops sir." She replied, bowing, " thank you sir!"
"Of course Miss Opal," he smiled as the mare trotted off, looking back into the room with a hard sigh and a shake of his head. " One day..."
To say that dinner was grande would not even be scratching the surface. Ponies from all over were dressed in the best clothing money and silver spoons could buy, even the staff was dressed elegantly. Crystal chandeliers gently lit plates stacked high with wild sounding dishes and fancy champagnes were laid out for the guests to pick at as they pleased. With tall father plumes and suits made of the finest silk and cashmere the guests were of high end near royalty, some technically were. To say that royalty was recognized like it had once been would be a joke, Equestria had no ruler, only governors and the like.
The Rainbow Power bearers had no idea that celebrations could be so grand, with fancy dresses and ceremonial jewelry adorning their necks and heads. The magic bearer wore a crown to dictate her as the 'leader' of the group, something the others weren't terribly fond of. She, however, was loving every second of it even if it was nothing more then a decoration made of gold and crystal.
" Why do you YOU get to wear the crown?" Rosedust asked with hostility.
"Because I am the bearer of the power of harmony." Silver Swirl replied, her head shaking gently to jingle the jewels intertwined in her silver locks. She was eating up all of the attention the others in the room