The Music of Harmony

Princess Celestia stepped into the middle of the room.

"Twilight Sparkle, line up all your friends," she commanded.

They quit talking and lined themselves up quickly. Celestia stared at Luna's army with disdain.

"Anything you have left to say? Any last words for me to bring to your families?"

"Yeah. I got something," said Vinyl Scratch.

"Then say it now."

"Okay. I will."

She fixed her eyes on Celestia and hit her with a piercing stare. It was a look that would have made ordinary ponies cower in fear. Celestia took a step back.

"Fuck you, Celestia," she said in full seriousness. "Fuck Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Applejack. Fuck the Elements of Harmony. Fuck all the ponies who believed your lies, and fuck Equestria."

Celestia was clearly getting irritated. "Is that all?"

"Yeah, that's it."

"Anything from the rest of you?"

"No," said The Doctor. "Vinyl pretty much summed it all up."

"Good. Enjoy hell."

Celestia turned to Twilight and her friends.

"You may cast the spell now," she said.

Twilight hesitated. "Are you sure?"

The Princess sighed. "Yes. Cast the spell. Is there a problem?"

"I don't know, it's just that... they don't seem that evil to me. Maybe they need a second chance or something."

"I know these ponies much better than you do. They're traitors. They deserve what's coming," Celestia said, frustration in her voice.

"But don't you think it's a little harsh? I mean, they were just fed bad information."

"Tell me, Twilight, would you like to continue your studies as my student?"

"Oh, yes. More than anything. It's just that-"

"Then cast the spell," she ordered.

"O...okay. Come on, girls. Let's do this."

She tried to say it confidently, but her tone sounded uneasy.

Twilight Sparkle stepped closer to Princess Luna and her allies and focused. A faint glow began around her horn, and spread across her body. The same happened with her friends, and the glow became so bright that it forced the rest of them to avert their eyes. Luna's allies did not struggle. There was no point.

Suddenly, the glow ceased. The Elements fell off of their necks with a dull thud. For a solid minute, all they could do was stare at them in shock. Finally, Lyra spoke, summing up what everypony was thinking.

"What the hell?" She said, purely astonished.

None of the ponies answered her. They couldn't.

The Elements began to illuminate themselves again, gradually floating upwards. Each Element floated towards the captured ponies, and they settled around each of their necks with a satisfying click. Vinyl looked down at hers. It was a red lightning bolt, Rainbow Dash's Element of Loyalty. She was at a loss for words.

"My god..." she whispered.

She glanced around the room at the other Elements. Derpy had received the Element of Laughter, The Doctor had Honesty, Lyra had Generosity, Bon-Bon had Kindness, and on Octavia's head lied the most powerful Element, Magic. They all had the same confused expressions on their faces.

Once all the Elements had settled, a powerful shock wave erupted through the room, destroying their bonds and shattering Luna's time bubble. Luna's eyes fluttered open, appearing slightly dazed.

"Luna!" Shouted Octavia. "What's happening to us?"

Luna looked at them carefully. When she saw the crown on Octavia's head, she beamed in pure joy.

"The Elements! You guys did it! Just keep focusing, Octavia, you're doing great!"

Celestia had by now regained her composure, and she charged at Luna in a bitter rage. She knocked Luna on to the ground, but she was still smiling.

"What the hell have you done?" Celestia screamed.

"I haven't done anything," she said gleefully. "It was all Octavia and her friends. They're the ones controlling the Elements."

Celestia's body began to shake in anger; her plan was failing and she knew it.

"Tell me what's going on. Right now."

"Okay. You see, the Elements are a special kind of magic. They represent the power of friendship, something extremely powerful and nearly unstoppable when used right. Sounds like the perfect weapon, doesn't it? It's not. The Elements have one glaring weakness: they will not respond to evil. If the Elements are misused, they lose the bond that they had formed with their carriers and link with a new group of ponies. In this case, the ones you captured. After I had selected them, it was their job to become true friends in order for them to be able to control the Elements. They did it."

Reality began to set in Celestia's mind. She had lost her only weapon.

"It's over, sister. I won your game."

Luna picked herself up off the ground and directed her attention to Octavia.

"You must cast the spell now," she ordered.

"B... But how do I-" Octavia stammered.

"You already know how, Octavia. It's in your blood."

That triggered something in Octavia's brain. A wave of confidence swept over her. She closed her eyes and concentrated harder, sifting through her thoughts little by little, growing more relaxed by the second. An unrecognizable feeling flowed through her veins, and time itself seemed to stop. The feeling grew stronger, gradually reaching its climax. It was power at its purest form.

The glow began, spreading across the room at first dimly, and then much sharper. Octavia started to feel a connection with the other Elements, willing them to do whatever she wanted. She pulled them all together and targeted Princess Celestia. She felt unstoppable. Without a moment's hesitation, she cast a colorful beam of light from each Element, intertwining with each other to form the final dagger. Celestia screamed, but it was too late for her to do anything else.

The rainbow weapon cut through the room and sliced into the Princess. Octavia had done it.

Suddenly, she felt the power and energy slip away from her body. Her hooves could no longer support her weight, and she collapsed into a heap on the floor. Every muscle felt like it was about to burn up. It was all she could do to remain conscious. Still, she gave a feeble grin, knowing that it had worked. She and her friends had succeeded.

Exhaustion finally overcame her, and she passed out.

Luna opened her eyes to see what she expected. All of the ponies were sprawled across the floor, unconscious. Luna had known from years of experience how to shield herself from the indirect effect of the Elements, but the rest were not so lucky. They would not be waking up for at least a few more hours. In the middle of the room lied Princess Celestia. Luna gave a sigh of relief when she saw that she was still breathing; Octavia had not killed her. As much as she wanted to celebrate, there was still one thing left to do.

She walked up to her injured sister and gently tapped her. Celestia began to stir.

"Sister," she cooed. "Wake up."

Celestia rolled over and stared up into the kind face of Princess Luna. The evilness that had been in her eyes for so long was gone.

"Luna..." she said sadly. I... I'm so sorry. I was wrong."

"It's okay. I forgive you."

"No, it's not okay. I tried to kill you and your friends just so I could have more power. It was pure evil."

Luna said nothing. All she did was stick out her hoof. Celestia stared at it in confusion.

"What is it?" She asked.

"It's my hoof," answered Luna. "Take it."

"After all this, after I tried to murder you, you want me to take your hoof? You can forgive me that easily?"

Luna smiled and nodded.

"But how?"

"Because we're all capable of becoming Nightmare Moon."

Celestia looked deep into her eyes. A look of understanding passed between the two.

She smiled back and took the hoof.