- Prologue -
"You nearly destroyed this land!"
Your strike caused casualties that weren't necessary!"
"What's an element worth, anyway? All they do is cause fear..."
Loyalty opened her magenta eyes, immediately stepping away from the pool of clear, shimmering water that now lay stagnant before her. Her teeth, tightly clenched together would not allow her to speak, and her mind was at a loss for words in order to muster the sentences that would make her speak against her leader.
On the opposite side of the pool, her eyes the same shade as her coat, a lavender alicorn pony was perched high above the pool. She was leaning over the edge for a moment - just as Loyalty was looking up - before settling back on her haunches and observing. She was calm, quiet, relaxed; her gaze matched her expression - there was no smile on her face, but no scowl either. Just a simple meek expression - as lucid and peaceful as the wind that stirred Loyalty's mane and wings.
"It is okay to speak, young Loyalty," the Alicorn soothed. "If you do not, the tension will surely crush you..." Loyalty wanted to release the tension right into the ground, but as the sky darkened and clouds began to soar overhead, she exhaled and managed to control what was inside her.
Once the clouds had cleared, Loyalty asked, "Why did you bring me here, Magic?"
"Place your eyes upon me, Loyalty, and ask me..." Magic replied, her voice whistle-like as it passed Loyalty's ears through the carrying of wind. Loyalty slowly brought her eyes back to meet the Alicorn's - a gruesome gesture by Loyalty's standards, yet one of respect by Magic's.
"Why did you summon me here, Magic?" Loyalty asked, then added as an after thought, "why did you force me to look into the pool?"
"There are seasons of answers," Magic replied wistfully, her lavender eyes searching Loyalty's. "But only a few are allowed to be said here... Tell me, Loyalty: has it come to your attention of what problems have arisen back in the realm on which we first dwelled?"
"The realm on which we first protected," Loyalty added. "And still do to this day."
"Correct," Magic's eyes shone with pride for a moment before settling back to a darkened state.
"This issue, however," Loyalty pondered, "needs the entirety of our creation, does it not?"
"Precisely," Magic continued, "However, I need your assistance. There is always a. . .choice, if you will, that we as the Elements must make for those who live in reality; this choice involves those that are not unlike you."
Loyalty narrowed her eyes. "How so, smart one?"
"After the Great War, there is - was - no question in regard that the others - both the Elements and ponies alike - had taken a hate to your name, Loyalty. You were able to kill with one strike, one blow, and thus you were beaten, ridiculed, isolated and discriminated too many times to count. I know that you have strived to make them see that you are better - that you are not the Element that you once were... I am going to give you advice as to how, Loyalty."
"I've dealt with the suffering and predjudice for quite some time, Magic. I do not need assistance." Loyalty flashed back.
Magic's eyes were calm as she met Loyalty's. "You see, when you choose someone to bear your element in the other realm, you choose someone who bears your personality, your ambitions...your beliefs. If you do this, the evil spreading throughout our previous realm will shatter to nothing - it wil be gone as long as you, along with the rest of the Elements, are there to guide your pupil. Your reputation will be restored if you do this, Loyalty."
Loyalty narrowed her eyes and asked, "Choose someone to bear my Element? But why -"
"All of us must do so," Magic interrtuped, "for if we do not, the realm below our hooves will fall to nothing but ash and cinders." she fixated her lavender eyes on Loyalty's once more. "You, however, must choose wisely. If the one who bears your Element becomes as tyrannical and bloodthirsty as you did when you found out that you were borne of high ambitions, you will go back to being the most feared and revered of all - all of your hopes of being good again will be finished."
"What if I choose not to burden a mortal with my Element?" Loyalty challenged.
"You must," said Magic fiercely, "If you do not, you will cease to exist as a Guardian of the Other Realm - you will be no more, Loyalty. Your memory will be vanquished from all minds. " Magic closed her eyes for a moment before opening them again. "We must call the others now... If you would call Kindness and Laughter, I would appreciate it."
Loyalty nodded, and the clouds began to reappear in the sky. Loyalty narrowed her eyes upon two spots around her and focused all of her energy on them - in two blasts of thunder, a massive cocoon of butterflies and a giant sea of balloons appeared. As the butterflies flew away and the balloons disappeared, two ponies appeared - one was a canary-yellow, the other bubblegum pink; Kindness and Laughter had arrived.
Meanwhile, rain began to fall steadily; in the place just beside Magic, a pure white pony appeared. Her purple mane and tail gracefully swayed in the wind as it began to pick up around all of them. Finally, the last pony appeared - a orange pony with a corn-yellow mane and tail; at long last, they were all together again.
Loyalty - the only pony without a highstone - meerly shrank back as memories flooded back to her. She sat, relished in the memories before opening them again, feeling Magic's eyes on her in a piteous way before she turned to the four behind her.
"The time has come for a new page to begin in another realm!" Magic's voice bellowed over the hollow. "May you take heed on my words I speak tonight; may you take the utmost respect of the importance of this meeting. Darkness falls upon those we have sworn with our lives to protect; and to prevent bloodsheed, I have created plan that can only be successful by your assistance."
Loyalty snorted softly. Bloodshed will not be prevented in this case. . .
"For the first time in many eons," Magic continued, "we must reside in the other realm. We must watch over these ponies to protect them from the danger that lurks at every corner, but also to watch over those we have placed our trust in." she eyed all four Elements on the stones, followed by the one directly below them all - in a place she had lived in since her death thousands of years ago. "I must ask you, as the Elements of Harmony, to bear your Element to a mortal in another realm; these mortals who control our elements will become our allies to help us fight against this evil."
There was a moment of silence; for a moment it seemed as Magic wanted someone to object. No one did, and so the lavender Alicorn continued.
"Oh, you have got to be joking," came the groan of the white pony to Loyalty's right, "give up my Element - the one that our Goddess gave me? No - it is mine."
"I thought greed was the opposite of your Element, Generosity," came the smart comment from the orange pony.
"I am not going to give up my Element, Honesty!" Generosity stated matter-of-factly. "I have relished and coddled it too long - it is a part of me now, and I will not have some mortal heed my precious Element."
"The mortals need your Element though, Generosity," came Magic's voice from behind Loyalty. "Without any one of us, the other realm will crumble at the seams before crashing in on itself completely."
"Our powers are dangerous to mortals," the canary-yellow pony's voice was quiet and meek when she spoke up. "This wouldn't help them - it would only destroy them, surely..."
"I have highly taken that into consideration," Magic responded. "However, since all of you will be deciding for yourselves whom will bear your responsiblity, I doubt your judgement will go awry. Especially yours, Kindness."
"These cats are young," the bubblegum pink pony stated, "How are we to know if they can handle it?"
"If you do not remember, Laughter, we age differently than they do," Magic replied. "Those whom seem young tend to be mature within; watch them, even as they sleep. Small things can reveal the largest secrets of a pony..."
"Even if they seemed honest before," murmured Honesty from her stone, "what if they betray us when they discover their power? Many have faltered once given the choice between gaining control and what is right."
"You will be fueling your Element into them, Honesty," came Magic's reply. "So if you feel they have betrayed you, you have the power and authority to take it away from them."
"That doesn't even matter though...does it?" Loyalty settled her eyes upon the eldest of them all. "Why should we give mortals the power when we remember what happened last time our Elements were free?"
"You must recall those memories constantly, Loyalty," Generosity's cold voice came across the hollow.
Honesty murmured something in response. Looking up at her, Loyalty saw she had a smirk on her face. "Who wouldn't, after what you did?" Honesty added to Generosity's statement.
"Those days have nothing to do with this," Loyalty growled. "The point is that we fought each other for too many years to count when we first discovered our true powers. It drew us all apart, forced us into different kingdoms and different tactics as our powers grew - who is to say the mortals won't do the same? By the time we manage to fix it, everything will be destroyed!"
"Just like last time," Kindness murmured as quietly as possible, but her voice still cascaded down to Loyalty's ears.
"Yes," she said slowly. "Just...like...last time."
"I have faith that you will all choose the right mortal," Magic told them all. "This must be done now - not later, not sooner. Now. It cannot be placed on hold for any longer."
"I will go first," Magic offered and the other four ponies allowed her to do so. Focusing all of her energy on the pool below her, she manifested an image of a pony: a young colt, with a midnight blue coat and a white mane and tail. His cutie mark was a water fall, Loyalty remarked. "I choose Watering Pool." Magic finished and stepped back, allowing Kindness to go next.
She did the same as Magic had; this time, her image was of a dark reddish-brown filly with an orange mane and tail. She had a cutie mark of an acorn below an autumn tree. "I choose Autumnleaf."
Honesty was next; her image was of a dark golden filly with a white ear and a slightly paler mane and tail. Her cutie mark was a moon and four stars on every angle of the moons crescent mark. "I choose Reminiscent Lullaby."
Generosity followed; she chose a pure white colt with dark red tail and mane. His cutie mark was a ink pen with a scroll. "I choose Polished Words."
Laughter was second to last; she chose a soft rose-colored filly with a darker tinted mane and tail. Her cutie mark was of a berry bush. "I choose Berrylight."
Suddenly, all eyes were on Loyalty. "Your turn," muttered Generosity.
Loyalty did the same as the rest of her comrades; she focused all her energy on the pool and manifested a picture. It wasn't one she expected - a very light cream-colored colt with a gray mane and tail; on his tail was a red streak, just at the end. His cutie mark was of a cloud showering down stars instead of rain.
Loyalty took a breath, steadied herself before saying for all to hear:
"With my power, I grant Moonfall Skies the Element of Loyalty."
