The Elements of Disharmony

The gray alicorn looked around, startled by all the bright colors. It was all too strange. Nothing was floating, the sky was clear with no cotton candy clouds in sight, and the sun wasn't immediately replaced with the moon like it was supposed to by now.

Where in Equestria was she?

"I'm really scared..." the pony whimpered, lowering her ears in intimidation. "This isn't the world I'm used to... Unless, of course, this isn't even my world at all.. But how could that be possible?..."

A thought came into her head. Maybe there was an answer in her castle. That is, if there even were a castle of hers in this bizarre world. Everything looks just like hers, though, despite the lack of chaos.

Gulping nervously, she began to slowly walk into the town of Ponyville, shuddering at the sight of all the buildings just standing tall and still like creepy statues. She didn't like this place, not one bit.

Finally, she could see a tall castle in the distance. It sure did look like hers, but there was something off about it. It was intact and so incredibly shiny, as if it had just sprung out of the ground like a daisy!

This sent chills down her spine. This was all much too foreign for the alicorn. Pushing her doubts behind her, she gathered up enough courage to walk inside. Her horn glowed a light gray as she pulled open the large doors.

Inside was even worse. Everything was just so shiny! It was definitely beginning to hurt her eyes; she was too used to the dullness of her home world. Once she reached the throne room, however, she let out a yelp.

The roots of the Golden Oak Library were on the ceiling, and the gems were still intact! The thrones and the Cutie Map weren't destroyed, either.

"What is this place?" the pony gulped as she slowly walked inside. She looked up at the gems dangling from the roots and, spreading out her wings, she flew up to them. She took one of them in her hoof and looked at it closely, but instead of a picture of herself sitting all alone in the middle of Discord's chaotic storm, she was standing with her so-called "friends". Herself and the other five ponies were brightly colored, not gray like they usually are.

What kind of sorcery was this?

Crying out, startled, the pony quickly flew back to the ground and began to back out of the throne room quickly when she spotted an open book on the Cutie Map. She gulped and was almost tempted to leave it be, but her curiosity got the better of her. She walked back over to the center of the room and peered down at the book. She read the text the page was open to.

"'Friendship is found all over the land, it is such a wonderful gift. Read these words and appreciate your friends, for these new ones are divided in a rift.' Friendship is a gift? No, it's not! There isn't even such thing as friendship!" the pony exclaimed, enraged by the lies the book told. She growled and swiped at the book, trying to knock it off the stone, but her hoof slipped and instead the page was turned. There were more words that caught her attention and, growling, she read them. "'Friends are nonexistent in this pitiful world, enemies as far as the eye can see. Read these words and escape the pain, have a new change of scenery.' Now that's more like... wait."

The pony read the text over and over again, and she quickly realized she had read these same words before. In fact, it was even in this same book in this very room!

"Oh, no... I must've accidentally cast a spell that teleported me to another dimension!" the alicorn wailed. "What am I gonna do? How am I supposed to get back to my own world? I can't do this on my own! ...But I have to. I always have to."

The pony sighed and slumped down on her throne, her head lowered sadly. What in Equestria was she going to do? There was no way she would be able to make it back to her own world on her own, but she has no choice in the matter. If she couldn't find a way back, she'd be stuck here forever...

"Hey, Twilight!" a voice suddenly called, causing the pony's head to shoot up.

"Oh, no... It's her!"