Brave Story: Revivalby EternallyLostChaptersThe FavorEnding the StalemateSecrets of TartarusThe FavorDear Twilight Sparkle I hope this message finds you well My faithful student, though this isn't a casual letter. Researcher's of the magic college have recently discovered a rare auracite stone, a relic that dates back to times long past. As you know auracite is a stone of powerful magic... The one they found bore a marking, it is believed to be part of a set. They are correct, but there is a fair bit more to that stone then is to be revealed to the public so the revelation is on hold for now. You may ask why I would contact you about such a matter, aside from obvious scholarly interest. That is something better revealed in person. My sister and I would like you to gather your friends and meet us in the Ruins of Tambelon. But I would like to stress this is not an order. It is a personal request on behalf of myself and my sister. Please send a reply if and when you all would be available to assist in this matter so we can arrange transportation. I hope to hear from you soon, - Princess Celestia It was the fourth time Twilight had read the letter, the second time that day during the long carriage ride. Whatever subtext that may be lying within was lost on the student, but she couldn't shake the feeling that this was no small favor. The tiara that rested atop her head only cemented that feeling. "I don't get it," Rainbow Dash's grumbling brought the unicorn back to the present, using her magic to place the letter back into her saddlebags. "Is this aura-stuff really such a big deal? I means it's just a magic rock." "Um, it's a bit more then that Dash." "Yeah, Auracite is like SUPER rare!" Pinkie spoke up halting Twilight's attempted explanation. "It absorbs magic like a big crystal sponge." she exclaimed with forelegs outstretched as wide as she could. "Papa Pie said it was a legendary find." "Yes, Pinkie's right." Twilight replied somewhat surprised, though in retrospect she knew she shouldn't have been. "Auracite is very much sought after in the magical research circles for it's ability to store and channel magic. Most artifacts of a mystical nature often had auracite as a fundamental part of their construction, even ones dating back thousands of years ago. The many uses for the crystals are still being discovered to this day." "Oh?" Dash was battling between curiosity and boredom as Twilight's explanation began to grow long. "So then this stone is like some super powerful artifact? ooh, maybe a key to some magic temple, no doubt racing another group of bandits to an even bigger treasure!" "I think you've been reading a bit too much of them adventure stories sugar cube" "Bah, your no fun." The pegasus mutter before turning her attention back out the window of the PAINFULLY slow carriage. "Um, I just want to know why the princess wanted us to bring our elements." Fluttershy spoke up ever so slightly, tapping the pink butterfly hanging about her neck. "True, it's not something that the princess would request on a whim." Rarity tapped her delicately manicured hoof to her lips. "Would that put this 'favor' on the same level as facing Discord or Nightmare moon?" That thought caused all conversation to dry up. An anxious silence filled the carriage as the contemplated the possibility of facing down a threat on the level of previous foes. It was twilight that finally broke the silence, in defense of her mentor. "Now girls I don't believe it would be something that dire. This was a personal request, if there was a greater threat I'm sure the princess would have told us." "Hm, I suppose yer right. But I still don't like it." Applejack frowned. "Somethin' just doesn't seem right about the whole thing." "Well we will find out soon enough, I believe we have arrived." Rarity's words brought everypony's eyes back to the windows are the royal carriage had reached their apparent destination. Tambleon. Long ago it had been a fortified city, a successful trade town on the edges of the old empire though legends say it fell to dark powers. Now it was just a ghost town. The rolled through a section of broken wall flanked by a pair of Royal guardsmen, the wheels began to shake and it switched from packed dirt to old cobblestone, the streets were quiet, the houses abandoned after some kind of raid. the only life was the outside themselves being small patrols of Royal guardsmen spread out about the ruined city. The houses thinned as they reached a moat of stagnant dirty water flanked once more by a pair of guards who gave the carriage a sharp salute. Unlike the first set, these were of Luna's 'night guard', casting a lot more intimidating look then Celestia's golden boy counterparts. The old bridge creaked but held as they continued toward the broken inner walls to Tambelon castle. "You know for a personal request there certainly are a lot soldiers here." Rarity noted with a hint of concern. "Yeah what's up with that, I thought we were going on a secret mission." Pinkie pouted. "I had brought my sneaking suit and everything." "That's so strange, I would have expected something more discr-" Twilight trailed off as a familiar voice reached her ears. "Okay men I want one more patrol up on the west wall looking to the badlands." A stallion's voice. "Best to be safe rather then sorry." "Is that... Shining?" her initial confusion turned into elation the carriage slowed and a white coated Unicorn stood out amongst his grey coated companions. "It is!" she clopped her forehooves together excitedly. "Shining?" The other girls exchanged looks as Twilight rushed out of the carriage peeking out to see their scholarly friend rushing up to the armored unicorn. "A friend of hers?" Fluttershy ventured as the other five filed out of the carriage. "He doesn't look like any unicorn from Ponyville." Pinkie said with certainty. "Twily?" The stallion was surprised but a large smile broke out on his face as twilight buried her head in the crook of his neck, returning the affectionate gesture shortly after. The two exchanged a few soft words. "A coltfriend?" Rarity whispered, her own mind having trouble grasping the idea even as she suggested it. "Seriously? We're talking Twilight here," Dash replied unconvinced. They wouldn't have to debate much long as Twilight as leading the stallion back their way. "Girls, I'd like you to meet my Brother Shining Armor, captain of the Royal Guard." "Brother?!" eyes traveled between the two trying to make the connection between the military stallion and the awkward librarian. "You never mentioned having a brother," Applejack said "Oh really? She's talked a lot about you all in her letters." Shining looked to his sister with a raised eyebrow, the lavender mare had the decency to look embarrassed. "I, well, it never really came up in conversation or anything..." She floundered for a bit as Shining did his best to keep a neutral face to make her squirm more. "Anyway these are my friends," she transitioned swiftly getting a chuckle from her brother. "This is Applejack" "Howdy." The farm mare greeted with a tip of her hat. "Rarity." "Charmed," she offered the handsome stallion a demure smile. "Rainbow Dash." "Fastest Flyer in Equestria." she finished with cocky grin, ignoring the rolled eyes from a few of her friends. "Pinkie." "HI!" the party pony greeted waving a foreleg excitedly. "and Fluttershy." "...H-hello" the timid mare muttered from somewhere behind Rainbow Dash, eyes averted. "It's nice to finally meet you all in person, Twily has talked a lot about you in her letters." He said ruffling his sister's mane fondly with his forehoof. "From what I hear she lucky to have such a great group of friends, please keep looking after her for me. She needs ponies who can keep her from getting buried in books all day." "Shining!" Twilight blushed hotly as her brother and friends shared a laugh at the good-natured jab. She took a few breaths to calm herself and focus back on the present situation. "But What are you doing here anyway?" "Well I got hardly let both princesses head out to the edge of the badlands without an escort, much less my little sister." "Indeed, He was quite insistent." The moon princess' regal tone pierced the din of the crowd, fortunately not to the volume of the 'royal Canterlot voice. "Tis a joy to see you all again friends." she added with a small smile. All the ponies took a short bow toward Luna, though she swiftly motioned for them to stand back up. "We are pleased you could all make it today." "It's not a problem Princess Luna," Twilight replied earnestly as her friends nodded in agreement. "Oh yes, we're always glad to come help a friend." Fluttershy added sweetly, bringing a smile to Luna's face once more. "Thank you my friends... Though this is a less then ideal place for pleasantries we should have more then enough time to catch up after our business is concluded. Speaking of which." she turned toward Shining Armor who immediately straightened up. "We shall be departing for the castle interior. We leave the watching of Tambleon to you and your men Captain." "Of Course your highness, you can count on us." He replied professionally, breaking it only slightly to offer the girls a wave as Luna lead them into the dilapidated castle. Inside was empty, not a single guard had been allowed past the door. Broken furniture and dusty books shelves filled the rooms, the only sounds carrying though the halls were the tentative hoof beats on stone as they headed down into the lower floors of the castle. "Dang, this place is a dump." Rainbow Dash spoke up suddenly, unable to deal with the uncomfortable stillness of the place. "Yeah somepony tore it up real good. The whole city looks like it was on the wrong end of a twister." Applejack added as they stepped around a fallen chandelier. "Yes, The fall of Tambleon was a rather violent affair though not more then a footnote amongst the other events of the Tribal Wars." Luna replied with a small hint of bitterness but it as swiftly covered up as she continued. "There are no records of what exactly happened, but if one can judge based on the findings we have made recently it was more then some raiding barbarians." The last flight of stairs had descended into some kind of cavern, worn brick replaced with smooth craved stone, as well as a fresh set of torches. The group entered into a large room, completely circular with a massive stone door at the far end. Next to the door stood Celestia, practically glowing in comparison to her dank surroundings. "Greetings sister, our guests have arrived." Luna voice seemed to bring the elder princess out of a daze as she turned her gaze their direction, a kind smile gracing her lips. "It's nice to see you again girls." The elements of harmony offered a short bow before Twilight strode forward to join her mentor by the aged door. "Any time Princess." she began to look over the door, in awe. The massive door were crisscrossed with magical algorithms and runes. Three rough hewed crystals were place in a triangle, inside glowed a mark that pulsed lightly in the dim cave. "Wait, These stones... They have zodiac symbols in them. That other stone you mentioned..." "Yes Twilight," Celestia gave a proud smile as she levitated out a red crystal with the glowing symbol for 'Cancer' inside. "Yes this stone is apart of the same set. Twelve powerful stones baring the power of the stars." "So they belong to princess Luna?" Rarity ventured as eyes turned to the moon princess who allowed a small chuckle. "Nay, The night sky was over head long before we hel-" she paused as her sister gave her a bemused looked. "Before I held it to my will. Just as these stones were about before me." she turned a somewhat put out look to her elder sister. "Is that better?" "Now now, I think it's cute," Celestia replied with a mischievous glint in her eye. "Sister please, tis hardly the time." she returned doing her best to suppress the blush. A few light chuckles amongst the group ease the tension of the ominous room but it could only last a minute before they had to get back to the business at hand. "So why are those aurastones or whatever stuck in that door?" Rainbow asked confused, mere decoration seemed like a waste for super powerful relics. "It's a locking mechanism. The runes are mostly in old equis but how they're arranged seems to point to a sealing spell." Twilight spoke up before either princess could answer, still analyzing the twisting runes. "Very Good, right again." Twilight smiled proudly at the praise as Celestia took over. "The stones seem to have been placed here to seal this passage." Celestia continued pulling a small cloth bag out and placing the Cancer stone into it. "But is it to keep ponies out... or keep somethin' in?" Applejack muttered anxiously as the sun princess shook her head. "It's hard to say for certain." Luna frowned at that statement but said nothing allowing her sister to continue. "But judging by the energy coming from the other side I would say the latter." Celestia said in a grave tone directing her gaze to the door. "W-What kind of energy?" Fluttershy's reluctance was palatable. "Tis a gate into the depths of Tartarus." Luna said firmed causing a gasp of shock from the younger ponies, Celestia remained quiet. "It is a rather distinctive energy." she added offhandedly. "But how can that be?" Twilight was one of the first to recover from the bombshell. "The gate to Tartarus much further east, I've been there myself. There is only one recorded entrance to the underworld." "The key word of that statement Twilight is 'recorded'." Luna stated calmly. "Yes, Necromancy may be a forgotten art in our times but back then it was a far more common practice. And to have direct access to the underworld, was a goal that any Necromancer would die for." Celestia and Luna looked to the door distastefully while the other tried to come to grips with the implications of what this favor was going to entail. "Wait, yer not tellin' us that you plan on opening that thing are ya? The underworld is sealed fer a reason." Applejack said with a worried frown looking between the two princesses before it fully donned. "...You know what's behind that door." "Yes," Luna spoke up before Celestia could, the elder sister closing her mouth and looking away. "The matter of this door and a thread long left dangling, we had not had the means yet to cut it free." the moon princess met Applejack's defiant gaze evenly. "Our Journey shall be quick and shallow, barely touching the true depths of Tartarus." "I understand if you are uncomfortable with the idea," Celestia took over, her voice soft. "If you refuse we will not force you to do so otherwise. But this is a matter Luna and myself have wished to rectify for a long time now. A great injustice that needs to be corrected. So please," Celestia suddenly crouched down into a bow eyes turned to the ground. "All we ask is you consider our request." The six young mares looked between each in confusion as Luna joined her sister. "Princess..." Twilight nearly approached her mentor before she was pulled back by Rarity. "Um, could you give us a moment to discuss this." "Yes of course." Celestia spoke in a resigned tone that held the weight of her many years. "We will await your decision." Luna gave a nod taking a seat by her sister's side and place a wing over he in a comforting manner as the six friend turned to each other to try and decide this weighty issue. "I don't like it." Applejack spoke up immediately "No pony aught to be messing around in Tartarus long as their still living and breathing. T'ain't natural," The farmer finished firmly. Applejack had been raised to respect those who passed on, it was hardly right to go skulking around their resting place like a thief in the night. "Come on AJ, it's not like were going in there to raise an army of Zomponies or anything." Rainbow rebuked casually. "I mean this is a once in a lifetime opportunity!" The thrill seeker in Dash was showing through clearly. To go right into the jaws of death itself and come back out, how could somepony pass that up! "Exactly, ONCE in a lifetime." Rarity retorted in a dry tone. "What your suggesting is an early peek. Personally I don't see how any good can come of this, anything that has been sitting about in Tartarus for 'a long time' can't be pleasant." The fashionista added distastefully. "Oh I don't know." Pinkie began thoughtfully. "Not like only bad ponies go to Tartarus, there' plenty of good ponies as well. Just imagine how bored you'd get sitting around in one place for so long. I'm sure they could use some fun too!" she said with a little bounce. "Pinkie, we are NOT going to wake the dead." AJ put her stomped out that train of thought as quickly as possible, no matter how serious the party pony was being it was no joking matter. "Aww, your no fun." "um I'll pass." Fluttershy muttered. "It sounds way too scary to me." The mere thought of waking in the place of the dead raised the timid pegasus' hairs on end. The girls continued to go back and forth for a few moments longer before Twilight finally spoke up. "I'm not sure whether this is right or wrong." she began, her friends quieting as she continued. "Ethically, morally, magically, scholars have debated for years over such things. All I do know. Is I have never seen Princess Celestia so sad before, in all my time under as her student. She needs our help." she looked up determination in her eyes. "And I'm not about to let a friend down." Her words were firm, her gaze steady as she looked to the others. "Yeah Twi, no way we can leave the princesses hangin'" Dash cheered pumping her foreleg, Pinkie nodding emphatically. It was Fluttershy that was the first to speak up from those against idea. "They do look so upset, whatever is in Tartarus must be really important to them..." she stated sounding unsure. "It is clearly some kind of personal matter," Rarity bit her lip. "and whatever it could be... I don't think it would be bad. The princess wouldn't ask us to do anything untoward." "Aye reckon they wouldn't... They do seem to be hurtin' something awful." The farmer muttered her gaze wavering on the sisters who awaited their judgement. Silence held sway for a few moments, before twilight spoke up once more. "What do you say girls?" Pinkie and Dash nodded immediately, followed momentarily by Rarity and the smallest of nods from Fluttershy. Twilight's eyes turned to Applejack who frowned, closing her eyes before finally sighing and giving a nod. All six turned back to Celestia and Luna resolute in their decision. "Princess, You can count on us." Author's Note So it begins... This is a story I've been toying with for years. FFT is my favorite game of all time, and it hold a special place to my heart (much like Ranma 1/2)... unfortunately it's not an easy property to mix with others. It has a rather complicated story with a lot of moving part so sending new characters into it can cause a massive butterfly effect. But I'm pretty happy with how things progress and tie into things in this story... But that won;t start to kick in until chapter 2. Hope this beginning gets you interested in more :) Chapter 2 is already ready to go and I will put it up in a couple of days. Til then, Latter everyone! Ending the StalemateFor the first time in over a millennia, The magic of Harmony began to gather in the depths of the underworld... In sequence the necklaces began to glow brightly raising the ponies from the floor, Twilight's own tiara began to glow brightly. At once all six mares opened their eyes unleashing the awesome power of the elements of harmony. The lights shot upward curving back down into a rainbow that wrapped around the statues erupting into a rainbow tornado that shot right back up to the ceiling, smaller debris getting pushed aside as it spun tightly around the stone figures infusing them with energy. It only lasted a few moments before the tornado died away. The element wielders landing once more on the floor, a little shaky. All at once the stone faded away, color returning to the former statues in a sudden rush. A collection of gasps and coughs echoed through the ruins, the six ponies taking their first breath in ages. Swords clattered to the floor, mixing with the rattle of bones as the monstrous alicorn began to move. "Free..." a dark voice hissed from the skeletal monstrosity, curious yet elated. "Did... did the ritual fail?" the male earth pony spoke staring up to the monster weak but unflinching, his soft tone carrying a quiet strength. The moment of quiet was cut by the ringing of powerful magic as both princesses set to bind the skeletal alicorn in place getting a low growl of surprise. It's red eyes flashed with anger. "You..." it hissed struggling against the power bind. "Erg, Usurpers! Unhand me!" it's horn crackled with energy but it was suppressed by a concerted effort from Celestia. "We have Ajora contained for the moment," The sun princess grunted keeping her focus on the thrashing beast, matching her own magic flares to counter Ajora's attempts to free itself. "Make Haste friends and retrieve the others, I am uncertain how long we can hold this beast." Luna commanded glaring hotly at the alicorn in question, the elements immediately snapping to attention and rushing forward to help the recently revived. "Is that... little Lulu?" Muttered the female earth pony staring wide at the moon princess. "Up and at'em sugercube, we need to get you out of here." Applejack's voice seemed to break her from her chance, the farmer bent low and pulled one of the mare's forelegs over her shoulder slowly helping her to her hooves. "Y-Yes, of course... Thank you." the well dressed mare did her best to hobble away from the magical tug of war but her eyes kept wandering back to the two princesses, confusion marring her features. Her male counterpart waved away the assistance, insisting the others needed the help more. It took him a moment to steady himself but he managed to stumble along behind Applejack. The elder pegasus had somehow managed to re-sheath his massive blade by the time the girls reached him. As sturdy as he seemed to be the moment he tried to take a step he faltered, caught by pair of warm bodies on either side of him, a cyan wing over top his back to help stead him. "Careful! You're too wibbly wobbly to be walking on you own." Pinkie chided cheerfully. "Yeah, just take it slow and we'll get you out of here." Dash assured him, guiding them away. "Well, I'm not one to argue with pretty mares." he said with a jovial, if weak, chuckle. Pinkie's bubbly giggle joined in a moment later while Dash rolled her eyes. "Just keep your hooves where they belong old man." her rebuttal only brought a larger bout of laughter from the stallion. His unicorn companion looked onto the bound Ajora with the slightest of smiles. "Perhaps there are yet gods that still listen..." "Um Miss? It's really not safe over here." Fluttershy's muttered tone was barely audible of the evil sorcerers struggles. The unicorn looked over to the pegasus, causing her to flinch. "What did you sa-" she paused eyes focusing on the element of kindness. "Is that..." she reached out a hoof immediately began to lose her balance. But Fluttershy was there to catch the warrior supportive despite her soft voice. "Careful, you've been asleep for a long time. This way." she began to gently urge the unicorn forward, to which she complied, leaving her sword stuck upright in the stone, her horn not responding her her command to retrieve it. "I am unused to such weakness...my Apologies Miss," "Fluttershy. No worries, a short rest and you'll be fine" she assured her charge and they slowly slipped away from the danger zone. Rarity and Twilight approached the final two, the female unicorn glaring hotly at the trapped monster, while her male companion was seemingly doing everything in his power just to remain upright. "Fire and Brimstone! Never again will I have a more open strike on the beast and my damn horn refuses to respond." She growled in a harsh tone. Biting onto the hilt of her massive blade she seemed to want to take matters in a more physical direction. "Now Melody, you know that blade wasn't made for mouth wielding." "dhis iz our besfth chanth!" She insisted, mouth still around the hilt. She groaned loudly trying(unsuccessfully) to lift the blade from it's furrow in the stone floor. A Purple aura surrounded unicorn and blade lifting them clear from the ground. 'Melody' spat the hilt free in surprise "What in blazes?" "That won't be necessary." Twilight explained calmly, "We'll be handling it from here." "Yes dear, you've done more then your fair share." Rarity chimed in offering the stallion a reassuring smile. He returned it before uttering an explosive sigh of relief. "Oh thank goodness. I have had MORE then enough war and demons for one lifetime." "Your in luck darling, we're fresh out of both at the moment." she carefully helped him from the field while his female companion did her best warrior's pout in Twilight's aura. Ajora looked frantically from side to side, desperately trying to make sense of the myriad events happening at once. Insight flashed in his glowing eyes and his struggles ceased. Both princesses held their bindings firm watching the skeletal alicorn carefully for any sign of resistance. "It seems it hath been some time since we last met welps," the chattering of bones was eerily off sink with it's deep, malevolent voice. "You have grown." he stated firmly, the last syllable trailing through the stale air. Neither Luna nor Celestia responded. The skeleton clenched it's jaw in annoyance. Turning it's gaze to the ponies slowly leaving the battle site. "I see you have a new batch followers and yet you returned... nostalgic for your old toys Child?" he hissed, enjoying the tightening of Celestia's shoulders. "You leave the princesses alone ya bag of bones!" Dash shook a hoof before she was quieted by her friends. "Royalty?" Ajora raised a bony brow. "My my... Perhaps we are not so different after all..." "We are nothing like you!" Luna exclaimed with a grimace "Luna." Celestia's voice was firm, if a bit strained. The moon princess regained her composure bring her face to a neutral mask once more. At that the beast began to laugh, sending a cold chill down the spines of all ponies present. The only one unphased the the male earth pony who took a step forward glaring defiantly before he was urged back. "Girls," Celestia began. "Get ready." The elements of harmony stepped forward, preparing to gather the powers of their artifacts once more. Ajora's bony form creaked audibly trying to step away from the semi-circle of mares but the princess magic held it firm. "Such a short reunion and you already wish it over." The beast rumbled strangely calm. "Such poor hostesses. Very well I shall let myself out then." it added with a malicious grin. "You are going nowhere Ajora." Celestia's voice thundered as her magic held strong. "Girls." "Yes Princess." Twilight nodded to her friends and they begin to focus, their elements filling with the powers of harmony once more. Ajora merely grinned, it's glowing eyes flashing brightly, several claws bursting up from the ground below. The clawed fro purchase and began to pulled creatures of a sickly green pallor began to pull themselves from the ground. "Demons!" The earth stallion tried to move forward but stumbled, limbs still numb. "Curse this weakness..." The braided unicorn rested a hoof on his shoulder, eyes forward as the elements reached full power. "Sterling?" "Kite, you have nothing to fear. Those mares wield the harmonic auracite." she gained a grim smile. "Ajora's struggles are for naught." The six ancient warriors watched as a rainbow beam cascaded from the floating mares passing through the risen demons and scattering their dust to the wind. "What?! such power!" Ajora's eyes widened in fear it's horn lighting up before being engulfed in a tornado of color and magic. "Not again! NOOOOOooooooo..." As soon as it started the magical onslaught had ended, a cloud of old dust and dispelled demons hung in the air obscuring the results of the impressive display. "Is it truly over?" The earth pony mare asked softly clutching her tattered dress between her forehooves. The dust parted to reveal an odd site. Instead of grotesque skeletal statue there was... nothing. Merely dust and echos. "Where'd old bony go?" Rainbow dash looked around confused. "Did we send it to that moon?" Pinkie asked cocking her head, Luna frowned. "No, Ajora's foul presence has not touched the moon... but it is gone." the moon princess finished with certainty. "Ajora is no more..." Celestia gave a relieved sigh before looking to friends, old and new, and smiled. The ancient warriors visibly relaxed while Twilight and her friends exchanged smiles. "Hmph, That was certainly a lot more flashy then I remember." The elder pegasus commented with a wry smile. "Admittedly with more of... feminine touch." "Say what you will Cirrus but I would gladly have worn the most frilly of dress saddles if our battles would have been but a fraction less life threatening." The unarmored unicorn muttered watching the display in awe getting a laugh from the older stallion along with some of the others. His female companion on the other hoof snorted, hoof resting on her massive blade. "You are hardly an ambassador of stallionhood as it stands Flintlock. I see not how a few frills would make a difference." "Words as sharp as your blade, yet I seem to detect a bit of jealousy in your voice. Watching our mighty foe defeated with such ease..." he offered with a small grin as Melody snorted saying nothing in reply, eyes turning away from the new barers. An awkward silence slowly settled in with the reality of the current situation. Element barers, old and new, looked across to each other unsure what to do. Even Celestia, for which this day couldn't have gone any better, was at a lost. Fortunately her sister was not one to let silence reign. "Some introduction are due, but mayhaps it best to save those until we hath left this foul place." "Yes, I think we have spent more then enough time in Tartarus." "You don't gotta tell me twice." Applejack chimed in, clearly relieved their trek into the underworld was at it's end. "Yes," 'Kite' agreed. "The atmosphere is not exactly ideal for friendly tidings." he looked back to his companions. "Is everypony able enough for travel?" a wave of confirmation came from the warriors, only the earth pony mare seemed unsure. "But brother, what about Eight?" she asked softly turning her gaze to the depowered automation. "We can't just leave him here..." "Him?" Twilight muttered confused. A brilliant yellow aura lifting the pony shaped heap of metal from the ground ended any possible debate. "No worries Serenade, it would hardly be fair to leave such a loyal guardian behind after all his hard work." Celestia smiled, horn glowing softly in the dim light. "Thank you Celly. You really have grown so much." The dress clad mare said with a soft smile. "In more then just the obvious ways." her hoof masking a dainty giggle. "Yes... It's been a very long time..." Celestia's smile was a little forced, 'Serenade' nodded returning a small sad smile. "I'm beginning to get that feeling." Author's Note The curse is broken and Ancient warriors revived. I'm really looking forward to exploring the tactics ponies but I still have to work my way through this beginning bit. Again, I'm happy with the 6 I chose to use but am a little sad I couldn't include some of the lesser characters. But a lot for that comes from my fanboyness for FFT. I know it's not too much but next time we will a lot of character interaction as elements new and old get to sit down and have a chat (with a bit of princess as well). Secrets of Tartarus"All right Girls, be ready for anything..." Twilight said with a hint of trepidation as the last auracite stone was removed from the door. The loud grinding of stone on stone signaled the movement of the massive door as it slid apart. Luna and Celestia stood firm. flanked by the elements, ready for anything to jump through the gap... but nothing came but a low moan. Anxious energy was expelled with a sigh of relief. Celestia halted briefly, needing to take a moment to collect herself, as Luna strode forward through the gap with nary a pause. The alicorn of the looked to her student and offered a wane smile. "Well this is a good sign, but remain on guard..." she pulled the drawstring on the bag closed and hovered it over to Pinkie, of all ponies. "Our trip may be short but we shouldn't linger longer then necessary. Hold on to this bag, do not let it out of your sight... There are more stones left." she finished ominously receiving a hoofed salute from the party pony. "You got it Princess!" The pink pony's cheerful demeanor seemingly unaffected by the dank surroundings, The bag disappearing to.... where ever it was she tended to put things when no one was looking. The group set off in silence into the caves below Tamblelon. The deeper they traveled the darker it grew, soon they're journey as lit only by the magic of the unicorns' horns. The air was stale and held a foul scent, the stone becoming more rough to their trotting hooves. As soon as it was at it's darkest it began to lighten up, a sickly orange seemed to permeate from the stones themselves making it easy to see once more. There were buildings, or at least structures that were buildings at some point. Nothing stirred, the only sounds the clopping of hooves on stone. The group paused briefly at the intersection of two 'streets', the ruins going on a fair way in all 4 directions. "A city?" Dash muttered confused. "Ponies actually LIVED in here?" "Not exactly." Celestia replied softly glad for the distraction. "There are powerful magics the world has long forgotten. Thankfully. Let us just say if the portal had been mishandled then Tambleon may have joined this undercity." "Somepony managed to transport a WHOLE city?" Twilight looked around her with a mix of awe and disgust. The feat itself was impressive for it's power and control... it's results though. "Here." Luna said with certainty ending the impromptu discussion. She turned at the apparent crossroads and headed toward a large building sitting at the edge to a dark abyss. No pony questioned the decision doing their best to keep pace the the princess of the night. The doors lay strune on the ground in pieces, inside was something akin to a ship dock with the shattered remains of a massive ship split in half. Their goal sitting in the center of the destruction... a fact clear even to those who didn't know what they were looking for. "My word, Sister... I believe we have found them." Luna's voice drifted out the massive entrance way. Celestia trotted through the door with the elements a step behind, only Pinkie and Rainbow dash crossing the threshold without hesitation. "Landsakes..." Applejack was at a loss. Before them was a tablau of statues, the center piece being a Massive skeletal alicorn with bladed wings rearing up striking a threatening pose. It was surrounded by a handful of pony statues, in defensive stance. As impressive as the scene was it was diminished a massive metal beast that stood firmly between the scene and the entrance. Gears ground together and it's joints creaked as it moved a step forward. It was a bulky thing, standing on two legs with a form not so different from a Minotaur or an Ogre. Massive arms twitched as they slowly raised upward. a large red light, in the approximate place where a being's head might be, flickered weakly. "I-I-Intruders...D-Defensive proto-c-col eng-g-g-gaged." It spoke in a fluctuating monotone. "What IS that...thing." Rarity asked take a step back from the mechanical monstrosity. "It looks to be an automation of some kind... ancient and heavily damaged..." Twilight said tempering her curiosity with caution. "I'm surprised it's even functioning." "You are correct Twilight Sparkle." Luna said with a slight smile. "A Worker unit from times long past, uncovered in secret during the Tribal war." Twilight's eyes widened at that though the others just seemed lost. With a piercing screech, the chest of the clockwork 'worker' opened revealing a worn cannon. "C-C-Charging..." Slowly, magical energy began to gather inside the barrel. "Sister now would be a good time, it always liked you best." Luna said coolly, earning a chuckle from her sister who trotted forward to meet the beast. "Ladies, you best stay behind me. That cannon may be designed for clear debris but it is quite effective against ponies." The princess of the night erected a starry shield between the Worker and themselves. "What about Celestia?" Twilight asked clearly concerned. "My Sister was always better at dealing with the beast, it was stubborn on whose orders it would accept." Celestia stood, eye level with the creaking automation the cannon in it's chest gathering energy slowly as the gears ground sickly. With a sad smile she placed a hoof on it's forehead. "You've done a great job protecting everypony Eighter... You deserve some rest." The red eye glowed brightly, the cannon wavering in it's charge. "Ce-ce-ce..." she reached up and lightly touched the side of it's Face(?) with a hoof/ "Shhh, it's okay. Everypony is safe now. Your job is completed." The cannon fully powered down and the chest plates slowly closed. "Job c-complete... Powering down... U-Unit may be in ne-e-ed of re-re-repairs." it's voice grew softer as it knelt down and a small metal shutter slid over it's eye. the gears slowly to a halt and With a hiss of steam the room fell silent. With the with a careful tug of magic Celestia pulled a blue stone from the automation's back, another piece of auracite. Luna lowered the shield gratefully allowing the elements to approach the scene. "Is it..." Fluttershy asked, still a step behind Luna not wanting to get any closer to the beast then she had to. "It is taking a well deserved rest." Celestia said, stone floating by her head sending it hovering toward Pinkie who opened the bag without prompting shutting it once more when it was placed with the others. "It recognized you Princess... That would mean that you were around even back during the Tribal War... but all the history books." Twilight looked to her mentor in a whole new light. "Princess, How are y-" "Twilight, are you calling me old?" Celestia forced a pout enjoying the immediate effect it had as her pupil flushed brightly and tried to backpedal away from whatever questions she was about to ask. The princess of the sun let her stew for a moment more before smiling and giving the unicorn a wink "All will be explained and due time my faithful student, we still have a job to do." "Indeed, it is in our best interest not to dwell any longer then necessary." Luna agreed looking over the statues with a far more serious expression. The others followed taking a closer look at the statues, only pinkie being held up as she looked over every nook and cranny of the sleeping automation with avid interest. On closer inspection the details became more obvious. There were six statues set up in a semi-circle around the monstrous alicorn. A pair of earth ponies to stood directly opposite, a mare and stallion. The latter stood protectively in front of the former. The Mare looked concerned, her petrified dress fluttered back as if against a great wind. While the stallion stared down the alicorn with an expression of determination, his body covered in battered armor though bore no helm. To his right were a pegasus stallion and a Unicorn mare with a long braided mane. The pegasus stood in an aggressive stance with a massive blade clamped in his teeth, he was armored much like the earth pony though a petrified cloak sat atop it. The cloth all blown back by the same invisible breeze, the stallion was noticeably older but seemed in top shape. The Unicorn's own blade stuck in the ground in front of her both hooves atop the pommel in motion of prayer eyes closed. Her armor was lighter but held barely a scratch. To the left of the earth ponies were two more unicorns, a mare and stallion though unlike the earth ponies they couldn't look more different. The first was another armored mare, though baring a much heavier grade like her stallion counter parts, her blade was the largest of the three available. It lay embedded in the ground as well but in a more aggressive manner with a furrow of carved earth stretching from the blades resting place all the way to the feet of the monster. Her expression was one of grim satisfaction, short cut mane barely visible under the petrified hood of her cloak. The Stallion on the other hand was unarmored, one hoof up as his to shield his eyes from a bright light. He wore a harness covered in pouches and several strange tubes. His frame was definitely the slimmest not baring the muscle and poise of the other warriors. "Who are these ponies?" Twilight asked softly looking between the arrayed statues and menacing alicorn beast with reverence and curiosity. "Yeah, These ponies look awesome." Rainbow said far less eloquently taping the ancient blade in the pegasus' mouth. "Ow... It's still sharp..." she said in awe. "They are.... Old friends. Lost in the pages of history." Celestia said softly, Luna said not a word standing across from the earth stallion with an unreadable expression. Applejack removed her hat giving a respectful moment of silence. Fluttershy crept forward to the side of the princess of the night. "Princess Luna... are you okay?" "What?" Luna blinked coming back to reality looking to the timid pegasus at her side. "I... we are fine." she said firmly, adding after a beat. "Your concern is appreciated Fluttershy." The yellow mare nodded but did not lose her concerned look as Luna walked off to her sister's side. The princess' shared a long look before Celestia nodded. "My little ponies... we have come to the reason we asked for your assistance." Celestia said formally catching all six mare's attention. "As I said previously, the auracite are stones of massive magical power and a great danger should they fall into the wrong hooves. It would be in everyponies best interest to have them locked away..." Luna gave her sister a firm look bring the older sister to sigh. "But as you know our reasoning is more selfish then that." Celestia admitted reluctantly. "To retrieve the last two stones we would ask you to use the elements of harmony to break this eternal stalemate." she said waving a hoof to the statues. "and free our dear friends from their self imposed prison..." "Princess..." Twilight said softly looking back to the frozen tableau once more, She never realized how little she truly knew about the princess. Several ponies frozen in stone that apparently walked and lived alongside her mentor long before her recorded history. "Begging no disrespect princess." Applejack spoke up. "But ifin' I'm hearing this right you want us to free yer friends... and that big ugly thing they were fightin'" "Yes." Celestia admitted with closed eyes. "It is dangerous, but my sister and I have discussed this and believe you are strong enough to lift this curse. Ajora was a great foe, of that there is little doubt." Celestia's tone grew more determined. "But You six have grown to embody the elements on a far stronger level then we ever had in the past." "And you will not be alone. We shall be right at your side in this, it is a mess that has been left untidied far too long. But not one we alone could rectify." Luna said with a slight bow toward the six mares, joined by shortly by her sister. "Please will you help us?" Celestia voice was far softer and more vulnerable much like it had back outside the sealed door. "Of Course Princess... er, if that's okay with everypony else..." Fluttershy was surprisingly the first to speak up, seeming to shrink into herself as soon as she realized it but fortunately Rainbow stepped forward a second later. "No sweat Princess." "Indeed, we'd be glad to assist you." Rarity said with an easy smile. "All ya had to do was ask." Applejack agreed placing her hat back in place. Pinkie bouncing in placed with a wide grin "Yup! Ooh I wonder what kind of party you plan for ponies frozen in stone for over a thousand years." she mused tapping her chin lightly. "Twilight?" Celestia looked to her faithful student who seemed the most lost from all these revelations, at her name though she jumped to attention. "W-what, of course!" Twilight said with full sincerity. "I'm always glad to help." "Thank you." Celestia said with a shuddering sigh, tension easing and she raised her head offering the six a genuine smile. "I told you sister, Honesty is the best path for such things." Luna said more at ease then she had been the whole trip. "It was never one my strongest virtues, but you know that better then anypony." she said with a familiar tinge of mischievousness. "So whats the plan princess?" Rainbow Dash said taking to the air in a low hover. Celestia nodded to her sister who stode forward confidently. "It tis a simple plan. You are to use the elements of harmony to dispel the stone curse, as it is reseeds mine sister and I shall bind Ajora in place so the others can be moved to safety. Then you are to use your elements once more to reseal the foul creature once and for all. Both friend and fiend should be in no condition to continue this fight, so our old friends may need some assistance. Unlike discord they are merely mortal ponies and will need time to recover after their self imposed stasis." "That should go for Ajora as well. Between myself and Luna it should not muster much resistance," Celestia added. "But we must be careful nonetheless, Ajora was a powerful sorcerer and a master manipulator. Do not listen to a word it speaks." Both princesses moved to opposite sides of the room eyes toward their monstrous counterpart. "Understood." Twilight nodded firmly. "Ready girls?" a round of approval rose up from her friends as they too their positions at her side and closed their eyes gathering their power... Author's Note Woo Final Fantasy Tactics! We have our first look at the rest of the cast here. I believe I gave enough detail in my vague descriptions for Tactics fans two know which 6 characters are here. If not, well you'll see them more directly in the next part. It was a lot of debating on my part on who to include... In the game you can only take 5 people into the final fight, though technically 16 people come with you but you can only field 5. So in that case I decided to stick to that and spare the complexities of an overly large cast... I did at Worker 8 though cause... come on it's Eight! He's awesome and Having him act as a guardian to his petrified master seemed so fitting... Also Yes, the early days of the Princesses will be tied to the 'Tribal Wars' and the Tactics cast. I will likely try to avoid direct flashback scenes but we will see who the story goes. Anyway, hope you all enjoyed the Chapter and I'll get to working on the next one. Later all!
The FavorDear Twilight Sparkle I hope this message finds you well My faithful student, though this isn't a casual letter. Researcher's of the magic college have recently discovered a rare auracite stone, a relic that dates back to times long past. As you know auracite is a stone of powerful magic... The one they found bore a marking, it is believed to be part of a set. They are correct, but there is a fair bit more to that stone then is to be revealed to the public so the revelation is on hold for now. You may ask why I would contact you about such a matter, aside from obvious scholarly interest. That is something better revealed in person. My sister and I would like you to gather your friends and meet us in the Ruins of Tambelon. But I would like to stress this is not an order. It is a personal request on behalf of myself and my sister. Please send a reply if and when you all would be available to assist in this matter so we can arrange transportation. I hope to hear from you soon, - Princess Celestia It was the fourth time Twilight had read the letter, the second time that day during the long carriage ride. Whatever subtext that may be lying within was lost on the student, but she couldn't shake the feeling that this was no small favor. The tiara that rested atop her head only cemented that feeling. "I don't get it," Rainbow Dash's grumbling brought the unicorn back to the present, using her magic to place the letter back into her saddlebags. "Is this aura-stuff really such a big deal? I means it's just a magic rock." "Um, it's a bit more then that Dash." "Yeah, Auracite is like SUPER rare!" Pinkie spoke up halting Twilight's attempted explanation. "It absorbs magic like a big crystal sponge." she exclaimed with forelegs outstretched as wide as she could. "Papa Pie said it was a legendary find." "Yes, Pinkie's right." Twilight replied somewhat surprised, though in retrospect she knew she shouldn't have been. "Auracite is very much sought after in the magical research circles for it's ability to store and channel magic. Most artifacts of a mystical nature often had auracite as a fundamental part of their construction, even ones dating back thousands of years ago. The many uses for the crystals are still being discovered to this day." "Oh?" Dash was battling between curiosity and boredom as Twilight's explanation began to grow long. "So then this stone is like some super powerful artifact? ooh, maybe a key to some magic temple, no doubt racing another group of bandits to an even bigger treasure!" "I think you've been reading a bit too much of them adventure stories sugar cube" "Bah, your no fun." The pegasus mutter before turning her attention back out the window of the PAINFULLY slow carriage. "Um, I just want to know why the princess wanted us to bring our elements." Fluttershy spoke up ever so slightly, tapping the pink butterfly hanging about her neck. "True, it's not something that the princess would request on a whim." Rarity tapped her delicately manicured hoof to her lips. "Would that put this 'favor' on the same level as facing Discord or Nightmare moon?" That thought caused all conversation to dry up. An anxious silence filled the carriage as the contemplated the possibility of facing down a threat on the level of previous foes. It was twilight that finally broke the silence, in defense of her mentor. "Now girls I don't believe it would be something that dire. This was a personal request, if there was a greater threat I'm sure the princess would have told us." "Hm, I suppose yer right. But I still don't like it." Applejack frowned. "Somethin' just doesn't seem right about the whole thing." "Well we will find out soon enough, I believe we have arrived." Rarity's words brought everypony's eyes back to the windows are the royal carriage had reached their apparent destination. Tambleon. Long ago it had been a fortified city, a successful trade town on the edges of the old empire though legends say it fell to dark powers. Now it was just a ghost town. The rolled through a section of broken wall flanked by a pair of Royal guardsmen, the wheels began to shake and it switched from packed dirt to old cobblestone, the streets were quiet, the houses abandoned after some kind of raid. the only life was the outside themselves being small patrols of Royal guardsmen spread out about the ruined city. The houses thinned as they reached a moat of stagnant dirty water flanked once more by a pair of guards who gave the carriage a sharp salute. Unlike the first set, these were of Luna's 'night guard', casting a lot more intimidating look then Celestia's golden boy counterparts. The old bridge creaked but held as they continued toward the broken inner walls to Tambelon castle. "You know for a personal request there certainly are a lot soldiers here." Rarity noted with a hint of concern. "Yeah what's up with that, I thought we were going on a secret mission." Pinkie pouted. "I had brought my sneaking suit and everything." "That's so strange, I would have expected something more discr-" Twilight trailed off as a familiar voice reached her ears. "Okay men I want one more patrol up on the west wall looking to the badlands." A stallion's voice. "Best to be safe rather then sorry." "Is that... Shining?" her initial confusion turned into elation the carriage slowed and a white coated Unicorn stood out amongst his grey coated companions. "It is!" she clopped her forehooves together excitedly. "Shining?" The other girls exchanged looks as Twilight rushed out of the carriage peeking out to see their scholarly friend rushing up to the armored unicorn. "A friend of hers?" Fluttershy ventured as the other five filed out of the carriage. "He doesn't look like any unicorn from Ponyville." Pinkie said with certainty. "Twily?" The stallion was surprised but a large smile broke out on his face as twilight buried her head in the crook of his neck, returning the affectionate gesture shortly after. The two exchanged a few soft words. "A coltfriend?" Rarity whispered, her own mind having trouble grasping the idea even as she suggested it. "Seriously? We're talking Twilight here," Dash replied unconvinced. They wouldn't have to debate much long as Twilight as leading the stallion back their way. "Girls, I'd like you to meet my Brother Shining Armor, captain of the Royal Guard." "Brother?!" eyes traveled between the two trying to make the connection between the military stallion and the awkward librarian. "You never mentioned having a brother," Applejack said "Oh really? She's talked a lot about you all in her letters." Shining looked to his sister with a raised eyebrow, the lavender mare had the decency to look embarrassed. "I, well, it never really came up in conversation or anything..." She floundered for a bit as Shining did his best to keep a neutral face to make her squirm more. "Anyway these are my friends," she transitioned swiftly getting a chuckle from her brother. "This is Applejack" "Howdy." The farm mare greeted with a tip of her hat. "Rarity." "Charmed," she offered the handsome stallion a demure smile. "Rainbow Dash." "Fastest Flyer in Equestria." she finished with cocky grin, ignoring the rolled eyes from a few of her friends. "Pinkie." "HI!" the party pony greeted waving a foreleg excitedly. "and Fluttershy." "...H-hello" the timid mare muttered from somewhere behind Rainbow Dash, eyes averted. "It's nice to finally meet you all in person, Twily has talked a lot about you in her letters." He said ruffling his sister's mane fondly with his forehoof. "From what I hear she lucky to have such a great group of friends, please keep looking after her for me. She needs ponies who can keep her from getting buried in books all day." "Shining!" Twilight blushed hotly as her brother and friends shared a laugh at the good-natured jab. She took a few breaths to calm herself and focus back on the present situation. "But What are you doing here anyway?" "Well I got hardly let both princesses head out to the edge of the badlands without an escort, much less my little sister." "Indeed, He was quite insistent." The moon princess' regal tone pierced the din of the crowd, fortunately not to the volume of the 'royal Canterlot voice. "Tis a joy to see you all again friends." she added with a small smile. All the ponies took a short bow toward Luna, though she swiftly motioned for them to stand back up. "We are pleased you could all make it today." "It's not a problem Princess Luna," Twilight replied earnestly as her friends nodded in agreement. "Oh yes, we're always glad to come help a friend." Fluttershy added sweetly, bringing a smile to Luna's face once more. "Thank you my friends... Though this is a less then ideal place for pleasantries we should have more then enough time to catch up after our business is concluded. Speaking of which." she turned toward Shining Armor who immediately straightened up. "We shall be departing for the castle interior. We leave the watching of Tambleon to you and your men Captain." "Of Course your highness, you can count on us." He replied professionally, breaking it only slightly to offer the girls a wave as Luna lead them into the dilapidated castle. Inside was empty, not a single guard had been allowed past the door. Broken furniture and dusty books shelves filled the rooms, the only sounds carrying though the halls were the tentative hoof beats on stone as they headed down into the lower floors of the castle. "Dang, this place is a dump." Rainbow Dash spoke up suddenly, unable to deal with the uncomfortable stillness of the place. "Yeah somepony tore it up real good. The whole city looks like it was on the wrong end of a twister." Applejack added as they stepped around a fallen chandelier. "Yes, The fall of Tambleon was a rather violent affair though not more then a footnote amongst the other events of the Tribal Wars." Luna replied with a small hint of bitterness but it as swiftly covered up as she continued. "There are no records of what exactly happened, but if one can judge based on the findings we have made recently it was more then some raiding barbarians." The last flight of stairs had descended into some kind of cavern, worn brick replaced with smooth craved stone, as well as a fresh set of torches. The group entered into a large room, completely circular with a massive stone door at the far end. Next to the door stood Celestia, practically glowing in comparison to her dank surroundings. "Greetings sister, our guests have arrived." Luna voice seemed to bring the elder princess out of a daze as she turned her gaze their direction, a kind smile gracing her lips. "It's nice to see you again girls." The elements of harmony offered a short bow before Twilight strode forward to join her mentor by the aged door. "Any time Princess." she began to look over the door, in awe. The massive door were crisscrossed with magical algorithms and runes. Three rough hewed crystals were place in a triangle, inside glowed a mark that pulsed lightly in the dim cave. "Wait, These stones... They have zodiac symbols in them. That other stone you mentioned..." "Yes Twilight," Celestia gave a proud smile as she levitated out a red crystal with the glowing symbol for 'Cancer' inside. "Yes this stone is apart of the same set. Twelve powerful stones baring the power of the stars." "So they belong to princess Luna?" Rarity ventured as eyes turned to the moon princess who allowed a small chuckle. "Nay, The night sky was over head long before we hel-" she paused as her sister gave her a bemused looked. "Before I held it to my will. Just as these stones were about before me." she turned a somewhat put out look to her elder sister. "Is that better?" "Now now, I think it's cute," Celestia replied with a mischievous glint in her eye. "Sister please, tis hardly the time." she returned doing her best to suppress the blush. A few light chuckles amongst the group ease the tension of the ominous room but it could only last a minute before they had to get back to the business at hand. "So why are those aurastones or whatever stuck in that door?" Rainbow asked confused, mere decoration seemed like a waste for super powerful relics. "It's a locking mechanism. The runes are mostly in old equis but how they're arranged seems to point to a sealing spell." Twilight spoke up before either princess could answer, still analyzing the twisting runes. "Very Good, right again." Twilight smiled proudly at the praise as Celestia took over. "The stones seem to have been placed here to seal this passage." Celestia continued pulling a small cloth bag out and placing the Cancer stone into it. "But is it to keep ponies out... or keep somethin' in?" Applejack muttered anxiously as the sun princess shook her head. "It's hard to say for certain." Luna frowned at that statement but said nothing allowing her sister to continue. "But judging by the energy coming from the other side I would say the latter." Celestia said in a grave tone directing her gaze to the door. "W-What kind of energy?" Fluttershy's reluctance was palatable. "Tis a gate into the depths of Tartarus." Luna said firmed causing a gasp of shock from the younger ponies, Celestia remained quiet. "It is a rather distinctive energy." she added offhandedly. "But how can that be?" Twilight was one of the first to recover from the bombshell. "The gate to Tartarus much further east, I've been there myself. There is only one recorded entrance to the underworld." "The key word of that statement Twilight is 'recorded'." Luna stated calmly. "Yes, Necromancy may be a forgotten art in our times but back then it was a far more common practice. And to have direct access to the underworld, was a goal that any Necromancer would die for." Celestia and Luna looked to the door distastefully while the other tried to come to grips with the implications of what this favor was going to entail. "Wait, yer not tellin' us that you plan on opening that thing are ya? The underworld is sealed fer a reason." Applejack said with a worried frown looking between the two princesses before it fully donned. "...You know what's behind that door." "Yes," Luna spoke up before Celestia could, the elder sister closing her mouth and looking away. "The matter of this door and a thread long left dangling, we had not had the means yet to cut it free." the moon princess met Applejack's defiant gaze evenly. "Our Journey shall be quick and shallow, barely touching the true depths of Tartarus." "I understand if you are uncomfortable with the idea," Celestia took over, her voice soft. "If you refuse we will not force you to do so otherwise. But this is a matter Luna and myself have wished to rectify for a long time now. A great injustice that needs to be corrected. So please," Celestia suddenly crouched down into a bow eyes turned to the ground. "All we ask is you consider our request." The six young mares looked between each in confusion as Luna joined her sister. "Princess..." Twilight nearly approached her mentor before she was pulled back by Rarity. "Um, could you give us a moment to discuss this." "Yes of course." Celestia spoke in a resigned tone that held the weight of her many years. "We will await your decision." Luna gave a nod taking a seat by her sister's side and place a wing over he in a comforting manner as the six friend turned to each other to try and decide this weighty issue. "I don't like it." Applejack spoke up immediately "No pony aught to be messing around in Tartarus long as their still living and breathing. T'ain't natural," The farmer finished firmly. Applejack had been raised to respect those who passed on, it was hardly right to go skulking around their resting place like a thief in the night. "Come on AJ, it's not like were going in there to raise an army of Zomponies or anything." Rainbow rebuked casually. "I mean this is a once in a lifetime opportunity!" The thrill seeker in Dash was showing through clearly. To go right into the jaws of death itself and come back out, how could somepony pass that up! "Exactly, ONCE in a lifetime." Rarity retorted in a dry tone. "What your suggesting is an early peek. Personally I don't see how any good can come of this, anything that has been sitting about in Tartarus for 'a long time' can't be pleasant." The fashionista added distastefully. "Oh I don't know." Pinkie began thoughtfully. "Not like only bad ponies go to Tartarus, there' plenty of good ponies as well. Just imagine how bored you'd get sitting around in one place for so long. I'm sure they could use some fun too!" she said with a little bounce. "Pinkie, we are NOT going to wake the dead." AJ put her stomped out that train of thought as quickly as possible, no matter how serious the party pony was being it was no joking matter. "Aww, your no fun." "um I'll pass." Fluttershy muttered. "It sounds way too scary to me." The mere thought of waking in the place of the dead raised the timid pegasus' hairs on end. The girls continued to go back and forth for a few moments longer before Twilight finally spoke up. "I'm not sure whether this is right or wrong." she began, her friends quieting as she continued. "Ethically, morally, magically, scholars have debated for years over such things. All I do know. Is I have never seen Princess Celestia so sad before, in all my time under as her student. She needs our help." she looked up determination in her eyes. "And I'm not about to let a friend down." Her words were firm, her gaze steady as she looked to the others. "Yeah Twi, no way we can leave the princesses hangin'" Dash cheered pumping her foreleg, Pinkie nodding emphatically. It was Fluttershy that was the first to speak up from those against idea. "They do look so upset, whatever is in Tartarus must be really important to them..." she stated sounding unsure. "It is clearly some kind of personal matter," Rarity bit her lip. "and whatever it could be... I don't think it would be bad. The princess wouldn't ask us to do anything untoward." "Aye reckon they wouldn't... They do seem to be hurtin' something awful." The farmer muttered her gaze wavering on the sisters who awaited their judgement. Silence held sway for a few moments, before twilight spoke up once more. "What do you say girls?" Pinkie and Dash nodded immediately, followed momentarily by Rarity and the smallest of nods from Fluttershy. Twilight's eyes turned to Applejack who frowned, closing her eyes before finally sighing and giving a nod. All six turned back to Celestia and Luna resolute in their decision. "Princess, You can count on us." Author's Note So it begins... This is a story I've been toying with for years. FFT is my favorite game of all time, and it hold a special place to my heart (much like Ranma 1/2)... unfortunately it's not an easy property to mix with others. It has a rather complicated story with a lot of moving part so sending new characters into it can cause a massive butterfly effect. But I'm pretty happy with how things progress and tie into things in this story... But that won;t start to kick in until chapter 2. Hope this beginning gets you interested in more :) Chapter 2 is already ready to go and I will put it up in a couple of days. Til then, Latter everyone!
Ending the StalemateFor the first time in over a millennia, The magic of Harmony began to gather in the depths of the underworld... In sequence the necklaces began to glow brightly raising the ponies from the floor, Twilight's own tiara began to glow brightly. At once all six mares opened their eyes unleashing the awesome power of the elements of harmony. The lights shot upward curving back down into a rainbow that wrapped around the statues erupting into a rainbow tornado that shot right back up to the ceiling, smaller debris getting pushed aside as it spun tightly around the stone figures infusing them with energy. It only lasted a few moments before the tornado died away. The element wielders landing once more on the floor, a little shaky. All at once the stone faded away, color returning to the former statues in a sudden rush. A collection of gasps and coughs echoed through the ruins, the six ponies taking their first breath in ages. Swords clattered to the floor, mixing with the rattle of bones as the monstrous alicorn began to move. "Free..." a dark voice hissed from the skeletal monstrosity, curious yet elated. "Did... did the ritual fail?" the male earth pony spoke staring up to the monster weak but unflinching, his soft tone carrying a quiet strength. The moment of quiet was cut by the ringing of powerful magic as both princesses set to bind the skeletal alicorn in place getting a low growl of surprise. It's red eyes flashed with anger. "You..." it hissed struggling against the power bind. "Erg, Usurpers! Unhand me!" it's horn crackled with energy but it was suppressed by a concerted effort from Celestia. "We have Ajora contained for the moment," The sun princess grunted keeping her focus on the thrashing beast, matching her own magic flares to counter Ajora's attempts to free itself. "Make Haste friends and retrieve the others, I am uncertain how long we can hold this beast." Luna commanded glaring hotly at the alicorn in question, the elements immediately snapping to attention and rushing forward to help the recently revived. "Is that... little Lulu?" Muttered the female earth pony staring wide at the moon princess. "Up and at'em sugercube, we need to get you out of here." Applejack's voice seemed to break her from her chance, the farmer bent low and pulled one of the mare's forelegs over her shoulder slowly helping her to her hooves. "Y-Yes, of course... Thank you." the well dressed mare did her best to hobble away from the magical tug of war but her eyes kept wandering back to the two princesses, confusion marring her features. Her male counterpart waved away the assistance, insisting the others needed the help more. It took him a moment to steady himself but he managed to stumble along behind Applejack. The elder pegasus had somehow managed to re-sheath his massive blade by the time the girls reached him. As sturdy as he seemed to be the moment he tried to take a step he faltered, caught by pair of warm bodies on either side of him, a cyan wing over top his back to help stead him. "Careful! You're too wibbly wobbly to be walking on you own." Pinkie chided cheerfully. "Yeah, just take it slow and we'll get you out of here." Dash assured him, guiding them away. "Well, I'm not one to argue with pretty mares." he said with a jovial, if weak, chuckle. Pinkie's bubbly giggle joined in a moment later while Dash rolled her eyes. "Just keep your hooves where they belong old man." her rebuttal only brought a larger bout of laughter from the stallion. His unicorn companion looked onto the bound Ajora with the slightest of smiles. "Perhaps there are yet gods that still listen..." "Um Miss? It's really not safe over here." Fluttershy's muttered tone was barely audible of the evil sorcerers struggles. The unicorn looked over to the pegasus, causing her to flinch. "What did you sa-" she paused eyes focusing on the element of kindness. "Is that..." she reached out a hoof immediately began to lose her balance. But Fluttershy was there to catch the warrior supportive despite her soft voice. "Careful, you've been asleep for a long time. This way." she began to gently urge the unicorn forward, to which she complied, leaving her sword stuck upright in the stone, her horn not responding her her command to retrieve it. "I am unused to such weakness...my Apologies Miss," "Fluttershy. No worries, a short rest and you'll be fine" she assured her charge and they slowly slipped away from the danger zone. Rarity and Twilight approached the final two, the female unicorn glaring hotly at the trapped monster, while her male companion was seemingly doing everything in his power just to remain upright. "Fire and Brimstone! Never again will I have a more open strike on the beast and my damn horn refuses to respond." She growled in a harsh tone. Biting onto the hilt of her massive blade she seemed to want to take matters in a more physical direction. "Now Melody, you know that blade wasn't made for mouth wielding." "dhis iz our besfth chanth!" She insisted, mouth still around the hilt. She groaned loudly trying(unsuccessfully) to lift the blade from it's furrow in the stone floor. A Purple aura surrounded unicorn and blade lifting them clear from the ground. 'Melody' spat the hilt free in surprise "What in blazes?" "That won't be necessary." Twilight explained calmly, "We'll be handling it from here." "Yes dear, you've done more then your fair share." Rarity chimed in offering the stallion a reassuring smile. He returned it before uttering an explosive sigh of relief. "Oh thank goodness. I have had MORE then enough war and demons for one lifetime." "Your in luck darling, we're fresh out of both at the moment." she carefully helped him from the field while his female companion did her best warrior's pout in Twilight's aura. Ajora looked frantically from side to side, desperately trying to make sense of the myriad events happening at once. Insight flashed in his glowing eyes and his struggles ceased. Both princesses held their bindings firm watching the skeletal alicorn carefully for any sign of resistance. "It seems it hath been some time since we last met welps," the chattering of bones was eerily off sink with it's deep, malevolent voice. "You have grown." he stated firmly, the last syllable trailing through the stale air. Neither Luna nor Celestia responded. The skeleton clenched it's jaw in annoyance. Turning it's gaze to the ponies slowly leaving the battle site. "I see you have a new batch followers and yet you returned... nostalgic for your old toys Child?" he hissed, enjoying the tightening of Celestia's shoulders. "You leave the princesses alone ya bag of bones!" Dash shook a hoof before she was quieted by her friends. "Royalty?" Ajora raised a bony brow. "My my... Perhaps we are not so different after all..." "We are nothing like you!" Luna exclaimed with a grimace "Luna." Celestia's voice was firm, if a bit strained. The moon princess regained her composure bring her face to a neutral mask once more. At that the beast began to laugh, sending a cold chill down the spines of all ponies present. The only one unphased the the male earth pony who took a step forward glaring defiantly before he was urged back. "Girls," Celestia began. "Get ready." The elements of harmony stepped forward, preparing to gather the powers of their artifacts once more. Ajora's bony form creaked audibly trying to step away from the semi-circle of mares but the princess magic held it firm. "Such a short reunion and you already wish it over." The beast rumbled strangely calm. "Such poor hostesses. Very well I shall let myself out then." it added with a malicious grin. "You are going nowhere Ajora." Celestia's voice thundered as her magic held strong. "Girls." "Yes Princess." Twilight nodded to her friends and they begin to focus, their elements filling with the powers of harmony once more. Ajora merely grinned, it's glowing eyes flashing brightly, several claws bursting up from the ground below. The clawed fro purchase and began to pulled creatures of a sickly green pallor began to pull themselves from the ground. "Demons!" The earth stallion tried to move forward but stumbled, limbs still numb. "Curse this weakness..." The braided unicorn rested a hoof on his shoulder, eyes forward as the elements reached full power. "Sterling?" "Kite, you have nothing to fear. Those mares wield the harmonic auracite." she gained a grim smile. "Ajora's struggles are for naught." The six ancient warriors watched as a rainbow beam cascaded from the floating mares passing through the risen demons and scattering their dust to the wind. "What?! such power!" Ajora's eyes widened in fear it's horn lighting up before being engulfed in a tornado of color and magic. "Not again! NOOOOOooooooo..." As soon as it started the magical onslaught had ended, a cloud of old dust and dispelled demons hung in the air obscuring the results of the impressive display. "Is it truly over?" The earth pony mare asked softly clutching her tattered dress between her forehooves. The dust parted to reveal an odd site. Instead of grotesque skeletal statue there was... nothing. Merely dust and echos. "Where'd old bony go?" Rainbow dash looked around confused. "Did we send it to that moon?" Pinkie asked cocking her head, Luna frowned. "No, Ajora's foul presence has not touched the moon... but it is gone." the moon princess finished with certainty. "Ajora is no more..." Celestia gave a relieved sigh before looking to friends, old and new, and smiled. The ancient warriors visibly relaxed while Twilight and her friends exchanged smiles. "Hmph, That was certainly a lot more flashy then I remember." The elder pegasus commented with a wry smile. "Admittedly with more of... feminine touch." "Say what you will Cirrus but I would gladly have worn the most frilly of dress saddles if our battles would have been but a fraction less life threatening." The unarmored unicorn muttered watching the display in awe getting a laugh from the older stallion along with some of the others. His female companion on the other hoof snorted, hoof resting on her massive blade. "You are hardly an ambassador of stallionhood as it stands Flintlock. I see not how a few frills would make a difference." "Words as sharp as your blade, yet I seem to detect a bit of jealousy in your voice. Watching our mighty foe defeated with such ease..." he offered with a small grin as Melody snorted saying nothing in reply, eyes turning away from the new barers. An awkward silence slowly settled in with the reality of the current situation. Element barers, old and new, looked across to each other unsure what to do. Even Celestia, for which this day couldn't have gone any better, was at a lost. Fortunately her sister was not one to let silence reign. "Some introduction are due, but mayhaps it best to save those until we hath left this foul place." "Yes, I think we have spent more then enough time in Tartarus." "You don't gotta tell me twice." Applejack chimed in, clearly relieved their trek into the underworld was at it's end. "Yes," 'Kite' agreed. "The atmosphere is not exactly ideal for friendly tidings." he looked back to his companions. "Is everypony able enough for travel?" a wave of confirmation came from the warriors, only the earth pony mare seemed unsure. "But brother, what about Eight?" she asked softly turning her gaze to the depowered automation. "We can't just leave him here..." "Him?" Twilight muttered confused. A brilliant yellow aura lifting the pony shaped heap of metal from the ground ended any possible debate. "No worries Serenade, it would hardly be fair to leave such a loyal guardian behind after all his hard work." Celestia smiled, horn glowing softly in the dim light. "Thank you Celly. You really have grown so much." The dress clad mare said with a soft smile. "In more then just the obvious ways." her hoof masking a dainty giggle. "Yes... It's been a very long time..." Celestia's smile was a little forced, 'Serenade' nodded returning a small sad smile. "I'm beginning to get that feeling." Author's Note The curse is broken and Ancient warriors revived. I'm really looking forward to exploring the tactics ponies but I still have to work my way through this beginning bit. Again, I'm happy with the 6 I chose to use but am a little sad I couldn't include some of the lesser characters. But a lot for that comes from my fanboyness for FFT. I know it's not too much but next time we will a lot of character interaction as elements new and old get to sit down and have a chat (with a bit of princess as well).
Secrets of Tartarus"All right Girls, be ready for anything..." Twilight said with a hint of trepidation as the last auracite stone was removed from the door. The loud grinding of stone on stone signaled the movement of the massive door as it slid apart. Luna and Celestia stood firm. flanked by the elements, ready for anything to jump through the gap... but nothing came but a low moan. Anxious energy was expelled with a sigh of relief. Celestia halted briefly, needing to take a moment to collect herself, as Luna strode forward through the gap with nary a pause. The alicorn of the looked to her student and offered a wane smile. "Well this is a good sign, but remain on guard..." she pulled the drawstring on the bag closed and hovered it over to Pinkie, of all ponies. "Our trip may be short but we shouldn't linger longer then necessary. Hold on to this bag, do not let it out of your sight... There are more stones left." she finished ominously receiving a hoofed salute from the party pony. "You got it Princess!" The pink pony's cheerful demeanor seemingly unaffected by the dank surroundings, The bag disappearing to.... where ever it was she tended to put things when no one was looking. The group set off in silence into the caves below Tamblelon. The deeper they traveled the darker it grew, soon they're journey as lit only by the magic of the unicorns' horns. The air was stale and held a foul scent, the stone becoming more rough to their trotting hooves. As soon as it was at it's darkest it began to lighten up, a sickly orange seemed to permeate from the stones themselves making it easy to see once more. There were buildings, or at least structures that were buildings at some point. Nothing stirred, the only sounds the clopping of hooves on stone. The group paused briefly at the intersection of two 'streets', the ruins going on a fair way in all 4 directions. "A city?" Dash muttered confused. "Ponies actually LIVED in here?" "Not exactly." Celestia replied softly glad for the distraction. "There are powerful magics the world has long forgotten. Thankfully. Let us just say if the portal had been mishandled then Tambleon may have joined this undercity." "Somepony managed to transport a WHOLE city?" Twilight looked around her with a mix of awe and disgust. The feat itself was impressive for it's power and control... it's results though. "Here." Luna said with certainty ending the impromptu discussion. She turned at the apparent crossroads and headed toward a large building sitting at the edge to a dark abyss. No pony questioned the decision doing their best to keep pace the the princess of the night. The doors lay strune on the ground in pieces, inside was something akin to a ship dock with the shattered remains of a massive ship split in half. Their goal sitting in the center of the destruction... a fact clear even to those who didn't know what they were looking for. "My word, Sister... I believe we have found them." Luna's voice drifted out the massive entrance way. Celestia trotted through the door with the elements a step behind, only Pinkie and Rainbow dash crossing the threshold without hesitation. "Landsakes..." Applejack was at a loss. Before them was a tablau of statues, the center piece being a Massive skeletal alicorn with bladed wings rearing up striking a threatening pose. It was surrounded by a handful of pony statues, in defensive stance. As impressive as the scene was it was diminished a massive metal beast that stood firmly between the scene and the entrance. Gears ground together and it's joints creaked as it moved a step forward. It was a bulky thing, standing on two legs with a form not so different from a Minotaur or an Ogre. Massive arms twitched as they slowly raised upward. a large red light, in the approximate place where a being's head might be, flickered weakly. "I-I-Intruders...D-Defensive proto-c-col eng-g-g-gaged." It spoke in a fluctuating monotone. "What IS that...thing." Rarity asked take a step back from the mechanical monstrosity. "It looks to be an automation of some kind... ancient and heavily damaged..." Twilight said tempering her curiosity with caution. "I'm surprised it's even functioning." "You are correct Twilight Sparkle." Luna said with a slight smile. "A Worker unit from times long past, uncovered in secret during the Tribal war." Twilight's eyes widened at that though the others just seemed lost. With a piercing screech, the chest of the clockwork 'worker' opened revealing a worn cannon. "C-C-Charging..." Slowly, magical energy began to gather inside the barrel. "Sister now would be a good time, it always liked you best." Luna said coolly, earning a chuckle from her sister who trotted forward to meet the beast. "Ladies, you best stay behind me. That cannon may be designed for clear debris but it is quite effective against ponies." The princess of the night erected a starry shield between the Worker and themselves. "What about Celestia?" Twilight asked clearly concerned. "My Sister was always better at dealing with the beast, it was stubborn on whose orders it would accept." Celestia stood, eye level with the creaking automation the cannon in it's chest gathering energy slowly as the gears ground sickly. With a sad smile she placed a hoof on it's forehead. "You've done a great job protecting everypony Eighter... You deserve some rest." The red eye glowed brightly, the cannon wavering in it's charge. "Ce-ce-ce..." she reached up and lightly touched the side of it's Face(?) with a hoof/ "Shhh, it's okay. Everypony is safe now. Your job is completed." The cannon fully powered down and the chest plates slowly closed. "Job c-complete... Powering down... U-Unit may be in ne-e-ed of re-re-repairs." it's voice grew softer as it knelt down and a small metal shutter slid over it's eye. the gears slowly to a halt and With a hiss of steam the room fell silent. With the with a careful tug of magic Celestia pulled a blue stone from the automation's back, another piece of auracite. Luna lowered the shield gratefully allowing the elements to approach the scene. "Is it..." Fluttershy asked, still a step behind Luna not wanting to get any closer to the beast then she had to. "It is taking a well deserved rest." Celestia said, stone floating by her head sending it hovering toward Pinkie who opened the bag without prompting shutting it once more when it was placed with the others. "It recognized you Princess... That would mean that you were around even back during the Tribal War... but all the history books." Twilight looked to her mentor in a whole new light. "Princess, How are y-" "Twilight, are you calling me old?" Celestia forced a pout enjoying the immediate effect it had as her pupil flushed brightly and tried to backpedal away from whatever questions she was about to ask. The princess of the sun let her stew for a moment more before smiling and giving the unicorn a wink "All will be explained and due time my faithful student, we still have a job to do." "Indeed, it is in our best interest not to dwell any longer then necessary." Luna agreed looking over the statues with a far more serious expression. The others followed taking a closer look at the statues, only pinkie being held up as she looked over every nook and cranny of the sleeping automation with avid interest. On closer inspection the details became more obvious. There were six statues set up in a semi-circle around the monstrous alicorn. A pair of earth ponies to stood directly opposite, a mare and stallion. The latter stood protectively in front of the former. The Mare looked concerned, her petrified dress fluttered back as if against a great wind. While the stallion stared down the alicorn with an expression of determination, his body covered in battered armor though bore no helm. To his right were a pegasus stallion and a Unicorn mare with a long braided mane. The pegasus stood in an aggressive stance with a massive blade clamped in his teeth, he was armored much like the earth pony though a petrified cloak sat atop it. The cloth all blown back by the same invisible breeze, the stallion was noticeably older but seemed in top shape. The Unicorn's own blade stuck in the ground in front of her both hooves atop the pommel in motion of prayer eyes closed. Her armor was lighter but held barely a scratch. To the left of the earth ponies were two more unicorns, a mare and stallion though unlike the earth ponies they couldn't look more different. The first was another armored mare, though baring a much heavier grade like her stallion counter parts, her blade was the largest of the three available. It lay embedded in the ground as well but in a more aggressive manner with a furrow of carved earth stretching from the blades resting place all the way to the feet of the monster. Her expression was one of grim satisfaction, short cut mane barely visible under the petrified hood of her cloak. The Stallion on the other hand was unarmored, one hoof up as his to shield his eyes from a bright light. He wore a harness covered in pouches and several strange tubes. His frame was definitely the slimmest not baring the muscle and poise of the other warriors. "Who are these ponies?" Twilight asked softly looking between the arrayed statues and menacing alicorn beast with reverence and curiosity. "Yeah, These ponies look awesome." Rainbow said far less eloquently taping the ancient blade in the pegasus' mouth. "Ow... It's still sharp..." she said in awe. "They are.... Old friends. Lost in the pages of history." Celestia said softly, Luna said not a word standing across from the earth stallion with an unreadable expression. Applejack removed her hat giving a respectful moment of silence. Fluttershy crept forward to the side of the princess of the night. "Princess Luna... are you okay?" "What?" Luna blinked coming back to reality looking to the timid pegasus at her side. "I... we are fine." she said firmly, adding after a beat. "Your concern is appreciated Fluttershy." The yellow mare nodded but did not lose her concerned look as Luna walked off to her sister's side. The princess' shared a long look before Celestia nodded. "My little ponies... we have come to the reason we asked for your assistance." Celestia said formally catching all six mare's attention. "As I said previously, the auracite are stones of massive magical power and a great danger should they fall into the wrong hooves. It would be in everyponies best interest to have them locked away..." Luna gave her sister a firm look bring the older sister to sigh. "But as you know our reasoning is more selfish then that." Celestia admitted reluctantly. "To retrieve the last two stones we would ask you to use the elements of harmony to break this eternal stalemate." she said waving a hoof to the statues. "and free our dear friends from their self imposed prison..." "Princess..." Twilight said softly looking back to the frozen tableau once more, She never realized how little she truly knew about the princess. Several ponies frozen in stone that apparently walked and lived alongside her mentor long before her recorded history. "Begging no disrespect princess." Applejack spoke up. "But ifin' I'm hearing this right you want us to free yer friends... and that big ugly thing they were fightin'" "Yes." Celestia admitted with closed eyes. "It is dangerous, but my sister and I have discussed this and believe you are strong enough to lift this curse. Ajora was a great foe, of that there is little doubt." Celestia's tone grew more determined. "But You six have grown to embody the elements on a far stronger level then we ever had in the past." "And you will not be alone. We shall be right at your side in this, it is a mess that has been left untidied far too long. But not one we alone could rectify." Luna said with a slight bow toward the six mares, joined by shortly by her sister. "Please will you help us?" Celestia voice was far softer and more vulnerable much like it had back outside the sealed door. "Of Course Princess... er, if that's okay with everypony else..." Fluttershy was surprisingly the first to speak up, seeming to shrink into herself as soon as she realized it but fortunately Rainbow stepped forward a second later. "No sweat Princess." "Indeed, we'd be glad to assist you." Rarity said with an easy smile. "All ya had to do was ask." Applejack agreed placing her hat back in place. Pinkie bouncing in placed with a wide grin "Yup! Ooh I wonder what kind of party you plan for ponies frozen in stone for over a thousand years." she mused tapping her chin lightly. "Twilight?" Celestia looked to her faithful student who seemed the most lost from all these revelations, at her name though she jumped to attention. "W-what, of course!" Twilight said with full sincerity. "I'm always glad to help." "Thank you." Celestia said with a shuddering sigh, tension easing and she raised her head offering the six a genuine smile. "I told you sister, Honesty is the best path for such things." Luna said more at ease then she had been the whole trip. "It was never one my strongest virtues, but you know that better then anypony." she said with a familiar tinge of mischievousness. "So whats the plan princess?" Rainbow Dash said taking to the air in a low hover. Celestia nodded to her sister who stode forward confidently. "It tis a simple plan. You are to use the elements of harmony to dispel the stone curse, as it is reseeds mine sister and I shall bind Ajora in place so the others can be moved to safety. Then you are to use your elements once more to reseal the foul creature once and for all. Both friend and fiend should be in no condition to continue this fight, so our old friends may need some assistance. Unlike discord they are merely mortal ponies and will need time to recover after their self imposed stasis." "That should go for Ajora as well. Between myself and Luna it should not muster much resistance," Celestia added. "But we must be careful nonetheless, Ajora was a powerful sorcerer and a master manipulator. Do not listen to a word it speaks." Both princesses moved to opposite sides of the room eyes toward their monstrous counterpart. "Understood." Twilight nodded firmly. "Ready girls?" a round of approval rose up from her friends as they too their positions at her side and closed their eyes gathering their power... Author's Note Woo Final Fantasy Tactics! We have our first look at the rest of the cast here. I believe I gave enough detail in my vague descriptions for Tactics fans two know which 6 characters are here. If not, well you'll see them more directly in the next part. It was a lot of debating on my part on who to include... In the game you can only take 5 people into the final fight, though technically 16 people come with you but you can only field 5. So in that case I decided to stick to that and spare the complexities of an overly large cast... I did at Worker 8 though cause... come on it's Eight! He's awesome and Having him act as a guardian to his petrified master seemed so fitting... Also Yes, the early days of the Princesses will be tied to the 'Tribal Wars' and the Tactics cast. I will likely try to avoid direct flashback scenes but we will see who the story goes. Anyway, hope you all enjoyed the Chapter and I'll get to working on the next one. Later all!
