The Elements of Discord

Rainbow Dash pulled herself to her feet with a groan.  She had known the stairs were there.  Hay, she had been staying in the castle for almost two weeks now and had taken the same route to the dining room every morning.  After last night though, she was just too exhausted to notice where she was and had stumbled down them once again.  The note from Twilight explaining their next foe hadn't helped her mood either.

She sighed as the memories came flooding back; what Deception had done to her and her friends was wearing on her more than she ever believed it could.  She finally reached the private dining hall Princess Celestia had set aside for her and her friends, sulking to herself as she entered.  She had barely set a hoof in the door when she was tackled to the ground.

"WHAT THE F- Pinkie?" she screamed out, only getting more confused when she saw her pink friend lying on top of her, hugging her tight.

"Mornin', Dashe!" Pinkie Pie squealed, full of excitement as always.

Being exhausted was bad enough, but being exhausted and bewildered?  It was too much for Rainbow.  "Pinkie... What's going on?  You're not still mad at me?"

"Nope!" Pinkie chirped, finally getting off and plopping down next to the pegasus.

"But I thought you said you needed time." Dash said as she sat up.

"Yeah, and I had time!  I cried all the sadness out last night so now everything is okay now!"

Rainbow could only shake her head; after all this time she still didn't understand Pinkie.  "I just don't understand how you can be fine with this so soon.  You said that I really hurt you.  What I thought about you was terrible and I still haven't forgiven myself for it.  How can you forgive me so fast?"

"Oh, Dash," Pinkie said in a jokingly scolding tone, "I wasn't mad that you didn't like me.  I mean we can't really control how we feel can we?"  She looked Rainbow in the eyes and took up a serious tone, "I was just upset that you never told me.  I know you were trying to keep from hurting my feelings, but you still should've said something!  You know I want to be friends with everyone, so if you need some space you should asked me."

Rainbow gave her friend a comforting smile and wiped a few tears from her eyes.  "I don't need space anymore Pinkie.  That was then, this is now.  I always want you around now."

Those words drew the biggest smile from Pinkie that Rainbow had ever seen- a feat Rainbow thought impossible considering the size of the previous record-holder.  "Oh yeah!  I made you something special for breakfast to show you how great of a friend you are!"

"Uhhhh, not that I don't appreciate that, Pinkie, but I'm the one who was wrong so shouldn't I be the one making something for you?"

A horrified look came over Pinkie's face as if Rainbow had just spoken a terrible blasphemy.  "No offense, Dash, but I've tried your cooking before, and no thanks!"

Rainbow couldn't help but laugh at the party pony's antics; it felt as if all the burdens she had carried had suddenly left her.  "Alright, Pinkie, I really can't argue with you there.  So, what've you got for me?"

Pinkie produced a plate, seemingly out of nowhere, piled high with warm steaming pastries.  "Scones!" she said with a cheer.  "We never make them in Sugarcube Corner, but they're everywhere here in Canterlot, so I thought I should make some Pinkie Pie style!"

Dash eyed the doughy mass hungrily.  "Wow, Pinkie!  They look great, but I don't think even the two of us could finish all those.  Why don't we take them upstairs and see if the others want some!"

"OOOOOH! Great idea!  We can have a breakfast party!" Pinkie spouted, her eyes growing even wider.

They made their way back toward their rooms and noticed that Twilight's door was slightly open.  Rainbow stepped to it quietly and raised a hoof to knock, only for Pinkie to barge in past her.  Twilight and Fluttershy both sat on Twilight's bed, comforting a miserable-looking Rarity.  Without missing a beat, Pinkie bounced up to and onto the bed and dropped the plate in front of the fashionista.

"Oh!  Cheer up, Rarity!  Look, we brought breakfast!"

Rarity attempted to placate her with a teary smile.  "Thank you, Pinkie... They smell delectable."

At that moment, Applejack decided to walk in the door.  "Hey, Twilight?  Ah thought Ah heard-" she stopped herself short as she spotted Rarity, who in turn was pointedly looking away.  "Oh...  Ah'll just be down in the dining room..."  She turned and left without another word.

"She feels terrible, Rarity," Twilight said softly once she was sure Applejack was out of hearing range.

"I know, Twi..."

"And you're still angry with her?" Twilight asked.

"I don't want to be," Rarity replied, sounding as if she was about to start crying again.  "I really wish I could just forgive her and move on.  I want us all to be friends again, but I just can't..."  Unable to hold back any longer, she began to sob into the bed.  "I can't and I feel awful about it!"

"Hey...  Rarity, it's alright," Rainbow murmured, surprising even herself with her tenderness.  "We all feel that way sometimes.  Well, all of us except Fluttershy and Pinkie, but they hardly count, do they?"  She smiled as she had managed to get a small giggle out of the unicorn.  "How about this: I'll go talk to her later and tell her that you want to make up with her, but you need a few days to cool off first.  She might not be happy about having to wait that long, but if anyone can get through to her, I can."  Rarity gave a slow nod and pulled Rainbow into a hug.  "There, everything'll be okay.  But before I go do that, lets eat!  I'm starving and Pinkie worked hard on these!"

Applejack was at the end of her rope by the time Rarity finally spoke to her again.  They may not have been the best of friends, but still!  Six days?  How many times would she have to apologize?  It was ridiculous!  And even when the drama queen did come to make up, all that she said was that she accepted AJ's apology and that she wanted to work on rebuilding their friendship after the Elements of Discord had been dealt with!

Still, it was something.  And none too soon, Princess Celestia had received a letter from a group of ponies out near Appleloosa asking specifically for Celestia, Applejack and her friends to meet with them in the village immediately and mentioning that it had something to do with all the weird things occurring around Equestria lately.  The Princess may not have gone public with the news about the return of the Elements of Discord, but that didn't stop the citizens of Equestria from noticing that something was going on.  If only they knew the half of it...

"Princess, I don't understand why you won't come with us," Twilight asked her mentor, suppressing a whine.  "They specifically asked for you to come with us!"

For her part, Princess Celestia shook her regal head sadly.  "Twilight, neither Princess Luna, nor I can do anything to combat the Elements of Discord; all I'd be able to do is sit and watch while the six of you handle things.  It's better if I stay here where I can actually accomplish something, even if it's just seeing too it that things keep running as smoothly as possible..."  Her face fell when she saw how sad her words has made Twilight.  She couldn't let that stand, "I trust you, Twilight Sparkle.  I trust that you and your friends will keep my people safe and make me proud.  Now please trust me.  I know what I am doing."

Twilight gave a small smile and hugged her teacher before leading her friends out of the castle.  They had a train to catch.

Upon reaching their destination, they noticed one thing right away: the once sleepy village was now a bustling town.  They were immediately met, much to everypony's surprise, by Braeburn.

"Brae!  Ah didn't know you sent the letter!"

The stallion shook his head and replied, "Ah didn't send the letter, cousin.  Ah just told them where to send it when they came askin' for y'all.  Follow me."

He lead them to the town's tavern and directed them to an odd-looking group in the corner before excusing himself to get back to work.  Applejack had never seen a stranger group of beings.  All three types of ponies, plus a pair of griffons sat around a table, all wearing buffalo-style clothing and facial paint.  The leader, a rather pretty pegasus stood up and introduced herself as Windrunner.

"Greetings, Element-wielders!  It's a pity that the Princess was unable to accompany you, but it is you we wished to speak with anyway."

"Oh.  Well hello than, my name is-"

"Twilight Sparkle!  Holder of the Element of Magic and pony chosen by the Elements themselves to lead their chosen ones!  I am truly honored to make your acquaintance," Windrunner interrupted with a grin.

"Ummm, yeah..." Twilight muttered with a confused look on her face.  "Not many ponies recognize us on sight alone, you know..."

"Yes, that's very true," Windrunner replied unfazed.  "We're a group who decided long ago to give up our lives as ponies and live as the buffalo do.  Unlike the buffalo, however, we stay abreast of current events and we still consider Princess Celestia to be our Princess. Unlike average ponies though, we read in-between the lines; plagues and strange lights are not normal occurrences.  We know that something strange is happening around Equestria and that you six are the key to saving us all, thus we asked to see you."

"Oh!" Twilight said, genuinely intrigued.  "Well, you're right, but I hope you'll understand if I don't explain further...  Princess' orders, you know..."

Windrunner smiled broadly and nodded before continuing, "I understand perfectly.  You have worked hard and sacrificed much to gain a position of trust at our Princess' side and are thus much more deserve the privilege of such knowledge than any of we are.  As curious as I am, there are just some things that we layponies don't need to know.  If you say that this is one such thing, I believe you."

Twilight blushed a little at the pegasus' kind words.  "Oh.  Well I appreciate that..."

She sat back in her seat and took up a business-like tone.  "Now, as to why I've called you here.  Out in the desert, deep in the Thunderhoof Canyon, is an old buffalo shrine to an old spirit they once worshiped; their old god of wind and storms.  The spirit was said not to be a kind one, conjuring massive dust storms to punish those who displeased it.  The buffalo of old constructed to make offerings to it and ask that it stay its hand.  They stopped doing so hundreds of years ago once they realized that such offerings had no change on the weather.  However, in the past few weeks, strange things have been happening in and around the canyon.  Strange and ominous things."

Twilight frowned at Windrunner's words.  "So you think that the spirit was real all along?  Or that something else took up residence at the shrine and is causing trouble?"

"That, I don't know," Windrunner said.  "Which is why I called you here.  We don't know what's going on, but with everything else that's been happening, we all discussed what to do about it.  The decision was unanimous: we would come to Appleloosa, ask for miss Applejack and summon the Elements of Harmony.  Whatever's going on out in the sand and stone is far beyond our understanding, and so it was our duty to pass the task to those infinitely more qualified."

"Well, you've done the right thing," Twilight replied with a comforting smile.  "Would you mind taking us to the shrine so we can have a look?"

Windrunner smiled and nodded her reply.  "Whenever you're ready."

It didn't take long for the group to reach the canyon, it was a lot closer than Twilight had initially thought.  Even so the day was sweltering, so she was glad that Braeburn had six saddlebags waiting for them when they left the tavern, all stuffed to the brim with full waterskins.  She had already finished off one of them...

Windrunner had accompanied them to the mouth of the canyon, her own companions having refused to go anywhere near the place.  The mare had been rapidly attempting to explain the layout of the canyon to them, but even she admitted that there was little of use she could tell them.  The cliffs of the massive chasm rose on either side; so high that they blocked out the sun, covering the canyon floor in shade.  It'd probably be much less hot in the canyon though, so at least there was that.

Their guide bid them farewell and the six entered the deep ravine, taking things slowly lest something catch them unawares.  The canyon was eerily quiet, only the sound of the powerful winds blowing through it breaking the silence.

"Ohhh, I don't like this place!" Rarity moaned almost as soon as they entered.

"Ah know what you mean.  Its like the Everfree forest all over again, just without the trees."

"Well, the Thunderhoof Canyon is the largest in Equestria; it zigzags through the desert for miles.  Its not very wide, but it gets almost five thousand hooves deep in some spots, so its bound to be spooky."

"Well, its a good thing we have Pinkie Pie to keep our spirits up!" Fluttershy responded with a small smile.

"Yeah!  Just remember to keep smiling and we'll get through this!"

As heartening as her friend's banter was, a sliver of doubt remained in the back of Twilight's mind.  She couldn't shake the feeling that they didn't honestly believe their own words.  It was ridiculous, she knew, but she couldn't help it.  She took a deep breath and steeled herself, determined to press on.

"What was that, Dash?" Rarity suddenly asked aloud.

"I didn't say anything," the confused Rainbow replied.

"Oh.  I could've sworn you said...  Nevermind..."

"Its probably just the wind, Rarity.  Nothing to worry about!" the pegasus replied in a worried tone.

Alright, she definitely doesn't believe that, Twilight heard her own voice say in the back of her mind.  She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts.  The stress was definitely getting to her.  Maybe she could get Rarity to convince Princess Celestia to take them all to a spa to relax when they got back to Canterlot.

The wind was growing stronger.  It howled angrily through the rocky crevice.  It was the most unnerving thing she had ever encountered.  She felt as if she could almost hear voices among the gales, whispering words of despair and sorrow.  The ancient walls of Thunderhoof Canyon were not going to give up their secrets without a fight.

"This isn't going well, Twilight..." a voice mumbled into her ear.  She whipped her head around to see Fluttershy looking at her sadly.  She motioned back toward the rest of the group and Twilight followed her gaze.  All four of the other ponies looked about as restless as she felt.

We're not going to make it, she heard her voice say again.  Or at least she had thought it was her voice, now she wasn't so sure...  And was it coming from her own mind, or was it being carried on the wind like so many others?

She winced, feeling a headache coming on.

My friends are going to leave us here to deal with this alone!

Where were these infernal thoughts coming from?

"That's it, Ah can't take this anymore!  What's yer angle, Rarity?"

"I beg your pardon?" the unicorn responded with the utmost indignity.

"Ah know somethin's up here.  What're you plannin'?

"What makes you think I'm planning anything?!"  The two of them were screaming at each other now.

"Girls!"

"Shut up, Dash!  We're miles away from help, this is the perfect spot for that prissy little horse to try to get me back for what Ah did!  It wouldda worked too, but Ah'm on to you, Rarity!"

"Oh, I can't believe this!" Rarity shouted back with a frustrated groan.  "I accepted your apology, though now I can see that was a mistake!  And even if I was still angry with you, there are more important things going on right now!  You'd realize that if you weren't so bullheaded!

"AH'LL SHOW YOU BULLHEADED!"  Applejack turned around on the spot and lashed out with her back legs, sending Rarity flying.

Twilight couldn't believe what she had just seen, but there was no time to think about it she had to-

A pink blur whizzed by her with an ear-splitting "YOU PINKIE PROMISED!!"

Pinkie collided with Applejack with a loud THUD and immediately began pummeling the orange pony.  "That's twice!  First you promise to tell us what was bothering you, then you promise not to fight with our friends again AND YOU BROKE THEM BOTH!"

It was beyond comprehension.  Despite what she saw, Twilight didn't believe it.  How could they be doing this to each other?  How could they...

Her eyes went wide as the realization hit her.  How could they betray each other like this?  Rarity must've come to the same conclusion, a white light enveloped the struggling Pinkie and lifted her off of the bloody-nosed Applejack, who immediately took the opportunity to lunge at Pinkie.

"Twilight!  Take Rainbow and Fluttershy and find the Element!  Its the only way to end this!"  Twilight opened her mouth to protest, but Rarity cut her off.  "I'm not as strong as you are, Twi, but I can at least keep them from hurting each other any more!  Please!"

As hard as it was to accept, it was true...  Twilight nodded and took off down the canyon at a full gallop, Dash and Fluttershy right behind her.  They had barely stopped hearing the angry shouts of AJ and Pinkie when she noticed that Fluttershy had fallen back.

"Fluttershy?  Fluttershy, what's wrong?"

"He- he was right..." she mumbled, looking at the ground.

"Who was right, Fluttershy?" Rainbow asked, taking a few careful steps toward her yellow friend.  "What're you talking about?"

"Deception...  He wasn't lying, I am jealous of all of you!" she managed to get out.  "What if I'm next?  What if I attack you guys now?  I can't do this!"

"No, Fluttershy, its okay!  We know you'd never do that!" Twilight cried back.  "Please, we need you!"

Fluttershy looked at her with a mixed expression of surprise and fear.  "No...  No, I can't.  I just can't.  I won't!"  She lay on the ground and looked away, as if to say her decision was final.

A shout from Pinkie Pie echoed down the canyon, "I'LL KILL YOU!"  It was followed by a yelp from what only could've been Rarity.

"Oh, we don't have time for this!  Come on, Twilight, she'll be fine here!  We've gotta move!"  With one last sad glance at Fluttershy, Twilight took off down the canyon after Rainbow.

The wind was deafening now.  Deafening and it was definitely speaking to her.  "These currents carry my voice directly into your mind and directly into your heart," a deep feminine voice whispered to her, "what hope do you have when you can no longer trust even yourself?"

She growled at the offending words, trying to chase away the doubt infecting her.  Her spirits barely lifted when she saw the shrine appear around a corner.  Without waiting a second, she blasted it with the strongest spell she could muster, sending its debris flying in all directions.  The wind got stronger and she didn't need the taunting laugh that arose to tell her that removing the shrine had done nothing.

"Come on, you don't actually believe I resided in there, do you?" the now familiar voice spoke.  The air churned and twisted into what Twilight recognized as the form of an air elemental.  "The world will soon know that their precious Elements of Harmony have failed.  That their bearers fell to Betrayal just before the light finally died, once and for all!"

Twilight wasn't ready for the claw to appear and snatch her skyward; Rainbow however was.  She beat her wings with all the force she could muster, chasing the vile creature upward, lest it decide to let go of the unicorn.  She landed at the top of the cliff, staring down Betrayal who now held the struggling Twilight a yard off the ground.

"Let her go, you!  Your fight's with me!" Rainbow screamed at her new rival.

"Let her go?" she mused.  "Don't worry, little one, I'm sure you'll see her again IN HELL!"  Betrayal hurled Twilight back over the cliff's edge, Rainbow reached out just in time to catch one of her friends hooves in hers.

"Don't worry, Twi, I've got youahhhhh!" she shrieked as the lightning bolt struck her spine.

"Just as I wanted!  Do you let go and watch her die alone?  Or do you hold on as she drags you over with her so you can die together?  You know what you have to do!" Betrayal taunted mercilessly, releasing another bolt of the tormenting lightning at Rainbow.

"No..."  She wouldn't let it end like this.  All of her other friends may have abandoned her, but she wasn't going to lose Twilight.  Not now.  Not ever.  "No!  I won't let you take her from me!"  She wrenched up with everything she had and felt her shoulder pop out of its socket and she pulled the violet unicorn over the edge.

She could barely see through the pain, but she felt her heart flutter when Twilight threw her front hooves around her and nuzzled her gently.  "Thank you, Rainbow!  I'll do the rest."

Twilight turned to Betrayal, disgust in her eyes.  "You see that?  That's why you'll never win!  I love my friends!  And they love me!"  She narrowed her eyes and continued, "When Discord managed to turn us against each other before, I realized that.  I also realized something else: love heals, but lack of love hurts.  It hurts a lot."  She smiled evilly as her horn began glowing brightly.  "So, how about a dose of what you've been missing?  I made a nice little empathy spell just in case something like this ever happened again and I can't imagine the pain it'll cause you."  She released the spell right into the heart of the cyclone that formed Betrayal's body and Rainbow immediately knew it had worked when the agonized scream arose.  Betrayal exploded and Rainbow was blinded by the resulting light.

She blinked the focus back into her eyes and Twilight was gone.  It took her less than a second to put the pieces together and she dove over the cliff's edge.

The unconscious Twilight spiraled out of control below her, rapidly approaching the canyon floor.  Rainbow willed herself to go faster, feeling her wings strain at the hardest dive she had ever attempted.

She wasn't accelerating fast enough.  It didn't matter, she kept going.  If she couldn't save Twilight, she wasn't going to live with her failure.  She finally caught one of Twilight's limbs in hers and pulled her friend into an embrace.  She tried to pull up as hard as she could, knowing that there wasn't enough space to pull it off.  She cried out in pain as one of her wings snapped from the force of her attempt.  Knowing there was nothing more she could do, she hugged Twilight tight and closed her eyes.

She screamed in terror as something soft hit her side.  She opened her eyes to see that she was mere feet from the canyon floor, moving along it, rather than toward it.  She caught sight of a midnight blue wing just before she was dropped gently on the ground and simply decided to lay there in shock.  After taking a few seconds to snap out of it, she sat up to see Luna leaning over Twilight with an ear to the unicorn's chest.

To many things had happened all at once as she just couldn't sort her thoughts out.  "Is... Is she..?" she finally managed to stutter.

"No.  No, she's fine," the Princess said as she stood back up with a sigh of relief.  "That spell was just so draining that she passed out.  In fact, she's in better shape than you are."

"Oh.  Well, good.  That's good..."  She had to ask.  "Princess...  Princess Celestia said you two couldn't do anything about the Elements.  Why are you here, Luna?"

Luna trotted over and pulled Rainbow into a tight hug.  "We can't, but my sister would never leave you girls to face this alone!  And...  And neither would I..."  Rainbow felt a warm tear drip onto her neck.  "You girls are my friends, and you're the only one's I've got..."

She two of them sat for a few seconds, sharing each other's comfort.

"Rainbow Dash?"

"No, I'm alright."

Luna broke the hug and looked at Rainbow tearfully.  "Rainbow, please.  I'm here.  You don't have to carry your burden alone anymore."

It was too much.  Rainbow broke down and for the first time in a long time, she began to cry.  She buried her face in Luna's chest and just let it all out.  "Why is this happening?  How can my friends be hurting each other like this?  I'm tired and I'm scared and I just want things to go back to the way they were!"

Hundreds of miles away, Princess Celestia felt something familiar.  A feeling she hadn't felt in over a thousand years.  The worst feeling in the world.  The feeling of her sister's heart breaking.

It was something Celestia had hoped never to feel again, but there was nothing she could do about it now; there were bigger concerns at the moment.  Besides, the Princess of the Night was stronger now.  And she had friends who cared for her, even if those friends had lost their way...

She glanced down at the ancient book in front of her, going over its words once again.

Trust will die.

There will be no other path.

The anger of a million souls will fill the air,

And all will feel only *Malice toward their fellow man.*

Celestia knew that the ponies of Equestria often prayed to her in times of hardship.  It gave them comfort, even if she couldn't hear them.  She had never had such a luxury.  There was no greater being watching over her, no magical force to give her guidance.  She only had herself.

She had never felt this alone in all of her long life.  She didn't know who she was speaking to, or even if there was anyone there to hear her, but for the first time in her life, she bowed her head and prayed.

She prayed for the timid young pegasus on whom rested the fate of the world.