The Element of Empathy Season 2

Eleanor's POV.

*Dream*

*Dream End*

I woke up from my bed with a gasp. That's the fifth night I've had that nightmare since the Grand Galloping Gala, last month. Who was that creature? What has it got against me and my friends? Is it just a dream? Or a vision of what's yet to come?

"Ellie? What's wrong?" Spike asked me, as he woke up and saw my panic.

I wiped the sweat from my forehead and gave him a small assuring smile, "I'm okay, Spike. I just had a bad nightmare, is all."

"What was it about?" He asked, "Was it like your dream about Nightmare Moon?"

"It was just a nightmare. Nothing to worry about." I assured.

Just as I finished speaking, there was a sound of rain against the window. Spike and I took a look at the window. All of Ponyville was under a downpour of chocolate milk rain and cotton candy clouds. My eyes widen and my blood ran cold. Oh no...

"What the Hell!" Spike exclaimed.

"Spike! Language!" Twilight shouted, as she walked upstairs. She smiled at me, "Good to see you awake, Ellie. Now we can-" Then she looked out the window and saw the weather, "What the fuck!?"

"Twilight Bellatrix Sparkle!" I shouted, covering Spike's ears.

Twilight gave me an apologetic smile, then returned to what was going on outside, "What's going on out there?"

"What?" Spike shouted in confusion.

I quickly removed my hands from the baby dragon's ears and joined Twilight, "Half of me has a hunch, the other half of me dreads it to be wrong."

"What do you mean?" Twilight asked me.

"Ellie had that nightmare again." Spike answered.

"Spikewell Sullivan, what have we spoke about?" I asked with a raised brow and a low tone.

Spike scratched his head sheepishly, "You're capable of talking on your own."

I smiled, "Good boy."

"Come on, we gotta see if we can solve this." Twilight encouraged.

Spike and I got dressed, Twilight grabbed a spell book, and we made our way to Sweet Apple Acres. There, the weather was more hectic. There were more clouds. Popcorn has covered the entire corn crops. The apples on the trees have tripled in size. Rabbits have grown giraffe-like legs. And the squirrels were eating the apples without a second thought.

The only one that was enjoying the chaos was Pinkie Pie.

Something is not right about this.

"Don't worry, everyone." Twilight spoke up, reading her book, "I've learned a new spell that'll fix everything."

She gave me the book and lit up her horn in her magical aura. The entire field was enveloped in Twilight's explosion of magical influence. Once everything cleared and the spell was complete, nothing happened. The spell did nothing!

"My fail-safe spell... Failed." Twilight gasped, "What do we do?"

"Uh, give up?" Spike guessed with a shrug.

I felt a small tingle coming from my neck. I looked and noticed my ruby pendant was blinking. That's only happened once and that was when Twilight got her Cutie Mark. This is an indication that whoever is responsible is a powerful magic user. But who?

Trixie? No... She's not talented enough...
Sunset Shimmer? No... I don't think she's returning soon...
Moondancer? Haven't seen her since we left to Ponyville!

"Spike, Twilight will come up with something." Rarity spoke up, knocking me out of my train of thought.

Twilight, now under Rarity's umbrella, thought for a second. Then she smiled, "Time for Plan B." She turned to Rainbow, "Rainbow, can you corral all those clouds in one corner of the sky?"

Rainbow Dash shook off the cotton candy clouds off her fur, saluted and took off to the skies. She flew around the clouds and gathered the clouds into a huge huddle.

Twilight turned to Applejack, "Applejack, I need you to bring those high-strung storm clouds down to Earth.

Applejack nodded and grabbed her lasso. She tied the clouds together and brought them together.

Pinkie Pie, who was under the cloud, noticed the cloud moving, "Hey, what happened?"

Twilight whispered into Fluttershy's ear. Fluttershy smiled and acted out, "Oh dear. I hope none of the animals see these delicious chocolate-filled cotton candy clouds. I'd hate to have to share them."

"You and me both, sister!" Pinkie Pie smiled, enjoying the cotton candy cloud. The animals charged in, pushing her out of the way, "Hey!"

"And when y'all are done with that, feel free to have some popcorn for dessert." Applejack offered, after everything has finally calmed down.

Twilight smiled proudly, "You see, Spike? You should never give up. There's nothing we can't overcome if we all work together."

Suddenly, Spike burped out a scroll. It looked it's urgent, because Spike pounded his chest.

Twilight grabbed the scroll and read it. She gasped and looked at us, "Come on, girls. Princess Celestia wants to see us all in Canterlot immediately!"

*Later, in Canterlot Castle...*
"Princess Celestia, we came as fast as we could!" Twilight announced, as she, the Girls and I arrived to Canterlot Castle.

"Thank you, Twilight." Princess Celestia thanked, "Thank you, all."

"Is this about the weather? And the animals' weird behavior?" Twilight asked frantically, "What's happening out there? Why isn't my magic working? Is there-"

Princess Celestia quickly raised her hand to silence Twilight, "Follow me." She lead us into a gallery of stain-glass windows, "I've called you here for a matter of great importance. It seems an old foe of mine, someone I thought I had defeated long ago, has returned."

Fluttershy turned her attention to a stain window of a creature I remembered seeing on the castle courtyard. Head of a pony, eagle claw, lion's paw, snake tail, bird and bat wings, dragon claw and cloven hoof.

"His name... is Discord." Celestia explained in bitterness.

Fluttershy yelped and hid close behind me.

"Discord is the mischievous spirit of disharmony. Before my sister and I stood up to him, he ruled Equestria in an eternal state of unrest and unhappiness." Princess Celestia told us, with a bitter scowl.

I rubbed my chin in thought, then clarity hit me and I snapped my fingers, "He's the one responsible for the disappearance of the humans in Equestria."

Celestia nodded, "Yes, Eleanor. Luna and I saw how miserable life was for Earth ponies, Pegasi, and Unicorns alike, so after discovering the Elements of Harmony, we combined our powers and rose up against him, turning him to stone."

"All right, Princess!" Rainbow Dash cheered with a smile.

We continued down the hallway, as Celestia continued, "I thought the spell we cast would keep him contained forever, but since Luna and I are no longer connected to the Elements, the spell has been broken."

Twilight tilted her head in confusion, "No longer connected?"

"This is Canterlot Tower, where the Elements are kept inside since all of you recovered them." Princess Celestia explained, gesturing to a large door, "I need you to wield the Elements of Harmony once again and stop Discord, before he thrusts all of Equestria into eternal chaos."

"But why us? Why don't you-" Twilight asked, until Pinkie cut her off, "Hey, look! We're famous!"

Pinkie was in front of another stain-glass window. But this one was of us fighting Nightmare Moon with the Elements of Harmony.

"You seven showed the full potential of the Elements by harnessing the magic of your friendship to beat a mighty foe." Princess Celestia resumed her explanation, "Although Luna and I once wielded the Elements, it is you who now control their power, and it is you who must defeat Discord!"

The girls and I looked after each other in confusion and uncertainty.

Twilight turned to Princess Celestia, "Princess Celestia, you can count on-"

But then, Pinkie Pie raised her hand, "Hold on a second! Eternal chaos comes with chocolate rain, you guys. Chocolate rain!"

"Chocolate rain may be a benefit, Pinkie." I spoke up, clearing my throat, "But Eternal Chaos also comes with oversized apples, giraffe-legged rabbits, abstract houses, everyone acting or looking the opposite and who-knows-what else."

Pinkie rubbed her chin for a second, then smiled at me, "I see your point."

Twilight raised her brow at me, "Is this what your nightmare has been about?"

I folded my arms, avoided eye contact and nodded my head sheepishly.

Twilight shook her head and returned to Princess Celestia, "We'd be honored to use the Elements of Harmony again."

Princess Celestia nodded and inserted her horn into the keyhole of the doors. With her magic, the door glowed and opened. On the other side of the door was a stool with a jewel-encrusted chest.

Rarity couldn't help but smile, "Ooh. You can keep the Elements. I'll take that case!"

"Have no fear, ponies. I have total confidence that you will be able to defeat Discord with these!" Princess Celestia told us, grabbing the case and opening it.

Unfortunately, the case was completely empty. The girls and I gasped in shock, and Celestia dropped the case in shock and dismay.

Pinkie shrugged with a smile, "Oh, well. If anyone needs me, I'll be outside in the chocolate puddles with a giant swizzle straw."

She was about to walk off, but I quickly grabbed her overalls and pulled her back with us, "Oh no, you don't."

Twilight quickly shook her head and finally found her voice, "The Elements! They're gone!"

"That chamber is protected by a powerful spell that only I can break!" Princess Celestia exclaimed, as she paced, "This doesn't make sense!"

Suddenly, my ruby started flashing again and there was a male laugh echoing throughout the hallway. Then the voice asked, "Make sense? Oh, what fun is there in making sense?"

"Discord..." Princess Celestia hissed, "Show yourself!"

The voice laughed again, then asked, "Did you miss me, Celestia?"

In a flash of light, an image of Discord started moving and flew across to the next window, "I missed you. It's quite lonely being encased in stone, but you wouldn't know that, would you, because I don't turn ponies into stone."

"Enough!" Princess Celestia shouted, then demanded, "What have you done with the Elements of Harmony?"

"Oh, I just borrowed them for a teensy little while." Discord answered casually.

He snapped his fingers and the Elements of Harmony, in the window, vanished. Which indicated he took them and hid them away.

"You'll never get away with this, Discord!" Celestia barked angrily.

Discord yawned and laid back, "Oh, I'd forgotten how grim you can be, Celestia. It's really quite boring."

"Hey! Nopony insults the Princess!" Rainbow Dash shouted at the chaotic creature.

She charged toward the window. Discord teleported away and Rainbow crashed into the window.

Discord reappeared and smiled, "Oh, you must be Rainbow Dash, famed for her loyalty, the Element of Harmony you represent."

Rainbow Dash nodded in pride, "That's right! I'll always be loyal to the Princess!"

Discord disappeared, with his voice echoing in the hallway, "We'll see about that."

"I can't believe we're wasting our time talking to a tacky window." Rarity shook her head.

Discord reappeared in the window closest to her, "The beautiful Rarity, representing the Element of Generosity, if I'm not mistaken?"

"So you know who we are, big deal." Applejack folded her arms.

Discord grew the size of the window, "Oh, I know much more than that, Honest Applejack."

"And yet, never want to tell." I spoke up, narrowing my eyes at the... Draconequus? Draconequus.

Discord smiled at me, "Ah, dear Eleanor. Always the Empathic one."

"You seem to know our strengths too." Twilight noticed.

Discord nodded, returning to normal size, and laying on one of the orbs, "Yes, Twilight Sparkle, and yours is the most powerful and elusive Element, Magic." Fluttershy stepped close to me, "Fluttershy's is Kindness and Pinkie Pie's is a personal favorite of mine - Laughter."

Discord laughed, whilst Pinkie was trying to cover up her laughter.

Twilight glared at her friend, "Pinkie!"

Pinkie burst into laughter and pointed at Discord, "He's standing on your head!"

We looked at the Draconequus. Pinkie was right. He was dancing on the head of the character, representing Twilight.

I lightly giggled, "That is pretty funny."

"Stop stalling, Discord!" Princess Celestia shouted, "What have you done with the Elements of Harmony?"

Discord stopped dancing and sighed, "Oh, so boring, Celestia. Really?" Then he shrugged, "Fine, I'll tell you, but I'll only tell you my way." He enlarged himself and circled around us via the windows, "To retrieve your missing Elements, just make sense of this change of events. Twists and turns are my master plan. Then find the Elements back where you began."

He returned his avatar to its rightful place and disappeared, laughing.

"Can we go home now?" Fluttershy asked.

"What do you reckon he meant?" Applejack asked, "Twists and turns and ending back where we started?"

Twilight and I rubbed our chins in thought.

Twilight walked over to a window, "Twists and turns... Twists and turns... Twists and turns!" She looked outside and smile, "That's it! I bet Discord hid the Elements in the Palace Labyrinth!"

I shook my head, "I'm not so sure, Twi. 'Twists and turns' can mean anything. 'Back where you began' sounds more vague than cryptic."

Ignoring me, Celestia nodded, "Good luck, my little ponies." Then bowed to us, resting her horn over Twilight's shoulders, "The fate of Equestria is in your hands."

Twilight smiled, "Thanks, Princess. We won't let you down."

With that, Twilight, the girls and I made our way out of the castle and toward the Palace Labyrinth. Once at the entrance, Fluttershy gasped, "W-We have to go in there?"

She shook and hid close to me.

Rainbow Dash shook her head with a smug smile, "Nope! Dopey Discord forgot about these babies!" She flapped her wings in emphasis, "I'll just do a quick flyover and we'll have the Elements in no time."

She took off into the air. My pendant flashed again.

"Rainbow, wait!" I shouted.

When she got high enough, her wings vanished in a flash of light. Rainbow noticed and fell with a thud.

"My wings!" She exclaimed.

Another flash and Fluttershy's wings were gone too. Fluttershy gasped in shock.

Another flash and Twilight and Rarity lost their horns, "Your horn! My horn! Ahhh!"

Then an orb of light appeared in front of us. It took the form of a large Draconequus, similar to the images on the windows. Just a bit more older. He also wore a patchwork suite which matched his chaotic nature.

The Draconequus laughed, "You- You should see the looks on your faces. Priceless!"

"Discord, I presume?" I guessed with folded arms.

"Give us our wings and horns back!" Twilight barked.

"You'll get them back in good time." Discord assured, then explained, "I simply took them to ensure there's no cheating. You see, this is the first rule of our game: no flying, and no magic."

Rainbow Dash raised a brow, "The first rule?"

"The second rule is everypony has to play or the game is over, and I win." Discord finished, stating the last part in a dark tone. Then he smiled, "Good luck, everypony!"

With that, he was gone.

Twilight smiled in assurance, "Never fear, girls. We have each other!"

Rainbow nodded in agreement, "Yeah! Like Twilight said, there's nothing we can't overcome if we all stick together!"

We gathered at the entrance of the Labyrinth, "All right, girls, let's do this!"

We took or first step, "Together!"

Suddenly, ledges grew and separated us one-by-one. Everypony screamed in panic.

"Stay calm, girls!" Twilight instructed, "Everypony head to the middle as fast as you can, and we'll regroup there!"

"Moving out!" Rainbow nodded.

"See you in the center." Rarity replied.

"Yee-haw!" Applejack cheered.

"You got it." I smiled.

"See you guys there!" Pinkie agreed.

With that, the girls and I followed our path. The only one who was still panicking was Fluttershy, "What's that? Who's there? Girls!"

Applejack's POV.
I ran through the maze, making the turns I thought felt right, until I found three red apples, similar to my Cutie Mark, laying on the ground. I cautiously approached them, then they started to roll off on their own.

I raised a brow in confusion, "What in tarnation?"

I quickly followed the apples into a clearing. A grove, by the looks of things.

"Where am Ah?" I wondered, looking around.

An apple fell on top of my head. I looked up and saw the apples in the trees falling onto the ground, and rolling around me, forming into three separate heaps. Green, light red and dark red.

"Who are y'all?" I asked.

"The Keepers of the Grove of Truth." The dark red one answered, rising into a form of a face, "You may ask us..."

"...One question..." The light red one continued.

"...Past, future or present." The green one finished.

"But be warned..." The dark red one warned.

"...That the truth..." The light red one continued.

"...May not always be pleasant." The green one finished.

"All right then. Ah don't trust this place worth a hill o' beans, but Ah've got a really bad feelin' about this feller, Discord." I replied in uncertainty, then asked my question, "What's gonna come of this mission we're on?"

The apples stopped rolling and lead me toward a pond, nearby.

"For the answer you seek..." The dark red apples began.

"...Go ahead, take a peek." The light red apples finished.

I took a look into the pond. My reflection faded to reveal me and my friends gathered in an abstract landscape. We all looked angry at each other for some reason, or rather.

"I hope I never see you again!" Rainbow Dash shouted.

"Me too!" Fluttershy nodded.

"Fine!" Pinkie Pie barked.

"Fine!" Rarity shouted.

"Bunch of freaks!" Ellie shouted in bitterness. Sam just blew a raspberry.

Twilight nodded, "It's settled then."

With that, everyone went their separate ways. My reflection returned. Shock, dismay and horror chilled my bones.

I took a step back and shook my head, "No! Our friendship? Over?!" I removed my hand and fell to my knees, "It can't be true. It just can't! That just can't be the truth."

The light red apples looked at me, "When all the truth does..."

"...Is make your heart ache." The green apples finished, "Sometimes a lie is easier to take."

I couldn't help but stare into its 'eyes'. Next thing I knew, I was all alone. Maybe the apples were right. I've been honest for too long, and sometimes honesty can hurt. To save this friendship...

I have to start telling lies!

Twilight Sparkle's POV.
I followed through the maze, until a wall opened to reveal Applejack.

I smiled in relief, "Applejack! Thank goodness! I thought I heard voices over here." Then asked, "Who were you talking to?"

"I was talking to... Uh..." Applejack started, then turned to me, "Nopony! Nopony whatsoever!"

Her face scrunched and her eyes darted everywhere other than me.

I raised a brow in confusion, "What?"

Now that I noticed, Applejack looked a little different. Her fur, mane, tail and eyes have turned a hue of grey. That's not normal.

"Nothing." Applejack quickly answered. Her eyes darted around again, "Come on, uh, we best be going."

With that, she marched on.

"Did Applejack just...?" I wondered, but shrugged it off, "Come on, Twilight! Applejack wouldn't lie."

Pinkie Pie's POV.
I bounced through the maze, making my way to the center, whistling along the way. I came to a corner and ended up entering a large garden, full of smiling and laughing balloons of all shapes and colors.

I couldn't but smile and enter the garden, "Whee! This is the greatest balloon garden I've ever seen! It's the first balloon garden I've ever seen, but still!" Suddenly, something caught my leg. I tripped and fell into a puddle of mud, "Wah!"

I looked behind me and saw a pink balloon had its string tied around my left hoof. The balloons started laughing at me. Something inside me started to hurt.

"Hey, what gives?" I asked.

Suddenly, Discord appeared, looking concerned, "What's the matter, Pinkie Pie? I thought you appreciated a good laugh?"

"It's different." I answered with a frown, "They're laughing at me."

"It's hardly different." Discord replied, transferring his face into a nearby balloon, "Your friends laugh at you all the time."

I picked myself up and quickly shook my head, "My friends laugh with me, not at me."

"Oh, really?" Discord asked, flying in a circle around me.

I got dizzy and shook my head. The laughing got worse and the pain in me started to ache. I came to realise it was my heart hurting.

I waved my hand to shoo the balloons away, "No! Stop it!"

But the laughing increased. Five of the balloons morphed into the faces of my friends, laughing at me.

I hugged myself into a ball, closed my eyes shut, and covered my ears, "Stop laughing at me!"

Discord floated toward me and cooed, "Oh, poor Pinkie Pie. And here I thought laughter made you happy."

I couldn't help but stare into his eyes. Something came to me. If my friends were really laughing at me, instead of with me, were they just treating me like some kind of jester?

I hate being a jester! I hate being laughed at!
"Happy? I don't think so."

Twilight Sparkle's POV.
Continuing through the maze, Applejack and I came to an opening covered in balloons. The balloons eventually cleared and I saw a familiar pink, party Pony.

"Pinkie Pie!" I smiled in relief, "Are we glad to see you!"

Pinkie scowled at me, "Oh you are, huh? Why?" Then she marched off, "Need a good laugh?"

"Pinkie?" I raised a brow.

Pinkie marched past Applejack, who watched her with a sorrowful look. Now that I noticed, Pinkie was in a similar grey hue as Applejack.

"What do you suppose has her so upset? It's not like her." I asked Applejack.

Applejack shook her head, "Ah didn't notice anythin' strange about Pinkie."

Her face scrunched and her eyes darted around again. Then Applejack followed Pinkie Pie.

"Weird." I muttered to myself, "Better pick up the pace before the stress of this gets the better of all of us."

Rarity's POV.
"I was expecting an audience with the Princess, not outdoor sports." I sighed, as I walked through the Palace Labyrinth. I walked into a large wall. I stepped back, but got a better look, "Oh my..."

The wall was a large graphite, holding three gemstones similar to my Cutie Mark. I couldn't look away from the wall.

Discord's face appeared within the three gemstones and smiled, "Welcome to your lucky day, Rarity. You've found the one thing in Equestria that could rival my face for sheer beauty. What do you think? You like?"

I smiled and swooned in admiration, "Yes... I like very much..." I blinked and shook my head away of the thought, "No! No, I shan't succumb to such fabulousness." I turned away and tried to walk away from the wall, "Must... Get to the center..." But my mind kept going back to the wall, "To meet... The others."

I couldn't hold back anymore! I have to see what was on the other side. If it's more beautiful than Discord, it must be very valuable.

I WANT IT!!!

"MINE!!!"

I dug into the wall as hard as I could. It was hard work, but the wall eventually collapsed and I was able to receive my reward.

"Well, Rarity. It took forever, but it was worth it." I told myself.

One the other side of the wall was a humongous, beautifully cut, blue diamond! Truly a rarity to come by.

"Who knew three little gemstones would turn out to be this handsome hunk of a diamond?" I smiled, hugging close to the diamond, "Now to get you home."

I picked up the diamond and rested it against my back. It was really heavy without my magic, but every effort will be worth it, once I get the gorgeous gemstone home.

Twilight Sparkle's POV.
The wall, blocking our path crumbled and I smiled in relief to see another one of my friends, "Rarity! Are we glad to see..."

Then I noticed Rarity was just like Pinkie and Applejack, and carrying a large boulder against her back, "Why are you carrying a humongous boulder?"

Rarity dropped the boulder and looked at me, "What do you mean, 'boulder'?" She hugged close to the rock, "This big, beautiful, bedazzling rock is a diamond! And it's all mine."

I looked at Applejack in uncertainty.

Then Rarity picked up the rock and shouted at me, "Keep your envious little eyes off it! I found it and it's mine fair and square!"

With that, she marched onward. Applejack and Pinkie followed her. Worry began to build up inside me.

What's going on?

Eleanor's POV.
I followed the maze, on my own, taking the necessary turns I felt were right. As I did, I thought about Discord's riddle, "'Twists and turns are my master plan. Then find the Elements back where you began'."

I came into an open clearing and something hit. With my voice loud and clear, I concluded, "The Elements aren't here, are they, Discord?"

As a reply, I heard clapping around me. Then Discord appeared in front of me, clapping his paw and claw.

"Bravo. Bravo! My, my. You certainly have a good head on your shoulders, Bright Eyes. You've solved my riddle before Twilight Sparkle. You surely are smarter than you look." He praised me with a charming smile.

I narrowed my eyes at the Draconequus, "Dropped the pleasantries, Discord. What do you want?"

Discord dropped his smile and glared at me, "Well, well. When there's smarts, comes boredom and skepticism." Then he walked closer to me, "And I thought you were meant to be the empathic one."

"Empathy is the understanding of another's emotions and why they feel it." I told him.

Discord nodded, "Indeed. But, sometimes you have to numb it out, to fully understand the emotion. After all, the loneliest of Ponies smile the brightest."

I raised a brow, "I'm sorry. What?"

Discord gasped and asked. "Oh, your mother never told you, did she? Young Eleanor, you're not even... What are you called? 'Hue-mania'?"

"Human." I corrected.

Discord snapped his fingers and smiled at me, "That's it. There goes your brilliant mind again. You sure are a smart little Pony."

My eyes widen in confusion and shock. Did he just call me a Pony? How is that possible?

"What?"

Discord shook his head and patted me on the head, "Haven't you noticed? The mirror? The Poison Joke? Your extraordinary talent with magic and psychic powers? Did you really think those were just a mere coincidence?"

"How did you-?" I was about to ask, but I couldn't find my voice.

Once he finished patting, my ruby pendant darkened. I started to feel very hot, not the good way, and my head felt like it was going through a migraine.

I rubbed my forehead and lightly, "My head..."

Then I felt a sharp pain in my heart. I fell to my knees, as the pain coursed through my body. Something fusing and growing out the base of my spine. I looked at my hands and saw that my skin was growing ravenette fur. My nails hardened and starting to turn black as night.

My spine and feet snapped and lengthened, like I was grown an extra few inches, or a foot. My boy burned and ached.

I looked at Discord, he was just smirking at me, "Discord, what are you... Doing to me?"

Discord smiled, "I did say everypony must play. That includes you, my dear."

With that, he snapped his claw and three purple wisps, similar to my Cutie Mark, appeared and started circling around me. Whispers of voices entered my growing ears, spouting horrible stuff about me. Calling me names. So much anger. So much hatred.

The more I listened, the more I realised the voices were my friends.

Trying to ignore to verbal bullying, I covered my ears. But the voices grew louder and more wrathful. Memories of my human childhood started flashing before my eyes. The wisps separated into six and faded into the fur colors of my friends.

Purple. Cyan. Orange. Yellow. Pink. White.

My body started to feel bruised. My heart felt squeezed the life out of it. My ears rang. Tears fell down my face, and they stung. I fell to my knees and started sobbing.

Did my friends truly hate me that much? Why didn't they tell me?

Discord looked over me with a fake concerned expression, "Poor, dear Eleanor. You're feeling too much." Then he smiled and his eyes started swirling, "How about we numb it out?"

I started into his eyes and the pain wasn't so intense anymore. Maybe Discord was right. How could I have been so blind? No matter how hard I've tried, my actions were left unnoticed. What's the point of it?

Nothing matters anymore...

Twilight Sparkle's POV.
I continued to run deeper into the maze. My friends following close behind me.

"We're getting close, girls." I told them.

I came across a clearing and saw something. It was an Earth Pony struggling to stand up.

Her back was turned, so I couldn't see her face, but I could tell she was a mare by her shape.

The creature stood about nearly 6 foot tall. 5 foot 11 at least. Her fur was a light charcoal grey. Her pale grey mane reached her mid-back and her tail matched her mane.

She was wearing a dark green t-shirt under a violet sleeveless hoodie. A scarlet scarf, pair of dark green cargo pants and black and green fingerless gloves. I know that style of clothing.

I tilted my head and narrowed my eyes, "Ellie? Is that you?"

The pony turned to me, "Who do you think, Princess Luna?"

Behind her black-rimmed glasses were a familiar pair of grey eyes.

"What happened to you?" I asked with a genuine concerned tone, "You're an... Earth Pony?"

Ellie cut me off with a glare and walked toward me, "What's it matter to you?"

She lost her balance and was about to fall. I quickly caught her before her tail hit the ground.

Ellie stood back up and looked at me, then she marched ahead, well... Tried to march ahead without falling every five steps.

How can Ellie be so nihilistic? She'd usually smiles, thank me and stay by my side until she got used to walking unguligrade. Trust me, being born a Pony, your first steps were never easy.

What's going on here?

Fluttershy's POV.
I got out of my hiding place, and took a breath, "Okay, I can do this. I can..."

I yelped and jumped into my hiding place again, but I looked at the thing that spooked me, "Oh, wait a minute..." Three pink butterflies, like my Cutie Mark, "Butterflies?" I jumped out and followed them, as they flew away, "Wait! Don't leave me here!"

I followed the butterflies and they lead me into a confusing circle of different paths.

Then the butterflies spoke to me, "Fluttershy, looks like you've been left behind by your so-called friends, huh?"

I shook my head with a smile, "Oh, no. I'm certain they're doing their best to find me."

The butterflies circled around me, "Well, it must be so upsetting to know how weak and helpless they think you are."

I shook my head again, "Not at all. I am weak and helpless and I appreciate their understanding."

"Yes..." The butterflies cleared their throats, "Well, surely it burns you up... I mean, that they're always pointing out your flaws, right?"

I shook my head again, "Not really. In fact, I think I'm awfully lucky to have friends who want me to be the best I can be."

Angry, the butterflies fused together and formed into Discord.

"Oh, for goodness sake!" He shouted, then tapped my forehead, "You've been kind for far too long, my dear. Time to be cruel. Arrivederci!"

With that, he was gone.

Twilight Sparkle's POV.
A wall lowered, which was blocking our path from the rest of the labyrinth. One the other side, I saw a familiar, wingless Pegasus sitting in the center.

"Fluttershy!" I smiled in relief, "I'm so glad to see a friendly face. This awful labyrinth is getting to everypony."

I looked at the others. Applejack was growling with an angry look. Pinkie threw a raspberry at me. Rarity gave me a 'Try it and you die' look. And Ellie was just sighing and looking away from me.

"Aw, boo-hoo-hoo!" Fluttershy cooed sarcastically at me.

My mouth gaped open. Not Fluttershy too!

"Why don't you wave your magic little horn and make everything all right?" She asked me, then added in a sassy tone, "Oh, that's right, you can't. You don't have one."

She whipped her tail at me, as she walked past me.

"What is happening to my friends?" I wondered to myself.

Fluttershy used her tail to trip Pinkie Pie over. Applejack laughed at the grumpy Pony.

"And what are you laughing at?" Pinkie shouted with a glare.

"Chocolate milk." Applejack quickly lied.

"Little help here!" Rarity shouted.

I looked at Ellie, but she just shook her head and walked off. So I walked over and moved the rock over to my back as well.

Rarity smiled at me, "Thanks, Twilight."

"You're welcome–" I was about to reply, but Rarity cut me off, "But don't get any ideas about my gem! I know where you live."

Samantha's POV.

Rainbow Dash's POV.
I made my way through the maze with ease. So far, I've found nopony and I haven't bumped into Discord yet. If I see that meanie, I'm gonna give him a piece of my mind!

From the corners, I saw a small white cloud zapping rainbow lightning, similar to my Cutie Mark.

I smiled, "I've got you now, Element."

I followed the cloud toward the a clearing. In the clearing was Discord, laying on a cloud hammock, wearing a pair of shades.

He stretched and smiled, "Oh. I can see why you like these clouds so much. Very plush."

Now's my chance! I raised my fists, ready to give this freak a piece of my mind, "Get off there and put 'em up! Come on! Let's go!"

"Hey, I'm here to deliver a message." The Draconequus played innocent.

"I've got a message for you too!" I told him, not falling for his tricks.

Discord removed his shades and looked at me, "Listen closely, this is important." Then told me in one of his cryptic rhymes, "A weighty choice is yours to make. The right selection or a big mistake. If a wrong choice you choose to pursue, the foundations of home will crumble without you."

He snapped his claw and the cloud from before span before my eyes. I couldn't look away. Within the cloud I saw my home, crumbling into ruin.

"Cloudsdale? Crumble... Without me?" I exclaimed, "No!"

A blue present box appeared, replacing the cloud, as Discord told me, "That box contains your wings. You can take them and leave the game, or you can carry on aimlessly wandering this maze. Your choice."

Twilight Sparkle's POV.
"Must... find... Rainbow Dash." I tried to focus my thoughts, as I carried Rarity's boulder on my back, "As a team... we're unstoppable. Rainbow Dash won't let us down."

Then Applejack spoke up, as she looked up, "Well, looky there. Rainbow Dash is flying away. She's abandonin' us."

"Now I know that's a lie." I replied.

However, I looked up and saw Rainbow Dash flying away, leaving the rest of us in the maze, "How can it be?"

Suddenly, once Rainbow Dash was out of sight, the ground started to shake and storm clouds covered the sky. The maze sank into the ground, around us, revealing that we were in an empty field of dirt.

Then Discord appeared from the dust, "Well, well, well. Somepony broke the 'No Wings, No Magic" rule."

He snapped his claw and Fluttershy, Rarity and I got our wings and horns back. Ellie got a pair of hybrid wings. The top half was Pegasus and the bottom half was bat-like. She was a Thestral? How is that possible?

(Don't make me hurt you, Twilight Bellatrix Sparkle...)

Discord smiled in victory, "Game's over, my little ponies. You didn't find your precious elements." He summoned an umbrella and opened it inside-out, "Looks like we might be due for a big old storm of chaos!"

Then he started laughing. How can this have happened? How are we gonna fix this?

To be continued...