Elements:the many paths to eternity

Lunch was a pleasant pasta and salad of fresh garden greens and flowers with a very light apple vinaigrette, made from sweet apple acre's hard cider vinegar naturally. The six friends sat around the table chatting about such things as crossed there minds both about the quest ahead and the princess own long lives and the things they had seen during them.

"The moon may be a barren place but there is a stark beauty to it, and there is no greater view of the stars or Equus then from there." Luna said as she smiled a bit leaning back after having finished her own meal. "It was that very beauty I think that kept me from going truly mad to my core during my long exile." She cleared her throat. "Well that and the moon tribe of course, I really must apologize once more for there actions Rarity truly I must had I known they would go to such lengths I would have reestablished contact with them far sooner."

Rarity smiled and shook her head gently her mane swaying back and forth as she did, perfectly kept locks shining in the light streaming in from the rooms many windows. "Oh think nothing of it darling, it turned out alright in the end after all and honestly I barely remember any of it so I can't really gripe about it." She said with a shrug and a smile then returned to her own food. "To be honest I briefly entertained going that route for this actually, seeing if I could invoke the nightmare once more but this time control it, make it my own." She shook her head and laughed to herself. "But then I remember that you yourself could not do that, and if one of the wisest, strongest ponies I know of could not dominate that force then what hope do I have?"

Luna smiled at those words and preened a bit at the compliment, there had been a time when the reminder would have burned a little bit but she had long since gotten over it and she understood the words for what they were. "We are proud of your wisdom in realizing the folly of attempting to master the darkness, for indeed while it has been done in the past
and will likely be accomplished again in the future it is for another we think...perhaps miss glimmer she seems to have the touch for it." This caused Rarity to arch an eyebrow a bit at that and tilt her head.

"Whatever do you mean, darling?" She asked the princess of the night before taking another bite of the provided food set before her. "She hardly seems the type to me at least." Luna chuckled and shook her head.

"They rarely ever do, those who would master the dark arts require a certain way of thinking the will to wield, but the heart to not be wielded by." she said with a sagely tone. "Starlight Glimmer has tasted what wickedness can bring, and see the destruction that comes from it but she is still not afraid of using that destructive force to protect what she sees as important and this is exactly the mindset that is needed the understanding that is required to resist the snares and traps of the dark power sadly this is where you have fallen in both your times facing the dark." Luna stated in an understanding tone."First when you were touched by the 'inspiration manifestation' spell, and then when you were confronted with the remnants of the nightmare."

Rarity sighed and nodded. "Just so I suppose best not to chance it, third time might be the charm but then again it might also be the end of me and that is counter to the end goal here." She thought about something for a moment. "A thought has occurred to me, perhaps a foalish one but i feel it should be voiced just the same." All eyes turned towards her as she played with the food on her plate. "Would perhaps it not behoove us before we go thru all this trouble, to ask discord if he would be willing to aid us in this." The group all blinked and looked at each-other, Applejack frowned a little bit as did Luna though it was the former who spoke up on the issue.

"Sugarcube, ah dun mean ta rain on your parade, but despite all that hes done fer us in the last few years i dun think i would trust him tah not throw in some kinda trap or gag with it, not disparaging his redemption or nothing but its just in his nature...maybe Fluttershy could get away with it but...the rest of us." She paused and made a strained face. "Nah he might grant us it, but there'd be 'somethin' wrong with it, might make ya into a vampire or something." She looked around and shook her head. "You'd live forever sure but the cost oh that would be mighty high." A rolling laugh filled the hall deep and full of glee.

"Oh applejack you really 'do' understand me!" The draconiequss in question manifested in a flash of white light off to one side of the group with a tray of finger sandwiches, shaped like his actual fingers balanced on one paw munching on one of them before speaking again. "You are indeed correct, but not for the reasons you might think its not because i would 'want' to inflict such curses upon you but such are the only ways i would be able to grant such a request, for you see creating an eternal being is in effect the act of 'halting' entropy, disengaging chaos and the flow of free energy." he shook his head and held up a stopped clock with springs hanging out a sign hanging from it that read 'chaos out of order' hanging from it." it is an act that is the very inverse of my very being and is thus, totally beyond my power." He vanished and reappeared next to Fluttershy. "Even for my dearest and most wonderful Fluttershy, though I long with all my beating heart to keep her around for all time it is beyond my power to grant her that gift without inflicting something upon her to balance the loss." He sighed and shook his head again. "No you want my inverse, that stodgy crystal beast in the Everfree Harmony is the one who could give you that which you desire just as it has to your friend Twilight Sparkle there but good luck convincing it to do so, you KNOW what your poor friend had to go thru to convince it she was worthy and then even more to convince it she was worth giving more direct aid in the form of that map of yours."

Twilight sighed and nodded "I know, it was the first thing i thought of before we hoped the train to Canterlot i headed out into the woods and prayed before the tree for nearly an hour for aid, for a grant of it...nothing...harmony it seems is content to leave us to figure this out on our own." Discord grinned and shook his head

"Don't be so sure little princess, just because tall crystal and leafy didn't answer your plea doesn't mean it wont aid you indirectly, you needs just just 'earn' it...you will no doubt be tested, quite harshly in the days ahead...all of you, but keep to what makes you who you are, especially you my dearest Fluttershy, and you will find your way. "he clasped his paws together and once more vanished from the room.

---------------------------------------several hours later--------------------------------------

"What the buck does this even mean."

Shouted an annoyed Rainbow Dash trying to make heads or tails of a scroll she presently held in her hooves, Twilight moved over to look over the parchment and grimaced. "It's old equish, it looks to be a testament left by Clover the Clever regarding a discovery she made in the early day's of Equestria." She squinted at it a bit more closely " hmmm, nothing relevent to what were looking for though it looks like its an early version of modern healing droughts, its a nice historical record but not what we need." Rainbow Dash sighed and moved on to the next scroll in the pile then.

Pinkie was siting in the middle of the group making balloon animals when rarity looked over at her. "Pinkie darling are you going to look for something too?" Pinkie shook her head and finished a balloon copy of Discord.

"Nope, I dun need to." Rarity blinked a little bit and the others looked up from there own books and stared at her.

"what do ya mean you dun need to sugarcube?" Applejack asked with a tilt of the head and a quizzical expression. "Didja already find something suited to ya or something?"

Pinkie grinned at them. "Nope but my pinkie sense told me that once all of you find what your going to do I'll know what i need to...somehow."

the group turned to look at one another but years of dealing with pinkie and her pinkie sense made them just shrug "allrighty then" AJ said with a shrug if you say so.

and the search continued long into that night, and into the next day...this was going to take awhile....