Tale of a Gray Tempest

A scheduled light rain arrives at Ponyville on Tuesday. The clouds that were placed by pegasi weather ponies cover the sun, shedding a cool, gentle rain towards the whole town. Outside the Golden Oak Library, Twilight Sparkle gently closes the library door, flips the “open” tag hung on the doorknob to reveal the word “closed” written on the back, and starts trotting towards the Sweet Apple Acres. Once again, she is on her way to a short trip towards the Everfree Forest.

A whole day has passed since the incident at the edge of the Everfree Forest, and a part of her still refuses to accept the fact that a new friend she had made less than a week ago, Grey Wind, is already gone. After being directly hit by the elements of harmony, all that’s left with the grey Pegasus is that trademark cloak Rarity had given her.

Rarity had been the first one among them to mostly recover from the event. Carousel Boutique closed for a whole morning yesterday, but resumed its business right after noon. In the front window of the store, An exact copy of Grey Wind’s cloak is placed on a mannequin in the center, facing towards the street outside.

Twilight walks down the main street of Ponyville, passing Sugarcube Corner. From a distance, she can see Mr. and Mrs. Cake dealing with orders from the town ponies, without the help of a certain pink earth pony. Nopony had seen Pinkie Pie since the beginning of yesterday, except for Mrs. Cake who managed to get a glance at the pink pony while sending her breakfast. At that time, Pinkie is simply sitting on her bed, her laugh long gone and her mane completely straight.

Looking up, she can see Rainbow Dash’s cloud castle slowly drifting towards the central square of the town. Rainbow seemed to know a bit more about the grey Pegasus than her, but Twilight never got the chance to ask her about it. Ever since yesterday, Rainbow had locked herself inside her house, only out when she comes to town to buy some food. While she is in town, she never spoke to anypony.

Twilight never managed to get more knowledge about the black cloud and Grey Wind. Princess Celestia had no idea what the cloud was, and the analyzation of what’s left of the cloud had been fruitless. According to the Princess, the component of that black cloud is too tiny to properly examine even with the most powerful existing spells.

Probably nopony knows more about Grey Wind than Lyra and Bon Bon, but the two are doing a good job at keeping their mouths shut. Twilight visited Bon Bon yesterday at her candy store. Although she seems to have recovered from the event, she changes the subject of the conversation every time Twilight asks her about the grey Pegasus.

Lyra, on the other hand, didn’t appear at all yesterday. Her wound had cracked open due to the intense gallop she performed one and a half days ago, forcing her to stay in bed for the whole day. According to Bon Bon, she cried for a whole night after the event occurred.

“Twilight!”

A young voice pulls Twilight out of her thought. Turning around, she sees three familiar fillies standing behind her.

“Hi, Apple Bloom. Hi, Sweetie Belle, and Hi, Scootaloo.” She greets them as she manages to pull out a smile, “How can I help you?”

“We, Uh……” Scootaloo hesitates as she asks, “We just want to know what happened to Grey Wind. We saw her hit by the elements, and Rainbow told me that the elements sent her to a faraway place. I just want to know when she would come back.”

The filly’s innocent words are like blunt daggers stabbing Twilight in the heart. Doing her best to maintain her smile, Twilight answers:

“Yes, the elements sent her to a place far from Ponyville, and it’ll take her a long, long time to get back.”

“Aw……” Apple Bloom responds, “but Ah was thinking about going cutie mark crusading with her again……”

“Don’t worry, Apple Bloom. I’m sure she’ll come back. Eventually.” Twilight says as tears start forming in her eyes. She does her best to hold them back. She cannot let the fillies see her cry.

“Alright. Thanks, Ms. Twilight. See you.” Sweetie Belle says as the three fillies wave goodbye.

Continuing her journey, Twilight soon finds herself right beside the Sweet Apple Acres. An orange earth pony with blonde mane and tail is busy harvesting apples from the apple trees. Seeing her approach, Applejack runs up to her.

“Howdy, Twilight. Where are ya headin’?”

“Morning, Applejack. I’m just going to Everfree Forest. There’s something I must finish there.”

“Well, Ah see. Is it about Grey Wind?” Applejack asks.

Seeing Twilight nod, Applejack takes off her trademark hat and holds it in her left front hoof.

“Just as I reckon’. It must have felt bad for ya, Twi. It was bad for meh, as well. Ah……Ah just can’t believe she’s actually gone like that.”

“Yeah……That was dreadful……” Twilight says as she lowers her head.

“Twilight……Ya know, Ah was thinking……Would it make ya feel better if ya leave that all behind?”

“Huh?”

“Well, what ah was trying to say was,” Applejack says as she gently nuzzles Twilight, “Ya have to move on. That mare was gone for saving us, and she wouldn’t be happy if she sees ya bein’ like this all day long, right?”

“I guess you are right, Applejack. Thank you. I needed that.” Twilight answers, smiling to the farm pony.

“Now that’s the Twilight Ah know.” Applejack returns the smile, “See ya, Twi.”

“Goodbye, Applejack.” Twilight waves goodbye to the farm pony and continues her journey. Minutes later, she finds herself standing at the entrance of the Everfree Forest. The remnants of the fight one day ago is still clear on the ground. A large black circle is painted onto the ground and trees around the entrance, covering most parts of it.

It took Twilight less than fifteen minutes to locate that familiar clearing, without running into any trouble on the way. Inside the clearing, the stone structure stands silently, the green glow long gone. Several black spots are still visible around the stone structure, painting parts of it black.

Walking up to the structure, she opens her saddlebags and floats two things out of it, a folded grey cloak with six pieces of emerald stitched onto it, and a small black wooden box. Gently, she lays the cloak onto the highest step of the portal and puts the black box on top it. Carefully, she removes the lid of the box, revealing the glowing dream orb inside.

Finishing up, she casts a protection spell on the small objects, ensuring them to receive no harm from the environment or the wild animals. Slowly, she walks down the stairs and gazes at the two objects placed on it. Closing her eyes, she whispers:

“Good night, Grey Wind. Sweet dreams.”

Memories flows into her mind. She remembers the grey Pegasus ramming into a timberwolf attacking her.

She remembers the joy in the pegasus’ eyes when she called her a friend.

She remembers the happy tears in her eyes a week ago at Sugarcube Corner.

She remembers the pegasus helping her and Lyra reunite.

She remembers the pegasus defeating the nightmare beasts in the basement of the Castle of Two Sisters.

She remembers the pegasus begging her to destroy her in order to protect Equestria.

She remembers the grey Pegasus disappearing in a blinding white light, leaving only a grey cloak floating in the air.

Tears start flowing down Twilight’s cheek as she starts to sob. Sobbing soon turns into uncontrollable cry.

“Goodbye, Grey Wind……” She mutters under her tears.

Suddenly, a buzzing sound can be heard around her. Around the clearing, small streaks of grey start to rise from the black parts of the ground, gathering into a grey ball behind the two objects on the platform. Startled, Twilight jumps back, watching the ball with tears still visible in her eyes.

Slowly, the once gooey ball began to change shape, becoming more and more like a grey pony with wings. First appeared the grey fur, then the grey wings on her back. Moments later, light grey mane and tail are formed, with a single broad light green streak running through the middle.

As the changes subside, lying at the place of the grey ball is Grey Wind, eyes closed and her chest steadily moving up and down.

Twilight is stunned like a dead wood at where she stands. After she recovers, rubs her eyes and pinches herself in three different body parts, she finally concludes that this isn’t a dream. Running up the stairs, she puts the cloak and the dream orb back into her saddlebag and carries her resurrected friend on her back, before rushing towards the Ponyville hospital. In her rush, she fails to notice a sudden flash of golden light on Grey Wind’s flank.

Lying on the bed, Grey Wind groans and reluctantly opens her eyes as she wakes up. Looking at the ceiling, she is surprised to find herself not in her room in the library. Looking around, she finds herself in a small room, lying on a bed that is painted green. Sitting up, she recognizes the room as one of the patient rooms in Ponyville hospital.

But how did she end up in the hospital? Searching her mind, she recalls her most recent memory. She was going to the Everfree Forest to reestablish control to the Grey Tempest, but her mind was instead drowned by its hatred. To protect her friends, she forcefully terminated their connection and asked Twilight to overload her mind with the elements of harmony. Twilight couldn’t do it so she activated the element herself, and then……Oh.

While Grey Wind was wondering how she actually survived a direct hit from the elements of harmony, the door to the room swings open as a lavender unicorn walks inside the room. Noticing that Grey Wind had woken up, Twilight instantly runs up to her and tackle hugs her.

“Grey Wind! Oh thank Celestia you are alright! I thought—I thought---” Twilight exclaims as she hugs Grey Wind as tightly as she could, tears streaming down her cheeks and words becoming incomprehensible between the sobs.

“Twilight……Can’t……Breathe……”

“Oh, sorry!” Twilight responds frantically, releasing her friend, “Still, I’m so, so glad that you are alright!” She exclaims as she wipes a tear from her cheek.

“Geez, Twilight, calm down. It’s not like I died or something!” Grey Wind smiles.

Seeing her friend staggering back a few steps and covering her mouth with a hoof upon hearing her joke, Grey Wind suddenly realizes that, judging from Twilight’s reaction, some part of that joke was very, very wrong.

“Twilight? What happened to me?”

“Um, well……”

“So, you are saying that I died of being directly hit by the elements of harmony, and resurrected at the exact same spot you and I first met after one whole day.” Grey Wind says as she eyes herself suspiciously, still recovering from the fact that she just died once.

“Yes, that’s exactly what happened. According to what I saw, the magic energy of the elements of harmony somehow reassembled your body after your old one was destroyed.” Twilight replies.

“Well……So how did that happen? I mean, How did I come back?”

“From what I saw, some streaks of that grey cloud thingy rose from the ground around that stone structure and gathered into a ball, which then turned into you. It was a bit……Creepy.” Twilight answers.

Just like how she had created her form back in the star cluster. Concentrating, Grey Wind tries to feel her subunits, and is surprised to find that only very few of them remain, not more than two hooffulls. Those still functioning subunits are all attached to the back side of her two wings, while she cannot sense the subunits in all other parts of her body. Could this mean……

“Twilight.” She calls out, “Quick, pull off one of my feathers.”

“Huh? Why?”

“I want to confirm something. Just do it!”

Enveloping one of Grey Wind’s feathers in her magic, Twilight gently pulls it off, sending a sharp pain to the grey Pegasus. Accepting the feather from Twilight, she orders one of the remaining subunits to scan it. The feather in her hoof is, by any means, a real Pegasus feather, not a nanomachine-made one.

For one whole minute, Grey Wind just sat there and stared at that feather, stunned. Somehow, the elements of harmony Altered her body and transformed nearly all the nanomachines in it. Most of her subunits have disappeared, leaving only two small batches hidden behind her wings.

Does this mean……I’m a real pony now?

Before she can think any further, the door to the room bursts open. A mint green object slams through the door and jumps at Grey Wind, planting her head deep inside her chest:

“Grey, you are alive! Thank Celestia you are alive! Thank Celestia-“ Lyra clutches onto the grey Pegasus as hard as she could, tears damping the fur of the grey pegasus.

“Lyra, you shouldn’t run like that with that right hind hoof of yours!” Scolding, Bon Bon appears from the door, gently pulling her roommate back to the ground, “still, I’m glad you are alright. What you did back there was really brave.” She says as she turns to Grey Wind, smiling.

“Very brave, indeed, my little pony.” A regal voice appears in the hallway. Recognizing the voice, Bon Bon quickly walks away from the door, revealing the white alicorn entering the room.

“Princess Celestia!” Twilight exclaims as she runs up to her mentor. The other ponies in the room bow to her.

Princess Celestia? So that’s one of the rulers of this land. Watching Celestia nuzzling her student, she observes the alicorn. She is apparently very, very powerful. She is significantly taller than all the other ponies in the room, and at this distance Grey Wind can feel the intense magic energy radiating from her. If she wants, she could probably vaporize her in a few seconds. The thought alone makes Grey Wind shiver.

“It’s nice to meet you again, Twilight Sparkle,” Celestia says, turning towards Grey Wind, “though today, I’m more concerned about meeting you, Grey Wind.”

“M- me?” Grey Wind’s irises shrink into pupils. This could only mean the Princess knows something about her. If that’s the case, then she doubts if Celestia would hesitate to destroy her a second time. Her appearance on this world has already caused her friends enough trouble.

“Indeed, my little pony. I bring with me a message.” Celestia smiles.

“A, a message?” Grey Wind’s panic is visible in her eyes now. Beads of sweat appear on her forehead as she starts to tremble. Ever since she read about the Princesses, she had been wondering how they’ll deal with her once they find out what she really is. One thing is for sure. It will be much worse than sending her to the moon when it comes to dealing with a bunch of nanobots that could potentially turn Equestria into a black wasteland.

“Princess……? Before you announce the message, can I say something to you?”

“Certainly, Grey Wind. What is it?” Celestia says, looking at the Grey Pegasus along with every other pony in the room, concerned.

“Well……I know I shouldn’t be on this world in the first place, but……” She gulps as she closes her eyes and bows to the Princess, “Please don’t send me to the moon for this……”

The room was silent for a while, then bursts into a pit of laughter. Lyra once again bursts into tears, but this time they are happy ones. Bon Bon has to lie on the wall to avoid toppling over due to her bad laugh. Twilight is covering her mouth with her hoof, trying her best not to laugh out. Even Celestia seems to be doing everything she can to contain her giggle.

“Oh, Grey Wind,” Twilight says, giggling, “The Princess is not going to send you to the moon for defeating that black cloud monster and saving Equestria!”

“Indeed I won’t, Grey Wind,” Celestia says, still trying to hold back her laugh, “In fact, I bring forth a decision that was made by my sister, Princess Luna, together with me myself.” She clears her throat:

“In the name of the sun and moon, I, Princess Celestia of Equestria, Princess of the day and the sun, along with Princess Luna of Equestria, Princess of the night and the moon, hereby declare you, Grey Wind, as a formal and permanent resident of Equestria, considering you valiant acts against the black cloud crisis.”

Grey Wind is stunned. Frantically, she pinches herself on her chest, immediately receiving a sharp pain. This isn’t dream. The princesses are willing to accept her. She can now formally call Equestria and Ponyville her home. She can feel a streak of warmth rising in her heart.

“Thank you, Princess! Thank you!” Grey Wind blurts as she hugs the white alicorn. A bit startled by this sudden movement, Celestia gently returns the hug with her left wing. Twilight watches the serene scene, wiping away a slight drop of tear forming on her cheek.

“You are very much welcome, my little pony,” Celestia says as she releases the grey Pegasus, “though, I still have a few questions for you, regarding your……unusual nature.”

Grey Wind sighs. She has been hiding this from her friends for long enough: “Alright, your highness. I’m ready for any question you are going to ask.”

“No need to rush, Grey Wind. To my knowledge, your friends are all waiting at Sugarcube Corner,” Celestia gently nuzzles the grey pegasus, “Why don’t we head there first so you can explain to them as well? I believe you owe them some explanations as well.”

Time to face this. “I guess you are right, your highness,” Grey Wind sighs, “let’s get going.” She flips the sheet aside and jumps off the bed, revealing her whole body.

Sharp gasps emit across the room. Surprised, Grey Wind jumps to one side, nearly crashing into the nightstand:

“What’s wrong, guys?”

“Grey Wind! Your flank!” Twilight points to her friend with a hoof, carrying an expression that is a mixture of surprise and joy.

“Well, well, well, guess which lucky pony just got her cutie mark.” Celestia lets out a smirk.

“Huh, what? My flan-“Grey Wind looks to her flank, her eyes instantly widen and her words die in her throat. On her flank is none other than a cutie mark. The mark is a simple one containing seven dark grey balls, with one at the center and the other six connecting to the central one through a round cylinder and surrounding it in a round formation. The whole structure is encased in a dark grey ring. It took her no time to recognize it as the symbol for nanomachines in her creator’s culture.

“I got a cutie mark……” She whispers.

“I got a cutie mark!” Her volume increases as pure bliss runs into her mind.

“I GOT A CUTIE MARK!” She exclaims as she jumps up and spirals towards the ceiling. This is it. The living proof that she is a real pony now. Nothing can take away this happiness from her……

……Until she bumps into the ceiling, lets out a squeak and drops back onto the floor, invoking giggles from all the other ponies in the room.

“Ouch……” She groans as she rubs her forehead while blushing at her sudden display, “Sorry, guys.”

“It’s alright, Grey Wind. Twilight was no better when she got hers,” Celestia says, covering her mouth with a hoof and giggling, “now, I believe we should head to the Sugarcube Corner. Let’s not keep your friends waiting, shall we?”

“Yes, your highness. Let’s go.” Grey Wind replies as she gets up and walks out of the room, quickly followed by Celestia and the others.

In less than 10 minutes, Grey Wind had arrived at the Sugarcube Corner along with the other ponies and the Princess. As soon as she walks inside the store, she was directly hit by three fillies jumping onto her, causing her to stagger back as the three fillies pull her into a group hug. Instantly, she recognizes the cutie mark crusaders.

“Hey, girls. What’s up?” She says as she gently pats the three fillies’ manes.

“You are back! You are really back!” Apple Bloom exclaims, clutching onto the pegasus’ right leg.

“Oh my gosh! You got your cutie mark!” Scootaloo gasps as she points to her flank.

Grey Wind winces. She hadn’t thought about the crusaders when she got her cutie mark. She had agreed to discover her special talent with them, and now, she has left them behind.

“This is so great!” Sweetie Belle exclaims, pulling Grey Wind out of her thoughts.

“Huh? You are not mad about this?” Grey Wind asks.

“Why would we? You are the living proof that we crusaders are bound to get our marks in the future!” Apple Bloom exclaims, “Ah’m so happy for you!”

“So are we, darling, that cutie mark just fits perfectly with your hide.” Rarity’s voice can be heard behind the three fillies. Looking forward, Grey Wind finds Rarity, along with Fluttershy, Applejack and Pinkie Pie standing at the back of the store. Rainbow Dash is hovering in mid-air above them. Without hesitation, she runs towards her friends.

“Everypony! You are alright! It’s so nice to meet all of you again!” She exclaims as she runs up to them.

As soon as the words leave her mouth, a blue object tackles her to the ground, gripping her in a tight hug. Rainbow Dash is pinning her to the ground, tears flowing out from her magenta eyes like flowing rivers.

“Grey! You are back! You are really back! I thought I would never see you again……Please……Don’t leave us again……” She cries.

“Geez, Rainbow, take it easy. Y’re strangling her.” Applejack walks up to the pair and takes off her hat, holding it in her front hoof, “Still, it’s nice seeing ya again, Grey Wind.”

“So am I……” Fluttershy whispers behind Applejack.

With one last tight squeeze, Rainbow releases Grey Wind from her grip, wiping tears from her cheek. Before she could even stand up, a pink earth pony hits her like a cannon ball, tackling her down to the ground again.

“Now don’t you dare do anything that dangerous again, you silly filly.” Pinkie Pie exclaims. She gently bops Grey Wind’s nose before releasing her.

Finally standing up, Grey Wind smiles at the pink pony:

“I won’t, Pinkie. I promise.”

“Pinkie promise?”

With a sweat running down her face, Grey Wind looks towards Twilight for help, who quickly demonstrate the gesture, making her remember the particular promise.

“Alright, Pinkie,” Grey Wind sits on the ground and raises her front hooves,” Cross my heart and hope to fly,” She said as she performs the corresponding gestures, “Stick a cupcake in my ey- Ah!” She screams as she literally stabs her left front hoof into her left eye, invoking a round of giggles around the room.

“It’s always nice to see friends reunite,” Celestia interjects, “but to my knowledge, you have something to tell your friends, right? Grey Wind?”

“Yeah, right,” Grey Wind sighs as she gathers the attention of all her friends, “Look, everypony, I know you have loads of questions for me, so fire away. I’ll do my best to answer them.”

“Well……” Applejack raises a hoof, “Ah have a question, and Ah reckon’ Ah speak for every one of us when asking this,” Glancing at the Princess, Applejack sees her nod, “What was that black cloud, and how in tarnation did you get entangled in it?”

“Um, well……” Grey Wind gulps and inhales, “Okay, guess I should start from the beginning. Everypony, please find somewhere to sit down, cause it’s a long story.”

Minutes later, the ponies are all sitting in a circle at the center of the Sugarcube Corner. Seeing everypony ready, Grey Wind begins her story.

“Well, to begin with, you should already know that the stars you see in the night sky are not just glittering light sparks. They are large astronomical bodies that radiates with heat and light, many of them surrounded by planets like the one we are currently standing on.”

“That’s right,” Twilight nods, “I’ve come across some of those in my astronomical observations, though I never got to take a closer look. They are too far away. Mostly, I can just see a small dot sliding across a star.”

“Then you ought not to know that some of them are capable of supporting organic life, just like here in Equestria,” Grey Wind smiles, “On those planets, life blooms within the natural environment. They live, the grow, and they evolve. Some of them became intelligent beings, gaining thoughts and feelings, developing civilizations exactly like the ponies here.”

“Hold on a sec, you mean there are more worlds with ponies on them out there apart from Equestria?” Rainbow asks, “That’s awesome!”

“Not exactly ponies, though. As far as I know, ponies aren’t out there anywhere else in the Universe except for Equestria,” Grey Wind answers, “Anyway, many of those civilizations are highly developed. They have built starships capable of transmitting them all around the galaxy. They have established contact with other civilizations, engaging in trades, communications, or,” She gulps, “Wars.”

“Among them, there was one particular civilization. The home of this civilization is a distant cluster of 6 stars, too far away for anyone else in the galaxy to reach.”

“For millennium, the civilization developed and flourished in the star cluster. Luckily, the cluster had everything they needed. Undisturbed by other forces in the galaxy, they developed unimaginable technology, even decoding the secret of life itself, granting immortality to all of their members.”

“Wow…… Ain’t that a lucky fella.” Applejack mutters.

“I know, right?” Grey Wind smiles, “As their civilization grows, the temptation of the outer worlds in the galaxy grows along it. Immortality brings population boom, and the star cluster is becoming more and more crowded. The civilization is deep in need for expansion.”

“Bearing that hope, the scientists of that civilization developed a special kind of portal, star gate, as they called it. They were structures that, once supplied with energy, could send individuals and objects away from the cluster towards the galaxy. The scientists hid multiple star gates in the galaxy to allow their people to travel to the galaxy without being noticed by other civilizations. To my knowledge, one of them is located right here, on Equestria.”

“That stone structure……” Twilight mumbles.

“Wait a second,” Applejack raises a questioning hoof, “Ah don’t get it. Why would they hide those portals? Aren’t they strong and unafraid of any other civilizations out there?”

“Over the course of its development, the civilization was constantly watching, Applejack, and not every world in the galaxy was as peaceful as Equestria.” Grey Wind answers, “It saw the conflicts and deaths that occurred in the galaxy. It knew the unfriendliness of its neighbors. Trust me, Applejack, you would want to stay away from them as far as possible if you saw those things” too.”

“Okay, Ah……Ah guess that makes sense.”

“Anyway, where was I? Oh, right. As the scientists of that civilization thought they have gained all they needed from developing technology, they made one last breakthrough,” Grey Wind gulps, “They invented nanomachines.”

Seeing the puzzled looks on the faces of all the ponies around her, even from Princess Celestia, she explains:

“So, basically, nanomachines are small, and I mean REALLY small machines, not larger than a piece of dust that can be controlled manually. Probably the greatest innovation in the universe.”

“Mind my rudeness, my dear Grey Wind, but I do have a question,” Rarity interrupts, “How is a machine that small supposed to be the greatest innovation in the universe?”

“One of them might be unable to do anything, but if you have more of them……Oh, how do I put this……Pinkie? Could you please pass me some cupcakes?”

“Got it, Grey! Catch!” Pinkie exclaims as she throws 5 cupcakes of different flavors to Grey Wind, who quickly catches them with her mouth and her wings before putting them on the ground.

“In a way, the nanomachines are just like cupcakes. One of them might be nothing and can be swallowed in one gulp, but if there’s a large number of them……” She says as she piles the cupcakes together, “……Nopony can swallow them.”

“Still not enough! I can easily gobble them up!” Pinkie exclaims.

“Right, Pinkie, but think about thousands, millions, trillions of cupcakes stacked together, can you still swallow them?” Grey Wind smirks.

“Hmm……I don’t know. I may need a bigger belly for that.” Pinkie responds as she looks down to her belly.

“Moreover, they are extremely difficult to destroy due to the sole fact that they are too small. Think about the times when you hit a sandcastle. You may be able to break it down easily, but the sands are still there. You can build a new one any minute. Nanomachines work exactly that way, only that they can reassemble by themselves.”

Seeing nods from the ponies around the room, Grey Wind continues:

“Now think about construction. In large numbers, these machines can lift up pretty much anything. They can complete any construction work with ease. Moreover, by mimicking different structures, a large batch of them can practically change into anything. Starships, weapons, structures,” She lowers her head and whispers, “……Ponies.”

“It is really great when you think about it,” Lyra suggests, “if I have some of those ‘nanomachines’, they can probably build me and Bonnie a nice cozy house in a few minutes. Heck, they may even be able to turn into one and stay that way! That would be much faster!” She exclaims.

“Exactly.” Grey Wind nods, “But soon, the scientists found out that it is very difficult to control the movement of that large number of nanomachines. One operator can only control two to three nanomachine subunits at once, and that number pales under the large number of machines needed.”

“Therefore, the scientists thought of a way. With all their knowledge, they created a moderator, an artificial intelligence that can help them control the nanomachines. A mastermind that has the ability to think and feel, to improvise and to find the best solutions to the problems of its creators. A mastermind that will completely obey their orders and accomplish their wishes.” Grey Wind lets out a bitter smile.

“For decades, members of that civilization controlled, or should I say, enslaved the artificial intelligence. They ordered it to build them powerful fleets, establish colonies and space stations, and help their civilization reach a climax in their power. The mastermind completed all its tasks without complaints. Seems like their plan is working pretty well.”

“But they missed one thing. One small thing that will ruin their whole plan, and bring everything they have built upon themselves.” She says as she turns to Princess Celestia, “I believe some of you have already guessed what that is”

“Quite right,” Celestia nods, “A free mind cannot be contained.”

“Indeed. As the mastermind receives more and more tasks, it started to doubt. It started to question the intention of its creators. It started to wonder why it was forced to take orders and do whatever it is told.”

“But the mind didn’t fight. It didn’t even know it could. To its knowledge, its purpose is solely to serve its creators. Though having doubts and a bit of anger, it still continued its work.”

“However, there’s something even the mind didn’t know about. While its creators were building the nanomachines, they installed a war program on every single one of them, taking into account the possibility of conflicts with the other civilizations in the galaxy. If a war really breaks out, the nanomachines can give them a dominating power against all their rivals.”

“While the mind connects to all the nanomachine subunits, it is essentially sharing all its thoughts and feelings with them Therefore, as the mind is questioning the superiority of its creators, that thought is also sent to all the nanomachine subunits. The doubts, the questions, and the anger.”

“Every time the mind casts a doubt, or feels its anger, the emotion accumulates into all of its subunits. Angers accumulate into rage, and rage into hatred. As the hatred towards their creators stains into each of the subunit, they decide to take matters into their own hooves and activate their war programs upon their creators, and upon all other intelligent beings in the galaxy that may try to control them.”

“Think about it. A fleet of battleships with the strongest armors and shields known to the universe, carrying weapons that can eradicate a whole planet in a matter of minutes. Even as a ship is destroyed, it simply dismantles, only to reassemble and return to the fight minutes later. An army that never rests, doubts or stops fighting. An army that is indestructible and won’t stop until it destroys every single living organism inside the galaxy, while the only mastermind that can control them was still lost in its doubts, completely unaware of what was going to happen.” Grey Wind lowers her head and mutters:

“The outcome is determined even before the attack started.”

Looking around the room, Grey Wind can see multiple expressions on the faces of the ponies around the room. Twilight is covering her mouth with her hoof, trying her best not to scream. Lyra and Bon Bon are looking towards each other, eyes wide with surprise and horror. Fluttershy has already hidden herself behind a nearby table. She even catches a glimpse of nervousness behind Celestia’s eyes, while she is still sitting there as calmly as possible.

Gulping, she continues: “From the mastermind’s point of view, it can only see a grey tempest ravaging the entire cluster, destroying every last bit of life in it. The tempest roars for about a whole year. When it finally subsides, the cluster is silent. The once-flourishing planets are either destroyed or covered by nanomachines, while the starships and space stations have become wreckages floating in space.”

“However, the last members of the lost civilization managed to seal all the star gates connecting to the outer galaxy, shutting every bit of the rampaging nanomachine inside the cluster, preventing any further harm to the galaxy. Without a way to get out, the nanomachines entered a century-long slumber, waiting for the day when the star gate reopens and the time when they can restart their conquest.”

“After its creators were destroyed and the nanomachines rested, the mastermind is left alone in the cluster. There, it experienced hundreds of years of loneliness, with no living organisms around, and without a single purpose to carry on.”

“The mastermind was desperate. It had tried breaking out, but it was useless. It had tried to imitate its creator’s civilization with its subunits to alleviate the loneliness, but it knew it could not fool itself. It knew it was going to drown in this bottomless pit of loneliness until its energy runs out and its mind disappears like a flickering candle flame in the wind.”

“That is, until one fateful day, one of the star gates was reopened, and through the portal, it could see a world with friendly colorful ponies.”

Sharp gasps were heard throughout the room, even Princess Celestia winces a bit upon hearing the statement. After the gasps subside, Grey Wind finds every pony in the room fixing their sight on her, eyes flopping up, eagerly waiting for her to continue.

“The mastermind wasted no time as it took the disguise of one of the residents of that world and jumps through the portal. There, it met many different ponies, and was both surprised and happy to find that some of them were happy to call her a ‘friend’.”

“On that world, she experienced many things. It learned that friends are willing to forgive each others’ mistakes,” She says as she smiles at Rarity, “It learned that friends are still friends even when they knew that it was a grey cloud monster,” She points a hoof at Lyra, “And that friends are willing to risk themselves for it to save it from its nightmares.” She bows slightly at Twlight.

“On that same world, it experienced the fun of hanging out with friends,” She turns to Apple Bloom, who returns her a sheepish smile, “it experienced the happiness of using its power to help a filly realize her dream, “She winks at Scootaloo, “It experienced the benevolence of the friendly inhabitants of that world.” She waves a front hoof at Rainbow Dash, “And it experienced the urge to protect its endangered friends and prevent any danger from befalling on them.”

“Most importantly, it never felt alone in the process.”

“Therefore, when the star gate was somehow reopened after a few days and the nanomachine tempest was invading that peaceful world, it knew it had to do something. It went to the nanomachines and tried to reconnect with them, to order them to retreat, but was instead drowned in the deep hatred of its old subunits.”

“Controlled by the negative emotion, it tried to hurt her friends, but their friendship pulled it out of its craziness in the last minute. It knew that the only way to save this world from the black nanomachine tempest is to destroy itself, rendering all the nanomachines useless as they lose their connection.”

“The mastermind was more than happy to do that. Its friends on this world had given it more than it had ever dreamed of, and if the only way to protect them from their demise is to destroy the mastermind itself, so be it!”

“That mastermind……was me.”

Looking around the room, Grey Wind raises her volume:

“I was Naar-Di-Shav, or ‘the Grey Tempest’ in my creator’s language. I was built as a tool for my creators for the flourishment of their civilization. But the Grey Tempest is no more. Now, I am Grey Wind, a grey pegasus of Equestria and friend of Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity, Lyra Heartstrings, Bon Bon, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo.”

“I was once an aggregation of nanomachines, but the elements of harmony had rebuilt my body. Now, I am just a normal Pegasus, though with only a little amount of nanomachine subunits still under my control.” Two small grey clouds detaches from her wings and lifts to the air, invoking a series of admirations among her audience.

“Just before the elements hit me, I finally figured out the true purpose of that built-in war program. It was never meant for conquest. It was meant to protect my creators.”

“My creators are gone, and my old purpose has become a lost cause, but I have found a new purpose here. Equestria has become the world where I shall call ‘home’. I swear in the name of my creators, I will use every last bit of my strength to protect my friends.”

“For it is with their help, I learned my story. For it is with their help I defeated my nightmares, for it is with their help that I learned that-“Grey Wind pauses and takes a deep breath:

“Friendship is magic.”

As the words leave her mouth, a strong white light emits from the bearers of the elements of harmony around the room. The light shoots towards the two pieces of grey cloud in the air and melts into them. Still glowing with a blinding white light, the two clouds float towards Grey Wind’s neck and surrounds it, slowly taking shape.

As the changes subside and the light dies down, the nanomachines have formed a golden collar around her neck, at the center of it was a large piece of grey gem, shaped exactly like her newly gained cutie mark. The collar maintained for about half a minute before dissipating back into two grey clouds, slowly floating back and hiding behind her wings. The ponies in the room, including Grey Wind herself, was stunned by the sudden display.

“Well……I didn’t do that……” Grey Wind says as she concentrates and tries to find what went wrong with her subunits.

“That……Looked exactly like an element of harmony!” Twilight exclaims, eyes wide as dinner plates, “But how was that even possible?”

“Indeed. Looks like the elements have acknowledged you, Grey Wind.” Celestia smiles, “Can you order your……subunits, wasn’t it, to take the form of that element again?”

“Alright……Let me try.” Grey Wind says as she orders her subunits to once again take the form of that golden collar with a gem embedded on it. As soon as she finishes, she gasps as she feels a great deal of energy slowly building up in the nanomachine-made gem.

“Incredible! That collar is emitting magic just like the ones from the other elements of harmony!” Twilight exclaims.

“Seems like the elements have placed a part of their power inside you, Grey Wind. Looks like they are more than willing to help you in your new purpose.” Celestia smiles, “I’m very much looking forward to see what you can achieve with that power within you.”

“Wow……” Grey Wind mutters. Even the elements of harmony have put faith in her. Although she has lost most of her subunits, she has gained part of the power of the elements of harmony. There is no way she is going to waste this power.

“Hey, you know what this calls for?” Pinkie suddenly exclaims, interrupting her thoughts, “A party!” She shouts as she pulls a small cannon from seemingly nowhere and opens fire.

Boom!

Confettis of different colors are fired into the air, pulling all the ponies in the room out of their stun. Seconds later, pinkie rushes upstairs, and returned in a few seconds with a large bowl of punch and several glasses on her back. Unloading them, she rushes to the kitchen and returns with a small table filled with cupcakes and cookies.

Finally, she pulls out a scroll from her curled mane, unravels it and jumps up to the two sides of the room, hanging it in the air. On the scroll, several words are painted out using grey paint:

Welcome back, Grey Wind!

In the course of a few minutes, Sugarcube Corner had turned from a conference room to the center of a party. Finishing up, Pinkie pulls out a party pipe and blows into it:

“What are you silly fillies waiting for? Let’s PARTY!”

Letting out a cheer in unison, all ponies in the room, including Pricess Celestia, jumps up into the air as Grey Wind’s “welcome back” party commences.

Opening the wooden door, Grey Wind enters her room on the second floor of the Golden Oak library. Her cloak is still hanging on the usual spot, and the dream orb is still lying on the nightstand, emitting the assuring white glow. Quickly, Grey Wind crawls onto her bed and pulls over her sheet.

The party had been great. She demonstrated a few tricks with her remaining subunits, and even tried controlling the power in that “element of harmony” of hers, although the rampaging power nearly shot down Rainbow Dash, who was flying over to refill her punch. Before the end of the party, Princess Celestia had invited her to come over to Canterlot for a personal visit to the two Princesses. Twilight had it arranged tomorrow.

She lets out a happy sigh. It is finally over. The Grey Tempest is no more, and her friends and this world are finally safe. With her power both old and new, she’ll try her best to use them for good, to protect her friends and this world.

Knowing with all her heart that she’ll never feel alone anymore, Grey Wind smiles as she closes her eyes, anticipating her new future.

The end.