Repairing Harmony (Part One)
Repairing Harmony (Part One)
Equestria had once been a land of peace, love, and harmony. A land where ponies frolicked together and helped one another. Equestria had been prideful. It had also fallen under a dark period, ruled by a spirit of chaos, Discord. Discord kept the ponies in a constant unbalanced and miserable state, caring only for his own entertainment. This went on until two sisters, Celestia and Luna, rose up and defeated Discord, returning harmony to the peaceful land. All was well with the with the two sisters presiding over the land. They helped to raise the sun and moon. Ponies played and crops grew in Celestia's beautiful daylight, while they slept away Luna's glorious night. This invoked rage and jealousy in the heart of the princess, transforming her into Nightmare Moon. She raised the moon and refused to lower it, ensnaring Equestria in eternal night. Celestia harnessed the Elements of Harmony and sentenced Nightmare Moon to the moon for a thousand years. All was well in Equestria, Celestia took sole responsibility of both the moon and sun. Years had passed with no trouble. Finally, Nightmare Moon had made a reappearance. Princess Celestia no longer had any connection to the Elements of Harmony. Luckily, her star pupil, Twilight Sparkle, has discovered the location and secret of how to use them. Twilight and her friends- Apple Jack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie- used the Elements to come together and defeat Nightmare Moon. Princess Luna had been restored, allowing Equestria to be co-ruled once again.
Harmony, of course, was not meant to last. Princess Celestia had fallen ill and was unable to continue her rule, and Luna wouldn't leave her side. Twilight Sparkle rushed to Canterlot to remain by her beloved teacher's side. Celestia's illness eventually ended her, crushing both her sister and Sparkle. Twilight became depressed, refusing to leave Canterlot.
The Wonderbolts were Equestria's team of amazing flyers. They were famous everywhere. Rainbow Dash tried for years to get in with them. After word of Dash's record breaking speed and Sonic Rainboom had reached them, they rushed out to meet this famed pegasus. Spitfire and Soarin' were impressed. They immediately recruited her.
Rarity was Ponyville's most exclusive dress maker. Years of being shut down by Canterlot's elite gave her the drive to improve. Rarity eventually became the top designer, selling her dresses to A-list ponies and even to the wedding of Princess Cadance and Shining Armor. Rarity even had a wedding herself. She and Fancy Pants married six months after the Royal Wedding and moved out to the countryside of Equestria.
The Apple Family had suffered a major blow. The FlimFlam Brothers, notorious scam artists who had previously attempted to take the farm, returned- this time, with better machines and magic. The Apples, credit to their stubborn nature, wouldn't go down without a fight. However, they were no match against new and improved Flim and Flam. Apple Jack and her family packed up and left Ponyville for good.
Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy were the only two Elements left.
Pinkie, the normally hyper, happy-go-lucky, mare was unable to cope with her friends being taken away. The party pony went into a deep bout of depression, followed by a severe phase of insanity that got her placed into the Equestrian Mental Institution.
Fluttershy, after witnessing Pie's insanity, fled to her loft and never came back out.
Without the Elements and the Princesses to stop him, Discord made a come back.
Darkness seeped through Lyra Heartstring's dusty window blinds. When the world she knew was in utter chaos, why bother cleaning? She tossed the duvet cover back, nighttime becoming her new day, she trudged to her kitchen to open up her fridge. She pulled out a container of milk, searched around in the dark for a bowl, and then hunted down the box of cereal. Not even caring to fill the room with light, she plopped down at her kitchen table and began pouring her breakfast.
The door slammed open quickly, odd coloured moonlight bursting through, illuminating Bon Bon's small frame.
"Lyra! Come quickly! Everypony is over at Octavia's, Derpy says it's important!"
Huffing quietly, she dropped the still full bowl into the sink and grouchily followed Bon Bon to the prissy pony's home.
Inside, everypony was crowded around Doctor Whooves. The brown stallion had what looked like a very crumpled and old parchment in his hooves. Spike the dragon was crouched down beside him.
"What's going on?" Lyra asked, cocking her sea green head to the side.
"Spike just delivered us this letter from the Princess," Octavia replied back, her fancy accent suddenly gone, "We just got it a few moments ago. It included all of us."
Lyra looked ever more confused, "But Princess Celestia has been dead for years."
"It's from Cadence." Spike pipes up.
Doctor Whooves sits the paper carefully down onto the table beside him, "It seems as though Princess Cadence wants us to locate the Elements of Harmony, the items that brought Discord down the first time."
They all looked at him with the same bewildered expression.
He shrugged, "I'm just as confused. She seems to think that we have the ability to spark them just as Twilight and her friends did."
"We don't even know where they are." Derpy sighed, "Twilight hasn't left that castle in years, Pinkie is...well...crazy, Fluttershy won't leave her loft, Rainbow is too fancy with the Wonderbolts...."
"Yes, yes, we know." Lyra grumped, "Maybe we should just try Fluttershy anyway, see if it'll work. Never know."
Whooves nodded, "We'll have to do it quickly, there's no telling what Discord will do."
All six looked at each other, Derpy, Vinyl, Bon Bon, Octavia, Whooves, and Lyra. They nodded, intent on this plan.
The night air felt sticky, puffs of pink clouds pouring out chocolate milk floated on by. The small group tried carefully to stick in the darkest parts, which became nearly impossible as the ground decided to toss and turn beneath their feet, rolling side ways, and disappearing in general. What would've been a normal 20 minute walk became an hour. Tired, gulping down breaths, the ponies marched up to Fluttershy's door and banged on it.
"W-who's there!" The shy pony yelled through the door.
"It's us, Vinyl Scratch!" the white unicorn shouted back, "We need you."
"G-g-go away!"
"No! We really need you!" Bon Bon tried, "You're very important to us."
A couple moment of silence shifted and the door opened up a crack. Fluttershy's baby pink mane was matted and streaked with grey hairs, her blue-green eyes dull and line with bruised bags of no sleep. Her buttery coat was unbrushed and greying.
"what do you want?" her soft voice was a whisper.
"we need to know what the Elements of Harmony are." Whooves answered quickly.
She shook her head, "Twilight was always responsible for that. Look in her library."
The door was quickly shut again.
