//------------------------------// // Intermission 2: We March At Dawn // Story: The Brass Conspiracy // by MadHighlander //------------------------------// The Skies Above Old Canterlot Approximately 2000 years ago Swift Wind hovered above the city below. In the twenty years since he and the other Equulanean refugees had arrived, a number of Pegasus engineers fleeing the fall of Cloudsdale had built a small cloud settlement over Canterlot. Though most cloud cities were mobile, he himself had helped to construct a thermal anchor system to keep the settlement – which some had begun to refer to as New Cloudsdale – within the borders of Celestia and Luna’s protective enchantments. The group had managed to make a decent-sized circle of friends in Canterlot over the years. Although the four former nobles themselves formed its core, they had also forged a close friendship with Celestia and Luna, as well as Penumbra, the bat-pony guard who had met them at the gate that first day. Speaking of Penumbra… “Hey, Swift!” Flapping her wings, the bat-pony mare ascended from the castle grounds towards him. She wasn’t wearing her armor at the moment, indicating that she was presently off duty. Swift remembered being surprised the first time he’d seen her cutie mark; he had expected some sort of shield or sword symbol, like most of the guards back in Equulaneum, but Penumbra’s mark was three upwards-pointing shooting stars. After a few years of wondering, he’d asked her what it meant. Her response had been, “I used to be a party planner before I joined the guards. They needed more ponies when Discord showed up – even when you arrived the Everfree Rangers were more than twice as big as they were before all this happened.” “Oh. So… Shooting stars?” he had replied. She had smiled and nudged him lightly. “They’re fireworks, dummy. Dad made them from scratch. A new explosion for every occasion. I always knew what we needed, and he knew how to make it happen.” “I don’t think I’ve met your dad. Where is he?” Her smile faded. “His name was Parallax.” “Oh.” Parallax was famous in Canterlot; he had been out in the forest when he had come upon a group of refugees fleeing north from San Palomino. They were pursued by a large herd of ponies affected by one of Discord’s rage spells. Parallax had directed them over a bridge spanning Ghastly Gorge and sacrificed himself to bring it down once they had crossed, trapping the cursed ponies on the far side and giving the refugees a clear path to Canterlot. “After he died, I realized there’s no room for parties when you’re one of the ponies protecting the last bastion of sanity in a world gone mad. It’s just… in poor taste, I think. Even just a night of going crazy when the rest of the world is permanently stuck in such a state, and going through hell because of it, I just don’t think…” She trailed off. Swift had pointed out, “Not necessarily. The chaos that’s out there, that’s bad chaos, sure. But sometimes, there needs to be a break in the order. I remember Celestia mentioned something like this once; she said, ‘Harmony is not synonymous with order; harmony is a state of balance in all things, including order and chaos.’ I think order doesn’t exist to eliminate chaos, but to keep it in check, so it doesn’t, well,” he had gestured in the general direction of Equulaneum, “do that.” “You think so?” “Yeah. No matter what your special talent is, you can use it to do great things. All you need to do is give it a try.” Penumbra had laughed. “I can’t believe I’m getting life tips from somepony who’s almost ten years younger than me.” After that, Penumbra had seemed significantly happier. Taking Swift’s advice to heart, she had started arranging birthday celebrations for her close friends. She hadn’t been fully certain about it… until Celestia had called on her to plan a Grand Gala for Luna’s birthday. That event, which had been a steady annual occurrence since that year, had also served to cement the group’s friendship, both with Penumbra and with the two alicorns. Back in the modern day, Penumbra settled on a cloud nearby, and Swift joined her. “What are you doing all the way up here, Swift?” “Just marvelling at the fact that we’ve been here for twenty years now. Twenty years as of just an hour or so ago, actually. It seems like just yesterday, doesn’t it?” “It sure does. An appropriate time for Celestia to want to talk to us about the thing she and Luna mentioned on that first day. Rose told me to tell you – she wants us to meet her in the study at noon.” “Which thing?” Hope rose to Swift’s face as he remembered Luna hinting at the existence of a weapon against Discord. “I don’t know. That’s everything rose told me – she ran off to tell Cogspin. She figured he’d be excited to hear.” “Well then, let’s go.” Swift lifted off. “If it’s what I think it is, we definitely don’t want to miss it.” Penumbra followed as they lifted off and glided down toward the castle, landing on a balcony on the edge of the west tower and entering the double doors nearby. Ascending the stairs, they passed by Cogspin’s room. The door was ajar, revealing complex diagrams stuck to a piece of corkboard on the far wall, over a workbench covered in obscure mechanisms made of brass. “Cogspin’s sure grown up, hasn’t he?” commented Penumbra. Swift laughed, remembering the little foal that rode into Canterlot on his back, and hid from Celestia behind his mane. “He sure has. If we hadn’t been here the whole time, I don’t think we would even recognize him.” As they ascended the stairs, they caught up with Cogspin, who was slowed by his efforts to wipe oil stains off of his coat. The formerly white rag he had been using was quickly turning black. He greeted them with a cheery wave of his hoof, raising a pair of goggles onto his forehead. “Hey, you two! Did Rose tell you what Celestia said?” Penumbra shrugged. “Rose told me, and I told him. What were you doing, playing in a tar pit?” she joked. “Nope, just tinkering. I managed to stop the oil leak in the lantern setup.” He gestured to himself. “I should try to keep away from open flames for a while.” He grinned. At that moment, they reached the door to Celestia’s study, situated at the top of the tower. Penumbra pushed open the door and Cogspin and Swift filed in. The two Alicorns, as well as Blue Spark and Rose, were already present. She saluted them, grinning. “I guess I’ll let you get to it. We can hang out later.” “Wait,” said Celestia. “There is no reason why you ought not to hear this; stay if you wish.” Penumbra shrugged, and went to sit by Swift, in front of the two sisters. Luna approached from the back of the room, carrying a large, ornate chest, and rested it on the ground in front of the group. Opening it with magic, she revealed that its contents consisted of nothing more than six dark blue crystals, nestled in velvet padding. The crystals were flat, about the size of a hoof, and each bore a different symbol engraved on their upper face: a thorny vine, a twig with one small leaf, three balloons, a shield with a cross emblem, a crescent moon, and a stylised sun. “These are the Elements of Harmony,” said Luna reverentially. “They are the means by which we might bring low Discord, as my sister and I alluded to on the day you first arrived.” “They must be wielded by Bearers strong in the virtues they represent: Honesty,” Celestia indicated the crystal with the twig emblem on it, “Kindness,” the thorny vine, “Loyalty,” the shield, “Generosity,” the sun, “Magic,” the moon, “and Laughter,” the three balloons. “The marks on the crystals are the cutie marks of the ponies who bore them a millennium and a half ago.” As Celestia said this, Swift noticed that the sun and moon symbols on the crystals were identical to Celestia’s and Luna’s own cutie marks. “Sadly,” interjected Luna, “four of those bearers passed away long ago. As such, the artifacts are useless unless they choose new bearers, which is why we were hesitant to discuss them with you before; we feared they may have proven to be nothing more than what they appear. However, you four have experienced much emotional growth in the past twenty years; and we have come to count you within our own circle of closest friends. My sister and I, after much deliberation, have come to the conclusion that, should they encounter you, the Elements may well choose you yourselves as their new Bearers.” Celestia reached into the chest, withdrawing the crystal that bore her own cutie mark. “While it is true that you are only four ponies, my sister and I have no reason to believe that the Elements would reject us if we were to attempt to use them again. As such, we shall bear our own Elements even as you will have yours.” Luna took her own crystal from the chest. “The most important thing to remember about the Elements is that they are not a weapon. They are a conduit of love, happiness, and joy that will restore balance to the world if used in a just manner, without malice. Step forward, and claim whichever Element you feel speaks to you. We are confident that it will accept you as its Bearer.” Swift watched Rose step up first, gazing over the chest. Her hoof hovered over the Laughter crystal, passing on to Loyalty, and then finally settling on Kindness. When she picked it up, the symbol of the thorny vine on the front changed to resemble Rose’s own cutie mark, a single white rose. Celestia stepped forward and looked at the crystal in Rose’s hoof. “It has accepted you. It is interesting that you should bear the element of Kindness, as it was an ancestor of yours, Summer Blossom, who bore it the first time.” “I’ve never heard of Summer Blossom. How long ago were these used? A millennium and a half ago, you said?” “Yes. And you would know her by the name society remembers her by, Queen Cruelthorn the Penitent. She despised that name, and always insisted that we who were her friends refer to her as Summer Blossom, the name under which she was born.” Rose stepped back, replaced by Blue Spark, who immediately snatched the Honesty crystal. As it had for Rose, the image of the one-leafed twig vanished, replaced by Blue Spark’s four-pointed star. This time it was Luna who commented. “It was most certainly not your ancestor who bore the Element of Honesty; on the contrary it was brought to bear against King Silverblood. We were overjoyed when we discovered how different you are from him; it was that which gave us hope that we may prevail against Discord.” Spark nodded and stepped back, making room for Swift to trot up to the chest and gaze upon the two remaining Elements. His gaze fell upon Laughter first; after a moment’s deliberation he looked to Loyalty and, suddenly certain, grabbed the shield-embossed crystal from the chest and watched it shift to match his own cutie mark, of three parallel wavy lines. “Loyalty is a powerful force in the world.” Luna stepped forward to stand beside Swift. “The loyalty of a few good ponies can save the world, or topple it, based on who that loyalty is given to. But true loyalty is far less complicated than the machinations of politics; you have been loyal to your friends. I am confident that you will continue to be.” Celestia looked up, at Cogspin, who hadn’t stepped forward. “Laughter is all that remains, Cogspin. I-” “What is this?” Cogspin interrupted her. “I waited twenty years to avenge my mother and now you’re telling me we’re going to love and tolerate Discord out of Equulaneum? That’s, that’s patently ridiculous. Love and tolerance is all very well between friends, but it’ll only get you so far against monsters like that thing that’s sitting on my mother’s throne, wearing my mother’s crown. You said that this isn’t a weapon? Well we need a weapon.” “Cogspin-” “No. I’m done here. I’m going down to my room. Maybe I can build something useful.” He stalked towards the door. Rose reached out to him. “Cogspin, wait-” He slammed the door, cutting her off. The other three trotted over to Celestia and Luna. “This is what I was afraid of,” said Luna. “Despite our efforts to help him past it, Cogspin has been unable to see past his hate of Discord. He will no doubt calm down in due time, but I’m afraid, with a reaction like that, he would be unable to wield Laughter even if we could convince him to try.” Celestia gulped, slightly shaken by Cogspin’s vitriol. “Perhaps, in a few years, he might mellow somewhat?” This time, Blue Spark interjected. “We don’t have a few years. If the Rangers’ reports are anything to judge by, Equis is going to tear itself apart in a matter of months from all the chaos magic in the air. What can we possibly do?” At that moment their thoughts were interrupted by a loud whooshing noise, and all five of their crystals shifted into heavy granite spheres, still bearing the insignias of their cutie marks. A loud thunk drew their attention back to the chest, where Penumbra stood with a mortified look on her face, having just dropped a sixth such orb onto the wooden floor. “I-I just wanted to get a closer look,” she stammered. “What, what happened?” Celestia stepped forward and picked up the sphere from where it had fallen. “I do not know. But one thing is certain.” She held up the orb so that everypony present could see that its balloon insignia had been replaced with three shooting stars. “The Element of Laughter has chosen you as its Bearer, Penumbra.” She smiled broadly. “The Elements are complete.” Cogspin yelled as he swept a hoof across his desk, scattering brass mechanisms, parts, and scraps to the floor where they bounced with a cacophonous clatter. He tore the blueprints one by one from the board on his wall, throwing them onto the floor as well. When that was done, he sat on the bed on the opposite side of the room, breathing heavily and simmering with anger. There was a loud knock on the door, followed by the voice of an Everfree Guard. “Prince Cogspin! We heard a noise. Are you all right?” Cogspin didn’t reply for a moment. He was staring at one of the blueprints lying on the floor. As he stared, his gaze hardened, and a smile spread across his face, carrying with it a grim amusement. Snatching the blueprint, he threw it into a pair of leather saddlebags, following it with most of the brass bits from the floor. He threw the saddlebags over his back, snatching several chests full of similar spare parts and tying them together with strips of leather. He opened the door in the middle of the guard’s third call and threw the improvised saddlebags over his back, and those of the other three guards standing outside the door. “Come on,” he said. “Prince Cogspin?” Cogspin grabbed the other blueprints, rolled them up as best he could, and stuffed them under the shoulder strap of his own saddlebags. He pushed through the four slightly dumbstruck bat-ponies, who hurried after him. “We’re going to go kill Discord.”