Harmony Dies- part two
The tree of Harmony... no matter how many times she or the other ponies came down here to view this crystalline wonder of nature, they couldn't believe how warm and inviting it's sparkling glow seemed. A powerful symbol of the elements of harmony it had once contained, the tree was a sign of the permanence and stability that harmony itself represented.
"This infernal tree..." The queen noted, as she and her adviser looked on as the Dream Valley guards surrounded the crystalline growth. "...the source of our tormentors greatest strength. Once we have felled the great source of the elements of harmony, the balance of power will begin to shift in this land."
"My queen, I am still urging you to reconsider this act of madness! The tree of Harmony is holy to all of ponykind!" Breezes again pleaded to her sovereign. "The alicornists say the first six ponies first emerged from the trees branches, and horsemasterist lore says Ponydom's greatest treasures- such as the golden horseshoes- were fashioned from it's crystalline bark! Can we so easily strike down a living thing, that has been so beneficial to our race?"
"Don't you think I have thought about that?!?" Sky Skimmer snorted, staring back at her shaken adviser. "Don't you think I've agonized over this decision?" She looked at the tree coldly. "I've had the court mages and ambassadors searching for an alternative solution for the past week. But all of the other royal courts, including Celestia and Luna's, have all turned a deaf ear to our plight. I do not wish to go down in history as the mad queen who cut down the pony world tree." She narrowed her eyes. "But I will not go down in history as the queen who let her people starve and freeze to death, either."
"As you wish, my queen." Out of arguments and the will to argue, the mare simply lowered her head, and sadly stepped away.
"I'm sorry, my old friend. But we have no choice." Sky Skimmer turned to her other adviser. "Melody, tell the unicorn guards to take up positions around the tree, so they can catch it when it comes down."
Lowering her head, Sky's golden crown began to glow. A wide red beam shot forth from the mare's head, striking the base of the tree. Immediately, the beam began melting through the crystal trunk, slicing through the mighty plant that served to hold all of Equestria in balance.
"That's it, my queen!" Love Melody exclaimed excitedly. "You're doing it!"
The tree began to creak and groan, rainbow energy sparking from it's damaged trunk. And all over Equestria, everypony felt something was amiss. Earth ponies, Pegasus, and unicorn's alike felt the terrible pain in their hearts that they just couldn't explain, while the three remaining alicorns heard the tree's scream of agony in their minds, as if friendship and love itself was under assault in the air all around them.
"Fall, you stupid tree!" The queen snarled, assaulting it's base with all of her might. "Damn you, fall!"
The tree of harmony was one of the mightiest sources of magic in the entire world, few artifacts cold compare to it's power. But the golden crown- the physical embodiment of the power of the horsemaster himself- was mightier. All over Equestria, they very ground and soil seemed to writhe in agony as the tree withered and died- plants and animals both suffered as the crystalline plant suffered it's death throes. Finally, the great tree came down with a mighty crash.
"My queen you've done it!" Melody exclaimed, as the unicorn guards levitated the now fallen tree off the ground. "You brought the tree of harmony down!"
Although none of the ponies in Equestria knew what had exactly happened, not even the great Celestia and Luna, they all sensed that something terrible had occurred. Very slowly, the strength of Dream Valley's ponies slowly began to grow, along with the strength began to fade from their Equestrian cousins. it would take generations before ponykind would feel the results of a process that had only begun, but the balance had now begun to shift away from Harmony.
"Well... it appears you've achieved your desire, my queen." Breezes lamented, looking down at her exhausted queen. "But what should we do with the dead tree now?"
"Carve a large gemstone from the branches and trunk, and have it sent to Princess Luna as a gift." The queen gasped, nearly falling to her knees. "As to the body, have my unicorn artificers fashion me a new royal crystalline carriage from it's trunk. Might as well get something out of this whole accursed mess."
"Yes, my queen." Melody and Breezes bowed, as Sky Skimmer trotted away. "It shall be done just as you command."
"Can you believe it, Breezes?" Melody whinnied excitedly, as the guards levitated the dead harmony tree away. "We've borne witness to history! This marks a new and exciting change for the entire world!"
"You're right about one thing, the world has indeed changed." Breezes wept, even as she felt a new, chaotic strength wash into her body, one that made her warm feelings of friendship and light flee from her mind. "And you should also realize that now that the crown has been used for an action that will harm the rest of Ponykind, Dream Valley is in for one heck of a backlash." The mare shook her head sadly. "May the horsemaster help us all..."