True Harmony
When Harmony Was Forged
The following is an account taken verbatim from a public session of court. In this document, Vulcan the minotaur states his case for True Harmony. I, Apprentice Stenographer Sand Scrit, have taken this record unbiased so it may serve as an accurate retelling for future generations.
"Traitor to the Reign of Harmony, explain to us and the court why thou would have us all gathered here today. Speak, we await your answer." Princess Luna opens the floor to the prisoner, Vulcan. Vulcan's coat is black from his years spent before the forge and his white eyes give away his near blindness. Despite the severity of the prisoner's situation, he does not bow or prostrate himself when before the Princesses. He is to receive the highest punishment there is for his crimes, so perhaps he does not fear the worsening of his sentence.
"I, Vulcan the blacksmith, am here because Princess Celestia and Princess Luna do not agree with my own ideals. They say I have threatened harmony with my creation, but they do not see that my creation is actually True Harmony!" Vulcan says. His voice is hoarse and his speech is simple, but he each word still commands the attention of those present.
"Tell the court exactly what thou hast done, prisoner." This time it is Princess Celestia who addresses the prisoner. They say it was Princess Celestia herself who discovered the evidence of the prisoner's transgression. The whereabouts of this evidence are unknown to the general public.
"I cannot deny what the Princess claims she has found. I did indeed put Harmony back upon my forge in order to create six, new, truer, and more powerful elements. Each of these new elements are what the old elements are not," the says the prisoner, explaining his crime. There is a murmur throughout the court which is quelled by Princess Luna raising a hoof to silence her subjects. Princess Celestia stands to address Vulcan.
"For thine heinous crime, thou shalt be banished from Equestria for all of time. As per your final request, thou hast been allowed to come before the court so thou might explain thine actions. Know this, prisoner: the words thou shalt share today shall not sway this royal decision of ours!"
The prisoner bows deeply in response. He then clears his throat and begins his speech.
"I am sure by now you are all familiar with the Elements of Harmony: Honesty, Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Loyalty, and Magic. Even when I forged them, I believed them to be the genuine articles. When I put harmony back upon my forge though, I discovered a truer, better path to harmony. I shall prove this to you by juxtaposing each Element of Harmony with it's respective True Element of Harmony.
"The first is True Honesty, Secrecy. Those who practice honesty are just as the apple tree; they display their fruit to the world by reaching towards the heavens and bear this fruit easily for those with the strength to ask for it. Those who practice secrecy are just as an oyster; the fruits they bear are hidden from sight and are not always valuable, but the oyster will hold onto its treasure even if it means death for the oyster. We should all be as secretive as the oyster is, for what value is there in a truth easily won?
"The ponies who give the truth away freely believe they are being helpful, but they are wrong. The oyster diver will always be more determined than the apple farmer! What kind of society would we live in if ponies didn't have to strive for the truth themselves? Honesty breeds sloth and ignorance! The truth does not grow on trees, but the honest throw their pearls before swine and call themselves heroes! How can they be so blind?
"Perhaps they are not blind, but wicked! They know they can make others dependent upon them if they make of themselves a font of truth. This is why it is better to be secretive, for it makes us honest! The secretive do not make claims, they do not tell others how to live their lives, and they make nopony dependent upon them. Their silence in turn makes others silent until all ponies are awash in a sea of silence. When we are deep in the waters of silence, we shall take refuge in the sands and built up our own pearls of truth. Secrecy is the truer way to harmony!
"The second element is True Kindness, Apathy. The kind are just as a butterfly; they travel from flower to flower, ensuring the flowers' survival and feeding off the flower themselves. The apathetic are just as an earthworm; they hide in the ground by themselves, only surfacing when it rains upon their own homes. We should all be as apathetic as the earthworm, for why should rain on one mean rain upon many?
"The kind are purveyors of evils. Their giving of their kindness appears selfless, but even the butterfly drinks the nectar of the flowers it sits upon. The kind are always after something, but the apathetic seek nothing of their neighbors. The apathetic only want to go their own way and live their own lives and do not desire anything from anypony else. The apathetic too fall upon hard times, but instead of reaching for the kindness of another they will find their own way back into the comfort of their homes.
"In a world full of apathetic ponies, everypony knows exactly who they can count upon: themselves. Everypony will be stronger, more resolved if they do not seek the comfort of somepony else. The matters of somepony should not effect the life of anypony else. The butterflies of the world will be soaked in the rain of everypony around them, but the humble earthworm stays in the dark of its home. Everypony should dig into the dirt and only come out when it rains down trouble upon your own home. It is so simple to see why Apathy is the truer way to harmony!
"The third element is True Laughter, Brooding. Laughter is much like a balloon; it swells with each breath then flies into the air for all ponies to see and revel in. Adversely, brooding is as a stone; it sits where it is placed and only allows for the seasons to weather and move it. All should brood as the stone does, for why should we feed the attention seekers?
"Everypony knows laughter is a burden. It forces us to be joyful even when we don't desire it. Those who try to make others laugh are wicked, for they defile the sanctity of a pony's deepest thoughts! It is through sadness and strife that we reach our rock solid resolves and our stone cold truths. Laughter does not breed such deep and powerful things! It turns thought into air and makes our troubles float away. We need those troubles to grow and thrive! If we send them away, we are only children!
"The brooding are thoughtful, predictable, and quiet. They do not disturb others because they know others don't wish to be disturbed. The laughing are at fault because they disturb the quiet and break the predictable cycle of life. They disturb those who do not wish it, filling their eyes with the troubles they have so foolishly discarded! To brood is to be solid, unmovable, and strong in the face of winds and tides. Why would anyone want to be a balloon that is at the whim of all that moves and is destroyed soon after it is let free? Now you can see why brooding is the truer way to harmony!
"The fourth element is True Generosity, Envy. The generous are akin to precious gems; lasting and beautiful, they are not easily obtained and in the minds eye harder to give away, but the act of giving one will echo through the lives of both ponies. The envious are akin to fire; fire is the most natural of all things in nature, easily spreading across the world and destroying all it can. All should be envious as fire is, for isn't destruction easier to share than anything else in this life?
"The generous are all hypocrites! They say they do not value what they have and claim this is the reason why they can give so freely, but if what they have is of no value it means they see other ponies as a receptacles into which they empty their excess in order to appear saintly. On the other hand, if they do value their possessions they stand for the exact opposite of what they preach! They put stake in the material exchanges between ponies, thus give freely in order to show that they are in fact virtuous! There is only virtue in destruction! To truly have nothing and ensure that no one else has nothing.
"To have means somepony does want; this is the principle of envy. Generosity thinks it can eliminate want by making all have, but you can only eliminate want by eliminating all have. The envious burn and destroy the gifts they own and receive in order to place each pony on an even field. Gemstones can only reflect the light of justice and truth fire brings. Fire burns equally and sets everything into an equal state of destruction! It should be so clear to see that envy is the truer way to harmony!"
"The fifth element is True Loyalty, Duplicity. The loyal are like lightning; they are quick in their decision to defend their friends and gladly flash in and out of existence just to be steadfast to their cause. Those who practice duplicity are like a glacier; they will be steady beside you and a sort of solid trust, even until the day they ultimately melt away and abandon you. All ponies should use duplicity like the glacier, for shouldn't we count on ponies abandoning us one day?
"The loyal are a farce flying in our faces. They pretend that they will be faithful until the end, but we all know where their loyalties lie in the end: with themselves. Those who would risk everything for somepony else are just foolish. The loyal just want us to believe we can put our faith in them. The duplicitous are no different, they will be there for a pony for a time and truly wish for that pony to put stock in them. The duplicitous are more true though, for they are out for their own good in the end. If we know all ponies are duplicitous, can't we count on them abandoning us?
"Each and everypony should be invested in their own interests, for that is the true way to strength. The loyal just wish to make others depended upon them. The loyal cannot help but be duplicitous in the end anyway. They are all doomed to betray and be self serving. Duplicity is the better path for it is truer to its own nature. For although lighting strikes fiercely, it will never touch down in the same place twice. All should be as glaciers, steadfast until the sun bids them to go away. Because duplicity is the only option, it is the truer way to harmony.
"Finally, the last element is True Magic, Illusion. Magic is like the stars in the sky; a far away reality that makes us yearn for a higher power. Illusion is like the night's moon; a shining ideal that is just close enough to reach, even though its shine is only counterfeit. All ponies should abandon magic for illusion, for why should we reach for something we cannot achieve?
"Magic is powerful, but it is only a lie. There is no magic to be seen in this world. Magic implies something beyond what is seen, but all things in this world are seen and explained. We cannot go about preaching magic because it turns us into liars! Instead, we should succumb to illusion. Illusion makes us believe without lifting us up. If we acknowledge all the splendor around us as false and untrue, we don't need to be crushed when our lofty ideals come crashing down.
"Magic opens us up to harm. Illusion tells us to beware of the evil hidden behind that which lifts us up. Just as well, we should be wary. The magician will tell us over and over again to look for something that they claim we can't see, but the illusionist will show us what it is that can't be seen. The magicians would have you believe the illusionist is the one selling falsehoods, but it is the magician who is showing us the impossible. The illusionist shows us what is possible. We cannot be stars, for stars are far off and unreachable. We can all be moons though, waiting to catch the light of something that is actually amazing. And so, illusion is shown to be the truer way to harmony.
"And so, mares and gentelcolts of the court, that is why the new elements I've forged are the True Elements of Harmony. Secrecy, Apathy, Brooding, Envy, Duplicity, and Illusion are the true way to harmony. If you continue to let the old elements rule, your kingdom will succumb to a thousand Discords a thousand times over. The tidal wave of disharmony will wash over your fragile kingdom again and again. Take the True Elements of Harmony into your hooves and I promise you that your fates will be excellent."
When Vulcan finished speaking, the court in its entirety was silent. There must have been a good minute of silence before Celestia ordered her guards to take the prisoner away. After court was dismissed for the day, Celestia herself came to my master and ordered him to destroy the transcript of the prisoner's final address to court. As the royal scribe, he had no choice but to comply with the request. I knew that it was fate that I was also transcribing in court the day Vulcan spoke. I have hidden this where not even Celestia will think to look for it, so that future generations may learn of this event.
I am unsure what ponies in the future will make of this document, but I know it the information within it is important. I do not know what you'll do with this information, nor do I know what I'll do with it. I am only certain of one thing:
It is up to us to ensure harmony endures.
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This is quite the concept!
You gotta make more of these kinda stories.
Beautiful.
I love, and I mean absolutely love reading stories like this. This wouldn't even have to be a MLP work of fiction to make an excellent story, either, but it lends to it an excellent way.
All I can say is, I hope this gets the attention it deserves. Thumbs up, my friend, and good luck in the world of fiction. God only knows you're going the right way.
Amazing. This has a bit of a political feel too it too - Celestia's socialism(altruism for the sake of others) verses Vulcan's anarcho-capitalism(rational self-interest) .
It would be an injustice for this to not be featured.
This somehow managed to open my mind up to some of the more darker sides of the Mane 6. You're actually right... ponies are not picture perfect and are susceptible to going against what they stand for. We've seen this many times in the show, too... for example, Rainbow is loyal but selfish, and Rarity is generous yet she can be vain and somewhat greedy at times.
Very nice concept. It got me thinking.
Wow. Just wow.
This sir, is a work of art. Terrible and right, cruel but true.
Well, I must say, in truth. First of all, Harmony cannot be without Chaos. Perhaps, if everyone ceased to exist, the world would be pure peace. No murder, no death, no nothing. Final and eternal peace.
This is really good
Wow, this has to be the best Elements of Harmony backstory I've ever read. Interesting concept, thorough explanation, and overall good story. It would be really awesome if you can continue this, maybe more on Vulcan, or even the True Elements.
i am pleased
... This=masterpiece
if humans had elements of harmony these would be it.
A very well-thought-out ideal of Harmony. Each Element has its valid points, too. I could see this version of Harmony being very effective, if not very enjoyable. Great work!
Even in the explanation it is obvious that they require the original elements to function, but you can see thatthey are the reason the first elements are needed.
I bet Luna got a kick out of his illusion explanation. The stars are fake, the moon is a copy that needs a star.
Make a another story connected to this one
This could just be me, but as I was reading the part about Kindness/Apathy, I immediatley thought of the Way of the Open Palm and the Way of the Closed Fist. Really reminded me of them.
Anyway, brilliant story and I believe entirely true. No human is perfect, why should ponies be any different? We all have our faults, and the only way to become the best we can is not to bury those imperfections, but embrace and ultimately overcome them.
Envy; Duplicity; Apathy; Brooding; Secrecy. All these dwell in our hearts, our souls. Pretending they don't exist is an excellent route to destruction. Those who first proclaim themselves saints often also have the blackest hearts.
Hiding our dark, true selves is wrong. We are all imperfect. Pretending otherwise won't help, it'll just make things worse in the long run.
Bring these shadows into the light, for only there can they be purged, and we may become better.
Sorry about the whole 'dark, gothic' feel, I just
those genres 
I think Vulcan entirely missed the "Harmony" part of the name. If he was right, he'd be effectively making each person absolutely alone... even if a person didn't disturb everyone else because everyone was so self-absorbed they didn't interfere with one another, that wouldn't be Harmony.
Still, this was an outstanding little insight--not merely of traits that could be called evil in some circles, but of how even something like that could be seen to have a positive side.
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We are all fallen, and to claim we are perfect is a lie; but why does that mean we shouldn't strive to be as close to perfect as we can be anyways?
Jesus died on the cross to take the punishment for our crimes. Anyone who accepts him has their sin erased and Jesus's spotlessness placed over him/ her so that they can be 'legally' perfect and spend eternity in heaven.
I agree with dragonjek though:
Harmony by definition is getting along with each other; the life Vulcan promotes is pretty much for everyone to live completely alone.
I also strongly resent Vulcan's idea's that that everyone is eventually out for themselves; and the kind, generous, loyal are all just facades to cover up ulterior motives.
Interesting story, quite compelling, a lot of thought put into the arguments.
Vulcan's arguments are heavily biased, but from his standpoint they make sense - "Be strong and rely only on yourself, trusting in others is weakness". Those would likely be ideals espoused by minotaur culture (much of Iron Will's practices are focused on personal strength and integrity) but it's not the pony way. He also made straw arguments of the regular Elements, pointing out hypothetical weaknesses and ignoring strengths so as to argue better for his stance. This feels very much in character for the scene.
I'm not quite sure what Celestia's reaction signifies - is she conceding his point, but fearing the dangers this 'True Harmony' may pose, or is she writing him off as a lost cause, who cannot be made to see the truth and would risk creating more terrors if left on his dark path? Or maybe that is for he reader to decide...
This would make for very good support material for a story where the 'True Elements' emerge and cause conflict with the original ones. If that happens, it will be essential that both sets will be treated from an unbiased standpoint. It would be interesting indeed.
Interesting, what Vulcan suggests is true harmony, is more or less everlasting perfect balance. Chaos and Order are always at 50-50.
But that's boring, nothing would grow in such a world. It would be just as bad as a world filled with only Order, or one filled with only Chaos.
I prefer the imperfect set of Elements of Harmony. Always shifting between the center but never staying right on the dot perfectly. Much more entertaining.
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Are you a doaist?
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Not that I know of.
Vulcan's logic is so incredibly flawed I could write a thesis paper on it. The whole time he's laying out his ideas I'm thinking, "what a jackass". I don't know if that's what you were going for, but the way the narrator seems to feel he needs to hide these ideas so that future generations can find them suggests that it's not. I liked two of your other stories (Big Lugnut and Afternoon Delight, haven't read any others) but this was kind of lacking.
There are PLENTY of ways to use a dark mirror of the elements of harmony for some sort of good. there are many, many ways to deconstruct the elements.
Your fic, however, is not even wrong: it is an invalid logical argument
First, the apple farmer vs. oyester diver analogy. During this, you/he claims/assumes that hard work is better than laziness to assert that secrecy is better than blunt honesty. fair enough.
Then, he/you talks about apathy like it's a good thing. But assuming/concluding that apathy is a good thing completely contradicts the claim/assumption that hard work is better than laziness, rendering either the first or second argument invalid.
don't get me started on the horrid mess that is your "deconstruction" of magic.
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Okay, three things (in no particular order):
1. Fair enough.
2. Working hard and being apathetic about one's work are not necessarily mutually exclusive. There is something to be said about being emotionally unattached to your work. There is a kind of release in acknowledging that no matter how difficult the task or how much effort you pour into it, in the end you may actually fail or the results will be fleeting and of little consequence. If that seems completely wrong to you, then you'll be happy to know that you're right. An emotional investment in your work is admirable and highly advisable.
3. Fair enough.
If you don't want to get started on my "deconstruction" of magic that's fine, but just know I won't be mad if you do and disappointed if you don't.
Vulcan is an idiot, and everything he says nonsense. The closest he comes is with the first part, but even there teaching others to learn can be done in better ways than secrecy.
So besides that Vulcan somehow had precognition is describing the future bearers of Harmony, I like that he used gemstones and fire to describe generosity. Rarity and Spike!
What Vulcan describes sounds more like the "Elements of Order" than anything else, other than the last one: destruction is a force of change, and change is a part of Chaos, but if EVERYTHING is destroyed, then order is all that is left.
Perfect Order isn't harmony, and Harmony isn't anathema to Chaos - Harmony is the happy and imperfect balance of Order and Chaos, because life as we know it literally can't exist without both. Enough Order to give life time to adapt, yet enough chaos to give it reason to adapt and grow strong, for without change, what reason is there to exist? Just so we can acknowledge that we do indeed exist, and nothing else.
Chaos is passion, creativity, chance, change, emotions and destruction.
Order is lethargy, impotance, structure, stagnation, apathy and construction (not creation because it's never something new).
Harmony is whatever lies between these things, but it's often not exactly what is wanted or wished for. Honestly, the Elements of Harmony aren't really about Harmony, it's just plain friendship that happens to cause Order, to be used when Chaos is getting a bit too strong/much.
Side note: imo.