History about Equestria that remained unknown for centuries has now resurfaced.
There is still a lot about Equestria's history that remains unknown, but now that unknown history will become known today. Not only will Twilight and her friends learn about this history, but they will also make new friends and learn something about themselves that they would never have dreamed of.
Even though it won't include canon characters from Steven Universe, I will be using elements from that show for this story. I hope you enjoy.
On a bright, sunny morning on Friday, the Princess of Friendship, Twilight Sparkle is relaxing in her castle reading one of her books. After a while, there was a knock on her door and she opened it to reveal it was two of her closest friends, Fluttershy and Rarity.
“Hello Twilight. Fluttershy and I were wondering if you would like to come with us to the spa for today,” Rarity said.
“Sure, I don’t mind, I’ve actually finished this book anyway,” Twilight responded.
Just as Twilight started to get up, Fluttershy saw the title of the book she was reading and read aloud, “Legends and Lore of Ancient Equestria.”
“Yeah, this book is pretty old, but reading about ancient legends from the past is pretty interesting,” Twilight said in response. As the three friends were getting ready for some relaxation, suddenly Starlight Glimmer, Twilight’s student, and Spike, Twilight’s assistant, came into the room.
“Oh Twilight, glad we found you before you left,” Spike said.
Twilight then asked, “Spike, Starlight, what do you need?”
“This message came for you,” Starlight responded while holding out a scroll.
Twilight then levitated the scroll and began reading it, “Dear Twilight, I need you and your friends to come to Canterlot as soon as you can. Princess Luna and I have a task for you and I feel it’s best if we told you face to face. We also have a few guests you may find very interesting. From Princess Celestia.”
Rarity then tilted her head in confusion “I wonder who these ‘interesting guests’ are.”
Twilight then rolled up the scroll, “Well, there’s only one way to find out. Let’s gather everypony else and start heading for Canterlot”. Everyone nodded in agreement and headed out of the castle and split up to gather the rest of their friends. Rarity and Fluttershy went of to Sugar Cube Corner to get Pinkie Pie, Starlight went to Sweet Apple Acres to find Applejack, and Twilight and Spike headed towards Rainbow Dash's house to get her. As the three groups all met at the train station, they all boarded to train to Canterlot. Twilight and Applejack sat next to each other, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Spike and Starlight started having a casual conversation, and Rainbow Dash and Rarity were just relaxing.
Applejack then asked, “So Twilight, did the princess say who these ‘guests’ are or give any description on them?”
Twilight responded, “No, nothing about them was said. Princess Celestia said that she and Princess Luna would tell us face to face. I wonder who’s waiting for us?”
Just then Pinkie appeared from behind them which startled them, "Whoever they are, I really, really, really hope we get to be friends, and then I'll throw a party to celebrate our new friends."
As the train pulled into the station, the group made their way to the castle, at the entrance were two guards. “Ah, Princess Twilight, you and your friends are expected in the throne room,” one of the guards said as they stepped aside. As the group made their way to the throne room, they saw the two royal sisters waiting for them.
“Twilight, thank you for coming as well as your friends," Celestia greeted. "I hope we weren’t interrupting anything important?”
Twilight shook her head, “No, of course not, if you need us, it’s much more important than what any of us are doing.”
Rainbow Dash then asked, “So, you said there were ‘special guests’ waiting for us. Where are they?”
Just then a voice from seemingly nowhere said, “Right over here.” Following the sound of the voices, everyone turned their heads left and found two cloaked figures standing there and while they kept their appearances covered, it was clear that they were ponies.
The one that just spoke then said, "Please allow us to introduce ourselves," then she removed her cloak reveling a light red pegasus with a red mane and pinkish eyes, but the most distinctive features was the red and round jewel on her forehead and the fact she had no Cutie Mark. "My name is Red Pearl, pleased to meet you and this is my friend."
The other pony then removed her cloak reveling a green unicorn with a long dark green mane, equally dark green eyes, a green gemstone on her chest in a rounded square shape and also had no Cutie Mark, "Name's Chrome Diopside, nice to meet you."
The group just stared at the two ponies in shock and silence until Pinkie spoke up, "Ooh, I like your gems."
"I must agree, they are just simply stunning," Rarity added.
"Thank you, we do our best to make sure nothing bad happens to them," Red Pearl replied.
Princess Luna then stepped forward, "I think it's time that you told them why you're here."
Red Pearl and Chrome Diopside nodded and then Red Pearl said "It might be best if we told you about our history." Everypony then sat down for Red Pearl and Chrome Diopside's story.
It all began more than 5,000 years ago on our planet of origin, Homeworld. It soon became clear that gem production couldn't continue because we would eventually run out of resources to create more gems. The solution was to find other planets that could provide the resources we needed. One day we needed a new colony and the choice was this planet. Production began to go smoothly until one particular gem named Sunstone was created. She became fascinated with the life that already existed and believed that they had their own value. She knew that if the colony was completed, it would be catastrophic to all life on the planet. She wanted to protect this planet, but she knew she couldn't do it on her own. She eventually came across other gems not like others, some who grew weary of their roles, some who were mistreated by others, even some that just wanted to be together, but couldn't. She became sympathetic for them because they did not have their own freedom and were forced to perform their assigned tasks. She told them that she understands the feeling of not being able to make your own choices, to live free. They heard about how Sunstone didn't want the new colony to be completed because she thought it was unfair for the already existing life on the planet. They then decided to find other gems like them and formed a rebellion to protect the planet even though gems from Homeworld and other worlds knew they could never return home, which was a risk they were more than ready to take. Together they were known as the Equestrian Gems.
During the final days of the war at one of the Equestrian Gem bases, a purple unicorn gem, a pink earth pony gem, and an orange earth pony gem were gathered at a map going over their next battle strategy.
The orange gem then spoke, "What if we went over there and set a trap?"
"It's possible, but how do we draw them there without them realizing it's a trap," the purple gem asked.
Just then, a communication device known as a wailing stone began to send them a message, "Tanzanite, Carnelian, we need you at the Delta Base. Poudretteite, your needed at the Alpha Base."
"Guess we'll have to finish this later," Poudretteite said as they headed toward a platform called a Warp Pad. At the Delta Base, Tanzanite and Carnelian saw a yellow gem and another pink gem both pegasi waiting for them.
"Golden Beryl, Roselite, you needed to see us," Tanzanite asked.
Roselite then stepped forward, "Yes, we were planning our next move and we need you two for it."
Just then the wailing stone began to sound again, "Attention all Equestrian Gems, report to the Omega Base, I repeat, report to the Omega Base, this is not a drill."
The four gems were in a state of shock, "This can't be good," Golden Beryl said. Everyone then headed towards the Warp Pad to get to the Omega Base and when they got there, they saw so many other gems there that the base was crowded.
On a higher platform was a white unicorn gem who announced, "Attention all gems, Sunstone had requested an emergency meeting with all of you."
As the white gem stepped down, Sunstone stepped up, "Thank you Chalcedony, I'll take it from here." Sunstone turned her face to the crowd with a serious face, "Everyone, I have both good and bad news. The good news is that we are making excellent progress in stopping any further harm coming to this planet, the bad news is that Moonstone and Rainbow Hematite recently returned and reported that Homeworld is creating a weapon that will be used as a last resort should they fail to stop us. Fortunately we have a plan to protect ourselves, all gems that can create a shield must wait for a signal that I will send you when the time is right."
On the final day of the gem war, the Homeworld gems began to retreat and when they did, Sunstone sent out her signal and shields appeared protecting the gems close by. By the time all the shields were up, a bright light from the sky flashed and after a few seconds, it dissipated. Even though the rebellion won, they knew that their job wasn't over yet, so many gems from the war were now just shards. However, Tanzanite sensed a small trace of power in the shards and got an idea. She managed to discover a way to send their remaining power off in a way that would help them recharge their drained power.
As Red Pearl and Green Zircon finished their story Twilight then asked, "But why tell us this story, after it remained unknown for so long?"
Chrome Diopside then said, "Because even though the war was over, more of our gems were shattered due to incidents on our missions and we agreed that the same spell would be used on them if it were to come to that. But they also made a request to tell the story when their power had recharged and resurfaced, and it has."
Everyone was at first confused until Twilight came to a realization, "Wait, you mean that we..."
"Yes, you carry their power, you, your friends, the princesses, and many more in Equestria," Red Pearl replied.
Everypony was in shock after hearing about the power inside them. They would have never imagined that they would house the power of the gems.
Starlight then asked, "WE hold their power!? Us and our friends!?"
"We know it's unbelievable, but we could sense their power somewhere in Equestria and traced it here to you and the princesses," Chrome Diopside said.
Princess Luna then stepped in, "We were just as surprised as you are right now when they said we hold the power of Sunstone and Moonstone, but after they explained it to us, it became clear that there were others with this power, like you."
"But which of the gems power do we have," Fluttershy asked.
Here, allow me to explain," Red Pearl said. Just then a projection came out of her gem showing several different types of gems as everyone was amazed. "Twilight, you carry the power of Tanzanite, Applejack has the power of Carnelian, Pinkie Pie holds Poudretteite's power, Fluttershy carries Golden Beryl's power, Rarity has Chalcedony's power, Rainbow Dash holds Rainbow Hematite's power, and Starlight, you carry the power of a gem named Star Quartz." Just like that the projection went back into her gem.
"Each gem has a unique power and ability based on what kind of gem they are, even me and Red Pearl," Chrome Diopside added.
Applejack then asked, "Wait, if we have their power, what do we do with it?"
"Yes, I must admit I'm also at lost with what we do with this power if it has regenerated and resurfaced," Rarity added.
"I thought you might say that, which is why we would like you to come to the Gem Temple with us," Red Pearl said, "We can explain further what the power you hold is capable of there."
Chrome Diopside then said, "It's kind of a long walk there since there wasn't a Warp Pad close to here, but don't worry, at best it's about an hour and a half."
"Well, if it's going to take that long to travel, I better make sure I pack everything necessary for this trip," Rarity said as she was deep in thought about what to pack.
"In other words, her entire wardrobe," Rainbow deadpanned.
"It takes an hour and a half just for her to pack for a trip," Applejack added.
"Still, we should pack all the necessities for this trip. Why don't we all agree to meet up once we've finished packing," Twilight said.
Red Pearl then said, "The Temple is about northeast from Ponyville, let's meet in that area for the trip."
Before the group left, Celestia then said, "You go on without us, we have too much work to do for us to come with you."
"It's understandable, maybe another time," Red Pearl said. "Alright, let's get going."
As everyone packed everything they needed for the trip to the Gem Temple, they all met with the gems northeast of Ponyville.
During the trip, Twilight had a few questions for gems, "I've been wondering, aside from me, my friends, and the princesses, have you found anypony else with one of the gems power?"
"We have sensed their power in many places, but when we sensed Sunstone's power, we decided to trace it first," Red Pearl replied.
"Because she was your leader in the war?" Spike asked.
"Yeah, pretty much," Chrome Diopside said, "We were a little excited when we found out."
Twilight then moved on to her second question, "Who else are you looking for?"
Red Pearl created another projection from her gem, "Well, we still need to find Roselite, then there's also a gem named Indicolite, we also have sensed Zebra Jasper..."
Fluttershy then stepped in and asked, "There's a gem called Zebra Jasper?"
"Yes, she was one of our best strategist during the war, having knowledge on many gems knowing their strengths and weaknesses," Red Pearl replied.
"I think we know who might have her power," Twilight said.
Red Pearl and Chrome Diopside were surprised and asked, "You do?"
"We know a zebra named Zecora who lives in the Everfree Forest, she might have Zebra Jasper's power," Spike said.
"Well that makes things a little more easier for us," Chrome Diopside replied. "Guess we'll have to go meet her later, one of you will have to show us the way though."
Soon after, the group reached the temple, "Woah, it looks like it's falling apart," Rainbow said.
"Well, it has been here for thousands of years," Red Pearl replied. "This used to be the Gamma Base during the war, all the other bases were destroyed and this one was surprisingly still standing, so we remodeled it and renamed it the Gem Temple. We included multiple rooms each with a certain purpose and a magic door so only an Equestrian Gem could open it, observe." Red Pearl then approached the door, it appeared to be silvery with a pure white orb on the center. When Red Pearl appeared in front of the door, she put her gem in front of the orb and it glowed the same red color as her gem, after that the door opened as a normal door. Red Pearl then stepped aside and said, "After you."
As everyone entered through the door, they were amazed at the shimmering interior, especially Rarity, "Oh my stars, this place is just simple amazing! It's as if I dreaming!"
"I'm glad you like it," a new voice said. Everyone then noticed a grey earth pony with a gem on her neck area in front of them. "Nice to meet you all, I'm Grey Tourmaline. I'm sorry I couldn't meet you earlier, but I offered to look after the temple when Red Pearl and Chrome Diopside went off to find you."
Twilight then stepped up, "Oh no, it's fine, really. My name is Twilight Sparkle and these are my friends, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Starlight Glimmer, and Spike."
Grey Tourmaline nodded, "I'm glad you came, I assume my friends told you most of the story?" Everyone nodded in response.
"We just need to explain what the power of the gems can do," Red Pearl said.
"Very well then, I know the perfect place for that, follow me," Grey Tourmaline replied.
Everyone then followed her to a library, which led to Twilight to stare with a large grin on her face which everyone quickly noticed. "Is she normally like this in a library?" Chrome Diopside asked.
"Trust me, this is actually normal for her," Spike replied, "This is going to be a long day."
"I thought you would like this place," Red Pearl told Twilight, "This library used to be Tanzanite's room, she wrote so many books as records of gem history and history in Equestria. This was what she left behind when she met her unfortunate fate."
"Once an egghead, always and egghead, even when you not exactly here," Rainbow Dash replied.
Twilight, meanwhile, was still enthralled in Tanzanite's library, "This. Is. So. Amazing! It put's my own castle's library to shame!"
Grey Tourmaline then stepped in to calm her down, "Why don't we start with the records Tanzanite wrote about different kinds of gems so you can be more familiar with their abilities?" Grey Tourmaline then walked over to one of the shelves and took a large white book and passed it over to Twilight.
"Gem Types and Abilities: An Encyclopedia of Everything Needed to Learn About Gems," Twilight said reading the title.
"That is one conveniently titled book," Starlight said.
"Tanzanite got better with book titles as she continued writing, trust me," Grey Tourmaline replied. "Anyway, let's begin, shall we? I remember there being differently colored bookmarks on each of your respective pages to save you the trouble."
Twilight the turned to the pages for Tanzanite which had a purple bookmark and everyone it the room saw an illustration of her gem located on her forehead with her levitating a staff and writing explaining her different abilities and spells that she could use. "I didn't know she has a staff," Fluttershy said looking directly at the picture.
"That was her weapon, all gems have their own weapon or ability based on the kind of gem that they are," Chrome Diopside explained. "Gems who were unicorns, like me, don't exactly cast spells like actual unicorns do."
"Unicorn gems are usually able to use levitation and, if they have it, magic based on an element they can control," Red Pearl added. "Gems like Tanzanite were an exception since her weapon was a magic staff, she had a wide range of spells that she could use."
"But we can already tell that you're quite skilled at magic already without the need for a staff," Grey Tourmaline said. Twilight then turned to the page marked with the orange bookmark which was Carnelian's page. The illustration depicted her with her gem on her left hoof with her holding a lasso in her teeth.
"Carnelian was one of the more stronger gems in the rebellion, that strength was what actually got us out of a few scrapes before," Red Pearl said remembering the time that she helped save her friends. Twilight then saw the pink bookmark and turned to Poudrettite's page. Her illustration showed her gem on her right hoof with a cannon.
"She was someone who knew how to keep everyone's morale up, and was still very helpful in fending off Homeworld soldiers," Chrome Diopside said. Next was the page with the yellow bookmark which was where Golden Beryl's page was which had her holding a butterfly-shaped wand and had animals colored like her with her.
"Golden Beryl used her wand to generate animals to assist her in battle. They weren't real, they were more like a manifestation of a spell I want to say," Red Pearl explained. The page with the white bookmark was about Chalcedony whos gem was between her eyes above her muzzle levitating a rapier sword.
"Before Chalcedony joined the Equestrian Gems, she was an aristocratic gem, but unlike others, she was more kind and believed all gems had rights," Grey Tourmaline explained. The rainbow colored bookmark was at the page with Rainbow Hematite who had her gem on her back with a pair of rainbow colored wings.
"Gems whos gem placement is on their back, like Rainbow Hematite, can use it to summon a pair of wings, she was also an aerokinetic, meaning she had the power to control wind at her will," Red Pearl explained. The last page had a light pink bookmark and had an illustration of Star Quartz, a unicorn gem with her gem located on her forehead, holding a staff with her magic.
"Star Quartz was a more unique gem. Her staff could copy the abilities of other gems and use it against them. Other times, we would allow her to use it on use in case there are no other options for her," Grey Tourmaline said. "We would go over the rest of them, but it would take too long and we agreed we would tell everyone about there own respective gem."
Chrome Diopside then stepped in and asked, "So, what now?"
"We could go and look for everypony else who has a gems power," Twilight suggested. "We know that Celestia, Luna, and Zecora, each have a gems power, plus we need to go tell Zecora, but we can still look for others."
"Well we did also sense two other gems: Roselite and Indicolite," Red Pearl said. "We can go in groups of three to find them all faster." Everyone agreed and got in their groups, Red Pearl, Twilight, Spike, and Rarity went to track Roselite's power, Chrome Diopside, Applejack, and Fluttershy went to go get Zecora, and Grey Tourmaline, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie, and Starlight went to track Indicolite's power. Each group going in a different direction while following each respective energy.
As the three groups split up, Red Pearl's team started tracking Roselite's power.
"So, where are we going anyway?" Spike asked.
Red Pearl then emitted a projection of a map from her gem, "I could sense Roselite's power coming from the north, do any of you know anyone who lives north?"
"Isn't the Crystal Empire north of Equestria?" Rarity asked.
Twilight then got a shocked expression as realization hit her, "Maybe somepony in the Crystal Empire has Roselite's power!"
"Well, we won't know until we get there, in the mean time, I've heard about the Crystal Empire and only saw it on pictures, could you explain to me what it's like?" Red Pearl asked.
"You've never been there yourself?" Spike asked confused.
"Only some of my friends have, I've always been too busy to find the time to visit," Red Pearl replied.
Twilight then stepped in to explain, "The Crystal Empire is where the crystal ponies live, it is a place where they are protected by the love that they share which gives power to the Crystal Heart."
"Not to mention I'm kind of a celebrity there," Spike added.
"Your a celebrity in the Crystal Empire?" Red Pearl asked.
"To be fair, he did save the empire twice," answered Rarity.
Red Pearl then turned to Twilight, "So who's the ruler of the Crystal Empire?"
"That would be my big brother, Shining Armor and my sister-in-law, Princess Cadence," Twilight answered.
"I'm not that surprised that your related to the prince and princess of the empire considering you're a princess yourself, that was my initial thought believe it or not," Red Pearl replied. As the group continued with their conversation, they finally made it to their destination. "Wow, it's more beautiful in person than in those pictures," Red Pearl said.
"Let's go a find out who has Roselite's power. Red Pearl, lead the way," Twilight said. The two ponies and dragon then follow the red gem to where Roselite's power was being tracked and followed it to the castle. After Twilight explained to the two guards in front of the door why their here, they let them pass and kept on following the pink gem's energy. Eventually they come into the throne where they see Princess Cadence and Shining Armor.
Cadence then spoke up, "Twilight, it's so good to see you again."
"Cadence, you and Shining Armor look like you've been doing well," Twilight replied.
The royal couple then noticed Red Pearl, "Twily, who's your new friend?" Shining Armor asked.
Red Pearl then stepped forward, "My name is Red Pearl, it's an honor to meet you both."
The prince and princess nodded, "It's nice to meet you too, my name is Cadence, the Crystal Princess," Cadence replied.
"And I'm Shining Armor, her husband and captain of the Royal Guard," Shining Armor said, "What brings you all to the Crystal Empire?"
Rarity then stepped in to answer, "We came here looking for somepony who has the power of a gem Roselite. Red Pearl tracked her power here."
"Right now, I can feel it really close by," Red Pearl said. "I can feel it coming from... you," she said as she pointed at Cadence. Everyone in the room had a shocked expression on their faces to learn that Cadence was the one with Roselite's power.
"I can't believe it," Twilight said, "I didn't expect Cadence to be the one we were looking for."
"If you could, Shining Armor and I would like a more detailed explanation of what your talking about," Cadence said with slight confusion. The group then explained the situation to them and Red Pearl explained who Roselite was while showing a projection of her.
"Roselite was someone who was more loving for all of her friends and allies. She valued their safety more than her own and would not hesitate if they were in danger," she explained.
Cadence then nodded, "I see, is there anypony else who has the reawaked power of a gem?"
"Well, there's me, Rarity, the rest of our friends, Celestia, Luna, Zecora, and another pony who has the power of a gem called Indicolite," Twilight answered, "Everypony else is looking for them as we speak."
"I see," Cadence said understanding more of what's going on, "As much as we would like to help you with anything else you need, we were scheduled for an important meeting. I wish we weren't so busy right now."
Red Pearl shook her head, "No, it's fine, we understand if your to busy at the moment. We can just tell the others when we regroup back at the temple."
Rarity then stepped in, "Speaking of which, they're probably heading back there right now."
"Your right, maybe we should get back the temple and tell them everything," Twilight agreed. The group then said their good byes and then started heading back to the temple wondering how everyone else did in their respective searches.
In the Everfree Forest, Applejack and Fluttershy were leading Chrome Diopside to Zecora's hut. While walking through the forest, it became a little hard to see.
"It's so dark, I can barely see past my own muzzle," Applejack said.
"Here, I know just what to do," Chrome Diopside replied. The green gemstone on her chest area then emitted a green light like a flashlight.
"Wow, I didn't know your gem could do that," Fluttershy said surprised.
"A gem can be used for lots of things," Chrome Diopside said, "So, how much farther 'till we get there?"
"Not far now, just up ahead," Applejack answered. A minute later, they came across Zecora's hut and then knocked on the door which was opened a few seconds later.
"Applejack and Fluttershy, good to see you again. Care to introduce me to your new friend?"
"Name's Chrome Diopside, nice to meet you Zecora."
Zecora then smiled, "Any friend of Fluttershy and Applejack I will offer my friendship back. I would like to know you more, please come and step through the door."
While the group was walking inside, Chrome Diopsidethen whispered to Applejack, "Does she always rhyme when she talks?"
"Don't worry, you'll get used to it," Applejack replied. After everyone got settled inside, they then explained to Zecora about who Chrome Diopside is and why they came in the first place.
"That is quite the tale, I never knew that so much tragedy befell upon you."
"It's fine, I know their not really gone, thanks to that spell Tanzanite created," Chrome Diopside reassured.
"And you say I carry the power of one of them? Then tell me, what is the name of this gem?"
"Zebra Jasper, a strategist during the war and one of the best we knew," Chrome Diopside said remembering her.
"What was she like?" Fluttershy asked.
"She was very smart, she knew about a lot of specific gem weaknesses. A few thousand years later, when alchemy became a thing, she wanted to study it herself."
Applejack then asked, "Alchemy?"
"Yeah, you know, chemistry and potion making."
"I must admit it sounds a lot like what I do, I never would have thought. This Zebra Jasper sounds like quite the master," Zecora said pondering.
"Whenever she was in her room studying different chemicals, it usually lasts for hours until she decides to take a break," Chrome Diopside joked.
"All that time in her room without anyone else and very few breaks?" Fluttershy asked.
"We used to check on her, see if she needed anything, we got used to it after two weeks though," Chrome Diopside answered.
"I can see she found it quite enthralling, seems like she found her calling," Zecora responded.
"Yeah, but not only was she a great alchemist, she used that talent to help on mission," Chrome Diopside said with a smile. "You don't know how useful all those formulas were." Chrome Diopside's smile then became a frown, "Well... almost all."
"What do you mean?" Fluttershy asked with a worried and saddened tone.
"There was one mission she was on where we found a corrupted gem and had to go and retrieve it, I was on that mission with Zebra Jasper and Grey Tourmaline. We found that gem and Zebra Jasper tried to use one of her chemicals to paralyze it, but it saw it coming and avoided it... then... it attacked her and... her gem cracked."
Everyone was shocked, "It got cracked?" Applejack asked.
Chrome Diopside nodded and said, "When a gem cracks, that gem's physical form becomes unstable, until it shatters completely and that gem is gone." Chrome Diopside then started shedding a few tears. Fluttershy then hugged her while also crying.
"I'm so sorry you lost her."
"No, it wasn't your fault, I just wish I was able to protect her back then."
"Hey, it wasn't your fault either, and it wasn't Grey Tourmaline's, the only thing you can do right now is to stay strong," Applejack reassured. Chrome Diopside wiped her tears away.
"Thanks Applejack, I needed that. Also, thanks for the hug Fluttershy." Both ponies then smiled at her.
"A great tragedy indeed, but to the future you must proceed. Living in the past will not help at all, it will only result in your own downfall," Zecora said.
"Your right, I need to keep moving on not just for me, for everyone," Chrome Diopside said relaxed. "I think it's time we get going, but before we do that, Zecora, you know that we came here because you have Zebra Jasper's power, we were hoping that you would come with us to the temple so you can learn more about what she could do."
Zecora smiled, "I accept your offer my friend, we should get going before day's end." The group of four then headed out of the Everfree Forest and were on their way to the Gem Temple wondering how the others were doing.
As the other two groups made their way to their respective locations, Grey Tourmaline, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Starlight were tracking down the pony with Aquamarine's power. Starlight then walked right up to Grey Tourmaline. "Hey, Grey Tourmaline, if you don't mind me asking, I was wondering why you or the other gems don't have a Cutie Mark."
"Well, you see, we're not really actual ponies, we're gem ponies. Because of that, we don't have any Cutie Marks to represent any talents we have."
"Oh, I get it, I was just wondering," Starlight said.
"Oooo, I wonder who we're looking for," Pinkie said excited.
"Eh, could be anypony," Rainbow replied. A few minutes later, the group came across a familiar wagon which gave away who they were looking for.
"Wow, I was WAY off with who I thought we were looking for," Pinkie said.
"I never expected we would run into her," Starlight added.
"Well, we found her, lets go get her," Rainbow Dash said as she flew over to door.
"If I may ask, who are you referring to exactly?" Grey Tourmaline asked as the rest of the group made their way.
"I'll introduce you once you meet her," Starlight answered. Rainbow then knock on the door.
"Just a minute," a voice coming from inside said. A few seconds later, and the door opened revealing a blue unicorn with a light blue and white mane. Immediately she recognized who three of the ponies are and one of them she was happy to see again, "Starlight, great to see you again."
"Great to see you to Trixie," Staright said as she hugged her.
"I see you brought two of your friends and a new one with you," Trixie said as she looked past Starlight.
"Oh yeah, Trixie, this is Grey Tourmaline, Grey Tourmaline, this is Trixie Lulamoon, she's a traveling magician."
Grey Tourmaline extended a hoof, "Nice to meet you Trixie."
Trixie then shook her hoof, "It's nice to meet you to. So what brings you all here? I could show you a preview of my next performance."
"Thanks for the offer, but we're here for a different reason actually," Starlight said.
Grey Tourmaline then stepped in, "Why don't we discuss this inside?" After everyone was inside, they explained to Trixie who and what Grey Tourmaline is and why they came in the first place.
"Wait, wait, wait, so what your saying is that she is a 'Gem Pony' and that I have the power of one names Indicolite?"
"That and also I have the power of Poudretteite, Rainbow Dash has the power of Rainbow Hematite, Starlight has the power of Star Quartz, and our other friends have the power of other gems, but we can talk about that later," Pinkie said fast. Everyone was just silent until Rainbow Dash turned to Grey Tourmaline.
"So what kind of power did Indicolite have?"
"I'm glad you asked. Indicolite was an illusionist, her mirages were fake, but realistic and convincing. Even those who knew she used illusions weren't able to stop her, she always knew which illusion to use in which situation. Decoys, glamour disguises, fake outs, even some Equestrian Gems were convinced that they were real."
"Illusions, huh?" Trixie said in deep thought.
"I'm sure that after some practice, you can create illusions just as realistic," Grey Tourmaline added.
"If you have time to, you could come with us back to the Gem Temple, we were hoping you would come with us after we found you, it was the reason we came here," Starlight said. Trixie gave the offer some thought and decided.
"Very well then, I'll come with you to this 'Gem Temple.'"
"Great, it's settled then, you can even bring your wagon with you, if you want," Grey Tourmaline said.
"Why, thank you. Now how far away is the temple?"
"Not that far, at least 20 minuets from here if we don't run into any problems." Everyone then walked back to the temple and when they got there, they saw the other two groups returning.
"Hey guys, we brought Zecora," Chrome Diopside said.
"Hello my friends, so nice to see you," Zecora then turned to Red Pearl and Grey Tourmaline, "And it's nice to meet you too."
"Likewise, I'm Grey Tourmaline and this is Red Pearl. Speaking of which, did you find who has Roselite's power?"
Twilight stepped forward, "It turns out the pony we were looking for was Cadence. She was busy though, so she couldn't come right now."
Grey Tourmaline nodded, "It's fine, just knowing who you found is more than enough. As for me and the others, we found the one with Indicolite's power." She then looked towards Trixie who was setting her wagon near the temple.
"So since we found everyone we need to, what do we do now?" Fluttershy asked.
"Hmm, I don't sense anyone else with a gem's power and it's getting pretty late right now," Red Pearl then pointed at the setting sun, "I think it's time that you all got some rest."
"What about you?" Spike asked.
"Well, believe it or not, gems don't need sleep, we can, but we don't need it," Green Zircon answered.
"You don't need sleep?" Rainbow asked. "What's next, you don't need to eat?"
"Well, actually..." Chrome Diopside said with a sheepish face.
"We can explain more about us tomorrow morning, we actually prepared beds for you in advance, we didn't know how many we would need to make, so expect to see a few extras in there," Red Pearl said. Everyone then went inside and followed the gems to the bed room, picked out a bed and began sleeping as the gems went into the library.
"Which shelf was it again?" Chrome Diopside asked.
"Found it," Grey Tourmaline said holding a big, dark green book.
Red Pearl then asked, "Do you really think they can actually do it? I know they have their power, but they're not 100 percent gem."
"There's only one way to know for sure," Grey Tourmaline said as the three gems looked down at the book.
In the next morning, Grey Tourmaline and Spike were showing Zecora and Trixie the book that explained who Zebra Jasper and Indicolite were in further detail. Meanwhile, everyone else was outside the temple trying to practice with their gem powers. Red Pearl summoned a katana sword with a long, red blade and a dark red handle. Chrome Diopside then summoned a bright green lance with a viridian base. A few seconds later, they began to glow and vanished. "The most important thing to remember when summoning your weapon or using your power is to focus, even a small amount of concentration can help," Red Pearl said. A few seconds later, a small purple glow appeared on Twilight's forehead for about 3 seconds.
"What was that?" Twilight asked.
"I don't know, but that looked a little like the same glow as Tanzanite's gem when she summons her staff," Green Zircon said.
"Looks like your almost their," Red Pearl added. "But I think it's time for you to take a break." Everyone then stopped what they were doing and relaxed. Soon after, Grey Tourmaline, Spike, Zecora, and Trixie came outside. "Grey Tourmaline, how has things been with Zecora and Trixie?"
"Pretty smoothly, they understand more about Zebra Jasper and Indicolite. How has training been?"
"I think were close, but we still have a ways to go," Chrome Diopside answered. "I can't wait for the next lesson."
"If you don't mind me asking, what is the next lesson?" Rarity asked.
Red Pearl then pondered, "Hmm, I guess we can show you, we'll have Bronzite explain."
Everyone became confused, "Who's Bronzite?" Rainbow asked.
"You'll see," Grey Tourmaline answered. Red Pearl and Chrome Diopside bowed to each other and their gem started to glow, Red Pearl began to do a bourrée style of dancing while Chrome Diopside did a tap dance. Soon, both gems started to dance with each other and incorporated their styles together and eventually their bodies started to glow and combine, their gems started to turn into a bronze color and soon, a giant, brown alicorn with a light brown mane, four brown eyes and six legs appeared.
"Hello everyone, I'm Bronzite, nice to meet you," she said as everyone was in shock and awe.
"What just happened?" Spike asked.
"This is a power us gems have called fusion, where we combine our strength and work together as one, as you saw with Red Pearl and Chrome Diopside. I am both of them, but I am also my own gem known as Bronzite. Fusions combine size, strength, personality, and other traits of those who make up the fusion. Each one is different depending on which gems have fused and how well they cooperate with each other."
"How does it feel being a fusion?" Fluttershy asked.
"When your a fusion, you don't really feel like separate beings just combined into one, you feel like your own entity, but you still remember you really are, even when I come undone, I still exist within Red Pearl and Chrome Diopside."
Grey Tourmaline then stepped in, "Fusions are meant to created out of trust and accord to create stability, those who are bound by hatred and anger will result in their fusion becoming unstable and uncontrollable."
"And the dance?" Twilight asked.
"A Fusion Dance is used to help the gems synchronize with each other, it's only used for gems of different types, gems of the same type can fuse with ease," Bronzite answered. "Each gem has a different dance style, but it's up to them on how they incorporate said dances with each others."
"A synchronized dance, a will to cooperate, and a bond, those are the keys to a stable fusion," Grey Tourmaline said. After a few seconds, Bronzite began to glow and in her place, was Red Pearl and Chrome Diopside.
"We didn't expect to introduce you to Bronzite so soon, but we figured that the best way to learn about fusion was from a fusion," Red Pearl said.
"Plus, we still had the lesson we were helping you with earlier, we didn't want to overwhelm you, we wanted to take it one step at a time," Chrome Diopside added.
Then Grey Tourmaline stepped in, "We were planning on moving on to the fusion lesson after the weapon and ability lesson, and when we do, we know how to make the lesson easier for you."
"I see," Twilight said. "Well then, I guess we'll have to continue with the first lesson." Everyone agreed and continued with the lesson still wondering what their fusions would turn out like.
As everyone went back to training, Chrome Diopside went back inside the temple and went to a staircase that went down and entered a room filled with gems contained in differently colored bubbles, some as shards with the rest as whole gems. In the center of the room was a large crystal orb which projected a map when Chrome Diopside had it scanned her gem. After a few seconds, a small green and white light appeared at a location relatively close to the temple and getting closer. After a few seconds, Chrome Diopside ran upstairs and outside of the temple. "Guys, there's another one close by and approaching!" Red Pearl and Grey Tourmaline were shocked while everyone else was confused.
"What does she mean by 'another one?'" Twilight asked. Soon after, a screech was heard and along with it, a large white serpentine creature with long arms with claws, wild green hair, and a white and green gemstone shaped like a teardrop with an inverted kite-shaped facet on its left shoulder appeared.
"Everyone, get your weapons ready," Red Pearl shouted as her gem glowed and created her katana, Chrome Diopside then summoned her lance, and Grey Tourmaline summoned a sling from her gem. As the gems prepared for battle, the others wanted to help and joined in the fray. Twilight and Starlight shot magic blasts at it, Applejack and Rainbow Dash came in close for more physical fighting, and the gems used their weapons. While fighting, the serpent used its screeches to leave everyone open for attack.
"What is that thing anyway?" Rainbow asked while covering her ears.
"We'll explain later, right now we need to stop it," Grey Tourmaline answered. "We need to distract it so Chrome Diopside can go in for the final attack." Everyone nodded and tried to draw the serpent's attention to them while Chrome Diopside went behind it with her lance. With its back turned away, Chrome Diopside then launched her lance at the serpent and it pierced right through it. After a few seconds, the serpent suddenly vanished and all that remained was the gem. Chrome Diopside then walked towards the gem and put a hoof on it which caused a dark green bubble to appear encasing the gem.
"I've got it. Now we can let this one sleep," Chrome Diopside said as she tapped the top of the bubble which caused it to warp somewhere else.
"So back to my question, what was that thing?" Rainbow quickly asked.
"Believe it or not, that was a another gem," Grey Tourmaline said.
"That was a gem?" Twilight asked.
"Why did it look like a monster then?" Applejack added.
"Well, there are some things we failed to mention when we told you our story," Red Pearl said. "Remember when we said that Homeworld was creating a secret weapon as a last resort if we won? That weapon was created to corrupt gems."
Everyone was slightly confused, "Corrupt gems?" Fluttershy asked with a worried tone.
The gems nodded, "Every gem that wasn't protected in time was affected by the weapon and all it gave to them was never-ending suffering, I can't even imagine how horrible it must be," Grey Tourmaline said.
"Our missions involve tracking them and keeping them safe," Chrome Diopside added. "When we find them, we keep their gems in a bubble so that way, they can't hurt anyone around them, more importantly, themselves."
"So they're going to just stay there forever?" Spike asked.
"We've actually been trying to find a way to heal them so they can return to normal," Red Pearl said. "So far we haven't made that much process, but none of our friends gave up when they were still around, so we won't either."
Twilight then stepped in, "Well, if there's anything we can do to heal them, we'll do it right everypony?" Everyone nodded in agreement and the gems were happy with the help they've been offered.
"Thank you everyone, I know that one day, we'll find a way to help them," Grey Tourmaline thanked.
"Now then, after everything that's happened, I think it's time you all had something to eat," Red Pearl said. Everyone then went back inside the temple to get the food they brought with them for lunch. After they've finished, Twilight then approached Red Pearl. "Twilight? Do you need something?"
"I was wondering if there were any books Tanzanite wrote for when she tried to help heal the corrupted gems?"
Red Pearl then pondered for a moment, "I think it was somewhere in Section 3 on the fourth highest shelf, she only filled up about 70 percent of that books pages though. May I ask what this is about?
"I thought that seeing her research might help us find an answer to healing corruption."
"I think you might be on to something, the others and I have already read that book, but maybe you can find something we missed or come up with a new idea." Twilight then headed towards Tanzanite's library and started searching in the section Red Pearl mentioned and found a white book a bookmark with the word 'Incomplete' written on it. Twilight then flew down to a reading desk and began to read what research Tanzanite discovered on healing corruption.
Entry 1: I decided to write down any research on healing corrupted gems in case of future reference. Right now, this is only the beginning of us finding a way to rid gems of their suffering. Soon, we will test some methods and see if we get results and if it's either temporary or permanent. Right now, I can only wish that we are successful.
Tanzanite, Star Quartz, Sunstone, Moonstone, and Roselite are all gathered outside the temple with a bubbled orange and black gem. "Are you sure we should start with this one?" Moonstone asked. "When I encountered it, I thought I wouldn't make it out."
"I understand your concern, but back then, you were alone and we didn't know what to expect, now you have us to help if anything should go awry," Sunstone said.
"We just need to make sure it doesn't run away when it's loose," Tanzanite said. "This is why you, Sunstone, and Star Quartz have to try and keep it contained should it try to escape." Moonstone then nodded and placed the bubbled gem in between everyone.
"This gem is a Mahogany Obsidian, correct?" Roselite asked.
"Yes, that gem looked familiar to me and I asked Zebra Jasper and she confirmed it," Tanzanite said. "Alright, everyone ready?" Star Quartz summoned her staff, Roselite summoned kunai with their blades shaped like hearts, and Sunstone and Moonstone took a stance. Tanzanite then placed the bubble on the ground which caused it to pop and release the gem inside. The gem then glowed and began to form a wyvern-like creature with the gem on the right foot. Tanzanite then signaled the other four gems, "Now!" Sunstone and Moonstone then created chains with their luxmancy and umbramancy and held the gem down. "Star Quartz, now's our chance!" Star Quartz then used her staff on Tanzanite to copy her so she could use the same abilities as her. They then both started using the same spell together and a white aura started to envelop Mahogany Obsidian who also started to glow.
"I think it's working, keep going," Roselite said. But the more they tried to keep the spell going, the more restless the corrupted gem got and tried to break free. Sunstone and Moonstone then tried harder to keep the gem chained to the ground, but she started to break free little by little.
"Hrrrng... she's trying... to break free," Sunstone said straining to keep the gem from fleeing. The corrupted gem continued to break the chains which put more strain on the two gems holding her down. Eventually, the chains broke and Mahogany Obsidian escaped the spell and tried to fly away. Roselite then threw one of her kunai at her before she flew off which forced her to retreat into her gem. Moonstone caught the gemstone with her magic and encased it in one of her bubbles.
"Looks like we couldn't save her," Moonstone said as she sent the bubbled gem off.
"I'll just have to fine-tune the healing spell a little more," Tanzanite said as she walked back into the temple.
Entry 1 (Addendum): Even though it was expected, our first attempt to heal corruption didn't work, but I refuse to give up on them. They have suffered for too long and I want to make sure they can be freed from their pain. I wasn't able to see even small signs of Mahogany Obsidian's physical form returning to normal. Further work on the healing spell is required.
Twilight continued to read Tanzanite's journal and about every time she tried to make adjustments to the healing spell. "She must have been really dedicated if she tried reworking on the spell so many times, no matter how many times it didn't work."
Entry 11: I have been rewriting this spell for a long time now, but I shouldn't let it discourage me from my goal. I has actually let me see some small flaws that I didn't notice at first and let me make improvements to make it better. We are going to test it again, but this time, with more help and a less dangerous corrupted gem.
Tanzanite was ready to try and heal corruption again, this time, she gathered Zebra Jasper and Green Zircon. "Everyone ready?" she asked.
"I brought Blue Lace Agate, just like you asked," Green Zircon said.
"Great," Tanzanite replied. "We were the ones who first found this one, so we should already be prepared for what might happen." Green Zircon then summoned her lance and Zebra Jasper held on to a small bottle with a chemical inside.
"I've brought a potion that won't harm her, but she will be stunned, after a while, she will be able to move again," Zebra Jasper said.
"Don't worry, I'm sure it'll be long enough for the spell to take full effect," Tanzanite reassured. "Alright, let's start the process." The bubbled gem was then placed on the ground which released it and allowed it to take form. Then a big wolf-like creature with blue and white fur began to form with her gem located on her forehead. As soon as the gem finished taking form, Zebra Jasper threw the potion at the other gem which temporarily paralyzed her. Tanzanite then took the opportunity to use her improved healing spell and the corrupted gem began to glow and her right front paw began to shift.
Green Zircon took notice and then said, "Keep going, I see her forming back!" Tanzanite continued the process which caused the gem's physical form to completely glow and start to change.
Tanzanite then stopped to look, "Did it work? Did I heal her?" When the gem's physical form began to change, it also started to glitch and change rapidly until she reverted back to her wolf form and tried to escape. Green Zircon then hurled her lance at the wolf which forced her to retreat back into her gem. "I thought for sure she would be healed," Tanzanite sighed.
"It was the closest you've gotten so far," Zebra Jasper said. "I know that there's a way to heal corruption, we just need to find it."
"Well I refuse to give up on them, I just need more time to continue working," Tanzanite said walking back into the temple.
"I just hope she's not taking it too hard," Green Zircon said holding the bubbled gem. Zebra Jasper nodded in agreement.
Entry 11 (Addendum): Yet another failed attempt with the healing spell, but don't think that it will keep me from trying again. Every puzzle has an answer, and I won't rest until I've figured it out. I can't give up, not when I've gotten so far already.
Twilight was still reading the journal until she got to the final page Tanzanite wrote on. "Look like this is the final page, the rest of them are blank," she said as she started to read the final page.
Entry 20: I have made so many attempts to heal gem corruption, so far with negative results. But that doesn't discourage me from what I've been striving for ever since the war ended. Now that I've fixed the spell further, it's time to test it out and see if it will finally work.
"Ok, I know we haven't been successful lately, but I have a very strong feeling this time now that I've refined the spell so much after the first time we tried it," Tanzanite said to everyone. This time, every gem was gathered outside to test the healing spell on another corrupted gem.
"So, why did you need all of us this time?" Rainbow Hematite asked.
"I just want to be prepared even further this time. The gem we'll be using is Tiger's Eye." Tanzanite then brought out the bubbled gem she had with her.
"No offence Tanzanite, but are you sure that the healing spell will work this time?" Golden Beryl asked.
"Of course I'm sure, I didn't work this hard just to fail. Please, I really want to give the spell at least one more chance." Everyone else looked at each other with mixed feelings.
"Very well, if it'll make you feel better, we'll give it another try," Sunstone said with everyone else agreeing.
"Thank you everyone," Tanzanite said with a happy smile. "Alright let's start. Star Quartz, I'll need you to cast the spell with me, Sunstone, Moonstone, and Rainbow Hematite, you'll need to keep Tiger's Eye from escaping, everyone else, we'll need you on stand by in case she does manage to break loose." Everyone then took their positions while Tanzanite place the bubble on the ground which released the gem which formed a large tiger with the gem on her left eye. Sunstone, Moonstone, and Rainbow Hematite created light, dark, and wind chains to keep the gem from escaping while Tanzanite and Star Quartz started using the healing spell. As the spell was being used, the tiger began to glow and started to shift. The corrupted gem then began to look more pony-like as the spell continued to take effect.
"Looks like it's actually working," Red Pearl said. Before Tiger's Eye could become completely healed, her form became unstable and started to resist the spell which started to break the chains. Before she could escape, Chalcedony thrust her rapier into her which caused her to retreat into her gem. Tanzanite just stared with a sad and disappointed expression which Star Quartz noticed.
"I'm sorry Tanzanite, we at least tried." Tanzanite then took a deep breath and walked over to bubble the inactive gem.
"It's... fine. I just... need some time alone." Tanzanite then walked into the temple with the bubbled gem with her head hanging low.
Entry 20 (Addendum): I'm sorry. I'm sorry to all of those gems that have suffered for so many years because of corruption. I guess I'm just not capable of creating a way to cure a corrupted gem. All I can do right now is hope that a way to cure them is discovered in the future. I don't know if there was actually something I was still missing in my spell or if it was doomed to fail from the start, but regardless, I'll leave behind the plans I wrote for the spell in the back of the book incase it might come into use later and I'm not here. This is Tanzanite signing out for the last time.
As Twilight finished reading the final entry, she turned to the back of the book and saw the plans for the healing spell. "I'll admit, she really put a lot of effort into this healing spell." She continued to examine the spell decided to work on further if she sees any room for improvement.
After Twilight left Tanzanite's library, she saw the gems, Pinkie, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack discussing something. Red Pearl then noticed Twilight and said, "Oh Twilight, glad you're here, we need you for something."
"Really, what did you need?" she asked.
"You see, we got a signal from the basement holo-globe which showed us there's a corrupted gem somewhere in a badland area, we don't exactly know what gem it is, so we need to be on guard. We we're thinking about who should go and we decided on me, Pinkie, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and if it's okay, you," Red Pearl answered.
"Of course, I'm willing to help in anyway I can," Twilight said.
"Great, now, please come with us." The four ponies followed the gems to a shiny platform. "This is a Warp Pad, gems used these for easy travel to anywhere else with a Warp Pad. Luckily, for us, there's one in our destination."
"How exactly to they work?" Twilight asked.
"Just step on and I'll take care of the rest," Red Pearl answered. The group of four then stepped on to the Warp Pad ready to head to there destination.
"Be careful out there," Grey Tourmaline said. Just then, a beacon of light shot out of the Warp Pad which took the group with them. Seconds later in the badlands, the same beacon of light shot down into another Warp Pad and the group was now standing on it. Everyone with the exception of Red Pearl and Pinkie had a surprised expression.
"Can we do that again?" Pinkie asked.
"After we find that corrupted gem," Red Pearl replied. "I just hope we can find it soon."
"Well, I can tell it's goin' to be easy," Applejack said looking down at some footprints akin to a giant bug's. Everyone else looked at the trail of prints and saw the direction they were going.
"Those defiantly look more like monster prints, that gem should still be in this area," Red Pearl said observing the trail.
"Alright, let's go get 'em," Rainbow said enthusiastically while flying ahead. The others then ran to catch up with her and the loose corrupted gem. Eventually, the footprints lead to around the bottom of a cliff. When the group looked around the cliff, they saw a giant spider with a black gem on her forehead.
"I can see the gem on her head," Twilight whispered. "Wait, I've seen a gem that looked similar, isn't that a Moonstone?"
"Yes," Red Pearl answered, "She's a Black Moonstone to be precise. Remember, Moonstones have umbramancy, we can't get reckless. We need some kind of plan."
"I got this," Rainbow said flying up above Black Moonstone.
"Wait, Rainbow Dash, she just said we need a plan," Applejack said trying not to alert Black Moonstone. As soon as Rainbow Dash flew up high enough, she started to dive bomb towards the gem. Before Rainbow made contact, the gem noticed her and used her unbramancy to atop her in her tracks. "Yeah, that's what I was afraid of," Applejack said while facehoofing. Rainbow was then thrown down to the ground which drew her attention to the rest of the group.
"OK, Plan B it is," Twilight said. Red Pearl then summoned her katana and everyone else got into a fighting stance. Black Moonstone then created swords with her umbramancy when everyone started to attack. Twilight started to shoot magic beams, Red Pearl started to used her katana to fend of the umbra-swords, Applejack used the rope she brought to hold down the gem, Rainbow Dash tried more direct attacks, and Pinkie Pie... well... you try making sense of her using cupcakes as ammo for her Party Cannon. Eventually, Black Moonstone saw Twilight charge one of her magic blasts and used one of her umbra-swords to deflect it back at her which she managed to dodge and landed near Pinkie. After that, the swords dug into the ground and became chains which quickly grabbed onto Red Pearl, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack. Before they could grab Twilight and Pinkie, Twilight teleported herself and Pinkie out of the chains way over to the left of the gem and a little farther away. "I knew this mission wouldn't easy, but I didn't think it would end up like this," Twilight said worried about her friends. The spider then moved closer with umbra-swords while leaving the ponies still constricted in her chains.
"Twilight?" Pinkie asked.
"Yes Pinkie?"
"What do we do?"
"I don't know, she's incredibly prepared and skilled." Just then, one of the umbra-swords started to dash towards Pinkie, but before it could make contact, Twilight lunged at her to knock her out of the way. At that moment, a faint glow appeared on Twilight's forehead and Pinkie's right hoof which was then followed by a bright purple and pink light temporarily blinding everyone.
The chained ponies then yelled, "Twilight! Pinkie!" When the light dissipated, in the two ponies place was an alicorn who was slightly taller with a red-violet coat, a lilac colored mane with pink highlights, and a firework Cutie Mark. The alicorn then lifted her head and opened her lilac colored eyes.
"Yes, yes they did," Red Pearl answered. "They've fused together." The alicorn then looked down to examine her new form.
"So this is what fusion feels like," she said. Black Moonstone then got over the shock and created more umbra-swords which flew right towards the new fusion. She then noticed the swords coming and flew out of the way and started to fly around the corrupted gem.
"What is she doing?" Rainbow questioned.
"Your guess is as good as mine," Red Pearl answered. The alicorn continued to fly all around Black Moonstone which then caused her to get confused and dizzy. When the gem lost sight of her, the alicorn then shot a blast of magic at her which caused her to crash into the nearby cliff and let go of two ponies and gem. As the corrupted gem got up, the group then got ready for the next attack. Black Moonstone then created four umbra-scythes and sent them to the group. Red Pearl and Rainbow Dash flew up to dodge while Applejack and the fusion alicorn dodged to the side. Red Pearl then summoned her katana and tried to fly towards Black Moonstone while trying to avoid the scythe, Rainbow Dash and Applejack were fighting of the scythes, and the fusion alicorn created a shield to block the scythe. While the shield was up, she started to dart her eyes around the fight as she was trying to figure out what to do next.
'I didn't think we would be in this kind of danger, what are we going to do?'
'I don't know, I'm just following you.'
'Pinkie?'
'Who else would you be fused with, silly?'
'Point taken, I just don't know what to do right now or if our fusion will make much of a difference here.'
'But can't we at least try Twilight?'
'Actually, I have an idea, I don't know if it will work, but it's at least worth trying.'
'I'm ready Twilight.'
The fusion then expanded the shield which knocked the scythe away and flew towards Rainbow Dash and Applejack who were still fighting of their scythes. She then blasted the two scythes away from them as she flew near them.
"Twilight? Pinkie? Are y'all in there?" Applejack asked.
"Ask questions later, I, or, we have a plan," the alicorn answered. "Rainbow, can you try to distract Black Moonstone?"
"That's all you need to ask," Rainbow replied as she started flying circles around the corrupted gem.
"Applejack, we need to help Red Pearl."
"I hear you loud and clear," Applejack said as they both rushed towards Red Pearl who was still fighting against the scythe. Applejack then brought out her rope and managed to lasso the scythe away from the red gem and threw it down which caused it to disappear as the alicorn then flew over to Red Pearl.
"Oh, I'm glad you two are okay," Red Pearl said in relief. "I'm guessing you have a plan." The alicorn then whispered into her ear about what to do. Red Pearl then nodded and started to fly over to Black Moonstone who was trying to catch Rainbow. She then started to fly towards the corrupted gem with her katana pointed directly at Black Moonstone. Before she could make it, Black Moonstone noticed her and used an umbra-chain to hold her. Before the corrupted gem could attack Red Pearl, a large blast of magic was shot down which forced her to let go of Red Pearl. After the blast ended, Red Pearl proceeded to thrust her katana through Black Moonstone which caused her to lose her physical form and her gem fell onto the ground.
“Thank Celestia it’s over,” Applejack said.
“All according to their, or rather, her plan,” Red Pearl said pointing to the fusion.
“What exactly was the plan?” Rainbow Dash asked flying back to the group.
The fusion then said very quickly, “Well, I knew that Black Moonstone would do anything to keep us from attacking her, so I had Dashie distract her while Applejack gets the scythe away from Red Pearl so she can go attack Black Moonstone and when she stops Red Pearl form coming any closer, I would shoot a magic beam at her so she would let her go, then Red Pearl would finally go in for the final attack.”
“Yeah, that’s defiantly Twilight and Pinkie, who else would talk about a plan that fast?” Rainbow said.
“I still can’t believe they were able to fuse,” Applejack said.
“Their fusion really reminds me of Rubellite,” Red Pearl said while bubbling the black gemstone and sending it off.
“Who’s Rubellite?” Applejack asked.
“Tanzanite and Poudrettite’s fusion,” Red Pearl answered.
“So, is that who we’re going to call her?” Rainbow asked.
“Well, she’s not exactly a gem fusion, so I guess we can come up with a new name.”
“I’m glad you said that, because I actually have a name idea,” the fusion eagerly said. “How about Fuchsia Fireworks?”
“That actually sounds very fitting,” Red Pearl said.
“Come on, we should show everypony else,” Rainbow said flying ahead. Everyone then followed her over to the Warp Pad and returned to the temple.
Meanwhile, a few minutes before the group returned.
Starlight was walking through the hallway looking at the different rooms in the temple. She soon came across one room with a door with an illustration of a pink gem with a six pointed star-shaped highlight in the center. She placed her hoof on the illustration which starts glowing and caused the door to split into sixths with each one sliding open to reveal the room which was light pink and light purple inside with skinny columns of varying colors each projecting different holographic gem that matches the color of the pedestal. Starlight then walked inside to look at the room from the inside and was amazed by the interior and noticed a larger pedestal in the center. It was slightly taller that the other ones, was pure white, and only shined a beacon of pure white light that reached the ceiling.
"Amazing, isn't it?" a voice said which startled Starlight. She then turned around to see Chrome Diopside at the door. "This was actually Star Quartz's room."
"I kinda figured because of the illustration of her gem on the door," Starlight said walking towards the green gem. "So what kind of room is this?"
"Each pedestal shows a gem that she has copied in the past. The larger one provides the data for said gems if you request it, she would use it for reference."
"I see," Starlight commented. "I've been meaning to ask, what was Star Quartz like?"
"Well, she wasn't one for talking about her past. But I will say she was more unique than anyone else I knew," Chrome Diopside answered.
'Sounds like Star Quartz and I have a few things in common,' Starlight thought.
"We're back guys," Rainbow Dash's voice said in the distance. Starlight and Chrome Diopside ran out of the room to the Warp Pad to welcome back their friends and were shocked to see a red-violet alicorn with them instead of Twilight and Pinkie.
Chrome Diopside turned to Red Pearl and asked, "Red Pearl, is that who I think that is?"
"Yes, may I present the fusion of Twilight Sparkle and Pinkie Pie," Red Pearl answered.
"Name's Fuchsia Fireworks, great to meet you."
"I knew that you had it in you," Grey Tourmaline said as she and everyone else came with her.
"You both look great together," Fluttershy said.
"I still can't believe you managed to do it," Rarity added.
"I'll admit, that is impressive," Trixie added.
"It is nice to meet you Ms. Fuchsia; you certainly give off a nice aura," Zecora greeted.
"How does it feel?" Spike asked.
"It feels great! It's like I'm a brand new pony," Fuchsia answered with a smile.
"You know, if your fusion is anything like Rubellite, we could tell you everything we know about her," Red Pearl offered.
"I'll go get the Tome of Fusions," Chrome Diopside said as she headed towards the library.
"Is it safe to assume that this Tome of Fusions is another encyclopedia written by Tanzanite?" Rarity asked.
"Correct, every fusion she could research she wrote in those pages, not every fusion though," Red Pearl answered. A few seconds later, Green Zircon returned with the book with it opened to the page with Rubellite which depicted a red-violet, four-eyed unicorn with a light pink mane and red-pink gems on her forehead and her right forehoof which were the same cuts as Tanzanite and Poudretteite's gems. She was holding multiple cannons each of varying colors with her magic.
Red Pearl then spoke up, "Rubellite's weapon was a combination of Tanzanite's staff and Poudretteite cannon. Fusions are able to combine the weapons of the gems that make them up into a new weapon. In her case, Rubellite used cannons that were imbued with the magic from Tanzanite's staff which allowed them to create elemental-based projectiles."
"Wow cool, let's try it!" Fuchsia said excitedly as she tried to use her magic. "Wait, don't!" she suddenly said which caused the magic in her horn to shoot out and bounce around the room until it made contact with Fuchsia which caused her to split back into Twilight and Pinkie.
"Are ya'll okay?" Applejack asked.
"Don't worry, we're fine," Twilight said. "I think Pinkie was just a little too excited."
"Sorry," Pinkie said with a sheepish smile.
"Don't worry, it was your first experience with fusion, you were prone to even a little instability," Grey Tourmaline reassured.
Twilight nodded and replied, "You're right, we just need a little more experience with Fuchsia and with any other fusions we can form." Twilight then took the book to study it while Pinkie told everyone what it was like to be a fusion with them wondering what their own fusions would be like.
Princess Luna was sound asleep having a pleasant dream of a beautiful field of moonflowers at night. As she was trotting along she could faintly see something in the distance. When she flew over to it, she saw it was a door with an illustration silver gem with a light blue highlight on the center. Luna placed her hoof on the illustration which caused the door to open be splitting into five segments. Past the door was a dark room with blue crescent moon lights on the top of the walls and stars on the celling twinkling with a chandelier with silver lights on the center of the roof. "What is this place and why does it feel like I've been here before?" Luna asked herself. As she continued to walk through the room, she noticed a round object at the end of the room slightly floating above a pedestal. She went closer to inspect it and saw it was a blue and silver bubble with shards of a yellow gem inside. Just then, without reason, tears started to run down Luna's cheeks. "How... how am I crying? I don't even know this place. Or, do I?"
"Luna, are you alright? Please, wake up," Celestia said trying to wake her sister up. As Luna wakes up, she notices the tears that were streaming down here face.
"Sister, was I... crying in my sleep?" Luna asked.
"You were like this when I came in. What happened in your dream?"
"I don't know, I was inside a room that somehow felt familiar even though I've never been there before." Luna then wiped the tears off her face and got out of bed. "I shouldn't worry about it now. I have my responsibilities to oversee." Luna then proceeded out the room with Celestia following close behind to begin the night. After the sun had set and the moon had risen, Celestia went to bed while Luna used her magic to enter the dreamscape. She began doing her usual routine of checking for any nightmares. She went further and further into the dreamscape until she almost reached the end where she noticed something in the distance. Closer inspection revealed it was the same door from her dream. "This again? What is this door?" Luna asked as she began looking at the door more closely. She placed her hoof on it again which caused the door to open the same way. Luna stepped inside the room, but then flew over to where she saw the bubbled gem shards and just as she reached it, she started crying once again. Despite her tears, she wanted to inspect the shards more. When she got closed to the bubble, she unconsciously said, "Sunstone."
"Luna, are you sure about this?" Celestia asked as Luna was preparing to leave the castle.
"I must find out more about that room and why it feels so familiar. I'm not completely sure, but I feel it has something to do with Sunstone and Moonstone."
Celestia then nodded and said, "Very well, just return safely." Luna then gave Celestia a hug before she took off to the Gem Temple. The temple soon reached her field of vision and then she descended to the entrance which she knocked on. The door opened and revealed Red Pearl on the other side.
"Oh, uh, Princess Luna. What brings you here?" Red Pearl asked as Luna walked inside.
"I need your help. Is there anything in here connected to Moonstone?"
"Moonstone? I could take you to her room." Red Pearl escorted Luna to the door of Moonstone's room which looked familiar to her.
"That door, the same door I keep seeing," Luna said.
"The same door you keep seeing?" Red Pearl asked.
"The reason I came here. I saw this door in both my dream and in the dreamscape and every time I enter the room, there is something in there that makes me start crying," Luna responded. She then placed her hoof on the door which made it open the same way it did in her dream and in the dreamscape. The princess and the gem then walk deeper inside the room until they reach the end. Luna already knew what she would find: a blue and silver bubble containing the shards of a yellow gem. As expected, tears start streaming down her cheeks again.
"Your Highness, are you feeling okay?" Red Pearl asked concerned.
"Red Pearl, what can you tell me about the gem inside?" Luna asked.
Red Pearl frowned looking at the shards as she said, "Those are the shards of Sunstone. Ever since she got shattered, Moonstone kept her shards inside one of her bubbles and stored it inside her room as a keepsake. She was the one most devastated from Sunstone's shattering. Is this the reason you wanted to come here?"
"It might be because I have Moonstone's power, I start feeling her sorrow whenever I'm near Sunstone's shards. It would also explain why this room felt familiar even though this is my first time in here," Luna answered
"You're the first one to receive a memory of the gem whose power you have; I don't know how to help you. Is there someone I can get that can?" Red Pearl asked.
"No, thank you, I believe I already know somepony that might help me." Luna then left the temple and started flying back to the castle. Just as she left, Spike came to the door.
"Was that Princess Luna? What was she doing here?" he asked.
"She came because she wanted to know something, but I should tell everyone what she told me," Red Pearl said as she walked back in the temple with Spike following her.
Luna soon returned to Canterlot and reentered the castle, heading towards the throne room. When she made it back, she saw Celestia sitting on her throne reading a scroll. "Luna, did you find out what you needed to?" Celestia asked.
"Yes, a memory that belonged to Moonstone has awakened inside my mind," Luna answered.
"A memory? Of what?"
"Moonstone's room and the reason for my tears: the shards of Sunstone," Luna responded.
Celestia walked over to comfort Luna and asked, "Is there anything I can do to help you?"
"Tell me, has there been any memory that you have had that is unfamiliar to you?" Celestia knew what Luna meant by her question and knew she would be disappointed with her answer.
"I'm sorry, I'm afraid that I have none of Sunstone's memories," she replied.
"Do not worry, I already know how you can help me. At nighttime, I want you to come with me into the dreamscape. I have a strong feeling that her memory is more than meets the eye. If we observe the memory, maybe we can learn more about it."
Celestia then nodded and said, "Very well, I will do what I can to help. For now, you should get some rest." Luna proceeded to her bedroom and began to sleep until sunset.
Inside her dream, Luna began searching for the door hoping there would be something else that would help her and Celestia find out more about the memory. She found the very same door and opened it the same way and headed towards the shattered gem at the end of the room. When she reached it, as expected, tears started to stream down her face. Luna tried to ignore the tears and began inspecting the shards more carefully. She tried to place her hoof on the bubble, but instead, her hoof phased through the bubbled shards. As she retracted her hoof, she started to hear the sound of approaching hoofsteps. Luna turned around to see a unicorn with a silver coat, a light blue mane and eyes, a grey gem with a blue highlight on her neck, and no Cutie Mark. Just like Luna, tears started to leak from her eyes and run down her cheeks. She continued to walk towards the bubbled shards while passing through Luna. She stopped in front of the bubble and looked straight at it and continued to cry. "Sunstone, I broke my promise to you and look at what happened."
"A promise? What promise?" Luna started asking even though she knew the gem in front of her would be able to respond to her. Before she could learn more, Luna wakes up from her dream and gets up from her bed just as Celestia enters the room.
"Luna, it is time. Are you ready?" she asked.
"Yes, I feel more than ready," Luna responded as she and her sister went ahead to bring the night. After the two princesses proceeded to a balcony to bring about nighttime so their subjects can rest for the next day, they had made their way to Celestia's bedroom. Celestia fell asleep in her bed while Luna began to channel her magic and connected herself to Celestia's dream.
Inside her dream, Celestia found herself in a starry setting filled with different doors. "Welcome to the dreamscape, my sister," Luna said as she descended next to her sister. "Come, the door to the memory is just ahead." As the two sisters make their way through the dreamscape, they eventually find the door. Luna, like before, placed her hoof on the door which caused it to open and stepped aside to allow Celestia to enter first. As the two entered, they continued to walk through the room all the way to the end to where the bubbled shards are. When they reached the end of the room, Luna started to cry again but less than usual.
'I must be getting used to seeing this memory. It's losing the impact it had on me the other times,' she thought.
Celestia then turned to Luna and asked, "Luna, what do we do now?"
"I know what will happen next, let us just wait." A few minutes later, the door behind them opened with Moonstone walking in crying. Celestia tried to speak with her, but was stopped by Luna placing her wing in front of her and shaking her head. Moonstone continued to walk and stopped in front of and looked straight at the shards like before.
"Sunstone, I broke my promise to you and look at what happened," Moonstone said.
"A promise?" Celestia asked.
"If only I had protected to you, then..."
Celestia looked down with a sad expression and tears in her eyes and said, "Moonstone, it's not your fault. I don't blame you."
"Sister, what did you say?" Luna asked. Celestia then realized what she just said.
"Luna, I believe a memory that belongs to Sunstone as awoken." Just then, a light just shone in front of the sisters which caused them to shield their eyes with their wings. When the light vanished and the two alicorns opened their eyes, they found themselves in an entirely different location. As they looked around, they saw that they were in an open plain with a few flowers and trees around.
After a few seconds, they started to here someone else's voice saying, "I... I'm sorry. I swore to stay by you and make sure you didn't shatter. It should have been me." Celestia and Luna then looked past a few trees and bushes to see Moonstone with another unicorn with a golden coat and eyes, a long bright yellow mane, and a yellow gem on her chest area with a large crack on it.
The yellow gem pony's body started to glitch and she had a droopy horn, outstretched legs and a glitchy voice when she spoke, "Moonst-tone, please, d-don't be-e sad. I'm gla-ad you're st-til alive. Please, t-take my place and-d maybe we'll meet-t again somed-day." Just when she finished, a few more tears leaked from her eyes before the crack in her gem grew bigger until the shards fell apart and her physical form exploded into smoke. After the smoke had dissipated, the shards fell to the ground. Moonstone had a devastated look on her face as more tears started to run down her cheeks and as she started to gather all of Sunstone's shards. Once she saw she had all of them, she sealed them inside one of her bubbles and took it with her. As she was leaving, both Celestia and Luna were crying and started to hug each other.
A few minutes before time for sunrise, Celestia woke up and Luna stopped her dream spell. "Sister, was that the memory you received?"
"Yes, Sunstone's last moments, Moonstone made a promise to her to protect her with her life. To Moonstone, Sunstone was more than a leader, she was an inspiration."
"An inspiration?"
"Sunstone's knowledge of how Moonstone viewed her came with the memory. I should let Twilight, her friends, and the gems know about what we've learned." Luna nodded in agreement and the two then walked to the balcony to lower the moon and raise the sun. Afterwards, Luna went to bed while Celestia began writing a letter to send to the group at the temple about Sunstone and Moonstone.
"And this is where we keep every gem we've bubbled," Chrome Diopside said. The gems decided to show the group the room with all the gems they've bubbled over the years. They could see that different kinds of gems were floating above them in differently colored bubbles while the room itself was dark with a light emanating from the crystal orb at the center.
"The orb right there serves as both a map and a tracker for any corrupted gems or gem artifacts," Red Pearl said. She then placed her gem near the orb which scanned her gem and then a map was projected from the orb. "Whenever a gem or artifact is detected by the map, there is a light that pinpoints the location." As if on cue, three separate lights appear on the map: one black and brown, one brown and gold, and one red.
"Like that?" Rainbow asked.
"Yes," Red Pearl answered, "One looks like it's in the west while the other two are in the north, but far away."
"What should we do?" Grey Tourmaline asked.
"We should split into three teams, we just need to decide who is going where," Twilight suggested.
"The one in the west is moving so it's probably a corrupted gem," Chrome Diopside said pointing at the black and brown light. "I'll go for that one."
"I'm coming with you," Rainbow said determined.
"Me too," Starlight added.
"If your going there, your best friend is going with you," Trixie said to Starlight.
"Good, now as for the two lights in the north, one is northeast while the other is northwest. I'll go northwest," Red Pearl said pointing to the brown and gold light.
"I'll go with you," Fluttershy said.
"As will I," Rarity said.
"Spike and I are coming too," Twilight added with Spike riding her back.
"Then that means I'm going northeast," Grey Tourmaline said.
"That also means me, Pinkie, and Zecora are goin' with you," Applejack added.
"Okay, now that we know which of us are going where, we should get going," Twilight said.
"We have a Warp Pad we can use in the west," Chrome Diopside said.
"We're also not that far away from the north, the rest of us can make it on hoof," Red Pearl added. The large group then split into their three teams with Chrome Diopside's team traveling by Warp Pad while Red Pearl and Grey Tourmaline's teams started to travel to the north on hoof.
"Hey, do you know what we're looking for?" Spike asked.
"The brown and gold light is most likely a Wailing Stone, we've been collecting them since we no longer need to use them," Red Pearl answered.
"The red light would probably be a gem artifact, it didn't really move as much as the light in the west," Grey Tourmaline added. "Though we're not really sure what kind it is." As the two groups continued, they eventually reached the north and stopped soon after.
Red Pearl then used her gem to show a holographic map and said, "We should be around this area, so I think it's safe to say that we can split up here." Everyone agreed and went their separate way to collect what they came for.
Meanwhile, a few minutes ago in the west.
A beam of light shot down at the lone Warp Pad which carried Chrome Diopside, Rainbow Dash, Starlight, and Trixie.
"That corrupted gem shouldn't be to far away from us, but we should still be careful when we do find it," Chrome Diopside said.
"So where should we start looking?" Starlight asked.
"Leave it to me," Rainbow said as she flew up higher to see where to go. As soon as the reached the sky, she saw some birds fly away from a specific location. She then flew back down and said, "This way," as the flew ahead to the group who followed her close behind.
Chrome Diopside, Starlight, and Trixie continued to follow Rainbow Dash who was leading toward the corrupted gem's location. At a certain point, Chrome Diopside said, "Hold on, do you hear something?" Everyone stopped to listen and started to hear the sound of deep growling. They started to follow the sound more slowly and soon came across a smoke-like creature in the form of a roc with a black gem with white and brown spots on her back.
"What kind of gem is that?" Starlight asked quietly.
"Starry Night Obsidian, I haven't seen another one in decades," Chrome Diopside answered.
"Well, if anypony has a plan, now would be a great time to tell us," Rainbow said.
"Whenever there was a corrupted Starry Night Obsidian, Rainbow Hematite would use her aeromancy to make things less challenging," Chrome Diopside said thinking of a plan.
"On it," Rainbow replied flying towards the gem. Chrome Diopside tried to stop Rainbow Dash from going, but it was too late. Rainbow tried to fly in circles around the gem, but she heard her flying towards her and turned herself into a cloud and surrounded herself around Rainbow who stated to cough. Starlight then fired a beam of magic at the gem which she saw and let it pass through her also causing her to drop Rainbow who started gasping for air.
"Are you okay, Rainbow?" Starlight asked running towards her.
"Yeah, *cough* I'm fine *cough*," she answered despite her still coughing.
"Uh, maybe now would be a great time run," Trixie said nervously looking at the corrupted gem above them.
"Hey, I can *cough* still fight," Rainbow Dash insisted.
"Come on, we need to try and hide," Chrome Diopside yelled as she and Trixie stared to run. Rainbow then followed them with Starlight running with her and the corrupted gem following them while still flying above them.
"As I was saying, Rainbow Hematite used her aeromancy on corrupted Starry Night Obsidians from a distance because these gems are known for being very alert to their surroundings," Chrome Diopside finished. "When her smoky form is clustered together, we're able to damage her physical form."
"Heh... heh, sorry," Rainbow said awkwardly.
"Everypony, get close. I'm going to try to teleport us away," Starlight said. As everyone got closer to Starlight who started to charge up a teleport spell, Starry Night Obsidian shot down one part of her smoky form which surrounded her head. She then started to lose concentration when she started to breath in the smoke and soon lost consciousness. The group then continued to run from the corrupted gem with Rainbow Dash carrying Starlight.
"So, what's the new plan?" Rainbow asked.
"The Warp Pad, corrupted gems are unable to use them," Chrome Diopside answered. The group continued to head towards the Warp Pad with Starry Night Obsidian firing more smoke shots at them. Chrome Diopside then summoned her lance to try to distract the gem following them and shot it at her. However, she instead took in the lance into her body and shot it back at Chrome Diopside who gasped when the lance pierced right through her body which disappeared into a puff of smoke leaving her gem behind.
"Okay, so what do we do now?" Trixie asked.
"Don't ask me, I got us into this mess," Rainbow replied. The two ponies looked up and saw Starry Night Obsidian hovering above them as if she was waiting for them to try and attack her. "Actually, there's one thing we can try," Rainbow said looking back at Trixie.
"Wait, what? I didn't mean that kind of plan," Trixie replied.
"Hey, we can't just wait for Starlight to wake up and Chrome Diopside to come back! What other choice do we even have right now?" The corrupted gem then shot a few clouds of smoke at the blue ponies which Rainbow saw and tried to knock Trixie out of the way which was followed by a small explosion of light which repelled the smoke shots. In their place was a slightly taller blue alicorn with a light blue mane with dark blue highlights, plum eyes, and a Cutie Mark of a wand emitting a rainbow colored light. The alicorn started to blink a few times before looking at her new form.
'Whoa, is this how Twilight and Pinkie felt?'
'So, what exactly was your plan here?'
'Well, you've got illusion power and I've got wind power and speed, I was thinking we should try to work together with our powers.'
'You know, for a pony who charges in before thinking, that is actually a good plan.'
'Hey! If we didn't have a gem monster made out of smoke to deal with right now, I'd be making sure you wish you never said that.' The corrupted gem let out a bird-like screech which made the new fusion focus on the her and start flying. The gem started to fire more smoke shot at the fusion who started to fly around the smoke shots a little clumsily.
"Whoa, that was close," she said to herself.
'Okay, here's the actual plan: you handle the illusions and I'll focus avoiding the smoke shots.'
'Alright then, but do I really have a reason to object?'
'Gem monster first, argue later.' The alicorn then lit her horn up and concentrated on creating her illusions. Just then, multiple of illusions of herself appeared ,all of which started to quickly fly around Starry Night Obsidian with the real one mixed in with the crowd of illusions. The corrupted gem became confused trying to find the real fusion alicorn. She then started to fire smoke shots at random alicorn to get rid of the illusions to find the real one. Soon, only one alicorn remained with Starry Night Obsidian focusing on her.
"Nice try, Smoky," she said to the gem. Right after she said that, a mini tornado started to appear under the gem that started to suck her in while she saw the illusion disappear. After a few seconds, Starry Night Obsidian's smoky form started to cluster together. The alicorn who started it with her magic flew towards it and gave it one final, powerful kick which caused her to lose her physical form leaving only her gem. Just then, Starlight started to regain consciousness and Chrome Diopside started to regenerate her physical form.
"Ugh, what happened?" Starlight asked rubbing her head.
"Rainbow, Trixie, Starlight, I'm back! Where's the gem?" Chrome Diopside said frantically.
"You don't know how glad we are to see you guys are okay," a voice said .The unicorn and the gem then looked up with shocked expressions on their faces to see the fusion alicorn holding the corrupted gem.
"Did you two just... fuse?" Starlight asked.
"Well, there weren't that many options left," the fusion said while giving the gem to Chrome Diopside.
"I'm just glad your both okay, especially against a gem such as an Obsidian," Chrome Diopside said while bubbling the gem and sending it to the temple.
"Well, we wouldn't be in that situation if Rainbow Dash didn't charge in without thinking. I'm sorry, and who was the one who came up with the idea of fusing?" the alicorn argued with herself which caused her to unfuse back into Rainbow and Trixie.
"So, uh, why don't we all head back to the temple so you two can tell everypony about your first fusion experience?" Starlight asked wanting to break them up a little. Everyone agreed and started to walk back to the Warp Pad.
"Oh, by the way, what should we call your new fusion?" Chrome Diopside asked.
"Well, considering their abilities, how about Mirage Bolt?" Starlight suggested.
"Works for me," Rainbow said.
"Me too," Trixie added.
"And me," Chrome Diopside said. "I still kind of wish I could have seen your fusion in action, I'm sure Mirage Bolt would have reminded me so much of Blue Zoisite."
"Do you mean Rainbow Hematite and Indicolite's fusion?" Starlight asked. Chrome Diopside nodded in response right before everyone stepped onto the Warp Pad and warped back to the temple.
Red Pearl, Twilight, Spike, Rarity, and Fluttershy continued to the northwest searching for what they assume in a gem artifact in the Frozen North. Eventually, they reached a part of the area that wasn't covered by snow and ice. "This is defiantly where the artifact is," Red Pearl declared.
"It's rare to see snow melted in the Frozen North, but I don't see any sign of the artifact," Twilight said.
"Here, allow me," Red Pearl said trying to sense where the artifact is. As she followed where the energy was being tracked with everyone following her, they soon stopped at the center of the melted area. "Under here," she said pointing directly below where she was standing. After Red Pearl moved, Twilight used her magic to remove the dirt and stone from where she was pointing and uncovered the artifact which looked like a prism sphere with a bright red gem inside and a silver string tied on the top. After freeing the artifact, it started to hover and surround itself with fire.
"Um, Red Pearl, what kind of artifact is that?" Fluttershy asked.
"A Crystalize Prism, but they're not supposed to activate on their own," Red Pearl replied. The prism then shot fire at the group which made Twilight summon a magic shield.
"How do we stop it?" Spike asked.
"Only the one that controls the prism can stop it, but no one is controlling it."
"Can you tell us more about it?" Twilight asked.
"Crystalize Prisms were created to be powered by other gems and right now, there is a gem inside," Red Pearl explained.
"There's a gem inside?" Fluttershy asked.
"They were created by Homeworld. Instead of shattering gems that were part of the rebellion, they decided to use their power against them. When a gem is inside a prism, you can utilize the power of said gem."
"So then, how do we release the gem inside?" Rarity asked.
"I know of a way, but I can't release her in this situation. For now, we should make sure that she doesn't hurt anyone."
"Oh, I know, I've been practicing on creating bubbles similar to yours with my magic," Twilight said. She started to focus her magic on the prism and a magenta-colored formed around it. After containing the prism, Twilight's shield dissipated and the group approached the bubble.
"So, how do you release it?" Spike asked.
"Not only does a prism need someone to control its power, the controller is also needed to free the gem inside," Red Pearl explained.
"How do you become the controller?" Twilight asked.
"You need to wear it around your neck with the string on it," she answered pointing to the string. "However, with how active it is right now, I don't want to risk it. We should wait until it calms down a little. I still don't understand how it can activate itself without anyone."
"Then we'll just keep it inside this bubble for a little longer. Maybe being with us for a while will help it calm down," Twilight suggested.
Rarity then interjected, "Well now, why don't we make our way back to the temple now that we have what we came for?"
"Should we do anything about the melted snow and ice?" Spike asked.
"No, I'm sure the snow here will be restored overtime," Twilight answered. Before heading back to the temple, the group headed back to where they last saw the group going to retrieve the wailing stone to regroup with the Elemental Prism they found.
Grey Tourmaline's team of Applejack, Pinkie, and Zecora continued through the Frozen North in search of the Wailing Stone. Eventually, the group reached the mountainous area where the Wailing Stone is supposed to be. "I remember this area being a rendezvous point during the war, so we set up a Wailing Stone somewhere here," Grey Tourmaline said.
"Then let our search begin," Zecora said. "Do you remember where it has last been?"
"Only that it's somewhere around here, let's split up. If you find it, call for everyone else," Grey Tourmaline said. Everyone did just that and started to look through the snow for the Wailing Stone.
"Sure wish we had more help right now," Applejack said to herself. A few seconds later, the stepped on something solid and brushed off the snow to reveal the Wailing Stone underneath. "Everypony, I found it!" she called out. Everyone else showed up about one minute later and saw the Wailing Stone covered by the snow. They started to dig it out and pull it up to stand up properly.
"This is the Wailing Stone, we used it to send out voices for long distance communication," Grey Tourmaline explained.
"Cool, what does this button do?" Pinkie asked as she tried to press the button. Grey Tourmaline noticed and stopped her before her hoof touched it.
"All of the Wailing Stones are turned off right now. Turning it on right now will cause a high-pitched sound to play," Grey Tourmaline explained.
"Sorry," Pinkie said with a sheepish smile.
"Now that we have found the Wailing Stone, why don't we make our way back to your home?" Zecora suggested. Everyone agreed and after Grey Tourmaline bubbled the Wailing Stone to make it easier to carry, the group headed back to where they first split up with Red Pearl's team before going back to the temple. A few minutes later, they met up with the other group who had a bubbled pendant with them.
"I see you found the Wailing Stone," Red Pearl said seeing it inside one of Grey Tourmaline's bubbles.
"We did, but what did you find?" she asked.
"A Crystalize Prism, we had to bubble it because it was active," Twilight answered.
"It's active? Without someone to control it?" Grey Tourmaline asked.
"We don't know, but we're hoping it will calm down before we can release the gem inside."
"There's a gem inside?" Applejack asked.
"We'll explain it to you once we return to the temple," Red Pearl said. "We can also explain it to Chrome Diopside's group when they return." The two groups started to travel back to the temple to meet the third group there.
Back at the temple, a beacon of light shot from the Warp Pad that transported Chrome Diopside's team. "So, how long 'till everypony gets back?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Right now," a high-pitched voice said which everyone saw belonged to Pinkie who was with everyone else.
"Great time, we can tell you guys about Mirage Bolt now," Rainbow said enthusiastically.
"Mirage Bolt?" Fluttershy asked.
"Our fusion," Trixie answered.
"Wait, you and Rainbow Dash fused?" Twilight asked in shock. "I would expect you to fuse with Starlight first."
"We'll tell you the story later," Starlight said. "What about the rest of you?"
Twilight presented the bubbled pendant she had and said, "We found something called a Crystallize Prism. It was hostile when we first found it, so I had to keep it inside this bubble to keep it from harming anypony else."
Grey Tourmaline stepped forward and showed everyone the Wailing Stone inside the bubble and said, "And we found the Wailing Stone. I'll go place it with the rest of them."
As Grey Tourmaline went to store away the Wailing Stone, everyone else shared what happened on each of their missions.
At the beginning of night, Twilight placed the bubble with the Crystallize Prism inside Tanzanite's library near the entrance. "I just want you to know that we only want to help you," she said to it. She then started to walk to the bedroom leaving the prism.
