//------------------------------// // Of Myths and Mons // Story: Digital Harmony // by Zennistrad //------------------------------// Lit by only the dim starlight of the pristine night sky, the Digi-Destined followed Allomon through the hills. Every so often the dinosaur digimon would glance back at the group, his fearsome eyes projecting an authority that stifled any attempt at speaking up. It was Braveheart, nearly two minutes into their journey, who finally spoke up. “Father, what are you going to do to them?” “Be silent, Little Braveheart,” Allmon replied. “It is not yet your turn to speak.” “I am not little,” Braveheart muttered. She was met with only another piercing glance from her father’s eye, prompting her to hold her tongue. As they continued along, the Digi-Destined and their gathered companions grew increasingly restless. Towards the back of the group, Applejack looked upwards at T.K., taking notice of the wrinkles that had formed from the frown that was written onto his face. Patamon, for the most part, did not seem to notice, sleepily resting atop T.K.’s head. “Something bothering you, sugarcube?” said Applejack. “Hm?” said T.K. “No, not really.” “Come on T.K., Ah can see it plain as a billboard. You’re worried about something, right?” “Nothing gets past you, huh?” T.K. sighed. “Yeah, you’re right. It’s about Ken. He’s been acting strange lately, as I’m sure you’ve noticed.” “Well, Ah ain’t known him for very long, but he has been mighty intense about bringing down Vespimon,” Applejack replied. “Yeah, and I understand why he’d do it more than anyone,” said T.K. “We’ve both seen what the forces of darkness can do, and we’ve both been hurt by them. That’s why Davis asked me to talk to him about it.” Applejack raised an eyebrow. “So why don’t you?” T.K. turned and glanced at Applejack, then turned away and stared straight into the stars. “There was something I said to him a while ago. That there’s a time for talking, and a time for fighting. I’m worried that he might not know which one it is right now.” ——————— The path Allomon took through the forested landscape eventually led the group to the largest of the Themthar Hills, a wooded slope that led upwards to a large, sandy plateau. From its top, the vast assortment of peaks and valleys were visible in all directions, the clarity of the sky assuring they could be seen even without daylight. Resting on the plateau were a dozens upon dozens of enormous birds nests, each wide enough to house the gargantuan eagle digimon that made them their homes. Most of the nests were occupied by soundly sleeping Aquilamon, some of which rested with tiny Poromon nestled in their wings. The remaining Aquilamon stood atop massive perches constructed from tree trunks, surveying the surrounding hilltops with unblinking eyes. Each of the lookout digimon gave Allomon a nod as he led the group through the encampment. The group was led towards center of the settlement, before a immense conical tent made of animal skin, with an absolutely gargantuan stature, easily as tall as a five-story office building. The gathered Digi-Destined collectively gawked at the tent as they approached, its sheer scale vastly eclipsing what it seemed to be possible from the materials it was constructed with. Allomon stopped before the tent, and turned around to address the Digi-Destined. “This, as you might have guessed, is our settlement. You will be staying with me for the night.” “Stay the night?” said Cody. “But what about our families back on Earth? Going to the Digital World is one thing, but if we go for a whole night without coming back, they’d think that something horrible happened to us!” “Ah don’t reckon it’d be much of a problem, given the time difference between our worlds and all,” Armadillomon chimed in. “Still, much as Ah appreciate the offer of hospitality, Ah can’t help but wonder why this feller’s being so nice all of a sudden.” “You may call me Allomon. We will discuss matters further in the morning. For now, you will rest.” Allomon turned around and walked through the tent flap. Without any other ideas, the Digi-Destined followed him inside. The interior of the tent was exactly as large and imposing as it appeared from the outside, though the space within was separated into multiple different rooms through the use of giant animal-skin flaps, forming wall-like partitions between various areas of the tent. The central room where the Digi-Destined were brought to contained a large campfire with circled by a collection of sleeping bags. The campfire crackled and burned brightly enough to dimly light the tent’s interior, though its ghostly blue color and lack of heat and smoke made it clear that it was supernatural in origin. “Feel free to extinguish the fire whenever you wish,” said Allomon. “I will see you in the morning.” He pushed through an opening in one of the tent’s makeshift walls, disappearing into another room. Braveheart smiled. “Goodnight, Hawkmon,” she said, departing from the central room into a different tent flap. “She seems nice,” said Wormmon. Hawkmon blushed furiously. “A-and just what do you mean by that?” “All I said was that she seems nice...” said Wormmon. “I must say though, doesn’t this all seem just a little bit suspect?” Rarity spoke up. “It’s nice to them to let us stay here, but they were the ones who kidnapped Hawkmon earlier. Is it really wise of us to fall asleep right in the middle of their territory?” “You ain’t suggesting we start and argument with the fifteen-foot-tall dinosaur, are you?” said Applejack. “Well, no, darling,” Rarity replied. “I’m just saying it would be wise to exercise some caution, that’s all.” “Guys, relax!” said Davis, sitting himself down by the fireside. “I’m sure it was all just a misunderstanding, they’ll be totally cool with us once we explain ourselves! Since we already slept back home, why don’t we pass the time and tell some campfire stories?” Pinkie Pie eagerly hopped over to the fire with a sproing. “Oooh, campfire stories! I’ve got one! I’ve got one!” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “Here we go again...” ——————— “...And that’s how Equestria was made!” By the time Pinkie Pie concluded her tale, the rest of the Digi-Destined had already gathered around the campfire, listening intently. A series of bewildered looks was briefly exchanged among the human and digimon present. “Um... No offense, Pinkie, but what does that have to do with your story?” said T.K. Pinkie raised a hoof to her mouth and giggled lightly. “Absolutely nothing, silly!” T.K. and Patamon both stared at each other, and then back at Pinkie. Next to her, Kari and Gatomon both shrugged, as if to say ‘just go with it.’ “You know, that’s something I kind of want to hear about, now that you mention it,” said Yolei. “Doesn’t Equestria have some kind of creation myth? You know, an old legend about how it came to be?” “You mean the story of Hearth’s Warming?” said Pinkie. “That’s a good one! I was even in a super-duper play about it!” “Actually Pinkie, I don’t think she means that,” Twilight chimed in. “Equestria has only existed recently in terms of Ungula’s history. Creation myths aren’t just stories about the founding of a nation, they’re myths and legends about how the universe itself was created. As it so happens, there are hundreds of different cultures in our world, each with their own creation myths.” Pinkie opened her mouth, mimicking a silent 'oh' sound. “Hey, that’s pretty much exactly the same in our world,” said Yolei. “So what kind of creation myth does Equestria’s culture have?” “Like I said, Equestria is a very young nation by Ungulan standards,” said Twilight. “As such, Equestria as a whole doesn’t have its own myth. There are several myths from the Equus continent shared by the civilizations that preceded Equestria, though, and they do have a few common elements. Most of them speak of a shapeless Abyss that preceded the universe as we know it, and those that do mention a terrible Two-Headed Beast emerging from it, embodying all the forces of chaos and darkness in itself. Some of them even say that Discord was directly descended from the Beast.” “Ooh, maybe we should try asking him sometime!” said Pinkie “I’d love to learn more about his family!” All of the other ponies suddenly winced. “Oh goodness, no!” said Rarity. “A Discord family reunion would be absolutely disastrous!” “Yeah, don’t you think he causes enough trouble by himself?” Rainbow Dash added. “It’s just a myth y’all, there ain’t no need to get carried away,” Applejack reassured. “Knowing Discord, some of it could just be a rumor he started to mess with other folks.” Twilight loudly cleared her throat, immediately drawing the attention of the entire room. “Anyway, as I was saying, there are several different versions of the myth involving the Two-Headed Beast. Whether Discord is descended from it or not isn’t known, and I doubt he’d be up front with any of us if we asked. Either way, most versions of the myth tell of another figure emerging with the Beast, known by ancient cultures as Concordia, who embodied light and harmony. Where it gets less consistent is what happened after that. “The ancient pegasi believed that Concordia descended from a higher realm to confront the Beast. In this version, Concordia and the Beast engaged each other in combat, and the force of their clash destroyed them both, creating the universe as we know today. By contrast, the ancient earth ponies believed that Concordia and the Beast both emerged from the Abyss at the same time. Rather than fighting each other, they instead worked to create the universe together, knowing that a world couldn’t exist without both chaos and harmony. Though they still act as enemies within this world, each chooses not to destroy the other, as they both know that nothing could exist without either of them.” “What about the unicorns, dear?” said Rarity. “Surely my ancestors would have a compelling story of their own to tell?” “Well... kind of,” said Twilight. “Their creation myth was told a lot more through symbolism than through literal description. It’s said that the duality of Harmony and Chaos both came from a single nothing, and from that duality came unity, and from that unity the many creatures in existence. The Beast and Concordia aren’t even mentioned at all, but most scholars agree that the ‘Chaos’ and ‘Harmony’ mentioned correspond to them, since the ancient unicorns used those names to refer to the figures in pegasi and earth pony myths.” “Whatever the case, that Two-Headed Beast certainly sound like quite the nasty fellow,” said Applejack. “To think that half the universe comes from an evil being of chaos and darkness... Ah certainly would hope that ain’t true.” “That’s actually a common misconception, Applejack,” Twilight responded. “The idea that darkness and chaos are inherently evil is a relatively recent invention. Chaos was stigmatized in the aftermath of Discord’s reign, and darkness was never really considered evil until after Nightmare Moon. But in magic theory it’s been accepted for millennia that they’re only as evil as what they’re used for.” Ken became visibly agitated at the statement. His body tensed, and he shot Twilight a glare. “That’s ridiculous,” he said, “after everything I’ve felt the darkness do to me, you can’t possibly say it isn’t evil. I know what it’s like, and I see no good reason why you should tell me otherwise.” Twilight tried to speak, but found that the words wouldn’t come to her. She could feel the weight of Ken’s gaze pressing down on her, leaving her to squirm beneath its weight. “Hey, come on Ken, there’s no need to be like that,” Davis spoke up. “She’s just trying to explain something she cares about, that’s all. Can’t you hear her out just for a second?” Ken turned his gaze towards Davis, staring at him unflinchingly. “...Alright, fine. But only because you’re the one who asked.” “Ken, I...” Twilight paused, stumbling over her own speech as her brain worked hard to come up with her next sentence. “...I didn’t mean to imply that you couldn’t have suffered greatly from the darkness. Many ponies who have tried to use dark magic to their advantage have. I’m just saying that doesn’t necessarily make it evil.” Rarity frowned at Twilight. “Well darling, you can certainly call me skeptical if you want, but I would have to side with Ken here. You know full well what the forces of darkness have done to us. Had I not been so lucky, they could have easily taken me as well.” “It seems like quite a few of us have have suffered at the hands of the darkness,” T.K. added sternly. “I don’t think I’ve met a single being of darkness that wasn’t out to kill us.” “I’m not so sure about that, T.K.” said Patamon. “BlackWarGreymon was made from darkness, wasn’t he? I don’t think he turned out too bad in the end.” “Patamon, he tried to kill us multiple times!” “He has a point though, doesn’t he?” said Gatomon. “BlackWarGreymon may have been born from darkness, but he spent his entire life rebelling against the evil purpose he was created for. In the end, he even gave his own life in the end to protect our world. If he was really pure evil, would he have done that?” T.K. sighed. “No, I guess not. I just have my doubts, okay?” “Well, I don’t know who BlackWarGreymon is,” Twilight said, “but I think that illustrates my point. Darkness as a force of magic isn’t necessarily evil, but it is fundamentally chaotic, and a being born of darkness would be driven to chaos naturally. Disobeying one’s purpose would probably count as that.” Davis scratched his head. “I don’t get it. How is darkness chaotic? I thought it was just like... what happens when there’s no light around?” “I’m not talking about that kind of darkness, Davis,” said Twilight. “I mean it in the metaphysical sense. In magical theory, light is an abstract force that represents order, reality, knowledge, and empathy. By contrast, darkness represents chaos, dreams, uncertainty, and the unknown. Anything that falls within the domain of worldly understanding falls within the light, while anything that defies conventional understanding falls under darkness. What makes the darkness dangerous isn’t that it’s evil, but that it rejects the order that we use to make sense of the world. That’s why so many ponies who call upon dark magic end up losing themselves to it. They’re not using darkness so much as they’re letting darkness express itself through them. If you show any amount of uncertainty in yourself, it could end up overtaking you entirely.” Rarity glanced in Twilight’s direction, though she avoided making eye contact directly. “So then, the Nightmare...?” “Aside from Discord, Princess Luna is Equestria’s most powerful practitioner of the dark arts,” Twilight replied. “Dreams are inherently linked to darkness, and dreamwalking requires tapping into immense amounts of dark magic. Luna is the only pony who can maintain the emotional and mental stability needed to harness it to that extent. Nightmare Moon appeared when Luna’s own insecurities became too powerful for her to manage.” Rarity bowed her head towards the ground, looking up glumly at Twilight. “...And what of the second time the Nightmare appeared?” Twilight’s eyes widened suddenly. “I... I don’t know,” she said. “Rarity, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to remind you of that. I don’t know how the Nightmare would–” “Enough,” a voice interjected. Everyone turned their head to the side to see Ken standing up, glaring angrily at Twilight. “I’m not interested in hearing you play devil’s advocate for the force that tried to consume me from the inside. Our mission is to defeat the darkness, not make excuses for it. Come on, Wormmon.” His body still tense, Ken began walking towards the entrance of the tent. “Where are we going, Ken?” said Wormmon. “Out,” said Ken. “We’ll head back here by morning.” Without another word, Ken pushed himself out of the massive tent flap, his partner scurrying after him. ——————— The tiny red dots covered the map screen in flickering waves, spreading outwards from the central point of Vespimon’s base. Soon nearly the entire eastern half of the Server Continent was drowned out in crimson, as though the map were drawn over with hundreds of tiny dots of red paint. The dots spread outward, further and further, but as they did they began to appear increasingly infrequently, until no new dots appeared at all. Vespimon hit a button on her keyboard, and the time-lapse map rewound itself to the beginning. She watched again as the visual representation of her control spires spread rapidly across the continent, only to come to a stop as the image reached the present day. Through repeated viewings, she began to notice the exact moment that the control spires began to slow their virus-like spreading. It was the same day that she realized the true nature of the Digital World. “Damn it,” she muttered. “My own doubt is holding me back. There has to be something else I can do.” Vespimon’s attention was drawn away from her thoughts by a tiny beeping noise coming from her computer. She pressed another key and closed the maps screen, bringing up her surveillance program in its place. Her eyes glinted subtly in the control room’s dim light. “So that’s where the Digi-Destined are,” she crowed. “Let’s see what we can do with you here...”