//------------------------------// // Chapter 4 - Encounter At The Castle Of Friendship // Story: Monado Of Harmony // by Yosh-E-O //------------------------------// “That’s a nifty looking sword you got there, Yosh!” awed Spike as he ushered Isabelle and his friend into The Castle Of Friendship. “Where’d you get it?” “It was donated to our town museum,” Yosh replied. “It seems to show me the future, or something like that, but I can’t control when nor how it does.”” “Ooh!” the purple dragon beamed. “Let me try!” YOINK Spike swiped the relic from his friend and held it out so he could look into the clear glass circle. “Whoa…,” he gasped as the lens-like object started to spin around. “I feel something!” Yosh tripped over himself as he eagerly asked, “What is it? What do you feel? Are you seeing things, too?” “The lens is spinning,” the emerald-eyed dragon replied. “I also feel like I’m in the middle of one of Discord’s ‘Ogres & Oubliettes’ altered realities.” Isabelle nudged Yosh. “Does that sound like your feeling?” she asked. “Discord, for whatever reason, hasn’t ever toyed around with me,” Yosh replied. “Though the visions feel like I’m in one of Princess Luna’s dreamscapes.” KA-THUNK “Yosh!” called Twilight from the throne room door. “Isabelle! What a surprise!” “It’s good to see you again,” greeted Starlight as she cheerfully walked ahead. “Wait… That didn’t-” “-Starlight,” interjected Yosh. “’See’ means the same thing whether you’re blind or sighted. So you don’t need to walk on pins-and-needles around me.” The periwinkle-colored Unicorn gave a nervous laugh as Spike moved forward to show what Yosh and Isabelle had brought. “Check it out, Twi,” he said. “Have you ever seen anything like it?” “I have,” scoffed a distant voice prior to the Lord of Chaos, Discord, appearing in the room. “And I thought I had been rid of that bothersome thing.” “Wait,” flustered Twilight. “You know what that thing is.” Discord wrapped his snake-like body around the Princess Of Friendship before using his magic to dress her in a graduation cap and gown. “And you don’t?” he teased while flicking the tassel on her graduation cap. “And you call yourself a teacher.” The purple alicorn growled. “What is it?” inquired Starlight. Discord teleported over to the periwinkle-colored Unicorn and used his powers to dress her in a backwards-facing baseball cap along with a blue t-shirt and a saddle bag with her Cutie Mark imprinted on it. “The student asks a perfect question!” he cheered. “And, in the absence of a certified instructor, I’m more than happy to show you!” RIIIPPP Isabelle walked alongside Yosh and described to him how the draconequus tore a hole in the air to create a sort of ‘window’. “Almost forgot,” considered Discord as he recalled hearing of Yosh and how he was incapable of seeing any of his visual theatrics. “Do not fret for I, Discord, am more than happy to accommodate to our visually impaired friends through descriptive narrative.” FWIP Yosh gasped as he heard something whispering directly into his ear. “And the reason I don’t bother you is because you’d be no fun to bother,” added Discord in a very miniaturized form. “Any chaos I could do to you would be no fun and Fluttershy would give me that stare of hers if she ever knew I ever caused any pony harm through my actions.” The dragon-duck gave a nod as the draconequus returned to his position in front of the window-like hole he had torn in the air. “Once upon a time,” presented Discord. “There was but only chaos. Anything could be everything and nothing could be something. Oh, those were the good times.” Everyone looked as Discord’s ‘window’ animated a scene where a giant explosion gave way to numerous star-like objects. It then displayed balls of fire, rocks colliding, things being stretched to unbelievable lengths and thickness, and explosions of light from objects crashing together along with breaking apart. All this was described to Yosh by Isabelle. Discord twitched and ceased his discussion upon realizing what the yellow shih tzu was doing. “Not approving of my descriptions, Isabelle?” he gruffed before snapping his fingers and transforming her into an actual bell. Yosh was startled by the ringing sounds coming off from the transformed shih tzu as everyone else just shot Discord the ‘stink eye’. “Oh, fine!” he barked as he returned Isabelle to normal. “This is, again, why I don’t bother messing with the beaked dragon over there. There’s just no fun in visual illusions and tricks when they can’t be seen.” Isabelle fell on her bottom upon being returned to normal. “That’s not entirely true,” she added. “I’ve found Yosh is able to enjoy a lot of visual things if given the proper descriptions. Kind of like reading a book for a sighted event.” “Bah!” the draconequus dismissed. “Too much work. You help Polly and I’ll continue with my presentation.” *** Discord went on to weave a tale of how ‘harmony’ and ‘anarchy’ began to appear from within the chaos. Harmony wanted all things tranquil, serene, and without strife while Anarchy desired all that is to be torn asunder with extreme prejudice. Harmony took form on the very land that was to become Equestria. The form Harmony shaped itself as was of a great tree within the Everfree Forest. Anarchy gave itself no shape as it preferred to assume whatever it needed to eliminate Harmony. Discord had actually been employed by Anarchy to destroy Harmony with the promise of his chaos no longer being disrupted by either side. However Discord was stopped by The Elements Of Harmony under the usage of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna and, 1,000 years later, by Twilight Sparkle and her friends. Harmony knew it needed another means of defense after the events that transpired between Princess Celestia and Princess Luna that resulted in Nightmare Moon being banished to the moon. So Harmony used one of its ‘branches’ to create ‘The Monado’. It is the instrument of harmony in which can evoke the elements of Kindness, Loyalty, Generosity, Laughter, Honesty, and Magic. It was also purposely designed to be of no use to ponies in the event another Nightmare Moon situation came about. *** “And how do you know this?” asked Twilight. “You were turned to stone before Nightmare Moon was banished to the moon.” The draconequus spun around Twilight and Starlight before hovering over Spike. “I was turned to stone,” he said blandly. “However, as I told you all before, I could still hear all that was going on around me.” “Then why haven’t we ever heard of this, Monado?” inquired Starlight. “You’d think something like this would be known by at least Princess Celestia?” Discord slapped his palm upon his face. “What part of not being for pony use didn’t you hear?” he asked in a bothered tone. “Then tell us already!” demanded Twilight. “Oh, ye of little patience,” he replied. “Celestia had my statue kept near the Tree Of Harmony to ensure I couldn’t break free. This was a good idea as, to be frank, I’d have never had the opportunity to gradually free myself if not for being moved to Canterlot. However it was during my stay by the tree that a creature came by, a griffon, I think, and the tree gave him that accursed thing. “A griffon?” wondered Twilight. “Well, I do know there was times where griffons weren’t known so much for their lack of friendliness.” So how did this end up at the Canine Crossroads Museum Of Friendship?” pondered Spike as he moved the Monado about. KA-CLICK FWOOM “I’ll tell you,” a shadowy figure stated while entering into the castle. “However I don’t think you’ll like the answer.” SHWINK! Everyone gasped as the cloaked figure pulled a sword from its back. The weapon giving off a series of sparks as dark energy radiated about it.