Flurry carefully lifted the remains of her healing flask, pouring what little was left in the broken bottle into her mouth. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to ease the pain and start the healing process, and after a few moments of rest, she managed to wobble to her hooves.
She glanced around at the chamber. In the aftermath of her battle with Seraph, the previously pristine room was covered in burn marks, occasional cracks in the walls and floors, shards of both crystal from her sword and orb and the multicolored remains of Seraph’s rings, and blood, both drops of Flurry’s own and Seraph’s dark ichor. The walls had darkened, the glowing patterns dimming.
The map in the center of the room flickered, the six pointed star dividing the sections dimming to the same grey color as the rest of the map. Now totally drained of color, the map slowly faded away, leaving nothing but a flat circular table. Almost as an afterthought, a depression formed in the center.
Flurry narrowed her eyes at that, then looked down. Next to the hilt of her now unusable sword lay a magenta gem shaped like a six pointed star. She picked it up, spinning it around in her magic. Looking behind her, she reached for the medallion lying on the ground, picking it up and holding it next to the gem with her magic.
She lined up the gem with the last remaining slot in the medallion, pushing it in. Predictably, it was a perfect fit, and once it slotted in with a click, not only the star shaped gem, but all six, lit up, glowing with a harsh light.
Flurry walked over to the table. After a brief moment of consideration, she placed the medallion in the depression, pushing it down.
As soon as she set it in place, the entire table shook. A crack violently formed down the middle, cutting right through the star at the medallion’s center. The rest of the gems cracked in turn, their glow becoming even brighter. Flurry took a step back, shielding her eyes with a wing.
The entire chamber’s glow dimmed further, the light running down the ceiling and walls and through the floor into the table, until it was the only source of light in the room. That light was much softer, almost calming, and it pressed in on the harsh glare of the gems.
With one last pulse, the soft light pushed into the gems. From the cracks, a dark miasma emerged, rising into the air. Flurry stepped back even further, watching it with concern. Then, a thick pillar of light shot up from the table, completely engulfing the darkness.
“MY CHILD.” The pillar of light morphed, taking the form of a glowing alicorn of pure light, speaking with a powerful yet calm feminine voice. “THE DARKNESS HAS BEEN PURGED FROM MY LIGHT. STEP FORTH, AND RESTORE THIS WORLD.”
Flurry said nothing, staring down the glowing form of Harmony itself.
“FEAR NOT, MY CHILD. THE CORRUPTION THAT CONSUMED THIS WORLD IS GONE. MY BEARERS MADE A MISTAKE, BUT IT IS I WHO BEAR THE BLAME. BUT NOW YOU ARE HERE, AND THE AGE OF HARMONY CAN REIGN ONCE MORE.”
“The Age of Harmony needs to end.” Flurry said.
Harmony sighed. “DISCORD. HE HAS FILLED YOUR MIND WITH HIS TRICKERY. HE MAY NOT BE ALLOWED TO LAY CLAIM TO THIS WORLD. YOU ARE THE LAST ALICORN, THE GREATEST OF MY CHILDREN. IT WAS NOT THE DESTINY OF MY LATEST BEARERS TO EXTEND MY AGE, BUT YOURS. ”
“No.” Flurry Heart shook her head. “If that is my destiny, then I refuse.”
Harmony narrowed the glowing spots that were its eyes. “YOU WOULD TRULY CHOOSE HIM OVER ME? HIS RULE WILL BRING NAUGHT BUT SUFFERING AND CHAOS.”
Flurry scoffed. “Have you looked outside lately?” she asked, almost mockingly.
“WE CAN FIX THAT!” Harmony’s voice seemed to get more desperate. “MY CHILD, PLEASE. EXTEND THE AGE OF HARMONY. LET MY LIGHT PERSEVERE.” It reached out with a glowing leg. “PLEASE.”
Flurry hesitated for a moment, lifting her hoof from the ground a fraction of a millimeter… then lowering it, turning around towards the doors. “This Age of Harmony has passed.” She stated simply. With that, she began to walk away.
“NO!” Harmony yelled, it’s body flickering. “YOU CAN’T LET ME FADE! YOU ARE OF ME!”
“I am Princess Flurry Heart of the Crystal Empire.” Flurry said, not looking back. “Daughter of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and Prince Shining Armor. I am no child of yours.” She reached out with her magic, pulling open the chamber doors and stepping out.
“YOU KNOW NOT WHAT YOU DO! CHILD OF MIN-”
Flurry slammed the doors shut behind her.