//------------------------------// // Chapter 7 // Story: MLP A New Generation 2: The Last of The Alicorns // by TwiShine45 //------------------------------// The entire group was shocked. Some for reasons purely personal and others for reasons a little more public. For Sunny, it was simply the revelation of something long buried away in some deep mental tomb. For her friends, it was the suddenness of finding a relic so seemingly important, yet at the same time, so ridiculously blunt. Certainly, somepony in Equestria’s more friendly past would have given some type of guide to the concept. It just fell to reason. However, at the same time, they realized (with no small jolt of embarrassment) that they had failed to live up to these standards. Equestria had gone from being a country where ponies cared so much about friendship that they wrote entire tomes about it…to a place rotting away at its core. Luckily, their adventure with Sunny had happened, and now Equestria was healing. Slowly, but surely, it was healing. “I should’ve known somepony would’ve written something so…historically Equestrian,” Hitch remarked. “Even though we fell away from all this, it still makes sense.” “But what doesn’t make sense is how Sunny knows about it,” Zipp said. “No offense, Sunny, but…I mean, you grew up in the unfriendly part of Equestrian history. I know your dad taught you well, but…he couldn’t have known of this journal…could he?” Sunny could do nothing but stare blankly at the journal. Then, utilizing her horn, she magically began flipping through the pages, searching for answers. The old book had seen its fair share of travesty. Page after page was either ripped, torn, or had complete sections missing. In a way, it spoke to the larger problems facing the nation. It seemed that, the more Sunny found wrong with the book, the more she concerned herself with the country’s previous issues. She came to points where massive swaths of paper were missing. However, she was able to glean some useful information…and what she found made her mind explode. “I don’t know how I know of this journal…nor if my dad knew of this, but it rings clear as a bell in my head,” she said. “What’s it say?! What’s it say?!” Izzy asked, rump shaking with excitement. “It’s all about how to be better friends with each other,” Sunny said, “and the different parts of the book seem to be divided into themes. They speak very highly of something called The Elements of Harmony.” “Elements of Harmony?” Hitch asked. Sunny nodded. “Yeah, and they have them listed right at the front of the book. It says that they consist of honesty, loyalty, laughter, generosity, kindness, and magic.” “Good story,” Pipp said, voice dripping with sarcasm, “but it still doesn’t explain why we’re out here on a wild goose chase!” “Pipp, please!” Zipp said, reprimanding her sister. “This book could be essential to finding out what happened to Sunny’s mother…or why she’s got wings and a horn. Heck, it could help all of us find what we’re meant to be.” Pipp rolled her eyes. “Whatever you say, sis. I still think this whole trip’s full of nonsense and if we had any sense, we’d get back to Maretime as quickly as possible.” Zipp shook her head. She loved her sister dearly, but the former pop star could be a bit selfish at times. In fact, self-centeredness was what had driven Pipp for years. Knowing that she was both a celebrity and a royal combined to create a horrible personality. Their mother had encouraged this by telling Pipp that she was simply better than everypony else. Thankfully, Haven seemed to have learned a bit more humility since abdicating the throne and moving to Maretime Bay. Pipp, on the other hand, had not appeared to have made any significant progress. It was well known that, despite the friends she had, she still longed for her old life of fan worship and glamour. “I apologize for my sister, Meadow,” Zipp said. “Oh, it’s alright,” the pegasus responded kindly, “I remember when Pipp was a star back in Zephyr Heights. I understand if she needs adjusting to life without the spotlight.” “I’m still standing right here!” Pipp squeaked indignantly. “Enough, guys!” Hitch barked. “We’re not here to fight, we’re here to solve…okay, a LOT of different mysteries, but mysteries just the same!” “Hitch is right,” Sunny said, “let’s just peek through the journal and see if we can’t find anything that will help.” “How are WE gonna use THAT dusty old thing to help us?!” Pipp asked, pouting a bit at being shut down by her older sister and the ponies that were supposed to be her friends. “WE…are gonna take it with us,” Sunny said, smiling and brightening the room, “and use it to try and navigate our way through the forest!” “It’s certainly been a good guiding device for me,” Meadow said. “Yeah…how did you wind up here anyway?” Hitch asked, cocking an eyebrow. “Well…I was born in Zephyr Heights. My brother, Storm Surge, and myself always enjoyed playing around in the streets. Of course, we were taught the various ways of Pegasi. Namely, anypony who wasn’t a Pegasi was bad for us. So, we stuck to our own kind and tried our best to make friends among them. We were moderately successful in these endeavors until, one day, Storm found a beautiful female pegasus named Wing Flower. Needless to say, my brother was stricken with love. The two hit it off wonderfully and, as they grew closer together, Storm became very distant from me. I missed him deeply, and tried to get involved in his life. But his marefriend didn’t like the idea, so she kicked me to the curb. Even worse, my parents were arrested for selling knock-off Pipp Petals merchandise!” “Wait a minute!” Zipp said, “selling knock-off merchandise? But…I never heard of anypony being arrested for that.” “Yeah, ponies knew better than to buy anywhere other than the official Pipp Petals online store!” Pipp said, adding a bit of prideful flair to her self-promotion. “Ahem, anyway, the point is, we knew all about ponies being arrested for crimes in our city,” Zipp said, “so…how did it get past us?” She couldn’t help but notice that Pipp took on a bit of a guilty look. This was when Zipp knew that something was wrong…terribly wrong. She hadn’t seen anything like that cross Pipp’s face in years. In fact, the look was worse than when Pipp was accused of embezzlement by her former agent and had to stand trial. True, the trial was a mock affair with Haven as the judge, jury, and executioner. So, of course, Pipp had been cleared and the agent had been hurled in jail for “false accusations.” But, Zipp had always suspected Pipp of actually embezzling from the agent. Now, she saw a similar look when the subject was brought up. It didn’t take long for her to learn the source of Pipp’s guilt. “My parents…” Meadow said, eyes moistening and ears drooping, “…were executed for the crime.”