//------------------------------// // The Tree of Harmony // Story: Sugar Hoof the Wizard Colt // by Furenstein //------------------------------// The sun had just risen when I eventually came too. When I awoke, I was lying next to a tree in a forest filled with life magic, the trinkets I stole from Spike were still hanging on my back. "At least my hat survived." I said, giving it a soft pat. I stood up and looked around, the magic here was forced and untamed. Either the life wizard who made it wanted it to look like this, or they were long dead and left nobody to maintain the place. The grass, bushes, and trees were tainted from saturation, so whoever it was that forced the magic to be here, has something around here that keeps filling the place with his / her's magic. There were no roads that I could see from this deep in, so I walked in any direction and hoped it wasn't the direction I came from. Poison was in the air, the natural creation of life magic left unchecked. Life's colors were green and brown, but it was equally red in tooth and claw when it had to be. I rooted myself onto the ground and branched my magic out to look around better and a few seconds into my spell, I saw it. A tree of magic that matched the trinkets I stole to a T rested in a cave, sheltered from the harsh magic of the forest. If there was anything that could tell me about the artifacts, it was by analyzing that tree. The green and blue lanterns around the cavern shined onto the mountain of gold that the treants had mined out. Gems sat in similar piles around, too numerous to count. "Well over one hundred million, Lord Birch." Overseer Elm said, looking over his notes. "You do have the miners still digging, right?" Lord Birch asked, dressed in his fine silk robes. "Of course, the desert falls more under the master's control by the minute." "And the 'special' project, I had you look into?" Lord Birch asked. "We've found a firm place in the caverns that would be perfect to build it, we're excavating it now." Overseer Elm replied, pulling out a blueprint for what appeared to be a magically infused sinkhole. "The mantle and outer core have already been breached, but we need more treants to continue the mining." He requested. "Have a farm built in the outer core solely for treant production." Lord Birch commanded. "Yes, Lord Birch." Elm replied. "Has the inner core been breached yet?" Birch asked. Elm looked down for a moment as he remembered something. "Yes ... the inner core." He seemed deep in thought at it's mention. "Has something been discovered in there?" Birch asked, curious of Elm's behavior. "Well, we've ... the inner core is filled with natural fire magic, and some of the more magically inclined treants started thinking." Birch groaned lowly, acknowledging Elm. "They think they have come up with a corruptive agent that could turn the fire magic into life magic." Elm said, shrinking back at the uncertainty of it. "Completely under the master's control, of course." Birch thought of it, and the power it would give the master, he would be untouchable if the very core of the planet was under his control. Come to think of it, the master could use a group of treants to handle the more magical side of things, not even just magical things, but knowledgeable things, things that would normally be left to the master alone. "Have some chambers built in the outer core, and get those treants to work," Elm began writing, "And have some of the carrier and guard treants assist them . Should they need resources or test subjects, don't be afraid to steal them from the settlements above ground. It's high time the master has his own team of researchers." With his own intelligence division, the master would never have to leave again, he could send them to do the dangerous work while he stayed safe. A smile grew on Birch's face at the thought. The tree was made of crystal, and a harmonious hum rose from it as I approached. My horn lit as I began analyzing it and the trinkets. Millions of runes worked together in harmony to make up their strength. The crown stood out to me, the runes were solely related to magic and harmony. Magic to unite in harmony the other five trinkets respectively. "Magic to unite ... balloons, apples, diamonds, butterflies, and lightning, in harmony." I said to myself as I drew out a diagram of the runes. "That doesn't make any sense." I tried to activate the crown, only for it to dismiss my magic easily. Trying again didn't work either, but it did reveal to me an image of Twilight Sparkle back in Appleloosa. "Oh, they're linked to their owners, clever." I said, putting my paper down and lighting my horn up more. "Let's see if I can change who you think owns you." My magic enveloped the crown as the two of us struggled for control. "Oh sweet Celestia..." Goldie said to herself as she surveyed the damage of Appleloosa. The small settler town had been destroyed, the corpses of pony and treant alike laid about the place, Princess Celestia and a dozen royal guards walked about searching for something. "The treants ... attacked Appleloosa?" Rain said, descending to the ground beside Goldie. They both hesitantly walked forward into what remained of the town. A sigh of relief came from the princess of the sun, "At least a few of my little ponies survived." She said once she saw Goldie and Rain. The crown fell from my magic as no matter what I tried, it would not change who it thought was it's owner. I cracked my neck in annoyance at it's stubbornnes. "Whoever made these artifacts should be commended on their craftsmanship." I surveyed the area and my notes for a clue as to what to do. The cave itself was unassuming besides the crystal tree in the center and decided to move closer to it. I looked closer and saw six indents on the tree that looked like it could hold the necklaces and crown perfectly. Turning around, I looked back at the trinkets and realized. "It's not the trinkets who need to have their minds changed, it's the tree." I let my magic fill the cave and knew that I'd have to put everything I had into the tree to convince it to let go of it's secrets. A metal door, enchanted and guarded constantly stood between the inner core and the outer core, A treant in a blue cotton robe held a bubbling neon green liquid that made everyone around feel queasy. In no time at all, a small group of treants had created the compound from the master's magical signature. Birch looked at the door, feeling ill. "For the master." He said, everyone repeated the phrase as the door opened. Burning fire filled the hall, if it wasn't for the life magic that radiates from the cavern, they'd have been burned to death. The treant researcher threw the corruptive agent into the fire and were blinded by the result. Something had changed all of a sudden, I could feel it, my heart raced. Someone ... something ... my horn glowed brighter around the crystal tree as my magic expanded through unknown means. Every second that passed, my magic grew stronger. The tree stood firm for only a minute before the first cracks formed. The magic inside wasn't built to enforce harmony, it WAS harmony, harmony made manifest. It burned brighter than the shadow magic within me, and I knew that I had to learn this magic My horn and heart aligned with the tree to create a concentrated line of harmony and life. The runes inside of the tree became known to me, "Laughter ... Generosity ... Honesty ..." Branches from the tree cracked and feel to the ground below as the trinkets circled around me, humming with harmony magic. "Loyalty ... Kindness ... Magic ..." The tree shrunk as it was pulled into me, I tried to stop the spell, but couldn't, I was stuck in place. "No ... stop!" I could not move my horn away from the line as I came to know an ancient magic for a second time. "Sorcery ... Healing ... Bravery ..." Greater my magic grew as the tree and trinkets shrunk. "Stoooop!" I groaned as new magic filled my being. "Strength ... Beauty ... Hope ..." The Tree of Harmony and the Elements of Harmony as I had come to learn of their names, turned to dust that soon rested inside of me. I screamed as my magic grew, no human was meant to bear such power, these gifts were meant for the world, not for one to hold. Light filled the cave as I blacked out from the pain.