//------------------------------// // Griffon Order // Story: Echoes of Harmony // by Scyphi //------------------------------// There was initially some confusion as to where exactly they’d ended up, as no one readily recognized their surroundings and they didn’t seem to be near any immediate signs of civilization. After stopping to bandage Rarity’s paw Ember had cut earlier, Fluttershy eventually settled the matter by flying high enough to sight Foal Mountain to their south and the Neighagra Hills to their north. As they were notably closer to the latter than the former, Fluttershy deduced that put them somewhere around the center of the Griffon Order, which was good because that meant, having been here before, she knew roughly where the nearest town should be in relation to them. “And if I’m right about that,” she said upon explaining all this to the others, “Then I have a friend living in that town that I think might be able to help us.” And they definitely needed help, because as she’d tried to forewarn, generating the fire portal had sapped Twilight of so much strength that she could barely keep her eyes open, let alone stand, leaving the changeling a limp lump lying on the grass. “I think she’s suffering from mana starvation,” Spike surmised as they all attempted to check the changeling over, only to struggle as none of them knew particularly much about changeling biology. “That’s when you cast so much magic you pretty much drain yourself of more than you can give and your body just gives out.” “How do you know that?” Fluttershy asked, curious. Spike jabbed a claw vaguely to the southwest. “There are some magicians near where I live at Ghastly Gorge,” the little diamond dog explained. “We diamond dogs do a lot of trade with them for rocks and gems with magical properties, and over time you pick up a couple of the basics of casting, even if you don’t do it yourself.” “But how is she, though?” Rarity asked uncertainly before, without waiting for an answer, looking down at the changeling lying in the grass. “Twilight, how are you feeling?” “…tired…” Twilight managed to slur out, scarcely able to talk. It was frankly miraculous she was even still awake. “Will she be all right?” Fluttershy asked Spike instead, since he seemed to know something about the subject. “I think so,” Spike replied optimistically. “Once she’s had a good night’s rest, she should be right as rain again by morning, assuming this works for changelings the same as it does for those magicians.” Rarity gazed at the horizon, where the sun was starting to migrate down towards it. “Well, night is drawing near,” she observed. “If we want to find shelter before it gets too late, we probably ought to start traveling now.” That decided, she picked up Twilight and gently tossed her over one shoulder to carry like a sack of potatoes. Twilight let out a soft “oof” at this, but otherwise didn’t complain. “Fluttershy, darling, you’re the one who has the best idea of where we are, so you’d better lead the way.” “Um, okay,” Fluttershy said, feeling put on the spot, but after a moment to regain her bearing, she started forwards. “So, uh, this way, then.” They started hiking without event. “Soooo…” Spike said after a moment of them walking in silence, “…just what is going on here anyway? What brought all of you together like this, and why were you being chased by another changeling?” “Well…Twilight really ought to be the one to explain, because she was the one who…um…started it, I suppose,” Fluttershy began, looking back at Twilight draped over Rarity’s shoulder. Twilight only mumbled incoherently in response though. “But, um, since she’s not really in a position too,” Fluttershy then concluded with a small wince, “I, uh, guess me and Rarity will have to try our best to do it.” They proceeded to fill Spike in on the situation as best as they could. Fortunately, Spike didn’t seem to need much to catch on or be swayed to Twilight’s cause. “Wow,” he remarked by the time they’d finished, the sun was starting to set in the distance. “Twilight’s putting herself through a lot for this.” He looked sympathetically at the changeling who’d spent most of the walk thus far fading in and out of sleep. He then blinked and looked at the other two females. “So are you two, in fact. You’ve really put yourselves out there and for a creature you’ve only just met.” Rarity nodded contemplatively at that assessment. “I suppose I will have to do a lot of explaining to the Dragon Regent once this is all over,” she admitted with a heavy sigh. “Assuming she will actually give me the chance.” “You’d have to get back home first in order to do that,” Fluttershy pointed out before turning contemplative too. “Just like me. I mean, I’ve traveled out this far before, but…not under circumstances like this, where I don’t…exactly…have a guaranteed way to get…you know…back.” “I guess I’m kinda in the deep end now too,” Spike admitted, kicking at a pebble as he walked. “To be fair, though, we did sort of drag you into this without your permission,” Rarity admitted. “For which we do apologize,” Fluttershy added before looking at Twilight. “I know Twilight feels guilty for just getting us two into the mix, so I imagine she feels the same for you. Don’t you, Twilight?” “Mm…hmm…” Twilight managed to mumble out in the affirmative. “You know, you really should just relax and sleep, Twilight,” Rarity said, giving the changeling draped over her shoulder a nudge. “You’re not going to be much use to anyone all drained out like this.” “Can’t…stuff to do.” Twilight muttered. “None of which is going anywhere in the meantime,” Spike pointed out to the changeling, falling back a little so he could see the changeling’s face. “You’ve still got…what was it again? Four or five days until this Nightmare Moon character is supposed to come back? That’s still enough time to get some sleep, and even if it wasn’t, Rarity’s right. Avoiding the sleep will only make you less able to help stop it, not more.” He shrugged. “Besides, that’s what we’re here for now, right? We can cover for you. And I won’t vouch for the girls here, but…now that I’m all up to speed…I’d like to assist to the best of my abilities.” Twilight managed a weak grin at that. “Thanks…” she mumbled, “…I’m…sure you’ll be a…great assistant.” “Aw,” Spike said, flustered. “I’m just trying to help.” “We all are,” Fluttershy added. Twilight’s grin grew a little. “I think…you all will.” And that thought must’ve been enough to get her to relax because she dozed off entirely not long thereafter, this time staying asleep. They kept walking. Eventually, Fluttershy asked about Spike’s story so he decided to return the favor and fill them in. “There’s really not all that much to tell,” he admitted. “Diamond dogs such as me like to collect gems. We’re kinda like dragons in that regard, except we don’t eat what we find. Anyway, I personally decided to go out and trade for them from other creatures that don’t want or need them, and began wandering around the land doing so. I met Rarity for the first time not long thereafter when I accidentally took a wrong turn near the Rambling Rock Ridge and ended up crossing into the Dragon Coasts instead of heading for home at Ghastly Gorge. She was kind enough to get me back on course, so in return I make it a point to come back and see what she and other dragons are willing to trade.” He grinned proudly. “Turns out dragons are always interested in some potential gemstones, no matter who they’re coming from.” “But you seem so young,” Fluttershy observed, noting the diamond dog’s youthfulness in comparison to the rest of them. “Should you really be traveling so far on your own?” Spike shrugged, indifferent. “Wouldn’t be the first diamond dog my age to do so. Besides, so long as I always make it back home again, it doesn’t really matter much, right? And anyway, I’ve been doing this long enough that I like to think I know what I’m doing.” “Barring instances of wandering into foreign lands where you might not always be welcome, of course,” Rarity couldn’t help but tease. “Yeah, but I learned from that,” Spike pointed out. “And so long as I can keep doing that, I think I can manage.” He then playfully bopped Fluttershy on her shoulder. “Besides, it got me in the right place to help with you all here and now, right? And honestly? By the sound of it, you guys could use all the help you can get when it comes to fighting off…well, that.” He motioned at the horizon where the moon had begun to rise into the sky, the markings of the Mare in the Moon upon its surface very visible in the clear evening sky. They all stopped to watch it rise for a moment, realizing what that mystical face on the moon truly signified for the first time. “Well, it’s certainly surreal to think that will soon be coming back down here,” Rarity mumbled aloud with a note of dread. “I mean, if this Nightmare Moon was so significant to leave a mark like that on the moon…well…” “Oh my,” Fluttershy said with a small whimper, “No wonder Twilight is so anxious about stopping her.” “Well…good thing we’re here to help pitch in, huh?” Spike remarked with a positive grin. Fluttershy made a small grin too. “Yeah,” she agreed. “Indeed,” Rarity said, before shifting Twilight’s weight on her shoulder. “Now, Fluttershy, how much further until we reach…wherever it is we’re heading?” “Um, I’m not sure,” Fluttershy admitted, “but it can’t be too much further.” She ultimately proved correct as it was only a few minutes later they reached the peak of a hill and found a small griffon-built village nestled within the valley beyond. Fluttershy recognized it as the one she was hoping to find, Griffonton. Now knowing exactly where to go, she led them straight to a humble enough house on the edges of the town, where it was easy enough to approach without being too readily noticed by others—after everything they’d been through lately, they were eager to avoid drawing too much attention for now. Once they’d gathered at the door, Fluttershy politely knocked. “Oh, I hope she isn’t already asleep for the night,” she fretted as they waited for any sort of response. “So you definitely know this griffon, right?” Spike asked while they waited. “Oh yes,” Fluttershy assured as she politely knocked a second time. “We met some years ago when I first sailed up here for special flying lessons. I…wasn’t a very strong flier back then. Since then, we typically get in touch whenever I happen back into the area.” She gave the door another gentle knock for a third time. “And she can be trusted, right?” Rarity asked, concerned. “Well…she’s never given me any reason to question her trustworthiness,” Fluttershy responded simply, which was answer enough for her. She started to knock for a fourth time, but Rarity, tired of beating about the bush, reached over her and loudly pounded on the door a few times with her fist. They heard shuffling behind the door almost immediately following. “Yeah, yeah, I hear you, just chill for a second, will ya?” a female voice sassed from the other side of the door. “Sheesh!” The door swung open a moment later to reveal a mildly annoyed griffoness. She bore a pale cerulean coat that faded to a bluish-white on her belly, front, and up most of her neck towards her dark grey beak. Her wings and tail tuff were colored a darker blue-grey, but the tips of both her tail tuff and crest of feathers on her head faintly faded to varying colors of the rainbow, giving both a prismatic look. She had a very casual look to her, the only garment she wore being a loose slate grey scarf wrapped about her neck (incidentally held in place by a pin stylized with a cloud and rainbow-colored lightning bolt design) and had the back part of her crest tied back in a sort of pseudo-ponytail. She also looked like she had been about to doze off for the night before being pulled to the door…which probably explained why she didn’t react to the guests at her door right away. She blinked for a second before she finally taking in the hippogriff standing at the front and squinted her tired eyes at her. “Wait…Fluttershy? The heck are you doing here? Normally you write way in advance of you visiting, not to mention you also don’t knock on my door…this…late…” she slowly trailed off, her brow furrowing as her eyes went from Fluttershy to the diamond dog standing to her side, to the dragoness standing behind her, then to the changeling draped asleep over the dragon’s shoulder, before back to Fluttershy. “….right then. Explain please.” “It’s…kind of a long story,” Fluttershy admitted sheepishly, rubbing one foreleg against the other. The griffon pinched the bridge of her beak with her grey talons. “Short version then.” “Okay, so…I met a changeling, first of all.” “Did you now.” “Uh-huh. She’s trying to find these magic artifacts that will help her stop the return of Nightmare Moon.” “Wait…the gal from pony folklore?” “Uh-huh. But we were attacked by other changelings trying to stop her and we shipwrecked at the Dragon Coasts. So then I met a dragon and a diamond dog, who both helped us make a magic fire portal to come here.” “Really.” “Uh-huh. And…and then that brings us to here and now, I guess.” The griffon had started to rub at her eyes in tired frustration by this point. “Can we crash here for the night?” Spike then tentatively asked. The griffon responded by heaving a heavy sigh, looking reluctant. “Please, Rainbow Dash?” Fluttershy pleaded. Rainbow huffed, eyeing each of them in turn again. “If I say no,” she began in a tone that suggested she already knew how this would play out, “you’re just going to give me that pleading eye look until I cave and say yes anyway, aren’t you?” Fluttershy hesitated, dipping her head slightly while not appearing to know what Rainbow meant. “Um…I guess I could try to do that…if you want me to.” “Don’t bother, you’re already doing it.” Rainbow rubbed at her eyes again and heaved one last sigh. “…it’s way too late for this.” But nevertheless, after giving the group one last look over, she silently held her door open and stood to one side, signaling them to enter. Rarity and Spike hurried inside before the griffon changed her mind, their first order of business being to select the couch as the place to put the sleeping Twilight. Fluttershy watched them while entering last before turning to her griffon friend. “Thank you, Rainbow,” she said genuinely. Rainbow grunted as she slammed the door shut. “You know, you’re going to explain this more in the morning, Flutters,” she stated flatly. “Oh, okay. I…think we can do that then.” “Great. Fine. Just…don’t let them make a mess, okay?” “Okay.” “Right. I’m gonna go to bed now.” Rainbow turned and started out of the room again, just wanting to put off worrying about it until tomorrow. “Good night, Rainbow,” Fluttershy called after her. Rainbow mumbled something of an incoherent response, half-heartedly waving a wingtip back at her before vanishing into her bedroom. Fluttershy then turned around to look at the others now settled in the living room, Spike and Rarity watching these proceedings with bemused interest. “I like her,” Spike announced after a moment, grinning. Fluttershy made a small grin and looked back in the direction her griffon friend had gone. “I like her too,” she agreed. “She’s a good friend.” Rainbow proved to be a bit more proactive about her unplanned guests by the next morning once they had all rested up—save Twilight who slept late—and a bit quicker to take issue with their presence and anything they did she didn’t approve of…but she never once went back on her word. Over a haphazard and mismatched breakfast, they worked to explain the situation more fully to her. She didn’t seem to share their faith in Twilight’s quest though, even after they pulled out some of the changeling’s own research to show her. Had Twilight known that when she finally did wake another hour or so later, feeling better but a little disoriented as to where she was now, being greeted with the sight of the griffon looming over her might not have been as surprising for her. They stared each other down for a moment, Rainbow expectantly, Twilight confused. “…and you are?” the latter asked finally. “Rainbow Dash,” the griffoness replied matter-of -factly. “Top flier, aerial acrobat, and aspiring sky racer.” A pause, then she added, “Also Fluttershy’s bestie.” “Right, the one she mentioned last night might be willing to help,” Twilight said with a slow nod. “I take it she was right then.” “That depends on how you answer some of my questions.” “Which are?” “Well, who are you, first of all?” “I’m Twilight. A praefectus and researcher of the Archivum—that’s a sort of archive or library of collected information where I come from.” Rainbow Dash nodded her head. “You’re also a changeling.” “I think because I’m not currently disguised at the moment that this goes without saying.” “I’ve heard stories about you changelings. How do I know you’re not actually deceiving anyone with this…Nightmare Moon stuff I was told about?” “I can show you my research on the matter.” “I don’t want your research.” Rainbow leaned closer. “What I want is to make sure you aren’t doing anything to hurt my friend.” Twilight furrowed her brow at the griffon. “Well, aren’t you just full of loyalty,” she observed semi-sarcastically, but she could sense Rainbow was genuinely concerned about it, and given circumstances she supposed that was fair. “Well, I suppose I could start by pointing out that, if I had really meant harm to any of the creatures accompanying me, I would’ve done so well before I crossed paths with you.” “But what if you’re just playing the long game here?” “One of those creatures is a dragon. And don’t let her polite and proper demeanor fool you—I’ve seen for myself that she could beat us both to a pulp with ease if she suspected anything. And I don’t know if you noticed, but I’m not exactly a powerhouse of muscle myself.” “Yeah, you are kind of a stick figure.” Twilight ignored the jab. “Further, if you’re concerned about the possibility of me draining any of you of emotions, I’ve found since leaving the hive that I don’t need to in order to stay fed. I can just skim the excess sent my way, so long as I stay friendly and kind. That means I have motive to stay on your good sides where possible.” Rainbow folded her forelegs. “That still doesn’t rule out you keeping any secrets.” “I can only assure you then that I am not. Whether or not you believe me at my word is entirely up to you.” Twilight sat up on the couch so to now be the one leaning into Rainbow’s face. “But I promise you, what I’ve determined about Nightmare Moon is true and she is not only set to return, I expect her to do so within or near your nation. I need to speak with your government officials so to both forewarn them as well as ask if they have or know where I can look for any more information on the Elements of Harmony, magical artifacts that can be—“ “Yeah, yeah, I already had that part explained to me,” Rainbow said, cutting her short. She sighed, pinching the bridge of her beak. “Look, Fluttershy trusts you, and despite her…timidness…I’ve found she’s actually a pretty good judge of character. And I guess you haven’t given me any reason to not trust her judgement. But you gotta admit…this whole story of yours is bizarre as all Tartarus.” Twilight snickered at her bluntness. “I won’t deny that,” she admitted. She then turned more genuine. “But…I promise you…at the end of the day, despite the reputation of my native kingdom and species…all I’m really trying to do here is help protect creatures from a very powerful villain that’d mean us all harm, regardless of what we are. And I suspect you’d want to do the same thing, if you were in my position.” Rainbow scowled. “You’re reading me like a book.” Twilight smirked. “It comes with being a changeling.” Rainbow sighed again, gazing heavenward before relenting. “Fine, I’ll see if I can’t arrange for you to meet with Lord Goldstone, let you make your case to him. If anyone can point you towards what you’re looking for, it’d probably be him.” She straightened, motioning to the rest of her home’s interior. “And the sooner the better, because I don’t really want to keep entertaining houseguests like this.” Twilight looked around and saw Rainbow’s point. In one corner, she had Fluttershy seated neatly in an armchair and quietly flipping through a magazine, but in another she had Rarity attempting to continue making her jewelry by taking what appeared to be silverware and twisting and melting them into the desired shapes with her claws and firebreath. And Spike was just exploring and fiddling with every little thing he happened upon, regardless of whether or not it was wise for him to do. To prove that latter point, the diamond dog chose that moment to poke his head out of the bathroom. “Hey Rainbow Dash, what’s with this bowl of water in here?” Rainbow was momentarily confused as to what he meant. “Bowl of water? What do you mean a…wait, dude, that’s the toilet you’re talking about, isn’t it?” Spike just tilted his head, confused. “What’s a toilet?” “What’s a toi—it’s something you crap in, that’s what!” Seeing Spike still didn’t understand, she added, “And then you flush it to make it all go away!” “…flush?” Spike ducked back into the bathroom presumably to reexamine said toilet. A second later the toilet could be heard flushing. “Oh…oh! That’s actually awesome!” “Yeah, yeah, isn’t technology something,” Rainbow deadpanned with a groan. Twilight giggled. “I promise to try and be as quick about this as circumstance will allow,” she vowed. “Please do,” Rainbow begged, covering her face with her talons. Lord Goldstone, as Rainbow later explained, was the griffon lord currently selected to supervise the Griffon Order portion of the greater kingdom it was part of. Technically this meant he wasn’t the highest ranking griffon in the overarching griffon government, but he was the top authority for the region, and any matters affecting the Griffon Order went through him sooner or later. Normally he didn’t allow anyone from off the street to meet with him without first going through the proper administrative staff, assessing the quality of their cause. But Rainbow, aware that Twilight’s quest didn’t have time to be caught in red tape, exploited a few tricks she knew of to cut through it all and, as promised, secured an appointment to meet with the lord himself later in the day. However, Lord Goldstone wasn’t housed in Rainbow’s hometown of Griffonton, meaning a train ride further west was required. For Rainbow and Twilight, the latter choosing to disguise herself as a griffon so to make things easier, this wasn’t too much of a problem. For Fluttershy, Spike, and Rarity though, who all insisted on coming along, they drew a lot of stares due to them standing out more as non-griffons. Fortunately, the griffon tendency of ignoring anything that wasn’t directly their problem worked in their favor enough to avoid making a scene…but it was still a rather awkward train ride, and Rainbow kept bemoaning about the local grapevine probably ensuring she’d be inundated with unwanted questions later. Nevertheless, they successfully arrived at the seat of the Griffon Order’s government a few miles out from Mount Canter without too much incident. As they approached the simply gargantuan mansion Lord Goldstone was housed in though, most of the group couldn’t help but be a little taken aback by it all. “Your ruling upper class certainly like their dwellings big, don’t they?” Rarity noted aloud in a tone of disdain for Goldstone’s apparent indulgences, thanks to his rank. Rainbow’s weary sigh proved she wasn’t the only one who had a problem with it. “Yeah, and Lord Goldstone has had three large additions funded by taxpayer money added to it in the past year alone,” she added with notable contempt. It was clear Rainbow didn’t think that highly of Goldstone. A fact that worried Twilight a little. “If he’s really…like that, then,” she noted to the griffon escorting them, “Then why are we even bothering with him?” “Because like him or not, he is about as high up the chain you can get around here, unless you want to head all the way out to Griffonstone where the rest of the lords sit in their own ginormous mansions,” Rainbow replied, before changing her tone. “Look, you wanted to speak with a government official, and despite everything, even I have to admit Goldstone is still good at that much. If there’s a way to help you on your little quest, he’s still your best bet for finding it. You just gotta convince him it’s worth his time to.” Twilight gulped at that, recalling quite clearly how she’d already failed to do exactly that with her own leader, but just like she’d done going into that meeting, she set aside her doubts and proceeded anyway, knowing she needed to try. The awkward staring of other griffons only continued, if not intensified, upon entering the mansion. The fact they now had guards weighing them up as potential threats—particularly Rarity, being both the dragon and the biggest of their group—didn’t help the tension. They were nearly turned away by the secretary working the front desk, unwilling to even hear them out, until Rainbow got a word in edgewise about how they had an appointment. Even then, she had to verify no less than three times that Rainbow Dash was, in fact, the griffon who had scheduled it, and even then she very nearly wouldn’t let the others accompany her until also making it clear their presence was relevant to the matter they wished to present to Goldstone. Finally, after all that back-and-forth hassle, they were escorted to Lord Goldstone’s office by a quartet of guards. Those guards stayed encircled about them seemingly per a ceremonial practice, but more likely they were ensuring they didn’t try anything, particularly after Twilight sensed one guard’s surprise that they’d actually arrived at their destination without incident. Regardless, they were ushered through the office doors, taking Twilight’s attention off the guards and onto the more important creature seated behind an elegant desk. As griffons went, Goldstone wasn’t especially impressive in terms of physical statue, being of fairly average height but a very slender build. Granted, his body had the yellow coloration and black spots similar to a cheetah, suggesting speed and agility over brawns, but unless he hid it well, he didn’t convey a sense of skill in this either. His crest was also slicked back and this mixed with his smug look gave him a rather sleazy and self-entitled demeanor. Altogether, he really didn’t seem like the best candidate to be presenting their case to. However, he was the first griffon since entering the mansion to not try and turn them away immediately. Instead, he looked up from his paperwork and raised an eyebrow at them in a mixture of intrigue and confusion. “Well, I have to admit this wasn’t who I expected to see for my two o’clock,” he quipped, rising from his seat and stepping around his desk so to better receive them. “I assume there’s a reason a veritable menagerie of creatures has walked into my office?” The question was mostly directed at Twilight and Rainbow, the (apparent) two griffons of the group, so Rainbow stepped forward to answer. “Lord Goldstone,” she began, dipping her head briefly in a polite half-bow. She did so without any life to it, clearly more because protocol demanded it than because she wanted to. “I made this appointment on the behalf of these creatures here because of an important matter they claim affects the Griffon Order.” Goldstone hummed with passing curiosity and decided to humor them. “Such as what, then?” he asked. Rainbow stepped aside and motioned for Twilight to take over. Twilight, not quite prepared to have the spotlight put on her that abruptly, momentarily flustered about getting her act together. “Well, your lordship,” she began, pulling out her research, “I guess I won’t mince words for you—I have reason to believe a grave danger may soon arise within this nation.” She then gave the by now routine explanation about her studies and conclusions about Nightmare Moon’s imminent return, omitting only the details of how she’d gotten here as a precaution, so to hide her true nature as a changeling. Hearteningly, Goldstone seemed intrigued and allowed Twilight to make her case with little interruption, studying closely all the research she spread out on his desk. He further didn’t complain when Spike, Fluttershy, or Rarity piped in with their own small contributions to the tale. Even Rainbow Dash verified a detail or two she knew of the matter. By the end of it though, it wasn’t clear whether or not Goldstone was swayed. “This is all an intriguing theory of yours,” he conceded once Twilight had finished. “But what proof do you have that this dangerous villain will, indeed, make her return? Or, for that matter, she ever actually existed at all?” “I admit, beyond the accounts and records I’ve cited here,” Twilight motioned to her research on his desk, “I have relatively little. However, those sources were all by trustworthy and reputable researchers and writers throughout history, and those that are not, still verify or confirm the other accounts precisely. By that logic, I at least have reason to think that they were onto something, enough that the threat shouldn’t just be casually ignored.” She motioned to Goldstone. “Besides, would taking the steps to protect against such a threat as a precaution really be so remiss when it may affect the greater world on a whole?” “That depends on what those steps are, and how much it may cost the Griffon Order to carry them out,” Goldstone countered, but again he humored Twilight. “So what, exactly, are you proposing to do?” “Simply put, your lordship, we find and recover the Elements of Harmony that had been used to defeat Nightmare Moon a thousand years ago,” Twilight concluded. “If they worked then, then presumably they will work again. And as the land the Griffon Order now sits upon once contained several major Equestrian cities before its collapse, I’m hoping there exists here surviving records about them that I could not find in other nations. I thereby request your permission and cooperation in allowing me and my companions to further my research using whatever relevant records you can provide for us.” Goldstone went silent for a moment, beginning to pace as he considered the matter. Tensely, the others stood watching him, awaiting his verdict. “These elements,” he began, “they’re some kind of weapon?” Twilight hesitated. “I’m not sure ‘weapon’ would be the right word to describe them, given what I’ve learned about their nature,” she explained. “But they can still be used in an offensive or defensive manner against threats, correct?” “So my research appears to suggest, yes.” Goldstone processed that for another second. “And these elements could be used against other potential threats too, correct? Not just Nightmare Moon?” “Given the evidence, I don’t see why not.” Goldstone again resumed pacing for a moment, debating to himself. Finally, he faced Twilight with a grin. “Very well then,” he announced, “I agree to your request on the grounds that any discoveries you find be shared in full and without delay to me and the rest of the Griffon Order, free to use for our own needs. In turn, I agree to likewise give you access to your deserved share of those same discoveries. Do you agree to those terms?” He proffered his paw to Twilight so to shake. Twilight hesitated, taken aback by Goldstone being so easy to convince when she’d expected him to show more resistance. But not finding any immediate reason to refuse, and seeing her cohorts all urge her on when looking back at them, she nodded and shook on the informal agreement. “I agree, Lord Goldstone.” “Excellent!” Goldstone declared, clearly pleased. “Then let us not delay a moment longer.” He escorted them down into the lower levels of the mansion where a vast storeroom of ancient texts were, explaining that any text of ancient Equestrian origin was typically placed here for storage. If the information Twilight sought was anywhere, here seemed like the best place to start—they just needed to find it from among the stacks of books. Placing guards at the door and wishing them the best of luck, he then departed to go back to his own work, leaving them staring at the honestly sizeable collection of tomes. “Is anyone else feeling like we’ve just been roped into the unsavory task of doing this griffon’s spring cleaning for him?” Rarity deadpanned, intimidated by the sight. “Yeah, that’d scan for Goldstone all right,” Rainbow agreed with a weary sigh. “So it’s not glamourous,” Twilight pshawed, “but no one ever said research didn’t require hard work. Besides, Lord Goldstone still let us have this opportunity, so we shouldn’t let it slip by.” “Twilight’s right,” Fluttershy agreed. “This is what we came here to do, so let’s get started. If we all work together, I’m sure we’ll make it go by faster!” “Ugh,” Rainbow bemoaned as they all sat down to begin, “I’m really regretting letting you guys convince me to get involved in this.” Nevertheless, she begrudgingly assisted as they began sorting through the texts. They swiftly devised a system of Rainbow, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Spike looking at each of the books and setting aside any they thought might have what they needed for Twilight to go through in more detail. They were at it for a good couple of hours. In that time, Twilight found texts that reaffirmed what she’d already uncovered, just like back in Ouenetoi, but nothing new that really pinpointed what they were really looking for. But then, as the sun started sinking low towards the end of yet another day, Spike was actually the one to finally hit upon the right text. “Hey, guys, look at this!” he said, his eyes lighting up at the title as he read it aloud. “‘The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide.’” In excitement, Twilight vaulted out of the stacks of rejected books that had accumulated around her, raced over to the diamond dog and taking the book from him, reading the title for herself. “Yes, this is it, it has to be!” she declared. “Where did you find this?” “Honestly, probably right where you’d expect it to be,” Spike admitted, motioning to the shelf it was on. “Under the books starting with E.” “Ha! I knew proper organization would help save the world someday!” Twilight crowed before opening the book and flipping through it, the others gathering near so to peek over her shoulder. Twilight’s excitement only grew the more she read. “Yes, yes, this is exactly what we’ve been looking for!” “So it tells us where to find the Elements of Harmony?” Rarity asked. “Or what they even are?” “Yes, it looks like it!” Twilight said, pointing at a section of text. “It’ll take a more thorough reading to get it all, but remember how we’d learned in the Dragon Coasts there seemed to be up to six elements? This confirms it, though it can only list five of them by specific name. The sixth’s name seems to have been a mystery to the author. But the first five revolve around traits of virtue—kindness, laughter, generosity, honesty, and loyalty—so I assume the sixth will continue that same trend. As for where they are…” Twilight flipped a page. “…their last known location would be within the Castle of the Two Sisters, and that would be located deep within what is now the Everfree Forest.” Fluttershy’s eyes bulged. “The Everfree Forest?” she repeated in alarm. “Yeah, isn’t it great?” Twilight asked, missing in her excitement the mixed feelings of horror or apprehension her companions expressed. “Ooh, somebody better go get Lord Goldstone—he’s going to want to hear this too!” “I’ll do it,” Rainbow volunteered, and going to the door, asked one of the guards to bring Goldstone back here. The griffon lord strolled into the room not long thereafter, looking particularly smug. “You found the information you were looking for?” he asked aloud as the guards accompanied him towards the group. “Did you find where the Elements of Harmony are hidden?” “Yes!” Twilight declared, looking up from reading the reference guide further and holding it up so Goldstone could see too. “It seems to have plenty of answers, enough to give us a better understanding about them and their history that we can probably successfully deduce the remainder.” “In other words, yes, we have a good idea of where to find them now,” Rarity summarized in more blunt terms. She winced. “Although safely getting to them might be a whole other matter, given their location…” But Goldstone waved that matter aside. “It should all be worth it once the Griffon Order has secured this weapon for its own use,” he assured conceitedly. Twilight’s excitement waned somewhat at this. “Lord Goldstone, I should remind you that it would probably be unwise to see these elements as a weapon to wage war with,” she reminded. “Indeed, the new information I’m finding in this book suggests that they were explicitly never meant to be used in such a fashion. More meant to prevent conflict and harm than to create it.” She then tilted her head at him, confused. “Besides, as we agreed upon before, this discovery wouldn’t be for the sole benefit of the Griffon Order but for all of the major countries on the continent, seeing Nightmare Moon is a threat affecting them all.” “Yes, about that,” Goldstone said, brushing his talons against his front before leaning to the closest of the guards. “Detain them.” The guards, having been subtly encircling the group throughout this conversation, all enacted what must’ve been a premeditated plan to capture them, since they worked quickly and effectively to put them in restraints. The only real hiccup as Rarity, as the dragoness wasn’t going down without a fight and she had raw strength on her side. But even that was fleeting as the guards planned for that too, wrestling with her only until one got close enough to taser her long enough to bind her. Within moments, all five of them had been securely pinned while Goldstone looked on with a growing level of self-satisfaction. “We had a deal!” Twilight protested angrily at the griffon once this was done. “You said that we would share any discoveries made, that you would allow us access to what was uncovered!” “What I said was that I would give you your deserved share,” Goldstone corrected pointedly. “And as I figure it, you deserve being taken out of the picture for even implying to keep we griffons from having full access to it, let alone share it with these…non-griffons. Besides, we can always argue that you were guilty of illegally smuggling your compatriots into the country anyway.” “Then you are a fool,” Rarity growled through the bindings the guards had placed around her snout, so to keep her from using her firebreath. “Nightmare Moon will not care about your own personal ambitions.” “Which is precisely why I will taking both of these,” Goldstone countered, grabbing the reference guide they’d uncovered as well as Twilight’s satchel of research. “No!” Twilight cried, desperately trying to shake free of the guards restraining her so to take them back, “You can’t!” “I can and I did,” Goldstone said before stooping down to look the disguised changeling in the eye. “But tell you what. If you save me all the trouble of having to comb through your research for the answers by just telling me where to find the Elements of Harmony, I’ll allow you all go home.” “Empty-pawed, I assume,” Spike deduced crossly. “Well, it’s either that or spend all of your prime years locked in a dungeon,” Goldstone said with an uncaring shrug. “It’s your choice.” Spike merely glared at him and didn’t respond. His glare was echoed but with more venom by Rarity who likewise kept silent. Fluttershy avoided eye contact with him, but she too resolutely refused to tell him anything. Twilight, looking more hurt and disappointed, gazed at him in dismay and didn’t give him the answers he wanted either. “Well, you’re only delaying the inevitable anyway,” Goldstone concluded, holding up the reference guide in his paw. “You’re making a mistake,” Twilight instead assured him. “By the time you find the information you need to locate the elements and send whoever you like to recover them, Nightmare Moon will be back and in position to stop you.” “All the more reason to just cooperate and tell me,” Goldstone replied, talking down to her like she was a misbehaving child. “After all, weren’t you the one who wanted to stop Nightmare Moon so very badly?” He waited for another moment to give them the chance to concede to his terms. Again, none of them did…until Rainbow Dash let out a long sigh. “I’ll tell you,” she told him. “Rainbow, no!” Fluttershy cried. “Fluttershy, we’re just delaying the inevitable here,” Rainbow argued back, though it lacked passion. “He’s got all the cards and, no matter what, we ought to take any chance we can that’ll still stop Nightmare Moon, even if it wasn’t the way you planned.” “So you’ll tell me where to find the Elements of Harmony?” Goldstone asked, moving to stand in front of Rainbow. Rainbow solemnly nodded. “On the grounds you make good on that promise to let me go in return.” Goldstone nodded. “You have my word. But only you—as the rest of them didn’t cooperate, I will not show them the same luxury.” Rainbow sighed again and looked back at the others. They all looked back at her with varying looks of disappointment, dismay, and betrayal…except for Twilight, who was looking at Rainbow with a look that silently asked what are you planning? For Twilight, as the changeling, could detect the otherwise hidden twinkle in Rainbow’s eye. “The Elements of Harmony are hidden in a cave network on the eastern end of the Crystal Mountains, almost at the point where they reach the coastline,” Rainbow lied to Goldstone. Goldstone knew no better though, smirking as he handed off the reference guide and Twilight’s satchel to a guard, murmuring an order to secure them. “Now was that so hard?” he asked before nodding to the guard restraining Rainbow, who swiftly released her. Goldstone motioned for her to leave. “Off with you then. I wouldn’t stick around if I were you.” He waited until Rainbow made a show of leaving the room, uncharacteristically with her tail between her legs, before turning to face the others. “Now, as for the rest of you…I think it’s clear what choice you all made in the matter.” He looked to the lead of the guards. “Take them away.” The guards didn’t hesitate, ushering them out and down a corridor leading to the mansion’s back entrance. There, a prison carriage was already waiting for them with its two pullers unharnessed and standing by to assist loading up the would-be prisoners. It probably had already been summoned well in advance of their capture, considering how premeditated this whole turn of events was proving to be. The guards continued to herd their captives towards it, but Twilight, seeing a need to stall, proceeded to dig her feet into the ground. A guard prodded her with her with his spear. “Keep moving, griffon,” he ordered sternly. “Or what?” Twilight challenged rhetorically, the flicker of a plan starting to bloom in her mind. “How can you keep me from continuing to resist?” “And just what would you gain from it anyway?” the guard challenged back. “You’re completely restrained and surrounded. There’s nothing a griffon like you can do to escape this.” “Ah, but there’s the catch,” Twilight hummed wistfully, “Because, as it happens, I am not a griffon.” And with one swift movement, she shapeshifted out of her griffon disguise into that of an average hawk, using the smaller size to both successfully slip out of her restraints and evade the surprised guards by taking to the air. She shot up into the sky high enough to keep out of everyone’s the immediate reach before coming about and diving back down, reverting back into her natural form and using her horn to fire a spell at Rarity’s restraints. The restraints snapped immediately, freeing Rarity’s arms, and the dragoness didn’t waste time using them, backhanding the nearest guard before grabbing the spear of another and using it as a lever to fling him away. A full-on fight then broke out thereafter, but it was all over in about the same time it had taken the guards to catch them. For what guards Rarity didn’t disable herself were taken care of either by Twilight, delivering attacks from the air, or by Spike who was also freed by a well-placed spell and used his smaller size to slip through defenses and dealing blows at all of the right vulnerable spots. Even Fluttershy, who spent most of the brief fight cowering on the ground, inadvertently assisted by being in the right position for one of the carriage pullers—running into the brawl to try and assist—to accidentally trip over her and be easily subdued. Finally, the only foe still standing was the other puller, who tried to flee back for the mansion, but was tackled by Twilight part way and, with one swift nip to the neck with her fangs, dropped out cold to the ground. “Whoa, how did you do that, Twilight?” Spike asked as he and the others dusted themselves off. “Venomous bite,” Twilight said, motioning to her fangs, “Puts a creature to sleep within seconds when you bite the right spot.” “Venom?” Rarity asked, looking in surprise at the changeling. “He…won’t be too harmed by that, will he?” “Oh no, he’ll awake just fine in about an hour or so,” Twilight quickly assured. “Though I suppose he’ll have a headache and a sore neck…” she shook her head, “What’s more important is that we get out of here while we’ve still got the chance.” “Yeah, and I was going to help with that, but I see I already missed all the fun,” Rainbow Dash noted aloud, partly dressed in a guard’s uniform as she now hurried out of the mansion to rejoin the group. “Rainbow!” Fluttershy said, brightening at the return of the griffoness. “You came back!” “Well, I wasn’t about to leave you all hanging,” Rainbow replied with a smug grin before turning to Twilight. “Also, I got you these back from that guard.” She handed her the reference guide and satchel Goldstone had taken earlier. Twilight swiftly accepted both, impressed. “You planned this, didn’t you?” she asked of the griffon. “That’s why you lied to Goldstone about where the elements actually are so to be let free.” “Well, I had to tell him something,” Rainbow replied with a shrug, “or else he would’ve just locked us all away and then where would we be? So…I told him what he wanted to hear. It’s not my fault he didn’t stop to think if it was true. So now he’s going to have griffons waste hours searching an empty maze of caves before realizing there’s not anything there, by which time we’ll be long gone from here.” She then turned more sincere. “Besides…I was the one who brought you all to Goldstone in the first place. If I had known he would just try to use you all for his own gain…” “Well, I daresay you’ve done enough to make amends for that, darling,” Rarity assured her, ruffling Rainbow’s crest with one paw. “And it wasn’t all for nothing,” Fluttershy pointed out. “We did get that reference guide out all of this, right?” “We did,” Twilight said with a small grin as she strapped her satchel back into its proper place and slipped the book into it. “Thank you, Rainbow.” “Anything for my friends,” Rainbow assured with a grin as she adjusted the, presumably stolen, guard uniform she’d donned. “But I’m not done yet.” She rapped her talons on the side of the prison carriage. “Since the guards won’t be using it, we can use it to slip away. So everybody get aboard and I’ll take you to someplace that’ll have our ticket out of here.”