//------------------------------// // Chapter Ten // Story: Freedom Through Harmony // by Electricut //------------------------------// Chapter Ten EverFree Forest Central Road/Alternate Backroad “So.” Twilight started as the group made their way around the collapsed path. “We’ll have some time before we reach the castle. Can you clarify now, Spike?” “I suppose it’s only fair. Hey, Opal, can you come walk with us? I’m going to be telling them some things from home, I might need someone to help me fill in some blanks.” Opal, the cat-girl companion to Rarity, nodded and fell back slightly, matching pace with those who had been in the library at the time- even Angel, stoic as he was, lingered at the edge of their circle to catch the conversation. “I suppose.” She said. “What did they want to know?” “I had a theory about why Twilight and Fluttershy were awoken by music- and, it seems Fluttershy here can sing Galdrar.” Opal seemed surprised, and turned to look at Fluttershy more closely. “Really? That’s strange... She’s got the right wing color, but her hair is pink, not golden.” “Anyway, I think it would be easiest for understandings sake if we start the explanation now. So, back on our home continent, there were several different races- the Beorc, which are basically undistinguishable from the People of Earth and of Fire here. There were those among them who could use magic, and those who couldn’t, but they didn’t tend to separate themselves too much. “Then there were the Goldoans- my people. We’ve got the longest lifespan of any creature, and superior strength, though we traditionally don’t make a habit of fighting.” “My people are called the Gallians.” Opal took over. “We live a lot like cats, unsurprisingly- we have houses, sure, but hunt and gather most of our food. Our strength is second only to the Goldoans, but our lifespan isn’t as long- around twice as long as a Beorc’s. Oh, did I mention we can all transform into our animals? I can be a cat, obviously, and he can turn into-” “A dragon. I’ve only needed to transform once since I got here, but I’m afraid I might have to once more tonight.” Twilight nodded. She remembered the sight of him, huge, terrifying, making short work of the bandits invading the town they had visited years before. And yet... I wasn’t as afraid as I thought I would be. Deep down, I could still feel him. I knew it was still Spike. “Anyway,” Spike continued. “Lastly, there’s the bird tribes: The Hawks, Ravens, and Herons. They all have equal lifespans; better than the Gallians, but still far below the Goldoans. The Hawks have the best strength among them, the Ravens are decent fighters, but tend to be more about agility and stealth. Then the Herons have never been known to fight, instead opting for peaceful solutions to their conflicts. All the birds, Herons especially, live in harmony with the nature and other creatures.” Fluttershy was listening intently to this. From what I’ve seen, Twilight thought. It must be like he’s describing her firsthand. “About ten years ago, one of the Heron royals went missing suddenly. And Fluttershy, you said you were taught your song by someone with white wings and blonde hair? Only the royals have pure white wings- the others are lighter gray or silver, even light brown. I believe the princess and the teacher are the same person. “See, the Herons have the ability to sing special songs- Galdrar- that do all sorts of passive things. Cleanse corruption of body and mind, restore energy, even heal wounds. Your song, Fluttershy, I believe is the Galdr of Bliss, which clears the minds of all who hear it.” She nodded again. “Did she somehow give you the power to sing them yourself, since you were so close to Heron already?” “Well...” She started, but took some time before continuing. This must be a hard memory to bring up. Twilight assumed. “A few months after she arrived, she... She was really sick. She called me to her bedside and sang a song to me off a piece of scroll, one that I never heard before. A... A light, an energy of some kind, just... went from her, to me. I felt amazing physically, but... It was too much for her. "... She passed away that day. She left me two scrolls- the one she had read off of, which I never touched- I couldn’t bring myself to it- and another, one with the song you heard me sing on it. I think that light she gave me let me use the songs.” “She must have crafted a new song, one that passes on the Heron power. But it must require a great deal of strength, so it’s no wonder she couldn’t live through it. But I wonder, if someone does survive, would they retain their own powers as well...?” “Spike, you’re talking to yourself again.” Twilight pointed out kindly. “Oh, sorry.” He said, running his hand over the back of his head sheepishly. “What else was there?” “Why songs woke us up.” She said. “Yeah, because... When I was sung to, it wasn’t a Galdr or special song or anything. Rainbow Dash just sang a song.” “Well, I’m just guessing here, but I think it’s just because Herons are musically attuned. You were suffering, and when, in your dream, you heard his voice, it was enough to rouse your spirits and wake you up. “And why Twilight was sick too, again, it might have been a link going between her and the others because of the Elements- if one suffers to that extent, she feels it as well. Possibly the whole team would feel it in time, but I think Twilight will usually be the first.” Twilight took a moment to let that thought sink in. Anything bad that happens to them will happen to me, too? Spike turned to her, seeing her growing distress. “It’s quite a burden to bear, I’ll admit, but... Twilight, I don’t think anyone else would be better for the job. I believe you can do it- it seems like it’s a matter of keeping your team together, making sure nothing happens to them, and being responsible and fixing it when it does. But I know you’ll find a way.” __________________ Castle of Dawn Ruins Prison Block The tension in the air was palpable. Fluttershy would have made it back to town by now, and reinforcements were bound to be on the way. The three of us sat around the cell, Rarity on one bunk, AJ and I on the other. We weren’t sure exactly what we were waiting for, but we all knew something was coming. Applejack had taken the bar- rock thing from the window- it could serve as a weapon if we needed one. Rarity and I could both muster up some kind of magic in the event of a fight. The sun had set, and once again the only light came from the worn torches in the hall. Fluttershy had escaped two hours previously, and I knew there would at least be a few people coming to break out the other two- I’d make sure to slip out with them. Luna... I wasn’t bluffing when I made my offer. Please, don’t wait until it’s too late... Rarity moved over to the window, and gave a start. “There are torches, coming this way!” Both of us jumped up to see as well. “Around twenty troops it looks like, and... What is that?!” She could only have been speaking of the Demon Sword, as I called it. The weapon belonging to brother of Applejack (and basically me as well), Mac. It towered over the rest of the troop, blood red metal visible even from here. “Mac came?” AJ said in awe. “Sure hope Luna surrenders, for her sake.” “Now’s our chance. Luna is not the enemy here- if I can talk them out of attacking her, we can earn her favor, and we might stand a chance in the long run. Come on, we have to get out of here!” We looked over to the cell door, and began scanning it for weakness. Rarity grabbed my shoulder, motioning to a lock on the door. “It looks like that’s all that’s keeping it locked. If we get a powerful enough spell going, we could break it.” “Right.” I stepped back slightly. “Ready?” She nodded. We both focused a decent spell on the lock, forming a sort of flowing-light attack. It filled the lock easily, and was too much for it to contain. It burst, and the spell dispersed. “Let’s go! We can’t have much time left!” We ran from the cell, making our way down blindly. None of us had any idea where we were going, but we knew we were higher up in one of the back corners, so we tried to go down in general. We passed a large room from which something shined, and I backtracked slightly to see its contents. “Guys! Armory!” I ran into the room quickly, and retrieved our weapons, as they had recently been thrown atop the pile of blades. Once we were all properly equipped with weapons, we set off again. Rarity was at first hesitant to leave without finding her armor, but knew the urgency of their trip, and was soon talked into leaving it. We didn’t get far, however. From the shadows of the hallway before us, I could clearly see the now familiar black armor gleaming in the darkness, sword in hand. “And so you choose to run, and leave me to my fate?” I interrupted her self-loathing ramblings myself this time. “I meant what I said, Luna. The deal has changed, but my offer is the same. Let me convince them of what’s going on, and stop their march. I know many of them, and I know that many of them already harbor a grudge towards Celestia. I can get them to back out of the conflict, even lend us more troops.” Luna, once again, was all but speechless. “Young boy... Why would you ally yourself with me so easily?” “Celestia’s facade has been weak for years. If she didn’t want enemies, she shouldn’t be so good at pissing them off. I want her dead, plenty of others want her dead. You’re not alone anymore, Luna. Now let me fix this mess, please.” “Ah... Alright. I’ll call off my own troops. I have no desire to hurt them, but I won’t let them stop me either. Please, teach them the truth.” Emboldened, I led the other two past her and through the castle, which was becoming more and more familiar, with Luna following at a distance. At last we burst through to the central courtyard once again, and saw the Elements lying exactly where we all dropped them. However, they had mysteriously darkened since then, and were completely black now. “What happened to them?” Rarity asked, lifting one curiously. “They became little more than rocks after you all left them. I believe they have chosen you as their bearers, and have imparted their essence to you. Which means the one who didn’t receive one already... Is likely the bearer of the final Element.” For some reason, I’m thinking it’s Twilight. “So, how do we use them, then?” I asked. “That’s just it. The sixth is only brought into this world when the others are fulfilled, and they can’t be used until all six have found a place. It all must happen at once.” So when Twilight gets hers, we’ll all get our power from them. Somehow, I don’t think that can happen until we’re staring death in the face- ancient artifacts usually work like that, if I’m not mistaken. I have a bad feeling about this... __________________ The party crossed the bridge carefully, stopping as they reached the edge of the ruined town. They would go as one, and strike at Nightmare Moon all at once. “You should all know...” Spike started. “I’m going to try and do all my fighting with my knives, but if I end up going full force- you’ll know it if you see it- I’ll need a few of you to hold me down for a while. Fluttershy, you could probably speed it up with your song, if you wouldn’t mind.” She shook her head. “I’d be happy to. I wouldn’t just let you sit there and suffer.” Mac turned slightly when he heard Spike’s words. “You too? I go absolutely crazy when I use this thing, so I’ll have to ask the same.” The group assembled themselves in a line, all facing the castle, and as one started forward at a run. They had gotten halfway to the ruin when they were stopped by a voice. “Wait! Everyone stop, listen to me!” Rainbow Dash, followed by Applejack and Rarity, were running full speed from the castle towards the group. Twilight couldn’t quite tell from where she stood, but she thought she saw a glint of armor near the castle for a moment, before it disappeared. The others reached the war party, panting. “Everyone, listen.” Dash spoke, addressing the crowd. “We’ve had a bit of a change of plans.”