//------------------------------// // Twilight Truth part four // Story: Ruining Harmony // by Artaelian //------------------------------// “Twilight,” Rarity’s worried voice asked, “what’s wrong, darling? You look like a monster is chasing you!” Twilight had just run in from the portal and looked around at her friends and the library, before looking at the portals. Her concerned friends walked towards her, asking similar questions, but her racing mind only let her hear their voices, not their words. Ulysses, who had seemed so helpful, if creepy, was behind all this. But for how long? Had he even acted alone? Ignoring her friend’s shouts, Twilight ran at the portal with Rainbow Dash’s picture on it. -- She saw the same hospital as she had when checking with Rainbow Dash that the spell had originally worked. Outside, Ponyville was on fire, but Rainbow Dash lay on the hospital bed, where she had woken up when this had become her temporary reality. Cautiously, Twilight walked over to the bed, and looked at this Rainbow Dash. Rainbow wasn’t moving, and on closer inspection, which involved placing a hoof to her neck and before her nose, Twilight realised a horrible fact. The Rainbow Dash before her was dead. Twilight ran out through that portal, and, once again racing through her friend’s and their confused questions, she went into Pinkie Pie’s portal. In here, it was a nice, sunny morning. The same as it had been just a few days before, even down to Ditzy Doo accidentally delivering a muffin and attempting to consume a box. But none of this mattered to Twilight right now, as she spotted Ulysses. She followed him quickly as he walked through Ponyville, leading her to the ground that was directly beneath Rainbow Dash’s home. She however lost him here, and Twilight walked around, looking for any clue as to where he had gone. She noticed a glint in the middle of the shaded ground, and approached the spot. The glint had come from a small glass orb, which held a three coloured lighting bolt, identical to the one on Rainbow Dash’s cutie mark. ‘What will you do, Twilight Sparkle? You can take that and return to her portal, bring her back to life there, or leave it there and ensure Pinkie Pie never encounters a world where Rainbow Dash died a horrible death.’ the voice was now clearly that of Ulysses. Twilight looked at the glass orb, now unsure of what to do. Taking it would play into Ulysses’ plan, but leaving it behind could mean her return out of Pinkie’s portal could mean that Rainbow Dash was gone. It was a gamble. After a quick thought, she decided that if she had to gamble, it had to be on which her friends lived. Twilight took the orb, and headed back for the portal, as storm clouds rolled in over Ponyville. -- “Twilight! What’s going on?” Rainbow Dash shouted, getting in Twilight’s way as she returned from Pinkie Pie’s portal, and had attempted to get back into Rainbow’s. “There’s no time to explain. I’ve got to try and find something out. Go to the hospital, I don’t care if he isn’t ready to leave, go get Sunshine Blaze, he may be able to help.” Twilight responded, getting past Rainbow Dash, and back through the portal with Rainbow’s picture on it. -- It wasn’t easier the second time to see her friend laying dead. Slowly, as if she were at a funeral, Twilight walked over to the body of this Rainbow Dash, and gently placed the glass orb on her. In a blink of an eye, the orb vanished, and Rainbow Dash was breathing. Twilight smiled sadly, knowing she had just set in motion the events that had triggered everything else she and her friends had been through. ‘I was here too… I watched you, as I am right now, as you brought her back to life. Take a look, out of the window nearest to you.’ Ulysses stated. Twilight approached the nearest window. Some distance away, just as he had said, stood Ulysses, grinning. She turned away, and ran back through the portal. -- Twilight only paused in the basement to see if Rainbow Dash had returned yet with Sunshine Blaze. When neither pony was to be seen among her other friends, Twilight turned and ran through the portal with Fluttershy’s picture on it. Twilight now stood in the early Everfree Forest, just as Fluttershy had described it. Before her on the ground was a magic symbol. She stared at it, there was a whole quadrant missing, plus two strokes here and one there. It was a symbol of water, and it was unfinished. Without thinking, she started filling in the missing strokes with her hoof while she thought of how to stop Ulysses. ‘It seems the missing parts are deliberate,’ she mused. After staring at it for a few seconds, she realised that Ulysses somehow knew she would be unable to resist completing the symbol simply so it wasn’t a half-finished job. A dark blue pony walked slowly into her peripheral view. She was still staring at the symbol. She was aware it was Ulysses who was watching her, and didn’t look up. Twilight was fighting her natural urge to finish the symbol, knowing that, by doing so, she could give Ulysses the first link to the past he required. “Oh, come on, you already stopped me in the past, you have to at least do this one willingly!” Ulysses yelled in frustration. Twilight slowly looked up and stared at him. Somewhere nearby, the sound of hoofsteps could be heard echoing among the trees. Ulysses’ shouting had alerted somepony, or worse, some non-pony. “I wish I didn’t have to,” she mumbled as she started looking at the spell, “but you're right. If I don’t, I’ll create a paradox.” Twilight looked back to Ulysses and snapped, “but I will find some way to stop you, mark my words!” Ulysses only chuckled as he watched Twilight complete the spell for him, giving his past self the first link to the past he had used. Twilight turned and ran back into the library basement, almost certain that she had seen a centaur among the trees as she returned. -- She had run into Applejack’s portal before looking in the basement, noting that if she checked every time, then she may check too often for Rainbow Dash’s return with Sunshine Blaze. She was once again in the past, this time in a random field. Before her stood Ulysses, standing perfectly still, with only the wind blowing his mane and tail. Twilight lowered herself and stomped a hoof, which caught Ulysses’ attention. “No big plan for Applejack? How did you get into the past here?” Twilight questioned. Ulysses slowly turned around, smiling as though he had won. “No plan for a link for myself or your friend at this point in the past? You’re mocking me, do not do that you stupid mare!” he spat, his horn shimmering briefly. For some reason, these words enraged Twilight instantly. She yelled and charged at Ulysses, who sidestepped just enough for himself to get wounded. After she had passed him, the rage faded as quickly as it rose, and Twilight sat on her haunches and held her head, confused. “What— what did you do to me?” She asked. “Oh, it was simple, I used a rage spell so you’d assault me,” he held up his cut leg, and Twilight watched as a drop of his own blood fell onto a stone, “and now my past self will discover my blood exists here at this point in time, and use it as the second link. And all thanks to you.” Ulysses laughed and disappeared. Annoyed that she was still failing to stop Ulysses, Twilight ran back through the portal and into the library. -- Rainbow Dash had returned, but Sunshine Blaze wasn’t with her. Twilight wasted no time as she entered Rarity’s portal. In Rarity’s portal, she found a normal sunny day, different to what Rarity had said was behind it. Once more, Ulysses was easily found, heading towards Canterlot. Giving chase, they both ran for half an hour, Twilight after Ulysses. Every so often, he looked back, his face displaying annoyance as Twilight kept up. He led Twilight to a quiet grove, which had only a log and flowers, in the middle of which stood a stone pillar. “Oh well done. And they say us unicorns have terrible endurance, yet you’ve managed to keep up with me a good half hour away from Ponyville.” Ulysses said sarcastically, not visible to Twilight as he spoke. “Stop whatever you’re doing right now!” Twilight shouted. “I wonder,” Ulysses began to muse, stepping out from the shadows, “aren’t you curious too, as to what this pillar does?” he walked towards it briefly, and ran a hoof down it. As Ulysses was distracted, Twilight cast a beam of magic at him. Ulysses only noticed it too late to react, so he was sent flying back into the shade of the grove. Twilight then tried to hold Ulysses in her magic and carry him away before he’d recover consciousness. Her stomach fell when she heard him groan and then make a slightly pained laugh. “Clever, you can have that one, catching me off guard,” he chuckled, this time making sure he stayed behind the pillar opposite to Twilight on its other side, “now, maybe this was built to contain a terrible evil. Maybe it keeps something working. What do you think?” he asked Twilight. Twilight didn’t answer him, she looked at the pillar, but gave it and the markings upon it, which were in an old language she couldn’t recognize from any of her history studies. However she wasn’t giving much thought on that, compared to the unicorn on the other side, and how she could get to him and stop him. “No? Not got a thought in your head? Pity,” he glanced at the pillar, his face breaking into a smile, “ah, it keeps something here, it says so on about the third line. And, hm… yes, I know exactly what now.” Twilight glanced at the markings again, noticing that not all were words, one seemed to show six orbs and two earth pony figures. It was pointless for her to try and understand what the words said. She didn’t know the language used, so she also had no idea if what Ulysses had just said was true. She was suddenly brought out of her thoughts as Ulysses hit the pillar with his forehooves hard. He was glaring at her. “This pillar binds your precious Elements of Harmony to this world. And whoever has control of the pillar, decides who owns them. Your princesses currently ‘own’ it, but not for long, I shall take it for my own and then I’m free to take the Elements from you and your friends,” he raised an eyebrow, “so what’ll you do about this? Stall for too long, and you’ve lost. Think fast, let me take ownership of the pillar, or destroy it and eternally keep the Elements fates in the hands of your princesses.” Ulysses said, his horn glowing, a similar aura enveloping the stone pillar. Twilight knew it was a trap. But was it a risk she, and her friends, could afford to be wrong over? If he was bluffing, the pillar begun the events Rarity had been through, but if wrong, the elements of harmony would be gone, and nothing would stand in his way beside the princesses. It was a risk she had to take. Picturing the pillar in pieces, Twilight’s horn glowed bright, quickly shattering the pillar and filling the once clear grove with large stones. High above, the sun and moon, which had been about to switch places, begun to rise towards the center of the sky. Twilight gulped. “Ha! Tricked you, it had nothing to do with the Elements. That was the Mortal Plane Seal, which linked the Princesses to this mortal world. It’s gone now, and so are they!” Ulysses laughed, disappearing. A different portal appeared before her now, and reluctantly, she stepped through it. -- The whole event was now beginning to weigh heavily on Twilight. She no longer ran, and took a moment to stop and check if Sunshine Blaze had arrived in the basement. It was obvious that he hadn’t, by the lack of his orange coat “Where is he?” Twilight asked. “He said he’d be right here.” Rainbow replied. Twilight groaned, and stepped through her portal, for her last attempt. -- Once again in the past, Twilight spotted Ulysses nearby and walked up to him. He had his back facing her, and seemed to be watching something else. “So what’s the plan here? Going to make me cut you again?” She shouted. Ulysses strangely raised a hoof and waved it, silently telling Twilight to keep quiet. She stood beside him and he looked at her from the corner of his eyes. When he looked away, Twilight took her chance. Once again, she fired a beam of magic at Ulysses, intending for it to stun him long enough for her to drag him back to the library basement and be still long enough to be on the receiving end of a blast of harmony. Instead however, her beam hit a shield that hadn’t been visible around him, and she only just managed to jump out of the way, landing painfully on her back. Ulysses laughed as she lay there winded. “Fool me once, I’m sure you’re aware of that saying, now.” he finished laughing, and pointed ahead of him. “Right now, three ponies who think they are respected heroes are fighting Discord, to try and save the world, and yet, it’ll be for nothing. They fail, Celestia and Luna succeed instead, and these ‘heroes’ will never be mentioned in history books for anything they ever did.” Ulysses said softly, seemingly having forgotten his ambitions to make Twilight trigger the events all six Element bearers had been through. “What’s your point?” Twilight questioned, narrowing her eyes as she tried to get back on her hooves. “Don’t you feel bad for them? They were three stallions, united eventually by fate. They saved ponies from monsters, freed citizens from tyrants, even one of them did an act so selfless that he ended a war just based on what he thought was fair. And yet, right here and now, they’ll doom themselves to never be remembered.” Ulysses answered, genuine sadness clear in his voice. Twilight turned to face where Ulysses was looking, and saw a citadel. She could only assume it belonged to Discord, after all, he would have to rule from somewhere right? Her mind ran over Ulysses’ words, about Fireshot and his two friends. In a way, Ulysses’ words were right. If they were real, something they did should have been remembered. She had also not long learnt that the Princesses knew of them. So why had Fireshot and his friends been forgotten, lost to the sands of time? Twilight shook her head and faced Ulysses again, her eyes narrowed. “Enough, what are you planning here as the last link to the past?” she snapped. Ulysses grinned and begun to disappear. “Why, Twilight Sparkle, it is you! A life in a time zone it wasn’t born in. Really, how could you not see my words were to make you think and keep you here long enough for my past self to notice?” Ulysses replied. The realisation of the situation hit Twilight like a pile of heavy books. Over a quarter of an hour, the current Ulysses had forced her to set up all the situations she and her friends had gone through over the last few weeks. Slowly, she stood up, and walked to the portal back to the library, just as flames begun to engulf the grass and nearby trees. -- Back in the library basement, the faces of her five friends looked at Twilight with hope. Twilight sat down, and slowly, she begun to cry. “Twilight, what’s the matter?” Applejack asked. “It was all my fault. All the events we’ve been through, he more or less made me just set them up. I made sure Rainbow Dash would wake up in her’s, took something that would kill her in Pinkie’s, activate the spell that allowed him a first way to the past in Fluttershy’s. He cast a rage spell on me, cutting his skin and leaving a second link to the past in Applejack’s, and I destroyed a stone pillar that caused the end of the world in your portal Rarity. And worst of all, he talked to me as though nothing was going on, stalling me long enough to make me the third link to the past he used!” Twilight blurted all the events through her tears. “Oh now, Twi, ain’t your fault. I reckon whoever this ‘he’ is, has had this planned for a long time. He just tricked you, is all.” Applejack tried to reassure her. Above, the sounds of screams and explosions filled the air. The six friends looked at each other, before running out of the basement and into Ponyville. The sight that confronted them made them all recoil in horror. Ulysses now stood down the street from the library, a dark magic energy swirled around him. This magic changed into claws and was either destroying buildings with magical explosions, or grabbing ponies. As they watched, one claw grabbed Ditzy Doo, and threw her against a building, while another picked up a yellow earth pony, and threw him through a window of somepony’s home. “I thank you, Twilight Sparkle. You aided me in setting my plans, putting them into motion, you gave me the chance to confront you six now, and take my prize,” he advanced towards them slowly, the dark magic continuing to harm ponies and destroy buildings, “the Elements of Harmony. Give them to me and accept your fate!” They all stood on the spot, pure fear keeping them from acting, as Ulysses advanced towards them. A glow around the necks of Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Applejack and Rarity, along with a glow on the head of Twilight Sparkle, turned into the elements of harmony. Twilight smiled. “Quick girls! We still have the elements. Get in formation!” Twilight said aloud. But it was not to be. As she channeled her magic into the element of magic, six dark claws appeared from the ground before them, five of the claws grabbing the elements of magic, generosity, laughter, honesty and kindness. The sixth claw had trouble, as Rainbow Dash kept flying out of its reach. “Sorry I’m late, but I had to get my crew ready.” Sunshine Blaze said as he landed beside Twilight. “Late? He has five of the elements of harmony! You’re more than late!” Twilight shouted at him. “Ok, yes, sorry again. We’ll handle that later. Now, we gotta run. You, blue,” he pointed at Rainbow Dash, “carry Applejack. And Fluttershy, you take the white one. I’ll grab pink.” He paused, then blurted, “Actually, no. Fluttershy, you take Applejack, so the two who I know the names of are together. Blue, take white. And purple,” Sunshine Blaze looked at Twilight, who was staring at him with a frustrated scowl, “I need you to teleport to a beach, you’ll know its the right one when you see a ship with a rough looking crew, got it?” he asked. “How’d you know my name?” Pinkie chirped. “What will that…” Twilight begun to ask. “Do you want to stay here and die?” Sunshine Blaze interrupted. Twilight groaned in anger, and cast her teleport spell, disappearing. Sunshine Blaze turned to face Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, noting that somehow, a purple and green baby dragon had got onto Rainbow’s back. He didn’t ask as he flew to Pinkie Pie and with his legs, lifted her off the ground. “Follow me and fly as fast as you can. Your life does depend on it!” he said, flying away, with Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy following quickly behind him, and all three avoiding attacks sent their way by Ulysses. Ulysses came to a stop, watching as Sunshine Blaze lead Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy away. He frowned, and turned his attention to Cloudsdale. “She may have been quick enough to keep the element of loyalty away from me, but I will not let you take her away that easily, Blaze.” he muttered, and his horn begun to glow a pure black.