Friendship is Magic part 2
I was transfixed. I didn't know what to do. I just stood there as Nightmare Moon laughed and declared eternal night. That wasn't what had left me speechless though. How did she know that I was human? How did she even know humans existed? I would have continued asking myself questions like this if the mayor hadn't snapped me out of my shock induced trance.
"Seize her!" she shouted to a group of guards, "Only she knows where the princess is!"
I could only watch in horror as the guards took flight and advanced towards Nightmare Moon. What were they thinking?! When an ancient evil appears, the last thing you want to do is try to fight it!
"Stand back you foals!" Nightmare Moon shouted. Her eyes glowed pure white. As the guards got close to her, they were struck back by lightning. With that, Nightmare Moon surrounded herself in the starry mist, which proceeded to slither out of the doors leading outside. As everypony in the room ran around in panic, Rainbow Dash broke free of AJ's grip and flew after it.
Somepony tapped me on the shoulder. Turning round, I saw Twilight motioning at me to follow her before galloping off outside. I immediately galloped after her, towards the library.
We'd placed Spike in his basket, where he was now sleeping soundly.
"We gotta stop Nightmare...!" he murmured before slipping back off to sleep. I had to admit, it was kinda cute watching the kid sleep like that.
Twilight placed a blanket over him, "You've been up all night Spike" she said, "You are a baby dragon after all.". Turning out the light, we moved downstairs and started looking for clues regarding the elements.
"Elements, elements, elements. Ugh!" Twilight groaned, "How are we going to stop Nightmare Moon without the Elements of Harmony?"
"And just what are the Elements of Harmony?!" Rainbow Dash demanded, flying in from nowhere and shoving her face into Twilight's, "And how did you know about Nightmare Moon huh? Are you a spy?". Before she could accuse Twilight of anything else, she was pulled back by AJ, who held her by the mouth (again).
"Simmer down sally!" AJ declared, "They ain't no spies!". She, Pinkie, Rarity and Fluttershy began to approach us, "But they sure do know what's going on, don't ya you two?"
There was a short pause before Twilight opened her mouth and explained.
"I read all about the prediction of Nightmare Moon. Some mysterious objects called the Elements of Harmony are the only things that can stop her, but I don't know where they are, where to find them. I don't even know what they do!"
"The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide." Pinkie suddenly said, staring at book on one of the shelves. Twilight suddenly ran up, pushing Pinkie aside.
"How did find that?" Twilight asked in amazement.
"It was under 'E'!" Pinkie trilled in a sing song voice. Twilight just deadpanned before grabbing the book with her magic. She was about to open it, but Rainbow suddenly cut in.
"Wait a minute!" she shouted out, breaking Twilight's concentration and causing her to drop the book. She pointed at me accusingly, "When Nightmare Moon showed up, she went and called you a 'human'. What did she mean by that?"
Everypony in the room now had their eyes fixed on me. I felt terrified, like you always feel when your backed in an unpleasant corner. There was no way I could lie my way out of this one. Time to come clean.
"Alright." I began, knowing that this probably wouldn't end well, "I guess you all deserve to know anyway. As some of you already know, I'm not from around here, but not just Equestria.". Everypony in the room was staring at me, their eyes filled with confusion.
"This probably sounds crazy," I continued, "but I'm not from this world. Heck I may not even be from this dimension! And I'm certainly not a pony. I'm what is called a human, a race of mammals descended from the apes.". Everypony kept staring at me, their eyes full of surprise and shock as they let this information sink in.
"But... You said you were from the United Kingdom!" Rarity exclaimed.
"Yeah," I replied, "I do live in the UK. Only thing is, it's back on Earth, my home planet."
Rarity's jaw dropped open in shock. "I told you it was far away from Equestria didn't I!" I said sarcastically. Technically I had told her the truth when she asked, I just didn't given her all of the details.
*WHAM!*
Suddenly, I found myself lying on the library's hard wooden floor, looking up at an angry cyan coloured pegasus.
"I knew it!" Rainbow snarled, "You're nothing but a no good, lousy alien! Well guess what chump, If you think that you can just come here and take over our planet, then you've got another thing coming!"
"Rainbow Dash! Get off him!" Twilight suddenly demanded. Rainbow's eyes widened in surprise as she turned her head towards Twilight.
"What?" she asked in shock, "Twilight, you can't be serious! This guy is an alien! We can't trust him!"
"He said that he would help stop Nightmare Moon!" Twilight argued, "I believe him. You don't have to, but I trust him and I say that he comes with us!"
Rainbow Dash paused, then began looking back and forth between me and Twilight. Finally, she narrowed her eyes and moved away, allowing me to stand back up.
"Alright." she growled, "I'm letting this one fly, but if you try anything funny, I'll buck your flank so hard you'll fly all the way back to your home planet!"
"Duly noted." I replied dryly. Rainbow simply sneered at me with distrust. I turned my attention over to Twilight, trotting up to her.
"You believe me?" I asked her, genuinely surprised at the fact she just defended me like that.
"Yes." she nodded, "I don't know why, but I feel as though I can... trust you."
"Trust an alien?" Rainbow cut in, her voice etched with sarcasm, "That's one of the worst mistakes anypony could make."
Ignoring her, I was compelled by what Twilight had said. How she trusted me. It made me feel... happy. The same happy from before. I mean, I felt happy around the people I cared for, like my friends for example. I also felt happy when I was around family, that's always a good time...
Oh my god, my family!
How could I have forgotten about them?! With everything that had happened, I hadn't had time to think about them, let alone how they must be feeling now! Mum would be hysterical when she woke up and saw that my bed was empty and that I was nowhere in the house! I... I couldn't believe myself. My family meant everything to me, and now I just felt so far away from them...
"James?" I heard Twilight's voice ask me, snapping me out of my trance. I felt tears roll down my face. My breathing was shaky. I turned to face Twilight again, her eyes staring back at me with concern.
"Are you alright?"
Silence filled the room for a few seconds before I opened my mouth to answer.
"I'll... I'll be fine." I reassured her, "Come on, what does the book say?".
Twilight picked up the book once more and opened it with her magic. "There are six Elements of Harmony," she read, "but only five are known. Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Honesty and Loyalty. The sixth is a complete mystery."
"It is said," she continued, "the last known location of the five elements was in the ancient castle of the royal pony sisters. It is located in what is now..."
"The Everfree Forest!" everypony declared in fright.
By now, we were standing in front of the said forest. Looking at it, it was pretty creepy, like the Forbidden Forest from Harry Potter. Strangely, as we stood there, the girls had said 'the Everfree Forest' again, in pretty much the exact same way they had said it back in the library.
"Wee!" Pinkie squealed, "Let's go!". She began trotting towards the forest.
"Not so fast!" Twilight suddenly declared, causing Pinkie to stop in her tracks "Look, I appreciate the offer, but I'd really rather do this on my own."
"What?" I asked aloud, "Twilight, I promised you that I'd help stop Nightmare Moon if she returned." I said, looking her dead in the eyes, "I don't go back on my promises, and I'm sure as hell not letting you go through this alone!"
"He's right sugercube!" AJ cut in, "We sure ain't lettin' any friend of ours walk into that creepy place alone!". Twilight's face shifted uncomfortably at being called a friend. "We're sticking to you like caramel on a candy apple." AJ continued as she and the other girls began to trot inside.
"Especially if there's candy apples in their!" Pinkie suddenly declared. All I could do was give her a deadpan look over what she had just said. "What?" she asked innocently, beginning to continue inside the forest "Those things are good!"
Twilight let out a sigh. "Come on." I said, beginning to follow the others. Twilight trotted after me as we entered the dark forest.
"So, none of you have been here before." Twilight asked the girls.
"Oh heavens no!" Rarity said, "Just look at it, it's dreadful!"
"And it ain't natural!" AJ cut in, as we walked towards the edge of a cliff, "Folks say it don't work the same as Equestria!"
"Wh- what's that supposed mean?" Twilight stammered, her voice etched with fear.
"No pony knows." said Rainbow Dash in a spooky voice, emerging from the shadows. "You know why?" she asked as she advanced towards me, Pinkie, Fluttershy and Rarity.
"Rainbow!" AJ scolded, "Quit it!"
"Cause everypony who's ever come in," Rainbow said, continuing her advance, "has never... come... OUT!"
The next thing I knew, we were all sliding down the cliff, screaming. edge had suddenly collapses underneath us, and now me and Twilight were hanging on to the edge for dear life.
"Hold on!" I heard AJ's voice call out. I looked up and saw her sliding towards us. "Ah'ma comin'!" she said as she grabbed us by her hooves (again, I have no idea how they do that!).
"Applejack!" Twilight cried out, "What do we do?!". AJ was silent for a moment, before she opened to give her answer:
"Let go."
"WHAT!?" I yelled.
"Are you crazy!?" Twilight demanded.
"No ah ain't." AJ reassured us, "Ah promise you'll both be safe."
"That's not true!" Twilight protested.
"Now listen here," AJ told us, "what a'hm saying to you is the honest truth. Let go, and you'll be safe." Twilight and I stared at her, but she just returned with a reassuring smile.
"If I die AJ," I told her, "then I'm coming back to haunt you!"
We let go of her hooves, letting ourselves plummet to our certain dooms.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" the both of us screamed, when suddenly, I felt myself halt mid-fall. I opened my eyes. Fluttershy was holding me, while Rainbow Dash had Twilight. Me and Twilight both breathed a sigh of relief, before Fluttershy suddenly dropped down slightly.
"Oh, sorry James." she apologised, beginning to descend at a more steadily pace, "I'm not used to carrying anything more than a bunny or two.". As we descended, I noticed AJ jumping down the outcrops on the cliff.
"First things first!" I declared as soon as Fluttershy placed me on the ground. I immediately turned to her and wrapped my hooves around her tightly. I heard her give a small "meep!" as I did so. A minute passed and I let go of her, her cheeks now burning red.
"That," I said, "was for saving my life."
"And once Pinkie and Rarity were safe, WHOOSH!" Rainbow bragged, "Me and Fluttershy looped-the-loop around and WHOOM! Got you two right in the nick of time!"
"Yes Rainbow, I was there;" Twilight responded, "and I'm very grateful, but we gotta..."
Before she could finish her sentence, the sound of a foot hitting the ground cut her off. She gasped as she saw what stood before us. I couldn't believe what I was looking at either. At first glance, you would have thought it was a lion, but it was anything but that. On its back sprouted a pair of large, leathery wings; and its tail belonged to a scorpion if anything.
"A manitcore!" Twilight cried out in horror. The beast reared up, giving off a terrifying roar. "We've got to get passed him!" Twilight declared.
Now if you think I was going to stand valiantly with them to fight this terrifying beast... then you're wrong. You couldn't be wronger. While the girls were riled up and ready to go, I just dived into a pair the bushes and hope that I didn't smell too tasty. That's right, laugh at the big chicken, but ask yourself: If you were faced with a monster that would very likely rip you to shreds, what would you do? And so from my little hidey hole, I just sat and watched this little event play out.
The manticore pounced towards Rarity, prepared to swipe her with its sharp looking claws. However, just as it was about to make contact with her, she ducked her head and immediately bucked it in the face.
"Take that you ruffian!" she taunted. The creature roared in her face in response, messing up her mane. "My hair!" she cried out in horror, before noticing the manticore still standing there and promptly rushing off, the beast chasing after her.
"Wait!" I heard a faint voice say. Definitely Fluttershy's voice, but I don't think any of the other girls heard it. Suddenly, the manticore stopped and looked up to see AJ standing on its head.
"Yeehaw!" she cried, "Get along little doggy!"
"Wait!" I heard Fluttershy say again, as the manticore leaped all over the place in an attempt to shake AJ of its head. Eventually it was able to send her flying.
"All yours partner." I heard her say to Rainbow.
"I'm on it!" was Rainbows response, before zooming towards the beast.
Once again, I heard Fluttershy's timid plea, "Wait!"
Rainbow Dash circled around the manticore so quickely that she was just a rainbow coloured blur. Unfortunately for her, t beast was able to swat her away with its scorpion tail.
"Rainbow!" Twilight cried out in horror and concern. The pony landed in front of her. As she got up, the manticore dragged its paw across the ground in a threatening manner. The girls responded with the exact same gesture. My eyes widened in horror. They weren't going to... they were.
Twilight, AJ, Rarity, Pinkie and Rainbow galloped towards manticore (or in Pinkie's case, bounced). I closed my eyes. I couldn't watch. I sat there cowering in the bushes and waited for it all to end. Hopefully, the beast wouldn't find me.
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT!" a voice suddenly shouted out. My eyes shot open, and there was Fluttershy, of all people (err, ponies), standing between the other girls and the manticore. She trotted up to the manticore, no sign of fear or hesitation whatsoever, and the beast raised its paw as if about to strike her. Me and the rest of the girls braced ourselves, but instead...
"Shhh. It's okay." Fluttershy cued gently, nuzzling the beast's paw. The beast suddenly pulled a sad looking face, and let out it's paw to her, revealing a huge thorn sticking out of it.
"Oh you, poor, poor little baby" she said sympathetically.
"Little?!" Rainbow asked in disbelief to no one in particular.
"Now this may hurt for just a second" Fluttershy went on, before taking the thorn with her mouth and pulling it out of the manticores paw. The beast immediately grabbed her and viscously roared in her face.
"Fluttershy!" Twilight and AJ yelled in horror. I couldn't watch this. Not someone as sweet as her! But instead of ripping her to shreads or anything like that, the manticore just licked her affectionately, like dog to its master.
"Oh, you're just a little old kitty aren't you? Yes you are. Yes you are." she giggled as the other girls trotted past. I didn't want to be left alone, so I this was the best time for me to come out of the bushes and go after them. As the others went onwards, Twilight stopped and turned back to Fluttershy.
"How did you know about the thorn?" Twilight asked.
"I didn't." Fluttershy answered, her mane stuck up from the creatures lick, "Sometimes we all just need to be shown a little kindness."
"My eyes need a rest from all this icky much" Rarity shuddered as we went deeper into the forest. The trees now very closely together, blotting out the light that the moon provided.
"Well I didn't mean that literally." she muttered to herself.
"That ancient ruin could be right in front of our faces and we wouldn't even know it!" Twilight said, as the girls began bickering to each other over where they were.
"Oh wait," AJ said, "Ah think ah stepped in somethin'."
Suddenly, Fluttershy screamed in fright.
"It's just mud." AJ declared, before she bumped into a tree. Looking at it, she screamed as well, leaping away from it. What I saw on the tree truly startled me. A twisted, frightening looking face on the trunk, and the lower branches adding effect by looking like arms. Now I'll say again, this startled me, but nothing more. The girls... well... that's a different story. The sudden screams nearly gave me a heart attack.
Suddenly, we all picked up a sound. A sound that wasn't screaming. In fact, it was the total opposite. It was... laughter. Standing in front of one of the trees, Pinkie Pie was laughing gleefully and pulling silly faces.
"Pinkie, what are you doing?!" Twilight asked bewildered "Run!"
"Oh girls, don't you see?" Pinkie asked, before suddenly doing the most horrible thing she could think of doing. She did something so evil, so inhumanely cruel, that it haunts me to this very day.
"When I was a little filly and the sun was going down..." she started singing.
"Tell me she's not.." Twilight began.
"The darkness and the shadows, they would always make me frown..." Pinkie interrupted her with her song.
"She is." Rarity answered Twilight's inquiry, as Pinkie continued her singing.
"I'd hide under my pillow
From what I thought I saw
But Granny Pie said that wasn't the way
To deal with fears at all"
"Then what is?" Rainbow asked. Pinkie answered with more singing (what else?).
"She said: "Pinkie, you gotta stand up tall
Learn to face your fears
You'll see that they can't hurt you
Just laugh to make them disappear
Ha! Ha! Ha!"
She laughed at one of the trees, causing the scary face to disappear. We were all shocked at what just happened, our mouths hanging open.
"So, giggle at the ghostly" Fluttershy began to laugh at one of the scary trees, causing the it's scary face to disappear.
"Guffaw at the grossly" Then Rainbow.
"Crack up at the creepy" And Rarity.
"Whoop it up with the weepy" Now AJ.
"Chortle at the kooky" Even Twilight.
"Snortle at the spooky" Now it was my turn, and I would have laughed... if it was funny. Instead, all the other girls laughed in my place.
"And tell that big dumb scary face to take a hike and leave you alone and if he thinks he can scare you then he's got another thing coming and the very idea of such a thing just makes you wanna... hahahaha... heh...
Laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaauuugh!"
As Pinkie finished the last line of the song, all of the trees lost their scary faces, and she fell beside Twilight as the 6 girls laughed their hearts out. I just stood there watching. I couldn't believe what I was looking at. Just watching them laughing made me feel angry. How could they just lay back and laugh at a time like this?
"Really!?" I demanded as they continued laughing, "This is what you girls are doing!?"
My little outburst had now caught the girls attention, and they immediately stopped laughing and turned to face me.
"In case you weren't aware," I said disapprovingly, "we still need to stop some crazy mare who wants to bring about eternal night!"
"Oh come on Jamesey!" Pinkie said, trotting up to me with a smile etched on her face, "Can't you take a joke?"
"Pinkie," I said, making my agitation clear, "that was not funny. A man complaining about a dead parrot is funny! A lumberjack singing about how he dresses up as a woman is funny! The Spanish Inquisition is funny! What you just did was so childish and immature that it's pathetic! So forgive me if I don't see the funny side of all this, but we have a world to save! If you just want to screw around here and leave the grown-ups to do all the work, then go ahead, but leave me out of it!". Wow, that felt good, just yelling at someone as pathetic and annoying as her. "Now, can we please get back to finding the Elements of Harmony?" I asked irritably.
There was a good moment of silence from the girls, just staring at me, unsure who was going to be the first to say anything. Suddenly, Pinkie just burst out laughing again, and was quickly followed by the others. I gritted my teeth in frustration. Geez, that pink pony was annoying.
I plodded on behind as the others as we walked onward. They were still laughing as they trotted ahead. I didn't really care that I was falling behind. I was too caught up in my own thoughts to really notice.
After we had done it, defeated the evil and saved the world and all that palaver, what was going to happen to me? How was I going to get back home? These questions kept circling around my head, but as hard as I searched, I couldn't any answers in there. So the questions just kept asking themselves over and over again, until I ended up walking right into something in front of me. Looking up, it turned out I had ran right into Fluttershy's behind. She and the other girls were staring at a rapid flowing river right in front of them, far too dangerous to swim across.
"How are going to cross this?" Pinkie asked. As if to answer her question, the faint sound of wailing caught our ears. It sounded masculine, but it also incredibly effeminate. Turning towards the source, there was a large serpent up the river, thrashing its tail as it wailed in distress.
"What a world!" the serpent wailed, "What a world!"
"Excuse me sir," Twilight called out, "why are you crying?"
"Well, I don't know!" the serpent answered, "I was just sitting here, minding my own business, when this... tacky little cloud of purple smoke just... whizzed past me, and tore half of my beloved moustache...clean off!". "And now," he went on, "I look simply horrid!", before letting himself fall into the river with a splash, causing the seven of us to become soaked from the tidal wave he created.
Okay, it was official, this guy was gay. The bad sort of gay. Now don't get me wrong, I've got nothing against gay people personally. It's their business and not mine. At the end of the day, they're just normal, healthy guys... dykes on the over hand are evil!
"Oh, gimmie a break." Rainbow muttered.
"That's what all the fuss is about?" AJ asked irritably.
"Why, of course it is!" Rarity exclaimed, trotting up towards the moping serpent, "How can you be so insensitive?". "Look at him," she continued, "Such lovely luminescent scales!"
"I know." the serpent moped.
"Your expertly quaffed mane!" Rarity pointed out.
"Oh, I know, I know!" The serpent said.
"Your fabulous manicure!" she added.
"It's so true!" the serpent gasped.
"All ruined without your beautiful moustache!" Rarity said sadly.
"It's true!" the serpent wailed, "I'm hideous!"
"I simply cannot let this crime against fabulousity go uncorrected!" Rarity declared, narrowing her eyes. With that, she grabbed one of the serpent's scales with her mouth and pulled it out.
"Ow!" he exclaimed, "What did you do that for?"
Rarity held up the scale, still in her mouth, which then gleamed that gleam you'd get from a knife or any other sharp object.
"Rarity what are you...?" Twilight asked, only to be cut off by a one clean SLASH! The serpent once again wailed and collapsed.
But no, Rarity hadn't done anything to him, it was more about what she did to herself. She had used the scale to cut her own tail off, which she then levitated with her magic and attached it to the end of the serpent's moustache.
He laughed a laugh that was filled to the brim with delight.
"My moustache!" he exclaimed, "How wonderful!"
"You look smashing!" Rarity complimented.
"Oh, Rarity." Twilight said sadly, "Your beautiful tail!"
"Oh, it's fine my dear." she brushed off, "Short tails are in this season! Besides, it will grow back.". Me and Twilight both smiled. You don't often see someone being this generous, especially to a complete stranger.
"So would the moustache." Rainbow muttered, snapping me and Twilight out of our trances.
"We can cross now!" the former called out, beginning to cross the river. "Let's go... Uuaahh!" she yelped in surprise as the serpent's tail raised her up from the water.
"Allow me!" he gestured before diving into the water, allowing us to use his coiled tail to cross the river as if they were stepping stones.
Still never saw the big deal about his moustache, but the point is that we managed to cross the river and press forward.
Finally, the seven of us walked up to a truly welcoming sight.
"There it is!" Twilight cried out, "The ruin that holds the Elements of Harmony! We made it!". She began galloping forwards, towards the ancient castle.
"Twilight!" AJ called after her, "wait for us!"
"Were almost there!" Twilight called out. Suddenly, her body jolted down. Her hind legs were now the part of her that was on solid ground, the rest of her body teetering over the edge of a steep cliff.
"Twilight!" I called out, quickly diving over to her and grabbing her tail with my hooves. I expected it to be a hard time pulling her up, but she was actually quite light.
"What's it with you and falling off clips today?" Rainbow asked her, "And why didn't you just use your mouth?" she directed to me.
"What?" I asked, "Bite a woman? What sort of person do you take me as?". Twilight smiled before turning her head away from us. Was it just me, or did her cheeks suddenly seem more rosy for split second?
"Whatever." Rainbow muttered.
"Now what?" Pinkie sighed as we looked down the edged of the cliff, unable to see what was at the bottom due to a thick mist. The bridge connecting to the other side was hanging only on one side, leaving us no alternative to cross.
"Duh." Rainbow said, shaking her wings.
"Oh yeah!" Pinkie realised as Rainbow took off and dived down the cliff. She rose back up, holding on to the other side of the bridge with her mouth, before flying over to the other side. You would think that tying it on the to the rock to keep is steady would be a quick job, but for some reason she was taking quite a while to do so.
"Rainbow!" Twilight called out, "What's taking so long?". I looked over to the other side, and my eyes widened in shock. Rainbow was standing there talking to three ponies, wearing dark coloured racing suits.
"Oh no, Rainbow!" Twilight called out to her, "Don't listen to them!". Suddenly, the mist began to thicken, until we were unable to see what was going on at the other side of the cliff.
I hate to admit it, but for the few seconds that followed, I was actually worried about Rainbow. I mean, all she had done to me up to that point was shower me in distrust. I knew she didn't like me, so why would I feel concerned about her safety?
However, my doubts were erased, when Rainbow flew through the fog and landed in front of us. The girls cheered for her as we began to cross the now stable bridge.
"Good job Rainbow!" Twilight said.
"See?" Rainbow declared, "I'd never leave my friends hanging!"
We reached the other side of the cliff and began heading towards the ruined castle. As I followed the girls, I started feeling that same feeling from before. It was the same feeling I felt back at the library.
Why was this happening? Why was I feeling like this?
Walking into the ancient ruin, standing in front of us a tall stone structure, with five stone orbs attached to it.
"Whoa." AJ (I'm guessing?) said in awe, "Come on Twilight, isn't this what you been waitin' for?"
"The Elements of Harmony!" Twilight declared, "We found them!"
Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy flew up and grabbed the orb with their hooves.
"Careful." Twilight instructed as they place the orbs onto the ground, "Careful."
"One, two, three, four..." Pinkie counted, "There's only five."
"Where's the sixth?" Rainbow asked.
"The book said, 'When the five are present, a spark will cause the sixth element to be revealed."
"What in the hay is that supposed to mean?", AJ asked.
"I'm not sure, but I have an idea." Twilight answered, crouching on the floor, "Stand back! I don't know what will happen!". She closed her eyes in concentration as her horn began to glow.
"Come on y'all." AJ told the others, who were now following her out through the door, "She needs to concentrate."
My eyes widened in surprise. They were just leaving her? Just like that? I understood how they thought Twilight needed to concentrate, but to me, this was a bad idea. Leaving her alone just didn't seem right... Wait a minute, what was that thing in the corner of my eye?
I turned and gasped in horror. It was the dark blue starry mist I saw earlier, when Nightmare Moon vanished from the town hall. They began to circle around the stone orbs, which began levitating as the mist turned into a tornado.
"Twilight!" I called out, causing Twilight to open her eyes.
"Ah!" she cried out in shock, "The Elements!"
Suddenly, she leaped forward towards the tornado, disappearing inside it.
"No!" I found myself yelling. The next thing I knew, I leapt in after her! I have no idea why. What the hell was I thinking?! It just happened, as if it were instinct, that's the best reason I can come up with.
There was a bright flash of white, and I found myself lying next to Twilight, the both of us coughing. We looked up and gasped at what we saw. There was Nightmare Moon, with lightening and all, standing before us, the elements levitating around her.
Then, Twilight did something I really didn't expect her to do. She entered an aggressive stance and began to stamp her hoof on the ground.
"You're kidding." Nightmare Moon deadpanned, "You're kidding, right?"
With that, Twilight charged towards her, her horn glowing as she galloped. What the hell was she thinking?! Did she want to die?! Actually, of course she didn't, but she'd probably want to run away even less.
Then I did something I didn't expect myself to do. I actually began galloping with her, and I had no idea why! Nightmare Moon was right in front of us, getting closer and closer. Then, just right before we were about to collide, Twilight vanished in a flash of light, leaving me on my own.
*WHAM!*
My body flew through the air. I felt an explosion of pain coming from my chest, as I came into contact with the ground. My whole body felt numb. I could barely move. Everything was blurred.
"James!" Twilight's voice echoed into my ear, "Are you alright?!". Looking the sound's direction, I could make out a lavender coloured blur in the distance.
"I'll be fine." I managed out, "Just do whatever you've got to do!"
With that, I turned my attention towards Nightmare Moon, who bared down on me with a loathing expression across her face.
"How?" I asked her, "How do you know what I am?"
Nightmare Moon chuckled darkly. "You want to know how I know human?" she asked, "I have seen your race before. So proud and self righteous. Thinking that you could enslave us and treat us like mere animals! Your kind got what they deserved!". She then proceeded laugh, before turning her attention back to Twilight, who seemed to be focusing her magic on the Elements. The dark mist enveloped her, which then flew towards Twilight, as she materialised in front of her. I could only watch this little event unfold, too weak to rise to my feet.
Suddenly, Twilight was blown backwards landing, a few feet away from Nightmare Moon. However, the elements suddenly started glowing.
"No!" Nightmare Moon shouted in defiance, "No!"
I started to smile. We'd done it! We'd actually done it! The elements continued to glow, and suddenly... they stopped.
Twilight and I gasped in horror, "But, where's the sixth element?!" Twilight asked as Nightmare Moon cackled. She raised her front hooves into the air and sent them crashing down, causing the orbs to shatter like glass. Me and Twilight could only watch in horror as the shards fell in little pieces to the ground.
"You little foals," Nightmare Moon declared, "thinking you could defeat me! Now you will never see your princess, or your sun! The night will last... forever!". She cackled once again, as Twilight could only watch in horror and despair.
"And now," Nightmare Moon continued, slowly advancing on the petrified Twilight, "I'm afraid your time is up!". Twilight did nothing as Nightmare Moon's horn glowed with energy, a murderous glint evident in her eyes.
Oh no. Twilight! She wasn't going to stand a chance against Nightmare Moon! I tried as hard as I could to stand up, but the pain was too much for me to handle. No matter how hard I tried to, I just couldn't do it. I lay there helplessly, unable to do anything. I was useless, unable to do anything. I'd failed her...
Wait, what the hell was I thinking!? Didn't I say something earlier at the forest entrance?
"Twilight, I promised you that I'd help you stop Nightmare Moon if she returned. I don't go back on my promises, and I'm sure as hell not letting you go through this alone!"
I'd made it this far hadn't I? Why should I give up now? Twilight was depending on me right now! I couldn't let her down now!
Summoning all of my strength, I pulled myself up, ignoring the searing pain, and managed to get up on my hooves. As Nightmare Moon's horn began charging up more energy, my body just reacted. I ran as fast as I could towards her and Twilight. Everything around me seemed to slow down as I moved closer and closer.
And then I leaped forward.
I leaped in front of Twilight and Nightmare Moon, just as the latter released the energy from her horn. I cannot even to describe the pain I felt as the blast came in contact with me. Coupled with me being sent flying across the room earlier, the pain was unbearable. I landed right next to Twilight, barely conscious.
"James!" Twilight called out in horror. Nightmare Moon's cackle echoed through my ears.
"Foolish boy!" she taunted, "Haven't you realised yet? You cannot defeat me! Without your precious elements, your efforts are futile!". Once more, she cackled with more lightning. I couldn't believe it. I'd tried, and I'd failed. It was hopeless. There was nothing I could do now. Equestria was doomed...
"Don't worry Twilight!" I heard a collection of familiar voices, "We'll be there!"
Suddenly, everything made sense; and I gasped in realization, Twilight joining me. I could have sworn that I saw a faint twinkle in her eyes. Hearing the voices of the girls, made me feel... happy. The warm feeling from before came back, but this time I knew what it was, and it gave me the strength I needed to stand up again.
"You think that you can destroy the Elements of Harmony just like that?" Twilight asked with newfound confidence, "Well your wrong! Because the spirits of the Elements of Harmony are right here!"
Rarity, Fluttershy, AJ, Rainbow and Pinkie now lined up with us. The shards around Nightmare Moon suddenly began to glow an levitate around her.
"What?" she asked, her voice suddenly in a worried tone. Twilight just smiled, more than happy to explain.
"Applejack, who reassured me when I was in doubt, represents the spirit of... Honesty!". Several of the shards flew towards AJ an circled her.
"Fluttershy, who tamed the manticore with her compassion, represents the spirit of... Kindness!". Fluttershy was startled by the shards that began circling her, but she accepted after realising what was happening.
"Pinkie Pie, who banished fear by giggling in the face of danger, represents the spirit of... Laughter!". Pinkie jumped up into the air with glee as more of the shards circled her.
"Rarity, who calmed a sorrowful serpent with a meaningful gift represents the spirit of... Generosity!". Rarity only gave a modest look as she received her own set of shards.
"And Rainbow Dash, who could not abandon her friends for her own heart's desire, represents the spirit of... Loyalty!". The final set of shards began circling Rainbow Dash.
"The spirits of these five ponies got us through every challenge you threw at us!" Twilight finished triumphantly.
"But you still don't have the sixth element!" Nightmare Moon countered, the fear evident in her voice, "The spark didn't work!"
"But it did!" Twilight began again, "A different kind of spark!". She turned around to face the girls, "I felt it the very moment I realised how happy I was to hear you, to see you, how much I cared for you!". Tears if happiness began to form in her eyes, "The spark ignited inside of me, when I realised you all... are my friends!" she finished. That's when it dawned on me. What the warm feeling from before was. Why I felt it when I was around the girls. Twilight said it herself, they were her friends, and they were mine too!
Suddenly, there was a burst of light coming from above. Looking up we saw another orb, which then descended until it was floating just above Twilight. The glowing light intensified, causing Nightmare Moon to shield herself.
"You see Nightmare Moon," Twilight continued, "when those Elements are ignited by the... uh... the spark that exists in the heart of us all, it creates the sixth element!"
"And the seventh." I cut in, unable to contain a smirk.
"WHAT?!" everypony asked in shock, turning their attention towards me.
"That's right people." I declared, "There aren't six Elements of Harmony, there are seven! Unfortunately, the Princess of the Sun couldn't use all seven at once, as only one can wield it. And that person turns out to be... me!". With that, there was another burst of light, and another orb appeared before levitating just above me.
The girls smiled, while all Nightmare Moon could do was stare at me in pure terror.
"I, James Morgan, who would willingly risk my own safety to ensure Twilight's, represent the spirit of... Valour!"
"And I am the element of... Magic!" Twilight declared.
With that, the shards began becoming together around the us, forming necklaces for each of the girls.
Fluttershy's had an pink coloured jewel that was shaped like a butterfly.
Pinkie's jewel was coloured in a light blue, and was balloon shaped.
Rainbow's jewel was a red lightning bolt.
AJ's was coloured orange and shaped like an apple.
Rarity's was purple, and was shaped like a normal diamond.
As for me, my Element was shaped like an amulet, and the jewel was a plain white diamond.
Finally, instead of getting a necklace, Twilight received a tiara with a pink coloured jewel on top.
Suddenly, the elements unleashed a giant rainbow, which then shot towards Nightmare Moon.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" she cried as the Rainbow surrounded her, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
My vision was then blocked by an intense flash of bright light, before I suddenly lost consciousness...
I don't know how long I was out, but by the looks of things it was only a few minutes or so. Maybe an hour, I couldn't tell, it was still dark.
"Ugh, my head." I heard Rainbow groan as I awoke.
"Everypony okay?" AJ asked.
"Oh thank goodness!" Rarity exclaimed in delight. Looking over in her direction, I noticed that her tail had suddenly grown back after she had cut it off.
"Why Rarity," Fluttershy said, "it's so lovely."
"I know!" Rarity said, beginning to wag her tail up and down. "I'll never part with it again!" she added as she began to brush it against her face.
"No. Your necklace." Fluttershy corrected, "It looks just like your cutie mark!"
"Oh!" Rarity realised, having a proper examination of her Element, "So does yours!" she pointed out, causing Fluttershy to gasp in amazement.
"Look at mine! Look at mine!" Pinkie cried out as she bounced up next to AJ.
"Aw yeah!" Rainbow declared, proudly huffing to show off her necklace.
Staring at my amulet, I then turned to look at my cutie mark, comparing the two. They looked exactly the same, a golden shield with a white diamond encrusted at the centre.
As for Twilight, the jewel at the top her tiara resembled her cutie mark as well. Come to think of it, it looked a bit too big to be a tiara, but it certainly wasn't a crown either. You know what, I'm just going to call it a tiara anyway.
"We did it." I said to her, trotting up towards her. As she turned towards me, she gasped in surprise.
"What?" I asked in concern, "What's the matter? Is there something behind me? Is there a giant beetle on my back? What?"
Twilight pointed to my back with her hoof. Twisting my head round, I gasped at what I saw. Attached to my back were a pair of wings, which I'm sure weren't there when I first arrived. Turning back to Twilight, I saw that she now had her hoof pointed towards my head. Feeling around with my hoof, I felt something protruding from my skull, something that was was long and hard (but not full of anything.). A unicorn horn. that was the only thing I could come up with. Looking around me, the other girls were also staring at me, with equally shocked expression on their faces.
"James..." Twilight managed out, trying to recover from her shock, "You're... You're a..."
"An alicorn." I finished it for her. Wait, how did I know that that was what you called them?
"How the hay is that possible?" Rainbow asked, being the first to recover from her shock.
I paused, thinking hard for any logical answer. There was only one I could think of.
"It must have been something to do with the elements." I shrugged.
"James..." Twilight said softly, gazing at me in wonder, "This... This is incredible! I can't believe it! I never would have thought that you would be an alicorn, let alone represent an Element of Harmony! How is this even..."
"Alright, alright Twilight." I interrupted her, preventing what I knew would be a lengthily debate, "I get it. It's unbelievable, but we can talk about it later."
Twilight looked slightly offended by my interruption, but she then smiled and nodded in acceptance.
"Gee Twilight." AJ cut in, "Ah thought you were just spoutin' a lotta' huey, but I reckon we really do represent the elements of friendship.". Wait a minute, aren't they called the Elements of Harmony?
"Indeed you do." a new voice echoed. Suddenly a bright light began to glow out of one of the windows. Looking out of it, I realised what it was. The sun was rising, the dawn of a new day.
As the sun rose into the sky, another light shone in front of us. It lowered to the ground, and in a flash, there was a tall white horse standing before us. Her fur was pure white. Her main was striped in blue, dark pink, purple, and sea green, and seemed to flow majestically without the need of wind. Her cutie mark was the sun, and like me, she had both a horn and a set of wings.
All of the girls suddenly bowed in respect, except for Twilight, who gasped in amazement.
"Princess Celestia!" she said in awe, galloping up towards the newcomer.
"Twilight Sparkle, my faithful student." the Princess acknowledged her, "I knew you could do it."
"But…" Twilight responded. "You told me it was all an old pony tale."
"I told you that you needed to make some friends, nothing more." Celestia corrected her, "I saw the signs of Nightmare Moon's return, and I knew you had the magic inside to defeat her. But you could not unleash it until you let true friendship into your heart."
Twilight turned to the others, smiling at them. They returned with their own smiles.
"Now if only another will as well." The Princess continued. She approached the shattered armor that was what was left of Nightmare Moon. Lying there was a dark blue coloured pony, who looked no older than any of us, with a cutie mark resembling a crescent moon. Like me, she too had wings and a horn.
"Princess Luna." Celestia addressed the pony, who gasped in terror. "It has been a thousand years since I have seen you like this.". She crouched down, kneeling next to the blue mare, "Time to put our differences behind us. We were meant to rule together little sister."
"Sister?" Twilight and Rainbow questioned. I too was surprised, but not at the fact that Luna was Celestia's sister. I mean, it's easy to figure out isn't it? Twilight had read the legend herself hadn't she? Why was she so surprised?
"Will you accept my friendship?" Celestia asked, rising to her feet. The girls leaned forward with concerned looks on their faces, with Pinkie toppling over. Luna was silent for a while, her head drooped down in shame, before she suddenly leaped over to Celestia.
"I'm so sorry!" she cried, "I missed you so much big sister!". Tears of joy were running down both ponies faces.
"I've missed you too." Celestia replied. Suddenly, Pinkie began bawling, tears rushing out of her eyes like a waterfall as she held a handkerchief in her hoof.
"Hey!" she suddenly exclaimed, the tears stopping as quickly as they started, "You know what this calls for? A PARTY!"
We were back in Ponyville now, with everyone in town attending to the party. When we arrived, Spike rushed up and gave Twilight a hug. The Princesses arrived on a guard driven carriage, and as they got off the, everypony bowed in respect at them. Two fillies flew up to an ashamed looking Luna, surprising her by placing flowers around her neck. It was then when something suddenly popped into my head. I had a lot of questions to ask.
"Princess," I called to Celestia, walking up towards her, "We need to talk."
"Really?" Celestia inquired, turning her attention to me, "What do we need to talk about?"
"A lot of things." I answered, "Preferably in private."
With that, I took her out of the main crowd, where no one would pay any full attention to us.
"I'm sure you know what I am." I said, "You know I'm not a pony."
"I do." Celestia admitted, "And I understand that you require a lot of answers human."
"Alright." I began, "First off, how do you know about humans in the first place? I asked Nightmare Moon, but she didn't really give me any solid answer."
"That is quite a long story James." Celestia replied, "Do you want hear the full version, or do you want me to shorten it down?"
"Just give me the short version."
"Very well," she began, "Thousands of years ago, before the unification of the three tribes, Equestria was invaded by a race from far across the seas. They called themselves humans, and sought to enslave all living beings of Equestria. They conquered nearly all of the land, until the three tribes joined together and managed to drive them out. This legend has long since been forgotten, for nopony desired future generations to grow up in fear that they would one day return."
"Well that explains what she said earlier." I cut in, "I'm not ashamed to admit that humans can be like that. It's just how we are."
"I always thought that all humans were destructive beings who could never understand harmony." Celestia continued, "I sensed that you were human the moment you arrived, and my initial course of action was to dispatch a group of royal guards to arrest you. However, when I also sensed that you were the seventh element, I decided that it would be best to observe your behaviour. Now I know that you truly are capable of understanding friendship and harmony, and I am more than happy to have Twilight consider you her friend."
"Thanks," I replied, letting out a small smile, "but I also need to ask you, how do I get home? I have a family back home on Earth, and other friends as well. They may not be like the ones I've made here, but they're still important to me."
"I understand." the princess answered, "One day, you will need to return to your world. Unfortunately, I do not know how, but I will do everything I can to find a way to send you home. Until then, you are very welcome to stay here in Ponyville. It's the least I could do for you for helping save Equestria."
"Thanks, that means a lot." I said, my smile growing wider, "Come on, let's get back to the celebrations." She nodded and smiled at me, before turning back towards the crowd. I followed her, feeling a bit better after what she had said. It wasn't the best answer I could have gotten, but it was something. Guess I'm just going to have to hang around here until the princess finds something that can send me back. Doesn't sound that bad, except that I don't know how long it will take.
Who knows, it might even be fun.
Walking back to the party, Celestia trotted up to Twilight, who surprisingly had a sad look on her face.
"Why so glum, my faithful student?" Celestia asked, "Are you not happy that your quest is complete and you can return to your studies in Canterlot?"
"That's just it." Twilight responded sadly, turning to her friends, who looked saddened by the news, "Just when I learned how wonderful it is to have friends, I have to leave them.".
Celestia paused for a moment, before suddenly saying, "Spike, take a note please.". Spike was quick to have a scroll and quill in hand, while I trotted up next to Twilight as the princess continued to speak.
"I, Princess Celestia, hereby decree that the unicorn Twilight Sparkle shall take on a new mission for Equestria. She must continue to study the magic of friendship. She must report to me her findings from her new home in Ponyville. I further decree that the alicorn known as James Morgan reside with her and assist her in completing her tasks."
Our friends surrounded us, chattering in excitement. I felt relieved, having somewhere to live now. For a moment, I was worried I'd have to start from scratch and get a job and other stuff like that. Good thing I don't have to!
"Oh thank you, Princess Celestia!" Twilight exclaimed, "I'll study harder than ever before!"
As everypony cheered, I couldn't help but smile. Today turned out to be quite good in the end. Despite getting zapped into an entirely different world, I'd made some new friends and helped defeat an ancient evil that threatened to bring eternal night.
Oh, I definitely was going to enjoy my time here...