" It was a long time ago, longer than any of you have lived", Minira said. " The first moments I created this universe. Your father and I spent hundreds of years creating the different races of the vast galaxies".
" So there are other forms of life?!", Twilight excitedly questioned.
" It would be foolish to think you were the only one's here", Minira smiled. Twilight chuckled nervously and sat back down. " While we gave them mind's of their own and watched them evolve, they became violent. Many disregarded my existence and as a result wars broke out across the universe. Soon, planets were invading other planets, and billions of lives were lost".
" With my thousand year pregnancy, my husband Kotur, was the only one to watch over them and guide them. We soon discovered that it was not my creations that were acting of ill will. Along with my husband and I, there was another god. Drepshol, or Anarchy. He was an ancestor to Discord".
" Now's not the time to speak badly about my family Minira", Discord's voice echoed. One of the chairs for the waiting room bent into the shape of the draconequus.
The ponies immediately went on the defensive until Minira raised a hoof. " He can't do anything, can't you Discord?", Minira raised a brow.
" I'm just listening like every other pony here", he chuckled as his body formed. " These Loki'irians are very interesting, especially Tony. The things you should have-"
" Quiet Discord", Luna growled. Discord reared his head back and laughed, getting an icy glare from the princess.
" Oh, I was just saying Lulu", he snickered. " Now let's hear about those men".
Minira turned back to her slightly bigger audience. " As I was saying, Kotur discovered Drepshol had turned their minds mad, and the wars became bloodier and darker", she continued. " We could see no end in sight, and Kotur wouldn't be strong enough to defeat Drepshol without my help. He told me of a war of the universe drawing near if we didn't do something quick".
" He came up with the idea of using several races to counter the chaos, but I told him it would only cause more trouble. Then he came with the idea about using a single race to bring order. I still opposed the idea, but he showed me something I thought was long gone. Deep in the galaxy, there was a planet with no name. I couldn't believe that the wars had not touched it, for it was a beautiful planet to behold".
Immediately their surroundings changed. The floors and walls and furniture dissolved until only the void of space remained. They were traveling quickly through the universe, passing solar systems and stars and planets. They dove into a particular galaxy, and as they got deeper, a burning star stood out among the rest, and in its orbit was a planet bigger than theirs. It's oceans were a greenish blue, and the land was mostly green. They dove deep into its atmosphere until they were on the ground.
There were cities made from the trees, enormous bipeds walking in clothing weaved of branches or animal hides. They used the trees to travel like roads, which were under them anyways. Luna recognized the scenery from Tony's memory.
" I was so shocked to see how peaceful they were, and they hadn't even advanced like all the other life. Their planet was exactly how I wanted it to be, no machinery, no rascism or prejudice, or destroyed life. They lived exactly how I made them to be, and here they were untouched by the rest of the galaxy. Kotur insisted that we use them to fight against the evil plague. I was hesitant, but there was no other option".
The scene changed to a single room, huge even by castle standards. Atop a jeweled stone sat a regal looking man, beside him his wife. They were meeting with the other nations for talk about traveling across the sea. The representatives eyes bulged as a mist of white and red, and blue and black began to form. When the mist vanished, a woman whose hair burned like the stars stood beside a man whose very skin were constellations. The man atop the throne stood up and bowed, as did the others.
" Tis it true, are thou the goddess herself? And the god wed to thee?", he asked respectfully. Minira translated their language to Equish for them to understand.
" We are thou, Minira the creator, and my husband Kutor the protector", Minira's past self spoke. " We cone with a warning, as well as an offer".
" A war has broken out among the galaxies", Kutor spoke with a voice matched only by his daughter in strength. " A god supreme fogs their minds and clouds their decisions. Tis with great hardship that we say the anarchy will consume the universe as thou knowest".
The men and women gasped in unison. " What are we to do? How are we to act?", the ruler of the nation said.
" We come to thee since thou have not abandoned our great plan for this plane", Minira spoke. " It is with thou that we trust, and it is with thou that we shall use to defeat this evil. We will bestow your planet with our powers, accelerate your knowledge on all life, and create warriors of you. As one you will fight, and as one you shall conquer. Bring peace and prosperity to the galaxies, for your childrens sake".
It took no time for them to nod. " By your hand, do we pledge our allegiance", the ruler bowed.
" And so it was", Minira said. " We gave them a portion of our power, our knowledge, and our goals. Kutor trained them to be the strongest of warriors, disciplined them, and taught them about technology"
" I in turn, taught them about peace, kindness, happiness, laughter, bravery, about nature and its value. Within a century, they were ready. The strongest of them, we called Signa, and the rest, we named after their home planet. Loki'ir, and the Loki'irian race".
" Not long after, Kutor came with another idea. He said they would need at least another companion to fight these wars. He spent another several years creating their allies, the Nera'ak. They were to be connected to their companions, physically and mentally".
A man riding a dragon was soon joined by several others as they practiced maneuvers. The dragons were not like those found in Equestria. Their bodies were much sleeker and their bodies could not stand on their hind legs. Some had wings and some didn't. Some breathed fire, some breathed frost, and others breathed a breath that gave life to wounded or dying.
" So, the dragons are aliens?", Rainbow asked. " Then how come they're all over Equestria?".
" We'll get to that", Minira smiled. " Where was I, oh yes. After decades of training the allied races, we fully prepared them for the worst".
The scenery changed to an armada of ships descending upon one. The awestruck ponies watched as smaller ships flew in with the warriors. The Nera'ak along with their riders leapt out once in atmosphere and began their attacks. They fought with weapons both modern and ancient. Using rifles that fired the Loki'irian metals, the Loki'iran armies quickly defeated species after species, driving them back to their home planets.
" After thousands of years of fighting, we had them cornered at the edge of the galaxy. I gave Kutor my energy, and with that he fought with the Signa in the final battle agaist Drepshol. The combined species were no match for our warriors, but the battle still raged for some time before the last opposition lay dead".
A barren battlefield of warring species showed them falling, both Loki'irian and opposing. Kutor fought above with Drepshol, their hits creating earthquakes and raising volcanoes. Their swords sparked fires for the mortals, but still the Loki'irians fought bravely.
" In the end, there was no way to defeat Drepshol, but there was a way to keep him down for a time". Kutor wrapped his arms around Drepshol, crushing him in his grasp. Their bodies began to glow as they each roared, Drepshol not willing to accept defeat.
With a last move, Drepshol fired a ball of his dark energy into the cosmos. Kutor and him blew up, sending Drepshol into a deep recovery state.
" Father...father sacrificed himself?", Celestia asked. Minira nodded sadly as she recalled the day.
" Before he went...he told me of the danger that would come again", Minira slowly started. " And so, with peace returned to the universe, you were born Celestia. I named you after the Loki'irian word for sun, Ichima".
" And what about Luna?!", Pinkie raised her hoof wildly.
Minira giggled and smiled at the bubbly mare. " We'll get there", she smiled. " After the wars were over, I could not take the power I had given them, so I decided to keep them as my personal race of guardsmen".
Their surroundings went back to the large throne room in a tree. Minira stood above a kneeling man, along with his son. " I name thee, mine right hand, the Makti! And his son, the Doshu'um! Protectors of my universe and all its life!".
The warriors cheered and the Nera'ak roared proudly. The man stood with his son, and together the Signa fired a beam of energy skyward. The skylights obliterated to let the funnel of energy surge to the skies.
" And that was how the Loki'irian guardsmen were born", Minira smiled softly. " They enforced my laws and kept order in their planet. The Makti ruled the planet, soon to be replaced by the son he saw to be worthy".
The surroundings turned to a white void. " Wow, they sound...strong", Shining gasped.
" Indeed. There were none that could challenge them. A single warrior could take on a hundred of any race besides his own, and a single Signa warrior could defeat an entire planet", Minira said. " But they only forced their hand if they saw fit".
" So, where do those Arthanians come into place grandma?", Cadence questioned.
" Yeah, I thought you said no one could beat them", Rainbow added. Minira sighed as her horn glowed.
" I said they were powerful, not invincible", Minira said in a low tone. The scenery changed to a war scarred planet devoid of sentient life.
A single ball of dark energy hummed on its surface. An extraterrestrial animal, a small furred creature resembling a bunny but with six legs and a long tail, became curious. As it came near, whispers echoed into its head about power, and immortality. The creature understood none of it, and only edged closer. Its curiosity piqued, the bunny relative pressed its nose against the dark sphere. A crack formed, and soon it spread over the entire thing. As the cracks opened, a dark cloud shot out of it and spread out, mutating the life forms and plant life.
At last the sphere exploded, and a beam of darkness shot into the atmosphere. The planet grew dark as the energy spread, turning the inhabitants into mindless monsters. The planet became a living gauntlet, and the inhabitants transformed. There were two made from the darkness, smaller furred creatures with a tail and sharp teeth in a muzzle. The second, was larger and more intelligent. It had a fur and a muzzle just like its relative, but it could stand on its hind legs and had fingers.
" The Arthanians were Drepshol's way of keeping his chaos alive", Minira explained. " They were vicious, and showed no mercy. The Sobalka, or soldiers created crude yet effective technological weapons and vehicles. The Jifof, or scouts were caged by their own, and used as premature means of attack".
They were taken to the Loki'irian homeworld once more. A bloodied man ran into the throne room, immediately helped by the Makti. The man spoke of a darkness so bleak, and creatures so evil. He explained his men were lost, tortured and killed in front of him. They were coming, and soon.
The Makti sent for the pilots to retrieve their armada's, and they did just that. The entire planet was surrounded by fleets of ships, ready for anything. What they weren't preapred for, was the sheer number of the Arthanian horde. They were badly outnumbered, ten to one at the least. Yet they still fought on, unconcerned with numbers.
Ships exploded, bodies floated with debris in the zero gravity emptiness. Boarding parties swapped ships and killed the occupants. Hours after the fighting, the Signa came into play. They used their control over energy to shoot down ships in one shot, and some whose rites were of manipulation or contorl over elements crushed the ships and sent them into each other. The Makti of the time, Hirno, boarded the flagship. With his team of Signa they fought their way through the Arthanians to the bridge.
The Makti and the Sobalka leader fought viciously. Bestowed with power from his creator, the Sobalkan warlord matched Hirno blow for blow, but Hirno soon turned the tide. After stabbing its heart out, the warlord uttered a chant and its mouth and eyes shot out a black light. Instead of being mutated like everything else, the Makti was given more power, and a second mind.
" The Ashla, it stands for the beast within", Minira explained.
The Makti changed, his skin grew fur and a tail formed. He grew out much like Tony did, and soon it was a nonmetallic version of the Ashla. Unlike Tony, his mind was untouched and he could control its actions.
" The Arthanians escaped, but not without adding on to my creations", Minira sighed softly. " It was the start of a war, and the start of your life Luna".
" What did you name me?", she asked.
" Limir, the moon in Loki'irian", Minira giggled. " With the Ashla being passed down, it also brought a new tradition to their race. The Ashla didn't die, it only passed on to the one who could defeat it. I created the Makti and Doshu'um to have a bond that allowed the Makti to pass on his power to his son. With the Ashla, it became more complicated".
" How?", Twilight asked.
Minira lowered her head and showed Hirno being killed by his own son. " The only way was if the Doshu'um killed his own father", she explained. There was a collective gasp in the small audience, except for Discord who had summoned a bag of popcorn alongside Pinkie Pie.
" He had to...kill his dad?!", Shining exclaimed.
" There was no other way", Minira hummed. " The Ashla couldn't be removed by me, since it was Drepshol's creation. I gave them some control over it, but to pass on their power to keep the Makti as top Signa required them to do so".
" That must have been very difficult", Celestia commented. " I understand why it had to be done, but it must have been painful to do so".
Minira closed her eyes. " It was", she admitted.
Before the story could continue, a doctor burst through the doors. His mask and coat had splotches of blood on fhem. " Your majes-um...Princess?", he gestured to Minira.
" What's your news doctor?", Celestia questioned.
" Um, yes. We've managed to stitch up Tony's wounds and we put a cast on his broken arm", he explained. Just as he went to explain Dan's situation, Luna knocked him to the ground as she galloped past him.
" Come", Minira motioned. The ponies and Loki'irians hurried after the lunar princess to find the room.
Luna burst through the door and frantickly looked for him. She spotted him at the far side of the room, laying upright to support his leg. She let stray tears fall as she came closer, noticing his heart monitor dangerously low. The others soon came in as well, taking in the sight of Tony. He had gashes and cuts all over him, his arm indeed was in a sling as was his elevated leg. Luna's horn summoned the iPod, and she quickly put them buds in his ears.
She played the music and waited for Tony's arm to start glowing. It never did, even as she adjusted the volume and played different songs it never glowed and his wounds never closed. Her tears fell more freely now as she tried to help him in any way she could.
" Limir", Jaqeluu said softly. " His rite is gone".
" What do you mean gone?!", she shouted. " He has to fix himself! He couldn't have just lost it!".
Minira took Jaqeluu's place and pulled her daughter closer. " His rite was forced, Luna. When a Signa's rite comes unnaturally, he loses it upon maturing", she explained.
" And why was his rite forced?", she cried into her mothers mane.
Minira consoled her daughter until she could control the tears. " We will come to that soon", Minira smiled.
" So what happened with th' war?", Applejack asked. " Had t' be a real close fight".
Minira nodded and draped her wing around Luna. " It was, they fought on hundreds of planets in a single Makti's life, and the war lasted for several thousand years". She changed the scenery again, this time to the Arthanian home planet. It was lost in a smog of pollution from the factories. " It was only then that I understood Drepshol's real reason for creating the Arthanians".
The smog cleared away, and soon a man stood there. They all recognized him, it was Drepshol himself.
" He used the Arthanians to distract me from his real goal", Minira sighed. " Kutor only sealed him away for a few millenia, and with the fast rate of the Arthanians I was distracted".
She showed them the worlds that were back at war. It was less rampant this time, and many races united to fight back. However, their power was no match for the mutts numbers. The queens were bountiful, meaning entire armies could be built in two weeks. They forced different races to leave their homeworlds in order to survive. Many refused to or couldn't leave, resulting in their eradication.
" As time went on, my guardsmen chased them to different corners of the galaxy, winning and losing many battles", she said. " But with Drepshol out again, it would take more than the Signa to fight off these mutts".
She fast forwarded another thousand years later. " The wars raged on, and soon it was only my guardsmen against Drepshol's minions. It was when you two were children, that the Makti was finally overthrown".
They were brought back to the Loki'irian homeworld, where a man stood bloodied and sweaty. The Makti was at his feet, dead. A swarm of dark energy left the body and flowed into the newest Makti's being.
" Why was he overthrown?", Cadence questioned. " Was he a tryant?".
" They would never stoop so low", Minira said proudly. " It was just a form of their culture, Ragnok".
" Wait, didn't Tony and that other Signa-whatever say some'in 'bout rags knock?", Applejack asked.
Minira giggled at the mispronunciation, but explained nonetheless. " Ragnok, Applejack. It means right to the throne", she said. " And he was the greatest warrior of my guardsmen".
They all looked back to the bloodied man. After his wounds regenerated, his body took on a familiar shape. His muscular figure, his scarred left arm, his hair, the face, and his eyes. They had seen him before, all of them.
" That looks like-"
" TONY!", Pinkie shouted, cutting off Fluttershy. " That's Tony! Right?! Isn't it?!".
" No, it's his ancestor, Reku'un Alamonshuor", Minira said. " The greatest warrior to ever live. It was with his help that Drepshol was defeated once again".
Time forwarded again to show all of the first Reku'un's achievements. He cleansed dozens of worlds from the Arthanians, fought millions of the wolves, won many battles with his cunning tactics. Yet he wasn't always so hostile, they saw his softer side when he wasn't in battle. His wife and son, the Doshu'um, would be with him when he freely took a day off from royal duties. His response to the problems were," Pull back, can't you see I'm with my family?".
He was kind with nature, and in turn nature was kind with him. He prayed daily to Ichima for good health and happiness over his family, while to Limir he prayed for bravery in battle and for them to protect his family.
" You see, the Loki'irians followed my belief so adamantly they knew of your existence", Minira explained. " They named you Celestia, as the ruler of days and the god of peace. And you Luna, they prayed to you to protect their families and to help them in war".
" Their lives are just filled with war", Rarity commented. " How could they keep so merry in a time like that?".
Minira chuckled lightly. " To a Loki'irian, dying in battle is the only way to die", Minira said. " Dying peacefully was still mourned, but to die in battle was something they honored".
" Interesting", Discord said through a mouth of popcorn. " But how did they beat old Anarc?".
Minira grew stern as she brought them to the Makti's bedroom. A white mist soon followed Minira's appearance. The Makti sensed her presence through his memories, and he stood at attention. His defensive stance hastily changed to a bow of respect.
" To what do I owe Minira herself my presence", he said in the Loki'irian language. Again, Minira translated their speech.
Minira's past self brought him to his feet. " I am here for an offer", she said. " There looks to be no end to the Arthanian horde".
" With time we can cleanse them of existence", the past Reku'un said. " With the power of my father's at my hands they will lay beneath us, along with that demon lord".
Minira admired his courage, now and then. " It is a noble notion, but a foolish one as well. There is only one way the universe can finally be rid of this disease. We must end Drepshol's existence to end the Arthanians".
Reku'un raised a brow. " I'm sorry my lady, but that is not something even I as Makti could accomplish", he sighed. " How would we do such a thing?".
" By fighting discord, with harmony".
Everypony in the room leaned closer. " What do you mean?", he questioned.
Minira summoned all of his greatest accomplishments. " You are a very rare warrior, Reku'un Alamonshuor. Not only do you possess cunning skill as a tacticianist and swordsman, and the bravery of your fathers. But you also possess kindness, laughter as I have seen you do often. You are generous to those around you, honest to a fault, loyal to your world and to me. And I see you have mastered your energy output".
Reku'un nodded, smiling some but not too much to sell it as arrogance. " Thank you, but what does it mean?", he asked.
" These are the very traits that, combined with your power, could defeat Drepshol once and for all", she explained. " But it would come at a cost".
Reku'un lost his smile immediately. " What sort of cost?", he questioned.
" In order for this to succeed, I must use every last drop of energy your body can produce", she said. " Without the Ashla of course. And for this to be done, your body will be destroyed".
Reku'un nodded as he sat down. Even in the presence of his goddess he still needed to make sure what he was doing was right. On one hand, he could sacrifice himself and help end this war sooner than expected. On the other, he would die, never see his family or friends again.
But as Makti, the universe came first. " If it means ending this war for my childrens children, let it be done", he said. " But on one condition".
" Name it".
" Before my body becomes nothing but a memory, transfer the Ashla to my boy", he said. " Make sure he grows to show our generations what I have taught him".
" It will be done, but only on the day of the black sun", Minira told him. Reku'un nodded and bowed once more before she left, and he slept with his wife.
She skipped ahead to the day Reku'un had prepared for. He was charging straight at a horde of soldiers on his Nera'ak Dubofil, a wingless one. His target was not in the horde, instead behind them watching from a rock. He and Dubofil bashed through and fought their way to the other side. Minira used her powers to clear a path for him, killing the Arthanians as they went. Drepshol soon charged forward himself, hitting Minira to the planet below.
The two gods fought, causing tidal waves to form near the seashores and earthquakes to rumble the planet. Reku'un kept his distance, until Minira made her move. The gods wrestled and used their godly powers to wound the other. They were evenly matched, but Reku'un changed all of that. Ad the sun was eclipsed by the moon, Minira turned his body into pure energy, sending a black beam back to Loki'ir to enter his son. Reku'un smiled as he became a white blob of energy. That energy tool form, until it was a necklace of six gems.
" The Elements?!", they all shouted in unison.
Minira, past and present, smiled as a rainbow surged from out of the jewelry. Unlike now however, the soul of Reku'un roared as he charged forward for one last strike. Drepshol yelled as the power of harmony engulfed him along with Reku'un's energy. At last, Drepshol was erased from the galaxies, but not the Arthanians.
" So...he gave his life...to create the Elements of Harmony", Twilight recapped. " So...the Elements were him?".
" Yes. That is why it didn't work on our Reku'un", Minira said. " The Elements were meant to cleanse evil spirits, and just like his ancestor, Reku'un is pure good. The blast did replenish his energy, but it also weakened him to the Ashla's influence".
Now that they knew what the Loki'irians were, that only left one thing left untouched. " So...what about Tony?", Shining asked. " How does he fit into all this?".
Minira's ears drooped slightly, and her eyes saddened. " His story is a long and hard one, but you must know".