//------------------------------//
// Harmony 
// Story: Upheaval: Breaking Point 
// by Visiden Visidane 
//------------------------------//

Upheaval: Breaking Point

Chapter 42: Harmony

In his office above the Grand Meeting Hall, Dreadstep was beginning to feel all his years of service catching up with him. Captain Vanguard Clash stood in front of his desk. It seemed that a lot of the major events during these days involved Third Squad's captain. From the look of things, that trend was going to continue. "Whatever these 'Elements of Harmony' are supposed to be, it is necessary to keep these chosen together," Dreadstep said. "They will be temporarily formed into their own squad. Given your history with them, I am assigning them to your command."

"Yes, sir," Vanguard replied. 

Dreadstep nodded. "Good. Dismissed."

For a pony so young, Vanguard took things in stride easily. He didn't even flinch when he left the office. Dreadstep rested his head on a hoof. How long ago was it when the precipice of a major battle excited him? These days, he was always fretting. Like somepony's grandfather fussing over trivial things, he was in his office worrying instead of waiting impatiently for some action.

He had served under the Legion's ageless leader ever since he was still a colt. Three times he had been stationed in a place which Prince Terrato commanded personally. Equestria's "Unyielding Gray Sentinel" seemed capricious at times, but he had always done what was best for Equestria's defense. If Prince Terrato decided to leave Bastion City to take care of an important matter, as Captain Vanguard Clash had reported earlier, then it must surely be for the best.

"The best", however, was a rather precarious situation at the moment. First, there was the sudden trade of royalty that Bastion City now harbored. Instead of fighting under Prince Terrato, the city now had to play refuge to a badly injured Princess Luna. Dreadstep seldom felt anything for the wolven save for disgust and contempt, but he now marveled at wolven honor.

All wolven possessed a heightened sense of smell. More so their king who had managed to pick up Princess Luna's scent from miles away. Given Fenrir's unabashed lust for Luna, it was nothing short of a miracle that he had not stormed the city in a whirlwind of frost and fangs. Restraint and honor were not things Dreadstep would have associated with a giant, one-eyed monster.

Wolven honor only got them so far, however. Wolven cunning meant that Fenrir would use every available loophole to his favor. That led to the strangest weapon in the wolven's arsenal: this so-called Nightmare Moon, and her host: Pyre Valor. Against her, Prince Terrato had left instructions that the Elements of Harmony be prepared to fight as a group. The Elements of Harmony happened to be the six chosen that Vanguard Clash had been tending to.

It all didn't sit in well with Dreadstep. "The Elements of Harmony" didn't quite give him the assurance that a few hundred reinforcing legionnaires did. What could six chosen ponies with less than a month of being in the Legion possibly do against a unicorn mage empowered by some spirit that the wolven practically worshiped?

A look into the records also proved far from reassuring. Out of all of them, Legionnaire Twilight Sparkle seemed the most promising. She was the constant talk among the unicorn mage captains for her quick rise in personal power, as well as her very frequent spars with her seniors. She was also known for not being very social, and for transforming from being a quiet, meek pony to a veritable spell-casting monster during spars. Dreadstep would have thought that Vanguard had found Pyre's twin: another very driven, very powerful pony who neither made, nor wanted any more friends beyond a small circle. 

Mage Captain Owlsight had recommended that Twilight be transferred to a Special Operations squad. Twilight Sparkle was too powerful to be shooting energy bolts in spell-fire lines, or participating in evocation arrays . She needed to be placed strategically. Vanguard insisted that Twilight needed more time. Dreadstep had agreed, but he wasn't quite convinced by Vanguard's assessment. He knew delaying tactics when he heard them.

Legionnaire Rainbow Dash was also another fast learner. Flight Captain Tailwind seldom saw potential among the Legion's pegasi recruits. The last time she did was with Scarlet Rabbit, who was still the Northern Legion's best flyer. He was inclined to believe that Rainbow would match that potential, perhaps even exceed it. She was currently out of action, however, having been whipped for disobeying orders in battle. He shook his head at that, but Scarlet was no stranger to the whip either.

There was also Legionnaire Applejack, the third of the chosen out in the front lines. Not as spectacular as her friends, but she was doing well. She was also out of action, having been gravely injured recently. It was for a good thing, though: saving her friend, as opposed to recklessness, and insubordination. How she was already moving about would remain a mystery. She may not show a great deal of potential like the other two, but she was more stable. Some stability should be a good thing for both the Legion, and these "Elements of Harmony".

Then, there were the other three. Legionnaire Fluttershy was a medic, albeit one who had survived Redbrand's scrutiny, and temper so far. That should mean something. Legionnaire Pinkie Pie was a cook, and Legionnaire Rarity was a smith's apprentice. Vital roles, but not exactly front line material. How did they all fit into fighting the monster that destroyed Fangbreaker's gates with impunity?	





Spike had been overjoyed when he heard that his friends were going to be gathered together as a unit. It had felt like a lifetime since they were together as a group. He could only imagine the sort of conversations that would fly about with so many experiences being thrown at them left and right: how everypony was getting along with the Legion, Applejack's strange encounter, Princess Luna's sudden arrival...so many things.

The reality did not even come close to living up to his expectations. Instead of a fond reunion, he got an awkward gathering of ponies. Everypony had their gear on, from Twilight and Rarity's mage-coats to Applejack's metal barding. Rarity even had a set of crystal-embedded blades circling lazily above her. Twilight had asked to try and hold one earlier. The blade shot out the moment the magic surrounding it went from white to purple, burying itself deeply into a wall just a few inches from Fluttershy's face. Spike sighed. They were told to stay together in their quarters, and expect an imminent attack. That seemed to be the only reason they were together, as opposed to being friends, and missing one another.

Twilight had her nose buried in yet another spell book when Spike approached her.

"Not now, Spike!" Twilight snapped when he tapped her shoulder. "I'm trying to get these spells down before Pyre Valor attacks!"

"Pyre who?" Spike asked.

"Pyre Valor! She--" Twilight lowered her voice. "I mean Nightmare Moon. Prince Terrato expects us to deal with Nightmare Moon if she tries to attack the city again." She looked around. "I don't know how we're going to do that. We don't even have the Elements of Harmony with us. The only thing we can do is improve on what we can use, and hope for the best." 

"Twilight, who's this Pyre Valor?" Spike asked.

"She's--" Twilight shook her head. She massaged her face briefly, as if that could stop the vicious scowl that kept showing up whenever she mentioned that name. "She's the pony that Nightmare Moon is possessing."

"Then we should try to free her," Spike said. "Just like you freed Princess Luna, right?"

"No!" Twilight snapped. When Spike fell back, she let out a long exhale. "She's different. Pyre Valor wants to do this. Nightmare Moon's just helping her. I mean, she tried to burn Vanguard up, then betrayed Fangbreaker Fortress. How many ponies are dead because of her?"

"Then what are you planning to do once you meet her again?" Spike asked. "Kill her?"

"I…well…I will," she said. Spike took an involuntary step back. "We'll drive out Nightmare Moon somehow. If Pyre Valor won't surrender then…I'll do it." She didn't even meet his gaze as she said so. For a moment, Spike thought about burning up those books she was reading. All these combat spells were affecting Twilight. It was just a couple of weeks ago when she would have angrily refused to kill anypony. 

Twilight went back to reading. Spike didn't dare to interrupt her again, so went over to Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, and Rarity. At least these four were glad to be together. Spike glanced towards another pony sitting by herself.

Rainbow sat as far away from Applejack as possible. She hadn't come back to their shared quarters ever since that horrible incident. Vanguard said earlier that she was staying in Flight Dreadwing's barracks. Her back was wrapped in bandages, and she refused to say anything when questioned about them. Whenever anypony approached to talk, she looked away, and mumbled her answers. After each giving it a try, everypony let her be. Perhaps, when her physical wounds healed, so would whatever was troubling her.

After a few minutes, Applejack suddenly turned towards Rainbow. "Darn it, Rainbow!" she yelled. "What in the hay is wrong with you?" Her barding jingled as she slammed her hooves against the wall by either side of Rainbow's head. "Look at me, darn it!"

Despite Applejack's face just a few inches away from hers, Rainbow looked down without so much as a shadow of resistance. "What do you want from me, Applejack?" she mumbled.

"I want you to talk to me! What happened to you?"

"Applejack, calm down!" Rarity said. Fluttershy, and Pinkie looked on worriedly.

Applejack's face twisted with emotion. She clearly didn't want this. Even Spike didn't want this. He would have preferred an angry, confrontational Rainbow than this husk of a pony. Applejack's outburst only served to completely shut Rainbow down. With a snort, she turned around. Spike could only look on helplessly. Just what would it take to get things right?

"I don't know how we're supposed to beat Nightmare Moon if she shows up," Applejack said once rejoined the others. "Even if we did have the Elements of Harmony with us, we're not in harmony at all!" She paused, as if hearing words that nopony else could.

"Applejack, are you alright?" Rarity asked.

Applejack snapped to attention, like a student caught napping by her teacher. "What? Oh, sorry. I was just thinking."

Rarity frowned. Next to her, Pinkie, and Fluttershy were having their own conversation. "Like I was saying, I'm quite surprised at how flexible metal can be. I just wish it didn't take so much heat, and pounding to shape it. Hammer Chain said I'm improving quickly and, if I keep up with my pace, he'd let me work with nightsteel soon!"

Applejack was only half listening. Her attention occasionally strayed towards Rainbow, and Twilight. "Nightsteel?" she asked absentmindedly. "What's that? Some hoity-toity version of normal steel?"

"Certainly not!" Rarity answered. "Nightsteel is a much stronger metal, superior to normal steel in every way. Naturally, it's much rarer, thus only used for exceptional sets of barding. You should be familiar with it, Applejack, Captain Clash wears his nightsteel full plate at all times."

"Oh, you mean that black metal barding!" Applejack said. "So that's what it's called. I'm gonna wear a set of my own one day! It's gotta be expensive, but how much are we talking about here?" 

"It's not just a matter of bits, Applejack," Rarity replied. "The Equestrian Legion controls the production of nightsteel. You need to have done something truly heroic if you want one." 

"So that means Vanguard did something heroic before," Applejack mused. "Not surprising there…"

Applejack's eyes glazed over. Some kind of a dazed smile curved her lips, and a touch of color showed around her cheeks.

"What was that?" Rarity asked suspiciously.

The glaze vanished quickly. "What was what?" Applejack asked.

"You had a funny look a moment ago, and...oh dear."

Applejack raised an eyebrow. "A funny look? What in tarnation are you talking about?"

Rarity glanced at Twilight. "Applejack, there are a lot of...complications among us, if you've noticed."

Applejack followed Rarity's glance. "Is that what you call it?" she asked in a low tone. "Problems is more like it."

Rarity nodded. "That being said, I don't think creating more is a good idea."

"Of course not!" Applejack scoffed. "Why would anypony think that making more problems is a good idea? I'm not dense, Rarity!"

Rarity stared blankly at Applejack for a second. "Nevermind," she said. "Perhaps, this one will go away on its own. I hope."

All the talking stopped when horns blew at a distance. Twilight slammed her book shut, and stood up. "We're under attack," she said.

For the first time since she came to this room, Rainbow perked up. There was no excited grin on her face, just a grim, determined look. This should be an improvement. It seemed that Rainbow was no longer delighted by the prospect of fighting and killing. Instead, she seemed worse off. Spike wondered if she would be the next one being dragged to the medical ward.

Vanguard and Scarlet entered the room. They were partly covered in snow. Past the doors, a blizzard was howling in force. "Let's move out," Vanguard said.

"Welcome to Special Operations, everypony!" Scarlet said. "This definitely calls for a party after this fight!"

"For the last time, Scarlet, they are not joining Special Operations!" Vanguard said.

Scarlet hovered next to Rainbow. "Speaking of celebrations, ready for another round tonight?" he asked. "We have to get some of the stronger stuff this time. That bottle of Storm Brew's Average Stuff barely made a dent on you!"

"Scarlet!" Rainbow hissed. "Not here!"

Applejack's scowl was back. "Is that what you've been doing these past three days? Drinking? Why--"

Vanguard put a hoof on Applejack's shoulder, and turned her towards the door. "Not now," he growled. "Get to the northern gates as a group. Scarlet, one more word, and I'm clapping you in irons."

Applejack shot Rainbow a look, silently telling her that they'll deal with this later.





As they made their way through the blizzard, Twilight ran at the forefront, a mixture of concern, and anticipation granting her speed that surprised her. This blizzard was strangely familiar, she had experienced this before. This was…

A paralyzing fear halted her in her tracks . Behind her, Fluttershy collapsed while the others stood frozen. "King Fenrir!" she managed to gasp. "He's…he's spreading that fear again!"

Vanguard took a labored step forward. "Damn!" he snarled. "We can't fight like this! We need the prince!" He took another step forward. "He's not even attacking directly! Cunning dog, he's beating our defense by just standing there!"

Panicked cries from up ahead told them that the rest of the Legion was experiencing the same problem. To make things worse, the howls of thousands of wolven joined the blizzard as the attack commenced.

'We've lost!' Twilight thought. 'The wolven will break through, and we won't even be able to put up a fight!' She tried desperately to push back the wrenching fear. Her heart pounded wildly, her insides wrestled with each other, and her legs trembled violently. Still, she managed to take another step. The effort alone was draining.

A melodious neigh broke through the cacophony of howls. The blizzard weakened, and the crushing fear receded. The others stood up, looked at each other in amazement, then searched for the source of that neigh. 

Princess Luna limped defiantly against the winds. Loose bandages flapped around her, and she was breathing heavily. None of those things detracted from the awe that she inspired. A crackling aura of dark magical energy surrounded her. "Fight on, Legion!" she cried out. "I will not let you fall while my brother is away!"

The nearby legionnaires shouted in unison, and pressed onward. The blizzard had not completely subsided, and a twinge of fear still remained. The legionnaires shouted not just to cheer on Princess Luna, but also to gather their own courage. She and her friends gave a shout of their own, and pressed on.





For Applejack, seeing and hearing Princess Luna's defiant neigh only hammered home the point. 'We can't lose now,' she thought. 'Everypony's been fighting so hard. There's just too much counting on us!' Their friendship itself was in danger, and they were about to be thrust into a fight that they were definitely not prepared for. Rainbow was injured, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie, had yet to get into a fight, while Twilight was acting very strangely. Somehow, she had to protect all of them. Even without the Elements of Harmony.

"Harmonia Intus."

'I know, your majesty!' Applejack thought. 'How's that going to help? She said she was going to give me a gift, but what was it? What should I do?'

They came to the northern gates at last. Bolts and spells flew from the walls while the air was filled with both snarls and neighs.

A wave of flames engulfed a section of the ramparts to the left of the gates . Applejack winced at the agonized cries that followed. A blazing pony teetered from the edge, and fell into a smoldering heap at the bottom of the wall. The figure of a pony emerge from the blast. 

"She's here," Twilight said. She was also looking at the figure. Applejack strained to hear the words. 

"Pyre Valor."





Nightmare Moon laughed while bolts flew at her. She incinerated them before they even got close. "Thank you for making things easy, Princess Luna! But Fenrir insists that we destroy everything, before we drag you to him!"

A torrent of white hot flame sped towards Nightmare Moon. Though a little surprised at the boldness of the attack, she remained on guard, and matched it with her flame. She snarled at the sight of the caster. "Twilight Sparkle again. What a pest that mare is!" Pyre Valor's presence rose up within her. Not this again. What was it with Twilight Sparkle that infuriated her host so much? 'You will stay out of this one, Pyre Valor. I will deal with Twilight Sparkle myself!'

'You can try, Nightmare Moon,' Pyre Valor replied. 'Kill the rest, but I know that I will have to be the one to crush that arrogant mare myself!'

"We shall see."

Nightmare Moon adorned herself with a wreath of black flames, and jumped towards her foes.