//------------------------------// // Accretion // Story: A Debt to the Stars // by Sereg //------------------------------// Chapter 4: Accretion     Discord popped into existence with a “Fwoom!” in front of Tartarus’s gates. My brother and parents are gone. But you! You who made my early centuries a living Tartarus were supposed to have toodled off the mortal-coil ages ago! You were the one who pointed me down the path that got me stuck in stone for one and a half thousand years! And now you dare come back into my life!? When I finally have things to care about?! No! I don’t think so! I will have my fun doing what I wanted to do to you for so long and then, hopefully, I can return to the new life Fluttershy gave me.   “It’s Discord!” Solemn shouted over her shoulder at her friends. “Hide!” She waved a wing in a firm gesture as she ran towards the gates.   “I won’t leave you!” protested First as he ran towards her.   Star slowly backed away, wide-eyed and open-jawed.   Morning Star smiled and slowly walked forward. “Discord! There you are! You’ve grown up. I see that you’re not much of a godling any more.”   “Of course,” said Discord as he magically dressed himself in a golf shirt and hat.“I haven’t seen you in FOUR!” Discord pulled out an enormous golf club and swung it. It knocked Morning Star’s head off and over the horizon. Discord lifted his paw to shield his eyes as he watched it soar. “... hundred thousand years,” Discord finished. “I’m sorry, Morning Star. It seems that you are no longer up to par.”   Behind him, the stump of Morning Star’s neck glowed green and purple as it sprouted another head. “You didn’t think it would be that easy, did you?” Morning Star asked.   Discord slowly turned back towards Morning Star as he pulled out a corkscrew, a mallet and a circular saw, each larger than he was.  “I should’ve expected that, but being difficult will make it more fun!” He looked back at Morning Star and swung the saw under his torso, cutting off his legs. He then rammed the corkscrew through his body and into the ground, turning it twice to be sure.   Morning Star winced and looked up in time to see that his entire body was about to be crushed by a giant mallet. His eyes widened and he raised a shield as he teleported his crystal into Star Swirl’s hat. The shield shattered as the mallet smashed him, the landscape shuddering both then and upon the next two impacts. Discord lifted the mallet and peered down into the large crater at the crushed alicorn. He glowed purple and green as he re-inflated and reattached his legs. Had Discord been looking at it, he would have seen that Star Swirl’s hat was glowing the same colours. “Oof! You seem different somehow, Discord,” groaned Morning Star.   “Yes,” said Discord. “Now I can get through your shields.” He made a chopping motion with his paw and talon and a beam of electricity fell from the sky, melting the bottom of the crater and scorching its sides.   “Ooh, kinky!” said the charred, pony-shaped mass of flesh at the bottom of the crater. His skin and coat grew back with the green and purple glow and he flew into the air. “That’s another advantage being dead has given me. I just have to worry about the sting. But I meant something inside you.”   “I suppose what’s inside is what counts, rather than the wrapping,” said Discord as he snapped his fingers. Brightly-coloured chains appeared in midair and wrapped around Morning, dropping him to the ground. They grew large spikes, impaling him. He was covered in wrapping paper and a large ribbon tied in a big bow. A card that said,  “Dear Pluto, Happy Random Events Day. From, Discord”  attached itself. Morning Star opened his wings, tearing the chains and package apart as the holes in his flesh repaired themselves. “Bondage, Discord? Interesting. But yes, if only I could work out what that change was.” He narrowed his eyes and stared at Discord’s chest.   Discord clapped and the ground folded up, transformed into metal, grew teeth and slammed together, crushing Morning.   Morning’s hoof punched through the metal and he tore it apart as he climbed out. “Thank you,” he said as his horn began to glow and the metal twisted. “Some excellent material for my next sculpture.” The metal reshaped into a likeness of Morning Star. “But there is something new inside of you.” His eyes began to glow.   “I’ve had a few hundred millennia to practice my creativity,” said Discord who had sprouted a moustache, was wearing a beret and carried an easel. He snapped his fingers and a giant sea urchin erupted from the ground, impaling Morning. Discord grew a pair of giant, red crab pincers and said, “Ah! Under the sea! It really is better!” He snapped Morning’s body in half and the urchin spread its spines, tearing him apart.   Once again, the pieces flew back together and reattached. “Ow. Or is it someone? As fun as this S and M play is, Discord, not that I thought you’d be the type, I do want to figure this out.”   A giant ball of blue fire appeared above Discord’s paw while another appeared above his talon. “You really are the best type of toy, Morning. Every time I break you, you come back for more. Maybe I’ll even get to try out the really fun stuff.” He slammed them into Morning from either side. When the smoke cleared, the ash reassembled itself in purple and green magic once more.   “Fire, Discord? Against the avatar of the hottest, in more ways than one, planet? Though congratulations on making the temperature too high even for me,” Morning grinned. “There it is.”   Discord rotated his body to give himself more room to swing.   “Please don’t hurt me, Discord!” squealed Fluttershy.   Discord froze and the giant shark with teeth made of chainsaws that he was about to drop on her disappeared. “What are you doing here, Fluttershy?” he asked, lowering his arms as a voice in his mind screaming, “Fluttershy’s not here! He’s tricking you!” softened.   “Oh, well, I was hoping that a big, strong draconequus like yourself could help me, Discord.”   Discord puffed up, swelling his chest. “Of course, I could help you! I’m Discord! But remember that I’m a free spirit.” He waved a claw in emphasis. Then he winced, grabbed his head and scrunched his eyes shut. “No! I’m not going to--!”   “What’s the matter, Discord” asked Fluttershy. “Didn’t you realise that I would be here, with you? That I’d come to you when I needed you? You wanted us to spend more time together, didn’t you?”   “Right!” said Discord as he straightened up again. “But ... I’ve ... got things to do, fun to have, pranks to play, Princesses to annoy just enough to be satisfying while still not crossing the line into making them think I’m a threat. What do you want? I’ll decide if it’s worth my time.”   “Oh, but it is worth it, Discord.” Fluttershy smiled. “What could be more worth it than becoming my willing slave. You know you want to. If we are going to spend time together, it makes sense that a powerful draconequus like yourself would do things for me, right?”   “Oh, of course.” Discord nodded. “That makes sense.” He frowned. “But what doesn’t make sense is—“   “Since when have our emotions made sense, Discord?” asked Fluttershy. “You are one who would appreciate that. So, stop worrying about how we got together and simply do your duty. After all, you know that you don't actually deserve to be loved. So, why try to make sense of the fact that you love me and that I am willing to accept your love? Just do some errands for me. It's the very least you can do to show your devotion to me. If you don't cater to my whims, well, how could I possibly continue to be your friend? You understand that, right?”   First, Star and Solemn turned towards each other and each raised an eyebrow.   “Why is Discord talking to Morning Star as if he’s somepony else?” First whispered.   Star shrugged and they went back to watching.  “I suppose that I should do some stuff for you if we’re friends, Fluttershy,” Discord said to Morning Star, “but I don’t want to feel like I’m just your serv—“   “How could you be happier being anything else?” asked Morning Star. “You would get to serve me, the greatest thing that has ever happened to you. And you know that I deserve the best and the greatest honour you could achieve is to simply serve me. You know that this is true. After all, this is the only way you could ever have anything close to a meaningful relationship. So just do everything I ask and enjoy my attention.”   Discord’s stare became progressively more blank and he began to nod. “Of course, Fluttershy. How could I possibly suggest that you were anything less than the best thing that has ever happened to me. I’ll do whatever it takes to make it up to you. Tell me what it is you want. Whatever it is, I’ll give it to you!” “Thank you, Discord. I’ve decided that I want to live in the palace. Please kick the alicorns out for me.”   “Of course,” said Discord, bowing. “Naturally, it should belong to you, Fluttershy. I’ll do it right away.” He disappeared in a flash of light.   “Ah, Discord,” said Morning Star. “You still haven’t learned that real power isn’t the ability to turn someone into a chicken, but the ability to make someone else do that for you. And growing a heart has just made it easier to make you mine. Its inexperience just makes it more vulnerable. A pleasant surprise to actually find someone in your heart. Still, we should learn more about this ‘Fluttershy’ character. At least what they look like if we are to maintain the illusion. Let’s see, Fluttershy!”   His mind was suddenly filled with voices. “Let’s hear it for Fluttershy!” “Fluttershy can really fly!” “Well played, Fluttershy ... Well Played.” “Cutie Mark Crusaders! Sleepover at Fluttershy’s! Yay!”   Morning shoved his hooves into his ears. “Ouch. That wasn’t pleasant. I don’t think I’ll try that with her again, but at least I know she can apparently fly.” He scowled. “In any event, it’s always nice to have a pet draconequus. COME! Let’s not keep him waiting! Our palace awaits!” Solemn, Star and First lifted into the air and the four ponies flew off at high speed.   (/)   Discord reappeared in the armoury with a pop.  “This palace belongs to Fluttershy now,” he said as he glared at the other occupants.   Pluto and Luna looked at each other with wide-eyed expressions and back at Discord, tilting their heads and raising their eyebrows before saying, “Wait, what?”   Discord curled his fingers into fists as his scowl deepened and the two alicorns lifted into the air and wriggled, trying to free themselves from Discord’s magic while their eyes bulged. “Leave!” Discord ordered as he pointed viciously.   The ponies flew backwards through the walls as if they were made of air. They spread their wings and began to hover. Pluto flew forward and touched her hoof against a barrier. “Great!’ she said as her face fell. “What is going to go wrong next?!”   (/)   The royal couple was sleeping when the crystal guard knocked on the door of the royal bedchamber.   “I’m awake!” Shining Armor called out as he slowly got up.   Cadance wriggled among the sheets with her eyes closed and groaned. Shining placed a hoof on her back. “Come on, Cadance. We’re needed.”   Cadance pushed her head further into her pillow and folded it over her ears.   “You can’t stay there forever,” Shining said.   “Why not?” mumbled Cadance as she squirmed some more to get deeper under her duvet. “I’m still really sleepy.”   There was another knock on the door.   “Just a minute!” Shining called to the door before turning back towards Cadance. “I didn’t think I tired you out that much last night. Come on. They’re waiting for you.” “Mmmf ... Do we have to get up, Shiny? The Sun isn’t up yet and I feel so ti-yaaah!” She jumped up from the bed and sat straight up, muscles tensed and jaw hanging open as she stared down at her body with bulging eyes. The comforting presence that had embraced her for almost two centuries was gone. The link to the source of her power had been severed. It had been replaced by a sudden feeling of distance and isolation. Where once there was power and potential, there was now a sense of helplessness. She was back to being the lost orphan, abandoned and alone in the woods. Gone was her ability to exert influence over an entire concept. She had returned to the impotent and fragile state she had been born into.   “Cadance! What is it!?” Shining asked as he crawled over to her.   “I can’t feel Venus!” She jerked her head from side to side, trying to get a better view of her body. “I feel ... weaker. Weaker than I’ve felt in dec-“     Shining threw his arms around her and whispered into her ear, “Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it. I’m here for you. You don’t have to face this alone.”   Cadance relaxed slightly and slowly nodded as she scrunched up her eyes. She hugged him back and nuzzled her face into his shoulder. “Thank you, Shiny.”   Shining Armor frowned as he looked down at her flank. “Cadance, I don’t want you to worry any more, but there’s something wrong with your cutie mark,” he said.   Cadance sprang away from him and twisted to look at her flank. “My cutie mark!”  She leaned back in horror as she saw the grey image on her flank. “What happened to it!?”   “Cadance! It’s Celestia! Let me in! I need to speak to you!”   The door glowed blue and opened with an “Umph!” from Cadance. “Auntie Celestia! What’s happening to me!?” she cried. Her eyes were wide and reddened. Celestia was forcibly reminded of her niece’s first few days as a confused alicorn filly. She had been just a foal who had suddenly had a whole heap of power an responsibility that she did not understand thrust upon her. She had been drastically transformed on a physical level and even more so on the metaphysical level. She had had to struggle to control powers beyond what she had ever imagined and wrestle with concepts most adult ponies had never considered. A pegasus foal who had barely any experience with her own tribe’s magic was now expected to exert dominion over one of the most powerful forces known to ponies. Having one’s life change so drastically and without preparation was devastating. Yet here it was happening again and in reverse. Celestia closed her eyes and winced.   “I’m afraid that your position on the Cosmic Council has been usurped, Cadance,” she said. “I will make sure that you get it back.”   “Usurped?” asked Cadance. “Is that even possible?”   “Not normally,” replied Celestia. “A seat is normally only passed on after death. But it seems that a former holder of your seat has decided to reassert his ownership of it, despite being dead. Cadance, listen to me. The world is in danger. It needs you. I need you to understand. Leave the Crystal Heart barrier up. Do not take it down for any reason. Anypony who can’t cross the barrier must be left outside. Shining, I need you to explain this to your guards as well.”   Shining bit his lip and nodded. “I understand, your Highness. But please! Tell me! Will Cadance be all right?!” His eyes darted to Cadance and back.   Celestia faced Cadance again. “You won’t be pulling off the feats of magic you are used to and you won’t be able to talk to Eros, but other than that, you will be fine. Just be careful.”   “Who is this usurper?” asked Cadance.   “His name is Morning Star,”said Celestia. “Remember that I mentioned an alicorn of Venus that didn’t love others? That was him. He was the alicorn of hedonism, temptation and self-worship. He lived long before my time, but Luna and I were told stories about his horrors.” “Could I take back my link to Venus?” asked Cadance as she gazed up into Celestia’s eyes and bit her lip.   Celestia closed her eyes. “I do not think so. Not by yourself. Morning Star is far beyond your power. It is how he could usurp you in the first place, but I promise that I will get it back to you.”   A pair of letters appeared in midair and began dictating in Discord’s voice. After finishing, they fell to the floor.   “That’s good news, right?” asked Shining. “If Discord’s fighting him, he’ll beat him easily, right?”   Celestia bit her lip. “I hope so. Morning Star beat Havoc and Entropy though. I do not think that just being stronger than him will be enough. I suppose that we will find out shortly.” “Havoc and Entropy?” asked Shining, raising his eyebrows. “Who are they?”   “They were Discord’s parents,” said Celestia. “They were powerful even by his standards. And of course they were a couple rather than a single individual. Havoc was the draconequus of mass hysteria and Entropy was the draconequus of endings. Each of them had far more magical power than they would need to beat Morning Star in a fight.”   “Then how did they lose?” asked Shining as he tilted his head. “Raw power isn’t everything, but it does help. Did he use better strategy or did he have some other advantage?”   Celestia sighed and closed her eyes as she lowered her head. “Morning Star is powerful by alicorn standards, but that is not what truly made him so effective at getting what he wanted. It was mainly using his looks and the magic that he was particularly talented with to manipulate others. He was able to make everyone around him believe that they did not want to harm or disobey him as long as he was in their presence.”   “And when they left?” asked Shining.   “Then they would typically realise what had happened, but returning to his presence would mean that he could just start the spells all over again. It was a long time before Tartarus, the draconequus of punishment and reward, was able to get around the problem and that required a lot of preparation.”   “So, do you think that Discord can do it?” asked Shining.   “I think that Discord is unpredictable,” said Celestia. “He has the power and who knows what he will do next, but he is also rushing in against an enemy that requires careful planning to defeat. We will have to wait and see. If Discord fails, I will ask Twilight and her friends to use the Elements of Harmony. Morning Star died before the Elements were created. He should have no concept of such powerful objects. They provide enough protective magic that Morning Star’s normal strategies should be far less effective than normal. Similarly, I want the Crystal Heart activated and shielding the Empire. I don’t want him getting in here and controlling Equestria even more easily. Shining, could you please start the Crystal Fair while I continue planning with Cadance?”   Shining saluted. “On it, Princess!” He charged out of the room.   Celestia turned back towards Cadance. “I do not yet know what I will write, but may I use some of your ink and parchment to write a letter to Twilight once we know the results of Discord’s attempt?”   “Of course you could!” Cadance nodded and levitated the ink and parchment out of her drawers and onto a desk.   They waited, Cadance awkwardly shifting hooves and occasionally touching her chin. A dark cloud rolled in through the window and shifted until it formed the image of Luna. “I assume that you know some of the bad news, Sister,” she said.   Celestia nodded. “The Four have returned and released Morning Star.”   Luna’s eyebrow rose. “Yes. Plutonia told me about Morning Star and that ‘The Four’ were with him.”   “We also received a letter from Discord,” Celestia added.   Luna nodded. “He was with us when he wrote it. He came back very quickly, claimed the palace on behalf of Fluttershy and kicked me and Plutonia out. I have my doubts that he’s acting on Fluttershy’s orders.”   “So Morning Star got to him.” Celestia sighed. “I think we should take this opportunity to move the Sun and Moon and then meet at Ponyville to ask for help from Twilight and her friends.”   “Agreed.” Luna bowed her head and her image dissipated.   Celestia raised the Sun to the position it should have occupied at that ttime, turned towards her previously prepared desk and wrote a letter.   “My Dearest Twilight,   I am afraid that the world needs the Elements of Harmony once again. Please collect your friends and meet me, Luna and Plutonia in Golden Oaks Library. There is much to explain.   Your teacher,   Princess Celestia”   Celestia paused and then added, “PS. Bring Star Swirl. She should hear this.”   (/)   Morning Star, Solemn, First and Star landed at the entrance of the palace. The guards bowed their heads. “Good morning, Princess,” said the one on their left. Morning cocked an eyebrow at that, but smirked and walked through the door as Solemn and First followed. Star hesitated.   “Ah, yes! Your kind can’t barge in uninvited! Pity that more ponies aren’t like that!” said Morning with a grin. “You have permission to enter!” With that, Star crossed the threshold. The sky began to lighten and the clouds in the distance started to glow pink. The Sun peaked over the horizon and rapidly ascended.   “Star! Get out of here!” cried First.   Star’s face contorted in terror and he transformed into a swarm of bats which flew towards the stairs. Three were caught by the Sun’s rays and caught flame, screaming as they disintegrated. The rest flew down the stairs into the shadowy depths of the palace.   “Well,” said Morning. “That’s inconvenient. Looks like we may have to grant your desire for eternal darkness a bit sooner than we thought! But no matter.”   “Go look after Star,” Solemn told First. “I’ll find Right.”   (/)   Celestia teleported to just outside the library. Another two flashes of light heralded the arrival of Luna and Pluto.   “Why do we have to go to them for help?” asked Pluto. “Can I not simply get some decent weapons and do my job in peace?”   “Plutonia, Morning Star defeated Discord,” said Celestia. “Do you really believe that you will stand a better chance?”   “I have an advantage,” said Pluto as she raised a hoof to her chest. “I know that colts have cooties!”   Luna raised an eyebrow. “You deal with the dead all day.”   “But cooties are icky.”   “Morning Star is not limited to using that kind of relationship anyway,” said Celestia. “Morning Star needs to be stopped and we are not going to let pride get in the way.” She lifted a hoof and knocked on the door. A red glow enveloped the door, which opened to reveal the presence of Star Swirl the Truthseeker and Twilight Sparkle.   “Princess Celestia!” said Twilight. “Please, come in. Star Swirl’s already here.”   “Thank you, Twilight,” said Celestia. She led Luna and Pluto through the door.   Star Swirl bowed, letting her muzzle touch the floor. “Good morning, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna and Plutonia. It’s such an honour to work with you and the Bearers of Harmony.”   “Thank you, Star Swirl,” said Celestia. She turned to face Twilight. “I take it that this means you got my letter?”   “Yes, Princess,” said Twilight. “Star Swirl and Rainbow Dash were already here because they wanted to know why the Sun wasn’t up yet. Rainbow left to fetch the others right away. They’ll be here soon.”   “Good,” said Celestia. “We cannot delay.” “Rainbow is fast,” said Twilight. “And Ponyville is small. I told her to get them here as fast as possible. They should—“ There was a knock on the door. “And that must be them!” said Twilght. The door opened under Twilight’s telekinetic power and the other Bearers of Harmony walked, or flew in one case, in.   “What is it you need us for, Princess?” asked Rainbow. “We’re ready to kick rump!”   “Yes. We’ll be happy to extend our services again, Princess,” added Rarity.   “Oooh! Plutonia’s never been here before!” said Pinkie. “Can we throw her a ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party?”   “Thank you for the offer, Pinkie. Perhaps when we are less busy, she could take you up on that offer,” said Celestia with a nod. “But  I think that we should get straight to business. Once again, Equestria is in danger. However, Plutonia and Luna know a bit more than I do about the nature of this threat, so they will be able to give you more detail about what those involved are like now. Pluto wanted to deal with the problem herself, but I believe that we need the Elements of Harmony for this kind of threat.”   “Of course I want to deal with it myself!” said Pluto as she placed a hoof against her chest and scowled. “These are abominations against nature, and more importantly, my reputation! What will happen when it gets out that not only did The Four beat me in a fight, I let them break out the first being to escape from Tartarus and it was Morning Star himself!?”   Luna shook her head. “You keep speaking about ‘The Four’. Who are they?”   Celestia and Pluto froze and slowly turned to face Luna.   “Do you not remember your time as Nightmare Moon?” asked Pluto.   Luna’s expression darkened. “Not well. I lost control once I agreed to let the Nightmare share my body. It had agreed to make me powerful enough to defy my sister and to begin a reign of Eternal Night, but I couldn’t comprehend much after that. I can remember more with effort. I felt the need when learning to speak Modern Equestrian like I could when I first arrived back in Equestria.” She winced. “Naturally, I don’t put in much effort to remember more.”   Celestia closed her eyes and sighed. “All right. Come to think of it, we only started calling them that after your time anyway. I will tell all of you all about them, though it should become obvious to Luna very quickly who I am talking about.”   She turned to face Star Swirl. “Star Swirl the Truthseeker, you have spent a large portion of your life learning about your ancestors. Am I correct?”   “Yes, Princess Celestia.” Star Swirl nodded slowly.   “What can you tell me about Star Swirl the Twenty Fifth?”   Star Swirl’s eyes widened and she bit her lip. “Um ... The Twenty Fifth? ... er ... He was the father of Star Swirl the Twenty Sixth and the son of Star Swirl the Twenty Fourth.”   “Yes,” said Celestia. “That part was naturally difficult to cover up.”   “Cover up?” asked Luna.   “Yes,” said Celestia. “She turned to face Twilight. “As you know, Luna and I used to bear Elements of Harmony ourselves. However, how many Elements of Harmony are there?”   “Six,” said Twilight. “So ... There were another four Bearers of Harmony?”   “In the original set of Bearers, yes,” replied Celestia.   “Having friends like them allowed us to believe that we could survive Discord’s reign for a bit longer. Right Hoof was originally assigned to us as a bodyguard, but we soon saw each other as more than guard and charges.   “Doctor First Aid left the Crystal Empire against Queen Diamante’s orders as he could not bear to see Equestria’s suffering through the barrier without doing anything about it. He crossed Equestria, tending to those who needed it most, but when he met us he decided to stay. He said that he felt that he did more good when we were together.   “Solemn Counsel and Star Swirl the Twenty Fifth were two of our tutors. We became very close to them, and they all became very close to each other as well.   “Then Solemn found a note in the old records suggesting that Star Swirl the Bearded and his associates had tried to recreate the Fire of Friendship and store it in artifacts of rock. They split it in six to try and maintain stability. But one of the artifacts was lost before they had finished and Discord took the tower before another attempt could be made.   “Luna and I had been too young to understand what they had been trying, but Solemn confirmed with our parents that the event had occurred and with Star that the artifacts might have still been of use.   “We went together because we refused to let one of us remain without protection from the others. We arrived at the ruins and found five stone orbs which did not react to the chaos all around us. They were marked with the symbols for Loyalty, Laughter, Kindness, Generosity and Honesty.   “Star described what happened next as a spark. The sixth orb appeared in the air, the orbs shifted to become jewellery shaped like our cutie marks and they bonded to us. We suddenly knew that we had the power to defeat Discord. But when we returned, our parents still needed convincing.”   (/) The stone halls of the castle were bare of adornments. Through the windows and past the barriers, pieces of land floated across the orange sky while frogs rained up. An alicorn couple stared down at the group. The mare was white with a quill and ink bottle cutie mark. Her mane was a flowing pool of red ink. The stallion was blue with a mane of stormy waves. His cutie mark was a flat-bottomed flask filled with black liquid and marked with an X. A bubble emerged from the flask and a buttercup and a pink blossom grew from it.   The group before them included a Celestia who had the stretched, gangly look of adolescence and had a pink mane adorned with a crown embedded with a blue sun. Luna, whose legs were still short and stubby, was similarly crowned with a deep purple crescent moon. A white earth mare with an athletic build and a well-cropped, blue mane had a red spear crossed over a shield embedded in her barding. A blue unicorn stallion with a pink mane, skinny legs and a long horn was wearing a lighter purple five-pointed star in his hat. A stallion of purple crystal, deep blue eyes and a fiery red mane wore a lab coat and a saddlebag with a pink cross for a clasp. A dark grey pegasus with mane and tired eyes of a lighter grey wearing a golden bracelet adorned with an orange magnifying glass stepped forward, bowed, and said, “Princess Felt. Prince Cracken. Your daughters are special, your Highnesses. In a way unrelated to the fact that they are alicorns. Together, we can face Discord.”   “Solemn,” said Felt, “you have always given us good reason to trust you, but you are asking us to risk our own foals. Discord has reigned for centuries. Nothing anyone has tried has worked. Why do you think this time will be different?”   “This time we have the Elements of Harmony,” said Solemn. “We know that we can win.”   Cracken closed his eyes and shook his head. “The Elements of Harmony were a failure. Everything went wrong. We could not stabilise them. We tried everything. Not even the aid of Star Swirl the Bearded and Clover the Clever could help. And let me tell you, Star Swirl. Your ancestors were even more brilliant than you are. Any plan based on the Elements of Harmony is doomed to failure. There’s a reason that we didn’t want you to go to the tower in the first place.”   “No!” said Star Swirl. “You succeeded beyond your wildest dreams! I can feel the Elements’ power. It dwarfs even Discord’s! They just needed bearers, and here we are.”   Cracken shook his head. “Even if that’s true, you’re still asking us to sacrifice our daughters. No matter how powerful the weapon, all previous attempts to stop Discord have been folly.”   “Your Highness,” the earth mare said with a bow, “you know that I’d gladly give my life to protect your daughters.”   “We do,” replied Felt, frowning.   “But that will just mean the loss of three—“   “Six!” Felt insisted.   Cracken bowed his head in acknowledgement. “Six ponies instead of two.”   “Your Highnesses,” said Right, “if one of your daughters needed me, not even death would keep me from her side!”   “You have the enthusiasm, discipline and skill, Right,” said Felt, “but more powerful ponies than yourself have found themselves useless before Discord’s power.”   “We’ll make it work,” growled Right, her eyes narrowing.   “What about you, First,” asked Felt as she turned to face the crystal stallion. “Are you also determined to go through with this?”   First narrowed his eyes. “The world has suffered under Discord’s reign for too long. If I have to break the hippocratic oath to relieve its pain, then so be it. I’ve broken my oaths for what I believe is right before.”   (/)   “So they were the four other Bearers of Harmony that fought Discord with you?” asked Twilight.   “Yes,” replied Celestia. “They were honoured as heroes. We made Star Swirl the Grand High Court Archmage, a position which no longer exists. Right Hoof became the Captain of the Royal Guard and Equestria’s Commander. Solemn Counsel was our chief advisor. And we gave First Aid his own hospital. But despite all that, we lost all our friends to death. Then, a thousand years ago, I saw them again.”   Luna’s eyes widened in horror. “I remember!”   “Good,” said Pluto. “If you remember, you can tell us exactly what you did.”   Celestia shot a glare at her.   “What?” Pluto shrugged. “It will be useful information!”   “She’s right,” said Luna, “I’ll tell you what happened.”    “Ooooooh!” said Pinkie. “This sounds like it’ll be goooood! Spike! Could you pop some more popcorn for me?” She held up a bag of unpopped kernels.