The last rays of sunset slowly faded from the marble pillars of the Canterlot throne room. The greatest sources of warmth to be found came from flickering torches firmly ensconced along each stony support. Around the oval table sat all but one of the foreign delegates who had arrived for the disastrous war council. Chieftain Maunageera had left by the fastest pegasus-carriage available along with a flight of rescue workers, a gift from the Princesses to provide expeditious aid for surviving zebra tribes. A thickness lathered their throats and weighed upon the stomach of each dignitary. It was a strong gravity that drew their eyes downward and bent their backs, keeping silent the thoughts that though left unspoken were shared by all.
They had all stayed this extra night for the very obvious reason that their previous stances would need to be revised, and the consequences of their actions weightily considered. It was obvious that concern had not been Chieftain Maunageera's only motive for a hastened withdrawal. One of Equestria's oldest allies had been struck down before it even had a chance. Even if they had wanted to, there would be no organized Zebra participation in this war now.
This was the most worrying fact they all faced. Who would be next? Would they be any safer pledging allegiance to Equestria in their war than if they just remained neutral? After all, the Princesses had flown off to address a sudden attack from within their borders. If they could not defend themselves even after a full year of preparation it would mean a terrible risk for the ally, and for what good?
These thoughts were briefly stymied with the arrival of a powerful flash of light. As it dimmed, six figures appeared from the teleport. Standing tall were Princess Luna and Princess Celestia herself, and beside them stood a cyan pegasus with her left wing missing, a demure yellow pegasus, and two earth ponies. "Thank you all for staying the extra night to attend the revised war council. Your courage and your willingness to listen our proposal even after all that has transpired is something for which Equestria is eternally grateful for. We have brought back with us the four remaining bearers of the Elements of Harmony, for it is important that they hear what I have to say tonight as well."
"Four? Forgive me if I am mistaken your highness, but should not that number be five instead?" Interrupted the Duke of Maretonia. He quickly realized the answer, and his mistake, from the pained sadness in each of the four ponies' eyes.
Gentle and soft, Celestia responded quietly. "She died rescuing two others from certain destruction, and she indirectly saved many more by keeping the Queen's attention centered on herself rather than the rest of the village while we reacted to Spike's letter. May she rest in peace."
Luna stepped forward now to take control of the meeting. "As all of you may already be aware, the Crystal Empire struck both the village of Ponyville and the great grasslands of the Zebra Nomads. They attacked hard, and fast, and without any warning. From Ponyville and the scout reports from the rescue team sent with Chieftan Maunageera we've concluded they are using a method of transportation previously thought impossible by all except the most accomplished masters of dark magic. While a majority of Ponyville's crops were burned and destroyed, several tons of food were harvested first. At the center of the harvested crops was found a large crystal monolith, darker than obsidian. It has been destroyed, and several samples sent to our science division to analyze. Reports from the Zebra capitol confirm the existence of a similar crystal structure. A surviving eye-witness described two pillars of crystal erupted from the ground with the sound of breaking glass, curving together to form a gigantic archway from which King Sombra and his army poured through."
A low murmur spread through the gathered delegates, this news only serving to confirm their fears. Choosing to ignore it, Luna pressed on. "While we do not know how this feat was accomplished at this time, rest assured the most brilliant minds in Equestria are investigating it at this very moment. That being said, for the safety of our populace Equestria will be declaring martial law. All civilian towns and cities shall henceforth host a military base of operations for the proper training and protection of our citizens. With the expanse of our railway systems and the new steam technology allowing for fast and safe mass transport, Equestria can be ready for an attack from anywhere in the country and quickly be able to gather the full strength of our armed forces from all corners of the land if need be. We recommend a similar course of action for any of you who are willing to join us as allies."
"But before that decision is made" Said Celestia ominously, "you must first understand the full truth of what we are facing." She paused a moment to make sure she had everpony's attention, then took a deep breath and began her explanation.
"In our brief encounter with Twilight Sparkle last night, Princess Luna and myself were able to confirm our worst fear. It was long known to us that King Sombra was the avatar of Wrath, ever since before our battle with him more than a thousand years ago. In the fight last night however it became apparent that Twilight is also an avatar, most likely that of Despair. We knew Princess Cadence to be the avatar of Hope, so as the avatar of Despair it would make sense that Twilight's first priority was to kill her natural opposite."
"Vat exactly are you zaying Zelestia?" came the gruff growl from King Alderlöwe. "You zay many time zis 'avatar', but ve have yet to hear vhat exactly it is you mean."
Nodding in polite acknowledgement of the gryphon King's interruption, Celestia continued. "Worry not good king, I was just about to explain. You see, an avatar is a living creature that carries the power of a greater cosmic force. They can be thought of as similar to the Elements of Harmony, as both an avatar and an Element are tied to a celestial power. They should not be confused however, as an Element is just a piece of the entity it represents, bearable only by those that represent that entity in its entirety. Avatars however have access to the entire power of the cosmic entity and can appear inside of anypony. In our battle with Twilight my sister and I made sure to lock the area in with an ant-teleportation spell before we began. Unfortunately she managed to escape with a massive surge of power and a shift in her magical signature. This first confirmed that she was indeed an avatar, and secondly revealed a far more dangerous fact."
"Twilight is learning to siphon the power of Despair without needing to channel the avatar state." Everypony in the room jumped a little at Princess Luna's voice, colder than steel and foreboding as a ghostly breeze. "An avatar is as Celestia said, simply a host for the greater force which can be called upon and channeled in what is called the avatar state. This temporarily alters the avatar's physical appearance, and exponentially increases their power, but it has the severe cost of merging the avatar's consciousness with that of the force they represent. In effect, you give up your own body to become something, and somepony else. A prime example of this is Discord, once the avatar of Chaos, and now completely incapable of reverting to his original form. Indeed he's even forgotten of his existence from before being Discord. If Twilight can use even a portion of that power without suffering the side affects of channeling the avatar state, then she is an even greater force to be reckoned with. If we are to presume that Sombra has accomplished the same, then as it stands the Crystal Empire has two powerful avatars to Equestria's three."
The room fell silent in shock at the Princesses' final declaration. Realizing that her sister had failed to notice the looks of surprise and confusion on their guest's faces, Celestia gave a quiet cough for attention and elaborated for her. "One of the three is obviously Discord, whom we have Fluttershy here to thank for helping turn him to the side of friendship several years ago. The other two that my sister is referring to are the two of us. Respectively, we are the avatars of Night and Day. Furthermore, while others become avatars through their actions and intentions throughout their lifetime, my sister and I were born into this world as avatars. It is because of this that we were born as immortal alicorns rather than any mortal species. Lastly, know that there are two levels of power that we know of, that of the forces of creation and those that were born from the collected consciousness of life as it bloomed into existence. As Day and Night my sister and I fall into the higher category with Discord, while Wrath and Despair fall into the latter as they are constructs of thought and emotion.
Excitement rippled through the room like an electric shock. The princesses were hiding such awesome power? Surely nothing could stand in their way then, this war would be finished in no time! Eyes gleamed with hope, and smiles spread to every face except two. Both Rainbow Dash and Applejack frowned more, if it were possible, their eyes narrowing as they calculated what Celestia had just said, already recognizing the largest 'but' in existence on its way.
"That being said" countered Luna, "neither myself nor my sister have living memory of ever channeling our avatar states. We've never been able to, even though we were born with the knowledge of exactly what we are. Whether that is a secret that has been lost to us over the time of centuries, or if another force is at work to protect the world from the unknown power of our avatar states, or some other reason all together we do not know. Only once have we ever come close, but that was a corrupted, false avatar state brought on by extreme negative emotions that channeled but a portion of the avatar power. You would remember that event the as banishment of Nightmare Moon."
Celestia winced imperceptibly at the memory while the previously hopeful expressions dropped like bricks from everypony in the room. "So what you're saying is that the only way to get a fair fight is if both you princesses and Discord work together to take on Sombra and Twilight?" inquired Applejack with an exasperated sigh.
"Yes, if of course he is willing when we ask him."
"My my my Celestia, I'm glad to hear that you were at least going to ask me before marching me off with the rest of your goonies." Discord's voice echoed throughout the throne room, seemingly coming from everywhere at once. With a whinny of surprise and pain, a Saddle Arabian toppled to the floor as his seat stood up and transformed into Discord, though he kept the wooden look as he walked over to the princesses. For their part, neither Luna, Celestia, nor any of the element bearers seemed one bit surprised by his unorthodox appearance, nor by the fact he'd been hiding to listen in to the conversation instead of simply joining it. His entrance did grant him a small smile from Fluttershy however, so Discord chalked it up to a success anyways.
"Well then Discord, you have our request, how do you answer?"
"Straight to business eh Celestia? Very well. I must respectfully decline, I'm sorry. I don't fight after all, I'm a trickster, a manipulator even, but I cannot do what you ask. It'd absolutely ruin my manicure." To emphasized this he batted big dramatic eyelids garishly coated in makeup and stuck his lion paw out theatrically in front of him.
Celestia frowned slightly. Just this morning Discord had been absolutely livid at the near loss of his best friend. His breath had hissed with the promise of a thousand unique and painful deaths, and for the first time in her life when she had looked into his ghastly yellow eyes, she'd seen fields of blood behind those crimson pupils. It had been a humbling, if not slightly frightening experience. Now here he was suddenly returned to his normally jolly demeanor, acting as if he was without a care in the world. Acting, perhaps a bit too forcibly.
Choosing her words carefully, Celestia tried to persuade the draconequus to action, hoping to uncover the reason for this sudden change. "Please Discord, reconsider. We have the means to deal with the Crystal Empires army, but if we are to quickly bring this conflict to a close we need you by our side. Consider the lives that could be saved, innocent civilians that wouldn't have to see the horrors of war if you chose to fight with us." Though she spoke no names, Celestia let her wing drift down to gesture at the ponies standing beside her, specifically Fluttershy.
A light briefly flickered behind Discord's eyes, and when he spoke he kept his toothy grin plastered to his face despite the sound of bone grinding and collapsing under pressure. "Believe you me Celestia, when I say that I know full well what would happen if I were to directly join your war. It is not a matter of something that I simply do not wish to do, rather that which I cannot possibly do. Please, ask me no more of this matter."
Princess Luna and Princess Celestia looked at each other, mulling over Discords strange behavior. It would need to be investigated further, but for now they would need to respect his wishes regardless. "As you wish Discord, we would not force this upon you. Perhaps we can find a way for you to be able to in-directly assist the war, so that you need not face conflict head-on. Every contribution helps, no matter how small."
Turning to the rest of the room, Celestia addressed them as well. "That goes for you all as well. We cannot force our request upon you, nor do we wish to. The enemy is powerful beyond measure, it is true, and they have shown themselves to be both cunning and merciless. But this meeting is not about their overwhelming power, nor the threat of destruction that they impose upon us all. No, tonight we are gathered here to remember what it is that we are capable of. Through countless decades of history all species of the world have lived through legends of famous heroes of simple origin. Heroes who have suffered through oppression and death, until one day they stood strong and shouted "ENOUGH!" into the blackened night. Heroes who have fought against odds seemingly insurmountable, and achieved that which all others had deemed impossible. These legends were not blessed with power, or born gifted with unnatural strength. No, what set these special few apart was the will to fight for what they believed in despite what mighty obstacles barred their way, and every single time they achieved their goals by drawing strength from those around them. Tonight, Equestria is calling on the world for heroes to stand up and face their inner demons given magical manifestation. We are calling on the world to band together so that our enemies do not face a single nation or civilization, but the entirety of our combined courage and heart held steadfast against the nightmare of their darkness. Together, we are mighty, and together we will prevail."
"Now, who will answer our call?"