I found myself in a bright drifting landscape, full of stars and nebulae. I felt like I had just closed my eyes, and found I was still in the fragile equine form I had found myself in earlier. "I must be dreaming."
"This is a dream, yes." A powerful, yet caring voice said in front of me, making me squeal in fright yet again. "However, I am most certainly real, as are you. Both within this dream, and beyond, we exist in our own realities."
"W-who are you?" I asked in the timid voice again. Something about this form must have been affecting my mind. It just didn't make sense for me to be this scared all the time! I was always a bravest one out of my friends, never afraid to speak out about any of my thoughts, kind and rude alike.
"I am known to Princess Luna among my people, though you may call me Luna. I have come to discuss the terms of my sister with you, seeing as how you haven't taken them lightly." Her voice began to lean much more towards the concerned and caring aspect as she neared the end of her speech. It was almost as if she was afraid her sister had broken me in some way, but how...
I froze. "She was the voice in my head!" I exclaimed in a voice filled with that of nervousness at the realization of everything that had happened to me today was real. "She did this to me! Why?" I broke down in tears again. The lunar-colored equine princess frowned at my dismay, stepping forward to gently prop my chin up with a hoof.
"It is ok, small one," She said in the same caretaker's voice I had heard earlier. "All will be explained, it is why I have come after all." She motioned for me to sit up properly as she prepared to answer the questions that have plagued my mind for the last hour. "Let us start from the beggining."
"I come from a place called Equestria. It is a paradise, filled with harmony of all key points. Where we thrive, there are very little threats to our kingdom, coming only from those that choose not to embrace the idea of such harmony. My sister has been watching your world for months now, hoping to find this embrace of harmony, and hoping that the disharmony among you was just a poor beggining to her surveying. This has proven to not be the case, as you have been told. Your world is filled with those that are willing to throw away harmony, and outright despise it in order to fulfill their own selfish needs. We have chosen you to be the perfect candidate to spread harmony among your world, for you have not already somewhat embraced it yourself like some others have, and you have proven to be not so disengaging from it that you have no hope of grasping hold of it. Because of this, you not only have a chance to embrace harmony, but you may learn what it feels like to change to better embrace it as well. We believe going through this experience yourself may help you assist others go through it later on."
"But why..." I proceeded to ask the same question that has inhabited my mind during this whole night, but Luna silenced me with the raise of a hoof.
"All your questions will be answered by the end." She smiled. "We have chosen this process to teach you because the forms we have forced upon you, one of which you currently embrace, have shown to have truly mastered the Elements of Harmony. Not only have they mastered their own element, but they have shown to have learned from each other as well. Thus, we believe forcing their physical and mental forms upon you after you disobey an Element of Harmony to be an exceptional way to teach you and your race. Keep in mind, each time you disobey a specific element, you will be stuck in the corresponding form for a longer and longer time. As for the pain in the transformations," Luna's expression changed to regret, then sorrow soon after. "My sister and I are deeply and truly sorry about this, but we can only prevent the pain of the reverse transformation through the magic your current form holds. You will need to endure the initial transformations for the time being." I began to tear up once more as the memory of the unbearable, agonizing pain came fluttering back. "However, we swear to you we will do everything within our power to find a cure for it, for we are not ones who enjoy the suffering of any living creature."
"But, how do I explain this," I gestured weakly to my fragile yellow form, "to the rest of my race?"
Luna smiled warmly again. "That is a problem you will need to solve with the help of your own friends. Friendship is, after all, the key to mastering harmony, and vice versa. One cannot have harmony without friendship, or friendship without harmony. The two go hoof-in-hoof together."
"Alright then, I understand, but I have one last question." Luna nodded for me to proceed. "What are these elements of harmony I need to embrace?"
She giggled softly before proceeding, "That, my dear student, is something you need to find out yourself. But I will tell you one thing; once you've embraced the first five elements, the sixth will begin to manifest itself within you. You will know when you have done so. Now, I must take my leave. My sister and I have much to discuss before dawn, and your reverse transformation will take place soon, waking you."
With that, Luna departed, leaving me to absorb the meaning of her explanation.
*
Luna awoke from her dreamscape to see Celestia standing on the royal balcony, gazing out towards her night. She walked over, standing beside her sister and waiting to be acknowledged to speak.
"I take it the visit went well?" Celestia asked. "The poor soul seemed so regretful towards how he treated his friends after taking on Fluttershy's form, I find it hard to believe that it was entirely the mind switch's work."
"As do I, sister. He seemed very upset, and yet strangely accepting of this predicament we have placed upon him. Perhaps the mind switch spell did not activate, and he had dual personalities within him at the time." Luna looked up at her sister, clashing emerald with crystal and waiting for her thoughts on such a theory.
"I would not put it past that possibility," she replied warmly. "We have seen some extraordinary powers in the past. Though, it may be due to a clash in magical and non-magical nature as well."
"Which makes me fear he will not be able to discover the sixth element. What if harmony is forever lost among those living in that corrupted place?"
"Do not fear, my sister. Those who master the first five elements bear within them magic and friendship itself. I'm sure he'll be able to discover it, so long as he chooses to embrace the lessons we will teach him."
"Perhaps. Though I do wish we could do something to ease the pain he goes through. The poor kid looked like he was going to go insane from the amount of pain he was in. Are you certain this is the only way to teach him?"
"He is a strong one Luna, that is the other reason we chose him. Though he does not know it, I feel he has incredible potential to help his own race. Besides that, I wish there was another way to help, but you know how unstable magic can be over long distances. If we try to teach him personally as he goes through these experiences, it may cause serious, or even devastating damage to anything in the path between our realities. I will say, however, that I will allow him to retain what he can of his own personality. I had thought completely replacing his own would have helped ease his mental trauma, though it seems it is not possible. The mindsets of the elements will help him realize what he is supposed to feel when he disobeys an element, and if we mix it with his own mindset it could help merge ideas of harmony into his own."
"I suppose that is fair. You should sleep sister, dawn is in a few hours and you've been up late surveying his planet the last few days." Celestia looked like she was about to protest, but an unrelenting glare from Luna shut her and pushed her forwards.
Luna sat reflecting on Dan's predicament. Celestia was right, he was a strong one, but could he sustain the trials they were forcing upon him? Time would tell, and Luna would dedicate all her spare time aquiring a pain relieving remedy for the transformations to come. But for now, she took off into the night, following the trails of duty as she descended into dreams.