//------------------------------// // Chapter Seventy-four // Story: Freedom Through Harmony // by Electricut //------------------------------// Chapter Seventy-four Dreamscape Fluttershy Fluttershy nodded to both of the people standing with her in the Dreamscape. Daring, her apparent distant relative who didn’t even live in Equestria anymore, stood with hands in pockets, ready to begin and seeming not at all worried. He appeared to be about as old as Fluttershy. Ace, on the other hand, looked to be around his late twenties. “Um, alright, so...” Fluttershy began. “What do we do now? Oh, and um... Why both of us? If Daring is somewhere else in the world, why is he here? Will he even be able to fight Celestia?” “Nah, I don’t think I’ll be able to get there in time to be of any use.” Daring answered. “But thing is, the ancestors of all six Elements only got to stick around to watch over their descendants, and teach them their skills before having to go back to the afterlife. Ace isn’t going to get another chance to meet either of us, so he brought us both here to teach us at once.” “I see... But then, how did you get here? I didn’t think he could send more than one of those possessed statue things into our world...” “I can’t.” Ace answered, reasserting himself in the conversation. “That wouldn’t stop me though. We just had to work a bit more cleverly. You see, the Dreamscape can realistically be accessed by anyone, with enough practice. And with Daring sleeping almost twenty hours a day, we had plenty of time to experiment.” “Never did I say I was a competent adventurer.” Daring answered, somewhat sheepishly. “But hey, sleeping a bunch leaves me wide awake when I have to dive headfirst into some ancient temple, right? Anyway, yeah, me and Ace have been working on this for a while, and I figured out how to get into the Dreamscape pretty much whenever I want. So I’ve been asleep all day waiting for this to start.” “That’s the general plan with all six ancestors.” Ace continued. “To teach all their direct and living descendants their skill, not just the Element of Harmony. We weren’t meant to do that, but we decided to go ahead and do it anyway. It’s pretty easy when the people who aren’t the Element are just their sibling or something, because then there’s enough of a mental bond to just knock everyone else out on the spot. But for more distant relatives like you two, we have to get creative. “Well, at any rate, let’s not waste any time. Fluttershy, do you remember the technique your sister oft used in battle, Chaos Suite? That technique is the very same one that I shall be passing on to you. I never intended for her to learn it, to be honest, but she managed to do enough research of her own and discover a whole load about me, including that skill.” “Oh, the randomized skill with the game die? She did always say it was a technique handed down through the generations... W-wait, wait, hang on. She also said something about our ancestor... meeting the Goddess before the final battle of the civil war?” Ace’s eyes lit up as she finished, and he nodded slowly, with the weight of memories. “So, history managed to remember that, eh?... Yes, it is true. I have laid eyes upon the Goddess who watches over our world, exchanged words with her, even received her personal blessing before our battle against the demon Discord... Only once have I seen greater beauty in all my years, alive or dead, and that was of course my beloved wife Posy... Who, I suppose, pretty much looked just like you, Fluttershy. So, that would put the Goddess at third place...” Fluttershy took a moment to take in Ace’s comment, then decided that he had given her a compliment and blushed appropriately. She looked back up and brought up another question that had been nagging at her: “My sister... The die she used for the technique; was it special? Do I need to get it back to use the skill?” “It was an unusual die, yes, but you don’t need that one specifically, no. I have more, and will give you both one, plus some other neat stuff.” “Um... I was meaning to ask something else...” Fluttershy held her hands in front of her, wringing them nervously and not looking her ancestor or relative in the eye. “I... I don’t know about this. I hate fighting... I don’t know if I could be of much use on the battlefield even with this skill... I can’t imagine fighting to take another human life, except for the Queen... What I really wish is if I could become a healer instead, to help my friends instead of hurting my enemies...” She didn’t see him until he had walked up to her, but her ancestor moved over and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Ah, buck up, my dear. That goal might not be as impossible as you think.” She looked up, and Ace flicked his hand eloquently, revealing four playing cards, aces of each suite. “Your sister only had half of the technique, you see. The die determines the power of the attack, but the cards allow for all kinds of different attacks on top of that. “They are divided by color, with black being physical and red being magical. Clubs delivers a scattering shot, useful when fighting a whole load of enemies. Spades and diamonds do essentially the same thing- a powerful piercing attack- but one is like a spear and the other a bolt of lightning. Depends on what you’re aiming at for which you’d be better off using. But hearts...” He held up the hearts card dramatically. “Well, I should think it obvious that hearts is a healing spell.” Fluttershy’s eyes widened, and Ace nodded in satisfaction, then reached into his pockets. He retrieved two sets of four cards and one six-sided die, then handed one each to Fluttershy and Daring. Daring seemed pretty clueless about what to do with the game pieces, and was obviously a little disappointed that this was the great technique he came to learn. Fluttershy, though, more or less knew what they were in for, and was excited to follow in her sister’s footsteps. Ace continued, retrieving a set for himself for demonstration. “Right, so you know how your sister did that whole ‘battle cry’ thing whenever she used it? Well, it was pretty much unnecessary, except to strike fear in the hearts of your enemies... Which is respectable, of course, but pretty bad for stealth. So if you’re aiming to be all heroic and whatnot...” He looked towards Daring for this part, “You’d want to use the battle cry ‘Cards of fate, guide my hand, Chaos Suite!’ as you raise your weapon to the sky, then roll the die and draw your card or whatever. But if you’re aiming more for stealth... Just holding up the cards and die will activate the skill too.” The next hour or so (or at least it seemed like an hour, though Fluttershy was not sure if time was even relevant in the Dreamscape) was spent with the two descendants testing out the technique against each other, becoming used to each different attack. Physical damage also did not apply in this place, so Fluttershy and Daring were able to unleash their most powerful attacks on each other again and again, and never leave a scratch or get hurt in the slightest. Fluttershy fought with her bow and arrows, of which she had an unlimited supply, and Daring fought with an effective combination of a pocket hatchet and whip. At last, both felt they had learned all they could from the training session, and Ace stepped in from where he had been standing, watching with approval. “Well, my children,” He said, clasping his hands together. “it seems we’re done here. I regret that we will not be able to meet again... at least, I will not be able to meet either of you again. Who knows, fate may have you two cross paths in the real world someday... But I digress. For me, this is farewell. And, for what it’s worth... I apologize to both of you for the losses you’ve suffered recently.” Fluttershy looked over to Daring, surprised, and he looked to the ground sadly. “My old man.” He stated simply. “In our line of work, though, we both pretty much expected it. He lived, and died, honorably... Anyway, I guess I might see you later?” Fluttershy nodded. “I’d like to meet you in person, yes. But maybe when all this is over?” Daring laughed and nodded. “Yeah, I don’t really feel like getting tied up in a revolution, as fun as that sounds. I’ll stick to hunting down ancient stuff, thanks. Well, I’m out. Later, maybe.” With that, the young adventurer took a step back, then vanished. Fluttershy blinked a few times in confusion, wondering where he went. “He woke up in the real world.” Ace explained, sensing her puzzlement. “Like I said, he’s got Dreamscape all figured out, and can come and go, just like that.” Ace closed his eyes and looked towards the sky, though it was the same dusty white as everything else. “I suppose this is goodbye. I certainly will miss the world of the living... Ah well, my time came and went. Nothing to do now but let the new generation have a chance at living. Farewell, young Fluttershy...” _________________ Twilight The group remained in the clearing after Pinkie had been knocked unconscious, mulling over their options. Spike was still in favor of retreating to camp to tend to everyone’s wounds, though there was still no practical way out of the stronghold. Max and Twilight both favored staying where they were until Pinkie came to, but Twilight could tell he was antsy to get moving again further into the fortress. Finally, though, the girl began to stir. As soon as she was fully conscious, her eyes flew open, an excited light glinting in her pupils. She scrambled to her feet, leaning on her spear for a moment, but not having much difficulty. Whatever the reasons for her being knocked out, she was able to recover quite easily. “Guys, it worked!” She said. “I was in the Dreamscape again, and the person that the statue was of was there too! Turns out she just really looked like me, but she’s really my ancestor. “She was a ninja, an assassin from Eclipse. She didn’t really have an actual name because of that, just like me, so she was just called Surprise. Anyway, there wasn’t anyone else from my family there, because our skill is very special... But she did tell me that I have other relatives somewhere. But there was one other person there, and it’s the last thing I would have expected. It was Chaos! In the Dreamscape, we were able to separate and be two totally different people, and Surprise explained everything about her. “See, when I was born, somehow my spirit was sort of... fragmented. It broke into two pieces, and for a while- the first few years when I was being held by that Vomora creep- I didn’t have any sort of personality at all. I was just kind of a shell of a person... But then both pieces began to grow, and one became the dominant force- me- while the other one just kinda sheltered in my heart, but comes out to defend me when I’m in trouble. So at this point, it’s like Chaos is a whole second spirit within me, and- get this- Surprise taught me how to release her and give her a physical form, even off the battlefield!” Twilight’s eyes widened. She should have known that this strange shadow form of Pinkie’s would get some light shed on it here. Her ancestor must have known about it... and now Pinkie could control Chaos completely, even release her at will. She hoped that some light would be shed in turn on her own family by her ancestor, whoever he or she was... _________________ Rarity “Applejack, you’re finally awake!” Rarity exclaimed in relief. After the lieutenant had lugged Applejack from where she had been knocked out all the way back to the main part of the city, they had moved her to the medic station inside the HQ building. Twenty minutes passed in which she remained unconscious, but then she awoke good as new. Rarity, Opal and Blake were all gathered in the room, waiting for her to awake. “Ugh, yeah, I’m up. Aw man, that was weird...” “What was?” Opal asked curiously. “When I got knocked out. Before I did, I fought with this statue thing, and basically wiped the floor with it. But then this bolt of lightnin’ hit me and I passed out... and I woke up in that dream world again, the one my mom used to tell me to come here. The guy that the statue was built after was there instead, but... The weird part was, Applebloom was there too. Our ancestor said that he’d be training ev’rybody descended from him... But the thing is, Mac wasn’t there. Our ancestor said that he should’ve been able to bring him there with us, but couldn’t. “Anyways, he eventually just decided to teach me and Applebloom. He was a mage in his time, and not much in the close-combat department, so he taught us both the only thing he could think of...” At this, Applejack held up her hand dramatically, as though to grasp something in the air, and soon crystals of ice began to collect around her hand. When a fist-sized mass of frozen energy had collected, she threw it forward and watched as it collided with the wall and knocked some dust loose. “So now we know some ice magic! Never pictured myself knowin’ any kind of magic, but hey, I sure don’t mind it now.” “Wait...” Rarity started, “You said he was to teach all his descendants... Don’t you have all sorts of cousins and relatives in other cities?” “Well, yeah, but they’re all on my dad’s side. My mom was the one descended from him, and her side of the family’s pretty small. So that just leaves us three and Granny Smith, and she’s in no shape to fight anymore.” Blake nodded thoughtfully and stood, pacing the tiny room as well as he could manage. “Well, that settles that at least. The last remnants of your ancestors are statues depicting them, and you have to defeat them to learn their skills. That means there’s another statue around here somewhere that is waiting for Rarity... but the only statue I’ve ever seen in this city is... Hang-hang on, could that be it?” “What’s that?” Rarity asked, standing with him. Blake rubbed his slightly stubbled chin, deep in thought, and Rarity decided not to question him until he had pieced together whatever problem he was working on. However, before he could finish, the sound of commotion and panic spread in through the main room of the building and into the medical station. All eyes turned towards the door, and with a nod all four leapt up and rushed out into the commons. Applejack seemed to have already recovered completely. Several soldiers were milling about, dragging Vomora from his office on one side, and dragging a beaten, half-conscious prisoner from the other. The prisoner’s dark blue hair hung bloodied over his face, and his clothes looked both unassuming and dusty with travel and combat. Ruffled midnight blue wings hung at his back, also damaged. He was supported by three soldiers, as he was rather muscular, and a fourth carried a spear that must have belonged to him. Rarity had never seen anyone like this man, but Applejack seemed to recognize him. She started forward, motioning for the soldiers to move aside. “Soren? What’re you doin’ here? And what happened to you?!” The bedraggled warrior looked up at the sound of her voice, his eyes darting around in an attempt to get his bearings once again. They settled on Applejack a moment later, and Rarity could see the gears turning in his head. “Who- wait, wait, ah... A-Applejack! That’s your name, right? I remember you! We beat up a bunch of bandits near that one town!” “Yeah, I gotcha.” Applejack assured him, then turned to the guards. “What’s going on? Why’s he all... bleedin’?” Vomora stalked up to join the group, confronting Soren. “It is the default response for our soldiers to take any trespassers prisoner, if it is impossible to remain undetected. Your friend must have resisted peaceful capture.” “I didn’t resist your damn soldiers!” Soren shouted, struggling against his captors. “I was trying to find you to return one of your agent’s weapons, because she wanted it back here! But as soon as I touched down, I got attacked. Now if you’d be so kind as to have your guys let me go, I’ll give you back the thing and be on my way.” “I’m afraid it is not that simple.” Vomora said through clenched teeth, asserting his authority quite effectively. “If I just release you right now, it would be far too easy for others to find out about this place, and eventually word would get back to Eclipse and the Queen herself. So I’m afraid that while I will have my men unhand you...” He nodded to the soldiers holding Soren still, and they backed off. “I must ask that you remain here for a time.” “Right... Thanks so much for that...” Soren complained, rubbing his shoulder, then taking his spear back. “Anyway, here.” He reached into the pocket of his jacket and handed something over to Vomora, which was taken and looked over with a mix of surprise and disbelief, then sadness. “Creiddylad... One of our best agents, gone... What happened to her? How did you come into possession of her weapon of chance?” “She was executed in Manehattan two days ago. She tossed this into the crowd for the people who attempted to free her- my team- to catch, and etched the initials of New Dawn into the die. I figured here might have been the place to look for you, so I flew non-stop to get here. Now that I’ve found you, and given that back, I should return to my group as soon as possible, but I understand your need to keep me here for a while. Let’s just not make it too long...” “Wait, wait...” Blake started, his eyes showing his alarm, though he managed to keep his voice level. “How did you know we were here, and how did you already know what we were called?” Soren looked confused, though it may have been the blood on his face obscuring his vision. “Celestia made a comment about it, as did your uncle Rilken.” “Celestia knows about us?!” Vomora exclaimed, anger and panic obvious in his voice. “How could this happen... How did she discover our existence... Creiddylad would never hand over that information, and we haven’t had anyone leave for some time... Who could have... It doesn’t matter now. She already knows everything. Which means it’s only a matter of time until...” “AAAGGHH!” A scream erupted from the streets outside, and several more soldiers came running in. Tug was among them, and while he didn’t as panicked as the others around him, he wore a look of incredible thought, determination and battle-readiness. “Lord Vomora! Lord Blake! On the horizon, only a mile or so from the city! They’re coming, they’ve found us! A whole battalion of soldiers, at least six hundred, all under the flag of Eclipse!”