It took Shining Armor a while to find his way to the library, and he ended up having to ask for directions. But within an hour, he was able to meet up with Twilight, Spike, and their friends.
Twilight was currently still in awe of just how big the library was, a fact that she let the rest of her friends know in no uncertain terms. "Just look at this place, it's at least ten times as big as The Golden Oaks Library!" Twilight exclaimed happily "This place could probably even put the Canterlot Public Library to shame!"
"Yeah, but how exactly is that supposed to help us?" Rainbow Dash asked "This library's been gone for 1,000 years like the rest of the empire, everything's gotta be at least 1,000 years out of date."
"Even so, this is the only lead we've got," Shining Armor said seriously "So I suggest we split up, and search each section of the library carefully. Hopefully, we'll at least find something that can tell us more about Sombra, or something that could be used to stop him."
"Sounds like a plan, unless anypony has a better idea?" Rarity asked, there were no replies.
"Then I guess it's settled," Twilight said with a smile "If anypony finds anything, bring it to Shining Armor or I." And with that, Twilight, Shining Armor, Spike, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Rarity all split off to explore different parts of the library. The size of it meant it would probably take a lot of time to comb through everything on the shelves.
Everyone searched for what seemed like hours, but they found nothing. The librarian wasn't much help either, as they quickly discovered.
"I'm afraid I can't remember much about this place," she said unhappily "In fact, I'm not even sure if I'm supposed to be working here."
"Is there anything you DO remember?" Shining Armor asked "Anything at all would be helpful."
"Well, I seem to recall that there was a section of the library on the very bottom floor that King Sombra never wanted ponies visting after he took over," the librarian told Shining Armor "But he never gave a reason why other than because he ordered it."
"And you just went along with it?" Rarity asked the librarian "No offense, but I can't see why you wouldn't have at least asked that ruffian what reason he had for wanting to keep ponies away from a certain place."
"Sombra threatened to enslave me like he did the others unless I followed his orders without question," the librarian explained, shuddering nervously "With a guy like him, it was best not to argue with him."
"The more I hear about this King Sombra, the more I'm hoping I never have to meet him face to face." Fluttershy said nervously.
"That section of the library must be important if Sombra didn't want ponies to go near it," Twilight concluded "We'd better check it more thoroughly, it probably contains that clue we've been looking for."
Sure enough, that section contained a book that mentioned the entire history of The Crystal Empire, from the very day it was founded. One section in particular, caught Twilight's eye. "It says here," she read aloud "'Once a year, each year, the citizens of the empire would hold a Crystal Fair. A grand spectacle with musical performances, home grown crops, games, and just about everything else you'd expect from your typical fair. It was an important tradition started by the empire's first queen.'"
"So how come they stopped holding it?" Pinkie Pie asked eagerly "Was it because King Sombra was a big old party pooper, and shut it down?"
"Actually, yes," Twilight replied "The book mentions that King Sombra put an end to the fair as soon as he ascended to the throne. The fair must be the key to restoring the memories of the Crystal Ponies, and defeating King Sombra."
"But how are we goin' to hold one, there's nopony within a hundred miles of here," Applejack complained "And in case you haven't noticed, these here Crystal Ponies can't remember anythin' from before Sombra was in power."
"We can hold the fair!" Twilight declared "If we all pitch in and contribute our talents, we should be able to pull it off!"
"You really think we can set up a Crystal Fair in such a short amount of time?" Spike asked "After all, there's no telling how long Cadence's protective dome will last."
"All the more reason why the time for talk has ended," Shining Armor said boldly "You all set to work on getting that fair ready, I'll see if the guys and I can help out as well."
"Sounds like a plan, we'll need all the help we can get!" Twilight replied.
"Which is why I'm trusting you with organizing the entire event, Twily," Shining Armor said to Twilight "You're the most qualified out of all of us to make sure this goes off without a hitch. We HAVE to get this right, for the sake of the Crystal Ponies and The Crystal Empire!"
Twilight quickly wasted no time in organizing the fair, and who would be in charge of what. Big Macintosh, Braeburn, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie were assigned to preparing the food, which mostly consisted of things like crystal berries and crystal corn. In addition, Braeburn and Pinkie Pie were to manage some of the games that would take place during the fair.
"This is going to be the greatest fair I've ever seen!" Pinkie Pie said happily.
"Don't get ahead of yourself, Pinkie Pie, remember what's important," Braeburn warned "I'm all for fun and games, but the fate of Equestria comes first."
Fluttershy, with the help of Thunderlane, rounded up a flock of ewes for a petting zoo. The ewes proved tricky to find, but Thunderlane and Fluttershy were used to dealing with rare and unusual creatures.
"Thanks for the help, Thunderlane, I couldn't have done it without you." Fluttershy said to Thunderlane, once the ewes were safely in their pen.
"It was nothing, glad I could be of service," Thunderlane replied "I just hope the ewes don't mind being looked at."
Rainbow Dash signed up for the josting event that was one of the star attractions of the fair, and roped Soarin into being her opponent.
"Man, how did those Crystal Ponies ever joust in such heavy armor?" Soarin complained, as he was fitted with the appropriate jousting attire "This thing is heavy, and I can barely see much that isn't in front of me."
"That's the whole point of jousting, Soarin!" Rainbow Dash replied eagerly "Just focus on your opponent, nothing else matters. But don't think I'm gonna go easy on you just because you're a Wonderbolt. Those ponies will be expecting a show."
Fancy Pants supervised Rarity, as she recreated the original flag of The Crystal Empire, which was to be flown throughout the duration of the fair. Rarity was then to take over the hat crafting booth.
"I never thought I'd actually be glad to done with sewing something," Rarity said, as she put the finishing touches on the flag "Who knew a flag of so many hues would be so difficult to recreate?"
"Perhaps it would be best if I took your place in the hat crafting booth, Miss. Rarity," Fancy Pants offered "You've been working so hard since the wedding, and you deserve a break."
"Thank you, Fancy Pants, but I can manage just fine," Rarity replied "Hat crafting shouldn't be too difficult."
As for Shining Armor, he tried his best to help with whatever part of the fair needed it most. But his thoughts kept turning to Cadence, and so he eventually excused himself to go see her.
"Shining Armor, I don't know if I can keep the dome up for much longer," Princess Cadence said with a hawn. Her eyes had grown heavy, and she felt ready to fall asleep at a moment's notice "Sombra's presence is growing stronger, I can feel it."
"Cadence, please, you've got to hold on for a little longer!" Shining Armor pleaded "I know you're strong enough to do so. The Crystal Fair is due to start in a matter of minutes. Once we've restored the Crystal Ponies spirits, they should be able to help us deaft Sombra."
But at that moment, Twilight came bursting into the throne room with a look of concern on her face "I hate to be the bearer of bad news," she said glumly "But I think we've got a problem. And it involves a 'Crystal Heart'."