Moondancer's misguided mission

by Paradise Oasis

The Twinkling Light of Truth

The Glittering Light of Truth

Having seen the story unfold in the crystal ball before them, the four mares were beside themselves with how to deal with the situation. Truly was pacing the floor of the hut nervously, while Moondancer and Zigzag seemed lost in their own thoughts. It was Zigzag, straightforward and blunt as ever, who finally spoke up;

"That poor child." Zigzag shook her head sadly. "How could a mother treat her own offspring so horribly?"

"Muthas cain be real monstahs Ziggy, bealieve me. h know thait bettah thain most ponehs." Truly replied, still trotting back and forth. "But thait's no excuse foh her actions."

"Are you so certain about that, my good Truly?" Zigzag pondered aloud. "I wonder if that poor unicorn was ever shown any affection, at any time during her miserable life? All she might need is just a little kindness and friendship, and-"

"Save yo breath, Ziggy. She's a monstah like all the rest thait Dream Valleh hais eveah faced." Truly snorted angrily. "Weah gonna need to go home, an' teach that lyin' ol tramp a lesson when the time is raight!"

"Zo girls, ve vinally know vhat vas ze cauze und origin of ziz threat." The Romani pony cocked an eyebrow. "Now ze qvestion is... vhat are vou goink to do avout it?"

"Ladies, we have got to back to return to Dream Castle, and rescue our friends from Sunset's dark and deceptive magic!" Moondancer declared, stamping her hoof on the table. If that witch had her way, our friends will end up tearing each other apart in hatred!"

"Naow y'all just calm daown, Mooneh." Truly tried to clam her. "We'll get back ta save our friends soon enough, but we gotta make shoah we cain win!"

"Miss Truly is indeed correct, my good Moondancer." Zigzag agreed. "If we are going to make a stand, it is obvious that we'll need a plan!"

"Und I believe zhat I have ze plan to help us combat ziz sorceress's evil!" Gypsy told her new friends, "If ve are going to vight Zun's lies, ve are goink to need to take her deceptions vith ze power of truth."

"While I do agree with you about truth being the key to victory," Moondancer pointed out. "I fail to see how it's going to help us overcome the power he's gained by bewitching all of our friends."

Zigzag spent a few minutes pondering, until she remembered a small, very obscure piece of Zoropthian lore.

"The Sparkle ponies!" The zebra exclaimed, finally realizing what the Romani pony was referring to. "They are the awnser we've been seeking!"

"Of course! Why didn't we think of that before?" " Moondancer whinnied, her eyes going wide. "We need to seek out the aid of the sacred guardians of pony truth!"

"The what naow?" The earth mare asked, confused. "What're y'all yammerin abaout?"

"Do you not recall your own faith's scriptures, Truly?" Zigzag replied. "Don't you remember the story of the poor orphaned fillies who ascended to become the embodiments of truth?"

"And it came to pass, that the reign of the tyrant Sombra came to an end at the hooves of the Alicorn sisters." Moondancer quoted from the verses that she knew by heart. "But the battle had cost ponykind much, as the reat empire he had enslaved, vaished into the snows of time. But a few young foals had remained after the Crystal Empire's disappearance, and these children the Princess Luna took into her own heart. Away from the pony lands she took them, to the safety of the Purple Mountains. There, under the watchful eyes of the princess of the night, these young fillies grew to be the most honest and pure mares ponykind had ever seen...the very embodiment of truth."

"But the day came when their beloved alicorn princess came to the fillies no longer. Despite the sadness at the loss of their surrogate mother, the mares continued to live by the virtues Princess Luna had taught them. So pleased was the horsemaster with the ponies they had become, that the creator of all ponykind gifted transformed these mares into the beautiful, glittering manifestations of truth itself. The horsemaster then invited the mares to come and dwell within the Gardens of Friendship. There, the Sparkle ponies now watch over all of Ponyland, serving as the guardian saints of truth for all of ponykind. It is they who drive the shadows of ignorance from our blessed lands, and answer the prayers of all equines who are plagued by the evils of falsehood, in all of it's myriad forms."

"Zhen our couze iz clear!" Gypsy exclaimed, trotting over to to a chest, and beginning to pack her things. "Ve muzt venture to ze lands of zee Sparkle ponies, und zeek zheir aid in deveating Zun's magic!"

"Now wait just a second... we're talking about the Friendship Gardens here, right?" Zigzag exclaimed, her eyes going wide. "As in... the place that serves as the barrier between the material world and the horsemaster's stables? The place where the souls of dead zoropothians and horsemasterists go to depart from this world?" The zebra looked around at all of the ponies assembled. "Are you ladies absolutely sure we are pure enough to go to such a sacred place?"

"Whut choice dah we haive, Ziggy?" Truly asked, desperation creeping into her voice. "By controllin' all of our freinds, she hais control of all thiar magical poweh! Even if Twalaight is still on our said, we'll need all the hailp we can get to fight Miss Shimmah!"

"What if we went to the Princess Ponies for help?" Zigzag asked hopefully. "Certainly with the elements of Harmony they could-"

"The current harmony bearers are busy with Tirek's latest insurgency, as is the rest of Ponyland." Moondancer shook her mane. "I'm afraid with this one, we're on our own."

"Very well." The zebra replied with a defeated sigh. "We'd best get to bed then, because we'll need to get an early start for Crimson Canyon in the morning."

"Wait re we sure that the old legends about there being a physical entrance to the Gardens in Ponyland are true?" Moondancer questioned. "We could be going on a fools errand, while our friends are dying!"

"Ve have to take zat rizk, darlink." the Romani pony replied with a sigh. "If ve are goink to zave our vriends!"

...

Gypsy showed the mares to a room with three straw beds, and it wasn't long before Moondancer and her friends had settled in for the night. But it was hard for any of them to sleep, however, as the worry about thier friends back home filled their hearts.

"Zigzaig, how y'all think the others ah doin'?" The southern belle pony asked, rolling over to face her unicorn friend. "Y'all think theyah goin' ta be all raight?"

"Twilight will hold things together back there, don't worry." The zebra replied, trying to sound more confident than she actually felt. "There's no way she'll let that witch harm our friends!"

"Well need to hurry, though." Moondancer continued. "Who knows what horrible fate that old witch has in store for Dream Valley."

"What about your own child, Moondancer?" Zigzag asked, rolling over to face the unicorn. "How do you think she is faring?"

"Hopefully, the rainbow monks have purified her of Sun's deceptive taint by now." Her friend replied. "At least she won't be around when this conflict reaches it's conclusion."

"Ah still cain't believe this happened! This is all Majesteh's fault!" Truly snorted angrily, rolling over. "If our behloved queen haid been heyah ta poteact us, then none a this woulda occured!"

"Don't you dare say that, Truly! The queen has to go away on diplomatic visits!" Moondancer snapped, her temper and her wits already at their end. "It was our own bad choices that led us here. I just hope some better judgment can get us out of this mess!"

"One thing's fo shoah," Truly snapped, scowling. "If we make it outta this ahlive, y'all bettah believe ahm gonna make shoah this don't happen agahin!"

"Not that I don't think this conversation is great." Zigzag admonished them. "But is it really wise for us to be up this late?"

"Our zebra friends right, we need to get some sleep." Moondancer yawned. "Good night you two, we'll pick this debate up in the morning."

Moondancer blew the candle out, and the three friends closed their eyes, and surrendered themselves to the night's slumber.

...

The sun shone down on the beautiful flowers and trees, the colors awash in a visual symphony of light... a sight no pony could describe with mere words. Among this lush paradise stood three ponies, who watched what transpired in the world of mortals.

Tall they were, and beautiful far beyond the mere standards of mortal ponies. Their entire bodies glowed and glittered with the dust of the one-time moon spirit that had raised them, a fitting sign of the love the long-gone alicorn had showered upon these now-powerful mares.

"They are coming here... coming to seek our aid." Star Hopper, a green unicorn with a golden mane, declared. "They know we hold the key to aiding Dream valley in it's time of need."

"A useless gesture, for this world may not be entered by the living." Twinkler, a Pegasus with a purple coat and mane, sighed. "Such a pity that they believe the myth that Friendship Gardens can be reached from the physical world. There is no way they can come to us here."

"Then we must go to them, sisters." Star Dancer, a pink earth pony with a blue mane, replied. "As the horsemaster's chosen champions of truth, we cannot just abandon those poor ponies to their fate."

"Agreed, Star. Our beloved mother of the night would have expected no less of us." The unicorn replied. "I feel that poor mare's pain, but we cannot let the icy touch of her deception freeze their poor hearts solid."

"They have most certainly disappointed me, however." The Pegasus sighed. "Three bright, intelligent ponies amongst them, and it is the zebra who even has the glimmer of the solution."

"Such is the way of mortals, Twinkler." Star Dancer answered. "The solution can be right under thier noses, and still they cannot see it."

"Then it is up to us, my dear sisters in truth sisters, to show these poor mares the way." Star Hopper finished. "Come now, while their slumber blurs the line between the worlds of the living and the dead. Let us welcome Moondancer and her companions to Friendship Gardens."

The three mares eyes suddenly began to glow, as the champions of truth and clarity reached out across the void, to touch the slumbering minds of those in the mortal world...

Comments

[FleetlordAvatar]

The truth will set you free.

That is all.

[Twilight the unicorn]

I like this story!