Shattered Harmony Part 1 - A Fallen Star

by Phazon_Corrupted_Unicorn

Chapter 5: The Revelation and the Creation

Midnight landed outside Ponyville's hospital in time to see Rainbow rush inside with Scootaloo in her forehooves. He stopped just before running into her as a couple of doctors rushed in with a gurney. They took Scootaloo from Rainbow, then spun and raced through a set of double doors, leaving both ponies to collapse on the waiting room chairs. Midnight had barely slumped into a chair when the doors to the outside burst open and Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, Rarity, and Applejack barreled into the room. Each mare had a look of worry on their face and Applebloom and Sweetie Belle rushed over to Midnight.

“Did ya find 'er?” Applebloom asked.

Midnight, too tired from burning through his magic stores, simply nodded.

“What happened? Is she alright?” Sweetie Belle asked. Midnight's pause was answer enough and the two mares' faces fell.

“Girls,” Rarity said softly, moving forward, “perhaps you should get some-”

“No!” Sweetie Belle burst out, “if Scootaloo is hurt, then as her friends, we're not leaving until we're sure she'll be alright!”

“That's righ'! We ain't leavin' her side!” Applebloom replied, standing firmly next to Sweetie Belle. Applejack and Rarity looked at each other, then Applejack sighed.

“Fine,” she said, “but we're stayin' with ya'll.” The two sisters each took a seat, settling in as they began to wait.

The atmosphere in the room rose with each passing minute as the nearby clock on the wall ticked away the seconds. Midnight, Sweetie Belle, and Applebloom kept looking at each other, worry growing on their faces, then at the clock. Finally, after waiting for about thirty minutes, a doctor walked through the double doors and headed toward Rainbow. Her head shot up as she noticed the doctor, hope showing on her face.

“I don't know how this happened, but she's just had a miracle,” he said, “the blade punctured a lung and sliced through an artery, but somehow she's still living. She's lost a lot of blood and we're going to keep her here for a few days.”

The ponies in the room all sighed with relief and smiles appeared on each face, but vanished as the doctor turned to Rainbow with a serious look on his face.

“There is something else we've found,” he said, “something that will affect her entire life.”

Rainbow stared at the stallion. “What?” she asked, her breath catching in her throat.

“It's about her wings,” the doctor said, glancing at each pony in the room, “do you want to speak privately?” Rainbow shook her head.

“Whatever needs to be said,” she said, standing up and gesturing to the rest of them, “can be said in front of my friends.”

Midnight's heart leaped a bit. He'd made another friend, and the Element of Loyalty at that.

“Very well,” the doctor nodded, “the patient-”

“Scootaloo,” interrupted Sweetie Belle.

“-Scootaloo,” the doctor corrected, “she has what is called Deteriorating Muscle Disease.”

“Speak Equis, doc,” Rainbow retorted.

“It means,” he said, a bit put off, “that the muscles that control her wings are slowly being broken down by her body. She can still use her wings for propulsion, but we estimate that in a few years, maybe five at most, her wing muscles won't even exist. At that point, we would advise surgery to remove them.”

The shock slammed into Rainbow, forcing her to sit down. She missed the chair and so sunk onto the floor.

“Scoot?” she whispered, tears brimming in her eyes, “won't be able to fly?”

“Is there anythin' we can do?” Applebloom asked, “anythin' ya'll can do?”

The doctor shook his head and tears streamed from Sweetie Belle's eyes.

“How is this possible?” Rarity asked.

“We suspect that she was born with this disease,” he replied, “but didn't become active for some time. Had we caught it in time we could have prevented this. When was the last time she had a checkup?”

Rainbow shook her head. “her parents died a long time ago,” she said, drawing a gasp from everypony else.

“That's why she said what she did,” whispered Midnight. Rainbow looked over at him.

“What do you mean?” she asked, “what did she say?”

“'I'll see you soon, Dad,'” he repeated, “she was sitting in front of a grave when she said it.”

The group stared at him, shock on their faces, for a few minutes. The thought that Diamond Tiara had bullied Scootaloo into almost committing suicide was horrific to the five mares, and anger flashed on both Sweetie Belle's and Applebloom's faces.

Finally Sweetie Belle yawned, drawing Rarity's attention.

“That's it, young mare,” she said, standing up and levitating Sweetie Belle in her magic, “you're going to bed. You've been woken up, had a horrible ordeal, and now you can barely keep your eyes open.”

“Ssnot true,” Sweetie Belle muttered, trying but failing to stifle another yawn.

Applebloom yawned, trying to hide it behind a hoof, but Applejack saw it and smiled.

“Come on, little Apple,” she said, tossing her younger sister onto her back, “let's git ya home.”

“But, Scoot,” Applebloom complained, trying to get off Applejack's back.

“Don't worry, kid!” Rainbow said, trying to sound happy, but the thought of Scootaloo in one of the hospital rooms, teetering on the verge of death, dampened her spirits, “I'll stay here and keep an eye on her. If anything happens, I'll let you know.”

“Thanks, Rainbow,” Applejack said, walking slowly out the door.

Midnight watched the two mares go, following Rarity and Sweetie Belle out the door, then looked at Rainbow. “You don't mind if I stay here with you?” he asked, receiving a shake of her head.

“Nah, anypony that helped me save Scoot's life is welcome to stay,” she said, “just don't blame me if you're tired in the morning.”

Midnight nodded his thanks, then sat down in a chair next to her and waited. He could feel apprehension flowing from the mare next to him, as well as fear and sorrow, mixed with anger. And there was something else, hesitation? What would the Element of Loyalty hesitate about?

“What's on your mind?” he asked, making Rainbow jump and yelp in surprise.

“M-me?” she asked, looking at him, “n-nothing!”

Midnight raised an eyebrow. “I may not be the Element of Honesty,” he said, “but I can still tell when somepony is lying.”

Rainbow rubbed the back of her head with a hoof and chuckled nervously. Finally she said, “you can tell if I'm lying?” She received a nod. “Well,” she continued, “I've been thinking, and tonight's events have straightened some things out, about adopting Scootaloo.”

Midnight smiled up at her. “Why the hesitation?” he asked.

Rainbow just sighed. “Because the Wonderbolts won't let anypony into their teams that could be distracted. And me adopting Scoot would probably qualify as a distraction,” she said, hanging her head.

Midnight nodded in understanding. He turned back to staring into space as the familiar ticking of the clock echoed through his mind, lulling him into a deep sleep as the night's events caught up to him.

----------*----------*----------*----------

Midnight awoke to the chirping of birds outside his window. He rolled over and tried to bury his ears in his pillow.

“Five more minutes,” he muttered, “tell Celestia to turn off the sun.”

“Sorry kid,” a voice answered back, “I can't really do that.”

Midnight bolted upright and stared at the mare that he'd been using as a pillow, a small pile of drool on one of Rainbow's legs.

“I'm sorry!” he said, raising his hooves and trying to wipe away the drool.

“Don't worry about it, kid,” Rainbow said, grabbing his hooves, “besides, I think you might have bigger things to worry about than a bit of drool.” She raised his hooves so that he could see them.

Midnight swallowed as the strange, but familiar gray hooves hung in front of his face. He stared up at Rainbow in shock and horror. He glanced around and saw that nopony else was in the room, then back up at Rainbow. Fear clutched his heart as he watched her study him for a few minutes.

“So,” she finally said, making him jump, “When did you become a Changeling? Or are you hiding Midnight Star somewhere?”

“Uh,” he said, his mouth dry and his lungs gasping for air.

“Well,” Rainbow sighed, rubbing his mane with a hoof, “it doesn't matter. Any Changeling that's willing to save Scootaloo can't be all bad, right?”

Midnight could only nod slowly.

“So,” Rainbow fidgeted on her seat, “you feed on love, right?”

Midnight opened his mouth to speak, but only a squeak came out. Rainbow chuckled, then stood up and walked over to the water fountain. She filled two cups with water and, returning to her seat, handed one to Midnight. He took it gratefully in his gray hooves, then raised it to his lips and gulped down the cool, sweet liquid. Once he had finished his cup, he set it aside on a nearby table.

“Actually,” he said, “we can feed on any emotion. It's just positive emotions are the best for us.”

Rainbow nodded, then blushed as she looked around. Seeing nopony in sight, even the desk clerk was gone for the night, she turned and placed her hooves on either side of his face, raising it up so that she could look into his eyes. She moved her face closer and Midnight could see his eyes reflected in her pupils. Then she did something that he'd never expected her to do in a hundred years.

She reached her hooves around and wrapped him in a hug. Stunned, he didn't know how to react, and so he just sunk into the hug. As he sat there, he felt feelings flow from the mare. Loyalty to Scootaloo, admiration for him saving her, joy that Scootaloo was still alive, hope that she would make it, and gratitude that they had found Scootaloo in time. Midnight pulled slightly on them, filling his font. They sat there, as the clock ticked by the seconds, before Rainbow pulled back, a blush on her face as she looked around to see that the room was still empty.

“Th-there,” she stammered, flustered, “is that enough? I know that Twilight won't be too happy to see a Changeling running around her kingdom. Can you turn back now?”

Midnight, who had been sitting there and staring at the cerulean mare, stunned off his rocker, shook his head as he was pulled back down to Equestria. He felt inside for his Emotion font and found it sufficiently full. It was about equal to his Elemental font right now, but was growing as energy continued to flow off Rainbow. He nodded and focused on his other form.

As green flames swirled around him, he looked up at Rainbow as he settled into his other form.

“There,” Rainbow sighed, smiling at him, “now you're back to normal!” Midnight smiled back and nodded, then he noticed Rainbow's ears perk up and swivel around to face the door. “I hear a bell, must be the school bell. You'd better get off to school,” she said, pulling him out of his chair and onto the floor, “Fluttershy won't like it if you miss your second day here in Ponyville. I'll let you know if anything happens with Scoot.”

Midnight nodded, then hurried out the door as Rainbow watched. As he left, she leaned back into her chair and began to wait.

----------*----------*----------*----------

Midnight ran down the lane, heading for the schoolhouse. He dodged around ponies heading toward the center of town and he heard the bell ring again as he ran around a wagon, only to run full steam into a blue Unicorn mare. They both gasped in surprise and tumbled to the ground.

“Sorry, I'm just trying to get to school!” Midnight said as he stood up and helped the mare up.

“Watch where-!” the mare started to shout, but caught herself, “oh, um, I-I'm sorry. I'm looking for Twilight Sparkle. Could you tell me where she is?”

Midnight looked toward the main part of town, thinking. He didn't know where she was, but he did know that she should be living in something grand and royalty-like. He spied the top of a large building made seemingly out of crystal and he pointed at it. “Princess Twilight probably lives in that crystal castle,” he said, then turned and ran off as he heard another bell toll.

“Wait, 'Princess' Twilight!?” the mare asked, stunned at the title. Then she started to walk toward the building, now with much less confidence in her step. “What did you get yourself into, Trixie?” she muttered under her breath.

----------*----------*----------*----------

Midnight ran as fast as he could down the road, only pausing slightly when he spied a familiar, dark blue chariot parked outside the building and a squad of Night Guards around it. He bolted into the classroom, a grin on his face as he caught sight of his mother standing alongside Shrapnel, both of which were sitting at the head of the class. He took his seat as Ms. Cheerilee stood up.

“Today,” Ms. Cheerilee said, stepping out from behind her desk, “Her Highness, Princess Luna, will be relating the origins of the Changeling race.”

Midnight smiled in pleasant surprise. This was what he'd been waiting for. And he was surprised that his mother knew about the origins, but then it made sense, she was hundreds of years old.

Princess Luna's horn flashed a midnight blue and the room went dark, then faded into a room that looked like it would fit in at Canterlot Castle. The room bore only a simple desk, with a massive map of Equestria hanging on the wall behind it. Sitting at the desk was a younger Princess Luna, her mane dark blue and hanging down her side. Her almost black crown sat on the desk next to an inkwell and quill and she was reading a tome, one as large as she was, with a scroll of paper next to her.

Princess Luna, not the one sitting at the desk, gestured with a hoof at the map on the wall. “Back before the Changelings were created,” she said, “I spent many nights searching outside Canterlot for ponies that would stay up to see my night. I searched through farm towns and large metropolises, but every home I visited was quiet and dark. Each night I would go out to find somepony, and each dawn I would return, more and more hopeless.” The four foals looked closer at the map and Midnight could see many of the cities' names circled, then crossed out in ink.

“And so, I decided that if I could not find a friend, then I would make one. I poured myself into the study of Golem Animation. However, the more I looked into it, the more I realized that I didn't want a mindless group of friends. I wanted true friends that I could talk to, play with, and enjoy life. I began to take the spells used in Animation and looked into changing them, trying to form something more, something better. I was, simply, trying to create life. It was then that I stumbled across a few hidden tomes within the Crystal Empire's library. Somepony by the pen name T.S.H. had written several books on modifying the Animation spells I'd read and turning them into Creation spells. The spells were complicated, but the author reported that they'd made dozens of sentient beings. This only fueled my passion and desire for friends.

“The more I delved into making life, the more magic would be required. Golem Animation was within my magical grasp, barely, and the modified spells I studied were well beyond my abilities, even as an Alicorn. I needed some way to increase my font, but the current mage batteries of the time were too limited. I needed something immense, something that rivaled my father's or mother's font in size. That was when I felt it, a pull from the southwest.”

The scene faded, to be replaced with an older Princess Luna walking through the Badlands, red dirt kicked up with each step and the tall, red rocks protruded from the ground, casting long shadows in the light of the setting sun.

“I traveled through the entirety of the Badlands until I happened upon what had called me.”

A large pool of liquid emerged from the horizon and grew closer as the young Princess Luna walked toward it. As she drew near to it, all seven spectators saw that the pool surrounded a spear of rock, this one almost black, in contrast to the red rocks around it. The rock was tall, standing hundreds of feet into the air and had holes carved into the sides of it, revealing a hollow inside. A bright green liquid oozed out of the rock and formed the pool around it. The younger Luna stepped closer to it, and all who watched noticed it sparking with energy, shooting off small bolts of green lightning.

“It called to me. I felt the power that it gave off and knew that this would help me have my dream. I went inside and began to cast the spell, drawing on the latent magic around me.”

The view stayed outside and all the spectators watched as the younger Luna walked into the large rock through an opening, then a minute later black light burst from the openings. It gradually grew brighter until it was more of a gray light, with flashes of white light occasionally.

“That was when I felt something that I later learned was an Element of Harmony. One that has since been lost to the ages. It revealed itself, mixing with the latent magic and helping me, guiding me to the spell's completion.”

The beams of light grew brighter and brighter until it blotted out all the colors around the spectators. Midnight flinched away and closed his eyes, throwing a hoof up to block out some of the light. When the light dimmed, he opened his eyes and found himself back at his desk, Princess Luna and Queen Shrapnel sitting at the front of the class. Princess Luna looked at everypony in the room, then continued.

“I blacked out after the spell was complete. When I awoke, I saw around me sixteen pony-like creatures. I had tried my best to create ponies, and I had succeeded. I waited until they had all awoken, then introduced myself. I asked them if they wanted to be friends and they quickly agreed. We spent many days together, playing in the surrounding areas. We shaped the giant rock into a castle, practicing our magic and growing stronger together.

“But there was one day that I had a surprise that I wasn't prepared for. I came early in the morning, soon after my sister had raised the sun and began her daily routine, only to find sixteen cocoons. They were twice my height and wide enough for me to sleep in if they were lying down. The Sixteen were joyful and excited to show me what had happened. They explained that they had found the remains of my spell, scrawled on the floor of the castle, and had repaired it. They practiced with it, and had finally seen results.

“It was only a few days later that I saw what they had created. The cocoons hatched, revealing sixteen ponies, each one had a dark gray coat and azure blue eyes that seemed to sparkle and glow in the dark. They were overjoyed at the hatching and I was glad for more friends. This occurred continually. Every few days I would return with double the previous occurrence of cocoons within the castle walls, every few days I would relish the idea of seeing more friends. The Sixteen had even begun to create societies and order among themselves. Each one had claimed a part of the surrounding land and had begun to build homes and walls for their creations. They began to call their societies Hives, as they found that they resembled bugs, with their gossamer wings and buzzing flight. The Sixteen forged treaties with each other as their hives grew. It was only after a few years that their numbers had soared to over a quarter of a million ponies in each hive. I found myself anxious to flee from the castle and spend time among ponies that actually cared for my night. They threw parties and celebrations every seven moon rises, even keeping calendars based on my moon. It was a happy time and one that I loved every second.”

Princess Luna's face grew dark.

“Then it happened,” she said, her voice low and harsh, “my sister began to wonder why I was away from the castle so much. I told her that I wanted to spend time outside, admiring the beauty of Equestria and spend time with the few moon loving ponies that I'd found. She seemed skeptical, but she allowed it. One day, as I left the castle, she followed me. It was that day that she found out what I'd created, what I'd spent my time doing. And she was furious.

“She accused me of creating monstrosities and demanded that I destroy them. I refused, arguing with her that she just needed to give them a chance. She told me that I had three days to end their existence, or she would raise an army to do it for me.

“I spent the next three days trying to convince my friends that they needed to flee, find somewhere else to live. I was not going to destroy them, not after all the fun we'd had. But they refused. They cherished their lives, and the time together, but they were not going to stand down and let my sister destroy them. Even if they'd been created instead of born, like other ponies, did that make it okay for them to be wiped out?

“Finally the third day came. I stood there with my friends and waited. We watched the horizon for any movement. It was about the middle of the afternoon that we first saw the glint of the guards' armor. My friends stood by me as we watched hundreds of thousands of guards march across the desert to face us. Finally they stopped several hundred hooves away from us and the front line parted to let my sister pass through. She gave me another chance. Destroy my creations, or watch as she did. I stood there, resolute, and told her that I would die with my friends. She lowered her head, then gave the order.

“Every guard unsheathed his sword and raced toward my defenseless friends. But we stood there, waiting for our deaths to come. It was at that point that I had learned my friends had developed a new skill. With a blinding flash of green light, hundreds, thousands of my friends transformed into mirror copies of the guard, their white coats blinding in the setting sun. They charged forward to meet the advancing army, though they had no weapons. I tried to stop them, but it was to no avail as I watched hundreds of my friends fall as the guards cut through the lines, my friends falling and being trampled. Tears stung my eyes as anger toward my sister and hatred of her intolerance rose up within me. I felt something within me snap and my body grew ice cold. I felt myself grow stronger and taller, towering over my friends, as shadows rose to my call. They surrounded me and formed my battle armor. My eyes had transformed into black slits, the irises taking on an aquamarine tint. I threw myself into the fray, slinging magic left and right. I didn't care about the spells I was using, I didn't care that I was slaughtering guards by the dozen with every spell loosed from my horn. I just wanted my friends to live, and I was going to do anything for them.

“The battle wore on, many of my friends picking up swords from the fallen guards and aiding in my advance, until Celestia finally called for a retreat. I watched as the remaining guards fled into the desert, then turned my attention to my sister. She stared at me with shock and horror in her eyes. I told her that this day was the day the Changeling Empire rose from the sands of the Badlands. This was the day that I would make everypony love my night, or they would feel the same pain as I then did of losing friends.

“My sister looked at me, unbelief on her face, then rose into the night sky and soared back to Canterlot. I turned to my friends, the newly named Changelings, and mourned the loss of so many. But, through the fires of battle, the determination and will to show others that my friends were ponies too was born. It was that day that the War of the Moon and the Sun began. It was that day I became the dreaded Mare in the Moon, Nightmare Moon.”

Princess Luna hung her head for a few seconds before the entire room jumped at the sound of the school bell ringing the end of class. The entire room sat there, stunned, for several minutes, well after the echoes of the bell had faded into the evening sky. Then, one by one, each pony stood and headed for the door, their faces and bodies solemn as a heavy air hung over them.

Author's Note:

Alright! It's good to be back! This chapter we see more about Scootaloo, and learning a few more details about her. And we finally see my take on the creation of the Changelings and Princess Luna's transformation into Nightmare Moon. Remember that scene, it's important in the next chapter and later on.

As always, read and review!

Just so you all know, I've got a few more scenes being worked on to change Midnight's reaction to him learning about his race. Look forward to it!