The Elements of Unity

by Gremlin Grenade

The Elements of Harmony

[The untold truth is always more sinister than the blatant lie. The secrets we hold inside are our greatest sin, and trust easily gained is trust easily broken.]

“Ponyville!?” Royal Valor was taken aback.

“What is this Ponyville?” Of the four, Steel Hoof was the most confused, being from distant Stalliongrad.

“It’s a very small town, just south of Canterlot,” Royal explained. “I myself wouldn’t even know about it if it weren’t for-“

“The elements of harmony,” Master Plan finished her sentence for her. “They will be a key factor in our operations, and the reason we are travelling so close to Canterlot.”

“But Ponyville is the very model of an Equestrian utopia. These ponies will be almost impossible to sway to your cause; there isn’t going to be anything you can use to persuade them like you did us.”

“Don’t you worry, captain, I have a plan as always. Besides, difficult or not, we will be unsuccessful at seizing the throne without the power of the elements. However, know that this will likely take significantly longer than the previous stages of my plan. I believe I can persuade these ponies, but it will not be easy.”

“And what of this foe, who launched that attack? What will you do, if he comes back?” Master Plan didn’t have an answer, but the four of them suddenly fell awkwardly silent for a wholly different reason.

“I’m sorry,” Royal’s voice was slightly hesitant, “I don’t believe I’ve been introduced to either of you.”

The silence continued for a moment before Steel Hoof spoke up. “My name, it is Steel Hoof. I am rock farmer from Stalliongrad.”

Kataro followed in his stead. “I am a zebra chief, as I’m sure you know, I go by the name Kataro.”

Royal Valor’s voice remained uneasy as she responded. “A pleasure. I’m Sir Royal Valor, the captain of the Trottingham guard.”

At this, Steel Hoof turned to Master Plan, “A royal guard? Are you sure that is good idea?” Royal was noticeably shocked by the earth pony’s blatant disrespect, but he paid her no mind.

Master Plan’s voice was calm as always, “Don’t worry, after that last little display of hers, she won’t be a guard again until we’ve succeeded.” Royal Valor blushed in shame as she realized the weight of what she had done a short while ago, and the type of operation she had gotten herself into.

As usual, Steel Hoof was not so easily convinced, but he chose to change the subject. “And how are we going to fit in with these ponies? We are not the most common-looking group ourselves.”

Master Plan did not let his companion’s concerns bother him. “Fortune has favored us so far, hasn’t it? Have a little faith my friend.” This made Royal Valor feel even more uneasy. In whom were they supposed to have faith, when they went to bring low their goddess?

Ponyville was as pleasant as Royal had described it. The grass was a vibrant green, the sun beautifully peaked over the mountains, and there was hardly a cloud in the sky. The four newcomers looked incredibly out of place, covered in cuts and bruises, as they headed towards the town square. It was barely dawn, so the streets were mostly empty, which gave Master Plan some solace as he had the opportunity to analyze his surroundings.

It didn’t last long, though, for soon the four were barraged with a flurry of pink movement and high-pitched singing. There was only the one pony in the square, other than Master Plan and his allies, but that did not stop it from feeling like the entire town had come to greet them. “-and so I say welcome, todaaaaaay!” The pink mare was huffing for breath after the finishing verse of her song, though this did nothing to dampen her energy.

“What is this pony? She is like little pink ball of noise!” Steel Hoof astutely stated.

Almost as if on cue, the pink pony replied, “Hi, I’m Pinkie Pie! I saw you guys coming into town and I didn’t recognize any ofyou, andifididn’trecognizeyou, youmustbenew! ‘CauseIknoweveryponyinponyvilleandI’veneverseenanyponywithsuchneatclohthesand-“ Master Plan placed a hoof on her mouth to halt the constant influx of high-pitched chatter.

“My name is Master Plan,” he had concluded that if the residents of Ponyville found this little mare as obnoxious as he did, he wouldn’t have to worry about her having friends to tell, “and these are my compatriots, Steel Hoof, Kataro, and Royal Valor.”

The pink pony’s eyes lit up with even more excitement, something Master Plan would have previously not thought possible. “I know what you guys need! A super-delicious treat from Sugarcube Corner!” Master Plan flinched at the thought of what kind insanity this pony consumed. “That’s okay, I think we’ll pass,” His allies nodded in eager agreement. What he really wanted was rest, but he decided that the concept may be entirely foreign to the eccentric town greeter. “I’m here because I’m looking for somepony.”

“Ooh! I can help with that! I know everypony in Ponyville!” Master Plan’s heart sank as he realized the mistake in revealing their real names to this pony. “Who’re you looking for?”

“Well that’s the thing, I don’t really know who it is.” His allies were as confused at this as Pinkie was.

The pink mare sank to her bottom in thought, “How are you supposed to find somepony if you don’t know who it is?” She tapped her hoof against her chin before perking up yet again. “Oh! I know! It’s me! Is it me?”

Master Plan felt he could say with some certainty that she was not. “No, I’m afraid not. Sorry.”

It hadn’t bothered Pinkie one bit. At this point, she was too engrossed in solving this puzzle, determining how you can find somepony without knowing who it is you’re supposed to find. She resolved on what was, to her, the easiest solution. “I know! I’ll introduce you to all my friends, and maybe they’ll know who you’re looking for!”

“Pinkie, is it?”

“Yeah, what’s up?”

“Don’t you think everypony’s still asleep?”

The sun was still low over the horizon, and the town still empty. “Oh, yeah,” she giggled.

=================================================================================

“I won’t hear any of it, Justice!” Commander Stormthunder, lieutenant of Celestia’s royal guard, was seething with anger over his associate’s insubordination. “I’ve already told you, even if this wild goose chase of yours is legitimate, the damage you caused to that train is inexcusable!”

“They’re rebels, commander, trying to do harm to the Princess! Isn’t that what your guards are for? Protecting the kingdom?” Holy Justice was also losing his usual cool from the situation. He was so close to catching his target; he knew where Master Plan was headed, and he had a reasonable guess why; Ponyville was practically untouchable by any militant force. The Elements of Harmony were practically the perfect hostages, and Stormthunder was letting them slip right into the hooves of these dissidents. To make matters worse, a captain of the royal guard was among them. Holy had hoped that this would be the leverage he needed to bring a battalion into Ponyville, but his initiative had earned him the opposite reaction.

“This ends now, Justice! You are going to cease any pursuit of these alleged traitors until the damages for your actions are condoned for!”

“You don’t have that authority over me, lieutenant, you know my branch is an independent organization.”

“Well I’ll be damned before I let you use a single one of MY guards!” This was a problem. As talented as he and his assistant were, Justice doubted that he could take four ponies on himself, let alone the newest Master Plan had likely recruited to his cause by now. If Holy Justice was going to save Equestria, he would have to do it some other way.

================================================================================

Master Plan and his compatriots slept at a motel in Ponyville called Well Rested, unoriginally named after the owner. The four were used to getting small amounts of sleep, between their individual occupations and their recent days of traveling, yet they still didn’t awake until the middle of the day. Master Plan had hoped to continue his search for the elements of harmony on his own, yet, when he left the motel, he found Pinkie Pie, waiting outside like a loyal dog.

“Hiya MP!” Master Plan was less than amused with the pet name this eccentric mare had already given him, but he realized that there was probably no escaping her at this point. The others soon followed outside, about as enthusiastic towards Pinkie’s persistence as Plan was. “I thought we could go see Rarity first, ‘cause she lives really close!”

What Pinkie said was true: the Carousel Boutique was only just down the road from Well Rested. Inside, a well-groomed white unicorn attended the various dresses among the boutique. Upon hearing the doorbell, she produced an eloquent, though automated, response, “Welcome to Carousel Boutique, where the dresses are sheik, mystique, and manufique.”

Before the unicorn even turned about to face her guests, Pinkie was already bubbling with joy. “Hiya, Rarity!”

“Hello, Pinkie,” the mare finally turned around with a smile. She winced for a moment at seeing the beleaguered state of her other guests, but quickly covered it up with a warm business grin. “Are these your friends? I don’t believe I’ve never seen them in Ponyville before.”

“That’s ‘cause they’re new! They just got here and I thought I’d show the around!” Master Plan could see she was already in the habit of introducing them to everypony; he wondered if they would react differently if they knew these were ponies on the run.

“I see. I am Rarity, as I’m sure Pinkie has told you; I run the boutique here in Ponyville. Please, do not be afraid to call on me if you ever want to make any changes to your wardrobe.” Master Plan was appreciative of the relative civility this pony displayed compared to Pinkie. Perhaps Ponyville would not be so bad after all.

Clearly Royal Valor felt the same, for she was the first to step forward, “I am Royal Valor,” she bowed her head before gesturing to her compatriots, “and these are my companions. The large one is Steel Hoof, of Stalliongrad, I believe. The gloomy-looking one is Master Plan, and the zebra is Kataro.” Master Plan had never used an alias with Royal, so it was possible she didn’t know what else to call him, however he had a feeling she mentioned his name out of a sense of morality, which could prove problematic later.

Rarity was surprisingly intrigued with her new guest. “Well, you, my dear, are just gorgeous! Tell me, your accent seems familiar, you’re not from Canterlot, are you?”

Royal blushed at the compliment, “No, ma’m, I come from Trottingham.”

“Well, I hear Trottingham is also a lovely place, especially around this time of year.” Royal kept a smile on her face, though she grimaced at the remark internally. If only she knew how it really was to live there.

“Hey, Rarity, these, guys are looking for somepony; only they don’t know who it is. You wouldn’t know anypony like that, would you?” Rarity didn’t even have a response to Pinkie’s abstract inquiry. “Hey! I know! Twilight can help us!”

Hastily, Rarity interjected, “No, dear, Twilight’s very busy in her studies, and asked not to be disturbed.”

The seemingly insignificant change apparently put a major hitch in Pinkie’s plans, and she had to stop and think about their next course of action. It was only a moment before she returned to her bubbly smile, though, “Okay, we’ll go see Fluttershy!”

================================================================================

Fluttershy lived outside Ponyville, in a small cottage surrounded by what appeared to be an animal shelter. The entire way there Pinkie was chattering non-stop, though nopony really paid her any mind. Master Plan was surprised that anypony could be this excited about new ponies, either Ponyville did not experience visitors very often, or this little mare had a lot of time on her hands.

When they arrived at the cottage, Fluttershy was outside, tending to the animals in the pen. She didn’t hear her guests coming, but that didn’t stop Pinkie from letting herself and her new friends in. “Hey Fluttershy! What’s up?”

The sudden noise startled the quiet pegasus, and though she was happy to see Pinkie Pie, she quickly hid her face away upon seeing the strange ponies Pinkie brought along. “Oh, hi Pinkie.” Her voice was a barely audible whisper.

Pinkie Pie turned to her guests “This is Fluttershy! She’s the kindest, most nicest, most kindly-kind-nice pegasus you’ll ever meet! In fact, she’s the kindest anything you’ll ever meet!” Fluttershy smiled at Pinkie’s compliment, but continued to keep her face hidden under her hair. “Hey, Fluttershy, have you seen somepony whom you don’t know who it is?”

Fluttershy was understandably confused, and it made her even more bashful. While it was evident Pinkie understood her, the others weren’t even aware she spoke.

Master Plan couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow when Steel Hoof was the first to try and ease the tension. “This little rabbit, he is your pet?” He gestured toward the small rodent Fluttershy was feeding before they arrived.

This helped her break out of her shell a little, enough so her next words were at least audible. “Oh yes, his name’s angel. I love to take care of animals, but, um, I guess you can see that.” She shrunk back again, as though ashamed at stating the obvious.

It didn’t faze Steel at all. “When I was little colt, I had rabbit like that. He was good friend.” Both Master Plan and Kataro were downright dumbstruck at this display of sensitivity by their usually stern and unsociable friend.

Fluttershy was only taken in by this display of softness, however, “Where is the little guy now?”

“My sister takes care of him now, back in Stalliongrad.”

“What’s his name?” Fluttershy was slowly opening up. Steel Hoof replied, but it was in a dialect nopony could decipher. Still, Fluttershy accepted it as it was, smiling at this seemingly gruff pony’s softness.

The tender moment didn’t last long, though: not while Pinkie Pie had anything to say about it. “I know! Why don’t we go meet Applejack!” she started to go, but turned to Fluttershy, suddenly aware of her intrusion, “hey, Fluttershy, wanna come along?” She attempted to relieve the slight awkwardness the only way she knew how.

Fluttershy’s response was characteristically modest, “Um, that’s okay Pinkie, you go ahead. Angel here needs to take his nap.”

“Okie Dokie Lokie!” Pinkie didn’t give it another thought.

As they headed toward Sweet Apple Acres, Master Plan couldn’t help but snicker. “You’ve got quite the soft spot for that mare, don’t you?”

Steel Hoof remained unamused. “It is not what you think. She reminds me of sister, Silver. Both are so quiet and gentle, I sometimes wonder how ponies like that even survive each day in this world.” Master Plan could see this was a sensitive topic for his companion and quickly backed off.

==================================================================================

The name Sweet Apple Acres described the fields adequately, with endless yards of apple trees. At the barn, Applejack was tying up some hay bales when her company arrived. “Hiya, AJ! These guys are new to Ponyville and I thought I’d show them around!”

Applejack was pleasant enough with the visitors. “Well, howdy! So, where y’all from?

“I come from what you would call the old country,” Master Plan stepped forward.

Applejack hadn’t noticed him at first, and his grim apparel and glowing eyes startled her. “Woah! You out to scare somepony, lookin’ like that?”

Pinkie appeared insulted by her friend’s directness. “AJ! He can’t help how he looks!”

“Sorry, but y’all know me! Ah always speak mah mind. They don’t call me the element of honesty for nothing, after all.” What now?! He was speaking to one of the elements of harmony, and he didn’t even realize it?

It wasn’t long before Master Plan pieced it together. “Pinkie, who are the rest of your friends, again?”

“The rest of them? I’m friends with everyone in Ponyville!” Still, she was ready to list off names, and somepony had to stop her.

Fortunately, Applejack spoke up, “Ah, think he means Twilight an’ the others, Pinkie.” She turned to Master Plan, “there’s Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, Twilight, an’ of course Pinkie an’ mahself.”

“And you all represent an element of harmony?”

“Yessir! There’s loyalty, generosity, kindness, magic, laughter, an’ honesty, in the same order.” Generosity. Laughter. Kindness. Typical, Master Plan thought, that Celestia would base her government around such simple traits. The element of magic was why they were in Ponyville, though Master Plan hadn’t anticipated an element of loyalty. Perhaps they could kill two birds with one stone while they were here.

“Pinkie, I figured out who I’m looking for. We need to go see ‘Twilight’ as soon as possible.”

Pinkie appeared concerned at that notion, however, “Rarity said she’s studying, and Twilight get’s awful cranky when somepony interrupts her studies.”

“Well can we go see ‘Rainbow Dash,’ then?”

Pinkie Pie giggled at the notion. “Dashie lives in the clouds, silly! We couldn’t go see her unless you had wings!” This made her stop almost immediately, however, as she came to a realization. She assumed that he was an earth pony, like she was, but, under that coat, he could very well be a pegasus. “You can’t fly, can you?”

Her startled look had him concerned for a moment, so he let out a sigh of relief to discover it was something so trivial. “No, I’m a unicorn.”

She returned to her overly cheerful self. “Oh, I couldn’t tell because of that silly old hat!” Master Plan had grown somewhat attached to the dignified look of his military cap, and wasn’t fond of it being called “silly,” but he held his tongue, not wanting to attract any more attention to the scar underneath than necessary.

Applejack had their solution, however, “Pinkie, Rainbow spends a lot of time in Ponyville during the day. Maybe you should go see if she’s in town.”

“Oh, yeah! And while were there, we can get some super-sweet treats at Sugarcube Corner!” the one thing that was always on Pinkie Pie’s mind.

Before they had a chance to leave, a large red pony leaving the barn caught Steel Hoof’s eye. Big Macintosh was gathering the hay bales Applejack tied up when Steel Hoof walked over to the impressive pony.

“So, you are one who does heavy lifting here?”

“Eeyup.”

Standing face to face, one could see that the ponies looked almost identical, with Steel Hoof only being slightly darker in color and covered in scars.

He backed off for a moment, “You know, I was one who does all work on rock farm in Stalliongrad.”

“Oh, oh! I used to work on a rock farm!” Pinkie blurted out.

To say Steel Hoof was amused doesn’t do justice to his expression. “You?! This little pink pony worked on Rock Farm? Ha! And I am ballet primanova!” Steel Hoof’s boisterous laughter was mismatched by Pinkie Pie’s high-pitched giggling over the matter.

Once he settled down, Steel turned back to Big Macintosh, “I like you, I think. You know what it is to do real heavy lifting!”

Big Macintosh smiled at this, though he didn’t respond with much more than the usual, “Eeyup.”

===============================================================================

Rainbow Dash was not particularly difficult to find, eating lunch at the Ponyville café. The cyan pegasus was finishing up her meal when a familiar voice slightly startled her, “Hi, Dashie!”

Before even turning around, Rainbow Dash replied, “Hey, Pinkie Pie.” When she did turn to face Pinkie, she was met with a menagerie of unexpected faces. Her mouth still full from her last bite, she asked, “Hey, Pinkie, who’re your friends?”

“They’re new to Ponyville, so I thought I’d show them around!” She had seemed to forget why they wanted to see Dash specifically.

Rainbow Dash looked at the group as though they were lined up for inspection. Finally, a smile cracked across her face after she looked over the lot, “Woah, cool clothes!” Master Plan appreciated the compliment, until he saw Kataro, beaming with pride, and realized her comment was aimed at him. His eccentric choice in clothing may not have been all bad after all.

“Thank you, Rainbow Dash; I wish my friends here could share the sentiment!” Master Plan did not appreciate being bad-mouthed by his associate, especially inaccurately.

“Well, I think it looks cool. Maybe not quite awesome, but still cool.” She turned to the others, “so, what brings you guys to Ponyville?”

“We’re looking for Twilight,” Master Plan responded, “and yourself. You are the element of loyalty, correct?”

“And the fastest flier in all of Equestria!” Dash barked with pride. “If you guys are looking for a show, look no further!”

Master Plan didn’t have time for her showmanship. “I have a ‘job’ you can help with, but we’ll talk about that later; first I’d like to meet Twilight.”

“Sure, she’s in her library. It’s the big tree over there.”

Pinkie suddenly broke out in a panic “Dashie, Rarity told me Twilight didn’t want to be disturbed!”

“Relax, Pinkie, it’s no big deal. I go visit Twilight when she’s studying all the time, it’ll be fine.” Rainbow Dash’s words seemed enough to change Pinkie’s demeanor.

“Oh, yeah! Okay guys, let’s go!”

“Catch you later!” Dash called out as the group headed toward the library.

When they approached the library, not a sound could be heard within. Pinkie Pie ran up to the door, pounding on it with her face to get Twilight’s attention.

It certainly worked, within moments a lavender unicorn opened the door, clearly annoyed. The instant he saw her, Master Plan had connected the dots, and realized why she was the element of magic; in fact, he felt stupid for not realizing who he was looking for earlier. “Pinkie, I didn’t anypony tell you I’m busy? I’ve got some very important studies to do on the theory of magical-“ But before she could finish, Pinkie stepped aside, revealing the rest of her guests.

Twilight’s blushed in embarrassment for a moment before regaining her composure. “Hello, my name is-“

“Twilight Sparkle” Master Plan finished for her, receiving confused and suspicious looks from his compatriots.”I’ve travelled very far to find you.” This made Twilight’s face turn a much redder shade, unsure what this stranger was implying. “You are the element of magic, correct?”

Twilight’s embarrassment was gone almost instantly as she beamed with pride. Once, she would have felt guilty admitting to just that much, but her escapades with a certain blue showpony taught her to show a little pride in her accomplishments. “That’s right, as well as the personal student to Princess Celestia!”

This was an unexpected development, however, though Master Plan realized it shouldn’t have been. It was one thing to befriend the gentle elements of harmony, but he would have some trouble swaying one of Celestia’s watchdogs. “My name is Master Plan,” he responded, “and these are my associates; Steel Hoof, Royal Valor, and Kataro.”

“Oh, wow! I never expected another zebra to come to Ponyville!” Twilight’s eyes lit up when she saw Kataro.

Kataro, however, appeared very confused by this statement, “It is what you say here true? Another zebra lives here, with you?”

“Well, not with me. Zecora lives in the Everfree forest!”

Though it was incredibly brief, Master Plan saw an intense flash of emotion in Kataro’s eyes. He turned to his companions, “I’m afraid I must go, my friends; I just remembered some pressing errands.” Master Plan didn’t like the idea of one of his allies going off without explaining where they were going or why, but he could see in Kataro’s eyes that he wouldn’t be able to stop him anyway.

“Okie dokie lokie! See ya later!” Pinkie Pie’s obliviousness to the tension helped it ease away.

“So, what was it you wanted?” Twilight inquired of her visitors.

“Well, I’ve heard a lot about the elements of harmony, and I just wanted to meet them face to face during my stay here.” Master Plan’s attention returned to the matter at hand.

“Will you ponies be staying long?”

“We may be, yes. We were heading to Canterlot, but I wanted to meet a few friends before then, and I think Ponyville may be the perfect place to stay in the meantime.”

“Well, you all seem nice enough,” Twilight smiled. “I hoped we can be good friends as well.”

“Yes,” Master Plan did his best to keep a sinister grin from spreading across his face, “that would be just perfect.”

=================================================================================

Despite his namesake, Well Rested always appeared as though he would pass out. He watched his newest guest sleepily as she signed her name into the lectern. The small white unicorn with a light green mane smiled, passing back the book after cheerfully dotting the i's.

"Miss, Cleric?" He looked up from the lectern back at her, as though to confirm he had pronounced the painfully simple name correctly. "Room number 7; take a left at the end of the hall."

The mare sighed once she entered the room, and slowly trotted toward the window. She was surprised at how beautiful Ponyville was; she had decided that she would probably spend her next vacation in this peaceful little town. However she was here now on business, an assignment unlike any she had undertaken before. Sir Justice had predicted that their targets would travel to this quaint town, and she had indeed heard rumors of new ponies that matched exactly that description.

She laid down on her bed and sighed again, thinking of the trials that likely lay ahead. This mission would not be easy, and she had a feeling that somepony was going to get hurt before this was all over...

End Chapter 5