The Last Keeper of Harmony

by Rammy

Origin of the Keepers

"I'm not one for mistakes, but isn't that form Spike's?" A zebra rhymed as she stared into her cauldron.

"Why, Zecora, I do believe you are right... and in only two days?" Harmony answered heading out the carved-out tree home.

Once he stepped out the sounds of Zecora's chanting and bubbling cauldron faded and the sounds of the Everfree Forest rose. He stood patiently looking down the most likely path that Spike would be coming down.

Slowly the forms of Twilight and Spike rose out of the mists. Harmony sat down comfortably and waited until they joined him. He stay that way even once Twilight and Spike stood before him. They eyed each other waiting for anyone to speak up. The silence grew, closing in on all sides just like the forest around them. Harmony seemed content while Spike and Twilight shifted their eyes around. Even after all these years neither were very comfortable in the Everfree.

"It's good to see you both Bearer of Magic and my little brother." Both Spike and Twilight jumped a bit at the sound of Harmony’s greeting. "I would have like to have talked inside but as Zecora is currently working on a very sensitive and dangerous potion so we must do it out here." A small explosion and a puff of green smoke poured out of Zecora hut to prove Harmony's point.

"We could go to the Castle of The Royal Pony Sisters." Twilight responded, confused. She was really wondering why they had to me out in desolate location.

"I really don't want to taint that place with the tale I'm about to speak." His eyes darkened. Twilight instinctively gulped a little. How could that place get further tainted?

"Now, Bearer of Magic, Spike, listen carefully," he eyed her pulling out a quill and parchment. He shook his head slowly. "None of that. This tale is not to be recorded down. I suggest to use your amazing intellect and memorize it in your head as best you can. I will speak of it only once to you and only because of your ascended status." He turned to Spike staring deep in his eyes. Spike started to squirm a bit under the stare before Harmony spoke again. "Good the built up frustration and anger has left you, for now. I know how we can fix that, brother, but sadly not today."

Spike looked annoyed that twice now that Harmony publicly had used 'brother' to refer to him but he didn't have time to respond before Twilight spoke the question. "Why are you calling him 'brother,' and why you keep calling me 'Bearer of Magic' and not Twilight?"

Harmony thought for a moment chewing on what was the best way to deflect the question. "Not yet. There is a good reason for me delaying answering and I promise that it will be soon. It would take a bit to answer, and I need to set the groundwork first."

---

I pass to you the tale of The Dark One and the Keepers of Harmony.

In time memorial, long before the time of Celestia and Luna, even further back before Discord when the world was young there was harmony. The races that inhabited our world are things of legends now only a few of these races, Elder races, remain. You know of two of them personally. One them being the Alicorns. However, things shifted and like a bowl of water disturbed harmony can sometimes be disrupted by change or even lost.

The shift, you may ask? The Younger races appeared. They are in a way descended from the Elder races hence the title for them "Younger races." You, Bearer of Magic, are, by blood, a member of the Younger races... the ponies, griffons, minotaurs to name a few. The Younger Races were... raw, unfocused, and not yet in harmony. Like all newborns unsure of their place and curious to the point of accidental self harm. The Elder races decided to guide the younger races for they saw in them a potential greater than themselves if only they were in harmony.

But, there was one… One that thought they should not. His name is forever gone. None remain that remember his real name, and all records were swept clean. He now goes by many ‘Titles’: Dark One, Chaos Bringer, EldersBane... ugh... The ‘Dark One’ hated the Younger races and their potential. He felt that the Elder races shouldn't being teaching the Younger races anything that they should instead should take everything they could from them. In his pride, he felt that the Elder races were superior and of the Elder races, his own was even greater. To him they should subjugate the younger for they were weak in his eyes and not worthy of this ‘potential’ the others saw in them.

Dark magic, brrr.... it’s what ails the world, and it’s the greatest achievement that this 'creature' created. It was destructive, manipulative, corruptive, disharmonious. It brought great pain to this world so much that they tried to persuade him to stop his experimentations. What they didn't know was he was beyond that. The dark magic had warped him. He only went further into his madness, further corrupting the Younger races and the world. So it was decided that something drastic needed to be done. For the first time the Elder races knew war. It caused great devastation.

In the waning days of the war, in great desperation, as the ‘Dark One’ was winning, quite soundly, the greatest casters of each of the races came together. They cast a mammoth spell that would imprison the ‘Dark One’. The spell they wove was none that world had seen nor I suspect will ever again. Sadly, they could only seal the ‘Dark One’ away, his power was so great. As you know when a caster of a spell dies even so does the spell unless there is an anchor that can hold the spell. Enchantments which are spells with anchors can hold spells longer but even those can fade over time it not properly taken care of. As the Elder Races faded so would the enchantment that held the ‘Dark One’ allowing his influence to seep out. The reason for this is intentional as they knew that it would be impossible to maintain the enchantment forever as not only would it naturally weaken over time the ‘Dark One” would fight against it from within.

To nullify this they put something else in the spell one that could destroy his power permanently bit by bit. As an Elder race diminished to the point of leaving this plane a child of that race would be born. But not of ordinary means but by the magic of a spell. The child would be imbued with the magic of harmony a power that would guide the Younger races to the harmony they should have been. They also would permanently seal part of the ‘Dark One's’ power. These beings born of magic to bring back harmony were known as Keepers of Harmony.

In rage, as the ‘Dark One’ was being imprisoned, he cursed his own race. Though this act greatly weakened him but he vowed that that as his prison weakened he would also curse the Younger races that each Keeper was charged over. And so he was imprisoned to await final judgment when the power of harmony once again flowed across this world.

---

“Now, I think you are familiar with the curse that came upon the ponies. King Sombra and Queen Chrysalis are the embodiment of that curse. I know that you think that Nightmare Moon was as well except that what took over Luna is known as a Nightmare. Nightmares and Wendigos and examples of abominations that the ‘Dark One’ created to subjugate the Younger races in general. Fear and jealousy are great ways to control a population into submission.

"As for the number of keepers... Twelve races took part in the spell so there are twelve in total. There are only three of the twelve left. I being one of them, the eleventh to be exact. I am the Alicorn Keeper of Harmony. My job is to bring harmony to the pony races and seal the ‘Dark One's’ ability to affect them. As for who the other two are, now is not the time to discuss that." Harmony had now finished and was answering the barrage of questions that Twilight was now asking. Though he was deflecting quite a few of them. Spike, though, sat there staring off, blankly, oblivious to both alicorns.

He is deliberately leaving something out. I know it. It has something to do with me, but what is it?

“One of the terms for a police pony is ‘keepers of the peace.’"

"So then Keepers of Harmony are..."

"Same concept."

He looked at me weirdly both when he talked about this 'Dark One' and mentioning that we knew of two elder races but only mentioned one. Of course there is also the unknown third one.

"Whoa, whoa, take a few deep breaths, and say that more slowly now." Harmony shook his head, chuckling at the now increasingly hyper pony.

What is he not saying?

Comments

[beirirangu]

I'm just going to say this: Spike is possibly the last of a pre-dragon race of that second old-race... but that's just the first guess I had while reading that the part where he looked 'weirdly' at spike

[Rammy]

4706010
Hmmmmm I think you might have your answer in the next chapter which one I get edited will be up very very soon