The National Treasures of Equestria

by Robert Emerald Fountain

The First Clue

Everyone was up early the next morning to start climbing. The journey was treacherous, due to massive crevices, strong winds, and slick ice patches. Numerous times, someone would lose their footing and nearly fall off. Luckily, the ropes held strong and no gear was lost. It took three and a half weeks to reach the summit. At the top, they found a loose rock which covered a small hole. Ocellus reached in and pulled out a pyramid made of granite. There were markings cut into the square base, but no one could tell what it was supposed to be. It appeared to be part of a horseshoe surrounded by leaves. There was also a piece of parchment in the hole. Yona read the message after Gallus pulled it out.

"The chamber can be found under the Everfree. Look under the tree we planted and you will know where to head next."

No one knew what was being referenced in this message. Smolder decided to radio Celestia to see if she knew anything.

"The Pillars planted the Tree of Harmony. That's where Luna and I found the Elements of Harmony many years ago. They want you to look under the tree.", Celestia responded over the radio.

They did not hesitate to get off the mountain. There came a point when they could not climb down any further because there was nothing sturdy enough to hold a climbing anchor. The rocks were too sharp to allow for rappelling, so they had to parachute down. After touching down in the snow, they boarded the train and set off for Ponyville. Neighsay spoke up that he was ready to learn about another race, and Yona stepped in.

"My leader, Prince Rutherford originally tried to make a peaceful delegation to Equestria. In the beginning, he and some of the other yaks reacted negatively to anything that they had even the slightest issue with. He tried to declare war, but Pinkie Pie managed to tell him how great Equestria really is. He realized how wrong he had been and called off the declaration of war, thus forming a friendly bond with the ponies."

"That is a very dramatic decscription that you have given me. I am sorry for snapping at him when I originally inspected the School of Friendship.", Neighsay replied calmly.

Once the train arrived in Ponyville, everyone stopped at Twilight's castle so Flurry could say hi to her aunt. Then, they began their journey to the Everfree.