To Equestria And Beyond (Rewrite In Progress)

by NightFurySpeedey8156

Chapter 22: The Discovery Of Destiny

"Okay guys, you know the rules! On your mark, get set, go!"

Fury ran as fast as he could in his current state. He was racing, but not Rainbow Dash. But a new flier. And a new princess.

"Come on Twilight! You're catching up to that cat!" Rainbow called out.

"Oh no she's not! Catch this tailwind!" Fury said as he shot away, blasting powerful winds in his wake. Twilight had only had her wings for a few weeks now and she was still getting used to them. And while she was determined to get the hang of using them, things weren't going as smoothly as she had hoped.

"Woah… Oof!" She grunted as she lost control under Fury's powerful tailwind and crashed into a tree. Fury turned around and skidded to a stop at the base.

"Twilight!" Rainbow called out and flew to her friend's help. "Are you okay?"

"Ugh. Yeah, although my wings got a bit ruffled up." Twilight said. "I can't handle those crazy winds."

"Well, you'll have to learn Twi. Every pegasus knows that if you can't fly in strong winds, you won't make it. Just ask Fluttershy." Rainbow whispered that last part.

"Rainbow Dash is right, this isn't gonna be easy to master. I had to go through the same things when I was getting used to my speed as a kid. It wasn't easy, but I still had to get it done. And besides, I'm gonna have to do what you're doing eventually. What, with my different forms being at my command, I'm gonna have to learn how to use these." Fury said as he transformed into his giant falcon form and flapped his wings a bit.

"Hmmmm," Rainbow Dash hummed. "How well can you fly, Fury? I wonder who would win the most awkward flier award?" Rainbow smirked.

"Hey!" Twilight said unamused.

"Barely at all. I'm gonna have to build up this skill from the ground up. Twilight at least had some knowledge of how to fly thanks to her having books about it, but I'm gonna have to start from scratch like a baby bird." The black falcon exclaimed.

"Well then," Rainbow said. "You two are gonna have to keep on working out. Remember, you gotta practice every day! Don't shirk it off. I had to go all out with my training when I joined The Wonderbolts, and you're gonna have to do the same! Don't make me have to drag you to do it like I had to with Fluttershy when we were kids."

"Dash, I get that, but how would training like a pegasus work when I've got these." Fury said as he spread his big wings. "I mean, who has a wingspan this big and can train just like a pegasi?"

Rainbow rolled her eyes.

"You're not completely like a pegasus, but you have to soar and flap just like a pegasus. Even if you have to train yourself, if you follow the basics of pegasus flight, you can adapt it to your own animal form. You got that?" Rainbow asked.

"I guess you're right, but I'm not gonna be happy about it." Fury said.

Hoo boy, this is gonna be a wild ride! Fury said to himself as he looked up into the air.

"Well, regardless, it's your turn to race. This time, though, you're gonna race a pro, that being me. Normally I don't like to say this, but don't worry about losing, just give it your all. And I mean that. Don't quit even if you feel like it. You have to build up your instincts and muscles. Got it?" Rainbow said almost threateningly.

"Yeah, I guess so." Fury said.

"I can't hear you!"

"Yes I will do it!"

"Good now get your butt up here and get ready!"

They both got on the ground and readied themselves. Twilight would keep track this time.

"On your mark, get set…" Twilight said.

Fury was a bit nervous, his mind a little scattered as he thought about what could go wrong. Just keep your eye on the goal , Fury! You can do it.

"GO!!!" And they were off! Well, at least Rainbow Dash was as Fury was still trying to get himself together.

"C'mon Fury, get up in the air!" Rainbow called. Fury snapped out of his stunned state and started running, opening his wings and flapping them.

"C'mon Fury, just a little harder!" Fluttershy spoke. With her encouraging words reaching his ears, he flapped his wings harder and harder until he was in the air.

Okay, step one is complete. Fury thought. Now step two. Outfly Rainbow!

He started to build up speed to reach Rainbow. Unfortunately for him, there just had to be a few towers and trees in his way since Rainbow loved a good challenge.

He kept on dodging every one of those obstacles with a few close calls.

"Come on slowpoke is that all you got?" Rainbow called out to him.

"Oh, I'm just getting started, Rainbow Crash!" Fury replied as he gradually accelerated. He finally had a clear way to reach his opponent. He was slowly gaining on her.

"Who's a slowpoke now?" Fury smugly said.

"Still you!" Rainbow said as she turned to the right, luring Fury into a cloud.

"Ahhhhh! Oof!" He said, bumping into the said cloud.

Rainbow simply kept going.

Dang it. She's not making this easy for me. I'll show her I can go all out though.

Fury thought to himself. He dislodged himself from the cloud and started to gain height, getting above some of the shorter towers surrounding him. He soon reached his ideal height and prepared himself.

I may not be as fast as her in a straight line, but what she doesn't know is that falcons are the fastest birds in the world in a dive!

"Alright Dash, you wanna see speed? Well, here you go!" Fury called out as he tucked his wings at his sides and dove down. The wind whipped around him as his streamlined body cut through the air, the whistling air filling his ears. He came closer and closer to the blue pegasus by the second, letting out a loud screech before pulling out of his dive and shooting past her.

"Huh, I wonder what that was- FURY!" Rainbow cried out as the bird of prey shot right past her going faster than she could even comprehend.

"Ha ha ha now you're a slowpoke! Catch ya later, Lamebow Dash!" Fury cockily said.

Fury was now in the lead. He was going faster than he could imagine. Everything was a blur. He felt the rush of wind as he approached the speed of sound.

Yes, I'm almost to the end! Almost!

Unfortunately, something unexpected turned up. He started to feel sorer, feel tenser, and feel more pain.

"Ow ow ow ow ow! What's going on?!"

His muscles started to tighten up. In his panic, he tried to move to the sides. But he went a bit too far. For he had an obstacle in his way. A rather large, tall, and beautiful obstacle.

Oh, come on! Of all the things I have on my way, it has to be her!

Fury thought, for ahead of him was none other than his fillyfriend, Luna. She was walking along a path through the gardens unknowing of what was headed for her.

"Hm, there's nothing better than taking a walk through these gardens to catch my breath." She said to herself while humming a tune before her ears perked up to a peculiar noise.

"Wait, by the stars, is there a bird coming my way?" Luna wondered.

"GET OUT OF THE WAY, LUNA!" Fury warned her but it was too late.

"Fury?" She asked right before the feline-turned-falcon made contact with her body. Launching the two through all the bushes, flowers, and trees. It would take a while to clean that up.

"Ow. My head." Fury said as he was now in his normal speed shifter form, having lost all his energy.

What made it even worse for him was someone's gloating.

"Heck yeah! Score one for the coolest pegasus in Equestria! Go Dash, it's your birthday." She said as she gave a victory dance in her honor.

I was so close. Wait, speaking of close…

He looked down to see his fillyfriend who had an unamused look on her face.

"Would you please let me go, my love?" she said a bit unamused while lying on the ground.

"I don't think my body wants to. I feel so stiff, it's like bones are glued to one position like an action figure. Gahhhh!" He said, trying to move his limbs. It seemed what he felt with his wings transferred to his normal form.

Then, blue energy flowed around Fury as Luna softly levitated him away from herself. Luna showed concern at this point.

"Are you feeling alright, my lightning bug?" Luna asked.

"I wish I could say I was, moonpie, but I'm not. I don't think trying to fly was such a good idea. I can't move without feeling like my muscles are being pulled like rubber bands. Aarrgh!" He said before letting out a growl at the stinging pain.

By this point Twilight finally caught up to him. She saw how bad of a state he was in.

"Fury!"

Rainbow came by not realizing he was in a bad state. "Sorry Fury, but I guess I was just 20% faster than you today!" She gloated.

Twilight looked to Rainbow.

"This is no time for games, Rainbow. Fury's in pain right now and can't move!"

Rainbow's face instantly turned concerned as she realized what was going on with Fury.

Luna and Fury explained to Twilight and Rainbow what happened.

Twilight tried to see what condition it was in her flying manual. But Rainbow seemed less worried.

"Oh, I see," Rainbow said. "Yep, it looks like you got some cramps. You tried to go too fast for what your body can handle right now."

"Is there any way you can fix this? My body's on fire!" Fury yelled.

"Alright alright, calm down!" Rainbow said. "Okay, for newbie fliers who get cramps, it's usually best to apply some wing balm and massage it in."

"Wing balm? What is that, like lip balm?" Fury asked.

"I guess as a non-flier, you could say that. It will make the pain lessen." Rainbow said as she got a kit of balm. She carried it close to her in case of pain.

"Okay, now just hold still while I apply this to you." Rainbow instructed. Fury did as she asked and stayed as still as possible as she applied the balm to Fury's limbs. From his knees to his shoulders, she rubbed it all over him.

"Alright, now that it's been applied, it has to be massaged in. Now I usually apply some pressure when I do it to myself so I'll let somepony who is more gentle handle this." She said as she looked at the princess next to her.

"With pleasure." Luna said. She strongly gripped his tightened muscles. She used her alicorn strength to really get into those sore muscles.

"Gahhhhh!!!" Fury screamed out. Before suddenly relaxing into the feeling. "That hit the spot." Fury said with relief. Then he did something nopony saw coming, he started to purr again. By now the rest of the mane 6 had shown up and were rather amused by Fury's display.

"Awwww, you purr like a kitten. That's simply adorable!" Fluttershy squealed.

"He is rather cute when he does that." Luna cooed.

Fury was a little embarrassed at having this soft side exposed to others. "Awww come on, it's not that big of a deal."

"Well to me, you are still as lovely as ever." Luna kissed him, which made the pain go away for him.

But just when he was about to relax…

"Guys! You have to come to Ponyville!" Spike cried out panting while running.

"We're a little busy helping Fury with his muscles."

"Guys, Ponyville is literally being wrapped up with a bunch of thorny vines!" Spike cried out.

"Wait what?!" Twilight knew she had to check it out.

"You six go on ahead." Luna said. "I'll take care of Fury."

"Yeah, I'll sit this one out for a bit. I'll catch up as soon as I can!"

Twilight nodded and ran for Ponyville. "Let's go girls!" All the Mane Six ran for Ponyville.

–

"How dreadful!" Rarity cried out at the sight of their village.

Ponyville's ground was being invaded by plants sprouting from underground. Everypony was panicking.

"I've heard many stories from Granny but not something like this. What's causin' all this ruckus?" Applejack asked.

"I have no idea, but we have to get this under control!" Twilight said "Let's split up, we have to make sure that Ponyville survives another day!" The Mane Six then split up across Ponyville, heading in all different directions to try and hold back the invasion.

–

At Sweet Apple Acres, Applejack and the rest of the apple family were trying to stop these vines from taking over.

"C'mon y'all, put your backs into it!" Applejack called.

Her whole family fought with hoes, rakes and so forth and destroyed many vines.

And yet they kept on coming.

"Gee, mighty persistent these fellers are." Granny Smith said. "What kinda craziness is causing all this?" She said as she sliced a vine with her cane.

"I don't know but something chaotic… or someone." Applejack now had a good suspicion of who could have done this.

Applejack ran off.

"Where are ya going, lass?" Granny Smith angrily asked.

"I'm gonna take care of this whole vine situation. Keep on fightin'!"

Granny Smith reluctantly agreed and with Big Mac and even Apple Bloom fought on.

For Applejack, she met in the courtyard of the village and it seems her friends were in a hurry to get there too.

"Girls, I figured out who-"

"Yeah we figured, cowgirl!" Rainbow said. "Discord's probably laughing at all these actions."

Twilight nodded as she brought over their box of Elements of Harmony.

"We're going to summon him right now to give us an answer!" Twilight said.

Even Fluttershy agreed to it although she looked a little reluctant. "Just don't be too harsh on him."

Everypony gathered around a circle and they used their elements. Out of it emerged a serpentine entity. The lord of Chaos himself, Discord, who was singing a song as he stood in a shower.

"Winter wrap up, winter wrap u- Oh my!" He wailed as he realized where he was. "You know, it's rather rude to peep on somepony in their shower."

"I'd say it's ruder that you turned this town into a chaotic frenzy!" Twilight scolded him. "You listen here Discord! Turn this place back to normal and we'll let you go back!"

Discord simply laughed at this.

"Oh come on, don't you see what's going on in this village is interesting. I mean you Twilight should be intrigued by these new unseen vines!"

"Why you-"

"Now now. No need to fight, everyone. Discord is just messing around." Fluttershy turned to Discord. "Please take this more seriously. You're not helping your case."

"Why would I need help with my case? I could be my own case!" Discord turned into a briefcase.

The Mane Six were losing their patience with him.

"Listen to me you big snake guy! You're gonna fix this whole mess right now or else!" Rainbow yelled at him.

"Oh come on. Aren't I an innocent sweet guy?" He said giving puppy eyes.

Rainbow was about to respond with something vulgar for ponies to say, when someone else came.

"Hang on, everyone! Let me see if I can help!" It was Night Fury. "Listen girls. This guy can be really annoying, I know. But as a prankster myself and someone who was falsely accused, I know sometimes people assume the worst out of you. I think we owe him a chance. Let me talk to him. Please Twilight?" Fury begged.

Twilight thought about it for a little but nodded.

Fluttershy seemed to appreciate this. "Thank you, Fury."

Fury walked up to Discord.

"Hello um Discord was it?"

"The one and only." He said proudly.

"Okay dude, listen. I may not be able to stop them from turning you back to stone, but what I can do is give you a bit of a better chance of it not happening. So, it's your call what you do or say, but just keep in mind, you've got a lot on the line." Fury whispered the last part as he gestures towards Fluttershy. "Do you want to never be able to talk to her again?"

Discord looked a little more serious although it was hard to tell what his true feelings were. He laughed. "Ah the old feelings trick huh."

"Yep." Fury responded knowing Discord liked to hide his feelings.

"Well since you're being annoying about all this feeling stuff, I will do something more interesting. I'll help you rid this town of these vines."

Fury smirked. "I'm glad you see it our way, you big noodle." He chuckled. "Now that we have that settled, we have to find out where this stuff is coming from."

Twilight spoke up.

"Well, with how… Well, wild these vines look, I'd only have to assume that the origin is coming from…"

–

"The Everfree Forest." The group of friends stood before the entrance to the Everfree Forest, the thorny vines very well emerging from said opening in the thick treeline.

Rarity gulped at the sight.

"You sure about this, darlings?" Rarity said with a bit of worry. "Aren't there better places to find the problem?"

"Well Discord suggested to us this is the place." Fury said. "We have no choice but to trust him, unfortunately."

"Ugh!" Rainbow said. "Let's get this over with. And if Discord is lying, then I'll shove his face into his-"

"Rainbow!" Fluttershy scolded. "Please let's just get going."

The Mane Six and Night Fury proceeded into the woods. Luckily having been there before, they were able to navigate their way down the path to the castle.

Of course they had to sneak past the odd manticore or cockatrice along the way and even take on a rather large Cragodile. But with Fury, nothing was too bad.

"Hoowee, are we lucky to have made friends with you, Fury. You can take on whatever comes your way." Applejack said.

"Pfft, c'mon AJ, this is nothing! I've faced worse."

"Are you sure, darling? Because I must say that this is pretty bad."

"Once you take on an Ursa minor face to face and survive, basically everything is a cakewalk for you." Fury boasted. Rarity's eyes widened at Furys calm demeanor when speaking about such an experience, she had never realized how much he probably had to go through before they met.

"My goodness, darling, you are indeed impressive. I think I have underestimated how much of a capable warrior you are."

He chuckled. "Thanks, but just so we're clear, I'm taken."

The rest of the Mane Six except Twilight laughed at this to Rarity's embarrassment.

"I wasn't trying to flirt with you! I swear!" Rarity cried out.

"Don't worry I get it, I'm irresistible." He said, flicking his tail.

"Girls over here! I think we made it!" Twilight called out.

"Woah, check it out. This place has to be where the vines are coming from. Look, they seem to be sprouting out of that cave." Fury pointed out. "Gee it's a pretty cool castle. A shame that no one lives there anymore."

"You'll find out there's probably a reason for that." Twilight said. "And even more so now with these vines. Keep a look out for any vines."

The group walked to the castle and it seemed peaceful.

And yet Fury thought he heard some sound slithering. Was it a snake?

They kept on walking.

"Hee hee that tickles!" Pinkie Pie said. "It must be some snake."

"Wait tickles?" Fury asked. "You sure that was just a snake?"

"Hmmm, maybe a large work? Or a legless lizard or maybe- Ahhhhhhh!" Pinkie was grabbed by a large vine that threw her to a tree.

Pound!

"Or maybe it was a spooky ghost pretending to be a snake!"

"Everyone! Get ready to fight the vines" Twilight called out.

Pinkie had her cannon. Applejack had her rope. Rainbow had her flight. Rarity and Twilight had their magic. And Fluttershy had her running.

But for Night Fury when he fought, he was ready to use his transformations to stop them.

He transformed into a Cragodile and was ready to fight off the vines. He used his powerful jaw to chomp through the tough vines, minding the thorns so he wouldn't get pricked.

Although these thorns were harder to chew threw then he thought.

"Wow, these things are harder to kill than I thought!" He had to chomp on them hard while also trying to dodge the vines. It was not too hard but not easy either with his large body. Soon enough, all of the vines were cleared out and everyone could finally check if Pinkie was ok.

"Okay, now that the battle's over… Pinkie, you broken at all?" Fury asked, changing back to his original form.

"Nope! The only thing broken is my concentration. I forgot what that vine looked like!" Pinkie said.

Fury rolled his eyes but with a smile.

Never change Pinkie. Never change.

Soon after all the commotion, a strong wind came from above. The group looked up to see Luna flying in.

"Fury, I heard the noise, are you okay!?" She asked.

"It's okay, Luna, I'm fine." Fury reassured her. Luna let out a sign of relief.

"Oh thank the stars, I'm glad!" She said, hugging him. "Have you found the source of the vines?"

"Yes, they seem to be coming from that cave." Twilight pointed out

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's go check out what's down in that cave." Fury said as he extended his claws and slid down the side of the wall that led into the large dip in the ground.

"Oof!" He landed in a large cave. "Huh? What is this place?" He looked ahead and saw that the vines that he was just fighting off were wrapped around something. From the skinny limbs and the protruding roots, it looked like a tree. But this tree looked different, it looked like it was made out of crystal.

"Wow! It almost looks like something from that Silverblue place." He admired the crystalline tree, if one can call it that. He felt a certain chill, at seeing this, as if he saw something otherworldly.

"Fury, what do you see down there?" Twilight called from above.

"Uuh, you guys might want to come and see this yourselves." He replied. Twilight, Luna and the mane six levitated down into the cave and gasped, they had never seen such a strange sight before.

"By Celestia, I have never seen something look so… divine!" Rarity looked at it with awe.

"Does anyone know what this thing is?" Applejack asked.

Twilight walked up to it to investigate it. She took a few steps towards it but was immediately repelled when a vine wrapped around her hoof. She pulled back and blasted it in half with her magic, rubbing her hoof to soothe the rope burn from the rough surface. As if the vines could sense danger, they began to wrap the tree tighter in their grasp, almost completely blocking it from sight. She took a moment to think on what to do with the tree and remembered one of the flashbacks she had received when Zecora gave her that strange potion.

As long as that magic remains, the Tree Of Harmony will continue to control and contain all that grows here.

She heard in her mind, Celestia's voice echoing within.

"You okay, Twilight?!" Pinkie Pie asked. "Do you need any cookies?"

Twilight went back to her senses and brushed herself off. "I'm fine guys. But I do wonder…" She turned to Night Fury.

"Say, do you remember what Zecora said? And do you feel some magic within you too?"

Now that Fury thought about it, he did feel something familiar but otherworldly.

"Now that you mention it, yeah. Usually I can't feel my inner mana flow unless I'm using my speed or transforming. But here, it's like there's some sort of alternative force triggering that flow. Like some sort of passive charge." He explained. "It feels a little… strange."

Twilight nodded. She decided to look at the tree more. She saw places that looked like it grew crystal plants.

"Look this is nice and all, but where are we going with all of this?" Rainbow asked impatiently. "We're not scientists finding a new plant!"

"Hang on Dash, maybe I can figure this out." Fury said. He stepped forward to inspect the tree and saw that there were certain parts of the tree that had indentations, six of them. Almost as if there was something meant to be placed there. Then he got an idea.

"Hang on… If this is the Tree Of Harmony, and there are Elements Of Harmony… Maybe they're linked together somehow?" He explained. "Look, there are six indentations in the tree. One at the ends of each of the five branches and one in the middle, but they look really different from how the elements look."

Twilight nodded at his idea. "Yes. Yes. It all makes sense!" She said with a great big smile. "Did we just discover the origins of the Elements of Harmony?! I have to write this down! Good work Fury!"

While Twilight was working, Rarity proceeded to ask.

"Have you or your people heard of this tree before? You seem like you recognize it."

"Never, but it does look familiar in aesthetic to somewhere I've been before. When me and Luna went exploring for those artifacts for the museum, we found someplace called the Silver Blue city. It was some sort of ancient utopia that was linked to not only my kind, but the one who gave birth to our species. I can't say that I've heard of this, but it does look like it has something to do with those Elements Of Harmony." Fury said.

"And I think I know how! We have to give the tree the Elements Of Harmony!" Twilight said rather enthusiastically. The group looked at Twilight with a mix of expressions before they decided to speak up.

"Woah woah woah, how are we supposed to protect Equestria?" Rainbow Dash protested.
"How are we meant to reign Discord in if we can't use the elements to turn him back to stone?" Rarity added. Applejack then stepped up.

"Twilight, The Elements Of Harmony… They're what keep us connected no matter what." She said, hanging her head. "If we put them in the tree, wouldn't we activate some sort of chaotic event?!"

"I guess it's worth a shot." Fury said. "Besides, I am curious what will happen. Maybe there will be a clue revealing some of people's history, maybe even a clue to where my parents could be. I still need to find them, who knows how long I have left until they get served the death toll." Fury hung his head.

Luna nodded. "I agree with Night Fury, this is mysterious even to me. And perhaps these newfound answers could prove useful."

Twilight nodded to Fury's suggestions. "We'll see what happens. Three, two. One!"

Bzzzzzzz

The crystals glowed and combined forming a bright light before combining with the tree. Which produced a bit of a quake that unsettled everypony. The tree glowed brightly as the elements settled in their spots, shining more and more until it burst with energy, finally ridding the cave of the vines that sat within. Rainbow magic flowed along the vines, completely erasing them as they followed them through the forest and into Ponyville. Soon enough, all of the vines were destroyed and the Tree Of Harmony was fully revealed.

"Woah, check it out. I am definitely sure that this tree looks like the Silver Blue city." Fury said.

"I wonder why that could be?" Twilight said.

Fury pondered.

"Well I remember an ancient legend our elders used to tell us. They mentioned that in ancient times, a powerful living tree had a will of its own. It was rumored to have the power to make one almost godlike in abilities. To give a Speed Shifter powers beyond what one could usually hope for. It was also rumored that this tree had the power to create life. Organic, Magical, or even Spiritual! almost as if it was the embodiment of mother nature itself. And some even say it is the source of Speed Shifter's powers!"

Twilight was intrigued by this. It showed that this tree was not just of use for ponykind but even some far off race like Speed Shifters. The tree then let out a blast that revealed a bunch of balled up vines, tearing away at them slowly. The group looked on in surprise as there was somepony inside, a very powerful somepony.

"Who is that?!" Applejack asked.

"Whoever it is, they have huge wings. Almost as big as mine when I turn into a falcon. And it also looks like they have a horn as well…" Fury looked closely. "Is it another alicorn?!"

"That's not just any alicorn, my sweet. It's Celestia! So this was where she disappeared off to?!" Luna exclaimed.

They saw the princess of the sun walking towards them. "So you have found the Tree of Harmony, I see. Are you intrigued by its power? This tree is a state secret that most ponies only think is in fairy tales." Celestia closed her eyes and looked to Luna. "My apologies, sister. I had to look after this ancient tree. I'm sure you remember when Starswirl the Bearded and the other Pillars entrusted us with these elements of harmony to defeat Discord."

Luna then softened up seeing how her sister was not just sightseeing.

"There is no need to apologize, sister mine. I am well aware of our responsibility to protect this sacred site." Luna said.

"Celestia, you're alright! Oh thank the stars you're alright!" Fury called out, hugging the solar goddess. He then realized what he just did and looked up to her, seeing her amused look. Fury blushed.

"Um, w-wait, I mean… Uuuuh…" He stuttered.

"Yes I am alright, Night Fury. Do not worry, we are close after all. Though perhaps do not hug me too tightly in front of my sister." She chuckled.

"Since it is my sister, do not fear. I am not jealous." Luna smiled, but perhaps she was slightly. "But if you do that too often, I might grow suspicious." Luna said, giving a devious chuckle. This did not help Fury's growing shade of red appearing on his cheeks.

"Yeah, I'll keep that in mind heh." Fury cleared his throat. "But anyways, do you know anything about these events going on?"

Celestia nodded.

"As a matter of fact I do." Celestia said. "It seems Discord planted these roots a long time ago. It seems before me and my sister defeated him long ago. And the lack of magic being emitted from the tree allowed them to sprout." Celestia said. That explanation was something that was both needed and not needed as The Mane Six were immediately triggered when they heard it.

"So he is behind all of this?!" Rainbow Dash yelled. "Please tell me we can turn him to stone now, we have a good reason to!"

Fluttershy and Fury had to hold her down before she flew straight to Discord.

"I'm afraid that reason is null and void. These seeds were planted thousands of years ago, so there was no telling when these were going to grow." Celestia spoke. Rainbow Dash landed on the ground and pouted, she was upset that she couldn't get some well needed "Therapy" from pummeling Discord.

"It was in the past. Discord has still not betrayed or anything like that for these seeds were here before his reformation. And anyways compared to what he could have done, this is nothing." Celestia said.

"That's true, he could have turned the entire town upside down if he wanted to." Fury pointed out.

"In fact his shenanigans may prove to be quite useful in shedding knowledge of this tree. Not just for us ponies, but even for Speed Shifters." Luna added.

"That's true too, he could help me find out where my parents are! And to see if the proof is in the pudding, how about we test it? Yo, Discord!" Fury called out. The chaos god popped into existence right next to him.

"You called?" He said, floating in a hammock that wasn't attached to anything. "Huh, look at this glitzy tree. It looks too fake and too perfect."

Ignoring his usual insults, Fury asked.

"So Discord, do you think you could help me with something?"

"Of course, what do you need?" Discord asked, grabbing a pen and paper out of thin air.

"I… I need you to show me where my parents are." Fury said, almost ashamed to ask.

"Awww, how cute." Discord said sarcastically. "Looking for mommy and daddy. What makes you think I can help you with them?"

"Because, from what I've heard there are rival Speed Shifters that are seeking dominance. I heard they are living somewhere quite dangerous but also active in energy. Since you know about these thorns and probably also about Speed Shifter civilization, you might be able to give us an idea of where they might be." Fury reasoned. "Please, Discord, this very well could be life or death for parents if I don't find them soon."

Although Discord still seemed reluctant at first, Fluttershy looked sadly into his eyes. "Please Discord, have a heart and help him. He did stand up for you after all"

Now this made Discord change his mind. "Fine, I guess if Fluttershy thinks it's a good idea. And I suppose I do owe you for defending me earlier." He said. He snapped his claws and a sort of portal appeared, it swirled and distorted as it took form.

"Speak in rhyme what you want to see into this viewing portal and it will appear before you." Discord instructed. Fury was rather confused as to why he had to speak in rhymes, but he didn't hesitate.

"Oh portal of viewing, show me what is mine. By revealing to me the location of my bloodline. Of valuable knowledge and rich inheritance, show me where they have taken my parents." He spoke. The portal didn't make any move for several seconds, which worried the desperate feline. But soon enough, the portal shifted in shape and opened up on a dark, scary looking forest.

"Yeesh, this place looks worse than The Everfree Forest." Rainbow Dash said.

"This must be The Cursed Forest that the Truther spoke of." Celestia added. The view shifted around the landscape, revealing more of the dark forest. Until it stopped and zoomed in on two shackled figures sitting next to a tree that made Fury tear up.

"Oh Obsidian, do you think this is the end for us?" One of them spoke. She looked like Fury, but had white coloring around her muzzle, paws, and tail. She looked like what ponies call a "Tuxedo cat".

"I'm sure he'll come for us, Black Ice. He'll come. We just have to trust in him for now." The other spoke. He had purple eyes and looked exactly like Fury, but had more rough fur and claws along with a chipped fang. The Mane Six, Celestia and Luna looked on in surprise as they saw them.

"Fury… are those who I think they are?" Twilight asked. The black feline sniffled before he spoke, clearly in a mixed state of happiness and sadness.

"Y-yeah. Everyone, I'd like you to meet Black Ice and Obsidian. My parents." He weeped as tears fell down his face. "I've missed them so much."

The other Mane Six looked with sympathy.

"Don't worry, at least they're still alive." Fluttershy said.

"ALRIGHT YOU TWO, GET BACK TO WORK!"

Crack!

"My wife hurt her leg. Please let her have a break."

"You can have a break when you finish moving the supplies. The chief has no time to waste. Now get your butts in motion! She can technically still move after all even if she feels like crying while doing so." The taskmaster laughed.

"No… NO! STOP, YOU'RE HURTING HER!" Fury called out, even though they couldn't hear him.

Obsidian seemed angry as it would take another two hours to finish that, if they were lucky. And yet he could do nothing in fear of reprisal.

"Don't let him get to you, I'll be okay. I've dealt with worse than this." She walked off as it hurt.

"Things will be better my dear. I promise." Obsidian said.

"Oh quit the sappy stuff, GET MOVING!" The taskmaster said, cracking his whip once more. This time, it hit Black Ice in the face.

"NO, STOP! DON'T DO THAT!" Fury cried as he tried to run for the portal, but the portal closed.

"And that does it for today's drama." Discord said. "A little over the top but it's okay. I can't use any more magic, it's all hazy at this point. It must be that forest."

Everypony was simply silent. But Fury had something to say first.

"Now… I'm going to make this clear to all of you, and only once." He said coldly. "This damage to my bloodline, the disrespect to my kind as a whole… will no longer be tolerated. Anything that is even meant as a joke about what has been seen, will be met with force that will make all of you fear me. This has officially gone over the line that I'm comfortable with. I will be dealing with this the way I see fit, and no way else. And if any of you, and I mean any of you see a problem with the way that I decide to deal with these disgusting, deplorable, wasted bits of flesh and blood and try to stop me… I suggest you make peace with your gods." Night Fury stormed off to the other side of the cave to cool off. Everyone around was in a state of shock and worry, they had never seen Fury talk so coldly. Luna and Celestia especially were worried, both for Fury's mental state and for anyone who would get in his way.

"Poor Night Fury, I can't imagine how he feels." Fluttershy said.

"Well I know one thing. If I want to keep my wings attached to my body, I'm gonna stay out of his way when this goes down." Rainbow said, shuddering slightly.

"Will he be alright, Celestia? What will he do now?" Twilight asked her mentor for guidance.

"Well, right now he needs time to cool off, afterwards he will probably want to go free his parents. Which will be dangerous even for him, and with his rage, he might be in great danger. We need some ponies to accompany him when he goes to this Cursed Forest." Celestia said.

"I must agree with you, sister, but only to a degree. Let us look at this from his perspective. I know from what he has seen today, he's probably wanting to do this on his own. He probably won't let any of us come with him, both because he doesn't want to put us in danger and because he wants to make his revenge personal. I can see the benefits of having him protected with a guard detail or by us ourselves just like you, Celestia. But with how he's feeling right now, he'd probably want to make this his problem to deal with, and his alone." Luna spoke.

Twilight sighed.

"If he does this alone, he's putting himself in serious danger. Even if he is powerful against ponies, I'm not sure how strong he is against other Speed Shifters who are probably far more experienced than him."

Luna replied.

"Perhaps, but he does have one thing they do not."

"What's that?"

"Captured parents." Luna replied. "All they probably want is power but that does not compare the power of love for one's family. Especially when that love is mixed with rage."

"Hmm, perhaps we should get Cadence into this. She would have some better insight into what Fury might do once he gets his chance." Twilight suggested. The two sisters nodded in agreement.

"I'll go find Spike and send her a message." Twilight said.

"Hey, um, not to be rude but aren't you forgetting about our giant tree buddy?" Pinkie said pointing to the tree. "It seems to have some big treasure chest nearby. Ooh, I bet it was some pirates!"

"We're inland, Pinkie, pirates can't go- Wait, a chest?" Twilight quickly went up to see a box with six keyholes in it.

"Oooh," Rarity said. "I wonder if there's treasure inside! Maybe Pinkie does have a point."

"But how are we supposed to open it?" Applejack asked.

"I have heard that helping certain creatures find the right way to go about life and handle friendship might give you a key. It seems there is one for each of you Mane Six." Celestia said.

"Hey, look! There's a paw mark on the top! I wonder who that's for?" Pinkie asked.

"Gee, I wonder who," Discord asked. "It's so difficult to wonder who that could be!"

"Okay okay, I get it! It's for me!" Fury called out. "But how could I be a part of opening this thing? I mean, you guys are the element bearers. Kindness, Loyalty, Generosity, Honesty, Laughter, and Friendship. How could I be in any sort of relation to this?" He asked.

Celestia pondered for a bit.

"Perhaps it is this. You, Night Fury, have been an invaluable help for the Mane Six. Not just for assistance but even your power. And from what I can guess, you Speed Shifters use the energy that this tree and the Elements use. So in fact you are in a way if the elements are the wood of a fire, you are the flint that sparks the fire that opens this chest." Celestia explained. Fury pondered on the words of the solar goddess, he couldn't believe that something that he and his kind had nothing to do with, somehow required him to be one of the defining factors in opening this chest.

"I guess that could be true. And another thing, this could have something to do with me being the next generation of the all powerful Speed Shifters. Back in the Silver Blue city when me and Luna were exploring that temple, I got a hold of a scroll that had a spell that joined me with the one who gave birth to our species, Emperor Snowdrift. He told me that with some time and training, I could very well be the next all powerful Speed Shifter. Maybe this paw mark on this chest is a sign that this prophecy is true, that I could be the next true beacon of power for my kind."

Celestia nodded. "It would seem that is quite likely true. You, Night Fury, have been interwoven with us even before I sent you that letter. There was a reason I gave it to you. After all, even if I could not fully understand your purpose here until now."

"Wait, you knew about me and this prophecy even back then?"

"More like certain snippets of it. But I knew you like Twilight and even Discord were an important part of this prophecy. I already knew certain legends of the Speed Shifters but needed to confirm them."

"Whoa!" Fury was astonished at this news.

"But so far that might not happen yet," Rainbow said. "You still have to learn how to fly and master your other forms ya know?"

"Well Dash, that will come in time. But I do have one more question… Did the prophecy entail the great romance that takes place today?" Fury said smugly, leaning up against Luna.

Luna blushed at this display.

"Maybe," Celestia said. "Although I also did see a sun, a heart and a star in that stone too. So it could mean…"

"YOU'D BETTER NOT TOUCH BY BEAU, SISTER! SAME FOR YOU, TWILIGHT SPARKLE!" Luna said taking this to the extreme.

Celestia laughed at this.

"I was just joking, sister."

"Joke or not, you still said that I might have had a chance with Twilight, Cadence, or even you! And if I'm being honest, you're not my type. Not to mention that you're way too big." Fury said. The others in the cave went silent, besides Luna who was giggling slightly.

"Sorry sister." Luna teased.

"Ha ha ha, really funny, Woona." Celestia replied.

"Wait wait wait, Woona?! Bahahahaha, what is that?!" Fury laughed.

"That is… my childhood nickname." Luna said embarrassed. "That I told a certain someone never to utter again especially in front of others!"

"Okay that was funny, but I have to agree with Luna, that was a bit low. And I'm still sticking with my previous statement. You're too big, Celestia. Like seriously, you look like a cloud with stilts for legs!" Fury teased.

The other mane six besides Twilight giggled though even Twilight looked like she was resisting a chuckle.

"Hmph" Celestia looked up. "Well if I do, at least I do not look like a big black kitten who wants to steal sweets all the time!" She smirked.

"Ohhhhhh!" Rainbow and Pinkie said.

"Big talk for someone who eats cake five times a week!" Fury shot back. Luna was crying on the floor at this point.

"Oh yeah, well at least I'm not considered a bad luck charm!"

"That says a lot, considering that's coming from someone who expels just as much hot gas as the star she controls!" Fury shot. Celestia went red in the face from that comment.

Twilight whispered. "How long are they going to go at this? I have things to do."

"Probably five more minutes." Rarity said.

"I'll go with ten." Rainbow said.

"What are you trying to say, mortal?" Celestia growled.

"I'm saying that you're big, too hard to look at, and you're just as gassy as the sun itself. From front and back! Ha!" Fury said. Discord then came into the picture and was laughing just as much as the Princess Of The Night.

"Oh my stars! I couldn't have come up with better insults myself! Nice going, kitty!"

"Thank you, my chaotic friend." Celestia let out a snort and lowered herself to the ground slightly, kicking her hooves into the dirt like a bull. Rainbow Dash gave the black cat the heads up.

"Watch out, Fury! She's gonna charge ya!" She called.

"Bring it on!" Fury said. Celestia charged at him at full force, quickly closing the distance between them. But what she didn't know was that Fury would grab onto her by her front legs and hold her there.

"You made a big mistake princess! You fell right into my trap! So how about I take you for a spin?" He said as he put all of his strength into the spin.

"Wahhhhhh!!! Let… me… go!" She yelled dizzily.

"Okay." He did so and flung her all the way to the end of the cave.

Bang!

Celestia now sat at the other end of the cave, completely dizzy.

"And that, Sunny, is how a kitten can defeat a big star."

Discord and Luna were in an uproar at this fight. They had never seen such fun in awhile. Especially if it meant Celestia was put in her place.

"You should have seen the look on your face, Tia!" Luna said.

"So you have an embarrassing nickname too?" Night Fury smugly asked. Celestia didn't speak, both because she didn't want to admit the truth and because she was too dizzy to focus.

"I think I can use that for later!" Discord said.

Twilight rolled her eyes at all this.

"This has all been fun but can we please get back down to business? We have to do some serious planning!"

"Ok come on, Twilight, don't be such a buzzkill! We're just having a little fun." Fury laughed.

"Hey, I'm not a buzzkill!" Twilight argued.

"Twilight, please. When I tried to get you to try your first prank, you tried to schedule it! That is the literal definition of a buzzkill!" Rainbow Dash said.

"Hmph," Twilight crossed her arms. "I just wanted it done right."

Celestia had a big laugh.

"Do not worry, Twilight. We will get to planning soon enough. Once we get out of here, we will be all set. Besides,"

Celestia whispered to Twilight.

"Fury needs it. This is a rough time for him, he needs a bit of a laugh. This will probably be his most important quest personally for himself."

Twilight then understood why they spent so much time with these silly games and decided to back down a bit.

"Well, when you guys are ready to plan, just come to my Treehouse, I'll be waiting there." Twilight said, trying to find a way out of the cave.

"This is why I love you, Fury. You're just a silly, snuggly, lovable little kitten." Luna cooed, pulling him in and nuzzling him.

"Aww, thanks! And by the way, Celestia, you want to get me back? Take your best shot, I'll be waiting." Fury smiled deviously. Celestia chuckled.

"Oh I will. And I would suggest you get out of here."

"Why, you gonna do something?" Fury asked. Celestia only smiled as she strangely started to count.

"One…"

"Pfft, you think I'm scared of you counting? Please, I'm not a kid." Fury mocked. Celestia didn't respond though as she kept going, opening her wings.

"Two…" She lowered herself slightly, almost as if she was about to take off. It was only then that Fury realized what was about to happen.

"Uh Oh. Uh, can we talk about this?" He said backing up.

"Three!" Celestia then shot up into the air and began to dive onto Fury. The Mane Six decided to root for him.

"Run, Fury, Run!" Rainbow Dash called.

"Put your paws to the ground and go!" Applejack added.

"Already on my way, girls! Alright, Celestia, you wanna go? Come and get me!" He said dashing with as much speed as possible.

He sped out of the caves. While he was not using his Shifter powers since he still had not completely recovered since his fight with Blueblood, he was able to run quickly from just his physical energy.

"Na na na boo boo, you can't catch me!" He teased as he ran out of the cave and out of sight.

"Are you quite sure of that?" Celestia said from high up in the air.

"Uh oh." Fury said.

Celestia descended from the sky and was ready to lunge at the poor feline.

Think fast, Fury. Think fast. Ah hah!

Fury saw a hole in the grass. And then he transformed into a mole. Celestia almost crashed onto the ground.

Not bad Fury. Not bad. But I'm not so helpless.

She said to herself as she lit her horn and pointed it at the ground. She activated an x-ray spell that revealed not only the tunnels, but who was hiding in them.

"I found you." She sang. Fury immediately went into a panic and dug himself out of the ground, continuing his sprint out of the forest. Celestia followed closely.

Gotta think of something else! Bingo!

He thought as he saw a familiar bunch of hanging vines that he had only seen once before in a temple nearby.

"I'm getting closer." Celestia said, flying right above him.

"You may be above me now, but you won't be soon if you don't look up!" Fury replied as he stopped on the dirt path. Celestia looked up not expecting much.

"Nice try. These are just vines, I've flown enough to maneuver through them without being caught."

Fury simply laughed.

"Ha ha ha! They aren't just any vines. Let's just say they have a sort of desire to… tickle."

Then Celestia found herself wrapped up by a bunch of vines. They did nothing at first. But then, they tickled the solar princess at the same time. Even she couldn't resist.

"Pffffff ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Celestia laughed with a rather school filly-like laugh. Both in fear and anger. She couldn't take these tickles any longer. She felt a little embarrassed that a princess was going to be defeated by a prankster, but she had no choice but to beg for his help.

"Please ha ha Fury Hehehe! I surrender! Just help me hee hee ha ha ha!"

Fury looked with satisfaction at this triumph.

"Sorry Sunbutt. Today, the big kitty is the winner here." He said, smirking.

He cut down Celestia from where she was as she was panting heavily. She was a bit dissatisfied at being foiled by him.

"You have won this day, but mark my words, I shall triumph against you someday!" Celestia said dramatically.

"Princess! Are you alright?" said a familiar purple alicorn. "I heard a bunch of noise from your direction!"

"Oh hey there, Twilight! Don't worry. I defeated Princess Celestia in The Great Prank War!" Fury laughed.

"Prank battle, the war is not over!" Celestia rebutted.

Twilight, who had not much interest in this war, interrupted.

"Good luck to you on that, princess. But I want you guys to come inside. We have some things to talk to you about. I also found some new information in one of the ancient inscriptions Fury found." Twilight motioned them into her treehouse.

She always gets straight to the point when we're having fun. Fury said to himself, annoyed. Wait, new information. Is it about the Cursed Forest? Fury changed his attitude on a dime and was now dead set on whatever Twilight had to offer.

–

"So do you remember what was in that Cursed Forest?" Twilight asked.

"Yeah a little too well," Fury said. "I think there were some big mushrooms. The grass looked red. It was pretty but also disgusting at the same time."

Twilight showed them a tablet. "Well I was reading through this. And one interesting thing was that it's said that forest is in some way connected to the Tree of Harmony. It's using its energy. But more like a corrupt form that causes things to look unnatural. Maybe from the plants there."

"Look Twi, that's nice and all. But how is this trivia supposed to help me find my parents?" Fury asked.

"Because, since it seems the Tree of Harmony is connected to this forest, with a certain spell, I can detect the energy from the Tree to this forest. Like how a dog can track smells that us ponies can't." Twilight explained.

Fury's eyes opened up. "Oh yeah! I get it! So all we have to do is find a way to "see" this energy. But do you have a spell to do so?" Fury asked.

Twilight shook her head.

"I don't have a spell like that. In fact most ponies are terrible at detecting this type of energy." Twilight said.

"Shoot." Fury said.

"Keyword: Ponies." Twilight emphasized.

"Wait, if you're saying that ponies couldn't do it, are you saying…"

"You are the one Fury that has to do this. One ability of Speed Shifters it seems is their ability to channel the energy around them which explains your people's powers. You can also detect it. According to this translation of the Emperor's instructions, you need to do some meditation to get into contact with this energy." Twilight explained, showing him Snowdrift's instructions.

Fury understood what she meant but he was still unsure of a few things. He would feel more comfortable with some assistance from the emperor. But also Twilight. Unless… he could get both to be in the same room!

"Okay, this seems reliable. But here's where I need something. Do you happen to have a spell that can bring someone's subconscious thoughts to life?" Fury asked. Twilight gave a confused look.

"Yes, but why would you need that?"

"Because… I think it's time you all met the one who made me who I am." Fury said, everyone in the treehouse was intrigued by his statement.

"I see." Twilight said. "Well this is quite a request. I don't know if I can pull off summoning this legendary ruler from your mind."

Celestia put her hoof on Twilight's shoulder.

"You're no longer a novice. You are much more experienced than before in the ways of magic. Just remember what I have taught you and you will succeed." Celestia said.

Twilight had a still nervous but now determined look.

"Alright, Night Fury, grab my hoof." Twilight said.

"Okay." He grabbed her hoof.

"Just don't get jealous, Luna." Fury joked.

Luna rolled her eyes at that.

"Stay focused." Twilight said with her eyes closed. "Fury, you have to be extremely focused for this. In fact Celestia and Luna should not be in here. Only you and me. You have to focus and not be distracted."

"No problem, you just focus on the spell, I'll recite the meditation inscriptions."

"If you fail, you might… go into a coma." Twilight gulped. "It might last a month at worst. We could find other ways…"

"A heavy price to pay, but a necessary evil I have to face." Fury said confidently. The two focused on what they had to do. Twilight lit her horn to begin the spell while Fury recited his people's ancient language.

"Zoloro Katalt Zualu Tua. Kotoro Molano Troan Toros. Ritori Colo Molantu Tiana."

Both Twilight and Fury were glowing red. They levitated above the floor. They were in sync.

"Ovalo Zalal Tovo Eru Zhuva Zha. Kro Tero Tero Guma. Celu Tevu Kuva Ma!" Fury shouted.

At his shout their eyes opened, revealing red glowing eyes and a beam of red from Twilight to Fury then from Fury to the floor.

There appeared to be some sort of entity slowly appearing, his holographic image coming into view. It was clear like water at first but over time, it became more opaque. It started to become recognizable.

The two finally collapsed. They had used so much energy, they could barely stand.

"What the? Where in the world am I?" said a strong but calm voice. Fury was the first to open his eyes and almost gasped, but called to everyone else instead.

"Uh, guys… You're gonna want to see this!" Fury called. The rest of the Mane Six, Celestia, Luna, and even Spike entered the room and were surprised to see a holographic representation of the emperor himself. Fury stood up and addressed him.

"Good to see you again, emperor." He spoke.

"Is that what you call it, boy? I was in a state of harmony writing my poetry until you summoned me! This had better be important and not some prank you want me to help you with!" The emperor said a bit irate. This got Fury a little aggravated as he was not in the mood.

"Okay, I'm gonna make this as straight as I can! Look in front of you!"

"Fine! I will but I don't see…" The emperor was speechless at what he saw. He saw ponies both smaller and ones even matching his own size. "Wait, who are you?" The emperor said in some shock.

"These are my friends. And before you say anything, I'm gonna make this clear to you!" Fury said, still slightly aggravated.

"The reason I summoned you was because I'm going to go after my parents and I need your help to learn an ability to help me do that. And before you start with your wise words of how I just wasted your time with this, let me set this straight for you… I… Don't… Care!" Fury said aggressively.

"For years, I've been grieving over the fact that I never stepped up when I needed to. And I don't need you sticking your nose in what I see as necessary! You want to scold me for using this spell to summon you, fine! But what I'm not going to let you do is tell me what I should have used it for! What I need from you is simple guidance, not some old lecture on what's appropriate to summon you for. And if you still want to put that argument up to bat, go ahead! Because I don't mind showing you how far I'll shove my paws where the sun doesn't shine to get you to straighten out, because this… is… PERSONAL!" Fury shouted, putting his paw down with enough force to shake the tree.

There was some silence for a while.

"I see why you summoned me now. Very well, I will help you." The emperor said calmly. "But you still didn't answer me who your friends are, Fury."

"Oh. Uh right sorry. Heh." Fury said a little awkwardly.

Fury cleared his throat. "Remember when I told you I was meeting some ponies? Well these are the ponies I was talking about. All of these ponies have helped me through so much."

"Ahem." Spike piped up.

"Oh and Spike the Dragon as well."

He explained who the Mane Six were, the alicorns, even Cadence, who was not available and of course, Spike.

"Well then it is a pleasure to meet all of you. Especially you Princess… Celestia." The Emperor bowed to Celestia. "I must admit you are taller than I once thought. I have heard legends of you kind though you were too far away for us to make contact back in those days"

"The pleasure is mine, Your Highness. I must say your apprentice Night Fury has done great service to our people."

"I hope he was not in too much trouble."

"Hey!" Fury called.

"Heh heh don't worry everything was all in good fun. He is quite responsible." Luna said.

"Good. I knew that. He is a good fellow. But we can talk a little later. Fury said he wanted to find his parents. Very well! I shall help in that. With the help of your student Twilight and my student Night Fury we shall find this Cursed Forest!" The emperor said. "And I will even tell you my theory of who this unsavory tribe could be."

"Wait, you know who this could be?" Fury said.

"Yes, it could belong to the tribe of what others called the Shadow Tyrant, a Speed Shifter who went from hero against the windigos to a dictator who made the other felines into slaves. After he was executed, the Speed Shifters left the Silver Blue. But Shadow Tyrant's own tribe went even farther than your tribe, Night Fury. Your tribe probably under my influence realized the errors of Shadow Turant's ways. So that tribe went to some far distant lands. And they probably want revenge for the other Speed Shifters turning against their plan to rule as tyrants again."

"Hold on. So the Silver Blue wasn't just some ancient city, but the remnants of our past as a species?" Fury asked.

"That would be correct." The emperor nodded. "What I would give to see it standing once again, but it has probably worn down and been corroded over the years."

"That is not exactly true, emperor. For this Silver Blue city still stands tall to this day, just through The Everfree Forest and over the mountains close to Ponyville and Canterlot, our settlements." Luna chimed. The emperor looked surprised by that statement.

"Yeah, she's right. It's still there. We even have pictures of it from when we found it! Twilight, if you would." Fury said. Twilight nodded and retrieved the copies of the pictures that he and Luna had taken on their expedition.

"As you can see, this city along with its great temple, palace and ball court still are surprisingly well preserved. I guess your people's architecture was done quite well." Twilight said, showing the pictures.

The emperor almost looked like he was about to cry but composed himself.

"I see. This is quite a relief, I must admit. Thank you all for doing so much to recover all of this old knowledge." He bowed.

"It was no problem, emperor. Now, shall we get on with what we're here for?" Celestia reminded him.

"Of course. Fury, this technique is one of the ancients. Only to have been used by the all powerful Speed Shifters of our past. As I have told you before and have probably been reminded of through the artifacts you have found, you are the next generation of the all powerfuls. This is what you are destined to master. Are you ready, young one?"

"Show me my destiny, emperor."

The emperor took a deep breath and exhaled.

"First you need a piece of the Tree of Harmony to make this work. Do you have it?"

"We have the Elements of Harmony." Twilight said. "They emerged from the tree of harmony."

"Good enough. Alright you must put one of them on. This will allow you to contact the energy." The emperor explained. Fury nodded and retrieved Twilight's element, placing it on his head.

"Now comes the hard part. Since this ability is connected to the ancients that came before us, they must approve of you. They must see that you are worthy of their techniques to be used."

"But you're the most ancient of ancients, isn't your approval enough?" Fury asked.

"I'm afraid not. I am a mere speck in a long line of power that stems from my efforts to unite the other felines. You must make contact with the ancients that came after me and connect yourself with this line of power. Only then will they deem you worthy." The emperor stated. Fury seemed nervous at first, but straightened himself out so as to not seem unworthy.

"I am ready. Wish me luck, everyone." Fury said. Everyone gave him reassurance that he would succeed as he closed his eyes and began to speak his people's language.

"Zomanu Tiloto Carmokana Tio Bria Ka. Ti Apa Co Turus Etu Kronos Esi Tuma. Miro Tis Epa Ros Pelon Retula Eka." Fury recited, his body beginning to glow. Ancient runes began to form on the floor of the treehouse as whispering voices made themselves known.

"What is happening? Who's speaking?" Twilight asked with fear yet amazement.

"Those are the whispers of the ancients, princess. The words he is reciting are awakening their spirits from the afterlife." The emperor said. Fury continued to speak in ancient tongues, the whispers becoming louder as he kept going.

"AJUAVU HRASI ANASKA! Oh thank you spirits for allowing me to speak with you. I have awakened you to prove my worth. Allow me to use your techniques to honor your legacies!"

Fury's body glowed brightly. But this time, with a bit of orange. He was using a force he had never seen before.

Fury chanted again but this time quickly!

"AJA KA TA PRAM LIA ZNU ERU AFA KU!"

The roar made everything in the whole village shake. But it was all finished. Fury finished the ritual. His eyes were closed. He was silent.

"Um Fury?" Twilight asked.

His eyes opened. They seemed bursting with life.

"I know where that Cursed Forest is now." Fury said, giving no delay.

"It's easy of Manehattan, far out of the city limits. But I can see and hear so much more." He said, closing his eyes and focusing on all the new details.

"I… I can sense the life force within you all. My connection with nature has never been stronger. I can sense your heartbeats, feel the vibrations from the smallest mouse to the biggest Ursa Major. It's like mother nature herself blessed me with her power to sense all living things. I… Feel… GODLY!" He said.

"Just as I expected. You now have a new ability. This will benefit your journey. Use it well!" The emperor said. "But be warned, this is only the beginning. You still have a long way to go before you attain absolute mastery. But this is the first step to your new chapter."

Night Fury felt ready like he never was before. He felt like he was ready to save those he loved most.

"I will do that, emperor. Now, rejoin with me and we shall conclude our exchange." Fury said.

"I'd be happy to. Good luck to you all, and just know, you're lucky to have him with you. Especially you, Princess Luna. Love him like he is the last thing in this world, because someone like him will never come again. Farewell." The emperor said, bowing his head. Fury's eyes then began to glow, the emperor's image merging with his body in an instant as he disappeared from sight and back into Fury's subconscious.

"Will you really be ready for this?" Twilight asked him.

He nodded.

"I'm more than ready for this. And besides,with you guys by my side, I'll never need to worry about going it alone." Fury said. "My parents may not be here, but you all are more family to me now than ever."

"We'll be sure to help you where we can," Fluttershy said.

Twilight then looked a little disappointed.

"We might not be able to accompany you, Night Fury, for a little while," Twilight said. "We have many things to like trying to find out the secret to these Elements of Harmony. We'll try to help you, but we can only do so much." Twilight said.

"Well, you guys did all that you can. And that's all that matters. And besides, I think I have somepony in mind that can get me to where I'm going. But for now, I'm gonna relax this all off. Seriously, I'm pooped!" Fury walked off. "I'll see you guys later. I'll think of who to bring along, if anybody."

"Good luck Fury, may you succeed on your quest." Celestia said.

"Do you think he will be alright, Princess Celestia?" Twilight asked.

"With someone like him, I have a feeling he will." Celestia replied.

"Indeed. I know how resilient he is. How strong he is. I truly do believe in him." Luna said.

Oh Fury, be careful out there. Like the emperor said, I won't be able to find somepony like you again.