Bravery of the Stars

by Phase Nexus

Chapter 2- Finding Harmony

It seems like half the town is gathered in the Ponyville Town Hall. Twilight and I, with our dragons on our backs, have managed to find a spot in the front of the crowd with Applejack and Rainbow Dash. Excited ponies surround us, with even a few pegasi hovering in the air. Rarity is waiting up on the balcony for the big reveal, and Fluttershy is to the side, waiting to direct her birds in their song.

Pinkie Pie zips between the two of us, giving us a slight startle. “Oh this is so cool! Isn't this exciting? Are you excited, 'cause I'm excited, I've never been so excited. Well, except for the time that I saw you walking into town and I went ‘GAAAGH’ but I mean really, who can top that?”

Before we’re able to respond, Fluttershy’s birds start singing, signaling the start of the ceremony. A tan mare with a silver mane steps onto the stage. “Ladies, and gentlestallions! As mayor of Ponyville, it is my pleasure to announce the beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration!” The room erupts into happy cheers. “In just a few moments, our town will witness the magic of the sunrise, and celebrate this, the longest day of the year!”

I peek out of one of the windows to the moon outside, seeing the stars get close to it. “Twilight.” I quickly mutter, getting her attention. We both watch the stars seemingly move behind the moon, and the silhouette of Nightmare Moon disappears. We exchange an uneasy look, looking back to the stage.

“And now,” Mayor Mare continues, “it is my great honor to introduce to you the ruler of our land, the very pony who gives us the sun and the moon each and every day, the good, the wise, the bringer of Harmony to all of Equestria... Princess Celestia!”

Rarity pulls the rope on the curtain to queue Princess Celestia, but the balcony is completely empty.

“I have a bad feeling about this…” I mutter, getting ready for a fight.

“You and me both,” Twilight moans.

The ponies gathered start to chatter amongst themselves, an air of worry and fear starting to settle in the room.

“Remain calm, everypony, there must be a reasonable explanation!” Mayor Mare urged, trying to keep everyone calm.

Pinkie Pie perks up, “Ooh, ooh, I love guessing games! Is she hiding?”

“I don't think Princess Celestia would pull something like this on us, Pinkie,” I say, setting Ruby on the floor behind me.

“North..?” The baby dragon looks up at me worriedly.

Rarity looks behind the balcony for the Princess, coming back out with a shocked expression. “She's gone!” Everyone gasps, the confusion now teetering on panic.

“Ooh, she's good,” Pinkie hums. She suddenly yelps at what we all see form in the Princess’s place.

A purple mist gathered at the central balcony where the princess was supposed to be and it revealed someone completely different. She was an alicorn mare with a black coat and cyan eyes. She had a flowing brilliant blue mane filled with stars. Around her body, she looked to be wearing silver-blue armor.

“Nightmare Moon…” Twilight whimpers. Spike faints, falling off her back.

“I really hate it when you’re right,” I utter at Twilight, not taking my eyes off the villain.

“Oh, my beloved subjects. It’s been so long since I’ve seen your precious little sun-loving faces,” Nightmare Moon states, her voice filled with malice.

“What did you do with our Princess?” Rainbow demands. She tries to fly at the villain, but Applejack grabs her tail and holds her back. Applejack is right to stop her though. The town hall is far too crowded. If we try to fight her now, innocent ponies could get hurt.

Nightmare lets out an evil chuckle. “Why, am I not royal enough for you? Don't you know who I am?” She gets in Fluttershy’s face, scaring the birds away and terrifying the poor pegasus. “Does my crown no longer count now that I have been imprisoned for a thousand years? Did you not recall the legend? Did you not see the signs?”

“We did!” Twilight calls out, drawing attention to the two of us. “And we know who you are. You’re the Mare in the Moon!”

“Nightmare Moon.” I finish, scowling at the fallen monarch.

The crowd gasps in shock, surprised that our old bedtime stories were true.

“Well well well, some ponies who remember me,” Nightmare looks down on us, pleasantly surprised. “Then I assume you also know why I’m here.”

“You’re here to… to…” Twilight trails off, her voice filled with worry.

The Nightmare chuckles at her. “Remember this day my little ponies, for it was your last. From this moment on, the night shall last, forever!” She lets out a billowing evil laugh, lighting striking from her magic. The ponies gathered start to cower, more scared than they’ve ever been.

“Not if I have anything to say about it!” I yell out, glaring at the tyrant before me.

She lets out a mocking laugh. “Oh, is that so? Times must clearly have changed if stallions have grown backbones. And does the foolish stallion have a name?”

My ear twitches and I let out a growl. “North Star! And you’re damn right they have! I don’t care what it takes, I will stop you!” I swear, glaring at her.

She jumps down, landing in front of me. All the ponies behind me flinch, but I don’t falter. “Even if it costs you your life?” She asks me, getting in my face. Her smile curled into a fanged grin.

I meet her gaze, filled with a steely determination I’ve never felt before. “If it means saving Equestria from you, so be it. I am not afraid of you!”

Nightmare Moon holds my gaze for a moment, before letting out a low laugh. “Very well North Star. Let us see how long your bravery lasts.” Letting out another evil laugh, lightning strikes around the hall. She turns into purple mist, flying out the doors with a crash.

Rainbow finally gets loose from Applejack, chasing after the alicorn.

“Back to the library, now!” Twilight urges me, using her magic to put Spike and Ruby onto our backs. I nod at her, following her out the door and into the night.

---

Twilight and I have made it back to the library, running as fast as our legs could carry us. Spike and Ruby tried to insist they come with us, but they soon fell asleep. Being up all night partying and the shock of Nightmare Moon really took a lot out of them. They are just baby dragons after all.

Twilight is taking one last look at the book, reading over any information we might have missed. “Okay, we need to hurry! We need to get the Elements of Harmony and get back as soon as we can!” She urges as we head for the door. Suddenly, a rainbow blur zooms up to our faces.

“And just what are the Elements of Harmony?” Rainbow Dash demands, hovering above us. “And how did you two know about Nightmare Moon, huh?! Are you spies?!” She yelps as Applejack grabs her tail again, yanking her away from us. Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy apparently followed us as well, as they’re all standing behind the country pony.

“Simmer down, Sally. They ain’t spies. But Ah get the feelin’ they know what’s goin’ on. Don’t you?” Applejack asks. The group gathers around us. Twilight looks at me, and I give her a nod.

“I read all about the prediction of Nightmare Moon,” she starts explaining. She pulls out the book on the Elements. “Some mysterious objects called the Elements of Harmony are the only things that can stop her. North and I have discovered there are six, and possibly seven Elements. Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Honesty, and Loyalty. But we have no idea what the sixth is.”

“The Elements are in the old royal castle in the Everfree,” I continue. “Twilight and I are going to go there and bring the Elements back here so we can use them to banish Nightmare again.”

“Woah woah woah!” Rainbow protests. “You two can’t just head off into the Everfree by yourselves!”

“She’s right.” Applejack nods. “If y’all are goin’ in there, we’re comin’ with ya. Especially after all that stuff North said to the ruler of all darkness.” She deadpans at me. “Nopony is pulling a self-sacrifice on my watch, especially you.”

Rarity lets out a small huff. “I’m afraid I must agree. Honestly dear, what were you thinking? You wonder why I worry so much about you.”

“I meant what I said,” I insist. “I’d do anything to keep you all safe. And while we appreciate the gestures, this is something Twilight and I need to do ourselves.”

“No chance, sugarcube.” Applejack butts in. “There ain’t no way we’re lettin’ friends of ours' go into the Everfree forest alone. If you’re goin’, we’re all goin’. We’re stickin’ to you like caramel on a candy apple.” The other girls nod in agreement.

“Especially if there’s candy apples in there!” Pinkie perks up, causing us all to look at her in confusion. “What? Those things are good! Now let’s get a move on!”

The seven of us leave the library, heading for the edge of town. Rainbow hovers next to Twilight and I at the front of the group. “There’s something I don’t get. You guys said there’s seven Elements, but you only mentioned six.”

“The seventh Element has even less known about it,” Twilight explains. “It will only appear when one worthy of wielding it appears when all six Elements are gathered.”

“As far as we can tell we only need the six to banish Nightmare Moon, so we aren’t worrying about the seventh,” I say as we get to the path leading into the forest.

“You aren’t curious at all?” Fluttershy asks, coming up next to me.

“Well of course I’m curious,” I shrug. “We just have more pressing concerns at the moment. All that matters right now is getting the Elements we need to stop Nightmare.” I answer as we reach the forest. The Everfree looms over us. Dark and twisted branches coming from the trees, almost beckoning us forward.

“Woo! Come on let’s go!” Pinkie cheers, bouncing forward. We all follow behind her, into the forest. We manage to find a path winding through the trees, leading deeper into the forest.

“So, none of you have ever been in here before?” Twilight asks, her voice carrying her nervousness.

“Oh, heavens no!” Rarity asks, just as uneasy. “Just look at it! It’s dreadful!”

“And it ain’t natural,” Applejack adds as we make it to the side of a cliff. “Folks say it don’t work like the rest of Equestria.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” the purple unicorn asks.

“Nopony knooooows,” Rainbow says in a creepy voice, stalking towards Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Rarity. “You know why?”

“Rainbow cut it out.” I scold her, but she ignores me.

“Because everypony who has ever come in, has never… come,,, back… OUT!” She jumps, trying to scare the mares. Suddenly, the ground starts to rumble. I try to brace myself as the ground gives underneath us and the cliff breaks off!

I can hear the girls screaming around me. Looking up, I see my fellow non-pegasi sliding down the cliff, with Rainbow and Fluttershy flying after us. Thinking fast, my horn lights up. Using a quick shield spell, I’m able to create barriers in front of Pinkie and Rarity, stopping them in place. Before I can do more, my flank slides off the edge of the cliff and I’m just barely able to catch myself. Twilight ends up next to me, yelping in fear.

“Yeah, you were right. Really wishing I’d learned that self-levitation spell last week instead of going to hang out with Minuette.” I grunt, trying to climb back up.

“Is this really the time?!” Twilight snaps at me.

Looking above us, Applejack has caught herself with a tree root between her teeth. She lets it go, sliding down towards us. “Hold on! Imma comin’!” She reaches us, grabbing our hooves.

“Applejack! What do we do?” Twilight asks, her back hooves kicking at the cliff, unable to find a grip.

“Okay, I got an idea,” I say, trying to get ahold of the cliff as much as I can. “AJ, I’ll use my magic to help you lift Twilight up, then you both pull me up, got it?” There's another rumble, more of the cliff breaking off beneath us.

“I don’t think we’re gonna have time for that!” Twilight argues.

Applejack grunts, then looks down at us. “Both of you, let go.”

The unicorn’s eyes go wide. “What are you crazy?!”

“Ah ain’t crazy. Let go, and Ah promise you’ll both be safe.”

“That’s not true!” She yells.

“Now listen here,” the country pony looks us both in the eyes. “What Ah’m sayin to you is the honest truth. Let go, and you’ll be safe.” I look Applejack in the eyes. In all the years I’ve known her, Applejack has never led me astray or intentionally put me in harm's way.

I take a deep breath and close my eyes. I let go of her hoof and the cliff face, letting myself fall. I briefly hear Twilight yell my name over the sound of the wind in my ears. I don’t fall got very long though, as I’m caught in a warm and soft embrace. I blink, looking up to see Fluttershy caught me.

“Oh, are you okay North? That looked rather scary…” she asks me, gently carrying me to the ground.

“Nah, I’m okay,” I smile, looking over to see Rainbow has caught Twilight, and Applejack is hopping down the cliffside. “I knew I was in good hooves.” She gets a small blush as she sets me down, and we all regroup. I think I see a purple blur move in the corner of my vision, but when I turn to look, it's gone. I let out a hum, following the girls with Fluttershy.

“...and once Rarity and Pinkie were safe, whoosh! Me and Fluttershy loop-de-loop around and WHAM!” Rainbow lands next to Twilight. “Caught ya right in the nick of time.”

“Yes, Rainbow. I was there,” Twilight says, unamused. “And North and I are very grateful, but now we gotta-” she’s cut off by something slamming in front of her, making her gasp. A large lion with bat wings and a scorpion tail stands in our path. “A manticore!”

It roars at us, rearing up on it’s back legs. It jumps towards us, taking a swing at Rarity. She dodges out of the way, turning and bucking it in the face. “Take that you ruffian!” She says triumphantly, only for the manticor to roar in her face, blowing her mane back. Her mane turns into a curled mess, not unlike how Twilight’s was earlier today.

‘Or, would it technically be yesterday? Damn this eternal night stuff is already making things confusing…’

“North, we need to stop them,” Fluttershy’s voice breaks me out of my thoughts. I look up, seeing Applejack riding on the manticore’s head.

“Why? You have an idea?” I ask. She nods in response as Applejack is thrown off. Rainbow zooms in next, flying past us.

“Wait!” Fluttershy says, trying to stop her fellow pegasus.

Rainbow unfortunately either ignores her or doesn’t hear her, flying around the beast in a small tornado. The manticore growls, smacking her with its tail and sending her flying, skidding to a halt in front of us. She recovers quickly, she and the four other girls glaring at the beast. They scrape their hooves on the ground and start charging, running at the beast together.

“WAAAIIIIIT!” Fluttershy and I yell, jumping in front of them. They all skid to a stop, looking at us in surprise. I turn to Fluttershy and nod, giving her a smile. She walks up to the manticore without fear. It growls at her, realing one of its paws back.

“Shh, it’s okay,” she gently calms it, nuzzling one of its paws with her nose. The manticore hesitates before opening its paw to her, showing a rather large thorn stuck in its palm. “Oh, you poor poor little baby…”

“Little?” Rainbow Dash mutters, causing me to let out a small giggle.

“Maybe not little, but she’s got this handled,” I say confidently, watching Fluttershy work.

“Now, this might hurt for just a second,” she warns the manticore, grabbing the thorn in her teeth. She quickly yanks it out, making the beast roar in pain and scoop her up.

“Fluttershy!” The girls all yell in shock. However, there was no need to be worried as we hear Fluttershy laugh. The manticore wasn't eating her, but licking her mane as it began to purr. The girls sigh in relief and smile while Fluttershy giggles.

“Aw, you’re just a little ol’ baby kitty, aren’t you? Yes you are, yes you are!” The yellow pegasus praises the manticore as we all head for the end of the path. Twilight and I wait for her as the manticore puts her down, flying off into the forest. Fluttershy walks up to us, her mane sticking straight back from the licks.

“How did you know about the thorn?” Twilight asks her, amazed.

“I didn’t,” she answers with a soft smile. “Sometimes we all just need to be shown a little kindness.”

Twilight smiles, following the rest of us down the path. I let out a quiet chuckle, happy to see she’s starting to warm up.

We continue heading deeper into the woods, the trees becoming thicker and thicker. “Y’know, we’re probably the first ponies to venture this far into the Everfree in centuries,” I ponder out loud.

“With good reason I imagine,” Rarity replies. “Why would anypony want to come out here if it wasn’t related to the fate of Equestria?”

“Aw c’mon Rarity, where’s your sense of adventure?” I playfully tease her.

“Properly reigned in, unlike yours,” she replies. “Not all of us spend our days thinking about being heroic and dashing,” the fashionista says sarcastically, smirking at me.

“I do!” Rainbow chimes in, making me chuckle.

Rarity rolls her eyes. “Honestly I just wish I could give my eyes a rest from all this icky muck.” As she says that, we walk into a part of the path where the trees are the thickest. The moonlight we’ve been relying on to light our way starting to diminish.

“You just had to ask,” I deadpan at her, not that she could see it.

“Well, I didn’t mean it literally, darling.”

“That ancient ruin could be right in front of our faces and we’d have no idea,” Twilight huffs. We try to make our way through the trees, bumping into each other as we do. I see that purple blur again, watching as it darts behind a tree.

“Oh, Ah think Ah stepped in somethin’,” Applejack grunts. Fluttershy lets out a scream, staring at Applejack. Behind the farm pony, the tree has started glowing red. An angry twisted face carved into its trunk. It seems to let out a roar, causing Applejack to yelp and jump back. The trees surrounding us start to do the same, glowing ominously, their twisted faces roaring at us. The girls start yelling and I get in front of them, getting ready to fight.

“Hahahheehaha! Bleh! Blugh! Heeheehaha!” I look over in confusion, seeing Pinkie laughing at one of the trees and making faces at it.

“Pinkie what are out doing?! Run!” Twilight urges.

Pinkie giggles. “Oh guys, don’t you see?” She starts to dance a bit, bobbing her head. And she starts singing.

“When I was a little filly and the sun was going dooooown~”

“Oh please tell me we’re not doing this…” I beg.

“The darkness and the shadows, they would always make me frooooown~”

“Apparently we are…” Rarity sighs.

“I’d hide under my pillow, from what I thought I saw~ But Granny Pie said that wasn’t the way to deal with fears at all~”

“Then what is?” Rainbow asks.

“She said, ‘Pinkie, you gotta stand up tall~ Learn to face your feaaars~ You’ll see they can’t hurt you, just laugh and make them disapeaaar~’”

She bounces in front of a tree. “Ha! Ha! Ha!” As if by magic, the twisted face and red glow disappears, and the area around us gets a little brighter. She turns back and smiles at us, and we all start to laugh.

“Sooooo, giggle at the ghostly~ Guffaw at the grossly~ Crackup at the creepy~ Whoop it up with the weepy~ Chortle at the kooky~ Snortle at the spooky~”

“And tell that big dumb scary face to take a hike and leave you alone and if he thinks he can scare you then he's got another thing coming and the very idea of such a thing just makes you wanna. .. hahahaha... heh…”

“Laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaauuuugh!~”

Soon enough our laughter makes all the trees turn back to normal, and the area is nice and bright again. We all fall to the ground, laughing happily. “That was awesome Pinkie,” I praise her, pushing myself up to my hooves.

“I aim to please!” She giggles. “A good laugh can make anything better.” She bounces ahead as we all follow her.

“She sure knows how to keep everypony positive,” Twilight comments, walking up next to me.

I nod. “That’s Pinkie Pie for ya. I’ve only gotten to spend a bit of time with her on my visits, but she always makes it memorable. She just loves to see ponies smile.” Twilight hums in thought, a small smile on her face.

---

‘This night just gets weirder and weirder… Or, day? Dammit did Nightmare not think this through at all?’

We’ve come across another obstacle. A river sits in front of us. It would be narrow enough for us to swim across, but it’s water is being churned and thrashed around, making it too dangerous to cross. The cause? A large sea serpent flailing in the water, crying out in distress. His orange hair is slicked back and it appears that half of his mustache is missing.

“What a world! Oh, what a world! This isn’t fair!” He cries out as we approach,

“Excuse me, sir? Why are you crying?” Twilight asks him.

“Well, I don't know,” he responds, “I was just sitting here, minding my own business when this tacky little cloud of purple smoke just whisked past me and tore half of my beloved mustache clean off!” He bends down to us, showing his butchered facial hair. “And now I look simply horrid!”

I hum in thought at what he said. ‘That purple smoke again? It can’t be a coincidence…’

Unfortunately, I’m cut off from my train of thought as the serpent starts wailing again. He flops into the water, creating a massive wave and splashing our group, getting us soaked.

“Oh give me a break,” Rainbow rolls her eyes.

“That’s what all the fuss is about?” Applejack asks, a bit annoyed.

“Why, of course it is!” Rarity interjecs as she steps forward. “How can you be so insensitive? Oh, just look at him! Such, lovely luminecent scales.”

The serpent sniffles, sitting up out of the water. “I know.”

“Your expertly coiffed mane,” she compliments.

“Oh I know, I know!” He agrees, slicking his hair back.

“Your fabulous manicure!”

“It’s so true!”

“All ruined without your beautiful mustache!”

“It’s true! I’m hideous!” He starts crying again.

“I simply cannot let such a crime against fabulosity go uncorrected!” Rarity states definitively. Before any of us can do anything, she uses her teeth to grab one of the serpent’s scales, pulling it out.

“Ow! What did you do that for?” He cries. She doesn’t respond, brandishing the scale like a sword.

My eyes go wide. “Rarity! Don’t do anything hasty-” She quickly slices with the scale, causing us all to gasp. The serpent dramatically faints, laying his head on the river bank.

At Rarity’s hooves lies her sliced off tail. Using her magic, she levitates it over to the serpent, carefully tying it to the remains of his mustache. He looks down, gasping happily. “Oh-hohohoho! My mustache! This is so wonderful!”

“You look smashing,” The fashion pony beams at him.

“Oh, Rarity. Your beautiful tail,” Twilight says, looking at the remains of her curly tail.

“Oh it’s fine dear,” Rarity reasures her. “Short tails are in this season, with it being summer and all. Besides, it’ll grow back.”

“So would the mustache,” Rainbow mutters to me.

I roll my eyes with a smile. “Tail or not Rarity, you still look lovely. And I’m sure once we get back you’ll figure out a way to make it look perfect.”

“Why thank you, North,” she smiles at me. “I must admit I do have a few ideas in mind…”

Twilight notices that the water has calmed now that the serpent has stopped thrashing. “Hey look! We can cross now!” She starts to head across the river when she gets lifted up by a part of his body rising out of the water.

“Allow me,” the purple serpent offers. He dives down, creating a bridge for us to hop across out of his body. We all cross, making it safely to the other side. He rises back up, waving us all goodbye as he swims upriver.

“I can’t believe Rarity didn’t even hesitate to sacrifice her own tail for that guy,” Twilight says to me as we regroup.

“She’s always been like that,” I nod. “Whenever somepony needs something, she does everything in her power to help them, even at her own cost.”

She nods in understanding, starting to walk ahead. “Come on! The castle can’t be much farther.”

“Hang on a second,” I say, putting a hoof on her shoulder. The group stops, turning to look at me.

“What’s the matter, sugarcube?” Applejack asks.

“There’s something that serpent said that caught my attention. The purple smoke that took his mustache,” I explain.

“What about it?” Twilight tilts her head.

“After we fell off the cliff, I thought I saw a purple mist come out of the rubble. And I saw it again right before those trees transformed.”

“Hey wait a minute,” Rainbow thinks for a moment. “Nightmare Moon turned into a purple mist too when she ran away from Town Hall!”

“You think Nightmare Moon could have been causing all these things to happen to us?” Fluttershy asks me.

I nod in response. “I wouldn’t eliminate it as a possibility. We don’t fully know what she’s capable of.”

“Oh that just makes me want to kick her in the face even more now!” Rainbow growls.

“Everypony just be on your guard,” I warn them. “If we can snoop her out we have a better chance at stopping her.” They all nod in agreement, and we head deeper into the forest.

---

A short while later, we finally find it. The entrance to the crumbling ruins of the Castle of the Two Pony Sisters on the other side of a thick fog. Despite its age, I must admit it’s still impressive. The place Celestia ruled with her sister a thousand years ago.

“There it is!” Twilight says excitedly. “The ruins that hold the Elements of Harmony! We made it!” She runs forward, and the rest of us follow behind.

“Twilight! Wait for us!” Applejack calls out.

“We’re almost there-WOAH!” Twilight comes to a sudden stop, her front half dangling off the cliff. I gasp, running forward and grabbing her with my magic, yanking her back to safety.

“You okay Twilight?” I grunt, helping her back to her hooves.

“Yeah, I’m okay. Sorry,” she sheepishly apologizes.

“Maybe we should start keeping a tally of how many times she falls off cliffs,” Rainbow jokes.

Taking a closer look at the cliff in front of us, it looks like the rope bridge broke a long time ago. Looking over the edge, I can’t see the end of it through the thick fog.

“I got this one,” Rainbow says confidently, flexing her wings. She dives into the pit, vanishing into the fog. I’m barely able to see her come up on the other side through the fog.

She’s gone for several minutes, and only half the bridge is tied in place. “Something’s wrong,” I say, trying to get a better look.

“Rainbow! What’s taking so long?” Twilight calls out. The fog clears a bit, and I can see Rainbow talking to three other ponies in flight suits.

“Shit.”

Twilight notices as well, calling out to the pegasus. “Rainbow!” One of the flight ponies glares at us. Her eyes flash, and the fog gets even thicker, obstructing our view. “Don’t listen to them!” Twilight tries to yell, but the fog is too thick.

“Um, this is bad, right?” Fluttershy squeaks, shuffling behind me. We all wait on bated breath, looking for any sign of the pegasus. The bridge suddenly goes taught, and a figure flies through the fog. Rainbow lands in front of us, clearing the fog with her wings.

We all let out a cheer, starting to head across the bridge. “Great job, Rainbow!” Twilight beams at her.

“Y’see? I’d never leave my friends hangin’!” Rainbow states, flying over to the other side of the bridge. We all cross, heading towards the large wooden doors of the castle.

I push the doors open and step into the ancient stone structure. Vines crawl up the ancient walls. In the center of the room, five stone orbs with gem shapes carved into them sit on pedestals in a branching statue.

“Woah…” Twilight utters in amazement.

“Go on Twilight. Ain’t this what you two have been waiting for?” Applejack says.

“The Elements of Harmony, We actually found them,” I let out a short laugh. Rainbow and Fluttershy take turns picking up the Elements off their pedestals and setting them down in a circle in front of us.

“One, two, three, four… There’s only five,” Pinkie points out. “Where’s the sixth?”

“The book said when the five are present, a spark will cause the sixth Element to be revealed,” Twilight explains, crouching down in front of the Elements.

“What in the hell is that supposed to mean?” Applejack asks. “And what about the seventh?”

“Not a priority. We just need to activate the ones we have here first. And we think we have an idea how,” I explain, crouching next to Twilight.

“Stand back,” the purple unicorn warns, “we don’t know what will happen.” Our horns light up as we start to focus, trying to pour our magical energy into the orbs before us.

“Come on now, y’all. They need to concentrate,” I hear Applejack speak, leading the other mares out of the room. For a moment the only sound I can hear is the sounds of our magic, and Twilight’s small grunts of effort.

Then, I hear the sound of wind in front of us. I open my eyes, seeing the Elements start to swirl in a purple vortex. “Oh crap.” Twilight opens her eyes as well, yelping in surprise. The vortex swirls faster, growing bigger. We exchange a look, nodding to each other as we jump into the vortex, consumed by a bright flash of light.

I come to laying on a stone floor. I shake my head, seeing Twilight to my side. I help her to her hooves, looking around. We seem to have been teleported to some kind of atrium. The ceiling is long gone, and the support columns look like they’re ready to collapse. At the end of the large room, stands Nightmare Moon, with the Elements hovering around her. She laughs at us, making more lightning strike around her.

“Twilight,” I whisper, getting her attention. “Get to the Elements. I’ll keep her busy.”

“What? No!” She whispers back. “North, you can’t possibly beat her!”

“I know I can’t. But I can buy you enough time to light that spark. Just trust me, please.” I ask her, looking her in the eyes. She looks back at me and nods. We both stand up, turning to face the villain before us.

Nightmare Moon laughs again. “I must say, I’m rather impressed you and your companions have made it this far. Then again, I suppose I should expect nothing less from my sister’s star pupils.”

“How do you know about that?” Twilight asks her.

“I’ve been following you since you left that library of yours,” she answers. “I admire your resourcefulness. And I believe your talents would be better suited elsewhere.” She flares her wings. “Join me, Twilight Sparkle and North Star. I will teach you things about magic my feeble sister would never dare! I will unlock your full potential!”

Twilight and I exchange a look. I give her a smug look and nod “Thank you,” Twilight starts, “but you can take your dark power and shove it up your flank! We’re going to stop you!” She scrapes her hoof on the ground, charging up her horn.

“Very well! Then I hope you enjoy being martyrs!” Nightmare yells, preparing for a fight.

I look to the side, focusing on one of the broken support pillars. ‘Come on North, you can do this. Time to show your real talent.’

My horn lights up, enveloping the pillar. I focus, grunting with effort. I’ve never used this spell on something this big before. With a grunt, I cast the spell, and the pillar becomes weightless. It subtly starts to float, as does the few bits of rubble around it.

I turn back, seeing the two mares charging at each other, waiting for my moment. I’m only going to have one shot. Twilight charges her horn as Nightmare gets closer to her. Just before they collide, she’s enveloped with a pink light, vanishing. She reappears by the Elements, lowering her horn to them.

Nightmare focuses on me. She growls, and I take my shot. I grab the pillar in my magic, swinging it as easily as a stick thanks to it’s weightlessness. Nightmare Moon gasps in surprise, crying out as the pillar slams into her side, sending her crashing into the wall. The pillar shatters, sending floating debris around the room. The villain growls loudly, glaring at me. “That spell. Impossible!” She yells, rushing at me.

I run forward, sliding between her legs. My horn lights, grabbing four of the floating rocks and throwing them at her. She blasts three of them, but the fourth manages to nail her in the horn, making her roar in pain.

“Enough of this!” Nightmare Moon slams her hooves into the ground. Lighting shoots out from her, striking me in the side. I get flying back, landing on the ground hard.

I groan in pain, looking down at my side and seeing a black burn mark on my fur. “Shit,” I struggle to get up, looking up to see Twilight still using her magic on the Elements. Nightmare turns into purple mist, zipping towards her. “Twilight!” I yell, trying to warn her. There’s a flash of white light, and Twilight flies away from the Elements, landing next to me.

She looks up, gasping as she sees the burn in my fur. “North-!”

Nightmare stands over the Elements as they start to float, lightning sparking between them. “No! No!” She says in disbelief.

“You did it Twilight,” I chuckle weakly. The Elements start to glow, the electricity intensifying!

…and then it stops. They fall to the ground with a thud, motionless. Twilight gasps. “No! Where’s the sixth element?”

Nightmare Moon laughs maniacly. “Fools! You really believed you could defeat me?!” She raises her hooves, slamming them on the ground. The force causes the Elements to shatter. “You will never see your Princess or your precious sun ever again! The night will last forever!”

I let out a shaky breath. ‘Well, this is what heroes do, right?’ “Twilight. Get the girls, and get out of here,” I instruct her. She looks at me in confusion. “Without the Elements, you need to find a more conventional means to stop her.”

“But what about you? You’re hurt, we need to get you to safety!” She urges.

I shake my head. “I’ll just slow you down. But I can buy you girls time to escape.”

Her eyes go wide. “What?! Are you crazy? I am not leaving you behind in here!”

“I’m not asking!” I say, my horn lighting up. “Just go! I said I’d do what ever it takes to keep you safe, now run!”

“Twilight? North!” A voice calls out behind us. We look back, seeing the shadows of our friends coming up the stairs, all calling out our names in search of us.

Twilight gasps and her eyes go wide, a twinkle sparking in them. She looks back at Nightmare Moon with a confident smile on her face. “You think you can destroy the Elements of Harmony just like that?” She asks as the rest of our friends make it to us. “Well you’re wrong. Because the spirits of the Elements are right here!” We all face Nightmare Moon, with looks of determination on our faces.

“What? That’s impossible!” Nightmare denies as the shards of the Elements start to float up.

Twilight grins triumphantly. “Applejack, who reassured me when I was in doubt, represents the spirit of… Honesty!” Shards zip towards the farm pony, swirling around her. “Fluttershy, who tamed the manticore with compassion, represents the spirit of… Kindness! Pinkie Pie, who banished fear by giggling in the face of danger, represents the spirit of... Laughter! Rarity, who calmed a sorrowful serpent with a meaningful gift, represents the spirit of... Generosity! And Rainbow Dash, who could not abandon her friends for her own heart's desire, represents the spirit of… Loyalty!” Element shards surround them all, the same as Applejack. “The spirits of these five ponies got us through every challenge you threw at us!”

“But you still don’t have the sixth Element! The spell didn’t work!” The villain points out.

“But it did! A different kind of spark,” Twilight says, turning towards the girls. “I felt it the very moment I realized how happy I was to hear you, to see you. How much I cared about you. The spark ignited inside me when I realized that you all… are my friends!”

A bright light then shines above drawing everyone's attention to see the sixth Element of Harmony in it's stone orb which hovers above Twilight. “You see, Nightmare Moon, when those Elements are ignited by the spark that resides in the heart of us all, it creates the sixth element: the element of… Magic!”

The elements start to orbit the mares faster, glowing brighter. Twilight looks at me, a smile forming on her face. “It is said that when all six Elements are combined, one pony would be worthy of bearing the last Element. That they would become a Bridge to Virtue. North Star, my first friend. He stood up for all of us. Tried to protect all of Equestria on his own even if he had to risk his life. He is the legendary element… of Bravery!”

All of the shards glow brightly, creating a beam of light that envelopes me. I let out a surprised grunt as I start to float, and my injuries heal. There’s another flash of light, and an orb floats over my head.

The shards then transform into golden necklaces with gems resembling their respective owners' Cutie Mark and go around their bearer’s necks. The orb of Magic transformed into a tiara with a gem on top that resembles Twilight's Cutie Mark before settling on her head. My orb of Bravery shatters, spinning around me and transforming into a silver chest plate, a dark blue gem resembling a star in its center.

The Elements of Harmony start to glow, making us all float towards each other. I feel a wave of energy course through me, and a large rainbow-colored beam shoots out from us. It arcs towards Nightmare Moon, wrapping her in spectral light.

“No! NOOOO!” She yells in defiance. I feel the energy intensify, and the entire room is flooded with a white light.

I find myself lying on the floor again, opening my eyes with a grunt. I stand back up, looking around to see my friends recovering.

“Ugh, my head,” Rainbow whines, flexing her wings.

“E-Everypony okay?” Applejack asks.

Rarity notices her tail has been restored by the Elements, letting out a happy squeak. “Oh thank goodness!”

“Why Rarity, it's so lovely,” Fluttersy compliments.

“I know! I'll never part with it again!”

“No. Your necklace,” the yellow pegasus points out. “It looks just like your cutie mark.”

“What? Ooh. So does yours,” Rarity says, pointing at Fluttershy’s

Fluttershy takes a look at her Element of Harmony and gasps. Everyone notices theirs and admires them as well.

“Look at mine! Look at mine!” Pinkie bounces excitedly.

“Aw yeah!” Rainbow grins down at hers.

“Gee, Twilight! I almost thought you and North were just spoutin' a lot of hooey, but I reckon we really do represent the elements of friendship,” Applejack says, full of emotion.

The purple unicorn smiles, looking at all her friends. “Yeah, I suppose we do.”

“Didn’t I tell you it wouldn’t be so bad?” I ask, playfully nudging her.

She giggles, looking down at my chestpiece. “Wow North. I had no idea you’d awaken the legendary Element!”

“Neither did I,” I chuckle. “Guess that means you’re stuck with me now though.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” she giggles.

“Oh my! North that chestpiece makes you look like a properly dashing hero,” Rarity compliments me.

“The Element of Bravery really suits you,” Fluttershy says softly, giving me a warm smile.

“And Kindness is perfect for you,” I reply with a giggle.

A bright light suddenly fills the room. “Well done, everypony.” We all look outside, seeing the sun finally starting to rise. An orb of light comes off of it, flying towards us. It floats into the room through the window, and with a flash it disappears, revealing Princess Celestia!

“Princess!” Twilight and I yell in unison, running up to her.

“North Star! Twilight Sparkle!” She greets us happily, leaning her neck on Twilight and wrapping a wing around me. “My faithful students, I knew you could do it!” We break the hug as Twilight looks up at her.

“But, you told me it was just an old pony tale,” Twilight says in confusion.

“I told you that you needed to make friends, nothing more,” the Princess explains. “I saw the signs of Nightmare Moon’s return, the same as you. I knew it was you who had the magic inside to defeat her, but you could not unleash it until you let true friendship into your heart. And I knew North would be best at helping to guide you to it,” Celestia smiles at me.

“So, does that mean you knew about this too?” I ask, pointing to the Element on my chest.

She lets out a small giggle. “I must admit, you being the fabled seventh Element was a surprise. I wasn’t even sure it actually existed. But I feel like it could not have chosen a better weilder. You are truly one of the bravest ponies I’ve ever met,” Celestia smiles down at me. I blush a bit at her praise, but smile back at her. She looks to the end of the room, getting a solemn look. “Now, I only hope somepony else can accept true friendship as well.”

She walks past us and I follow her gaze, seeing a small blue alicorn surrounded by the broken armor of Nightmare Moon. The young alicorn gasps as she gets up from the ground, looking up at the large pony coming towards her.

“Princess Luna,” Celestia says softly, crouching down. “It has been a thousand years since I have seen you like this. It is time to put our differences behind us. We were meant to rule together, little sister. Will you accept my friendship, and my apology?”

Princess Luna looked up, tears forming in her eyes as she hugged Princess Celestia. “I'm so sorry! I missed you so much, big sister!”

Celestia eagerly return the hug, also shedding her tears, happy to reunite with her little sister. “Oh, I've missed you too! More than you can imagine…”

Princess Luna turns to the rest of us. “You seven, thank you for freeing me from that nightmare. I could never hope to repay you for what you’ve done.”

“Eh, don’t sweat it!” Rainbow shrugs.

“Yeah. It’s what heroes do after all.” I smile up at her. She smiles back, looking up at her sister.

“Hey! You know what this calls for?!” Pinkie interjects. “Party time!”

We all laugh as Celestia walks up to us, her horn lighting up. “Come my little ponies. Let us get all of you home.” She casts a spell, teleporting all of us out of the castle, and back to Ponyville.

---

Pinkie Pie made good on her promise. As soon as we got back to Ponyville she launched her biggest party ever, spanning the whole town. The townsponies were eager to welcome Luna, seemingly excited to have a new Princess.

Spike and Ruby tackled Twilight and I upon our return, happy to see we were okay.

I look over, seeing Twilight looking rather glum. I walk over to her, nudging her shoulder. “Hey, you doing okay?”

She looks at me, sighing. “It’s just that, after finally being able to make friends and actually being able to admit to it, I have to leave most of them behind. We have to go back to Canterlot, and all I want is to spend more time with them.”

“Hey, it’s not all bad,” I try to sympathize with her. “You can make friends in Canterlot too. Minuette, Lemon Heart, Twinkle, and Moon Dancer are still there. Plus we can always come back and visit Ponyville.” I look over at our friends, laughing as Pinkie pops out of a cake. “But, I’ll admit, I’ll be sad to leave them behind to…”

“Do you truly feel this way, my students?” We look behind us, seeing Celestia standing there.

Twilight nods as our friends walk towards us. “I do. The six of them are the best things to ever happen to me. I love being your student, but I don’t want to leave them.” I can’t help but nod in agreement, smiling at my friends.

Celestia smirks, getting an idea. “Spike, take a note, please.” The dragon smiles, eagerly pulling out a parchment and quill. “I, Princess Celestia, hereby decree that the unicorn Twilight Sparkle shall take on a new mission for Equestria. She must continue to study the magic of friendship. She must report to me her findings from her new home in Ponyville.”

Our friends all cheer, scooping Twilight in a hug as she starts to tear up. “Oh, thank you, Princess! I won’t let you down!”

“And as for you, North. Ruby?” Celestia turns to me. Ruby giggles, pulling out her own quill. “I, Princess Celestia, hereby decree that the unicorn North Star shall also take on a new mission for Equestria. To study the magic of friendship with Twilight Sparkle, and to aid any pony he can as he takes on his new role, as the Hero of Ponyville.” She smiles down at me as I feel my face light up. The girls all tackle me to the ground, hugging me tightly as they laugh.

I hug them back as best I can, happy to finally be calling Ponyville home once again.

And I’ve never been more excited.

Author's Note:

Isn't this exciting? Are you excited, cuz I'm excited I've never been so excited! Well except for the time I went ‘GAAAGH’ but really-

Yes! Thank you, Pinkie! I really hope you all enjoy this! This was a lot of fun to write! And just so you know not every chapter is just gonna be an episode recap. I do want to tell my own story here so some episodes might get skipped and there will be original chapters.

Like the next one!

Yes exactly. As always feedback is appreciated, and please remember to stay beautiful!

Comments

[f0st3r21]

I’ve heard that straight up retellings can be less than thrilling to write when they stick real close to canon. Original chapters and an ever-increasing likelihood of a divergence from canon will certainly be interesting to read. Who knows how an additional character will alter things? And it does seem that the other Bearers have an eye on our guy. Will be fun!

[Wolfwaffe]

This was... actually painfully bland to read. It's so much of 'Second episode of the show: retold from PoV of a possible self-insert'. I haven't even read the chapter halfway and already began to get a feel what'll happen by the end. And after that I began to skim through text, because I've seen that all already. I know what happened. In fact, by the time I stopped to confim my hunch that I had at the beginning of the chapter of Star becoming the seventh element bearer I had to go back to see why that happened, because I skimmed over that part too.

Would have been more interesting if that spoilered bit did not happen, and North had to seek other ways to show his heroism.

[Gohot]

I tried.