Underground Hollow (Neku)

Moments after meeting Luna, Neku; despite being welcomed as a savior, felt like an outcast. He did not know the way things worked down in this underground city and received weird stares from passerby’s. He wanted to drown out the noise. Drown out the comments on him and if he was a monster. The best way for him to do this was music. His headphones were connected to his Ipod, so all he had to do was press the play button to begin to shuffle his music. The first song he heard was one that he could relate to. One that symbolized him. Unknowing to the fact that the Fashionista was hearing him through an open window of her home and the other individuals in the area, Neku began to recite the lyrics the best he could.

“I walk a lonely road. The only one that I have ever known. Don’t know where it goes, but it’s only me and I walk alone~.”

Azula

‘Wow. A literal underground base. How original,’ I thought sarcastically.

“Miss Applejack. I’m surprised to see you back,” the unicorn said. He was almost pure white with two toned blue hair and tail. He had an almost surfer dude accent and his armor was freakin’ purple.

“Yeah well, wasn’t much of a choice,” Applejack huffed, trotting past him, “We need doctors here now. Some of the townsponies are hurt mighty bad.”

“The Medical tent is not far.” The guard like pony replied, ordering a few of the guards to help some of the injured. He then looked at me, sighing a bit. “Another one?” he muttered.

“Well nice to meet you, too,” I snarked back, until I realized what he said. “Wait… What do you mean by that?”

“You’re the fourth one of your kind to show up in the last twenty-four hours. I mean sure, you’ve all helped us out in some way, but a lot of my soldiers are more interested in chatting with them than actually doing their jobs.”

I stepped forwards and kneeled down, getting on eye level with him. “Listen to me very carefully. Is one of them a boy with black spiky hair?”

“You mean the third one that came in with Lady Fluttershy?”

I held my breath for a moment. ‘Keep calm. Don’t get your hopes up just yet. It might not be the same person.’

“What did he say his name was?”

“Well, some people call him Vanitas. Others think his name is Warrick.”

After that I couldn’t stop myself. I barely heard the guards shouting for me to stop as I sprinted inside, calling my brother’s name.

‘He’s here! He’s here and he’s alive! I’m coming!’

As I turned another corner, I continued to scan my surroundings, looking for him and shouting his name. It wasn’t until I heard another voice that caused me to turn around and see Warrick. In the flesh alongside a yellow pegasus.

“Jane?” he asked, turning to look at me, his eyes a piercing yellow. “Jane is that you?”

I couldn’t keep the tears out of my eyes. Even if it wasn’t the exact same face it was definitely him. I rushed forward and practically tackled him with a hug. “Warrick! Warrick, oh thank god you’re alright! Oh, I was so worried and-” I stopped when I realized what I was doing. Or rather, what he was doing. I took a few steps back and looked down at his legs, unable to keep a gasp from escaping my mouth. “You… You can walk?”

Warrick then looked down at the lower half of his body before looking back. “You’re damn right I can,” he said with a smirk.

“Oh my god, Warrick, I can’t believe it! Oh my god, you’re walking!” I shouted and hugged him again. It was only now that I heard a small squeak as I looked at the Pegasus.

“Umm… W-warrick…?”

I Looked down to see a yellow pegasus with long pink hair, looking between the two of us curiously. She was also perhaps the most adorable thing I’ve seen since Applebloom.

“Oh yeah,” he said with a chuckle, “Fluttershy this is my sister Jane, Jane, this is Fluttershy.”

Her face immediately brightened. “Oh, so this is your sister! See, I told you you’d find her,” she said with a lovely smile.

“Yes you did,” he said, gently patting her head, “Of course... we’ve both lost our family resemblance,” he said with a bit of a sigh.

I smirked. “I dunno. You still look like the dorky younger brother,” I teased, ruffling his hair.

Before he could reply a contingent of guards burst into the room, led by the unicorn in the purple armor. “Don’t move!” he ordered, pointing a sword at me, somehow holding it in mid-air. Considering how it and his horn were glowing the same pink color, I figured that had something to do with it.

“Don’t threaten my sister!” Warrick glared, summoning up his keyblade, aiming it at the stallion.

“All of you stop, right now!” the pegasus, ‘Fluttershy,’ ordered. Despite the fact that it sounded like she probably didn’t even know how to yell, everyone immediately stopped what they were doing. “Now, what’s this about, Captain Shining Armor?”

The stallion stared for a moment before shaking himself out of his stupor. “Lady Fluttershy, this… being ran inside without being properly checked. Although now I realize that she was just overwhelmed about finding her brother,” he explained sheathing his sword and motioning for the others to stand down. “I apologize for the disturbance, but I chose to err on the side of caution.”

Fluttershy nodded with a truly angelic smile. “It’s quite alright, Captain Shining Armor. I understand you were just trying to be safe, be we’re all fine here.” She turned to look at me. “Jane, could you please apologize for worrying the Captain?”

I was about to scoff but I felt a strange power behind her eyes, something terrible and dangerous, that made me both afraid of her and made me feel like I’d be ashamed of myself if I disobeyed her. I turned to the unicorn and clasped my hand over my fist and bent over, the classic kung fu bow.

“Sorry for making you worry. I’ve just been worried about my brother the whole way here.”

He sighed. “It’s fine. I’ll leave you three alone for now. I’m sure Princess Luna will want to meet with you all later, so please try not to wander off too far.” He then turned and walked out with the rest of his soldiers.

“I don’t like him,” Warrick said with a pout, dismissing his keyblade.

“Now now, he just takes his job seriously,” Fluttershy explained before her expression turned somber. “He lost both his parents in an attack by Solar Flare’s forces. His little sister Twilight Sparkle is all he has left. He doesn’t want to risk losing anyone else.”

`“Man... why ya gotta make me feel bad?” he asked with a sigh, leaning back on a wall, “Curse you, you adorable ball of fuzz.”

“Yeah, they’re all adorable, aren’t they? Hard to believe there’s actually a war going on and they’re fighting it, huh?” I remarked.

“Well, I kinda already pissed the Queen off,” Warrick said with a sheepish smile, rubbing the back of his neck.

I chuckled. “Oh yeah? Well I pissed off two of them. Even hit the buggy little bitch with a lightning bolt.”

“I froze someone solid.”

“Not bad.”

“Wait, you said two Queens?” Fluttershy asked.

“Yeah. Apparently she teamed up with Chrysalis and the changelings.”

She gasped. “Oh dear! Princess Luna needs to hear about this!”

“She’s the Queen of the changelings, these black and green bug-pony looking things. Got horns and bug wings, even fangs and holes in their bodies. She’s a real contender, Big Mac even broke her neck with a hammer and she just magicked it back together. Still seemed to hurt her pretty bad, but still.”

“Oh jesus,” he said with a wide eyed gaze, “I just had to fight some really fast pegasi...”

“Wait, did you say ‘Big Mac’?” Fluttershy asked. “You mean Big Macintosh?”

“Uh, yeah?”

“So does that mean Applejack is here, too?” she asked, a smile creeping onto her face.

“Oh, you know her?”

“Oh yes! Oh, I’ll be so happy to see her!” her smile fell and she gasped. “Oh no, if she’s here then that means something terrible must have happened to Appleloosa!”

“Changelings destroyed it,” I confirmed.

“Oh, poor Applejack. That orchard was her livelihood. She even moved her trees from Ponyville all the way out into the desert just to get away from the war. She must be devastated.”

“Harsh...” Warrick said, wincing a bit, “Well, I’m going to help any way I can, ya got that?”

“Oh no you don’t,” I said firmly. “I’m not gonna have my little brother going off and risk getting himself killed in some crazy adventure. We’re gonna do what we need to get out of here and-”

“I’m not a kid anymore,” Warrick cut off, looking into my eyes, “I mean, look at us, we’re not even us anymore. We have these...powers now Jane, we have to help them. It’s the right thing to do.”

“You…” I tried to retort, but he had some legitimate points. He could summon a Keyblade, and he said he froze someone which meant he had magic now, too. I shot fire and electricity and fought off a bunch of killer bug-ponies. He wasn’t a weak kid confined to a wheelchair anymore, and I wasn’t just his big sister who always watched over him.

I sighed. “You always did want to be the hero.”

“Well, someone has to,” he said, giving me a smirk.

I groaned and rolled my eyes. “Fine. Fine. But only if we get some training in and if you promise to never run off and do something stupid, ok?”

“Yes, mom,” he said with a smile and a roll of his eyes.

“Don’t you back sass me, young man!” I said, playfully chiding him before we both laughed. It took me a moment to notice that Fluttershy was giggling along as well.

“Oh, it’s so nice to see something like this. Usually everyone’s so grim and depressed. It really helps to see some genuine happiness around here,” she explained.

At that moment a few guards came into the room.

“Sorry to interrupt, but Princess Luna would like to see you all now.”

“Any last words?” Warrick asked with a chuckle, walking over to the guards.

“Oh hush you, I’m sure she’s perfectly reasonable,” I said as I followed the armored stallions.

“You know what they say about assumptions!”

I rolled my eyes to that comment as we entered the room. It was quite wide with a dome like ceiling. But what caught my attention was the four unicorns alongside the “Princess”.

“Wow, she’s a biggun,” I muttered.

“Please refrain from making such comments, if thou could, visitor,” she replied.

‘And she heard me. And she uses the royal “We”. This will be difficult.’

“If thou could wait but a moment, the other two visitors and my our other guests shall arrive soon.” She spoke again, gesturing a hoof to what looked like floor mats.

I shrugged and sat down, hoping this wouldn’t take too long.

Oobleck

“I walk this empty street, on the boulevard of broken dreams. Where the city sleeps, and I’m the only one, and I walk alone~”

I heard a song being sung, one that I doubted I’d ever hear considering our location.

“What’s up, Ooby?” Pinkie asked me from her resting place atop my head as I looked around.

“Looking for whomever is singing that song,” I replied, heading towards the music.

Pinkie paused for a moment. “I don’t like it. Songs should be happy.”

“Pinkie, do you know what ‘catharsis’ is?” I asked with a smile.

“What’s that? Sounds like some kind of tea.”

“It is literally defined as the act of releasing and purging emotions from the self, thus relieving the body of pent up stress. Have you ever been angry and channelled it into something productive instead of attacking what made you angry?”

“Yup! Usually I just try to throw a party!”

I chuckled. “That could work, but sometimes just releasing the emotion that you have in a way that harms no one else could be considered catharsis. The classic example would be to hit a pillow when you’re angry, because you can’t destroy the pillow with blunt trauma and your physical exertion will remove the anger from your body.”

“So… he’s singing that sad song so he won’t feel sad anymore?”

“Precisely.”

“Huh… I still don’t like it though.”

I chuckled. “No one said you had to.” I looked around and finally found the source of the music, surprised to find Neku Sakuraba, someone else likely in my position, absorbed in the music from his headphones. I gently tapped him on the back to get his attention. “You know, a student in my art history class happened to like that song quite a bit.”

He turned around, eyes widening a little at the sight of me as he set his headphones around his neck. “Holy shit… M-mr. Bertrand!?”

I looked surprised. “How do you… Mr. Dolor?” I asked.

“Yeah… That’s me. And just when I thought that a Iron Man suit falling on me was the last surprise I was going to get today.” He said, now noticing Pinkie. “Who’s your friend?”

Pinkie hopped down and grabbed his hand. “Hi I’m Pinkie Pie and I don’t really like that song you were singing because it was sad but if it makes you feel better than I’m ok with that but I’d like to throw you a ‘Welcome to Equestria’ and a ‘Thank You For Saving Rarity and a Bunch of other Ponies’ party later and what’s your name!?” she asked in an incredibly fast pace.

“You can call me Neku, Pinkie. I personally feel a little more comfortable with it.” He said, now looking behind us. “Did you happen to have some kind of escort with you two? Because why are there guards coming this way?”

“Hm?” I asked, turning to face the the approaching guards.

“Mr. Neku, Miss Pie, Mr. Oobleck-”

“Doctor,” I corrected.

He looked surprised for a moment before correcting himself. “Doctor Oobleck. Princess Luna would like to see you all. Mr. Neku, do you know where Miss Rarity is?”

“I’m leaning against her house. Plus, she probably heard you because of the open window.” Neku said, pointing out a finger at the open window behind him.

“Comiiing!~” Rarity called in a singsong tone before stepping out a moment later dressed in a purple frilly dress with a lavender scarf. “Now that I’m properly prepared, I believe we can meet with the Princess now.”

“You look quite…… pretty in those clothes.”

“Just ‘pretty’?” she asked, looking a bit disheartened.

“Please pardon my student, he’s not the best with interactions,” I stepped in. “He meant to say you looked ravishing, Lady Rarity,” I complemented with a bow.

“Yes. I’m sorry, Rarity. Conversations aren’t my strong suit. Oh and before I forget, this is my teacher, Dr. Oobleck.”

“Oh my, a doctor? Well, you do look like quite the intelligent one.”

“I appreciate the compliment madam, but I believe we must hurry along. We shall continue this conversation later.” I then turned to the stallions. “Gentlemen, by your leave.”

“‘Gentlecolts’, darling,” Rarity corrected.

“Ah, quite right. Thank you for that. Let’s move along then.”

“What he said.” Neku muttered to himself as we followed the stallions to the supposed meeting room. What surprised me was that two other humans were here as well. One was a young teenaged girl and the other was a teenaged boy. And both of them looked to be in the same situation as we were in. Both of them looked to us in surprise.

“Whoa. I mean, I heard about two others, but I didn’t really figure they were in the same position we were,” I heard the girl mutter. If I remembered correctly, she was Princess Azula from Avatar: the Last Airbender. The boy I recognized from one of the Kingdom Hearts entries, but the name escaped me.

“You took the words right out of my mouth.” Neku replied as he sat down next to a yellow pegasus. He kindly introduced himself to her as I sat down and Pinkie sat back on top of me.

“Pinkie, don’t bug the stallion,” a unicorn with lavender with purple hair with a pink streak in it complained.

“I’m quite fine with it, but thank you for the concern,” I replied.

She looked at me curiously but shrugged.

The tall pony with wings, a horn, and a starry mane that flowed in a non-existent wind cleared her throat.

“Thank you everypony for coming. And thank you once again for saving thy friends of thy apprentices.” she began before turning to an orange ‘earth pony’ wearing a stetson hat and a vest. “Dame Applejack, We realize that we did not depart on the best of terms, we are pleased to see thee returned and unharmed.”

“Ah ain’t here cause Ah wanna be,” Applejack snorted, “Ah’m here because yer sister decided to send the damn bugs after us ‘cause we were sittin’ yer damn war out.”

Luna looked shocked. “Celes-Solar Flare now has the changelings under her employ?”

“I don’t know if they’re working for her or with her, but they’re definitely on the same side,” Azula clarified. “Chrysalis said so herself.”

“Excuse me for interrupting, but what was this about a sister?” Neku interjected. “Because something tells me there’s a few things we don’t understand.”

“I agree. I have gathered some information from Miss Pinkie Pie here, but I believe an in depth explanation would be best. But first, I think some introductions are in order,” I began. I cleared my throat before starting again. “Greetings, I am Doctor Bartholomew Oobleck. Pleasure to meet you all.”

“I’m Neku Sakuraba, but you can just call me Neku. It’s nice to meet all of you.” Neku said as Rarity sat down next to him.

“I’m Warrick and this is my sister Jane,” the other young man said, giving a smile, “Don’t worry, she looks meaner than she actually is.”

The girl stuck her tongue out at the boy.

“Now wait a minute, ya said yer name was Azula,” Applejack said, glaring at her.

“No, I said ‘you can call me Azula.’” she corrected.

“Dirty liar,” the mare muttered.

“I’m really fine with either. And if you want you can call him Vanitas.”

“Hi! I’m Pinkie Pie! Meet me after for a ‘Welcome to Equestria’ party! There’ll be cake and pie and cupcakes and punch and-.”

“Miss Pie, if you please?” Luna interrupted.

“Oh, right. Um, sorry,” she replied sheepishly. “But I’m serious about the party,” she whispered loudly.

“I’ll be sure to be there.” Neku said, a little bit sarcastically.

“Yay!” she squeed.

“Greetings, my name is Rarity. You may call me ‘Lady Rarity’, if you feel so inclined.”

The yellow pegasus smiled. “Hello. My name is Fluttershy. It’s very nice to meet you.”

“Ah guess you could figure out by now, but mah name’s Applejack,” the orange pony said tersely.

“You may call me Trixie,” a blue unicorn with silver hair said, holding her head up high.

A unicorn with a yellow coat and a flame colored mane rolled her eyes. “I’m Sunset Shimmer. Nice to meet you.”

“Hello!” a pale purple unicorn said with a bright smile, “I’m Starlight Glimmer! It’s a pleasure to meet you!”

“And I am Twilight Sparkle,” the lavender unicorn said, shifting her hooves somewhat nervously.

“As you already know, We are Princess Luna. We appreciate you all being present,” the Princess finished. “And before we continue, there is something that all four of you should know about.”

“Is this about the “sister” that Applejack mentioned?” Neku asked.

“Why don’t we just let her speak?” Vanitas asked, crossing his arms.

“Now now, no need to be rude,” I cut in. “Please continue, Princess Luna.”

“Thank you,” Luna said, clearing her throat, “One thousand years ago, We once ruled this land jointly with Our sister, Celestia. Twas a time of relative peace and prosperity until... something happened. Our sister assumed the title of Solar Flare and declared herself queen of Equestria.”

“Whoa, hold on a second, I think I missed this the first time, but did you say ‘one thousand years ago?” Jane interrupted. “How old are you!?”

“Darling, never I would think you would know never to ask a lady her age or her weight,” Rarity warned. “Besides, I think you should save all comments for after the story.”

“Oh, uh… right. Sorry.”

“As We were saying...” Luna started, “We tried to convince her to stand down, to see reason, but... she... tried to kill Us... her own sister...” Luna stopped, looking away starting to choke up.

“Oh dear,” I muttered.

She wiped her eyes before continuing. “In the end We were left with no choice but to use the greatest magic available to Us, the Elements of Harmony against her. We banished her to another dimension, hoping to spare both our kingdom and her from destruction. Unfortunately, as the young ponies now say, this decision ‘came back to bite Us.’ Our sister would return from her banishment only a few years later, with an army of unholy creatures as well as dark magic of a caliber We had never seen before. In addition she managed to steal one of the Elements of Harmony so that We could not use it against her again. Her power and her forces were greater than We could hope to overcome, so We fled, and took as many ponies with me that were willing to fight,” she turned back to us, wiping at her eyes, “And fight we have for all these long centuries, yet it seemed we had only prolonged the inevitable.” She then began to smile. “But now, We believe a ray of hope has arrived. Or, perhaps We should say, four rays.”

“Well, I’m glad to help,” Vanitas said, giving Luna a bright smile.

Azula sighed. “I’ll be honest, I’m not too thrilled about getting involved in a war, but I guess I can’t just turn a blind eye either.” She smirked confidently. “Count me in.”

“I’d prefer to solve conflicts with diplomacy myself, but you’ll find I’m not unwilling to engage in these… conflicts on behalf of your oppressed followers,” I proclaimed.

“Ah what the hell? I’m in.” Neku replied. “It will help me learn how to use my psychs.”

Luna nodded. “We greatly appreciate your willingness.”

“Now hold on a moment! Your majesty, I’ll admit they’re all quite powerful, but do you really think that they alone will have the strength to turn the tide of this war?” the blue mare, Trixie asked.

“Their strength is great, undoubtedly but wars are not won with strength alone,” Luna answered. “However, with their skills we may have a chance to finally make some significant gains in this millennia-long conflict. Twas the very same task that We wished to discuss with you, Our four apprentices, before the arrival of Sir Neku.”

“What do you mean, your majesty?” Starlight Glimmer asked.

“With luck, their strength will be enough to take the Crystal Empire for our cause, and free the Crystal Heart from the dark influence of King Sombra and Princess Cadenza.”

The ponies all gasped. Whatever this ‘Crystal Empire’, the idea of reclaiming it was apparently a herculean task.

“But trying to reclaim the Crystal Empire would be suicide! Not without a great increase of power and warriors to aid us!” Sunset Shimmer retorted. “Even with these four, we just don’t have the strength of numbers!”

“Hey uh..” Vanitas spoke up, “If you need an army, I could probably provide one for you.”

All of us stared at the boy, confused.

“You know of a force we could employ for our cause?” Princess Luna asked.

“Promise you won’t attack me?”

Luna eyed him warily before nodding.

He closed his eyes, a black mist seeming to emanate from him. From out of this mist formed several strange creatures of various size and shape, though they all had glowing red eye.

Everyone scooted back a bit in shock, Luna being the one who kept herself the most composed. It was Azula who recovered first however, a childlike smile on her face.

“You can summon Unversed, too! You really are Vanitas!” she practically squeed.

“Wh-What manner of creatures are those?” Luna asked, still surprised.

“These are the Unversed,” Vanitas started, looking up at her, “They are my raw emotions made manifest, their, for lack of a better explanation, an extension of myself, fully under my control.”

“You mean… living emotions? That’s fascinating! Oh, the weeks I could spend studying and cataloguing such a phenomenon!” Twilight Sparkle exclaimed with a sparkle in her eyes. She appeared to be quite the intellectual herself.

“Give it a rest, Twilight, you’re drooling,” Sunset teased, caused the other unicorn to snap out of her reprieve and blush sheepishly.

“She is correct, however. Such an ability is quite fascinating indeed. What abilities do such creatures possess?” Princess Luna asked.

“Depends on the breed really,” Vanitas said with a shrug, “I could name them all if you want but, we’d be here for a while.”

“And is there a limit on how many you can create?”

“Not that I know of but...” he looked at one, conjuring up his keyblade. He took a deep breath before striking it, causing it to evaporate into the black mist it spawned from. Vanitas let out a cry of pain, dropping his weapon, looking like he was in absolute agony.

“Warrick!” Azula shouted, rushing over to him, cradling him in her arms. “Are you ok!? What happened!?”

“As you can see...” he said, between pants, “Destroying an Unversed causes me extreme pain...”

Azula grew angry and punched him in the arm, eliciting a yelp of pain from the boy. “Stupid! You could’ve just told us that instead of showing it,” she shouted. Despite her harsh actions tears were clearly visible in her eyes as she stomped back to her seat and sat down, huffing angrily.

“I figured it would be more effective...” he grumbled, the Unversed vanishing back into the mist, which itself vanished.

“Hm… destroying one causes you such pain, then I would not recommend using them in the front lines. They could make excellent scouts though,” Luna commented. “However, we must continue. As We had stated before, We had planned to launch our forces in an attempt to retake the Crystal Empire. Though King Sombra and Princess Cadenza are indeed powerful opponents, Cadenza herself being my sister’s apprentice, the rewards for such a task are great. An entire city to house our people, protected not only by the harsh and unforgiving winds of the frozen north but also the strength of the Crystal Heart itself, one of the most powerful artifacts in Equestria. Though it would indeed have been suicide before, We believed the miniscule chance at victory was better than the certainty of a slow defeat.”

“Look,” Vanitas said, looking Luna in the eyes, “I don’t care how much pain it causes me, if using the Unversed means saving lives then I’ll take all the pain in the world.”

We all looked to the boy, stunned by his conviction.

“No!” came an unexpected voice, Pinkie Pie jumping off my head and walking towards him. “No pain! Not if you don’t have to! No pain, no crying! Helping ponies should be something that makes them happy, not making them sorry for you!”

I cleared my throat. “I believe what she is trying to say is that your courage is truly admirable, but there is a difference between being able to bravely put life and limb on the line and being reckless. Even still, it’s quite a comfort to know how dedicated you are to this cause.”

“I have a way to make sure people don’t die,” he argued, looking at me, “It’s just pain, I can handle it.”

“He does have a point...” Starlight spoke up, though she looked unsure.

“The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few,” Vanitas said simply, crossing his arms and looking at the floor.

Azula sighed and shook her head. “Stupid macho bullshit,” she muttered.

“Ahem,” Luna cleared her throat, catching everyone’s attention. “If I may, We would like to continue. There is one more trick up our sleeve, as the expression goes, in ending this war. As We mentioned before. we possess most of the Elements of Harmony, perhaps the most powerful artifacts in our world. However, it is unfortunately a card We cannot play. Over the millennia Our connection to these powers has waned and broken, and We can only assume the same has happened to Our sister. But it is not simply because they have waned in power, but rather because they have chosen new bearers.” She smiled. “And is it so happens, five of the six are here with us now.”

“And how in the name of apples do ya know that?” Applejack asked, crossing her arms, “Just sounds like you holding onto blind hope, like always.”

“Applejack!” Twilight Sparkle shouted. “There’s no need to-”

“Ah, Dame Applejack,” Luna interrupted, smiling and seemingly unaffected by the slight. She levitated in an ornate trunk. “Always with her heart on her hooves,” she continued opening the trunk and revealing four necklaces and a tiara. “So straightforward, so… Honest,” she finished pulling out one of the necklaces, this one with an apple shaped orange gem in the center.

Applejack gasped before looking back at her cutie mark. Before she could form a response Luna levitated the necklace onto her chest, where it began to glow slightly, a humm of energy emanating from it before it faded.

“H-how...?” stuttered Applejack, not sure what was going on. She just stared at the necklace, dumbstruck.

Luna looked around the room and continued. “Dame Pinkie Pie, always looking to bring joy to those around her, wishes to bring smiles to all whom she meets. A fitting bearer for Laughter,” she said as she levitated another necklace out and onto the pony, this one with a blue gem shaped like a balloon.

“Yuppers! That’s me alright!” she replied happily, bouncing on her hooves as not only her gem shone and hummed, but Applejack’s as well, both louder than the single gem had done before.

“Rarity, who despite her prim and proper demeanor would be willing to risk all to aid those in need. The Element of Generosity fits thee well,” she proclaimed as she placed a necklace with a diamond shaped purple gem on her neck.

“M-Me? Well, I don’t-I mean I don’t mean to question-That is to say… oh I feel faint,” the white unicorn began to fan herself with her hoof before falling backwards in a dramatic fashion, summoning a fainting couch seemingly from nowhere to catch her own fall.

Luna chuckled before turning to Fluttershy. “Lady Fluttershy, such a pure and gentle soul, always willing to bring a kind word and an attentive ear to those in need. The Element of Kindness could have no better bearer,” she proclaimed as she levitated the final necklace, bearing a pink butterfly shaped jewel, onto her neck.

“Oh… Oh my goodness,” the mare replied, seemingly unable to find any more words.

“And of course, the Element of Magic, that which binds and directs them all. Surely there is no question as to whom it would be meant for,” she said, pulling out the tiara and showing off the starburst like pink gem on top. “You will wear it well, my apprentice Twilight Sparkle.”

Twilight looked utterly stunned as the tiara was laid upon her head. Starlight and Sunset looked on with a slight touch of jealousy but quickly hid it. Trixie’s envy, however, was much more obvious as a pout crossed her face.

“Congratulations, Twilight,” Sunset complemented with a smile, finally breaking the unicorn out of her trance.

“N-No. This can’t be. There’s gotta be some kind of mistake!” she insisted, practically hyperventilating. “I-I’m your most recent apprentice! I’ve been with you for the shortest amount of time. Trixie, Sunset Shimmer, Starlight Glimmer, they’re much more worthy of such a role!”

“The bearers of the Elements of Harmony and not chosen by us, Twilight. The Elements themselves choose their bearer.”

“B-But there’s no way! If I’m good at magic it’s only because you and and the girls taught me everything they know! I-I’m just-”

“Twilight, there’s no mistake,” Starlight interrupted. “The Element chose you. It was meant for you. And no matter what happens, we’ll all be here to help you, as it’s bearer and our friend,” she finished with a smile.

Twilight looked between her three fellow apprentices, meeting their kind gazes, even Trixie who no longer looked jealous, with uncertainty before sighing. After a moment she smiled. “I’ll make you all proud.”

Luna let the scene carry for a moment before starting again. “The Elements only took their shape recently, likely in response to their bearers being ready to wield them.” Her face then grew somber. “Unfortunately, Our sister still possesses the Element of Loyalty, the final piece needed. If we are particularly unlucky, she also has the bearer under her employ as well. Even still, without all of them, they are useless to both of us, but they may just be the key to ending the war.”

“‘Ending the war?’ Are they really that powerful?” Azula asked.

“It is less how strong they are and more what they can do,” Luna explained. “Over these centuries of war We have come to realize that Our sister’s evil ambitions were not born merely out of her own desires, but also a dark influence, one that twisted her instincts into what she is now. With the Elements we could purge this vile power from her, both removing our enemies’ commander as well as one of our most powerful opponents and be able to finally push back and drive off their scattered forces. In addition…” Luna paused before sighing, a single tear rolling down her face. “We could finally have our sister back. We could be joined in harmony once more and rule this land in peace as we were always meant to. Together.”

“Sounds like a plan to me!” Vanitas said, bringing his hands together, “Now, where do we start?”

I saw Neku raise a hand and waited for Luna to call upon him before he spoke. “Well, There’s two things that come to my mind. First, I assume that the four of us have only been here for a few hours, so I believe that before we try going head first into battle, we should understand the abilities we are capable of and master them. Second, we should know about our enemy first before charging into battle. Luna, do you have any intelligence on your sister and her forces?”

“Of course, why doth thy ask?”

“I believe that if you give him some time, Dr. Oobleck might find something that we could use to our advantage. Back home, he is my teacher and the smartest person I know so he can probably find something that can help us.” At that moment, I felt a little bit of joy for my student. It was rare for him to take the lead in any situation, more content to stay in his own world.

“If you insist. We will have Twilight Sparkle show thou thy Archives after this conversation has concluded.” The Princess said. “Now, Are there anymore questions?”

I look at the rest of the group and noticed Mr. Warrick waiting for a pause before he spoke again. “I think we should focus on learning what we can do, you got a sparring room or something?”

Luna nodded her head, using her hoof to motion a few of the guards to come towards her. “Indeed we do. We can have a few guards guide thee to the Barracks if thou wishes.”

“Hey, every bit helps and I’m thankful for that.” Neku said, thanking the Princess. “I’ll catch up with you later “Madame” Rarity.” The comment had me chuckle a little because what my student had said caused the mare’s white cheeks to bloom shades of red.

“A moment, if you please,” Luna said. “There is one last thing We wish to discuss, but I would like to discuss it with our guests. If the rest of you could exit, please.”

We all looked at her curiously.

“If that is your wish, Princess Luna,” Trixie answered. The ponies all exited the room, leaving only the four of us and the Princess.

“We are to understand you are not from Equestria,” Luna began. “You have all said as much yourselves, and your ignorance of our history and ways prove this. However, We suspect you are from far further than simply a far off land. You are not of this world, are you?”

“You are correct,” I replied. “But I’m more curious as to what this means to you.”

Luna paused for a moment before continuing. “As We mentioned before, a dark force has influenced Our sister, still twisting her behavior to this day. However, when she returned from her banishment, she was not alone. A great evil has taken advantage of her corrupted state and acts through her here. We ask of your origins, because this being bears a similar appearance to all of you. In fact, if it were not for his obvious role in saving our subjects, We would likely have considered Sir Neku to be his ally.”

We all shared a nervous glance. The idea that there could possibly be another like us, with the power to control a being that had lived a millennium and who had likely lived as long themselves, was troubling to say the least.

“Do you know this person’s name?” I asked.

Luna nodded.

Elsewhere…

Queen Solar Flare approached the mirror in her personal chambers, activating the enchantment. The image on the mirror changed from her reflection to a swirl of magic before a tall and imposing figure’s visage had replaced it.

“Solar Flare, what news do you bring me? Has the final blow against your sister and her forces been dealt?” the figure asked, his voice deep and powerful.

“We are afraid not. Unfortunately a complication has reared its contemptuous head. Four problems, to be precise, all bearing similar physical appearances to thee.”

“Oh? Explain.”

“The reports are vague, but all are troubling. The griffins report a strange youth with hair like flame wielding and unknown and versatile magic. Our General reports that her prized soldiers, the Wonderbolts, were driven off by a knight of darkness, wielding powerful spells and a blade shaped like a key. The minotaurs speak of another being swift as the wind and wielding a spear of fire. And finally are mentions of a being able to cast both fire and lightning from its body, and with a silver tongue and wit to even deceive the changeling Queen herself. How should We proceed?”

“Interesting. For now continue as before, but be cautious. Learn as much as you can of these beings, as it will not serve us to rush in blindly. I will ponder on this matter myself.”

Solar Flare nodded. “We thank thee for thy assistance as always, Shao Khan.”

Author's Notes:

So our main villain appears. Or at the very least is mentioned. To be honest, it's really fun coming up with all the ways this Equestria is different. Hope you're all enjoying the wild ride.