Skyblazer woke up, stretched, and yawned. He tossed the quilt over the back of the couch, and recalled that he was at his folk's home. A strange feeling of nostalgia and vertigo washed over him for a moment before he fully woke up.

He would have to get used to waking up in strange places, being always on the move.

It had been a sound sleep without any dreams, which was fine by him after the previous nightmare. Simply knowing that dreams took place in another world was unsettling.

Sky looked over at the fireplace. Cobalt was already up, in the kitchen with his family. Lightning was just about done cooking breakfast. Barley still hadn't come back in.

Violet and Piney had already heaped their plates with good, country cooking. They usually started their arduous farm chores at the crack of dawn, and often didn't finish until well after sunset.

Skyblazer had to admit to himself that he felt some guilt at leaving the farm behind him. Still, he was a grown pegasus, right? He looked at his saddlebags and armor, jumbled up by the sofa, and at the amulet glowing against his chest. He was a part of something bigger now.

He helped his mother set the table before taking a seat. Lightning gestured Cobalt to a chair, and said, "I know it's not the same thing, but I made some eggs for you. Should be close enough to your usual fare."

Cobalt thanked her. She was happy with the scrambled eggs, but the homemade cinnamon rolls were what really caught her interest. She said,

"Oh wow these are good. Can I live here?"

Lightning chuckled and said Barley would have a conniption.

After breakfast, Lightning and Cobalt got packed and ready to leave. Sky was out the door and about to gallop off into flight when his mother stopped him.

Lightning said, "You should talk to your dad before you take off."

"No, I'd rather not," came Sky's reply.

"So you're going to just leave without saying anything? You really have become your father."

Cobalt made a shrill bird noise which sounded rather like a whistle.

Sky stopped walking, and stood with his back to his mother for a moment. He turned around, looked at the ground, and then took flight towards the workshop. Cobalt knew well enough to stay out of this.

His dad was nursing a hangover, sitting in the dark since the light hurt. He saw his son's winged silhouette come through the door, and almost cussed at him, but he stopped. Sky sat nearby him.

Skyblazer cleared his throat, "Ahem. Morning, dad," he didn't look at him, but rather at the wall.

His dad opened a beer bottle, and said, "Reckon you're about to leave. Off on some new adventure. Farm life ain't good enough for you, is it? I get it. We're broke out here and you wanna make a name for yourself."

"Dad, it honestly ain't that. Times have changed, you have to see that by now. Ponies are dying. All the magic folks are relying on to fight off the monsters, well, it's breaking down. No one knows what's going on. Here, let me show you something,"

Sky raised a front leg, and pulled his necklace off. The Element of Conflict rippled with a foggy light. It wasn't enough to light up the workshop, but it did let them see each other's faces. Barley's face was lined and worn from stress, age and weather, and his eyes were bloodshot from drink.

Barley stared at it like it was a snake. He said, "I don't trust shit like that."

"I know, dad. Thing is, this is ancient magic, not some forbidden dark magic. There has to be a purpose behind all this. Twilight and her friends have gems just like this, and now the magic map... I'm not looking for money, I'm looking for answers. I'm going to Canterlot castle so I can talk to the two ponies who are as old as the elements are."

Barley took a hearty swig of beer, wiped his mouth, and paused for a moment. He said, "I'm not too happy about you and that griffon being friends. You ought to know she's a monster, anything that eats critters is. Just their nature, and one day, she's gonna turn on you. But I'll say this, son. The both of you are gonna have one hell of a fight ahead of ya. Keep poking at myths and legends with a stick, eventually they're gonna hit ya back. Be careful."

"I will. Say what you will about Cobalt, I still think she's amazing. She already saved my life. If I'm going to deal with things nopony should ever encounter, then I'll be glad to have her with me."

"Long as it's just friends. I don't even want to think about it being anything else, couldn't call you part of the family in that case."

Sky coughed and choked, caught his breath, and said, "Whoa, it's just friends, dad. We're just adventurers, out killing monsters and looking for trouble."

"Good then. Y'all be safe, and don't be a stranger. And stay away from that damn zebra, you hear? Nutcase will be the death of you."

Skyblazer flew back towards the gate, stopping to hug his mother goodbye and grab some fresh fruit from their tiny orchard on the way out. On his flight back towards the gate, he tried to focus his amulet on telekinesis. He managed to eat a whole apple by holding it aloft with arcane power.

Cobalt and he each had a beer. His dad had given him six as a parting gift, all ice-cold from being kept in the water of a cold spring. Sky got the cart attached, and flew off with Zecora in tow towards Everfree.

The three arrived after several days of flight. Sky stayed the night in the forest, and prepared to leave in the morning. Cobalt told him,

"I'm staying here for now, go on ahead to Canterlot."

"Oh, I understand," replied Sky, "You don't want to be in the big city."

"It's not that. I'm just dealing with... girl problems."

"I don't know what that means."

"Good. I'll need to stay here about a week and a half, then what say we meet in Ponyville?"

"That should be midway for both of us. See you then. Take care, Zecora!"

"I shall see you again, my good friend Sky," said the zebra, "and bid you good weather as you fly."

The day's flight was relatively peaceful, for Everfree. The only trouble was a water elemental which attacked him when he landed to refill his canteen. He froze it solid, and took off as it began to break free.

Applejack was sure right about everything trying to kill me out here, Sky thought to himself as the wind rippled past him.

He soared over the Apple's orchard from a lofty height, and then dove for a ways to avoid flying through the cloud layer. It was honestly strange moving from wild areas into urban, carefully maintained areas. Since the pegasi managed all the weather in the Ponyville and Canterlot region, the clouds were all lower than what was natural.

They weren't quite low enough to qualify as fog, and it just felt wrong that they weren't higher up. Honestly a bit unsettling. Sky got a glimpse into his father's point of view from thinking on this.

Curious now, Sky altered his course and flew up, close to vertical. He pierced the clouds, passing through moisture which clung to his feathers in drops. Above, the scene was as majestic and unreal as he had imagined.

Pegasi called this place the "Cloud Plateau". It was the boundary of natural and magic weather. Here, Sky floated just above the clouds, where it was very tempting to bounce on the fluffy things with his innate magic. Right nearby, the cloud level suddenly rose way, way up to the upper sky where the air was thin. Rays of sunlight pierced through straggling clouds which hovered in between these two elevations.

Sky cleared a hole through the clouds, and then rested on his belly to look upon the vast world below. He was glad to have been born as a pegasus. He noticed another pegasus flying towards him. She landed right by him, and said,

"Put that back, would you? We need rain and wind next week, getting the layers prepared ahead of time."

Sky apologized and fixed the clouds. He canceled out his magic and fell through the gray fluff. After a moment of exhilarating freefall, as ragged tatters of cloud sped past, he spread his wings and gained speed in a fast dive towards Canterlot.

Returning to the city felt somehow different now, in light of the things he had been through. Only a few moons ago, getting off the train had been frightening. Now, the bustle and din of city life paled in comparison with the chaos of their world.

Canterlot was as uppity and snobby as ever. It honestly was a good thing Cobalt had stayed behind, this was not her kind of place.

Skyblazer landed at an approved entry point, stretched his tired wings, and trotted along the cobblestone streets. The grand castle towered overhead.

By far the largest building in all of Equestria, the royal castle was something of a hobby for the princesses. They had used magic to improve and expand the place, room by room, level by level, to ridiculous proportions. Sky counted windows going up for five stories, not including the taller turrets.

Royal guards were posted at the gates of the castle, but they were more for show and pomp. The castle was usually open to the public, though it could be locked down in an emergency. This had been the case far too often in recent years. Sky, awed and humbled, stepped inside.

Canterlot Castle had a small army of maids, butlers, messengers, wizards, and diplomats all busy within its walls. One messenger greeted Sky, and led him up three stories to a tiled parlor. He was told to wait here.

Sky observed the room while the messenger went to find the ruling sisters. The floor of the parlor was marble, with a flawless shine. Light came from windows carved through the stone, and exquisite chandeliers of some magic, glowing crystals. A coffee bar was available, and Sky helped himself.

The messenger returned, offered a curt bow, and said, "The Princesses will see you now."

Sky went through the enormous oak doors, up a flight of stairs with trailing red carpet, and into the venerable Hall of Legends. Stained glass windows, made by and infused with magic, depicted famous battles and events of Equestria.

Twilight and her friends were represented on several of these windows, each with their corresponding element. The closer Sky walked towards the thrones where the two sisters sat, the further back in history the windows went, until he no longer recognized the events from the reading he had done.

Nearby the thrones, Sky was shocked to see a great deal of various damage to the room. Grievous burns and gashes in the floor. The thick rafters overhead sliced clean through like butter. One of the stained glass windows, which had an image of Discord, all warped and twisted as though melted.

The visage of the two sisters reflected the state of the hall. They were both regal and somber, yet the stress and worry still showed through.

Sky bowed as Princess Celestia addressed him,

"Young Skyblazer the pegasus, welcome."

Celestia sat in a larger-than-life throne, which had many ancient runes etched on it and a symbol of the sun. She was a white alicorn--both a pegasus and a unicorn--with a mane and tail composed of astral energy which flowed gracefully with a soft blue light.

Her sister, Princess Luna, sat with stiff posture beside her in a similar throne with a symbol of the half moon. This alicorn with black fur and feathers appeared far more weary and worn down than her sister was.

Luna spoke now, "I notice Cobalt is not with you. We were hoping to speak with both of you. Is all well, I hope she is not injured?"

"She was complaining of 'girl problems'", Sky answered, "I don't even know what that means. Guessing it means she doesn't want to be in the city."

Celestia was quite startled. She sat with one ear down and one eye closed, with a bit of a blush to her cheeks. Luna covered her mouth with one wing to muffle her laughter.

Princess Celestia spoke, "That is.. really something your parents should have told you when you were younger. If you don't know, I'd advise you ask your mother."

Luna laughed even harder now. Celestia scowled at her, and said, "Don't you think four millennia is a bit much to be acting like a filly?"

"I'm so sorry!" said Luna, as she struggled to catch her breath, "That was just so unexpected, came out of nowhere."

Celestia sat up with royal posture, rigid ears, and a stern expression. Luna struggled to maintain the same composure, while suppressing giggles. Celestia's horn glimmered with a yellow energy, and she quietly wafted a beam of magic towards her sister, behind her back where she couldn't see it.

Skyblazer watched quietly in stunned silence. The yellow energy encompassed Luna, and a pained look came onto her face. She wiggled in discomfort, and then burst into fits of laughter.

She finally managed to cast a shield spell and dispel the yellow magic. She sat up properly with her invisible shield, and told her sister, "Don't you think five millennia is a bit much for a tickling spell?"

Celestia laughed now, and wiped a tear from her eye. She breathed in deep, and turned to Sky, saying, "Oh, we desperately needed that. Times have been so hard here."

Skyblazer said in awe, "That's a long time... does anypony else know those exact numbers?"

"The Elements of Harmony, and the alicorns who assist us in managing our land. Twilight Sparkle, as you may know, is both. All others only know that it has been a supposedly long while."

"So you two really are immortal..." quietly said Skyblazer.

Luna answered, "So far," and Sky could only nod. That was a point.

Princess Celestia continued, "Insofar as Cobalt and you have been appointed with the Elements of Conflict, is is only proper we have a similar discussion with you. It would be better if she could be here. Luna, would you transcribe please?"

Luna nodded. Sky expected her to summon a piece of parchment and ink from nowhere. He did not expect her to rip reality asunder with her horn, step into what could only be described as a dimensional janitor's closet, and return with paper and ink.

She closed the rift as Sky blinked several times, considering the insanity of beings so powerful that they used holes in reality to keep cleaning supplies handy.

Celestia was silent for several minutes, with her eyes closed. A pleasant breeze softly ruffled her feathers. She opened her eyes, nodded, and bid Sky follow her out of the Hall of Legends.

They left behind the austere hall and uncomfortable marble thrones, and ascended the castle until they arrived at a dead end hallway with suits of horse armor along each side.

The two princesses placed their horns into two sockets on the wall, each of which had their cutie mark inscribed. Their marks began to glow, and the wall faded until it was no longer visible.

A spiral stair lie ahead. Sky reluctantly climbed, the only light being from smoky torches burning in an arcane blue. They wound around what Sky assumed was a turret, and exited the stairs into a library.

This room was lavish and luxurious. Sky had to sit for a moment in awe of it. The combination of dark wood, brass fixtures, rich carpeting, exotic tapestries, and aromatic incense was overwhelming.

It was by far the most comfortable place he had been in his life. The two sisters beckoned him to a plush chair, and they then sat together in a plush love seat opposite from him. Spirals of magic energy in black and yellow danced upon the coffee table, and in a moment, a full tea service appeared on silver trays.

Sky gratefully took a plate of cookies and grilled cheese sandwiches. He was a bit famished from all the energy of flying against the mountain winds. He looked around the room. Mementos and artifacts of unknown purpose were on every shelf, in front of hundreds of dusty books. Lamps with golden filly filigree suffused the room with a soft, ambient light from magic crystals.

Princess Luna placed a neat stack of parchment and a bottle of ink on the table. She leaned back to pluck a black feather from her wing. She snipped an angled tip into it with a quill sharpener, and used her magic to dip the point in ink.

Celestia began, "This is our personal study. We have other libraries and archives throughout the castle for traditional meetings. Knowledge, we have found, is the one treasure which endures for all of time."

Luna lie couchant on her belly as she wrote on the parchment. She juggled the quill, a cookie, a hot cup of tea, a saddle blanket, and several opened books in the air at the same exact time with telekinesis. While focusing her eyes on her writing, she also added sugar cubes to the tea, stirred it, folded the blanket in half, draped it over herself, and wedged a pillow under her side, all at the same time without so much as glancing at what she was doing.

Sky was sufficiently impressed.

Celestia spoke after a moment in silence, "Within Equestria lie numerous legends and secrets. Some of these have been revealed. Others lie hidden even to us. A few events and entities violate what is established to be the nature of reality. We believe these things may incite mass panic and paranoia. Ergo, we discuss these items with very few ponies."

"I may have encountered some of that already," said Skyblazer.

Luna nodded, and said, "Dreamspace should not break. I have seldom seen that happen, and never on this scale. Of late, I have spent more time repairing the damage than I do here in your reality."

Sky noticed the emphasis on the word 'your' as Celestia spoke again,

"First item: the ancient magic. As intelligent as you are, you may already know that certain varieties of magic have been explicitly forbidden, and may result in incarceration if caught in use."

Sky nodded, and said that he had heard of forbidden dark magic. Celestia had a sip of tea, and then said,

"The forbidden magics are as follows: Time, Dark Arts, Spells of Pain and Suffering, Criminal Misuse of Magic, Summoning Monsters, and finally, That Which is not to be Known."

"I can understand all except the last one, and I assume from the name it's better if I don't," said Sky.

Celestia nodded as she said, "The last one falls mostly under ancient magic. Spells etched in cryptograms in stone. Spells which may not simply be cast, but which require incantations in Old Ponish. The foundations of Alicorn magic of ancient days which we, by reason of time, do not clearly remember."

"Okay, and how are Cobalt and I involved in this?" asked Sky, as he dipped his sandwich in tomato soup with telekinesis and splashed soup everywhere. His amulet glowed a solid gray.

Luna responded, "Do you recall when I said reality itself is breaking as Dreamspace is?"

"Yes."

"Outside of that is nothing."

"...I beg your pardon?"

"The Void. Quite literally nothing, just empty space. We know of its existence, and nothing further. It tis the place that is not."

"So... at this rate, one day, cracks into this void could form and ponies could be lost forever in the abyss."

"Precisely."

"Yep. What's the next completely mind shattering thing?"

"The second item", said Celestia, "is the Elements. All of them. You understand that the six Elements of Harmony correspond to aspects of unparalleled virtue. This does not diminish the value of the Elements of Conflict. On the contrary, that those objects do exist is a very positive sign."

"How so?" asked Sky, piqued.

"Twilight and her friends were declared worthy at the start. The three Elements of Conflict must prove their worth, overcome obstacles, and thereby redeem the world. Or so the remnants of prophecy and legend state."

"Were you two around before the Elements were?"

"The simple answer is, we don't know. When we first discovered them, we thought they were a simple curio of our time. Now that we understand the abnormal magic of cutie marks is intertwined with both ancient and crystal magic, it follows that the Elements far predate us."

"Could you explain how these things are connected?"

"You may regard ancient and crystal magic as the same thing. Both are enigmatic and were the subject of lore and myth when we were young. Cutie marks, however, are something unique. Some form of manifest destiny. A magic so powerful and all-consuming that it recognizes, and bolsters, the deepest desires of the heart. Which brings us around to the fact that you are missing one upon your flank."

Luna spoke now while her sister had some tea and cookies, "The friendship map in Twilight's castle was evidence that the three oldest magics are somehow connected. We then consulted our memory archives. For you see, we maintain our memories within enchanted crystal orbs, to avoid losing them to time."

"That's honestly really cool," said Sky.

"However, we encountered impediments."

Luna's horn glowed a deep purple as she reheated a grilled cheese. Celestia took over for her monologue,

"The archives have proven very durable. We can review our earliest recorded memories with perfect clarity. However, a few orbs have become frosted over with crystals of dark red, and cannot be accessed. Among these are orbs labeled with, 'Realization of Longevity', 'The Bestowment of Alternate Forms', and most interesting of all, a more recent one titled 'Possible Object in the Void'."

Sky was speechless.

"We do not know what power corrupted the memories, and they are distant enough that we cannot dredge them from our minds through simple thought."

Sky spoke now, "So your alternate form is for battle... and Celestia has one too..."

Celestia nodded, and said, "I am called Daybreaker in my alternate form, with absolute control over light and fire. Luna, as you have seen, is Nightmare Moon, with mastery over dark magic and shadow so intense that the darkness itself becomes clay for her to shape."

"Holy--"

"The third item," interrupted Luna, "Is the way our citizens view us. Neither of us care for being regarded as deities. We are immortals, but we are still just ponies like you at the end of the day."

Celestia gave he sister a tired look and said, "I wish we could be treated like normal ponies without all this pomp and grandeur. I find it most unwelcome."

Luna disagreed, "Well, some respect is due to us as rulers, but I too disapprove of our names being regarded as some venerable saying."

Skyblazer interrupted, "Wow, in that case I certainly do apologize."

"There is no need," replied Celestia in a resigned voice, "By now, it is an ingrained aspect of culture. Now then, the fourth item. Our alternate forms, apropos the chaotic events which have transpired. It is commonly believed that we cower from combat or are too weak to intervene in the matters which the six heroes have resolved."

"I certainly don't believe that," said Sky.

"The truth is as follows: Our alternate forms imbue us with nigh unlimited power. Together, we could reduce all of Equestria to dust. However, these forms are eldritch and unstable. We do not even know what kind of magic is at work with them, for it doesn't have a name. It is the ability of an alicorn to harness all magic, blended together into this salsa of mayhem."

"Salsa of Mayhem is my band name," said Sky, getting a chuckle from Luna.

Celestia smirked grimly, and said, "Final item. The failure of magic. I have observed the magic of our world weakening within the past few centuries. This is what allowed Luna to return to us, thankfully at a time in which she was willing to reform. Dear sister, you may speak from here."

Luna took over, "With my endemic and unique control over the realm of Dreamspace, I bear witness to the decay of magic. We believe it will affect unicorns next, and then perhaps the magic of all races, and then the innate magic that holds the world together. Without it, chaos shall enshroud which makes Discord's assault a paltry matter."

Sky stared, wide-eyed. Celestia spoke now,

"Due to the corrupted memories, we have no way of knowing what shall transpire next. If only it were thousands of years ago when we were fillies... within the far past reaches of our memory is lore concerning the forging of the Elements of Harmony. It is said that powerful seers could see the threads of destiny itself, observe where the threads had frayed, and take measures to prevent it."

Luna spoke now, "And so it came to pass that the six elements of harmony found their proper owners. The Tree of Harmony, their source of power, has been restored, helping renew the land with magical energy. We stay back and observe, with respect to the fact that magic far more powerful and obscure than ours is involved."

Celestia finished the conversation with, "There is a unique pony in Equestria who hails from the Western Isles. She has requested that we do not discuss her past. This pony has a closer connection to dark magic than any other, even us. Yet she is not a threat, but rather, an observer. You know her. Her name is Zecora."