Primoris Concordia: The Lighting Contingency

Chapter I: Envoys of Harmony

Another crack of lightning flashed overhead, revealing the black ceiling of thunderheads above Ponyville. The world quickly returned to its darkened state leaving only the sound of the thick pellets of rain and the mighty howls of wind raging about the sleepy town. The storm had been raging all day and now poised to go on for the rest of the night. By now however, the citizens of Ponyville paid no mind; for every stallion, mare, and foal were calmly tucked away in their beds or curled up by their fireplaces.

Everypony but one.

Twilight Sparkle sat on the side of her bed watching the rain lash against the window of her library tree home unable to sleep. She had spent the last couple of hours lying in her bed, eyes closed yet unable to find rest. Partially because of the loud snoring emanating from the basket at the foot of her bed; the rest of her insomnia came from the feelings of anxiousness Twilight was having about the coming day. She couldn’t understand why she was feeling this way though; the unicorn had had more audiences with Princess Celestia than half of the Canterlot nobility combined; and she was always eager to lend the princess a helping hoof. Yet somehow this time seemed different.

A sudden want to reread the letter Princess Celestia and Princess Luna had sent her prompted Twilight to get up from her bedside. She jumped onto the wooden floor, being careful as not to disturb the basket holding Spike the dragon or the bundle of red and orange feathers known as Peewee the baby phoenix. Treading cautiously, Twilight made her way downstairs to the main floor of the Golden Oaks Library where all of the books were kept. She walked over to her desk where upon it sat the letter from the princesses. Powering up her horn so it gave off a soft purple light, Twilight bent over the letter and began to read,

To my faithful student Twilight Sparkle and her wonderful friends,

If you are willing, there is a task that my sister and I would like to ask of you and the Elements of Harmony. Feel obligated to say no though, as it is not a matter of national security. It is however, a once in a lifetime opportunity I’m sure you will all enjoy. I cannot give you all the details in this letter as you will no doubt have many questions. Just have Spike send a short reply of ‘yes’ or ‘no’ for a response. Everything will be provided for you and you can expect to be gone three days. Hope to see you soon.

Princess Celestia of Equestria.

Twilight had received the letter yesterday and had quickly gathered up all her friends to come to a decision on the matter. Naturally they had all said yes to partaking in the princess’ favor, after all, how do you say no to royalty? Twilight had then drafted a quick response and had Spike send it off with his magic teleporting flame. Not less than a minute later, the dragon belched up another scroll with telling them that a carriage would arrive the day after tomorrow and recommended them to pack for very cold weather.

Twilight turned her head over to the front door where her saddle bag lay. Inside were her scarf, vest, and boots from the Winter Wrap Up this year and a couple of books in case she wanted to read something on the trip.

The unicorn sat there for a few minutes lost in thought, questions buzzing through her head. What did the princess want that would take three days to finish? Why did they need to dress warmly? Twilight ventured to guess that they were being sent to someplace cold, but for what? What was so important that Celestia couldn’t put it into a letter? It wasn’t a new villain. She had said it wasn’t anything of national security. And she had given them an option of saying no. Though, again, how do you say no to royalty?

Twilight let out a yawn and glanced over to the clock on her wall. Her eyes widened in surprise; it was almost two in the morning. She definitely needed sleep; she’d hate to look a mess for the princesses. Horn still lit, Twilight crossed the room and began her ascent up the stairs, letting her light grow dimmer with each step. By the time she arrived at her bed the entire library was pitch black once more.

She settled into bed letting the sounds of the storm outside lull her to sleep. “If Princess Celestia thinks we can do it, then it can’t be anything out of our league,” she thought. Though anything seemed small time after Discord. Allowing herself to smile at the thought, Twilight finally found sleep despite the protest of Spike’s loud snores.

******

The warm light of the mid-morning sun shone on Twilight’s face causing her to grab her blanket and cover up her head. She was still tired and unwilling to face the day yet. A small lump of feathers landed on her blanketed side and hopped a few steps closer to her ear.

“Peep,” Peewee squeaked happily.

There was a shuffle of movement and a groan, but Twilight clearly had no intention of getting up.

“Peep,” the phoenix chirped again.

“No,” Twilight grumbled.

“Peep.”

“Go away.”

“Peepeepeepepeepepeepeepeepeep,” Peewee sounded off, determined to wake the sleeping mare.

After only a few seconds, Twilight could take no more. She jumped up from under the sheets and yelled, “Fine I’m up, I’m up! There happy?” she gave the smiling bird a death glare that went completely unnoticed.

The baby bird gave one last happy “Peep,” before fluttering off of her and downstairs towards the kitchen.

Twilight sighed then pulled herself out of bed and over to her small vanity mirror where she began to brush out her mess of a mane. She began to smell the aroma of freshly cooked pancakes wafting up to her and her stomach gave a loud grumble. Wanting to quickly get to breakfast, Twilight sped up her morning ritual of brushing her mane and teeth, and for extra neatness today, polished her horn before trotting downstairs.

She entered the library’s small kitchen and dining room where Spike was standing on a step stool in front of the oven. “Morning Twilight,” he said chipper, “I made you breakfast.” He pointed over to the stack of pancakes on the table; beside it was a box of Honey Oats cereal, a bowl, and some milk. Peewee was standing at his spot on the table quietly eating his bowl of bird seeds and chili pepper seasoning.

Twilight looked from Spike, to Peewee, and back before saying in an accusatory voice, “I know you set him up.”
Spike smiled innocently and said, “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” He flipped a pancake off of the frying pan and watched it sail through the air and land right on top of the rest of the stack. “Yes!” he cried, punching the air.

Twilight couldn’t help but grin at his antics. She walked over to the table and seated herself down, eager to dig into Spike’s delicious pancakes. The dragon himself grabbed a bowl and a few handfuls of gemstones from his private cupboard before joining his family. They ate in relative silence, each of them focusing on their own meals. It was Twilight who finally decided to say something.

“Are you sure you don’t want to come with us?” Twilight had asked him before but the young dragon had decisively said no. She only asked him again because she had occasionally seen the sad look in his eye when she came home and told him of the adventures she and her friends had shared that day. Twilight didn’t want him to feel left out.

“Naa, I’m going to stay here where it’s nice and warm. Besides who would watch Peewee while I’m gone?” Peewee gave another happy chirp. “Nope, you girls go have fun in the snow.” He was about to take another spoonful of gemstones and milk when he stopped. “Wait, its spring, all the snows supposed to be melted! Where would Princess Celestia send you that still cold?”

Twilight stopped eating her pancake to consider this. Spike’s words were true, spring had arrived almost three weeks ago, winter should have been wrapped up; yet the princess had told them to dress for very cold weather.

“Hmm, good point Spike; maybe that’s what the princesses want us to do, help wrap up winter in some unorganized part of Equestria.”

Spike simply shrugged. “Sounds like a possibility, and if that’s the case then definitely count me out. That’s the most boring day of the year.” He crossed his arms and muttered, “Besides there’s only so many times someone needs to here that song.”

******
Twilight stepped out of the large hollowed out tree that contained the Ponyville library and smelled the fresh scent of wet grass and bark. Puddles were scattered about the road giving proof that last night’s storm had not ended until quite early in the morning. The Ponyville Weather Patrol Team had left a few grey clouds in the sky giving the town an overcast day. Looking directly ahead, Twilight was thrilled to see some of her friends already waiting in the square outside her home. Applejack and her little sister Applebloom; Scootaloo, Fluttershy, and a bouncing Pinkie Pie. Twilight trotted over to greet them accompanied by Spike who wanted to see them off.

“Mornin’ Twilight,” Applejack called, “whooweee, tha’ was some storm alright. I thought the wind was gonna tear the roof off the place, and poor Winona was up all night shakin’.”

“Oh I know what you mean,” Fluttershy spoke in her naturally quite voice. “I was up most of the night trying to keep all the animals calm. It took forever to put poor Angel to bed, he’s scared of lightning.”

Twilight chuckled a little at her friends stories. “Yeah I had a hard time sleeping last night as well.” She turned her head to ask Pinkie what she thought about the weather when her eyes landed on the long silvery object resting beside her. “Uhh, Pinkie, why do you have your party cannon?”

The pink pony gave Twilight her award winning smile before answering, “For the party of course silly!”

Twilight blinked. “Come again?”

Applejack let out a sigh. “See, Pinkie here reckons the princesses are holdin’ some sorta party.” She gestured over to Pinkie to let her finish explaining.

“Yeah,” Pinkie bubbled, “Obviously the princesses wanted to throw a party but they wanted it to be a surprise party so they sent you the letter Twilight ‘cause if they sent an invitation to all of us separately then we’d be all suspicious-y so she just sent it to you and made it sound all formal-y and stuff that way we’d come and be like ‘what’s wrong’ and they’d be like ‘SURPISE’ and then we’d party! That’s why I brought my party cannon!” she finished, gesturing towards the silver cannon.
Being the mare that she was, Twilight already found holes in Pinkie Pie’s train of thought. “But Pinkie, they said to pack for three days, and to dress warmly.”

The pink pony’s smile only grew wider. “That’s because it’s a three day all you can eat ice cream super surprise PARTY!” she jumped into the air, spreading her hooves out wide as a burst of confetti shot out from her saddlebags. She landed on the ground and put a hoof to her lips. “But remember, it’s supposed to be a surprise so act surprised,” she whispered leaning low to the ground.

Twilight facehoofed. Of course Pinkie Pie had an answer for everything, and while she seriously doubted that the princesses’ mission was to party with them, Twilight knew she had no right to rain on the earth pony’s parade.
The ponies stood there and chatted amongst themselves as they waited for the last members of their group to arrive. It was a few minutes before anypony arrived and Applejack was the first to point them out. “Look, here come Rarity and Sweetie Belle,” her face suddenly fell, “oh dear.”

The rest of the group twisted around, curious to see what had caused the change in Applejack’s demeanor.
Two white unicorns came gating up the path, purple and pink manes bouncing as they went. Both of them looked as happy as could be that Twilight couldn’t see what the problem was until Rarity turned her head back and shouted, “Come on boy’s we’re almost there just a few more yards.” Then trudging into view from around the building came two poor earth stallions practically crawling on their stomachs from the weight of the enormous tower of luggage they were carrying. Finally making it to the circle of friends, the stallions collapsed allowing the suitcases to fall on top of them. “Thank you so much for your help dearies,” Rarity beamed.

“N-no problem Miss Rarity,” came a muffled reply.

Rarity turned her attention back to the group, “Good morning girls, good morning Spike!” she greeted cheerfully.

Spike’s eyes glazed over he stood there en wrapped by her beauty. “Good morning Lady Rarity,” he drooled.

Applejack stared open mouthed from Rarity to her mountain of luggage and back. “Y’all can’t be serious. Jus’ what the hay is in those bags anyway?”

Rarity nonchalantly waved a hoof. “Oh you know, necessities and whatnot. “

Applejack gave the unicorn a hard look. “Rarity, you were only s’posed ta pack some warm clothin’, not yer entire wardrobe! We’re only gonna be gone three days.”

“Well a lot could happen in three days, I’m just making sure I’m well prepared. One can never be too careful right Twilight?”
Twilight looked taken aback for a second after suddenly being dragged into the two mare’s argument. Despite Rarity’s use of her large puppy-dog eyes, Twilight had to take Applejack’s side. “Sorry Rarity, but AJ is right. You have way to much stuff, I don’t even think it’ll all fit in the carriage. You can keep two but the rest have to go.”

Rarity pouted and whined for a few minutes before finally giving in. She sorted through her luggage and decided on two large suitcases before turning down to the two stallions still resting at the bottom of the pile. “Sorry boys, but could you be dears and bring all this back to my house, I’ll pay you double for your services.” She put on her sweetest asking face and smiled at them. Both of them let out a small whine before heaving the pile up on their backs and began slowly trudging their way back down the road. “Just drop them off in the foyer and I’ll pay you when I get back. Thank you!” Rarity called after them in a sweet honey coated voice. She turned to face Applejack again, annoyance written in her expression.
“Happy?”

Applejack gave her a rather smug grin in response.

Meanwhile, Fluttershy stepped over to the three fillies giggling at the antics of the older ponies. She looked at them with her wide eyes and nervously rubbed her hooves together.

“Umm, girls, are you sure you can handle this job? I mean you don’t have to do it if you don’t really want to.” Fluttershy had left care of her woodland creatures to Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, mostly because she couldn’t think of anypony else; and Spike had claimed he was too busy taking care of the library in Twilight’s absence… and that he never wanted to put up with Angel bunny again.

“Come on Fluttershy, we’ve helped you with your animals plenty of times,” Scootaloo spoke, “it’ll be easy.”

“Besides we might get our cutie marks from doing this,” Sweetie Belle followed.

“Yeah we can be-“all three fillies cleared their throats before yelling,“CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS ANIMAL CARETAKERS YAY!”

Fluttershy winced at the increase in volume before squeaking, “Oh dear, that’s what I’m afraid of…”

“Don’t worry ‘Shy I’m sure the girls will handle everything jus’ fine,” Applejack reassured.

Fluttershy tried to smile but it came out rather strained. She knew the Crusaders had the best intentions, but her mind couldn’t help but jump to worst-case scenarios, most of them ending in a stampede. She gave her head a little shake and took a deep breath. Applejack was right, everything would be fine; it’s only for a few days. This time Fluttershy gave a genuine smile to the fillies who grinned back at her.

The last to arrive was Rainbow Dash. The blue pegasus lazily descended from a nearby cloud and landed next to Rarity. The party gave her a warm hello to which Rainbow merely blinked slowly and yawned before giving a grunt for a reply.
“What’s wrong with you dear?” Rarity asked. “You look positively dreadful; did the storm keep you up all night too?”

Rainbow Dash let out another yawn. “No, I had to get up early to get rid of most of the storm clouds. They’re harder to get rid of too because some of them still have electricity in them.” She yawned again. “I need a nap.”

Twilight smiled sympathetically at her friend. “Don’t worry; you can sleep on the ride to Canterlot.”

“Yeah,” Pinkie Pie chirped, “You don’t wanna be tired for the party!”

Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow at her then turned to Twilight. “Party?”

Twilight shook her head. “Don’t ask.”

She suddenly felt a tug on her tail and looked over to see Spike pointing up at the sky. “Looks like your ride’s here.”
Sure enough, a large white carriage pulled by a squadron of four armored pegasi appeared from behind one of the few remaining clouds. It circled around the library once before landing and coming to a stop in front of the mares. Many on looking ponies stopped to admire the pristine nobility vessel.

Rarity levitated her suitcases into the empty back while Twilight helped Pinkie stow away her cannon. Rarity raised an eyebrow at the two, “Wait, so Pinkie gets to bring her party cannon, but I can only bring two suitcases?”

“Well yeah,” Twilight explained, “its only one cannon, as opposed to the amount of stuff you were trying to bring.” Twilight attempted a smile to show her unicorn friend she meant no ill will. Rarity however just gave a light roll of her eyes before stepping into the carriage.

Sticking her head out one of the carriage windows, Applejack called out to her younger sister, “You mind yer brother an’ Granny Smith got it?”

Applebloom nodded her head vigorously. “Got it.”

Rarity nudged Applejack aside and shouted towards Sweetie Belle, “Make sure to look after the boutique. Look mind you, please try not to touch anything.”

Sweetie Belle gave an eye roll identical to her sister’s. “Don’t worry, everything will be fine.”

Rainbow Dash ruffled Scootaloo mane much to the filly’s delight and said, “Stay out of trouble ‘k?”

Scootaloo gave a salute and grinned, “Ma’am, yes ma’am!”

Twilight gave Spike a tight hug and said, “Take good care of the library while I’m gone; and make sure Peewee doesn’t… burn anything while we’re away,” she gave Peewee a sidelong glance. Baby phoenixes’ had a tendency to simultaneously combust on occasion.

“Don’t worry,” Spike waved her off with his hand, “I’ll take care of everything.”

“Peep!”

“Right, sorry, we’ll take care of everything. The library will be perfectly organized and spotless when you get back.”
Twilight smiled warmly. “That’s my number one assistant.”

She climbed into the carriage after Rainbow Dash and from the window gave a shout to the guard pegasi. “Alright good sirs, we’re ready to go!” The pegasi nodded and began to gallop forward, heaving the carriage behind them with amazing strength. After a few meters they leapt into the air and began their flight to Canterlot.

Spike, Peewee, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders continued to wave at the departing carriage, watching it as it grew smaller and smaller in the distance.

******

The white carriage landed in the castle courtyard less than an hour later. Six mares exited it and beheld the breathtaking beauty that was Canterlot Castle.

The large ivory sculpted building loomed before them; the sunlight brightening its polished surface. Dozens of towers, turrets, and walkways stretched above the ponies; their colors of purple and gold adding to the majesty of the castle. Despite their numerous trips to Canterlot, the six mares were still in awe at the architectural masterpiece.

Two unicorn guards escorted the group of friends into the castle foyer; the ponies were told their luggage would be looked after during their audience with the princesses. The entrance hall was a large room painted in rich colors of purple and gold much like the towers outside and decorated with stained glass windows and tapestries depicting modest sunrises and sunsets. The floors were a purple and white checkerboard pattern with a ruby red carpet that trailed off into various parts of the castle. The six ponies were led up the steps and passed through a set of large doors leading them into the throne room’s antechamber; simply a large white hallway with another set of double doors at its end. The door was engraved with the symbol of Equestria: two alicorns circling a sun and a moon.

Two more guards flanked either side of the door. They gave a nod to the two escorts who then saluted and left, leaving Twilight and her friends with door keepers. The two stallions took the butts of their spears and tapped on the door three times before using their magic to swing it open and usher the mares inside.

Only Twilight Sparkle had seen the throne room before; to the rest it was a brand new experience. The room was massive, at least double the size and height of the entrance hall. The walls were a calming shade of pink with more stained murals in between the columns that flanked the sides of the walls. From the ceiling hung various banners with pictures of the three races of ponies and traditional style paintings of the princesses. The floors had been polished so thoroughly that they acted perfectly as mirrors. Staring too hard, one might think the room continued downward as well as up. The red carpet stretched on across the grand hall and up to a large golden dais where two waterfalls emptied into pools on both sides, each with a bouquet of flowers lining the edges. Further up on the dais were two large, high-backed thrones -one with an emblem of an eight rayed sun, the other of a crescent moon on a canvas of black- where Princess Celestia and Princess Luna sat respectively.

Twilight turned back to see the open-mouthed expressions of her friends as they made their way across the hall. All of them were in awe at the level of grandeur the room displayed.

Rainbow Dash floated above her friends, staring about the room. “Whoa,” she murmured, trying to keep her voice low, “this place is awesome!”

Pinkie Pie nodded her head so hard, Rainbow was afraid it might snap off. “I know! It’s the perfect place for a party!” she squeaked.

The six stopped at the foot of the dais where the bowed low for a respectful few seconds before looking up at their co-rulers.

Princess Celestia beamed down at them with her radiant smile and opened her mouth to speak when she was cut off by a loud, “OUR FRIENDS FROM PONYVILLE, HOW WONDERFUL IT IS TO SEE THEE AGAIN!” Princess Luna’s Royal Canterlot Voice echoed violently throughout the hall making it louder than anypony thought previously possible. Even the guards at the foot of the throne with all of their training flinched and held their hooves up to protect their poor ears.

Rubbing her own ear, Celestia cleared her throat and said gently, “Luna, inside voices please.”

Realizing her mistake, Luna blushed and said, “Sorry, we were merely excited to see our friends again.” She turned to face the recovering mares and continued, “We have not seen thee since Nightmare Night last; pray tell, how hath all thou fared?”

Applejack, who was helping a petrified Fluttershy back to her hooves, turned to Twilight with a puzzled expression and whispered, “Uh Twi, what exactly did she say?”

“How have you been.” Twilight replied, hoping she wouldn’t have to translate everything the princess said.
“Oh, got it. We’ve been just dandy thanks fer askin’.” Applejack said facing the princess. “How have you been yer highnesses?”

“We have been most excellent, thank you for your concern fair Applejack,” Luna nodded.

Celestia smiled at the exchange before finally speaking to the group. “It is indeed wonderful to see you all again, though I am sure you are all curious to know why we asked you to come in the first place.” The mares nodded eager to learn of their mission. Pinkie in particular was bouncing up and down, barely able to contain her excitement; believing that a party was imminent.

“You see my little ponies, Princess Luna and I would like to endow you with a very special diplomatic mission-“

“YES! PAR- wait what?” Pinkie had leapt into the air, confetti magically exploding around her when she froze and stared disappointedly at the alicorn in front of her before dropping back to the ground.

Celestia blinked twice caught by surprise by the pink pony’s actions. “A diplomatic mission, why?”

Twilight sighed, rubbed her temple, and answered for her, “Pinkie thought you invited us here for some sort of surprise party.”

Luna held a hoof over her mouth to stop herself from laughing out loud, while Celestia gave an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry if I disappointed you Ms. Pie, but perhaps if all goes well we can celebrate when you return.”

Pinkie’s smile returned with full force and she began to bounce up and down displaying her regular amount of enthusiasm.
Nodding, Celestia spoke once more. “Now back to the matter at hoof; Luna and I would like for you to aid us in a very important diplomatic mission to the land of Tempest and meet with its ruler, King Ixion.”

Twilight gasped loudly at this reveal which generated a group of confused stares from her friends. “You want us to meet with him?”

“Indeed.”

Rarity looked between the two alicorn sisters and Twilight Sparkle before leaning back towards the rest of the group and whispering, “Does anypony else know who this Ixion fellow is?”

Four mares shook their head in unison.

Seeing their confusion, Celestia looked down towards Twilight and asked, “Well my faithful student, would you like to tell them about Lord Ixion?”

Twilight stood up straighter and spun around to face her friends. Clearing her throat she began, “King Ixion is legendary powerful alicorn like the princesses except he controls the weather of the entire world.”

Everypony’s expressions jumped from confusion to surprise at this revelation. Everypony save for Rainbow Dash.

“Pfft, no he doesn’t, that’s what pegasi are for,” she said flapping her wings proudly.

Twilight shook her head. “No Rainbow Dash, I mean, yes you can move clouds but Ixion creates them-“

“Uhh no; that’s what the Weather Factory is for.”

Twilight facehoofed and was about to try explain again when Celestia interrupt her.

“Perhaps I should explain from here. You see ponies, like how I and Luna are tied to the sun and the moon, Ixion is inexplicably tied to the weather. His magic is what causes the clouds to form and the wind to blow daily. Without it, even the Weather Factory would be unable to produce even the tiniest vapor of mist. Does that clear things up?” she asked Rainbow in particular.

The cyan mare shrugged. “Yeah I guess so, but how come I’ve never heard of him?”

Luna gave a wry smile towards Celestia. “Yes sister, how come hardly anypony has ever heard of him?”

Celestia cleared her throat and shifted her eyes to one of the windows and stared as if she had found something quite interesting outside. “Well clearly the history books mention him. I guess he’s not mentioned in many school curricula because interactions between our two countries are small and scarce.”

Luna continued to smile but gave a light roll of her eyes.

“So wait,” Applejack spoke up, “If our two countries don’t chat so often, then why do you need us to go over there?”

“Ah, and now we get to the heart of the matter, “Celestia said looking back towards her subjects. She let out a deep sigh before continuing, “First my ponies what you must understand is that not every creature gifted with power is benevolent with it. You see, because Ixion can control the forces of nature, he believes that every nation should give him the respect of a god. Every one hundred years he demands tribute from every country and nation on the planet as the cost of allowing the weather to continue to flow freely.”

“Wait,” Twilight interjected, “he forces you to pay him for the weather?” None of the scant amount of books she had read on him said anything about that.

Luna nodded gravely. “Tis a sad truth. If thou thought Nightmare Moon was bad, wanting everypony to appreciate our nights, Ixion is on par, if not worse; only instead of creating night eternal, he’ll create an everlasting drought.”

“Whoa, that’s harsh,” Rainbow Dash breathed.

“Harsh is certainly one way to put it,” Celestia said. “But that is where you six come in. We would like you to deliver this century’s payment to Lord Ixion.”

The mares were stunned into silence; feelings of unease settling into them. A diplomatic mission… to a faraway kingdom… to meet with a king whose ego apparently matched that of one of the most sinister villains to ever walk the earth. This wasn’t something they could just blast away with the Elements of Harmony; this was politics. Something none of them knew anything about.

It was Fluttershy, surprisingly, who broke the tense silence. “Umm, princess… not that we aren’t honored or anything, um… it’s just that… why us?”

Even in the enormous sound amplifying hall Celestia had to strain her ears to hear all of the timid pony’s words. “Well you see dear Fluttershy, you six harness the power of the Elements of Harmony; you represent the very nature of the magic of friendship. Something Ixion has clearly forgotten in his long life. We are hoping that upon seeing the six of you with your element pieces, he might remember true harmony and end this ridiculous weather tax. You need not fear for anything though. All you need to do is present him Equestria’s offering and ask him to reconsider. The presence of the Elements alone should be argument enough.”

Twilight, who had been standing a few feet ahead of her friends looked back and silently asked them if they still wanted to follow through with this mission. One by one they all nodded, looks of determination glinting in their eyes.
Facing the princesses again she said,” Don’t worry you can count on us!”

“Excellent!” Celestia clapped her hooves together. “Then first you will need these…” With a glow of her horn, an ornament square box rose from behind her chair and floated in front the six friends who stared at it with wide eyes. The case opened up to reveal five glowing necklaces and a large tiara, each with a centerpiece matching the cutie marks on six mare’s behind. “Keep them safe,” Celestia urged, “you only need to wear them during your audience with Ixion.” The box snapped shut and landed gently at Twilight’s hooves.

“And now for the offering ye shalt present,” Luna spoke as her horn began to glow a deep blue. From behind her chair another box appeared and opened up to reveal a large glowing see-through sphere that looked as if live lightning was bouncing around inside. “Behold, we call it the Lightning Orb.”

Rarity stared at the orb, entranced by its beauty. It gleamed like a diamond under the constant rays of the sun. “It’s simply beautiful,” she whispered. “But does it do anything, I mean other than look fabulous on anyone’s regalia?”

Celestia nodded, “Indeed. This is a concentration of pure magic. By holding it, one could increase their own magic a hundred fold. It could also, in theory, allow non-magic creatures to wield the basic elements of nature if used correctly.”

“Doesn’t that seem a might dangerous?” Applejack inquired.

“Yes, if used in the wrong hooves. But knowing Ixion he will merely covet his prize and wear as a symbol of power, nothing more. Even if he did try to use it as a weapon, the Elements of Harmony would still be able to overpower him.”

Luna snapped the box shut and stood up from her throne. “Enough chit-chat, come, thou should depart lest ye miss the deadline to appease the king.”

“When is the deadline?” Pinkie asked.

“The day after tomorrow; and it will take ye at least a day to journey there.”

******

“BEHOLD- ahem, I mean behold the Dawn Catcher! Equestria has truly reached the pinnacle of modern innovation in my long absence!” Luna shouted, without the use of her royal voice to everypony’s delight.

Eight mares stood at the Sky Docks; a massive marina that launched several airships a day, usually pleasure cruises around Canterlot. The docks were split up into several large mountainside hangers that had been carved out of the west side of Canterlot Mountain and overlooked the Unicorn Range. The hanger in particular was shaped in an enormous D shape with four long steel walkways jutting outward from the mountainside. In between each catwalk was an airship of different size.

The Dawn Catcher was anchored to the last catwalk. It was a fairly large sized ship with an oval shaped balloon painted a dark blue. The hull of the shape was painted in a pink shade reminiscent of a new dawn with the ships four pairs of wings and outer trimming in a lighter shade of blue than the balloon.

Rarity was beside herself. “I can’t believe it; we get to ride an airship! Oh I’ve always wanted to fly in one, they’re so regal and luxurious, just look at those magnificent colors!” she squeed.

Rainbow Dash nodded in agreement. “I gotta admit, if I were grounded this is definitely the way I’d want to travel.”

Princess Celestia stood a little ways back from the group of ponies, letting them admire their vessel. “I’m glad you all find it to your liking. It is one of the faster airships commissioned and should get you to Tempest around this time tomorrow.” She gestured up to the deck of the ship where three stallions stood waving down to the group. “That’s Captain Blue Sky and his two deckhooves, Wind Sail and Ballast.” The ponies gave a cheery wave back.

Celestia looked back to her envoys of harmony to address them one last time before their departure. “Now, remember what I said in the letter? It is very cold in Tempest for it is near the top of the world. Ixion also has a tendency to make it rain quite frequently; so there are extra layers of clothing on board the ship in case you need them.”

Twilight nodded. “Thank you princess, we promise we won’t let you down!”

Celestia smiled at her star pupil. “We have the utmost faith in you.”

“Indeed,” Luna added. “Now go, make haste then! The faster you finish thy task, the faster we can have this party Pinkie Pie so yearns for!”

“You betcha!” Pinkie exclaimed. “Come on girls, we’ve gotta go make friends with King Grumpy McWeatherpants!” She bounded down the steel walk, up the ramp and on to ship where shortly after there was a loud bang and a burst of confetti from her party cannon.

Laughing to themselves, the remaining five boarded the ship and waved down to the regal sisters who returned them with graceful waves of their own.

The ships engines purred to life causing the back propellers to start spinning at rapid speeds, creating quite the back draft. Luna and Celestia continued to stand in the wind’s current seemingly unfazed by it. The anchor was dislodged from the mountainside and the ship began to rise up and away from its holding, setting out for the northern sky.

The two alicorns continued to watch the ship sail away into the distance.

Luna turned to face her sister and said, “You truly think it is wise to send them to ‘make peace’ with the most arrogant king in the world sister?”

“Yes.”

“Art thou only saying that because thou did not want to face Ixion themselves this century?”

Celestia gaped at her sister’s remark. “Luna, how dare you insinuate that I-“

“Face it sister, you hate the old stallion.” Luna couldn’t help but smile devilishly at Celestia’s expression.

There was a brief pause before Celestia spoke again. “Hate is such a strong word. I prefer dislike… with a burning passion. But that’s not the point,” she said with a wave of her hoof. “The point is that I believe Ixion can still be made to reason once he sees the Elements of Harmony being wielded by six friends again. At worst he’ll say no and we’ll just be doing this again next century.” She turned and began to walk back to the royal chariot waiting for the two princesses. “Don’t worry Luna, what could possibly go wrong?”

Luna looked up towards the tiny speck in the sky moving further and further north; a million scenarios running through her head. She turned back and began to follow after her sister.

“Wouldst thou like the short answer, or perhaps a well written novel?”