Phase 2: The Guardian's Quest

~Canterlot~

It took a few hours, but you finally arrived at Canterlot. It is a beautiful city, filled with every kind of pony you could think of. Twilight Sparkle and Spike got off the carraige first, and turn to you and Emma.

"Vale, welcome to Canterlot," Twilight Sparkle says to you.

"It's twice the size of Ponyville," Emma says, "This is amazing."

"Princess Celestia's castle is up north," Twilight Sparkle states, "Spike and I will wait for you there. You can look around in the meantime, but try not to keep her waiting too long. Come on, Spike," she and Spike leave afterwards. Emma turns to you.

"Gee, I don't know where to begin. I thought Ponyville was nice but this place is just... wow..." she's clearly amazed by the sights, "Sorry, where I come from we don't have places like this. Anyway, Vale, you lead the way."

You begin galloping through Canterlot. A lot of the ponies are watching you in shock as you run. Do they know who you are? You decide to stop for a second and talk to some of them. The first one you approach is a pink unicorn with a book strapped at her side.

"That cutie mark... are you..." she almost asks, but stops short. Since she didn't seem inclined to finish her thought, you decided to move on. The next one you talk to is also a unicorn, only she's white with blue hair.

"Yeah, I've heard of the Guardian, but that's just a myth. There's no way it's you," she says. Seems like not everyone believes this whole Guardian thing, but it would be nice if someone could explain a few more things. Princess Celestia will tell you everything though, so you don't pay them any mind.

One more, you think, then you'll make your way to the castle. You look around until you see a fancy looking unicorn (sure are a lot of unicorns here). This one is white, with a long fancy purple mane and tail. She's wearing mascara and blue eye shadow, and her cutie mark is represented by three diamonds.

"Wow," Emma says looking at her, "She looks like a super star. You could learn a thing or two about fashion from her." You give Emma an annoyed look. Like you aren't pretty... You go over to her.

"Oh, hello," she says, speaking in a very proper tone, "I think I saw you arrive here with Twilight."

"Are you friends with Twilight?" Emma asks.

"Yes, very good friends actually," the fancy unicorn says, "My name's Rarity."

"That's a pretty name. I'm Emma, and this is Vale. Apparently she's something called "the Guardian". We're supposed to meet Princess Celestia in a little bit so she can explain what that is."

"Wow, that sounds important, especially with you meeting the Princess herself," Rarity states enthusiastically, "The Guardian, huh? I wonder if that means you and I will cross paths at some point in the future," she says with a sort of enigmatic smile.

"Huh?" Emma asks.

"Well, I'll see you around, hopefully," Rarity then trots off, leaving you bewildered. It seemed like she knew something, but what? She knows Twilight as well. Is she an official pony of some sort?

That's enough sight seeing, you think. It's time you went to Princess Celestia's castle. You take one last look at Rarity as she saunters off (that is an impressive walk) and then gallop onward to the castle.

~Celestia's Castle~

You walk up to the castle doors, where you see Spike standing there waiting for you. There are two pegasus guards with him.

"Oh good," he says when you get to the top of the stairs, "You made it. Twilight is inside talking to Princess Celestia."

"We didn't take too long did we?" Emma asks.

"Not at all. She just asked me to wait out here so I could get you inside," he turns to the guards, "Hey, this is the pony I'm waiting for."

"Got it, Spike," one of the guards says, and both of them move aside, "Remember to mind your manners around her, Spike. She may be relaxed, but she is still the Princess."

"Yeah, yeah," Spike says dismissively. He then walks into the castle.

"Relaxed, huh?" Emma asks, "Now I'm really curious as to who this Princess Celestia is."

You walk after Spike into the castle, the guards closing the door after you and Emma.

"Princess Celestia and Twilight Sparkle are probably in the study area catching up," Spike explains.

"Catching up? Are they good friends?" Emma asks.

"Yeah," Spike says with a bright smile, "She was Twilight's teacher. Twilight and I report to her everyday on our findings about friendship."

"Wait, you're studying friendship?" Emma asks.

"More so, we're studying the magic of friendship. Twice so far Equestria was saved solely on the power of friendship, which has lead Princess Celestia to believe that there's some sort of magical power associated with it."

"Huh..." apparently Emma isn't sure how to take this study of theirs and honestly, neither are you. Could friendship really be that powerful?

"Anyway, we should probably meet up with the Princess. Follow me," Spike said. He then begins walking down the hallway. You follow closely, silently thinking to yourself how cute Spike looks as he walks ahead of you. It's a shame dragons can't stay this adorable.

"And that's all I have to report," Twilight Sparkle says to the magestic looking mare sitting across from her on the other side of the table. She's really a tall and white winged unicorn, with a flowing rainbow colored mane and tail, wearing a golden necklace, crown, and matching armored hoof guards on all of her feet. Her Cutie Mark is really large, and shaped like the sun.

"Currently," Twilight Sparkle continues, "I still don't know what caused it to awaken, nor am I even sure friendship will be enough to stop it."

"You need to have faith," Princess Celestia says, "Friendship has never failed you before. Besides, this time we have the Guardian with us. Speaking of which," she says when she notices you, Emma, and Spike walk in.

"Your Highness," Spike says with a bow, "I bring you Vale, Guardian of Equestria."

"Wow..." Emma says, mesmerized by how majestic Princess Celestia is, "It's truly an honor," both you and Emma bow, simply because it feels like it should be an honor just to be in the presence of such a beautiful mare (it almost seems degrading to call such a beautiful creature a pony).

"Please, at ease," Celestia says with a laugh, "I must say, I didn't expect the Guardian to have such an adorable partner. You know, fairies are my favorite creatures," Celestia says with a smile.

"Aww, heh, heh," Emma is giggling uncontrollably. Celestia walks over to you.

"My name is Celestia Galaxia, watcher of the sun and one of two rulers of Equestria."

This is major, everyone is eyeing you right now. The way you greet her will shape everyone's opinion of you.

What will you say to her?
Nice to meet you
The honor is all mine Your Majestey

You and Celestia shake hooves, she's smiling at you.

"See, that wasn't so hard," Celestia says, "Honestly, I find a simple hoof shake works better than bowing any day."

"You're cool," Emma says, "Nothing like what I thought royalty would be like."

"Well thank you," Celestia is smiling awkwardly, "I... think..." Her expression changes to a semi serious one now, "Now, let me see that mark."

Is she talking about the Cutie Mark? You turn to your side to show her. She takes a close look, and then smiles with a nod.

"This confirms it," Celestia says, a sense of ease coming over her.

"Wait, so she is this Guardian?" Emma asks.

"Yes, Vale is indeed the Guardian of Equestria," Celestia begins laughing, "Twilight, Equestria is saved."

"Thank goodness," Twilight Sparkle says, now also looking relieved.

"Um, excuse me," Emma says, "This is all still really confusing. What is this Guardian, and why does this world need one. Except for the trolls that attacked Sweet Apple Acres a few hours ago, this place doesn't seem to be in any danger."

"That's because of Princess Celestia's presence," Twilight Sparkle says walking up to you, "Her very existence keeps the shadows of darkness from getting too strong."

"I should probably explain," Celestia begins walking up to a bookshelf, "Thousands of years ago, this world was the complete opposite of what you see now. This peace has come as a result of my sister Luna and I choosing to fight against those shadows."

"Before that time, Luna and I were regular ponies," she explains as you imagine everything she describes, "While every other pony had simply accepted the state of affairs, we decided to challenge said affairs, and their root cause, a demon named Discord. While he was simply a prankster, his influence caused much disharmony and chaos among the ponies of Equestria.

"Luna and I ventured out across Equestria in search of the Elements of Harmony, which we used to seal him away. The light of the Elements of Harmony is was caused our evolution, turning me into the form you see me in now, and my sister into a similar form. What many ponies don't know, is that the light of the Elements created two other forces. Our determination is what sprouted the Element of Courage, but the shadow of that light was so dark and strong, that it also created a negative element, known as Chaos.

"After that moment, Luna and I decided to seal away the two Elements, using them as a scale to cancel each other out. This meant that no further evil could harm Equestria, that is until my sister became poisoned by the darkness of Chaos herself, becoming Night Mare Moon. I used the Element of Courage to seal her along with the Element of Chaos on the moon, but in the process the Element of Courage broke up into three pieces and scattered throughout Equestria. After Twilight and her friends used the Elements of Harmony to return my sister to her normal state, Chaos was expelled outward throughout Equestria. It took a while, but eventually Chaos seeped into the pores of the creatures of this world, causing the birth of certain monsters."

As she finished her story, you feel a heavy weight in your heart. Somehow you have a feeling that your destiny is somehow related to this story. You look at everyone around you; Emma's wings are drooping downward a bit, Twilight looks depressed, and Spike is trying to comfort her. It seems she feels somewhat guilty about her actions.

"So even a peaceful world such as this has it's problems," Emma states, "And apparently a lot of them."

"If things keep up as they are now, Chaos will engulf the world, and turn Equestria into a world filled with darkness and misery," Celestia continues, now looking at you with an expression of hope, "But legend speaks of a Guardian who will be summoned by the Elements of Harmony. She will arrive in the form of a white pony, as majestic as the Princess herself. She will have a Sword and Shield on her flank, and possess powers like no other pony. Her appearance will correspond with Chaos' full awakening, and she will light Equestria's darkest hour."

"And you think that's Vale?" Emma asks.

"Well, all the signs point to it. Her Cutie Mark is evidence enough," Celestia states. True, the mark on your flank is a sword and shield. You are a white pony. And the same kind as Princess Celestia, having both pegasus wings and a unicorn horn.

"I'll give you time to process this," Celestia continues, "Talk to me when you are ready for me to continue."

From this point on you decide to talk to everyone else about this news. It might be in bad taste to leave the study, so you decide to remain here at least. First you turn to your fairy friend, who has been really silent since hearing the news.

"Here we thought this world was peaceful," Emma says, "I should have sensed something when Big Mac got attacked, but I didn't put two and two together. What do we do, Vale?" she asks you. Sadly you don't have an answer to that question yet, so instead to go off to talk to Twilight, who walked off by herself after Celestia stopped.

"For so long I thought my friends and I were doing a good thing. But our actions were the prelude to this. There wasn't another way, but..." she doesn't pay you any mind really. It seems she's really taking all this to heart. You go off to Spike and ask him why she's so upset.

"Two years ago," Spike begins, "Twilight and her friends took on Night Mare Moon using the Elements of Harmony to return Night Mare Moon to her true form as Princess Luna. Princess Celestia had been imprisoned, and at the time we didn't know about the Element of Courage, so there wasn't any other way. Last year after Discord's revival, Princess Celestia told Twilight the rest of the story. Ever since that day, she's devoted her life to finding you. No one blames her, but that's just the kind of pony Twilight is. Vale, please take Twilight with you. I don't like seeing her so upset."

You take Spike's words to heart, and return to Princess Celestia, ready to hear the next part of the story.

"So, are you ready to continue?" she asks you.

Are you ready to learn the rest?
Yes
No

"So what are we supposed to do?" Emma asks Celestia.

"As I said," Celestia begins, "The only way to stop the Element of Chaos is to find the Element of Courage. The first part of your journey is to find the three pieces of Courage, and take it in as your own."

"The first part?" Emma asks, "What else is there?"

"The second half of your journey is to gather the six Elements of Harmony," sensing you and Emma's confusion, she continues, "I am aware that the Elements of Harmony have already been found, which is why I why I desire for my faithful student, Twilight, to assist you."

Twilight perked up when she heard that, "Wait, me?"

"Twilight's friends are the ones who now possess the Elements of Harmony," Celestia explains, "She herself possesses the Element of Magic."

"Wow, this means we're already getting a head start," Emma says excitedly.

"Princess, I don't know if this is a good idea," Twilight says looking down, "It's because of me all of this is happening. What if I mess up again?"

"Twilight..." Celestia walks over to Twilight Sparkle and lifts her head with her hoof, "Whether it's your fault or not, nothing will change if we stay still. Besides, I believe in you. Always have, my faithful student."

"Princess..." Twilight Sparkle actually tears up a bit. You can sense her sadness and fear.

What will you do?
Comfort her
Leave her to her thoughts

You go over to Twilight and nuzzle her face in a comforting way.

"Vale..." Twilight Sparkle says, now looking at you with a smile, "Does this mean you'll accept me?" you nod, prompting Twilight Sparkle to bow to you, "Thank you for this honor, Guardian Vale."

"Yeah, you can come," Emma says, "Under the condition that you don't treat us any differently than any of your other friends. We're not royalty or anything, and not even Princess Celestia likes to be treated like that."

"You guys..."

"So..." Spike says looking at everyone, "Does this mean we're all friends now?"

"Yes Spike," Twilight Sparkle says now laughing, "I think that's exactly what that means."

"Excellent," Celestia says suddenly, now catching everyone's attention, "Spike, make a note."

"Yes, Your Highness!" Spike says happily, pulling out a quill and scroll.

"I, Princess Celestia, hereby appoint the safety of all of Equestria to Guardian Vale, Twilight Sparkle, Emma the fairy, and Spike," when he heard that Spike stopped and looked up at Celestia in shock.

"Wait, me too?" he asks happily.

"Of course. Every noble pony needs a noble assistant. Vale has her fairy companion, and Twilight has you," Celestia explains.

"Well you can count on me!" Spike says giving an over zealous salute. Everyone laughs at that, including Twilight Sparkle, who you believe may have been laughing the hardest.

~A few minutes later~

You're all standing outside next to the carriage about to depart. Princess Celestia is also here to see you off.

"I'm going to compile a map for you to use once we figure out where all the pieces of Courage reside," Celestia states, "We of Canterlot will do everything we can to assist you in your quest."

"Thank you, Your Highness," Emma says, "We'll take all the help we can get."

"Then I'm sure you'll also be able to count on the ponies of Ponyville to assist you as well. Please use that as your base," Celestia turns to Twilight Sparkle, "Until we can arrange living quarters for her in Ponyville, is it alright for her to stay with you?"

"I think there's a spare bedroom in the library," Twilight Sparkle says, "That is, if Vale and Emma don't mind."

"Not at all," Emma says, "We'll just be happy to have a roof over our heads, right Vale?" she asks you. You nod in response.

"Well then," Celestia says, "I leave the rest in your hooves," in a shocking gesture, Celestia bows to you! "Good luck, Guardian Vale, and godspeed."

"Don't worry Princess Celestia," Emma says, "You can count on us."

"Yeah," Spike says, "Equestria is in good hands- er... hooves now."

"We'll stop Chaos, and save Equestria," Twilight Sparkle proclaims. You nod in agreement.

At that moment, the carriage begins to move. Celestia watches you as you ride off, her smile slowly turning into a look of concern.

"Be careful, my faithful student..." she says to herself.

Now your carriage is in the air, making its way back to Ponyville.

"It looks like for now, we're partners," Twilight Sparkle states looking at you, "All of Equestria is counting on us, so we can't let them down. Vale, I promise to fight by your side for as long as it takes to complete your journey. Let's do our best."

You nod and shake Twilight Sparkle's hoof. It looks like it's going to be a long journey, but now you have Twilight Sparkle by your side, and you might even be able to count on that other pony, Applejack as well. Your journey to save Equestria has begun. It's going to be hard, but hopefully, your new friends will help you gallop to victory.

Back in Ponyville, three ponies are walking down the road, one of which is the pink pony with the puffy mane. She stops and is looking down with a smile, as if she just realized something amazing.

"Pinkie Pie," one of the ponies with her says, "What's wrong?"

"My heart is racing!" she states happily, then jumping up and down excitedly, "Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy! I can't wait! She's finally here!"

"Who's here?" the other pony asks her.

"Why, the one who's going to grant my wish, silly dilly!" she says, as if the whole world was supposed to know what she meant.