Cold couldn't even begin to describe how Fluttershy felt. It seemed to be so cold that even the snow didn't fall. The pegasus's wings were too stiff to extend, making Flying out of the question.

"Don't fall behind!" Discord yelled as he floated along, impervious to the temperature. The vast forest emptied out into a flat, snow-filled land. A lonely mountain sat in the distance, its peak piercing the clouds that hung above it. Discord called it the Winter Mountain, and said his brethren were at the top. Fluttershy gulped at the thought of having to climb it.

"Fluttershy, hurry up!" Pinkie Pie bounced along towards the mountain, causing Fluttershy to gasp and catch up with her friend. The pink pony looked bright and cheerful on the outside, but her mane and tail were deflating every day. She always had a smile on her face, although Fluttershy knew it was covering up something else.

As for Discord, Fluttershy wasn't sure if she could still trust him. She made it this far with the draconequus, and they are still in one piece, so he is probably on her side. She couldn't help but think about the stallion in the snow that attacked her. Pinkie Pie was the one who saved her, not Discord. He only laughed and moved on.

The base of the mountain was very wide and rocky. Fluttershy couldn't find a good spot to climb up as she slid down with each attempt. Discord sighed and scooped the pegasus right up, floating up the mountain. Pinkie Pie bounced along as usual, singing a song as she did. Discord's hands felt extremely cold on Fluttershy's skin, but he carried her up like a filly anyway. It was a very long way up, evident through the lack of oxygen as they climbed farther and farther up. It was so hard for Fluttershy to breathe that she almost passed out. Once they made it to a small alcove, Discord dropped her in order to catch his own breath.

"I'm sorry, but you're going to have to go the rest of the way yourself. If I carry you more, we'll drop out of the sky like flies."

"Why don't we rest here for a bit?"

Discord looked around and nodded, snapping his fingers. A warm fire appeared out of nowhere, prompting the ponies to immediately gather around it to get warm. Fluttershy was able to move her wings back and forth, hearing them crack as she did. It felt pretty good. Pinkie Pie did the same with her neck, removing all of the kinks with a louder crack. The pegasus reached for her saddlebag and pulled out the remaining berries. She gave some to Pinkie and Discord before taking the rest for herself. "I hope we get there soon...we're out of food." Fluttershy said out loud.

When nopony responded, Fluttershy looked up in confusion. Discord was already asleep, having eaten his share in an instant. Pinkie Pie didn't touch her food, but stared into the fire. There was a look in her eyes that Fluttershy knew; she was very familiar with the look. It was of sadness.

Pinkie Pie had no expression on her face. Her eyes stared blankly into the fire as her mouth stayed stoic and indifferent. Her mane and tail were fully deflated by now, covered in hoarfrost and pebbles.

"What's wrong?" Fluttershy asked, causing the party pony to jump. Fluttershy had never seen Pinkie get so surprised in that way; she only remembered herself having a similar reaction.

"I feel...something's wrong." Pinkie Pie said in a monotonic tone, staring back at the fire.

Fluttershy looked confused. "Well, we are on top of a cold mountain, very far away from Equestria."

"No, not that...." Pinkie Pie's expression changed, as if she had witnessed a murder, and not the pony that Fluttershy had killed. "Don't you feel it too? It's coming from...my element." The pony placed a hoof on her balloon-shaped gem. "It's as if it just grew weaker."

Fluttershy closed her eyes, placing a hoof on her own Element. For the first time since Canterlot, Fluttershy felt something stirring in the element. When she opened her eyes again, she found herself in that same white room.

At least, it felt like the same room. She stood there, as well as the other ponies - Rainbow Dash was even there. That caused her to feel a sudden jolt of excitement.

"Rainbow Dash!?" Her voice echoed in the room. Rainbow Dash turned to Fluttershy, but disappeared right after...leaving the room in a state that she had seen before.

However, something else happened. Rarity, who was across from Rainbow Dash, began to glow. She spun around a few times before disappearing in the same way Rainbow Dash did. There were only four ponies remaining in the white room, and the others all looked blurry to the pegasus. The room began changing colors as well: the whiteness associated with a mix of all colors turned a nasty mix of purple, pink, orange, and yellow. That was when Fluttershy knew what happened.

"Rarity is...!" Fluttershy heard herself say as she opened her eyes once more. She was on the alcove, sitting next to Pinkie Pie and the fire. Discord had not moved, still sound asleep. Rarity. One of Fluttershy's own friends. She now joins Rainbow Dash, wherever they are now.

"You feel it too...Our friends are...dying, Fluttershy." Pinkie frowned. "One by one, they fall. Because we're not together anymore...Whenever we're together, we're unstoppable." The pink pony grew depressed right before Fluttershy's eyes. She saw the bright pink color escape Pinkie Pie's mane, tail, and fur.

Discord woke up, yawning as he looked at what happened in front of him. Fluttershy turned to him and yelled. "Are you using your spells again!?"

The draconequus got up. "Sorry, it's not me this time. She brought this on herself. Now that your...group is apart and not faring well, poor Pinkie Pie is starting to fall apart."

"What can we do to help her?"

Discord stared for a while. "Do what Pinkie Pie does when someone is sad, I guess. Cheer her up. You can do that, right?"

Fluttershy thought back to when her cutie mark was switched. She tried making the ponies laugh, but failed to do so...She didn't know if she could do it this time. No, it's Pinkie Pie! I have to try...

"Anyway, I think we should get going. At this rate, you're going to fall apart as well, and we can't deal with mean Fluttershy! Not up here!" Discord laughed as he began to walk. There was a small path that led up from the alcove that Discord used. Fluttershy started to follow before noticing that Pinkie Pie hadn't moved.

"Oh, Pinkie Pie?" Fluttershy said in a sing-song voice. The pony didn't respond. "Come on, Pinkie Pie, you have to smile! Everypony deserves happiness."

Pinkie Pie didn't smile, but she got up and followed Discord. Fluttershy looked down. I can do this...I have to.

The path grew steeper and steeper as they went up. Fluttershy didn't know how anypony could live all the way up here, but she answered that when she saw Discord floating by.

"Well what do ya know, I only ran out of breath because I was carrying you all this way!" Discord laughed as he spun around in the air like a dancer.

"Are we there yet?" Fluttershy asked, looking back at Pinkie Pie. She was trudging along, although slowly.

"Yes, you are!" A new voice came from right behind the pegasus, causing her to quickly turn around. She saw Discord...or rather, a female version. She was definitely a draconequus, as she laughed when Fluttershy nearly had a heart attack.

"Discord, I see you finally came out to visit your family!" She said as she floated to him and flicked his nose.

"Nice to see you, Eris." Discord said flatly.

"The elder sent me out to greet you all. Come on, let's get you ponies inside!" Eris said, corralling the ponies up the last stretch of the mountain.

The peak was one of the most beautiful things Fluttershy had ever seen, until she turned to look at the view. She could see very far into the distance in every direction. The forest where they had come from looked like a tiny dot compared to the rest of the world. Mountains, rivers, and even something that looked very similar to the tall tower of the Crystal Empire, way in the distance. Are we that close to it, or is that just how high we are??

A small temple stood perched on the Winter Mountain peak. It was grey and made of stone. Various statues shaped like draconequus lined a pathway to the temple. Torches hung on the walls, burning brightly.

Fluttershy looked at the statues. They each looked like Discord's statue when he was sealed by the elements.

"Are they....?"

Eris laughed. "Oh, they are only statues. Don't worry, dear." The lady draconequus patted Fluttershy on the head.

The pegasus approached Discord. "Your family is very...interesting." She said awkwardly as Eris began to make cotton candy clouds appear, drinking from them like a cup.

"Wait till you meet the rest of them." Discord said quickly. "Fluttershy, I must warn you...there is a reason I never came up here with them..."

"And why is that, might I ask?" An older voice emerged from the temple. A very old-looking draconequus appeared, holding a cane in the shape of intertwining snakes biting a red orb. Although she carried the cane, she floated above the ground and approached Discord.

The old draconequus stared long and hard at Discord. She moved in an out as she circled him. When she made it back to the front, she hit him square in the head with her cane.

"Discord!" She yelled. "Where have you been!? Why would you choose to visit now, after all these years!"

Eris appeared next to Fluttershy. "That's the elder. Her name is Maelstra, but you can call her elder, or Mae, or Elder Mae."

Discord rubbed his head. "Now, you know I was sealed away for a good hundred years."

"Only a fool would have let himself get sealed in the first place!" Mae had a very stern look on her face. Fluttershy could tell that Maelstra was the kind of old lady who could be as friendly as possible, unless you get on her bad side. And right now, Discord was on her bad side.

"You all packed up and left me in Equestria. I mean, I was able to rule it by myself as a result, but I had no help from my own family." Discord put his hands under his chin and layed horizontally in the air. Mae hit him with the cane again.

"And you know well and good why we left! There was nothing more for us down there!" Mae spat before turning to the two ponies.

"At least you brought home a wife, even though she is a pony..."

Fluttershy blushed. "Oh, I'm not...not."

Mae laughed. "I'm only kidding! Hello, I am the Elder draconequus, Maelstra. You can call me Mae. Come inside, I just finished baking cookies!"

The sudden mood change startled Fluttershy, but everypony entered the temple anyway. It was pretty cozy inside, Fluttershy determined. It seemed to function just like a regular home: there was a kitchen, a dining room, and a few couches placed next to a fireplace. It reminded the pegasus of her own cottage back in Ponyville.

"Come, sit! Warm yourselves!" Mae said as she went to fetch the cookies. Discord took a seat before Eris appeared and poofed the chair away, causing him to fall to the floor.

"Oh, that never gets old!" She said, laughing.

Discord sighed. "Most definitely." He replied. His sarcasm could slice butter.

"So, what brings you all up here anyway?" Mae said as she returned with a platter of cookies. She left them on a small table for everypony to take. Pinkie Pie did manage to take one and eat it. Fluttershy did the same; after taking the first bite, her tongue felt as if it were on fire. Spicy!!! The pegasus opened her mouth and panted while Mae laughed.

"Chocolate chip with hot sauce! It's a common delicacy for us." Mae laughed. "Don't worry; you'll get used to it before you know it. It's amazing how ponies adapt to the weather, and this weather requires much adapting.

She was right - Fluttershy took a wary second bite, not even noticing the hot sauce. After that was settled, Fluttershy cleared her throat.

"Well...you see, we come from Equestria."

"Of course you did." Eris began before being hit by Mae's cane.

"...And we were wondering if...if you could help us with...With..."

"Yes, with..with...spit it out already!" Mae said hurriedly.

"The Sleipnir!" Fluttershy blurted out. There was a moment of silence.

"So the rumors are true." Mae said. "We didn't know it would happen now, but apparently it did."

Fluttershy looked at them. "So you all knew too?"

"Of course we did! We were there when the bloody king created the prophecy!" Mae said, shifting in her chair.

Mae then began speaking in a strange language, although Fluttershy could understand every word:

"And the world shall end in fire. From its ashes, chaos and order will fight once again, one keeping the other at bay, but order shall eventually win and cleanse the world.

"Wait, is that the prophecy? I heard it differently from the princesses..." Fluttershy replied to the astonishment of the draconequus.

Mae leaned toward the pegasus. "Wait, you understood that?" Even Discord was surprised, noting that even he forgot the language on account of not speaking it for a long time.

Fluttershy nodded shyly. "Yeah, I guess I did. Did you, Pinkie Pie?"

The pink pony didn't say anything, but she still shook her head.

"Amazing...you can understand the ancient language. The language of the Sleipnir and Draconequus." Mae said. She took another cookie before continuing. "But yes, that is the gist of it. Your princesses translated the prophecy wrong! I suppose that's what the cause of all this is. If they had only come to us draconequus in the first place, maybe the Sleipnir wouldn't be back."

"Is there anything you can do to...um, to make them go away?"

"No." Mae's blunt words hit Fluttershy hard. "...Yes, we could have prevented them from coming, but nopony ever bothered to come up here and get us!" She looked right at Discord.

He raised his hands. "I wanted to do it myself-"

"And look where that got you! You were enemies with the ponies; of course they would believe that stopping you would help them! Either way...even if we did do something, it may not have been enough. One way or another, a Sleipnir prophecy always comes true. Curse those beings of order...Chaos works differently - it has a mind of its own and can grow and change from our original intent. The Sleipnir's power ensures that what they will to happen, happens. It's as simple as that."

"Although, it is rather odd that they decide to show your princesses proper courtesy by eating them and half their kingdom...The Sleipnir in my day would have never done such a thing."

"It's probably revenge on being sealed away for so long." Eris offered. Fluttershy's head began to spin. Is there nothing we can do to stop them now?

"Not to mention the fact that not a single pony can communicate with them anyway...well, except for Fluttershy here."

That hit a chord with Fluttershy. Out of all ponies left in Equestria, she was the only one who can communicate with the beasts that roamed. "Oh, no." Fluttershy began to dispute. "I can't...I'm not able to."

Mae stood up. "You can understand our language - there's no doubt you can speak it too!"

"I can't!" Fluttershy said. Mae smiled - Fluttershy realized that Mae just said that in the ancient language, and Fluttershy responded in the language too.

"You have a natural gift, my dear." Mae said, approaching the pegasus. "I can see it in your eyes. You may seem timid on the outside, but you have a fire growing inside you - a chaotic soul. If you can talk to them, find out what they want...maybe you can live in peace. You'll never know unless you try."

"Won't you return to Equestria with us?" Fluttershy peeped. She didn't want to face them alone.

Mae laughed. "Oh, my dear...of course we won't!" She sat back down and took another cookie. "Our battle with the Sleipnir ended thousands of years ago. Our power wanes. We may have been able to prevent this all if it happened before, but I don't think you ponies would have liked the outcome. No, it is your fight now."

"But...chaos is the opposite of order! You must be able to do something against them, right!?"

"I wish we could...sadly, we three are the only draconequus left in the world. Back in our day, we had thousands upon thousands in our ranks, all filled with as much chaos as a little filly! After all the fighting and death, our numbers dwindled. The ponies were the ones who sealed them away - with their own power, nonetheless - not us! By the time Discord decided to be a hero and take Equestria for himself, there was no way he'd keep it!"

"Thanks." Discord interjected with a facepalm.

"Anyway," Mae stretched her arms. "The way I see it, you either learn to live with them in peace and harmony, run far away in the hopes that they won't catch you, or let them catch you and be done with it."

"But-"

"That is all I have to say on the matter." Mae got up and returned the platter to the kitchen. Eris stood up and left the room as well, leaving Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Discord.

Discord turned to the pegasus. "Sorry, but that's all that can be done here. We'll leave as soon as we can." As he said so, Pinkie Pie began to shiver uncontrollably. It wasn't a small one, either; Pinkie jerked violently as she shook and shook. Before long, she passed out on the floor.

"Pinkie Pie!" Fluttershy rushed to her friend's aid. Mae came back into the room. "Oh dear," She began. "Your friend has come down with hypothermia!"

No, no, no, no! Fluttershy said as she lifted Pinkie's head. She was out cold, still shaking. Her dull skin began to turn shades of blue-green.

Mae looked on for a moment. "You're going to have to get going quickly." She said.

"Can't we just leave her here with warm fires?" Discord asked.

The elder shook her head. "The weather now is warm compared to what it could be. If it gets too cold, it'll be too cold for even a fire. We are fine with it because of how resistant we are, but the poor dear would freeze to death!"

Fluttershy stood up. "No, I won't let that happen! We have to get her back down! We have to!" There was no way Fluttershy would lose another friend. Not here, away from the rest of the world. She turned back to Mae and Eris, who had entered the room again. "Thank you for all of your help...and please consider coming down to Equestria if you can. Maybe there is something you can do to help..."

Mae nodded. "If my old bones can get down there, I would. I hope you save your friend." She poofed up a pile of furs, which she proceeded to wrap around Pinkie Pie. "This should keep her warm enough, but you will need to get moving!"

Eris held up bags of food. "This should satisfy you on your journey back."

Fluttershy emptied it into her saddlebag as Discord picked up Pinkie Pie. She was muttering some words under her breath now. Her element was glowing faintly. "We have to go!" Fluttershy yelled to Discord. "Can't you teleport us out of here!?"

Discord frowned. "I can only teleport to a place I can see."

The pegaus groaned as she left the temple. Discord was right next to her as they raced back down the path. It seemed much easier to go down the mountain than to go up. Fluttershy flexed her wings and took off, racing down the side of the mountain. She turned to see that Discord was floating down as well. Pinkie Pie lay still in his arms. Fluttershy cried as she continued her descent.

After making it to the bottom, Fluttershy and Discord zoomed off to the south, back into the forest. They ran for what seemed like forever before finally stopping from exhaustion. Discord poofed up a fire and placed Pinkie Pie right next to it.

It was a few hours before Pinkie Pie moved. She opened her eyes slightly, prompting Fluttershy to rush to her side.

"Oh, I'm so glad you're okay!" Fluttershy cried.

Pinkie Pie looked like an ice sculpture. Her mane and fur all looked frozen as her color looked a pinkish-blue. Her mane was as flat as paper, and her eyes looked to be begging for warmth.

"Flu...Flutter..." Pinkie Pie tried to say.

"What is it? I'm here!" Fluttershy's tears froze on her cheeks.

"Thank...thank you for being my friend." Pinkie Pie passed out again. Fluttershy cried as she clutched the barely breathing pony in her hooves.

"Discord, can't you do anything???"

The draconequus shook his head. "I can give her as much warmth as she needs, but I don't think that's going to help." He got up and made another fire appear before going off to sleep. "I really am sorry, Fluttershy."

The pegasus lay on the hard floor, clutching the only friend she had left out in this world, and cried. Rainbow Dash and Rarity are gone, Twilight and Applejack are not here...Pinkie Pie is all I have right now. Fluttershy began humming a quiet song into Pinkie Pie's ear, crying as she did:

A true, true friend helps a friend in need....A friend will be there to help you see...

Everything that had happened, Fluttershy wanted to forget. She wanted to forget about the meteors, about the ponies that attacked her, even about the Manticore she slew and Discord, who was right there with her. All she thought about was Pinkie Pie's bubbly personality, her unusual quirkiness, and how it was just the two of them, alone in this new world.