[i]Ii]Twilight,
The presence of you and your friends is required again in Canterlot. Bring the Elements with you. Something unusual has popped up and it is yet unknown if this could pose a threat to the welfare of the citizens. Make haste.
-Princess Celestia
[/i][/i]

I felt the punch I had previously been drinking slowly slide its way down my gullet, sinking like an anchor in an ocean of worry. The strawberry flavor no longer tasted like the sweet fruit it was. With the appearance of the letter from the Princess I could feel it rot in my mouth into a bitter flavor that I would have spat out like poison on any normal occasion.

"Sugarcube? What is it?"

I felt numb, and that country accent felt so far away. It woke me up though.

"SPIKE!"

I whipped my head back to my side where I had last seen my reptilian assistant. There. Behind Fluttershy, hiding behind a leg.

"Er, isn't there something said about don't hate the deliverer of bad news?"

I deflated, the energy just rushing right out of me. I was taking this a mite to quickly, we didn't even know if anything was truly wrong yet. I let out a huff, watching as my bangs floated upwards. I felt the need to calm down. Counting to ten I started to speak again.

"So sorry. Its just... Princess Celestia has summoned all of us to Canterlot again. And we are to bring along our respective elements of harmony. The letter gives no details to the nature of the threat, or if there really is a threat."

"Well, darling, you simply must calm down. Too much stress will wreck your youthful complexion."

I knew I should calm down, though my complexion was my least concern. I peered through my bangs at my circle of friends...all those worried faces. I knew they weren't just worried about the worrying lette, they were worried about. They were probably more worried about me being fine and dandy actually. I noticed a gloomy look start to sweep uncharacteristically over her muzzle.

"You're right Rarity. Maybe we could bring some of Pinkie Pie's new cupcake with us, we all know how long that train ride is"

It was probably a good this we had only been having a small party between the seven of us when Spike hacked up the letter. We could bring the party with us. Had it been a party for all of Ponyville...I shivered, I could only imagine all of the disorganization.

I galloped over to the bookshelves of the library's nonfiction section. Since Chrysalis attacked, Celestia decided it might be smarter if the elements weren't stored in a location that needs her assistance to reach. I kind of agreed. I mean how did she even expect us to get the Elements in that case anyways.

I realized my train of thought had derailed. I really needed to fix the tracks on that thing one of these days. Some point during my rambling train wreck I apparently plucked the elements from their secret location. And had already thrown on my tiara.

I turned around, ready to serve up the others. I laughed at the scene had been going on behind me. In the few seconds I had my back turned that crazy pink mare had cleaned up all the streamers, cupcakes and even the glass bowl of punch. She was currently stuffing the last of the supplies into her most portable party cannon, her face just priceless. I think I even saw her biting down a little on her tongue in all of her concentration.

Pinkie Pie slowly turned around as she finished, staring at me dead pan.

"Twilight."

"Yes?" I answered with a heavy filling.

"You're still wearing your party hat!"

Pinkie Pie went back to her normal beaming grin, bouncing over to grab the pointed blue hat right off of my head. Quickly, before she could reach me and somehow accidentally bowl me over, I magicked the elastic band out from underneath head and floated to hat over to that crazy mare. With a snap I attached the hat to Pinkie's head.

"We really do need to get going Pinkie."

"Yes, yes Twilight is quite right. Why, the Princess is depending upon us!"

I tried my hardest to refuse the urge to face hoof. Despite having been practically pen pals with the Princess for almost a year Rarity still felt like this was some unusual event.

I somberly handed out the Elements, watching to make sure everyone had theirs secured, before magicking up that silly party cannon. I march right out the library door, I figured there's a difference between worrying too much and just being stern about timing. Time is ticking, Twilight, time is ticking!

I set out a brisk trot, I purposely avoided checking behind me to see if my friends were following. I could tell by the voices of complaint they were right behind. We had to get to the train station, Celestia's letter had said to make haste. Well, we were going to be there before she would even be able to...well I don't know what. Maybe... Finish a cup of tea? Yeah, we'd be there before she even finished a good old cup of tea. Maybe a nice steaming mug of chrysanthemum tea. I knew the last ambassadors sent her a shipment recently.

I stopped abruptly in front of the ticket booth at Ponyville Main. Being the only train station in such a small town and having helped out so often outside of town, the ticket master immediatly recongized my friends and I. I decided despite of him already grimancing and shuffling papers at the sight of us, I needed to make it obvious howurgent we really were this time. I slammed my hoof down on the counter.

"Six tickets to Canterlot! It's an emergency!"

The grey stallion behind that inch thick glass didn't even bat an eye. Instead he smirked.

"What, did the Princess spill her cup of tea again? Maybe Princess Luna lost her blanket?"

I blushed as I recalled those two events. And a few other moments the six of us decided to keep between us. I noticed that despite his sarcasm laden voice, those hooves were already at work counting out the tiny stubs nessecary to ride on the locomotive.

"Yet again you six are in luck, next train to Canterlot will leave in fifteen minutes."

I yanked the tickets from the old pony's grip, ignort the muttering he thought I couldn't hear. And for the most part I couldn't. Just something about 'fillies these days', 'new fangled elements of harmony', and something about 'back in my day'. I shrugged it off anyways. We had a train to catch.

Altogether the train ride was uneventful. We even got our normal car all to ourselves, and arriving at the business station of Canterlot we were greeted by a small group of Royal guards. Leading the dutiful pack of soldiers though was what caught my attention the most.

"Twily!"

As one my brother and I swooped down upon each other, hooves open, each ready to desieged the other with hugs.

" You are not going to believe your eyes. There's a crack in the Throne Room!"

I got a weird feeling remembering the sight of that grey old ticket stallion and his muttering ways. This didn't sound like a job forthe Elements of Harmony...In fact...

"Why didn't you just find a carpenter? I'm pretty sure the Elements don't have a "Fix the crack in the wall" feature."

I hadn't meant to ssound snippy,but this really didnt sound like a job for us.

" Twilight you don't understand. You are going to have to ssee it for yourself."

The golden plated guards closed ranks around us. I figured if it was such a small probably we could probably get out of here quickly too. Glancing at my friends though told me they weren't about to complain any more about the situation. I knew all of them had their own personal reasons for loving the city of Canterlot.

I mainly zoned out as we walked through the streets. Unlike my friends these streats were familiar to me. Also since we were in the Business region we didn't have much of a ways to walk. Mainly just a short stroll through the recreational area for the most sophisticated of ponies. I must say there were some rather clean nostrils this time around. They must have put in a new spa recently. I noticed this all with disinterest though. These ponies...they looked down on my friends and I. In an attempt to get out of here I whispered a dangerous plan to two of my companions. Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash.

All I had to do was suggest a race and they were off, easily braking ahead of the tightly knit guards. With a mighty yell of surprise Apple Jack was off too. I noticed Shining Armor give me an uncomfortable look but I didn't care. I just wanted to get to Celestia.

I set out with a burst of enegry. I knew I was no where near the kind of runner like those three but I wanted to get to the castle. The foof us ended up leaving Fluttershy and Rarity behind but both of them were more the stop and smell the roses kind anyways. Or pet the bunnies. Within but a few minutes we reached the high golden gates that marked the enterence to the abode of our ruler and my mentor.

I brushed aside the argument happening between Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash and went straight on up to on of the gate keepers. It looked like someone had recently replaced old Steel Lock because alongside Silver Key was a new face. One maybe my age. A unicorn even. Typically the guards of the gates were either unicorns or earth ponies but the vast majority were earth ponies as of late. I studied the slate blue coat and looked in those navy blue eyes. Buck, it couldv'e been his first day out of the academy even, I noticed a lock of silvery mane peeking out beneath of his helmet. Sloppy. Though it was outside of my nature I decided to play with him.

"Hey there, sweetums. What's a hunky thing like you doing in a place like this?"

Rarity would've been proud her...unorthodox dating tips were being put to use. I could see sweat start to form on his brow and as soon as I started talking his eyes started flickering between me and his mentor, silently pleading for a rescue. I decided to kick it up a notch.

"So cutie pie, when do you get off of work? Perhaps you," I trailed a hoof alon his armor, "And I could grab a drink?"

I could barely keep a straight face now and out of the corner of my eye I could see the guards that we left with Rarity and Fluttershy approaching. I figured it was time to get serious.

"So my friends and I," I gestured with my hoof at both my friends with me and the ones still approaching, "Have an audience with Princess Celestia. I'm Twilight Sparkle. And you are?"

I felt bad for being a tease of sorts and was actually considering buying him maybe a meal. Not as a date, oh no, I barely knew the colt. With my friends. Buck, Pinkie Pie would throw a party just for a new name.

"Nightly, Miss Twilight Sparkle. Um...just let me, um go get the gate open."

I knew now we were definately going to throw him a party as I watched him fumbled with his keys. By the time he managed to get the correct one off of the ring and into the key hole though we were joined by the rest of the group.

We made it to he Throne Room without any more delays. And boy, oh boy was my brother right about me being interested. Sure it was a crack. But it wasn't in the wall. It just...hung there, as if the very air its self had been ripped like a piece of parchment paper.

I zoned out everything else, only idly picking up on Celestia talk of its appearance to the other elements. I noted the slight whitish glow stemming from the edges of the crack and the blue light spewing forth from the center. The closer I got the colder I felt. I felt a sort of depression seep into my bones. I also through felt a pull and looking up I notice my recently donned Element glowing a purple hue. I stepped closer, reaching out. I sensed beside me that my friends had drifted over, forming a half circle around the cryptic crack. It was calling us, shouting at us. I could feel the pull.

Then I saw pink. There was nothing I could do. I tried grabbing at my friends tail, tried grasping for a hoof...but she just jumped through. Without thinking, I realized later there had been magic some powerful magic directed to lure in the Elements, to lure in us, I leapt in after Pinkie Pie.

With a thump I felt my plot fall onto an uneven, rough, cold stone. I felt as if a thinks cloud of fog had just been cleared away from my mind, leaving behind the wisps and tufts of a numbing headache. I blearily looked around. All six of us were still together. Good. We all still had the elements. Also good.

It appeared as if we landed in a more medieval version of our Throne Room, grey stone where white tile had been. Clear glass interrupting the walls where before had been graceful color.

"Interesting..."

I snapped my head to the voice, unable temporarily to see as my mane clouded my vision. But not for long. I shot to my feet as I lay eyes upon the source.

"TRIXIE!"