The group, after locking in Somnambula's Blindfold, headed into the next room. This one was the strangest looking yet.
"Okay...feels like a real voodoo vibe here." Pit said.
"Like Haiti or Louisiana." Aya said.
"I'm pretty sure the latter." Mahiru said. "This room has some similarities to the old cultures of Louisiana before the modern world took over. Healing remedies, all natural cures, everything."
"This is incredible!" Ginseng said as she approached the tablet.
"So Ginseng, whose room is this?" Ibuki asked.
"Mage Meadowbrook, the Pillar of Healing. She once lived in Hayseed Swamp, saving her fellow ponies from an epidemic." Ginseng said.
The room flashed, placing them all inside the everfree forest along a Bayou. There, they saw inside a tree home Mage Meadowbrook herself. She was a dark blue earth pony wearing clothes reminiscent of the ones southerners in Louisiana wore in the old times. She was with her mother as she was brewing something.
Mage Meadowbrook was born the daughter to a healer who concocted all natural remedies and cures, for ponies and animals alike. And she was a quick study.
With her mother, Meadowbrook was seen making what she called a "Un-Sniffle Elixir", in which she fed to a sickly chipmunk. After tasting it, it's cold was instantly healed and the creature was good as new.
Impressed, her mother decided on something right then and there.
"Meadowbrook, I think it's time you had this." she said handing the young mare a present. Meadowbrook quickly opened it to reveal in her hooves a mask shaped in the form of a bird's beak.
Mage Meadowbrook gasped. "My very own healer's mask! You think I'm ready, mother?" she asked, to her mothers approval.
Not long after Meadowbrook received her gift, trouble arrived at her doorstep.
There was a knock at the door as Mage Meadowbrook's mother answered, revealing another pony who had contracted orange spots all over her body, and didn't look too good either.
This patient had contracted a strange disease that Mage Meadowbrook's mother dubbed "Swamp Fever". Spread through the pollen of spotted flowers, this sickness was deadly, eventually resulting in those affiliated being turned into trees that grew the afflicting flowers, allowing the fever to spread quickly. Soon, many ponies came down with the sickness, and even Meadowbrook's mother contracted the disease.
"Whoa, diseases in Equestria are no joke." Akane said.
"I-I don't know if I'd be able to cure it…" Mikan said.
"Maybe none of us would, but I bet Meadowbrook figured it out." Hope said.
Left on her own to solve the crisis of the Swamp Fever pandemic, Mage Meadowbrook had no idea how she would cure an entire population, including her mother. Until one day, when she was observing the flowers that spread the disease, she found a way.
Meadowbrook saw that glowing bees with lightning bolt stingers were collecting pollen and nectar from the flowers, and they weren't getting sick at all.
"Flashbees!" Meadowbrook declared the answer, and followed the bees to their hive.
Realizing that Flashbees are immune to the flower's effects, Meadowbrook deduced that the honey they produced would be the key in finding a cure.
And so, the healer raced after the Flashbees to their hive. However, the insects were aggressive in defending their hive, and her first attempt was unsuccessful.
"No kidding, those Flashbees take no prisoners." ZS said.
"If they are territorial… then the best solution would be to mask yourself so that they see you as one of their own, right?" Ethox asked.
"How do you know that?" Subaru asked.
"When you spend enough time with a guy like Goblin Slayer, you relate his knowledge to everything." Ethox said.
"But covering yourself in flashbee blood wouldn't work, especially since they're so aggressive." Megumin said.
"Maybe blood isn't what she used." Goblin Slayer said. "Instead, she used that mask."
On her next attempt, Meadowbrook wore her healer's mask. This time, when she went to collect the honey, the Flashbees saw her as a queen bee, and were peaceful around her, allowing the healer to obtain enough honey to create a cure for Swamp Fever.
With the cure, Meadowbrook managed to cure her mother, and the rest of the ponies afflicted with the disease. From that day on, Mage Meadowbrook dedicated her life to healing ponies all over Equestria.
The group returned to the room with Ginseng holding Mage Meadowbrook's healer mask. She locked it in the slot as only one remained.
"Just one more. But who does it belong to?" Hope said.
"I'm sure the next room that opens up will reveal all." CP said, as another door opened up to the group.
"Alright, now when we follow this path, we'll come to the room that holds… nothing?" Papyrus said as the group was now standing in a room that was bare, no tapestries, no artifacts, nothing.
"Okay, that's new." Eddy said.
"An empty room… meaning this pillar is already known by all in history. His or her artifact must be out in Equestria somewhere." Hope said.
"It's a his." Aria sighed. "I know who this pillar is."
"We do?" Sonata asked.
"His name is Starswirl." Aria said.
"Starswirl… as in Starswirl the Bearded? The very same unicorn that banished you, Sonata and Adagio to Canterlot High?" Hope said.
"Yeah, way to rub in the worst moment of our life." Aria said. "But yes, that's him."
"Hmm… well, Princess Twilight is his biggest fan." Mark spoke up. "If anyone knows what the artifact would be, it's her."
"Well, let's call her up. Hopefully she'll pick up this time." Zephyr said.
"Good idea." Mark said, calling the comm. "C'mon, princess…" he said, hearing it ring until he heard the call being answered.
"...Hello?" the tired voice of Princess Twilight said.
"Hi, Twilight." Mark greeted. "You sound tired, everything alright?"
"Sorry, we've been up for three days studying." Twilight said. "A friend of Starlight's, Sunburst, found a journal that belonged to Starswirl the Bearded. We found out from the journal that he and a group called the Pillars of Equestria were going to combat a creature called the Pony of Shadows. We've been trying to study the journal so we can maybe find out what happened to them, but we can't decipher the writings."
"The Pillars? Twilight, we're inside the dungeon that contains their history. We've collected all their artifacts, except Starswirl's. I think that journal's the final piece! How fast can you get-"
A magenta flash appeared behind them as Princess Twilight, the other members of the Mane 6, Spike, and Sunburst appeared.
"-here." Hope said, stunned.
"Where are the other artifacts?" Twilight asked excitedly, completely re-energized.
"Uh, that door over-" Mark pointed before Twilight ran past him and put the journal in the door.
"I can't believe we're going to solve the mystery!" Twilight practically squealed.
"Glad we could help…" Emo said, as stunned as Hope.
"Oh, sorry." Twilight said. "Sorry we didn't pick up, we - well, I was really engrossed in figuring things out and I was just a little excited by the idea of potentially getting to meet Starswirl and-"
"It's fine, it's fine." Mark said. "Just… y'know, remember to sleep."
The door soon opened as everyone went inside to see not treasures or monsters, but a circular shrine made of stones that came around.
"The treasure room just contains a Stonehenge knockoff?" Nemo asked.
"Really? That's it?" Meowth said. "We blew up several walls."
"Again, we didn't need to do that." Riolu said. "But there's something up with this set up."
Hope then got an idea. "Hey, this sounds crazy, but… what if the treasure is the Pillars themselves?"
"Come again?" Sunburst asked, confused.
"The Pillar's virtues, they all were past versions of the Elements of harmony today. I bet that the Pillars went to confront this Pony of Shadows and vanished somewhere trying to contain it. What if there's a possibility that we could bring them back?"
"Even if that was the case, how would we do that?" DJ asked.
"Well, we have all six artifacts. What if we combined them with Twilight and the others right here on this monument?" Ethox suggested.
"Uh...you sure? Cause this hieroglyph seems pretty against that." Ivy said, seeing the six pillars facing a shadowy entity.
"I agree with Ivy." Starlight said. "The most legendary ponies of all time knew what they were doing, I'm not sure we should mess with it. After all, I did kinda use Starswirl's time spell and almost destroyed the whole Equestria Universe."
"Not to mention all of time and existence with it." Jexi said.
"Yeah, that too." Starlight said.
"Hmm… you all raise good points." Mark said, before turning to Twilight. "Maybe we should wait, leave this place alone until we know exactly what we're doing."
"Mark, Starswirl the Bearded is the greatest wizard who ever lived." Princess Twilight said. "Having him back in Equestria is worth the risk."
Mark was silent for a moment before he sighed. "Well, I guess so… and we have dealt with gods, so… if worst comes to worst, we can probably handle it."
Smiling, Twilight recovered the six artifacts from the door, and placed them in the respective posts on the altar. Then, together with Starlight and Sunburst, the three of them used their magic to energize Starswirl's journal, the power spreading to the other five items, rising into the air and spinning around.
A great big flash then enveloped the entire chamber for an instant, before six ponies fell from the air as the Mane 6 caught them. They were revealed to be the Six Pillars of Equestria, in the flesh before their eyes. Rockhoof, Mistmane, Flash Magnus, Somnambula, Mage Meadowbrook… and Starswirl.
The legendary unicorn soon awoke from his daze and slowly opened his eyes.
"What… what has happened?" he asked.
"It worked! We brought you back!" Princess Twilight cheered.
"Back to where?" Starswirl asked.
"Uh...the Shrine of the Pillars? In Equestria?" Theo said.
"When this dungeon appeared, we gathered up your artifacts to open the door to here. Then Princess Twilight cast a spell to bring you all back, and-" Hope started before Starswrl became wide eyed.
"WHAT?!" Starswirl interrupted. "No, no, no no! You must undo what you've done!"
"Huh? Why? I dunno if we know how." Hope said.
"You cannot bring us back!" Starswirl said in fear.
"But we did! Twilight used the spell to bring all six of you back." Ethox said.
"Yeah, what's the problem?" Undyne asked.
"You cannot bring only the Pillars back!" Starswirl said in dread as a black, shadowy cloud appeared in the middle of the ruins, then started to morph until it took the form of a large black pony with sharp wings, a cloak ending with grey flames, and white shining eyes. The shadowy figure cackled as the room darkened.
"See, this is why you NEVER should mess with ancient history!" Kazuma shouted.
"Well...crap." Mark said.