What Does a Hero Truly Need? Vol. 2: A Dire Need of Heroes

What does a Hero Truly Need? Vol. 2

                                                                Original Idea and Story By: Zelkova48

                                                                         Current Story By: Deverer

                                                                           Chapter 4: The Invoker

“The cosmos has conspired against me once again!” Invoker yelled aloud, despite the fact he was rapidly falling down to the ground, thousands upon thousands of feet away from it. “It was not enough to inhibit my spells at the start of every fight, now they seek to try to outright kill me through and through!” He gritted his teeth, and locked his gaze onto the ground below. “My knowledge surpasses all! This is a fact! I preserve all of the universe in my mind, past and present, yet it wants to snuff me out? Nay I say!” He narrowed his gaze and looked to the point at which his body was heading, seeing an open field with various specks of gray all around.

The orbs encircling Invoker followed his figure despite the terminal velocity he had achieved, at the moment, each one was of the three reagents he was known for. In an eternal dance of their own fruition or of Invoker's will, the orbs bring about the raw magical preparation needed for the spells he considers the best of time. While a magic user could wave a wand and cause magic to happen, the wand itself carries materials that help make the spell happen. It is Invoker's mastery and innovation away from external materials that has made him one of the best minds to walk the earth.

The Quas reagent, blue in color, preserves his ice elements. This included ice itself, as well as water and earth; the strength of the world and its foundations. Invoker's spells that related to this element bring about the disruption of his enemies. When Invoker chooses to focus on these particular spells, he seeks to control the battlefield through tactical planning and seeking advantage by enduring.

The pink reagent, Wex, held his storm elements. Wind and lightening were the primary inhabitants in this case; the agility of the world and it's speedy harshness at his fingertips. Spells of this nature contained manipulation the speed of the battle itself, slowing or even speeding it up depending on the application. Invoker, if his will allows it, will ensure that time goes into his favor with these spells.

Exort, the final reagent in his arsenal, was orange in color. It holds fire itself, and a subtle induction of space is also present here. Pure destruction is the name of this game, spells bring that about the pure essence of magical power are cast from this reagent. All must beware of his ability to snuff matter out existence, including the matter of your very being, if he chooses to go down this route.

Even if the Invoker has chosen a specific path to follow in a specific battle, all must remember why he got his namesake and reputation. Many tactics and strategies have been absorbed into his mind, his focus can and will shift over the course of a battle. The longer the Invoker fights, the more he learns, and knowledge has and always will be the source of his power.

“Even when my magic is silenced can I think out of situations worse than this! Even when I am cast out of existence or trapped in time I can prevail! You think dropping me out the air will kill me?!” He shot his arm forward toward the ground, but let out a sudden grunt as he observed it. “What kind of transfiguration is this?!” he yelled outward, looking at the appendage. What he observed was a leg of an equine. At the end it was golden where his hoof poked out of his new fur, the fur itself was white with a hint of peach. The whole limb was coming out of what he perceived to be his robe. “You dare alter my form against my will?! Once I get onto solid ground, I will search my massive collection of knowledge to find a petty transfiguration spell!” He snapped his angered gaze back to the ground. “You also dare to distract me mere seconds before I hit the ground?! Wex Quas Wex!” he yelled, his whole body spinning and flashing a combined colored light of his three reagents.

Trixie stepped up to the door of the farmhouse, stopping to look back at Igneous. The earth pony was with his wife and two daughters, all of them closing up the door to the storage silo that was across from  the house. He and Cloudy Quartz both gave each other a small hug and a nod to the Pie sisters before they began to walk over to Trixie. She turned to the door of the house, and opened it with her magic, stepping aside to let the earth pony family walk inside. Cloudy, Limestone, and Marble each gave a smile to Trixie before they trotted inside.

“You sure do take a lot of initiative, Miss Lulamoon,” Igneous spoke. Trixie turned to him, letting her magic fade away.

“Just... well,” she started, a small tint of red on her cheeks. “You really have to step it up sometimes, take your work to the next level... eheh...” She ran a fore-hoof along the back of her neck, Igneous letting out a small chuckle of his own.

“Quartz is already heading to the kitchen, why don't you head on upstairs and wash up?” He gestured his own fore-hoof to the door. “Fillies first,” he said, Trixie giving a small nod back, and she herself then trotted into the house. As she stepped into the foyer, she headed off to the left side and began to ascend the stairs. She tilted her head over as she walked up, and saw both Limestone and Marble further down the hall, both of them standing outside the open entrance that led to the kitchen. She gave a small sigh and walked up the rest of the stairs.

As she reached the top, she walked towards the turn in the landing and began to follow the path down. She passed by one room before stopping at the second door in the hall. She flared her magic and opened the door inward and stepped inside, subsequently closing it behind her. She gave another sigh and looked around the room. Inside was a carpet in the middle of the room, a spring mattress bed with a blanket, sheet, and pillow. She walked past the bed and over to a simple dresser, two drawers in height, coming up just under her head. On top was an oil lantern along with an ink well and quill, a stack of papers present as well.

Trixie flared her magic, the top drawer becoming surrounded by it and was pulled outward. Another sigh escaped from her as she levitated the contents of the drawer upward: her performing hat and cape. Both of them floated aimlessly in the air, and they each had a few flakes of dust come off of them as she swiveled them around to observe them fully. Finally, both of them lost the magical aura around them and fell back into the drawer, which was closed almost immediately after. Trixie ran a fore-hoof across one of her eyes, before opening the lower drawer with her magic.

As she peered inside, she saw nothing in it. She quickly looked over to a corner of the room, seeing a few discarded towels piled up along side some other dirtied pieces of clothing. She grunted slightly as she slammed the drawer shut, and turned to trot out of the room. She turned to walk back down the hall from where she came, the door being practically slammed behind her. She walked pass the stairs and toward a single door at the end of the hall.

When she entered, her eyes glanced around the room. A bathtub was on one side of the room, while on the other side was a sink. She closed the door behind her, and turned her attention to the curtains of the window and grasped them with her magic, covering the window fully with them. She trotted herself halfway over to the sink, and checked the floor below her, shuffling her back hooves. She inhaled before standing up on her hind legs, horn glowing bright, and fore-hooves curled close to herself. She gritted her teeth, and sweat began to trickle down her head. She gasped and threw her fore-legs out, a pink cloud exploding in front of her suddenly. As she dropped back down onto all four legs panting, she looked up to observe the fruits of her endeavor. In front of her floated a small towel, beige in color. It floated over to her, and it was draped across her back. She then walked up to the sink, and grasped the knobs with her magic.

The moment she did though, she yelped as the window suddenly shattered, and a fierce wind entered the room. Trixie immediately fell to the floor and looked behind her, seeing a rock now inside the room. The wall that held the window started to break and crack all around, some parts having more rocks fly straight through. She tensed herself up as the room, and by extension the house, was being destroyed.

An eye of hers popped open as she heard screaming from downstairs. She looked down, as if she could see through the floor, as each member the farmer family was giving off their own yells. She took a quick breath, and turned to the door of the bathroom. She flared her magic, and immediately blinked away from her spot, appearing outside the door. She flinched as more rocks continued to assault the entire house. She looked to the top of the stairs, and took another quick breath as she blinked to them.

“Get down! Get down, now!” Trixie heard Igneous yell. She quickly ran down a few steps, and turned her head to see the family all huddled up in the hallway, away from any windows.

“Dad! What's going on?!” Marble yelled.

“It's a twister! Just stay down, all of you!” Igneous yelled over them. Trixie took in another breath, wiping her forehead. She flared her magic again, visibly straining as she did so. The farmer family all yelped as Trixie blinked in next to all of them. Before any of them could respond, Trixie grunted as shot her head upward. A stream of her magic went upward, and then a pink bubble appeared around all of them. As soon it touched down onto the floor, a rock immediately impacted against it, shaking the shield around them. Trixie grunted and crouched downward, her eyes closed and teeth clenched. The whole family remained quiet and stared at Trixie, all them flinching slightly as another rock hit the shield.

Trixie's back legs buckled downward, and her head hung downward, but she continued to flare her magic. She shot another beam upward to the shield, which glowed outward as it made contact. The tenseness in her face disappeared, and her eyes opened and her pupils rolled up slightly as she collapsed onto the floor. Limestone and Marble both reached out their respective set of fore-hooves to Trixie, both of them dragging the exhausted mare to them. Igneous and Cloudy both stared at the shield around them, an occasional rock hitting against it.

As the moments dragged on, the flow of rocks against the foundation began to die down as well. As the constant bangs and pops around stopped completely, Igneous began to rise up from the huddle, stepping toward the edge of the shield.

“Is everypony alright?” he asked, turning his head. All the mares nodded back silently, their eyes all on Trixie, who was breathing heavily.

“Miss Lulamoon?” Cloudy asked, her voice quiet. “Are you okay? Do we need to get you to a hospital?” Trixie craned her neck upward slightly, Limestone and Marble both shuffling back slightly.

“N-no... just... takes a lot out of you... to... do so much,” Trixie rasped.

“I'll go get some water, if it still works. Otherwise, I'll have to get the flares to signal Ponyville,” Igneous said to all of them. He turned to the shield, raising a fore-hoof up to it. As he pushed it forward, it broke into shards that disappeared as the fell downward. He gave a sigh before trotting out fully. “Miss Lulamoon, you deserve more than just a raise or a nice lunch after this... much more,” he commented. Trixie herself gave a weak smile, before letting out a violent cough.

“Limey, Mary, give her some space now,” their mother ordered, both of the sisters standing up and walking back in response. Cloudy placed a fore-hoof on Trixie's head. “Oh dear... she's burning up, it may not be a fever but...” she looked to the towel draped around Trixie's frame. “Limestone, can you give that towel to me? She's sweating fiercely,” the purple-gray mare gave a nod, before removing the towel off of Trixie. As Limestone reached the towel over to her mother, it suddenly vanished into a pink cloud of dust.

“What the-” Limestone yelped, darting her eyes back and forth. “It wasn't me!” she added.

“Conjuration magic...” Trixie whispered, earning the attention of the mares. “Never... lasts forever... takes a good bit out of you... eheh...”

“Dear, just rest now, save your strength,” Cloudy reassured, as she did so, Igneous trotted back to them with a glass of water.

“Water still works... can't say much for the rest of the kitchen, and possibly the rest of the house,” said Igneous, as he passed the glass over to Cloudy. “Do we need to get her to a hospital?” he asked, pointing to Trixie.

“She said she doesn't need it... but...” she looked to Trixie, who was pushing herself up to a sitting position. Cloudy tilted the glass toward Trixie's face, who accepted the water without hesitation.

“That's a good sign, though, I may have to signal somepony anyway for this freak disaster. You think this came from the Everfree?”

Trixie moved the glass away from her mouth, which was now empty. “That was made by somepony,” she spoke, her rasp gone. She wiped her mouth, coughing slightly for a moment. “If it was a twister like you said, it came and went too fast for it to have been from the Everfree. It was either a team of pegasi, or unicorns performing that specific weather spell,” she inhaled quietly, Cloudy looked to Igneous in shock. He gritted his teeth, also scowling his eyes.

“Sonuva-” he started, but stopped to pull his hat downward over his head slightly. “I'm getting the flares, after I inspect the damage to the farm, specifically where the twister touched down,” he declared, stomping away from the mares. The sound of the front door being slammed reached all of their ears, all of them flinching slightly at the sound.

“Miss Lulamoon?” Marble asked. The unicorn turned to the gray mare, who also had an even grayer mane. “I... just wanted to say thanks... you know, for saving us?” she whispered, her eyes trailing off toward the ground as she spoke.

“It's...” Trixie began. “It's... ergh...” she slumped downward, and began to breath heavily.

“Easy now, dear,” Cloudy said to the unicorn. “Limestone, go get a blanket and pillow, she needs to lie down,” the gray sister gave a nod. She stood up onto all fours and ran away from the group, the sound of her steps going away, and then toward them as she ascended the stairs. “Marble, can you go refill the glass? Can you also see if we have a bendable straw for her?”

“Yes, mom,” the other sister replied. She trotted around the two, stopping in order to take the empty glass with her.

“Some water should put me back on track,” Trixie spoke. “You would be amazed what water can do for your magical reserves as a frequent spell caster,” she added, a weak smile on her face, her eyes slightly lazy. “Yeah... I think I'm going to take that rest now...” she laid herself down onto the floor, on her stomach.

“They'll be back in a bit, then you rest to your heart's content, we'll pick up the slack from here,” Cloudy looked toward the direction of the fields. “I hope Rocky is okay.”

As Igneous looked over the destruction to the farm as a whole, he found it difficult to not have his mouth open in shock. All around him, rocks were scattered along the ground, the ground itself being torn up by their landings.

Despite that, the curious part was that most of the large boulders that were scattered throughout were surprisingly unmoved, like they weren't touched. Yet as he walked along though, the various boulders seemed to be more askew than the last, and the grass was flattened more so. He looked back toward the farm house and the silo, both of them now supporting a polka-dotted pattern of rocks, holes, and dents. A sigh escaped from him as he trudged forward, and continued to survey the area.

“Useless counter spell!” a voice yelled, causing Igneous to jump.

“What the hay?” he whispered.

“Useless polymorphic chant!” the voice called again, Igneous squinted forward, seeing various lights in the distance.

“What in Equestria is that?” Igneous scuffled forward, crouching down slightly. As he got closer, the lights in the distance became more precise, and he could make out a pony standing alone and facing away from him. That pony stood in the very center of a almost complete circle of ravaged land, the very spot where the pony was standing was devoid of grass.

“Useless transfiguration curse!” the voice came again, coming from where the mysterious pony stood. “All useless! The Scythe of Vyse is a more potent transfiguration, yet none of these spells can fix this?!” the pony yelled aloud again. “There's a reason I choose to forget these spells and leave but a smidgen! For knowledge's sake! Most fools don't even know the name of the scythe, lost to time and changes!” He raised his fore-hoof upward. “But not me! Tis only me who can carry such knowledge!"

“Sounds like his voice is stuck on the 'Royal Canterlot' setting...” Igneous murmured, creeping closer. As he got closer, he noticed the pony snapping his fore-hooves outward at varying times. Each time he did so, a frustrated grunt escaped from him.

“No matter...” the pony growled. “If it is a new challenge of knowledge, then I shall best it once again! I best all before me! Me, the Invoker!”

“Invoker?” Igneous immediately threw a fore-hoof over his mouth, backing up slightly. Igneous witnessed the pony, Invoker as he just said, turn his head slightly toward him.

“It would be wise of you to state your business, to see if my attention is worthy of acknowledging you,” Invoker growled. Igneous backed up a few more steps, his legs trembling slightly. As Invoker turned around fully to face Igneous, the earth pony froze in shock.

It wasn't the three orbs encircling Invoker, nor was the it the intimidating mixture of white, red, gold, and purple on his robes. It wasn't his authoritative golden mane that caressed a sharpened unicorn horn either. No, it was the fact that the Invoker's eyes were missing pupils and irises, leaving a scowl and gaze that pierced right through Igneous' being.

“You are of the transfiguration image that I now possess!” Invoker yelled to Igneous, the former shooting a fore-hoof out at the latter.

“I-I... er...”

“Do not waste my time! Disclose any information that has even a possibility of being relevant to my interests, or be gone! I have no desire to waste my superior mind on distractions!” Invoker took a step forward, one hoof only. “The equine anatomy that I share with you  is most distorted as well! Yet it is no challenge to me to walk in this new body!”

“N-new body?” Igneous stammered. “What in Equestria are you-”

“Equestria?!” Invoker interrupted. “What land is this? That land has never been archived in the history of the world!”

“Maybe not whatever world your mind is at the moment...” Igneous replied, stepping back further.

“World...” Invoker started. “World!” He yelled after, his scowl suddenly softened. “A whole new world... means a whole new bounty of knowledge...” Invoker looked skyward slightly. “Your land alone has already gotten a pittance of my attention by altering my form, and preventing even me from changing it!” He looked back down to Igneous, an unsettling smile now on his face, causing Igneous to back up even further. “The spells that I can learn, but can they match up even to that diminished Claws of Tornarus?”

“Claws of what now?” Igneous asked, adjusting his hat slightly away from his eyes. “You should know that you're also trespassing on my-”

“The tornado invocation! The best of its kind, because I have mandated it so!” he interrupted yet again. “For your sake, your mind better have the ability to process that you are now in the act of wasting my time.”

“T-tornado?” Igneous stammered, gritting his teeth afterword. “You!” he yelled outward, pointing a fore-hoof at Invoker. “You're the one who destroyed my farm! Miss Lulamoon was right!” Igneous turned himself around. “I'm summoning the royal guards! You're going to rot in Tartarus for destroying my rock farm! Believe me, they've improved dramatically in the last few months!” Igneous then began to sprint away, leaving Invoker standing alone. Invoker himself glanced around himself, noting the surrounding area.

“Rock... farm?” Invoker asked, his tone not holding interest. Suddenly, two of the orbs, one Wex and one Quas, vanished out of the air. From the horn on his head, two Exort orbs suddenly materialized, replacing and continuing the orbital dance around Invoker. “You waste your mind on useless pebbles! I'll show you and this world a true rock that you should focus on!” He raised himself onto his back legs, his whole body flashing a light. He threw both of his fore-hooves forward, and a harsh wind immediately followed.

Quite a distance away from Invoker, Igneous continued to sprint back to the farm, his sights set on the storage silo. He took a quick glance behind him, seeing the silhouette of Invoker gradually growing smaller. As he looked though, his mouth formed downward to an open frown as he saw another silhouette descend down from the sky. The sky tinted orange and the temperature around him was raised slightly as it came down to the ground.

“Sweet Celestia... help us all...” he whispered.

“Pinkie?” Twilight asked her friend. “What's wrong?”

“T-twitchy tail...” the pink earth pony whispered. Twilight and Applejack both shot their respective eyes open, and looked above themselves.

“That means something's going to fall...” Twilight glanced toward the trees around her. “But... there's no wind, a sinkhole?” She snapped her head downward. Twilight looked back up as she felt something tap her shoulder. She looked to who was tapping her, and found Applejack doing it. Twilight looked around and found all the guards and Pinkie looking up in the same direction in the sky. Twilight joined them in looking upward, and her ears fell backward upon doing so.

In the sky, a red ball with visible flames trailing behind it descended downward.

“A... meteor?” Applejack asked aloud, taking a step backward.

“I...” Twilight started, but trailed off. “If we weren't in this current situation... this could be...” she wiped her forehead with a hoof, shaking her head afterword. “Is... is this maybe the light we missed from the sky?” She asked, as it disappeared from their view. She began to rub a fore-hoof on her chin, a concerned frown present on her face. All of them flinched slightly as a small quake wad felt under all their hooves.

“Wait a second!” Pinkie yelled outward, causing Twilight, Applejack, and some of the guards to snap their gaze downward. “If I know where I think we are, and that's the right direction to look,” she gasped inward. “That came down onto my family's farm! Dad! Mom!” Pinkie began to run away from the group, some of the guards stepping forward as she took her first steps, fore-hooves extended out.

“Pinkie! Wait!” Twilight yelled after her. Pinkie however, did not stop her sprint, disappearing into the tree line. “The plan! What about the plan?! What about-” she began to rap a fore-hoof against the ground. “I didn't plan for this! We're a mare down now! Where do we go now? Do we split off? Do we follow her? Do we-”

“Twi!” Applejack interrupted. “Look, this is her family in potential trouble; what if this were your... Ah dunno, your family's house that this thing fell near?” the farm pony suggested.

“I... I guess, but-”

“If you're worried about the plan, it's just a rock we saw, it's probably nothing more. A very... very, big, flaming... rock..” Applejack turned to the guards. “Ah suggest though, if it's not nothing more, we send some of the guards here to help her.” She titled her head, and half closed her eyes. “Though, while we're on the topic of plans and others things, Twilight,” she added, a frown now on her face. “Ever since... you know what, and when we all went our separate ways after that, you seem to be real twitchy when it comes to plans. Ah remember last week how you freaked out when you saw Applebloom taking up some applebucking, and you thought-”

“I know, I know,” Twilight conceded, her head being lowered down. “The incidents at the wedding alone really shook our heads, I mean, we never expected...” she sighed. “Look, AJ, can we talk about this later? A lot later? When we have this new portal drama under control?” she asked, raising her head back up. “You're right though, Pinkie shouldn't go alone in this.” Twilight trotted past Applejack slightly looking over the guards. “Listen! I know we were heading to Ghastly Gorge, but we need to make sure our friend is okay! We need a few volunteers to follow her, that... meteor, may have caused some damage on that I think warrants investigating!” she yelled outward. The guards all looked to each other, some talking to each other. Twilight gulped slightly, a bead of sweat trailing down between her eyes. A third of the guards stepped off toward the forest where Pinkie went, facing their comrades. The smaller platoon gave a salute to the larger, before they all turned to the forest, the Pegasi taking to the air, over the top of the trees.

“And off they go...” Applejack spoke out, Twilight turning to her. “Ah hope they'll be safe,” she pulled her hat down slightly. “We got own our worries though.”

“Right, the gorge,” Twilight turned her whole being around, back down the path they were all taking. She turned her head toward the forest, a concerned frown on her face. “Be safe, Pinkie,” she said under her breath.

Trixie jerked her whole being upward from her makeshift bed upon feeling the ground shake. She looked to the glass of water next to her, the liquid giving off ripples still. She glanced around, Cloud was in the hall next to the stairs, while the Pie sisters were in the kitchen. All of them glanced out toward the fields as if there were no walls blocking their line of sight.

All the mares turned their heads toward the direction of the front door, as it was slammed open and then immediately slammed shut. Igneous half trotted and half stumbled down the hall, stepping up the stairs slightly.

“Rocky?” Cloudy asked her husband. “What's going on? What was that?”

“A madpony...” he whispered, stopping in his tracks up the stairs. He looked over all the others, his eyes twitching slightly. “Just one... unicorn, made that twister...” he continued. Everyone's jaw suddenly fell open, Igneous himself breathed inward heavily. “And then... he... he, oh Celestia I can't describe it. It's like... he pulled a piece of the sun out of the sky! I felt the heat of that thing before it even hit the ground! I wasn't even halfway back to the house!” Trixie looked over toward the kitchen, leaning herself to try to look out the window, which was perpendicular to the main hallway.

“Why? How?” Trixie asked, turning her head back to Igneous. Marble and Limestone began to step past her, toward their parents.

“He's crazy... and... I guess crazy with power,” he answered, shaking his head. “The scary part was, I didn't see a single sparkle of magic from his horn, well there was those orb things. It's like he didn't even need his horn, it's not like unicorn magic we've seen from you, Miss Lulamoon. I'm not saying you're not a bad caster, no offense.”

“None taken... I...” she looked back to the kitchen. “I think I get what you're saying.”

“The bottom line is though, I'm signaling the guards, I want you all to be ready to hunker down in the cellar.” He resumed his trek up the stairs, his steps being heard through the ceiling.

“Limestone, Marble, can you go check the cellar? I haven't inspected it myself yet. I need to see if the silo is alright on the inside,” Cloudy spoke to her children.

“Yes, mom,” they both replied. They turned to walk down the hall, Trixie looked over to them. They both walked to a door near the stairs, opening it and disappearing into it.

“Will you be okay for a moment, Miss Lulamoon?” Cloudy asked, the unicorn turned her head to the earth pony.

“I will, yes,” she replied quickly. “Just... the way your husband described this... this-”

“I know, I know,” Cloudy gave a sigh. “Just try to keep your head now, okay?” She gave a weak smile, before turning toward the front door. As she opened and subsequently closed the door behind her, she gave off another sigh as she surveyed the damage. She glanced up and down the height of the silo, seeing dents and rocks embedded along the whole of the structure. The entrance to the silo was knocked clean off, and was resting inside.

She looked to her immediate right, the windmill next to their house was the only structure without a scratch on it. She hung her head slightly, and began to trot to the silo itself. Stepping past the fence that surrounded the house, she looked out into the fields. The various trees had most of their leaves blown off, some of the ones in the surrounding forest had theirs blown off as well. As she neared the entrance to the silo, she heard a set of rapid hoofsteps approaching. She perked her ears up and looked around, yet saw no one. Her ears twitched as a slightly high pitched voice came along with the steps.

She looked past the silo and to the forest behind it, hearing the echoing of the footsteps coming from it. A gasp escaped from her as a pink figure burst forth from the foliage- Pinkie Pie. The pink party pony snapped her gaze over to her perplexed parent. A smile appeared on both of their faces as they registered who the other was, Cloudy parted one fore-hoof outward, while Pinkie sprinted toward her. As Pinkie neared Cloudy, she slowed her pace, yet despite that she still still slammed into her mother. Both mares hugged each other in a vice-like grip, though Pinkie seemed to have the stronger of the two.

“Oh, it's good to see you, dear,” Cloudy whispered.

“You're okay...” Pinkie whispered back, pulling away slightly. “I-I thought something bad happen I-”

“Something bad did happen,” Cloudy interrupted. She turned herself back to the farm. “I'm glad you're here to give us a smile again, we kind of need it right now.” Cloudy began to trot back toward the farm, Pinkie stood still with her head tilted in confusion.

“Huh? What's wrong?” Pinkie began to trot after her mother. “Did that big huge flaming rock... oh...” As Pinkie rounded around the silo, she caught a full on glimpse of the damage to the farm. “Ohmygosh!” she screamed in response. “Did I miss an entire meteor shower?! Did my Pinkie sense lie to me?!” She turned to her mother. “Is... is everyone else okay?” she asked, a worried frown plastered on her face.

“Everyone is fine, Pinkie,” Cloudy answered, Pinkie giving a sigh of relief. “Though... we still have problems. Actually, not all of us may be fine. Miss Lulamoon is exhausted and there's still-”

“Miss Lulamoon?”

“Oh yes, sorry,” Cloudy blushed slightly. “We hired her a while ago to help on the farm. I'm guessing you've never heard of her?” Pinkie placed a fore-hoof on her chin.

“Lulamoon... Lulamoon...” she squinted her eyes. “Nope, nothing,” she gave a shrug of her shoulders.

“I really wish you were here on better terms, but we have a situation on our hooves. It was a madpony that caused all of this.”

“Madpony? Oh no! Then that means we have heroes on our hooves!” Pinkie exclaimed, Cloudy's ears fell flat against her head in response.

“'Hero?' I don't think that this pony is a 'hero' after what he's done.”

“I'll have to explain it later, but where are dad, Limey, and Marby?” she asked, Cloudy gave a small smile.

“Your father just went upstairs to get flares to signal the royal guard, he should be down at any moment. Your sisters are downstairs inspecting the cellar.” Both of them perked their ears up as the door to the house was opened, and Igneous stepped out with a lockbox in his mouth. “Well, speak of Discord.”

“Dad!” Pinkie yelled, breaking off to run to her father.

“Pinkie?” He looked to see the aforementioned mare charging right to him. “Pinkie!” He set the lockbox down at his side, just in time for Pinkie to slam into him, and become trapped in her hug. “Oh, it's been a while hasn't it?” He wrapped his own fore-hooves around her, a large smile on his face. Both of them backed away, staring at each other as they did so.

“Mom?” Marble's voice came, from outside the house. All eyes turned to the left side of the house, right side facing away from the door.

“The cellar is all set!” Limestone's voice followed. Pinkie tapped her fore-hooves together, and started a small jig on her back legs as she did so. She dropped back onto all fours as both sisters rounded the corner of the house, both of their eyes fell upon Pinkie and they both stopped in their tracks. Pinkie raised fore-hoof upward and gave a wave to both of them, who just stared at her with open mouths and wide eyes.

“Pinkie!” they both yelled together.

“Hey sises! How have you-oof!” Pinkie grunted, as they both tackled her into a laughing pile. Igneous looked down at the sight, but his smile from earlier faded as he looked up out to the farm. He leaned down to the lockbox, flipping open the latch and then the box itself. All the sisters stopped their laughing as Igneous did so, unlatching themselves from each other.

“Right... the guards,” Pinkie spoke up, her smile fading as well.

“Pinkie, I don't think it's coincidence that you're here though. Maybe cause you saw that meteor, but it takes a while for even Limestone to run to Ponyville quickly.” The purple-gray mare gave a blush in response.

“Oh!” Pinkie jumped up onto her feet. “Yeah, I was actually on business from princess Celestia... and I left my friends behind!” She turned her head back to the forest near the silo.”Oh... if there's a hero right here on the farm, and if they're not here...”

“I am about to signal some guards, Pinkie dear,” Igneous reassured. “I think that this is business for them, I don't want anypony to get hurt now.”

“The irony is that we did have guards with us.” Her ears fell down, and she sat herself down, pouting. Limestone and Marble both picked themselves off the ground, and each of them placed a hoof on one of Pinkie's shoulders. “I just wanted to make sure you were all okay, I was thinking way too fast and I-”

“Don't beat yourself up sweetie,” Cloudy interrupted. “Even if we don't catch that madpony, we're still safe, and that's what matters. You can actually thank Miss Lulamoon for that, which is why she's resting.”

“And it looks like your friends thought ahead as well,” Igneous said, pointing a fore-hoof past them all. They all turned to see royal guardponies filing out of the forest, some pegasi landing on the ground near them. “We may actually catch this guy.” He looked back to his family. “Listen, I want you all to go inside, let me talk to them.”

“Wait,” Pinkie spoke. “Let me talk to them too, I need to-”

“Pinkie, please,” he interrupted. “I don't want anypony getting hurt, especially when this reunion is soured by the circumstances surrounding it.” He glared to Pinkie, a stern frown on his face. “If you do have to go, since you mentioned princess Celestia, then at least promise me to wait first.” Pinkie looked to her father, staring silently. She slowly nodded, standing up.

“I'll wait, but I have to be with them,” she replied, stepping toward the door. Cloudy and her sisters watched silently as she opened the door and entered, all of bar Igneous followed her in silently shortly after. Inside, Pinkie was gazing around the the damage that could be seen, she silently kicked a rock away and gave a sigh. “Did dad mention what this... pony, looked like?”

“He... did mention orbs, and how he made a tornado by himself, and that meteor that fell down,” Marble answered. Pinkie's ears snapped upward and her eyes widened.

“What?!” she turned around, breathing heavily. “Oh my, oh my, that's a problem!”

“Do you know this pony?” Cloudy asked.

“No... well, yes! But I don't know him like a friend, I've heard stories of him. He's... well, it's kind of hard to describe.”

“Wait, where's Miss Lulamoon?” Limestone asked, stepping past Pinkie. All of them looked down the hall, seeing the makeshift bed empty.

“Did she excuse herself to the bathroom?” Marble asked, walking to the stairs. Pinkie looked back to the door, and then to the rock on the floor. After a few seconds gave a sigh, and stepped pass her mother and other sister to the door.

“Pinkie, where are you going?” Cloudy asked. Pinkie opened the front door, Igneous was currently walking toward her, the guards no where to be seen. He looked to her for a moment and gave a sigh. Both of them looked off toward the fields.

“I guess I can't stop you, but promise me this,” he reached up and tilted his hat back slightly. Both earth ponies then looked back to each other. “Please be safe, don't get involved unless you have to,” Pinkie stared at him, silent. She gave a nod, and trotted up to him to give a quick hug.

“Pinkie promise,” she declared. She broke away from the hug, and then began to run off into the fields. Igneous turned to see Cloudy walking up to him. They both gave a sigh, and each wrapped a fore-leg around each other.

Invoker surveyed the trail of fire and scorched earth that had just fully set in front of him moments earlier. He had a neutral expression on his face, looking neither satisfied or upset.

“What is the point of a transfiguration if you do not try to hinder my skills? Or it may be perhaps my mind is able to work around it?” He began to trot over to one side of the trail, switching between looking over his work and his own steps. “Like crawling like an infant once more, even then I conquered that task and walking soon after,” he spoke aloud. As he neared the center of the trail, he looked over to the other end to observe a crumbled stone that marked the end of it. “Barely any power put forth, yet it only concludes that I am no longer on the battlegrounds. I'm on an inferior plane of matter that seems to surprisingly hold some magical properties, despite the amount of damage done here.”

The lone Wex reagent and one of the Exorts vanished into thin air, and two Quas reagents were conjured soon after, coming out of his horn like the reagents before it.

“My ways of casting seems to have be shuffled around, perhaps this cosmic power that caused this had the proper mindset of compensation. I'm able to keep my arms free for movement when calling upon my orbs, but damn my inability to not be upright constantly! An equine body was not made for the superior battle stance of upright combat!” He stomped a hoof into the ground. “Best to not leave my demonstration to this world a mess as is. Then I must find a reliable source of information other than an inferior being who can't make complete sentences.” He lifted a fore-hoof upward, but stopped as he felt a rumble in the ground. “What dares now to try to interrupt my train of thought?!” he yelled outward, taking a few steps back away from the wall of flames in front of him. “You're lucky that this new world warrants me to pause to take in this new information!”

As he stepped backward, he looked over the flames and saw a large figure approaching him, blue in color. A large bear with a celestial paint job to him, an ursa minor to any resident of Equestria. The ursa was giving off a continuous growl and scowl, both directed down toward Invoker. As it stepped up to the flames, one of its paws stepped onto part of the path and snuffed out the flames below it.

“Now that I have observed you, I already feel the need to move along,” he spoke to the ursa minor, “Not that I fear you, why would I?” he asked aloud, his expression remaining unchanged.”You are already becoming a nuisance that I do not wish to spend time with,” the ursa reeled its head backward for a moment, and then lashed forward, roaring directly onto him. He did not move an inch, nor did his eyes struggle against the newly presented wind. As the ursa ceased its roared outward, Invoker brought a fore-hoof upward, and wiped of one of his cheeks. “You seem to present some ability of cognitive thought, you would be wise to use what little sentience you have to take your leave.” He placed his hoof back onto ground. “Especially when all you seem to present is useless spittle, noise, and an inconsistent translucent body in regards to your facial features.”

The ursa brought one of its paws forward, which was clenched shut. Inside the paw was a blackened shape held in the grip of its claws. The ursa hovered the paw over Invoker, though not directly over him, and opened it up. Out fell the shape, a small boulder half the height of Invoker. The ursa then reeled its paw back. It extended a single claw outward and pointed to the rock, to its head, and then to Invoker; who merely stood stone faced. The ursa let out another threatening growl, yet Invoker did not move any muscle on his body.

“Despite your ability to do these actions of mystery solving and mechanical motion... you bore me.” Invoker raised himself back onto his hind legs, glowing again with the light of his signature Invoke ability. The flash of light alone caused the ursa to reel back slightly, one of its paws going off the blazed trail and over its eyes. From the trail in front of both of them, shards of ice suddenly erupted upward. The ursa roared once again and the ice formed over the paw that was grounded, and the biting chill began to seep outward. Invoker himself merely dropped back down onto the ground, watching as the ursa struggled to free its paw.

As time passed, the flames of the trail licked the wall of ice shards, and slowly the began to deform. Soon, with a roar, the ursa's paw rocketed upward. The celestial bear roared and began to stomp away, limping as it kept its iced over paw off the ground. Invoker only turned his head to watch the ursa flee into a tree line, knocking some out of the way. He turned back to shards of ice, which by now had melted into a pile of wet snow, with the fires underneath now extinguished.

“A waste of time and mana, now to find an actual civilized race, perhaps one that I do not take the image of now,” he turned himself parallel to the pile of snow, his head still looking toward it. “Even I must admit the interesting application of the land's magic; enough to morph my frame and keep it so, but not enough to degenerate my conjurations as fast as the battlegrounds,” he snapped his head back forward, and began to walk away.

“Stop!” a voice called, causing Invoker to practically screech to a halt.

“The cosmos continues to annoy me and waste my time!” he yelled, turning to the source of the voice, seeing a blue blur in the distance. “I have no time to waste on useless distractions!” he yelled to the approaching figure. “State your business and anything that could be useful for me!” he added, as Trixie slowed her sprint, to observe the aftermath of his spells.

“I...uh... I-” she shook her head, and turned to Invoker. As she locked eyes with him, she flinched at his imposing figure, but took in a breath before speaking. “My name is Trixie, and...” she paused, as Invoker's scowl was furrowed further. “I believe I can help you, I-I'm a magic user as well and-”

“You? A mage?” he interrupted. “Are you here to challenge me?!” he yelled.

“N-No! I-I'm a traveling mag...” she started, but quickly stopped and blinked. “I used to be a traveling magician, performing great feats of magic, I've been all over Equestria and I-”

“Possess geographical knowledge?” Invoker finished, his scowl being lightened. “You have my interest now.” Trixie's head began to trickle sweat downward.

“L-listen, I don't know what's going on, but Igneous said that you created that tornado and-”

“Claws of Tornarus!” he interrupted again, causing Trixie to flinch again.

“Y-yes... and...” she inhaled deeply. “How did you do that?” she asked. “Please, I'll tell you whatever you want to know; but tell me how you able to do that? The best I've been able to do was a simple storm cloud,” she hung her head downward. “Please, I haven't been able to truly practice my magic in so long,”

“A practitioner of magic?” Invoker asked. “What are the magical means of your land?” Trixie lifted her head up, wiping her forehead with one of her fore-hooves.

“Uh... right, um...” she inhaled deeply. “There's unicorn magic-”

“You yourself are one, and the cosmos has turned me into one here.” Trixie flinched again, his voice carrying the same tone of intimidation from the beginning.

“...pegasi, and earth pony magic as well,” Trixie continued. “Usually-” she paused, Invoker was unmoving, despite giving him what he wanted. “In terms of unicorns, their magical talent is mostly spent on one specific field of magic. All unicorns can learn any spell if they put their mind to it, it's all about memorization and magical power.”

“What?” he asked, his eyes opening wide. “Your whole land, your unicorns, practice magic through memory and skill?” He turned his head away from Trixie. “This land embraces the olden ways? Not the shortcuts of wands and books?” A disturbing smile began to form on his face, Trixie took a step backward, her legs shaking slightly. “An entire race that's grown past the ignorance of tools, and is bred to use their minds?” He snapped his gaze back to Trixie. “You have certainly garnered my interest,” he brought a fore-hoof upward, placing it on his chest. “As for how I manage my own magic, my orbs provide me the reserves I need. My mind produces the orbs, and I will the magic outward.”

“Teach me,” Trixie pleaded, causing Invoker to lose his smile.

“What?” he asked, his fore-hoof being dropped back onto the ground.

“Please... teach me, I've never seen magic that powerful,” she sat downward, and looked over to the wet snow and scorched earth. “Look at what you've done here, I've never seen a unicorn perform at this level, and at this efficiency,” she looked back to him. “You've done all this, and you don't look tired at all.”

“Because I am the most efficient, and the most powerful,” he replied back. “As for teaching you, our mutual deal was the exchange of information, and we've both held our side of it.” He tilted his head downward slightly, emphasizing his scowl. “So simply, no,” he declared.

“What?!”

“I have no time for distractions, all I seek is the knowledge of this land, and the means to return from whence I came. Hither forth, I will leave my mark on this land how I please, not like the one you see before you.”He turned himself away from Trixie slightly. “Seek knowledge for yourself, perhaps you will become a fraction as powerful as me.” He began to trot away, Trixie herself felt a tear fall from her eye.

“It's not fair!” she yelled, punching the ground with one of her fore-hooves. “Twilight Sparkle gets the princess to teach her, and she was even taught by that Grand Magus pony! She gets all the shortcuts!” Invoker stopped in his path immediately, his ears flat against his head.

“Relay the title of that... 'pony,' back to me, so that I can be sure my own mind is not playing tricks on me,” he growled. Trixie looked back up toward Invoker, chills running down her spine.

“Uh...”

“Now!” he yelled, his eyes being fixated on Trixie again.

“G-Grand M-Magus!” she blurted out, cringing backward, her eyes clenched shut. “A-according to the stories I've heard, h-his name is... is uh... Rubick!” she answered, silence following after. Trixie could hear her own whimpers as she awaited a response.

“My equal... has been here?” he seethed, Trixie popped an eye open, seeing him staring at the ground. His teeth were clenched, and one of his fore-hooves was scrapping against the ground. “The one being who can stand up to my amazing talents?” He snapped his head upward, staring into the sky. “No one is better than me, but he has matched my skill. He though, has not embraced the true way of learning, he has but a gimmick and crutch compared to me,” he brought a fore-hoof upward, pointing it forward. “You seem have to have a rival that has gotten shortcuts as well, and my rival has managed to be first in something before me?!” he yelled aloud. He turned his fore-leg, and bent to point his hoof toward himself. “If you truly are a traveler of one who shows their talents, perhaps you are a spitting image of me, as this student is to Rubick.” He placed his hoof back onto the ground, and turned back to Trixie. “If he seeks to pass on-” he stopped, seeing that Trixie was no longer alone.

She was surrounded by ponies of the royal guard, and were now in the process of surrounding him,. Trixie remained frozen in place, three unicorns surrounding her. Invoker glanced around with his eyes only, observing that the ones trotting around him was a mixture of unicorns and non unicorns. No pegasi were present, but all of them regardless had their eyes dead set on him.

As they all began to complete the full encircling of him, all the unicorns' respective horns began to flare with magic, all of them leaning their horns toward him. He looked over to Trixie, who continued to stay still. The sound of metal being drawn caught his attention, he looked over the earth pony guards and found them all drawing out metal rods that were latched onto the side of their armor. Each of them seemed to magnetically hold the rod in their hooves, causing Invoker himself to glance down to his own.

All of them, though not in complete sync, snapped their rods outward. All of them immediately tripled in length, and a spearhead emerged from the mechanism. The earth pony guards reeled their spears back toward themselves, and pointed it to the Invoker, ready to charge.

“You are boring me already,” he spoke outward, breaking the silence. This only seemed to deepen the scowls of all the guards, and Trixie herself silently gulped. The Exort reagent above Invoker disappeared. and a Wex reagent was conjured right after. The moment this happened though, a unicorn in front of invoker shot his magic outward. In a split second, a tether of magic latched onto Invoker's horn, the 'line' of it snapping securely and pulling him forward somewhat. Invoker grunted in frustration as he was dragged slightly, his teeth bared.

“You dare fight me?” he growled, Trixie herself felt her spine freeze over upon hearing those words. “An honor that will be short lived for you.” He shuffled his hooves slightly, and snapped his head back slightly. The guards all snapped a small motion of their own, yet nothing happened. Invoker snapped his head again, and glanced upward. “What? My orbs fail me?!” he yelled. More unicorns suddenly began to shoot their magic forward, one of them grasped his left fore-leg, another his neck. “A challenge it is then, for you!” he yelled, his whole body flashing with his Invoke spell once again. The rest of guards, except the ones directly next to Trixie, all reacted. The rest of the unicorns shot their spells outward, while the earth ponies all began to charge forward, spears pointed forward and down slightly. “Ignorant like flies to a fire,” he deadpanned. Suddenly, a wind of white mist washed over him, and his body faded away. The tethers of magic on him fell downward and subsequently vanished, the ones in the air flying past him and disappearing as well. All of the guards' expressions turned to shock; at first to one of fear, and then to discomfort.

“I-Is this a winter spell?!” Trixie yelled, her fore-legs wrapped around herself. The guards and her were all shivering, and had a strange white film on their figures, with small white bolts arcing off of them. Some of the guards struggled to take steps, a white hoofprint being left where they lifted their legs. Trixie's teeth began to chatter slightly, albeit very slowly, as if time was slowed down for her but could still comprehend time going at a normal rate around.

“See now how your ignorance makes you fall to me!” Invoker's voice came. The air around them suddenly reverted to the previous status quo, and Invoker appeared back in the very spot he disappeared from. Around him, there were now three Wex reagents, and his whole being once again showed his Invoke spell. He stomped one of his fore-hooves into the ground, and as he pulled it back up, a static like noise filled the air. Trixie watched in fear as a ball of pink energy formed from the spot he stomped his hoof. The ball and the noise grew outward with each passing split second. The electricity soon began to lick her, but she felt nothing. She quickly turned her head, spotting a nearby boulder.

With the pink electric-like energy in air, one couldn't see Trixie flare her own pink colored magic. One could also say that energy took Trixie with it; as when it suddenly exploded outward, she was gone. In reality, Trixie was behind the boulder she was looking at, on her back and sweating furiously. She pushed herself upward, and leaned herself against the cold stone, closing her eyes and taking a breath.

“You!” Trixie snapped her eyes open at the voice, seeing yet more pink, but in the shape of a pony. “Now I remember! I never got your last name!” Pinkie said to the former showmare. Trixie herself stared back with confusion.

“Do I... know you?” she asked, her voice out of breath.

“No... but that's a problem! I never got to properly meet you! Though, I somewhat didn't want to after you were mean to my friends on your stage.” Pinkie pouted somewhat, turning her head away from Trixie slightly.

“Friends? Wait a second...” Trixie pointed a shaking fore-hoof toward Pinkie. “Y-you're one of Twilight Sparkle's friends... aren't you? Haven't you caused me enough trouble?!” she barked, throwing that very fore-hoof toward the ground. “I somewhat remember your colors from the crowd.”

“I remember that you also brought that mean old- er, I mean young, ursa minor to Ponyville,” Pinkie whispered slightly. As if someone stepped on a twig that represented Trixie's psyche, she snapped. She immediately pushed herself off the rock, and stepped right up to Pinkie, causing the pink mare to back away in fright.

“That wasn't me!” she yelled outward. “It was those colts' bright idea to bring it! Though 'bright' isn't really a proper word for them,” she stomped her hoof against the ground. “How was I supposed to know that somepony would be that stupid to bring an actual ursa to a populated town?!”

“Then maybe you shouldn't have been such a... boasty pants?” Pinkie whispered, her ears against her head.

“Aside from the fact that I did live up to my name by using my magic to best the very ones who wanted to step up?” Trixie sneered. “Have you've never seen a show before in your life? Have you never hyped something up to make it more special or enticing?!” Trixie turned her back to Pinkie, her head hanging downward.

“I... know what it's like to hype things up,” Pinkie replied back, causing Trixie to turn her head back. “Once, I thought my friends didn't like me because I thought they didn't like my parties. I put out so much for making them. I thought that for whatever reason, for them not being satisfied as an example, they didn't want me for parties anymore.” Trixie stared toward Pinkie, a genuine frown on the latter's face.

“Well... I-”

“Your magic reserves must be so pitiful if you all still draw consciousness!” Invoker interrupted from a distance, causing both mares to turn back to the scene. They both silently trotted up the the boulder, and poked their respective heads up over it.

All of the unicorns were in a daze, many of them on the ground breathing heavily. The earth ponies by comparison were struggling to stand, but all of them as a whole seemed to be drained of their stamina.

“I've had enough of these measly diversions from lesser beings, especially beings that I take the form of! You should be taking my superior form because of my superior being! You all should- what avian dares interrupt me?!” He looked to the sky, hearing the flapping of wings. “Do you truly wish for me to put more concentration and effort forth to go about my business?! This tedium has gone on for-” he stopped, as a metal cable wrapped around one of his hooves. The cable pulled him into the air, and Invoker looked up to the pegasus guard wielding it. Invoker looked to the cable for a second, and then back to the pegasus. “All of your various forms are forgettable to me! Your only notable accomplishment is your magical field manipulation of stationary objects! Your- argh!” he yelled, his whole body shaking with electricity.

Invoker looked back down, seeing a unicorn standing with its horn pointed to him. The unicorn fell back down to the ground, while the others were slowly starting to stand back up. All of the Wex reagents around Invoker were replaced with a Quas and two Exort reagents shortly after.

“Let me show you my own friends,” he growled, his body flashing with another Invoke. He threw his free hoof toward the ground, and two orange circles appeared down below. The guards that were able to backed away from the sight, as stones and lava surged upward. The rocks crushed and molded together into a monstrous face, with two eyes alight by the lava underneath it. The rocks also molded to form to give the conjuration a neck and spine.

The lava snaked outward below the rocky top, and two arms were formed with claws similar to a dragon's. The lava disconnected from the ground, which singed away to ash. The two beings, known as Forged Spirits, began to gaze around at the surrounding guard ponies on their own. One of them  looked skyward, and its mouth became alight.

“Now see true magic! See how... ergh...” Invoker groaned, and looked to the cable. “My mana... what metal is this?!” he yelled, as another cable was whipped around one of his back legs. The spirit that had its mouth glowing reeled backward, and spat a fireball upward toward one of the pegasi holding Invoker. The pegasi immediately began evasive action, the two holding Invoker dropping him back down to the ground.

The other spirit began its own assault on the earth ponies and unicorns, spitting its own fireballs outward. One of those shots struck an earth pony guard charging forward, who immediately began to scream and swat at his armor. The guard dropped the spear it was holding and dropped to the ground, struggling to remove its armor.

Invoker smiled at the sight, standing up onto all fours. He watched at the guards both on the ground and in the air began to scatter away from the barrage that his spirits were making.

“See where your ignorance has landed you all! You dare to be the aggressor against me?!” he yelled. “I am the epitome of knowledge and skill! I show the world and the cosmos what knowledge can do! I-” he stopped, as a unicorn shot off another spell, which grasped his horn once again. “You dare try to repeat history?! After you've failed miserably? Perhaps I do feel the need to stop giving demonstrations and instead- ARGH!” he screamed, falling to the ground. He glanced toward the binding on his fore-leg, seeing a unicorn holding the cable, his horn smoking.

Invoker raised his head up from the ground, his spirits suddenly surrounded by the earth pony guards, their forms being chipped away by their spears. He felt another metal binding wrap around his other fore-leg, and he was lifted into the air again. Down below, he witnessed his spirits suddenly dissolve away, as both of them had spears impaled through them.

“You think some anti-magical cables will stop my spells?!” he looked downward, seeing a group of unicorns charging their magic. “My sorcery is superior to all! You will not-” he stopped, as the unicorns fired their spells forward. Invoker flinched as the bolts sailed past his head, and to his orbs. As the orbs were struck, they immediately disappeared from existence, and the magical binding on his horn was tightened further. “This damnable body holds me back! It's the only reason why- ARGH!” he screamed. The unicorns around charged the bindings again with their magic, both magical and physical, causing his whole body shaking. He hung his head downward, the guards all converging on him. “Ergh... I will not... be defea...” he trailed off, his eyes closing. The guards all gave collective sighs. Invoker's body became engulfed in magic, and was then lifted further into the air. The pegasi then began to wrap the cables around him, binding his fore-legs to his body. The binding on his horn was also replaced with a physical one and also wrapped around his body, his back legs were then bounded together.

Pinkie and Trixie looked over the scene, both hanging their mouths open at different levels.

“Those spells...” Trixie whispered. “He's the most powerful unicorn I've ever seen.”

“Actually... he's not a unicorn,” Pinkie replied, causing Trixie to turn her head.

“What do you mean? Are you saying he's an Alicorn then? That he's hiding wings under those magnificent robes of his?” she asked in succession.

“No, he's from another world and the magic of our world changed his body to something of familiarity to our own,” Pinkie answered, almost as if she practiced that line in her head. Trixie's eyes went wide, and looked back to the guards and Invoker.

“He... he's...” she stammered.

“He's also one of many heroes that we've learned about. In fact, Rubick said that... wait,” she placed a fore-hoof on her chin, looking skyward. “What was- Invoker! That's his name, or at least his title. Anyway, Ruby say that Invoky there is one of the most powerful magi ever in terms of sheer ability.” Trixie looked to Pinkie, her face puzzled at the speed Pinkie spouted information. She turned back to the scene, and saw the guards moving back toward the farm. Trixie breathed a small sigh.

'I need to find out, was he going to teach me?' she thought. She pushed herself off the boulder, and began to walk to the farmhouse. “You and I, and possibly by extension, your friends,” she gave a small shudder. “Need to have a frank discussion. This is going to be a long day, and probably week at this rate.”

“We should count ourselves lucky, actually,” Pinkie said back, Trixie looked to the pink earth pony, seeing her walking up to her. “Imagine if we had multiple heroes at once here, the chaos!” She widened her eyes and showed a toothy frown. Her pupils and irises shrank as she did so, causing Trixie to cringe back ever so slightly. Pinkie turned away, her facial features relaxing as she did. “By the way, Trixie,” Pinkie turned her head back to Trixie. “Why don't you tell me what's happened? Between when the ursa came... and now? I mean... maybe looking back... maybe...” She put on another frown.

“You, want to listen to me? After what you thought I did was so horrible?” the unicorn asked, a scowl going along with it.

“You protected my family,” Pinkie replied quickly and flatly. “The least I can do is hear your side of the deal.” She smiled slightly, causing Trixie to lessen her scowl.

“You're the third Pie sister?” Trixie shook her head slightly. “Should have guess, pink and more pink.” she huffed and looked forward. “How I should start? How about how everypony treated me like a complete fraud and joke despite all my past performances? How about them vandalizing my various trailers? Perhaps I should state the obvious in that my career and passion for magic was ruined?!” she yelled, snapping her gaze back to Pinkie, whose face was neutral. “'The Great and Pathetic Trixie' is the new title I garnered everywhere, eventually I had to resort to train hopping to find jobs and I eventually ended up here/” She kicked away a rock near herself. “That's just scratching the surface. I hope you plan to tell me what the hay is going on here, because now I'm in your business once again.”