Friendship is Magic

by Novus Draconis

Rating: teen
Tags: Adventure, Crossover, Dark, Alternate Universe, Human
Length: 58050

After receiving a gift, a young girl discovers a secret about her past. Along with five others, she must defend her world from the terrors of another.

Twilight Sparkle is your average, everyday, teenager. She prefers her company to the company of others and has never been deemed popular by her peers. After receiving a strange package from her sister, Twilight discovers a secret about herself that she never suspected. Now, along with five others, she stands as our only line of defense against a world of Chaos and Disharmony but only if they can see past their own biases and become friends.

Adapted from La Magia de la Amistad by Mauroz
Original Cover Art by Mauroz
Cover Art Edited by RealmofMereShadows

7/3/2015: First time in the Feature Box. Thanks to everybody who liked and Favorited

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2015-07-03 04:01:46 UTC

Chapter 1

My name is Twilight Sparkle.  My parents, my little brother, Spike, and I just recently moved to the beautiful town of Ponyville.  Spike and I aren't the only children, but Celeste, my older sister, and Shining, my older brother, no longer live with us. Shining is a captain in the Army, while Celeste is an accomplished archeologist, searching the world for ancient relics.

When my parents were planning on moving from our hometown of Canterlot, it was Celeste who suggested Ponyville, citing the low crime rate and excellent education system.  Celeste and I are very close and video chat at least once a week.  Lately, she's been pushing me to not spend so much time with my nose buried in “dusty old books” and to make some friends.

And so that is how I got to where I find myself today, standing just outside the front gate of Ponyville Secondary School.  I wish I could say I was excited, but I'd be lying.  I rather preferred to keep my head down, go to class, and spend my free time in the library, but Celeste wanted me to make friends, and when she wanted something, she could be persistent.  As my dad would say, she was as bad as a terrier with a rat in its mouth.  I suppose that's what makes her such a good archeologist.

With a sigh, I stepped through the gate and into the school's courtyard, where kids of all ages, sizes, and features were milling about, socializing before the first bell.  Idly, I wondered which would want to be my friends.  This was my first year here.  I didn't feel confident enough to start socializing right away and I knew it would be a while before I did.  Oh well, Celeste would just have to wait.

A rather energetic girl with ridiculously pink hair bounded past me, humming merrily as she skipped across the courtyard but stopped and turned suddenly when she noticed me.  She leaned in close, forcing me to lean away, as she studied me.

“Er...hello?”  I tried.

The girl gasped so suddenly and deeply that I was afraid she'd suck the air from my lungs.  She gripped my hand and began to shake it wildly, bouncing with excitement as she did so.  Obviously, she was too excited to notice how tight her grip was, or, for that matter, my discomfort.

“Oh my gosh, are you new here?  Of course you're new here.  I don't know you and I know everybody at this school!  My name's Pinkie Pie. What's yours?”

The girl spoke so quickly that I only understood about a third of what she said, but I caught enough to understand what she wanted. “My name is Twilight Sparkle.”

Immediately, my hand was seized for another round of ferocious shaking. “Ooooo, nice to meet you, Twilight.  Welcome to Ponyville.  I'm sure we'll be good friends in no time at all.  Oh, I know.  I'm gonna throw a big ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party for you at my house this weekend.  Oh, it'll be so much fun and I'll invite everybody.  Won't that be nice?  Eh?  Eh?”

I bit my lip nervously. “Sure, I guess.  But, I don't really like loud parties.  I much prefer nice quiet places.”

Pinkie giggled as if I just told a joke. “That's silly.  What kind of party would you have in a quiet place?  A boring kind, that's what.  I Pinkie Promise, Twilight, that, with this party, you'll make lots of friends and won't be a sad and lonely girl with no friends, but a happy one with so many friends you won't have time for them all.”

Does she ever stop talking, I wondered to myself.

I caught movement out of the corner of my eye and glanced up just in time to see a rainbow-colored streak bowl right through Pinkie and I and skid to a stop a short distance away.  The streak was a tiny athletic girl with shaggy hair of rainbow hues.

“Yes!”  the girl crowed. “I did it!  Finally, I made it to school on time!”

I picked myself up from the ground and helped Pinkie to her feet.  “Why don't you watch where you're going?”  I growled at the rainbow-haired girl, who was arrogantly buffing her nails against her yellow uniform vest.

The girl paused in her impromptu manicure to spare me a glance before flicking her hand in a shooing gesture. “Be quiet, little girl.”

“Little?  Look who's talking, short stuff.”

It was rainbow-hair's turn to get knocked down as a tall, powerfully-built blonde wearing a stetson hat slammed into her, strode across her back, and continued on without breaking her pace or looking up from the book she was reading.

“Comin' through,” the blonde muttered as she continued on.

Rainbow-hair jumped back to her feet. “Why don't you watch where you're going?” she screamed at the blonde's back, saying what I just said nearly word for word.

The blonde turned and lowered her book.  For a moment, I feared a scuffle that Rainbow-hair had no hope of winning, but the blonde merely shielded her eyes with a hand and squinted, pointedly looking everywhere except at Rainbow-hair.  Finally, she frowned in feigned confusion, grunted, and returned to her book as she resumed her trek to the door.  “Nobody there,” she muttered to herself.

Rainbow-hair was incensed at this. “Nobody? Why I...you...when I...how dare you?”

She was immediately shoved aside again as a girl with short chestnut hair bellowed, “Make way for our class president, Rarity!”

A glamorous girl with long, deep purple hair strode confidently across the courtyard, accompanied by an entourage of at least half a dozen others.  The girl was obviously very popular and took a great deal of pride in her appearance.  The scarf wrapped over her shoulders and trailing out behind her matched her hair perfectly.  The bracelet on her left wrist matched her earrings, and her makeup was tastefully applied, noticeable but not heavy.

She clapped her hands twice, getting the attention of everyone in the courtyard. “Everyone, come now.  It's time for school.  Let's all have a glorious day here at Ponyville Secondary.”

“Who's that?” I asked

“That's Rarity Belle.  She's the class president and one of the most popular girls in school.  She's really into fashion.”

“I noticed,” I muttered as Rarity strode past, a pleasant scent of lavender trailing in her wake.

“What are you doing down there, Rainbow?”

I turned to find a willowy girl with soft, pinkish-white hair standing next to me.  Her sudden appearance startled me as I hadn't noticed her approach.  She gave me a shy glance and mumbled an apology before returning her attention to the appropriately named Rainbow.

“Nothing.  Absolutely nothing, Fluttershy,” Rainbow said as she picked herself up and dusted off her uniform skirt.

“C'mon.  Let's get to class.”

“Oh, um...okay.”

This was one shy girl.

Pinkie tugged on my blouse sleeve as the bell rang. “See you in class, Twilight.”

“Pinkie, wait for me!”

x----x

I opened the door to my apartment—well, my parents' apartment—and trudged in with a sigh.  Pinkie had spent the entire day with me and, to be honest, I had found her constant babbling to be a bit tiring.  It was all I could do to get away from her during my walk home so that I could have some peace and quiet.  I was seriously beginning to doubt whether or not I even wanted her as a friend.

I opened the door to my bedroom and stopped short. “Spike?”

My brother, in all of his dorky, irritating glory, was sitting in my room, at my desk, in my chair, at my computer.  He leaned back. “H-hey, Twi.”

“Why are you in my room?”  I growled.

Spike grabbed a brown cardboard box. “I was dropping this off.  You got a package from Celeste.”

I let out a girlish squeal of excitement. “Yay!  It came!”

Celeste was in the habit of sending any interesting, but unimportant artifacts and souvenirs she happened to come across in her travels, to me.  I had a wide collection of rubbings from ancient temple walls, small gems gathered from the interiors of sarcophagi, and even a short sword that, according to Celeste, was carried by one of Columbus's men on their journey to the New World.

“You were expecting this?”  Spike asked.

“Celeste emailed me last week to let me know she had sent it.  She figured it would arrive by today.”  My eyes narrowed as I glared at my brother. “You didn't open it, did you?”

“No way!”  he cried, holding up his hands in surrender.  “Look, the tape hasn't been cut.  It's still sealed and everything.”

I saw that he was telling the truth.  The tape had not been cut.  Spike had moved from the desk chair and was sitting next to me on the bed.

“You may leave now,”  I told him.

“Sure thing.  Just as soon as I see what's inside the box Celeste sent.”

“Spike?”

“Yeah, Twi?”

“GET OUT OF MY ROOM!”

x------x

I decided to take a shower and change out of my uniform before opening the package.  I made sure to lock it in my closet to keep Spike out of it.  Lead me not into temptation and all that.  Luckily for him, he hadn't been able to get at it.  I took the package out and, with a letter opener, slit the tape.  Resting just under a layer of packing peanuts was a book.

“I love books.”  I turned it over and read the spine aloud. “The Magic of Harmony.  What is this?”  Under the book was a circular wooden mold and, set in the mold were six small gems.  Each gem was set in a different shape: a star burst, a diamond, a bolt of lightning, a balloon, an apple, and a butterfly.  Paper rustled and I turned the mold over to find a note taped to the back: For you and your friends.  – C.

“No friends yet, sis,” I muttered.  When had Celeste gotten onto this friendship kick of hers?

I could see the edge of something purple just beneath another layer of packing.  Curious, I reached in to find a purple headband decorated with a unicorn's horn.

“How cute.”  Granted, at fourteen, I was getting to be a bit old for such things, but Celeste had been thoughtful enough to send it to me and I was touched.  This, too, had a note on it: Wear so you may know its secrets - C.

What was with Celeste and these notes?

I lowered the band onto my head and glanced at my reflection in the mirror on the door.  The plum color perfectly matched my nightgown, along with a sizable portion of my preferred wardrobe.  There was no denying it was adorable.

I felt something suddenly swell up within me, something I hadn't even known was there before.  A bright light flashed and my vision went dark.

When I awoke, I was lying on my side.  An opaque mist swirled around me through air that was neither cold nor hot.  I pushed myself up on my arms, trying to see if there was anything familiar nearby.  There was nothing.  The mist stretched in all directions, into a gray darkness that surrounded my immediate location.  At first, I thought Spike had hidden me somewhere in the apartment in a poor excuse of a prank, but that idea evaporated the moment I remembered that we didn't own a fog machine, nor did we have a space this large in the apartment.

“H-hello?” I called out. “Is anybody out there?”

There was a sharp noise that sounded familiar, but I couldn't quite place it.  Finally, I realized that the sound I was hearing was the clopping of hooves, and they were coming closer.

A pony slowly materialized from the mist.  She was tall, taller than me, and her mane and tail seemed to flow with iridescent pinks, greens, and blues.  Her coat was whiter than snow, and her massive white wings extended before flapping, giving off a low thump and stirring the mist, as if she wished to show off.

From her shoes to her crown, she was decorated in gold, giving her a regal appearance.  When she was fully revealed, I noticed the long white horn that jutted from her forehead.  This gave me a sense of trepidation, but the look in her eyes belied that, an expression I could only describe as...kindness.

“Ooh, pretty,”  I gasped as I rolled to my knees.  The pony stopped right before me, a mere arm's-length away, and lowered herself to my height, settling onto the ground.

“Aren't you beautiful,”  I whispered in awe as I tentatively raised my hand and began stroking her velvety soft muzzle.  The pony's eyes closed lazily and she nickered in pleasure.  “What are you?”

“I am a piece of a spirit bound to the horn you wear.  I belong to the alicorn Celestia,”  the pony replied.

With a gasp, I pulled my hand back.  This pony had spoken.  Ponies couldn't speak.  It went against the laws of nature.  I wondered if something had been in the cafeteria food I had for lunch.  Was there some sort of mold growing back in the school's kitchens?  Should I tell somebody?  Who would I tell?  Rarity?  The school board?  The health department?

The pony smiled warmly. “Do not worry, Twilight Sparkle.  You have nothing to fear from me.  I am here to help you.”

“Help me with what?”

“Reaching your full potential,” the pony replied mysteriously.

I blinked. “I'm not sure I follow.”

“Then I shall explain. There are a myriad of alternate dimensions. One of these is the realm of Equestria.  It was realm inhabited by magical ponies, creatures of mythology, and other enlightened beings.  This spirit's host, Celestia, ruled over them alongside her sister, Luna.  Celestia ruled the day while Luna's charge was the night.  Together, they created perfect Harmony.  Unfortunately, that is all this piece knows regarding that era.”

“That's it?”  I asked.

“As I said before, I am merely a tiny piece of Celestia's spirit, bound to the horn you now possess.”

I touched the toy tiara...horn...still sitting on my head.  My fingers brushed the warm plastic that no longer felt like plastic.  It was hard and warm, like bone.

“I don't understand,” I finally said. “Why me?  Why are you telling me this?”

“You possess the spirit of one of the Elements of Harmony.  It allowed me to reach out to you.”

“Elements of Harmony?”

“A force of great power composed of six essences:  Honesty, Generosity, Laughter, Kindness, Loyalty, and yours, Magic.  These Elements were used to bring an end to the reign of the Chaotic One, a creature of mischief, misery, and evil.  This is why I've appeared to you, Twilight Sparkle. You've been chosen to protect your world from a terrible menace.”

“I...what?!  Surely you're kidding.  I can't be some mighty defender of an entire planet.  I'm only fourteen.  I eat too much pie and worry about school assignments and get zits.  There's got to be somebody better than me.”  I grabbed the horn and tried to pull it off but it was stuck tight.  In fact, pulling on the horn actually hurt. A lot.

“You're right,” the pony replied. “You can't do it alone.  Six jewels were present with your horn, were they not?”

I nodded.

“Excellent.  These six jewels represent the Elements themselves.  One is for you, Magic Bearer, while the other five belong to the Bearers of Honesty, Loyalty, Laughter, Kindness, and Generosity.  Your task is to find those in possession of the spirits of those Elements.”

“But why are we the ones who must protect the world?”

The pony sighed. “Only the real Celestia knows.  Centuries ago, she sent them into this world along with two prophecies.”

“Prophecies?”

“'On the blood moon, she who will exact the vengeance of the exiled princess will return.'  However, it is the second prophecy that holds the most significance:  'To forewarn the coming of the Harbinger of Chaos, Hate, and Discord, Night will devour the Day and the Sun and Moon shall become one.  All that he sets his eyes upon will fall to despair and Disharmony.'  After giving these two prophecies, the Princess Celestia vanished, to be reborn in this world as a human.”

“And which human would Princess Celestia be reborn as?”

“The one who retrieved the Elements from their place of rest.”

But it was Celeste who extracted the jewels from the old ruins.  It was Celeste who sent them to me, along with the horn and book.  My eyes widened as the realization struck me.  It was Celeste.  She was Celestia's reincarnation.

My head began to pound as the horn began to glow.  I pressed my hands to my eyes as my knees buckled and I sank to the ground.

“Remember.” The pony's voice was distant now. “You and you alone must be the one to discover the other five Element Bearers.”

“No, Celestia, don't leave!  I have so many more questions!”

“'No, Celestia, don't leave'?  Even your dreams are weird.”

My headache vanished as my eyes snapped open.  I stared up at the ceiling of my bedroom, lying on my back on my bed.  I turned my head to see my dorky brother sitting, once again, in my office chair with a dorky grin on his face.  Had the little creep been watching me sleep?

Ewww!

“GET OUT OF MY ROOM!”

x----x

The young woman stared north, silhouetted against the rising moon.  Her dark skin shone brightly in the moonlight and her light-blue hair fluttered in the breeze.

“Soon,” she said softly. “Soon, I shall exact my vengeance on those who shunned me in my past life.  Soon, they shall feel my wrath.  Especially you, Celestia.”

Chapter 2

I took my time walking to school the next morning.  I had thought that what had occurred with the spirit fragment the night before was a dream.  That changed when Celeste called me right after I had woken up.

“That was not a dream, Twilie,” Celeste had said. “You really did speak with the spirit fragment of Celestia and travel to another dimension.  But I'll explain how another time.”  Celeste shook her long shaggy hair out of her eyes and smiled.  “I'm dying to know: how did your first day of school go?  Did you make any new friends?”

I rolled my eyes.  Again with the friendship. “Celeste, I know how important it is that I make friends, but you know that I'm not the most sociable girl.”

“Did you talk to anyone, at least?”

“Well, I did meet this one girl, Pinkie, but she was really tiring to be around.  She couldn't stop laughing and wouldn't leave me alone.”  Even I thought that sounded a little whiny.

“Twilight, honey, you should never reject somebody who genuinely wants to be your friend.  Especially if they want to make you happy.”

I sighed and nodded. “Okay.  I'll try.”

“Good girl.  Now, I have to go, but use the headband again tonight.  Celestia will teach you to how to manipulate your spiritual energy.  In the meantime, I'll read through the book I found in the ruins.  The one you have is a copy.  It's an archaic language and I've really only translated the title.  I'll send you more as I translate it into something you can read.  As far as I can tell, it contains spells you can use once you master your magic.”

I wondered if I could actually use magic as I rounded the corner and the front gate of the school came into sight.  And right there, waiting for me at the gate, was Pinkie.

I let out a quiet groan.  I was tired from my meeting with Celestia and I didn't think I could deal with Pinkie’s babbling today.  I sneaked around behind her, trying to be as quiet as possible.  Fortunately, the noise from the students in the courtyard masked my own.

“It's getting late,” Pinkie muttered to herself. “School's going to start soon and Twilight's not here.  I wonder where she could be.”

I knew it.  She was looking for me.

As soon as I felt I was at a safe distance, I bolted.  I broke into a sprint and fled for the doors.  I was moving so fast that I almost didn't notice the tall powerfully-built blonde in my path.  I locked up my legs, trying to stop as quickly as possible.  I half-expected her to step aside or, at least, turn to face me.  She didn't even flinch.

“Sorry.  I didn't notice you,” I apologized.

The blonde gave a noncommittal grunt.  I blinked.  She hadn't even looked up from her book.  Maybe she hadn't heard me.  I blinked as I took in her appearance.  She looked familiar.  I realized she was the girl who had knocked over that Rainbow girl yesterday.

I donned my best smile and held out my hand. “Hi.  My name is Twilight Sparkle and I—”

“Don't care,” the blonde replied before walking away.

“That was rude,” I grumbled. “Who is that?  What's her deal?”

“That's Applejack. We have a few classes together.  She just moved into the district last month.  She doesn't speak to anybody so nobody knows why she's always so serious.”

I nearly leaped from my skin as Pinkie appeared right next to me. “Where did you come from?”

Pinkie giggled. “Silly, I was standing right out front.  I have no idea how you could have missed me.”

“Yeah.  I guess I was just distracted or something.”  I let out my own nervous laugh.

It seems Pinkie could sense my mood or something.  She was quieter than usual, which really wasn't saying much, and she seemed somewhat reserved.  Apparently something was bothering her, but, since I didn't know her that well, I thought I would give her some space and let her approach me if she wanted my help.

As we were walking from the school that evening, Pinkie fished a lollipop from her bag. “You want one?”  she offered as she unwrapped the sweet.

“No, thanks.”

“Are you sure?  I have plenty.”  She opened her school bag and displayed a number of the candies.

“Now I know why you're so hyper.”

We continued to walk in silence for a moment before Pinkie spoke again.

“Do you mind if I ask you a question?”

“Not at all.”

“Do I bother you?”

The question caught me unawares.  I was so sure that Pinkie lived in her own little world and only joined us here in reality for a visit. “Why do you ask?”

Her ever-present smile faded slightly and her entire composure sagged, as if somebody had let a little bit of air out. “It's just that...sometimes, people don't like to be around me.  They say it's because of my personality.”

“Really?  I thought you'd have lots of friends.  Anyways, if they don't like your personality, why don't you change it?”

Pinkie giggled softly. “Because it's who I am.  I like to be happy and to laugh and I want others to be laughing and happy too.”

Suddenly, I remembered Celeste's words from this morning: never reject somebody who genuinely wants to be your friend. Especially if they want to make you happy.  I threw an arm around Pinkie's shoulders and squeezed. “You don't bother me, Pinkie.  I've never been very sociable and it's hard for me.  That's all.  It's not your fault at all.”

Her mood improved instantly as her grin returned, bigger than ever.  “Thanks, Twilight.  Oh, can I stay at your house tonight?  I have a super-hard problem that I need your help with.”

I was startled a bit by the question. “What?  Tonight?”  I was supposed to meet with Princess Celestia again, but I know Celeste wanted me to make friends. I smiled. “Sure.  Why not?”

Pinkie let out a squeal and she wrapped her arms around me and squeezed.  I swear I heard my spine pop in several places.

x----x

“Mom!”  I called out as Pinkie and I entered the apartment.  “Dad!  Are you here?  I've brought a fri...a classmate.”

Spike wandered in from the living room. “They went shopping, Twi.  They should be back later.”

I rolled my eyes. “I swear, you'd think we lived alone.  Pinkie, this is my brother Spike.”

Pinkie immediately grabbed him in a death hug. “Oh my gosh!  He's so cute!  How are you?”

“F...fine.”  He groaned as he squirmed in her arms.

I grabbed her wrists and pried her arms open, allowing him to slip away.

Pinkie had the decency to look embarrassed. “Sorry. I can get a little overenthusiastic.”

“I noticed.  C'mon, let's go to my room and talk.”

“Can I use your computer?”  Spike asked.

I sighed and rolled my eyes. “I guess.”

I took a seat in the office chair while Pinkie perched on the bed, her legs folded over the foot board.  Spike sat with his back to both of us, my laptop open on his lap, reading through his FanFiction account.

“Okay, Pinkie, what's the problem?  Math?”

She shook her head. “Nope, I'm super-good at math.”

“English, then?”

“Nuh-uh.”

“Science?”

“Nopey-dopey.”

“History?”

“No.”

“What, then?”

“I need help picking the music for your party.  I was thinking about getting that girl, Vinyl, from school.   She's really good.”

“I haven't met her,” I replied.

“You're planning a party for Twilight?” asked Spike, looking up.

Pinkie leaned her head back and arched her back to face my brother. “Yep.”

“Can I come?”

Pinkie giggled. “Sure.  The more the merrier.”

I let out an annoyed growl.  I had passed up learning magic from Celestia for this?

A chill passed through me and I shivered.  “Is anybody else chilly?”

Neither Pinkie nor Spike moved.

“Hello?”

Their expressions were frozen, their bodies were stiff.  I grabbed Pinkie's legs and tried to push them down but only succeeded in pushing myself up.

“What is this?”

The world around me seemed to flicker.  I was weightless for a moment before I found myself outside.  I looked around, taking in my surroundings, and recognized where I was.  This was a park not too far from the apartment.  Pinkie and I had passed it on our way home.

“How did I get here?”

“Good evening.”

I looked up and saw a young woman with dark skin and midnight blue hair perched on a trellis above me.

“Who are you?” I asked.

The woman smiled in a way that sent a chill down my spine. “I have many names.  You may call me Luna.  I sensed your aura.  Your spiritual energy has recently awakened.”

“I don't know what you're talking about,”  I replied nervously.

“Fine, I'll put it in layman's terms.  I knew you'd be the only one not affected by my paralysis spell.  This is only possible if your spiritual energy has been recently awoken.  I know you're a Bearer of an Element of Harmony.”

I looked away.  “I don't know what you're talking about.”

Luna smirked. “Obviously your Element isn't Honesty.  I can tell your aura was recently awoken.  That's only possible if it was triggered by someone...or something.”

I thought back to the headband that transported me to the dimension where Celestia resided.

“Only the Element Bearers are able to control their spiritual energy without prior preparation.”

“So...you're an Element Bearer as well?”

Luna's smirk widened as she was surrounded by a shimmering blue aura.  Dark wings spread from her back as she lifted into the air. “Insolent child!  I am far greater than any mere Element Bearer.  I am the reincarnation of the Alicorn Princess, Luna!”

x----x

In Twilight's closet, inside of a brown cardboard box, one of the Element gems began to glow.  A mark, the shape of a blue balloon, began to glow in sympathy right over Pinkie's “Third Eye.”

Pinkie blinked and straightened.  She looked around as she hopped off of the bed. “Twilight?  Where'd you go?” She turned to Spike. “Where's your sister?” She bent low to inspect the motionless, still-grinning boy.  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a flash of light. “What was that?”

x----x

“If you know about the Elements, then you must know about Celestia,”  I pointed out.

“Celestia?  What do you know of her?”

“My sister, Celeste, is her reincarnation.”

Luna's eyes narrowed. “Where is she?”

“I don't really know.  She doesn't live here in the city.”

“Oh, what a shame.  I really wanted to meet her.”  Luna's hands closed into fists and began to glow. “So that I might harvest her sacred spiritual energy.  Unfortunately, I'll have to settle for yours, Element Bearer.”

I stood, frozen, as a massive ball of crackling energy grew over her head, feeding from the magical flow from her hands.  She lowered the ball, took careful aim, and released it.

Pinkie grabbed me in a flying tackle, sending us both to safety as the energy ball slammed into the ground, digging a crater before it dissipated.

“Pinkie, you saved my life!”

Pinkie sat up and scowled. “You're mean, Twilight.  You ran off to play with your friend and didn't even invite me or Spike.”

Play?  Was she really that dense?  “Does it look like we're playing?  She's trying to kill me!”

“Kill?  That doesn't sound very fun at all.”

“Really?”  I shot back. “You don't say.”

Pinkie patted my head. “Don't worry.  Your Auntie Pinkie Pie's gonna take care of this.”  She stood and marched over to Luna. “Excuse me.  Could you not kill Twilight?  She's my friend and I would feel really bad if she got hurt.”

Luna's eyes widened as she took Pinkie in.  Those dark eyes narrowed and her sadistic grin returned as comprehension dawned.  Without warning, she flung out a hand, casting a tendril of magic to wrap around Pinkie's neck.  Pinkie let out a strangled cry, gripping the tendril and pulling as it tightened.

“No!”  I screamed as I leaped to my feet and sprinted to Pinkie.  Luna's gaze shifted to me and she levitated Pinkie and flung her at me.  The impact knocked the wind out of me and we both flew a short distance before slamming into the dirt.  As gently as possible, I pushed her off of me and rolled her over.  She didn't appear to be hurt but she was unconscious and she let out a groan as I lifted her up and pulled her into a protective embrace.

“Why are you doing this?”  I cried up to Luna.  “We've never done anything to you.”

“Foolish girl.  Can you not see that she is also an Element Bearer?”

I looked down at the ridiculously pink-haired girl cradled in my arms.  This girl had gone out of her way to make me feel comfortable, to welcome me when no one else had even taken notice, and risked her life to save mine without asking anything in return.  To think, she was a Bearer of an Element of Harmony.

“She is more connected with her Element than you are,” Luna explained. “For that reason, and that alone, I will harvest her energy before I take yours.”

“No!”  I yelled. “She was the only one who approached me.  The only one who spoke to me.”  My expression twisted into a terrible snarl as I rose to my feet. “Pinkie is my friend!  I won't let you hurt her!”

A sudden sensation overwhelmed me as the magic I had barely been aware of exploded throughout my entire being.  I was aware of everything.  I could sense the auras of magic around me from the trees, the birds, and Pinkie.  And I could sense Luna's magic.  On my wrists appeared a pair of jeweled bracelets, one a dark royal purple and the other a bright pink.  I felt the weight of a helm settle on my brow, the purple unicorn horn just visible to me as it jutted out above my eyes.  The arms enclosed my ears and wrapped around the back of my head.  I suddenly felt stronger, tougher, more powerful.

“Interesting,” Luna murmured as she gazed down at me. “I never expected you to be able to harness your powers so quickly.  Face me, girl, and show me what you can really do.”

Chapter 3

“You want me to fight you?”  I held up a finger and shook it in her direction. “Fighting is never the answer.”

Luna scoffed. “Words of a coward.  Very well, if you do not wish to begin, I will!”  She raised her glowing hands above her head. “Animae Infernorum!”

The bolt raced towards me.  I didn't know what to do.  I hadn't really read any of the book that Celeste had given me, just what few pages she had managed to translate.  I glanced back at Pinkie, who was still out cold in the dirt.  I could leap to safety but I would leave her defenseless.  I couldn't do that.

Instinctively, I threw up my hands in a warding gesture.  A shield appeared before me, transparent but with a glowing outline.  It was covered in cryptic runes and the same ancient text that was scrawled on the pages of the book.

Luna's attack broke against the shield.

I had done that?  Now I understood.  After speaking with Celeste, I read through a few of the passages she managed to translate in the short time since she had sent me the book.  I had figured out a few of the spells but nothing that would really be effective against such a powerful opponent.

Luna crossed her arms and stared down at me, “I don't care for fighting you in your current state.  I will give you a favor.  I will allow you to attack me but, I will not defend myself in any way, shape, or form.”

This sounded too good to be true, “Seriously?  That's pretty arrogant of you.”

Luna smirked again.  She was pretty good at those. “I will allow you only one attack.  Choose wisely or the consequences may be...severe.”  She gave a pointed look at Pinkie.

I caught her meaning.  If I failed to take her out, Pinkie would suffer.  I couldn't...wouldn't...allow that to happen.  I had only one shot at this.

I remembered something from the book.  There was one passage, towards the end, that Celeste had translated.  It described an attack that couldn't be defended against and was more powerful than anything Luna had at her disposal.  I had only one shot at this and this spell was my best shot.  There was only one question though.

Did I have the power to cast such a spell?

I dug down as deep as I could, gathering every bit of energy I had.  I could feel my power building as I turned my concentration to the spell.  I took a deep breath and and made my heartfelt plea.

Please, Elements of Harmony, for the safety of my friend, my family, and my life, help me.

My power exploded as the magic of the Elements gathered around me.  My head began to pound, just like when I had first tapped my magic, right after my first meeting with Celestia.  I could feel my muscles tighten, straining to push all of my energy, my emotion, my magic into the spell.

“What is this?”  I heard Luna whisper in awe.

It all became so clear.  My magic was connected to my emotions.  The more love I felt for others, the more powerful I became.  I sought to protect my family and Pinkie and my power had grown.  The other Elements had added themselves to mine and I knew, with their addition, I could perform the spell.

“Amicitia Magica!” I cried, throwing out my hands.

I heard Luna scream as the multicolored beam enveloped her, destroying her paralysis spell.  The roar of the magic was deafening and it drained away my energy.  I had put everything I had into the spell and, now, it was gone.

My armor disappeared, my magic no longer enough to sustain it, and I collapsed to my knees, utterly spent.  I stared at the pillar of smoke and dust that rose from where the spell had struck.

“I...I...I did it.” I panted.

I ran a hand through my hair, pushing my sweat-soaked bangs out of my eyes.  I was drenched and my white uniform blouse clung to me, covered in dirt and grime.  I looked like I had been through war, which, technically, I had been.  My stomach churned as I tried to push myself back to my feet, but my shaky legs refused to take my weight.

Then I heard it, coming from the pillar of smoke and dust.  A low, dark, chuckle.

Luna emerged with a terrible sneer plastered on her face, completely unscathed.

My heart stopped.  No.  No, it wasn't possible.  That had been a direct hit with the most powerful spell I had.  The most powerful spell there was.  She should have been completely annihilated but there wasn't a mark on her.

“Child, what you just did was utter foolishness.”

“How?”  I managed weakly.  “How did you...manage...to walk away...from that?  It's...not...possible.”

Luna scoffed, “I don't know how you managed to learn that spell but you didn't quite understand it.  For such a spell to work, you need the other five Bearers.  As it was, your energy was the only contributor.”

“But, I felt the other energies come to me.”

“Only to cast the spell.  In order to sustain that level of power, you need the others.”

I nearly collapsed. “So tired.”

“A side effect.  That casting took most of your power.  Also, because you were the only caster, you lost your transformation.  You are now completely defenseless, naked against my power.”  She raised a hand, which began to glow with magical energy, “Goodbye, Bearer of Harmony.”

“Why are you doing this?”

Luna paused and lowered her hand. “Very well.  I will tell you.  It is because of Celestia.”

“Celestia?”

“A person who knows all about the nation of Equestria told me that, in my past life as an Alicorn, Celestia locked me away on that world's moon.  She locked away her own sister out of spite.  She sought to take my power from me and, when she failed, locked me away.”

I shook my head. “No!  Celestia would never do such a thing!”

“It's true, girl.  Your mentor is a monster.”

“Never!  She would never do that without a good reason.  Even if she did, that was in a past life.  Why are you taking your revenge on us?”

“Because the person who told me all of this told me that Equestria is currently in chaos because of a great battle that occurred there.  This prompted Celestia to send the soul of all of the inhabitants of that world to this one along with the Elements of Harmony so that the future Equestria could be returned to it's former glory and all who lived there, if they wished, could return to their world.”

“I don't understand.  You're saying that there are people living here that are originally from there?”

“Indeed.  What's more, they are all living right here in this city.  Wonderfully convenient, I will take my revenge on them all.  I will slaughter Celestia's precious subjects while she is powerless to stop me.  And you, Element Bearer, all of you, will be the first to feel my wrath.”

“No!  I will not allow it!”

I found the strength to launch myself backwards in surprise as Celestia appeared before me.  She shone with a blinding brilliance as she spread her wings and crouched defensively, protecting Pinkie and I.

“I'm sorry I'm late, Twilight.  You've done well in my stead.  Your magic broke through the barrier that was keeping me from coming to your aid.  See to your friend.  I can handle this from here.”

Luna leaned back and crossed her arms. “So, the great and powerful Celestia finally appears.  Tell me, why have you appeared in your old form?”

“You said that your problems with me are from before.  Let us settle this as we were before.”

Celestia launched herself at Luna, who stood motionless and made no move to defend herself.  The moment the two impacted, they vanished.

“Twilight!”

I turned.  Celeste vaulted over the low brick wall that surrounded the park and charged to me, skidding to a stop and dropping to her knees on the other side of Pinkie.  She carefully examined the girl, gently pressing on various parts of Pinkie's body, while I looked on.

“Is she okay?” I asked.

“I think so.  It doesn't look like she has any broken bones.”  She turned her attention to me. “Are you hurt?”

I shook my head.  I had a few scrapes and bruises but I wasn't in any real pain.  Celeste opened her arms, gesturing for me to come to her.  We embraced over Pinkie's prone form and I felt her hands begin to run over my back and sides, performing a physical examination.  I immediately pushed out of the embrace.

“I said I was okay.”

Celeste nodded and slipped her arms beneath Pinkie.  Her muscles tightened as she lifted my friend up, cradling her.  “She's heavier than she looks.”

“I can help,” I offered.

“No, I've got her.  C'mon, Twilie.  Let's go home.”

I nodded and followed my sister back to the apartment.

x----x

“Now that we are alone, sister, tell me who poisoned your mind with these lies.”

“Lies?  It is the truth or do you deny having me exiled to the moon of Equestria for a thousand years?”

Celestia sighed, “What I remember are the good times we had on Equestria.  The Summer Sun Celebration, Nightmare Night, pranking the guards and the games we used to play as fillies.  Did they not tell you about those things?”

Luna inhaled shakily and wiped a tear from her eye before she stomped a forehoof.  “Shut up!”

“I cannot tell you how much this hurts me.  Your rage and hatred have blinded you.  I wanted nothing more than to have my sister back but that has been denied to me.  I cannot allow you to hurt Twilight or any other person.  I must stop you.”

The tip of her horn glowing, Celestia charged at Luna.  She dodged, launching a beam of magic at Celestia, striking her in the back of the head.  Celestia fell, groaning, and rolled onto her side.  Luna was instantly on top of her, slamming her ribs with her silver-shod hooves.

Celestia rolled onto her back and caught a kick from Luna at her left flank, shattering her leg.

This is too easy, Luna thought to herself.  The stories I was told about her was that she was a supreme being, all powerful.  I have defeated her with no effort.

That was when Luna noticed Celestia's flank.

“You don't have a cutie mark.  You are not the true Celestia, only a spirit fragment.”

Celestia chuckled weakly, “You were as easily fooled as the original.”

“You were a distraction so that the true Celestia could whisk the Element Bearers to safety.”  She smirked, “It doesn't matter.  I know where they live.”

Celestia shook her head. “Yes, she did take Twilight to safety.  Then she returned to deal with you.”

“What?”

Luna immediately left the astral plane and rushed back to her physical body.  She slowly opened her eyes.  The sun was blinding.  She ran her hands over the soft sand beneath her body and sat upright.  Beautiful azure ocean gently lapped at the sand.  This was not Ponyville.  This was nowhere near Ponyville.

She jumped to her feet and turned, looking back at the lush tropical jungle behind her.  No, this was nowhere near Ponyville.

“Celestia,” she growled.

x----x

“Why did you choose me for this,” I wailed, “I'm not a fighter.  I'm just a kid.”

“I didn't choose you.  Believe me, I felt terrible when I discovered that you were an Element Bearer.”  Celeste sighed and sat down on my bed. “At least, when Discord appears in five years, I won't feel nearly as terrible.”

“Who's Discord?”

“That is the name of the creature that will threaten the Earth on the December eclipse.  I discovered that a comet will pass on the same day and these two events will weaken Discord's prison, allowing his essence to pass into this world.”

I stared at her dubiously. “Only his essence?  Then, what's the problem?”

She fixed me with a stare that chilled my core.  “Oh, you have no idea.  Every being that absorbs any of his essence will mutate into a creature whose only desire is to spread chaos.  It will be the end of everything.”  She tucked her hands between her knees and rocked slightly.  I had never before seen her this frightened. “It was my intention to reunite the six Element Bearers and train you without you having to transform.  Luna's appearance and interference has changed everything.  You were forced to transform and, even though he's locked away in another dimension, Discord felt it.  He knows about you now, Twilight, and he'll send his agents for the Elements.”

“Agents?”  Celeste's fear was contagious.  “What about Luna?  What if she comes back?”

“I sent her away.  She's on a remote island on the other side of the world.  She won't be coming back for a very long time.  Unfortunately, neither will I.”

I blinked. “What?”

“To keep Luna away from Ponyville, I had to cast a spell to lock her onto that island.  For the spell to work, I have to stay away as well.”

“But, what about the training?  What about explaining everything to Pinkie and the other Elements?”

“I'm going to need you to do that for me.  I'll help you where I can but it will have to be done remotely, over the computer.  I cannot come back here.”

“For how long?”

“A year.  Less if Luna finds a way out of the spell on her own.”

I stared down at Pinkie, who's head was resting in my lap.

“You'll be fine.”  Celeste said, “You have Pinkie to help you, and it's only a matter of time before you find the other four Elements.”

“I wish you could stay.”

She knelt on the floor next to me and pulled me into an embrace. “It won't be so bad.  We'll talk online and you'll have friends.  The time will pass before you know it.”

“Christmas won't be the same without you.”

“I know, but this is for the best.  Besides, Shining will be back and I heard he has a girlfriend.”

I sat up, shocked.  “Where did you hear that?”  Granted, I didn't have the relationship with Shining that I had with her but he still kept me up-to-date with his life.

“Mom told me.”  She confessed. “She told me this girl's very cute and smart and funny.  You'll like her.”  She kissed my forehead when I didn't respond. “I have to go now.  Remember, I can't come back if the spell is to continue working.  Take care of Spike and don't forget to give Pinkie her jewel and tell her everything.”

“What if she doesn't believe me?”

Celeste smiled, “I have a feeling she will.”

And, with those words, she flickered and vanished.

My attention returned to the girl resting in my lap.  My friend, the first I've ever had, hummed gently as she rested.  I didn't know how I was going to do this, but I knew it wasn't going to be easy.  At least, I had Pinkie to help me.

Something damp trickled along my thigh.  I looked closely and saw a line of saliva running my leg to my knee.

I let out an involuntary scream, startling my brother awake but not disturbing Pinkie in the slightest.  “She's drooling on me!  Ewww!”

The next day, I took Pinkie down to the most out-of-the-way place I knew of.  We sat by a lake in the park, screened by bushes, as I explained everything that had happened the night before.  “And so,” I concluded, “You have special abilities and you have the responsibility of helping me in protecting this city and this world.”  I pulled the balloon-shaped jewel from my pocket and handed it to her.

“Okay.”  Pinkie drawled, closely examining the gem.

My shoulders slumped. “You don't believe a word that I said, do you?”

Pinkie laughed, “Of course I do.  Why would you lie to me?  This is just a lot to process.  How were you able to transform?”

“It wasn't easy,” I admitted.  “You were in danger and I had to protect you.  If I had to explain it I'd say-”

“Twilight, look, I'm transforming!”

I turned.  Pinkie was enveloped in a blue aura.  Three balloons, like a tattoo, appeared on each of her thighs, visible at the hem of her shorts.  Two bracelets, like mine but blue, appeared at her wrists while a helm, without the unicorn horn, covered her head.

“How?”

She shrugged, “Dunno.  I just wanted to.”

She dipped her fingers into the water and came up with some of the liquid.  It held it's shape in a sphere and hovered a few inches above her palm. “Oh cool, I can control water.”

“How?”

She began so exert her control, splitting the sphere into several and swinging them around her body.  She gestured and the water froze, encasing her in ice up to her shoulders.  “C-c-cool.  I can f-f-f-freeze water.  Th-this is awesome.”

I stared without comprehending.  “How?”

x----x

“You've won the battle, Celestia, but my victory is inevitable.  You think your Bearers are safe.  You're wrong.  I may not be able to leave this island but I can still send others to do my bidding.”

“There you are, Princess.  Your disappearance frightened us all,” a masculine voice behind her said.

Luna spun to the source of the voice. “You?  What are you doing here?  Perhaps your mistress misunderstood when I said I didn't want to see her again.”

“You forget that my mistress cared for you when you were a child.  When no other would bother with you.”

“She was only using me!”

“So resentful.  Anyways, she worries and ordered us at your bidding, should you need us.”

Luna raised her hand and prepared her magic to attack.  “Leave or your mistress will lose her faithful pet.”

“Peace, Princess, it is not my intention to interfere with your business but I have some information that may prove to be useful.”

“Go on.”

“Your power isn't even at half of it's original strength.  Do you know anything of the night of the Red Moon.  Or, more specifically, Nightmare Moon?”

Luna cocked her head.  “Nightmare...Moon?”

Chapter 4

Its been three days since the battle with Luna.  Pinkie and I had spent nearly every minute in each others company, sneaking away whenever we could to train.  Already, as Celeste had feared, agents of Discord had begun to appear.  So far, the incidents themselves were small and isolated but I had a feeling that would change soon.

And the agents were hideous.  Mutant things from another world only vaguely resembled what they originally were.  I could recognize a few of them, though.

Like the dog that currently had me pinned on my back.  It snapped its massive teeth, trying to wrap its powerful jaws around my head.  The only thing that kept it from fulfilling its wish was the fact that I was holding it up with a hand gripping each front leg and a knee in its chest.  Unfortunately, this left me no freedom to attack.

Pinkie was dealing with the second dog, screaming and making a noise I swear sounded like sobs.  She sounded like she was beginning to panic.  I had to get this beast off of me as quickly as possible.

“Hang on, Pinkie.  I'm coming.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw motion.  Pinkie had somehow fashioned a pair of skates out of ice and was using them along an icy path she laid out as she went.

“C'mon, doggie.  You can't catch me!” She taunted, squealing and laughing.

“What?  You're not in danger?  You're actually having fun?  How could you be having fun?”

Her dog was in hot pursuit, slipping and sliding on the ice as it tried to catch up with her.

Suddenly, she stopped, turning to face the beast.  “Gotcha!” She declared.  She opened her hand, turning the ice under the dog to water, which flowed up and around it.  Quickly, she made a fist, turning the water back to ice and trapping the beast.

She abandoned the ice-made skates and calmly walked over to the creature.  “Be a good doggie and open wide.”  She forced the dog's mouth open and reached inside, her face screwed up in concentration.  The dog growled menacingly but found it didn't have the leverage to bite down on Pinkie's arm.  Finally, she gave a triumphant cry and yanked her arm back out, holding something in her fist.

“So this is a Discord jewel.”

Her beast vanished as she crushed the gem in her hand.

“Pinkie!  A little help!”

She wandered over and watched me wrestle with the dog for a bit. “Still didn't beat him, eh?”

“Obviously.  I need your help, please.”

“But I've already removed my transformation.  Two against one isn't fair.”

“You know what else isn't fair?  Me being killed before we can find the other Elements!  Now get down off of your high horse and help me!”

Pinkie blinked in confusion. “I'm not on a high horse.”

“PINKIE!”

“Oh, right, right.  This is a male doggie, right?”

“I think so.  I didn't really check.”

“Then it's easy to beat.” In one swift motion, she swung her leg up, her shin connecting solidly between the beast's legs.  It let out a squeal of agony, coughing up it's gem in the process, and vanished.

I sat up and used the hem of my shirt to wipe the saliva from my face.  “Thanks.”

“What else are friends for?”

I walked over to where the jewel had landed and plucked it out of the grass.  “It's hard to believe that this tiny thing is the cause of all of our problems.”

I had contacted Celeste early that morning and demanded an explanation for the attacks and the reason behind the dark crimson shard we kept pulling out of the beasts.

“I call those 'Discord Jewels'.  Discord is a Draconequus, a being made up of many different animals but, most importantly, dragons make up a good part of his anatomy.  When he fought Celestia and Luna, aeons ago, they dealt severe attacks upon him.  These blows knocked away many of his scales which fell back to Equestria to be absorbed by creatures there.  Each scale contains some of his essence and mutates the creature that absorbs it.

“Because these scales contain part of his essence, Discord has power over the creatures that contain them.  He's sending those creatures into this world in order to find and destroy the Elements of Harmony.  Now, since his aura is still very weak, he can only control weak creatures but, over time, as the December Eclipse draws closer, his essence will grow more powerful and he'll be able to control more powerful creatures.”

I dropped the jewel and smashed it beneath my shoe. “We need to hurry up and find the others.  We can't keep up this up forever.”

“Do you have any ideas on how we could find them?”

I shook my head. “None whatsoever.”

“Well, if I were in this position-”

“You are in this position.”

“-I would start at the school.  That's where we met and your sister said that the Elements often don't know that they're always together.  If we brought the jewels with us and we'll see if they react to anything.”

My eyes widened.  She was absolutely right. “Pinkie, you're a genius.”

She laughed. “No, I'm not.  It was only simple logic.”  She wrapped an arm around my shoulders. “We have to find our magical friends!  Let's get started!”

The next day, at school, we began our search.  Since I was still fairly new, I was relying heavily on Pinkie as a guide.  As we wandered down the Fine Arts wing, the sound of a cello drew me to a door.  I pressed my nose to the glass and saw a girl inside.  The cello was balanced against her knee and she was drawing the bow neatly across the strings as her fingers danced between the frets.  Her ebony hair shifted slightly as she turned her head, closed her eyes, and lost herself in the music.

“Oh, it's beautiful.  Pinkie, who is that?”

“Oh, her?  She's Octavia.  She's an exchange student from Wales or someplace like that.”

I dug the four remaining jewels, still safe inside their mold, from my pocket and carefully examined each one, even using my hand to shield them from the lamps above me.

Not a single one of them glowed.

“Well, Pinkie, I didn't really expect us to find one on the first try.”

I heard a high-pitched snore beside me.  Pinkie was leaning against the wall, lulled to sleep by Octavia's cello.

“Pinkie!  Wake up!  We need to keep looking!” I grabbed her shoulders and shook her.

Pinkie picked the next spot to check, which wasn't far.  She opened the door to the school's auditorium and led me inside.  Low bass beats shook the walls and floor around me and, on the stage, I could see a younger girl with electric-blue hair and purple sunglasses stood behind a pair of turntables.  She gyrated to the rhythm from the speakers.

I hurried to check the jewels before my eardrums split.

Nothing.  Thank God!

“Pinkie!” I shouted over the noise of the speakers, “The jewels aren't reacting!  We need to go!”

“No way!  I love this song!”

I grabbed Pinkie's collar and began to drag her towards the door.  “Let's go!”

“Awww!  I wanted to dance.”

x----x

Pinkie and I spent all of our time between classes searching for potential Element Bearers, but, with each negative, I began to doubt that they would even be here.  If they weren't here, where would we find them?

During our lunch period, we wandered around the school.  Pinkie pointed out a blonde-haired girl who was sitting on a bench near the front gate, quietly eating a muffin.

“Try her,” Pinkie suggested.

I pulled the mold from my pocket and checked the jewels. “I'm sorry, Pinkie.  There's no reaction.”

Pinkie frowned, “That's a shame.  Ditzy really likes my muffins.”

I spotted the girl I had first seen on my first day, Fluttershy, but I hadn't spoken to her since.  She was crouched down under a tree, feeding a bird.  I approached her, jewel mold in my hand.  The bird suddenly took flight, darting just over my head.  I flinched, ducking slightly.  When I looked again, Fluttershy had vanished.

Pinkie spotted someone else and, before I could react, snatched the mold from my hand and took off.

“Hey, girl, come here a second.  I just need to see something,” Pinkie called as she chased the rainbow-haired girl.

“Keep away from me, you crazy girl.”  Rainbow-hair cried over her shoulder as she disappeared around the corner with Pinkie on her heels.

After a moment, Pinkie reappeared. “I lost her.”

x----x

Finally, school had ended.  Pinkie and I hung out in the park near the school, wondering where we might go next to search for our Element Bearing friends.

“Well, the school is a total bust,” I said. “Where should we look next?”

Pinkie shrugged, “I have no idea.  I thought this was really our best chance.”

Suddenly, the Generosity gem began to glow.

“Pinkie, look!  It's glowing.”  I was excited by this development.  Perhaps today hadn't been such a bust after all.

“It's Rarity,” Pinkie said, pointing.

I stared at the class president then at the glowing jewel.  I shook my head. “No, it's impossible.”

“Why do you say that?”

“She's the most popular girl in school.  Everyone knows that popular girls are obsessed with fashion and think only of themselves.”

Pinkie snorted, “That's only a stereotype.  I'm sure she's very nice.”

“You've never spoken with her?”

“Well, she's always surrounded by those girls from the student government board and it's almost impossible to get anywhere near her.”  Pinkie paused, “Now that I think about it, I don't think I've ever seen her alone like this.”

We looked up again but Rarity was nowhere to be seen.

“Good job, Pinkie.  She's gone.”

“Well, I told you not to talk so much, Twilight.”

“What?  You were the one who kept babbling!”

x----x

We trudged about the town, checking anywhere we thought Rarity might have gone.  She couldn't be found at the mall, the salon, or the boutique.

“How will we find her now,” Pinkie whined.

I sighed, “It's late.  We should get home.  Maybe we can catch her at school tomorrow.”

A glow caught my eye and I pulled the jewels from my pocket once more.  Generosity was shining again.  We were standing next to a rather run-down building on the outskirts of the business district.  There was no way Rarity would be caught anywhere near here.

“Look!  There she is.”

I turned and saw Rarity through a window.  She was wearing an apron over her school uniform, busily stacking bowls and wiping down tables.

“What do you think she's doing,” I wondered.

Pinkie grabbed my hand and dragged me around to the door. “Let's find out.  Hey, Rarity!  Hello!”

Pinkie's shout startled the girl, who looked up with wide eyes, “Yes?  Can I help you?”

“We go to the same school,” I explained.  “This is Pinkie and I'm Twilight.”

“But, what are you doing here?”  She gasped and hurried around the counter to us.  She took both of my hands in both of hers and fixed me with a look that bordered on desperation. “Are you here to help?”

“Yep,” Pinkie chimed in. “Helpful Hannas, that's us!  What do you need us to do?”

Rarity's smile was genuine. “Thank you.  Oh, thank you so much.  You've no idea how much this means to me.”  She disappeared into the kitchens and reappeared a moment later, carrying a pair of aprons.  “Put these on and I'll tell you exactly what to do.”

“Pinkie, what do you think you're doing?”  I whispered fiercely as we put on the aprons.

“Don't you think that helping her is a great way of learning about her?  Who knows, maybe you'll learn that not all popular girls are what you think they are.”

After a moment of thought, I nodded, “I suppose.”

It turned out that the place was a homeless shelter where Rarity volunteered every Wednesday after school.  The people who lived there spent their days looking for work and only came back for a meal, a shower, and a bed.  There had to have been hundreds that came through our line.  I would fill a bowl with soup and hand it to Pinkie, who placed the bowl on a plate with a slice of bread and hand it to Rarity, who would hand it across the counter to somebody.  There wasn't very much and the food didn't look that appetizing but each person seemed genuinely grateful for what we were able to give them.

Finally, the last person took their food, the doors were closed, and we were relieved.  I sat down on a vacant table with Pinkie while Rarity went to see to a few last-minute things.

I let out a sigh of exhaustion. “Never in my life have I served so many plates.”

“Yes,” Pinkie agreed, “but it was fun, wasn't it?”

“I'll admit this feels...good.”

x----x

Rarity dried the clean dishes that Pete, the shelter manager, handed her and stacked them on a nearby shelf.

“You're really lucky to have friends like those two, Rarity.”  Pete commented as he handed her a bowl.

“They aren't my friends,” Rarity replied, drying the dish. “In fact, this is the first time I've ever met them.”

“Don't you think they'd be the friends you'd like to have, instead of those other girls you've told me about?”

She glanced over her shoulder at Twilight and Pinkie, “I suppose.”

“You should go talk to them.  I can finish up here.”

She dried her hands and took off her apron.  “If you're sure.”

“As sure as I can be.  Go on, I'll see you next Wednesday.”

“Bye, Pete.  See you next week.”

x----x

Rarity came back through the doors that led to the kitchen and smiled as she came over to us.

“Would you mind if I sat with you two while we waited for our rides?”

I smiled, eager for the chance to get to know her better. “Not at all.”

Chapter 5

“Rarity, why aren't your friends helping you?” Pinkie asked.

Rarity shifted uncomfortably before speaking. “They're not really my friends, just classmates.  I've...never really had true friends.”

“Why don't you consider them friends?  You're with them all of the time,” I said.

“I always help them whenever they ask, but when I need their help, like here at the refuge, they always find some sort of excuse.  I suppose I only hang out with them so that I don't feel lonely.”

“What are you doing here anyways,” I asked. “This is the last place I thought I'd find you.”

Rarity gave me a sly look as she cocked her head. “What did you think?  That I was some stuck-up girl, too popular and selfish to have real feelings?”

“Well...I...You see...”

“That's exactly what she thought,” Pinkie chimed in.

“PINKIE!”

Rarity laughed delicately. “A few years ago, you would have been exactly right.  I cared only about my appearance and being the center of attention.  I didn't have the slightest interest in helping anybody, much less the homeless.”

“What changed,” I asked.

“My mother was in a terrible accident and needed a blood transfusion.  She has a very rare blood type and the hospital simply didn't have any in stock.  Without the blood, she would die.  My father put out pleas in the newspapers, on the radio, and on television.  He even offered a reward but nobody came.  We were so scared.  I thought she was going to die.

“Finally, late one night, an old man came to the hospital.  I could tell he had been living on the streets for some time.  His clothes were tattered and filthy and he smelled horrible.  He told the doctors that he had the blood type she needed and, after a few tests to make sure, they began the transfusion.  He saved her life.”

Rarity took a moment to gather herself before continuing. “I asked the old man why he had done it, coming in to give the only thing he had when no one else would.  He said to me, 'Little girl, why shouldn't I have done it?  I have little to give but your mother needed only a bit of my blood.  That's all and I would gladly give it.  It doesn't matter if somebody is poor or rich, or what skin color they have, or if they're occidental or oriental.  We are all human beings and we all need each other.  Never deny your generosity, especially if others need you.'

“My father came to give him the promised reward but he was already gone.  I haven't seen him since and I haven't found out who he was or where he came from.  His words touched me in ways I never imagined.  I decided to do as the old man had and give what I have, freely.  I do this not only out of gratitude for his deed but because his words awoke something in me, something I never knew was there.”

I pulled the jewel mold from my pocket and popped Generosity from it's fitting. “I'm sorry that I ever doubted you, Rarity.  Please, take this.” I placed the jewel in her hand.

“You're giving me a jewel?  Why?”

I shook my head. “It was always yours.  I'm simply giving it back.”

Rarity met my gaze. “I'm not sure I understand.”

“I can't really explain here.  It's rather complicated.  Meet me in the park next to the school tomorrow and I'll explain everything.”

She cocked her head. “We've just met.  What makes you sure I'm going to meet you?”

I smiled. “I'm certain because you've always wanted true friends, friends you could trust completely.  I know that because I've always wanted that as well.  Pinkie and I will wait for you because I trust you.”

“And she?”

“Pinkie trusts everybody.”

x----x

The next morning, I was awoken not by my alarm, but by somebody knocking at the front door.  Groaning, I dragged myself from beneath my warm bed covers and straightened the hem of my nightshirt.

“Spike!  See who's at the door, will you?”

“Get it yourself!”

“I can't,” I called back, darting inside the bathroom and locking the door behind me, “I'm on the toilet.”

“Fine, fine,” he grumbled.

As I prepared my toothbrush, I heard the door open.  After some time, I didn't hear the door close.  I peeked out.  From the bathroom, I had a direct line of sight to the front door. “Spike, who are you talking to?” I took in the silhouette in the doorway and waited for the shape to become familiar. “Rarity?”

“Sorry to bother you so early, Twilight, but I couldn't sleep.  I kept thinking about the conversation we had last night.  Also, this jewel you gave me won't stop shining.  I don't know what's going on.”

“Don't worry about it.  Give me a minute to get dressed and we'll talk.  Spike, get Rarity some coffee, will you?”

Spike stood between us, his eyes locked on Rarity and his shoulders slumped.  I may not be a boy but I was pretty certain what was going through his mind.

“Stop daydreaming and get dressed.”

“Beautiful,” Spike whispered in awe.

x----x

Spike added the boiling water to the press pot and loaded the grinder with the good stuff, his parents' bag of Hacienda la Esmeralda Geisha.  This stuff was beyond ridiculously expensive and neither he nor Twilight were allowed to touch it.  He would get into so much trouble once they found out he had not only been into it but had made a full pot.  Still, nothing was too good for Rarity.

Adding the coarse grounds to the water, he stirred the slurry with chopsticks.  This was something Shining had patiently coached him in before leaving for Basic Training.  He had grudgingly accepted his new responsibility, mostly because Twilight couldn't brew coffee to save her life, but, now, he was grateful for his brother's tutelage.

After letting the coffee steep for a few minutes, he attached the plunger and began to press in slow, even strokes.  The coffee was carefully poured into a mug, placed onto a saucer with the cup's handle at the three o' clock position.  Spike placed the entire assembly onto a silver serving tray along with three of his mother's favorite Danish butter cookies and a single red rose.

“Back straight, shoulders back, chin up,” he chanted as he carried the tray in to Rarity, careful not to spill a drop.  With even steps, he arrived at the couch and presented the tray to her. “R-Ra-Rarity.”

She looked up and gave him a dazzling smile that nearly made him swoon where he stood.

“Oh, thank you so much, Spike.”  She took the cup from the saucer and raised it to her lips, taking a dainty sip and humming her pleasure.

Look at her, Spike thought.  Those eyes, that hair, that figure, the way she does everything so perfectly.  My God, she's incredible.  I'm looking at the most beautiful woman in the world.  I'm in love.

His heart stopped and a cold sweat broke out all over his body when he realized she was watching him out of the corner of her eye. Oh, please, don't look at me like that, he silently begged.

Rarity replaced the cup onto the saucer and turned to him, “Spike.”

“Y-yes?  What can I do for you?”

“Have we met before?  I have this unshakeable feeling of familiarity.”

He glanced away, “Er...I don't think so.  I would remember meeting somebody as beautiful as you before.” He froze and a bright blush crept up his face, “Did I just say that out loud?”

Rarity covered her mouth as she politely giggled, “You did.  Thank you, cutie.”

x----x

The scene that greeted me when I stepped out of my room, dressed for school, was Spike standing rigid with a brilliant blush while Rarity giggled behind her hand. “What's going on here?”

Rarity gently set her cup and saucer on the tray and stood. “Your brother is quite the gentleman.  Are you ready?”

I grabbed my schoolbag from the hook by the door. “Bye, Spike.  We're leaving.”

As I closed the front door, Rarity spoke, “You and your brother seem nothing alike.”

“That's because we aren't.  Spike was adopted.”

“You don't say.”

“I do.  We adopted him when I was about four.  My parents wanted another child but Mom didn't want to go through the trial of another pregnancy at her age.  They decided to adopt and asked Celeste to choose who they would adopt.  When we went to the orphanage, she passed the decision on to me.

“I don't know if it was the color of the crib or that cute baby-dragon onesie he was wearing or his little face but I knew that he was my new little brother.” Twilight paused, “Now that I think about it, Celeste may have had more in mind when she let me choose who we would adopt.  I think she knew I would choose Spike.”

“Who is Celeste?”

I slapped my forehead in dismay. “Sorry, I never told you that I wasn't an only child.  Celeste is my oldest sister.  She's an archaeologist, traveling all over the world.”

“How exciting.  I take it she was that positively lovely woman I saw in the photo above the television?  The one with the multi-hued hair?”

“Yes.”

“And, who was that absolutely delicious looking man in the uniform?”

I rolled my eyes.  “My brother, Shining.  He's in the army.”

“Yummy.  I've always wanted a big, strong, army man to protect me.”

She was laying it on thick. “The only thing you need protection from is all of that melodrama.  Besides, he has a girlfriend.”

“Boo,” Rarity pouted. “Does Spike know he's adopted?”

“Of course.  My parents told him years ago.  It doesn't change the way we feel about him.  He gives me grief and I give him a hard time but I still love him very much.  Don't tell him I said that.”

“Oh, don't worry.  I have a little sister about his age.  We fight constantly but we love each other.”

“It's the elders job to annoy the younger siblings.”

x----x

Neither girl noticed Spike quietly open the door and watch them leave.

“Rarity will certainly take Twi over to her place.  If I follow them, I can find out where she lives, then I'll be able to visit her whenever I want.”

Grabbing his school bag, he followed them down the hall and out to the street.

x----x

Since it was still very early, Rarity and I still had a good bit of time to get to school.  We decided to go to the park so that I could do as I promised the night before and explain everything Celeste told me about the Elements of Harmony.

“And this gem is one of those Elements.  Do I have that right?” Rarity asked.

“Yes.  The Element of Generosity, to be exact.  The reason it's glowing is because it finally found its true owner.”

She gave the jewel an appraising eye, “Okay.  What do I do with it?”

“That's a little complicated,” I admitted. “You see; you, Pinkie, and I are all members of a group chosen to protect the world from a threat.”

“A threat?  Don't you think that there are others a little more qualified to deal with this threat than a trio of teenagers?”

“That's what I said!” I hoped I was finally getting through to her. “My sister is completely convinced that we are the ones to do this.  Frankly, after our past few battles, I'm starting to agree with her.”

“Is this some kind of a joke?”

“Huh?” I deflated. “I don't understand.”

“I'm sixteen years old.  I'm far too old for such childish games.”

“Rarity, I'm not joking.  We're all the reincarnations of ponies that lived in a magical kingdom and-”

“ENOUGH!”

I took an unconscious step back as Rarity spun to face me.  I expected anger from her tone but her expression spoke of sadness, regret, and pain.

“I thought we could be friends but you only wanted to play games.” She turned and began to trudge towards the school, “You certainly made a fool of me.”

She didn't believe me.  I couldn't say I hadn't expected it.  In fact, I expected that the other Elements wouldn't be as trusting as Pinkie.  I had a plan for this.

The glow of my transformation caught Rarity's eye and she slowly turned to face me.  Her mouth fell open in shock as she stared at me, her eyes wide and her pupils were pinpricks.  Slowly, she raised a shaky hand to cover her mouth.

“Do you see now,” I asked, meeting her gaze. “Do you see that this is no joke?  I would never lie to you.  I value your friendship as much as you value mine.”

“T-Twilight?”

Spike stood just behind Rarity, his expression a mirror-image of hers.

“Spike?  What are you doing here?  You weren't supposed to see this.  You can't tell anybody, do you hear me?  This is important.”

We were doused as the water behind me exploded.  I turned and saw something, a massive sea serpent with a flowing red mane and a huge mustache.

No. Not now.  Why did this have to happen now?

“What is that thing?” Rarity screamed.

“It's a dragon,” Spike cried.

I turned to them with a hard look in my eyes. “You two, stay back!  Rarity, take care of Spike.  Make sure he stays safe.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I'm going to stop it!”

If I was going to defeat this creature, I was going to need help.  Since we had last been together, Celeste had been working feverishly to translate the book.  She had sent me pages full of spells.  One of which would summon one of the most powerful creatures in Equestria.

“I hope this works,” I muttered. “Ego evocant Architectus Equestria.  Faust, evocationem meam custodieris.”

There was a flash beside me, announcing the arrival of the fabled Architect of Equestria, the most powerful Alicorn in existance...

...had to be the tiniest pony I had ever seen.

I stared at the tiny pony, it's miniscule wings fluttering hard to keep it aloft.  It's soft alabaster coat contrasted its ginger mane and tail.

“You certainly don't look like Faust, the great sage of Equestria,” I muttered through the side of my mouth.

Faust's ear gave an annoyed twitch, “And your magic level is far too low to summon me in my actual form but, over time, as your magic grows, my appearance will be more worthy of me.  I'll even be able to help you fight.”

“All I need, right now, is information.”

Faust looked the sea serpent over and took a moment to think before speaking, “My advice is to-” her eyes sprang wide, “-RUN!”

I wondered what had terrified Faust.  I turned to see the serpent lunging at me.  I tucked my legs beneath me, tensed my muscles, and leaped.

Apparently, my transformation had some additional abilities other than magic.  I launched into the air, easily achieving a hieght far beyond what I could normally do.  The serpent's mouth slammed down where I had been only a moment before.

I hit the ground and tumbled back to my feet, tensing as the serpent rose again and prepared to strike.

“Girl, this is an extremely powerful beast, far beyond anything that you are capable of,” Faust said, reappearing at my side.  “If you fall into the water, you're done for.  Also, he's very sensitive about his mustache, which is why-”

“I got it!  That's his weak point.”  I leaped into the air, using my magic to channel an aura around my arm.  The edges of the aura grew paper-thin, resembling a blade.

I swung my arm down, cutting half of the serpent's precious mustache clean off.

Time seemed to stop as the serpent stared at his severed mustache.  Its eyes darted between me and the fallen locks of hair that were roughly the same length as me.  Finally, those same eyes took on a reddish tint and he let out a mighty roar.

“Uh-oh.  Faust, what did I just do?”

Faust's hoof connected with the back of my head.  Even though she was tiny, the blow still hurt. “Stupid, stupid, stupid girl,” she raged. “Why do you ask for advice and not listen to all of it?  I was going to tell you not to cut the mustache.  That would only anger him but you're very much aware of that now.”

I rubbed the spot where she had struck me. “You could have spoken a little faster.”

She delivered another blow. “Don't sass me, girl!  Children these days have no respect for their elders!”

The serpent turned, locking its gaze onto Rarity and Spike, who stood frozen in terror.  It opened its mouth and began to build for a magical blast.

“No!  Faust, it's going to attack them!  They'll be killed!  I have to stop it.”

“You're mad!  Your magic is nothing compared to its.  A direct hit will kill you!”

“I have no choice.” I brought my hands up, touching the tip of my horn and speaking one of the new incantations I had learned.  The three of us flickered for a moment before we changed positions.  I turned and saw that my brother and friend were standing with Faust, well out of harm's way, while I stood where they had.

I threw up my hands and cast my shield spell.

The blast of magic broke through the spell as if it didn't even exist.

Chapter 6

Rarity looked on in horror as Twilight took the blast, smashing her into the ground.  Her body dug a trench in the earth as she was driven along, uprooting trees as she went.

She lay in the dirt and rubble and did not move.

The little white winged pony zoomed over their heads as it rushed to her aid. “Girl!  Twilight!  Speak to me!”

“Twilie?” Spike whimpered.

Rarity was overcome with emotion.  She wanted nothing more than to help Twilight, who was obviously injured terribly, if not already beyond all aid, but she wasn't a doctor.  She knew nothing of medicine.  She only desired to help her friend, her first real friend, but was helpless to do anything for her.

“Noooooo,” she howled.

Power erupted within her soul.  She felt she could do anything, including bring Twilight back from the brink.  Elaborate bracelets of blue and violet encircled her wrists while a beautiful helm of bejeweled alabaster perched on her brow.  Rarity turned in place as her senses expanded.  She could feel the vibrations within the earth beneath her feet.  The stone and soil spoke to her, swearing their fealty to their mighty queen.  The entire sensation was nearly orgasmic.  She giggled with giddiness.

“Rarity?  You too?”

She turned to Spike and saw that the dragon, now done with Twilight, had taken notice of them again.  It opened its mouth and prepared its aura for attack once more.  If that thing could take out Twilight like it did, she didn't want to think of what it would do to poor Spike.

“No!”  She roared, throwing up a hand.

A massive pillar of earth and stone launched from the ground and slammed with the sound of thunder into the serpent's midsection, causing it to grunt in pain.  It let out a low grown as it slowly collapsed to the ground.

“Rarity!”  She turned to see the tiny pony waving to her. “Come quickly!  Twilight needs your help!”

Her impromptu attack had bought them some time before the serpent was able to recover.  Rarity grabbed Spike's hand and raced over to Twilight.  She gasped when they arrived and took in the full extent of Twilight's injuries.

Part of the skin on her face was burned away, charred at the edges of the wound.  Blood ran from her nose and mouth.  Her left leg was twisted at a grotesque angle where the bone had broken and her back was arched, leading Rarity to believe that it might have been broken, as well.

“Is she...dead?”

The pony, Faust, shook her head. “No, but there isn't much time.  You must help her.”

A thousand objections sprang into Rarity's mind but, luckily, none of them left her mouth. “Tell me what to do.”

“You possess the ability to manipulate the earth in all of its forms.  Stone is at your command.  Jewels are at your beck and call but, as you were a unicorn, you possess other magics.”

“A unicorn?”

“Yes but you are not nearly as powerful as Twilight.  You can only perform four spells and one of these is Emergency Charity.  It will heal the worst of her wounds and call her from death but it will take a toll on your energy.”

Rarity fixed Faust with a determined stare. “What do I need to do?”

“Hold your hands over her body and repeat after me.”

Rarity did as she was told.

“Caritas subitis,” Faust intoned

“Caritas subitis.”

A green haze surrounded Twilight's body.  Rarity kept her eyes closed, denying the sight of the truly gruesome healing.  Her ears, however, betrayed her wishes while her mind painted a sickening picture, reenforced with the hisses, pops, and cracks emanating from Twilight.

x----x

At first, there was nothing but darkness.  Slowly, terrible aches began to creep their way up from my extremities.  I felt nauseated but was too weak to do anything other than lay there, in the dirt, and groan in misery.

Finally, I opened my eyes.  Rarity knelt over me, pale, shaking, and sweating.  She looked like she was on the verge of fainting but, somehow, managed to hold her composure.  I turned to Faust, who hovered at my other side. “I thought you said that attack would kill me.  Looks like you were wrong.”

Faust gave an adorable giggle and wiped a hoof across her eyes. “What did I tell you about sassing me, girl?”

I turned to Rarity. “You...You saved my life.”

“You would have done the same for me,” she replied, slipping an arm beneath my shoulders and helping me sit up.

Spike watched me with big, wet eyes.  I held out my arms. “C'mere, little brother.”

With a childish cry, he leaped into them, burying his face against my chest as he wept. “Twilight, I was so scared I had lost you.”

I held my brother and comforted him. “I'm okay.  It's okay.”

“It's getting back up,” Faust warned.

I turned to see that the serpent was recovering, dragging itself up the pillar of earth that had sprung from the ground.  A pillar that hadn't been there before.

Rarity noticed my gaze. “That was me,” she said, sheepishly.

I'm sure I wore the same shocked expression that she had when I first transformed. “You did that?”

“Yes.  The beast was about to attack Spike, but, oh, I showed him a thing or two.”

I smiled and held out a hand. “Let's finish this!”

Rarity returned my grin, took my hand, and pulled me to my feet. “It...is...on!”

I turned to Spike. “You stay here, kid.  Don't leave this trench.” I didn't wait for him to respond before joining Rarity. “How much control do you have over your power?”

“I'm not sure.  I can do big things but I'm not so certain if I could do anything that requires finesse.”

“We don't need finesse.  I just need you to restrain it while I remove the Discord jewel.”

Rarity glanced at me. “What's a Discord jewel?”

“It's what made this creature evil.  I'll explain later, if we survive.”

“I thought this creature was already evil.”

“No,” Faust corrected. “No creature of Equestria is purely evil.  They are often kind and intelligent creatures.  Serpents are largely concerned with their appearance and this one was fond of his mustache which SOMEBODY CUT OFF!”

“You led me to believe that was its weak point!”

“You would have understood if you had let me finish my sentence!”

“Stop it,” Rarity cried. “This is more important then some petty he-said-she-said argument.” She turned to Faust. “You said this creature is concerned with his appearance?”

“Nearly to the point of vanity.”

“Then I have an idea,” she declared.

“What are you going to do,” I asked.

“I'm going to reason with it!” She marched, resolutely, towards the creature.

I tried to grab her and missed, “Rarity, wait!  Don't go near it!"

With a stomp of her foot, a pillar grew beneath Rarity, catapulting her up to the serpent's level.

“Good morning,” she called.

The serpent responded with a growl.

“Terribly sorry.  We're still very new at this and I feel terrible about what happened to your beautiful mustache.  I have a feeling that you and I have a great deal in common, despite our physical differences.  As such, I want to fix this.”

“Excellent, Rarity!  Distract him so I can attack!”

Faust's hoof cracked across the back of my head. “You will do nothing but watch and learn!  Rarity uses her head to keep from using her power, something that you should try to do from time to time!”

I rubbed the lump that had developed from her repeated abuse. “I'm beginning to regret summoning you.”

“Watch and learn, girl!”

The serpent's mouth opened and he began to build for another attack.

“No, please!  Let me help you,” Rarity begged.  “We want to help you!  Trust us!”

The serpent paused and seemed to consider her words before dissappating his attack.

“Amazing,” I gasped. “It's supposed to be under the control of the Discord jewel but it's listening to her.”

“They are kindred spirits,” Faust responded, nodding sagely. “Her generosity is a stronger influence than the jewel's.”

“I love it!  Calming the beast with an act of selflessness, somebody should write a book about it.”

Rarity leaped down from her perch. “Spike, bring my purse please.”

Spike trotted up with the large bag and held it out as she dug through it while I looked on.

“What's your plan?”

“I'll restore his mustache,” she explained. “The wind scattered the piece you cut away so I'll have to use...my scarf!”  She triumphantly held the purple garment aloft.

“I saw you wearing that with your uniform on the first day of school.” I pointed out.

She nodded. “Yes, I like to wear it like a sort of tail, which makes sense since I was a unicorn.  I made it myself of a very expensive fabric, but I feel confident in giving it to somebody who will appreciate it as much as I have.  Besides, Steven Magnet deserves to have his mustache back.”

“Steven Magnet?” Faust and I said in unison.

“Oh, yes.  He's a magnificent creature and deserves a magnificent name to be known by.  Don't you agree?” She blinked. “Faust, you said I could do four spells.  What were the other three?”

“Transformation, Telekinesis, and Extraction,” Faust responded.

“How do I invoke Transformation?”

“Commuto.”

Rarity nodded and turned, remounting her pillar.  She held out the scarf, levitating it to wrap around the severed end of Steven Magnet's mustache.

She held up the two first fingers of each hand and crossed her arms over her chest. “Commuto.”

There was a flash and I blinked the spots from my eyes.  When I looked again, the scarf had transformed into an exact copy of the mustache half that had been cut away.  Unfortunately, it was slightly shorter than the other half.

Rarity squealed happily and applauded. “It's a bit short but I'm sure it'll grow out in no time at all.”

I blinked. “It took me a whole week to learn that spell.  How did she get it so quickly?”

I saw a flash as the Discord jewel was ejected from Steven's mouth.  It was flung high and, as it fell, shattered into a thousand glittery shards.  He began laughing, his deep booming chuckles shaking the ground.  I was almost afraid somebody would notice.

“Thank you!” He bellowed as he flickered and vanished.

I blinked, scarcely able to believe my ears. “The monster talked.”

Faust snorted. “I did mention that Equestrian creatures were intelligent.  It only follows logic that they should be able to speak as well.  How else do you think we were able to build the advanced society that we had.” She turned as Rarity landed beside her. “That was most excellent, Rarity.  You were able to destroy the Discord jewel without harming the serpent...”

“Steven Magnet,” Rarity corrected.

“...Steven Magnet, then. Most impressive.” She glanced over at me. “What's wrong with you, girl?”

I sighed. “I just don't understand.  Pinkie was able to manipulate her Element immediately, and now Rarity has that same ability, but I still struggle with mine.  Why?”

Faust rolled her eyes. “I'd think it would be obvious for someone of your intelligence.  Pinkie and Rarity have been practicing their Elements for most of their lives, long before they received their jewels.”

“I think I get it.  Pinkie has always worked to be everybody's friend and make them smile while Rarity led a generous life long before I gave her her jewel.”

“Well done.  As you grow more in tune with your Element, your powers will grow.  Trust me, this isn't the end for you.”

“What do you mean?”

“When you uncover the final Element Bearer, the others will receive a completely new transformation, but you, your power will grow a thousand-fold and you'll gain a new ability.”

“What ability?”

Faust smiled. “You'll find out but I've lingered too long.  I must leave, but, first...”  She fluttered over to my brother. “Your true name is 'Spike'?”

“Yeah. Have we met?”

“No, but I know you and I have a small bit of advice you must heed.  Should you come across a heart-shaped ruby, don't eat it.” She turned to the group and began to flicker. “Bye now.”

And Faust was gone.

“What did she say to you,” I asked him.

“Something about a heart-shaped ruby and not eating it.  Where would she get the idea that I would eat something like that?”

Rarity smiled. “Well, this has certainly been an interesting morning.  We should hurry or we'll be late for school.” She glanced down, saw her clothes, and screamed.

“What?  What is it?”

“What is it?”  She gestured to her uniform blouse. “Don't you see it?”

“What's wrong?  It's just a bit dirty, I'm sure nobody will notice.”

“Notice?!  I. Am. The. Class. President!  I must look at my absolute best at all times.  I don't dare show my face at that school looking like this!  I'll be a laughingstock!”  She snatched up her bag and stomped off. “Now, I have to go and change.  Just imagine the hours I'll have to spend washing and bleaching this!”

x----x

“It seems I've underestimated this girl.  She's already found a second Element Bearer.” Luna pulled her cloak tighter around her as she stared into a magical orb. “But I have found an Element Bearer as well.  This Rainbow Dash, should she be found by Twilight Sparkle and be convinced to take up her Element, they could become challenging to deal with.  I would prefer she be convinced to join us.”  She looked over at the trio standing near the entrance of the cave. “While I wish to deal with these Element Bearers myself, with the power I've granted you, they shouldn't pose a problem to you.”

“Don't worry, my Princess Luna,” the trio's leader proclaimed. “These Element Bearers won't be a thorn in your paw for much longer.”

Chapter 7

A tiny shadow darted from rooftop to scaffolding, silhouetted against the setting sun.  Like a monkey, it scaled the scaffolding, leaping to another rooftop swiftly.  It tumbled over the edge and flung out its arms, gripping a tree branch, swinging to the grass, and tumbling back to its feet.

“Time, Rainbow!”

Rainbow slowed to a trot and turned, coming to a stop next to Fluttershy where she doubled over, breathing heavily. “How did I do?”

Fluttershy held up the stopwatch. “Congratulations, you've broken your previous record by one whole second!”

“One second?  That's it?!  I need to be faster!”

Rainbow's sudden outburst startled Fluttershy, who brought up a defensive arm. “Is that bad?”

“Well, no,” Rainbow admitted. “But I need to be better if I want to be accepted into the Wonderbolts Academy.  The competition's next Spring, and if I don't get it this time, I'll have to wait four more years!  I have to impress the judges this year, Fluttershy.  I just have to.”

Fluttershy grinned. “Are you sure it's the judges you want to impress?  Maybe you're actually looking to impress Soarin.”

Rainbow jumped as if she had been kicked. “I have no idea what you're talking about.”

Fluttershy sighed heavily and looked off towards the sunset.

“What's on your mind, Flutters?”

“Do you mind that I'm your friend?  I mean, you're not just tolerating me, are you?”

“What are you talking about?  Of course I like you.  How long have we known each other?”

“Three years.”

“And, in all that time, when have you ever known me to be mean to you?  And teasing doesn't count 'cause you do that too.”

“Never.”

“Uh-huh, so what's with the sudden loss of confidence?”

“It's just that...I feel like I'm a burden to you.”

Rainbow rubbed her temples in irritation.  As much as she loved her friend, Flutters' lack of confidence could be trying at times.  They had to have had this conversation at least once a week. “You're not a burden to me.  It was you who approached me, remember?  If you hadn't had the confidence to approach me, I'd probably still be alone.  Although I have to admit, I would have never imagined having a shy and quiet girl like you for a friend.”

“I'm not shy.” Fluttershy objected, weakly.

“Oh, please.  You're afraid of your own shadow.”  Rainbow threw an arm around Fluttershy's shoulders and pulled the taller girl down to her level.

“Rainbow, no matter how long we're together, you'll always be my friend, right?”

“Always!” Rainbow gave Fluttershy a fist bump.

“Ow!  That hurt.”  Fluttershy yelped and massaged her wrist.  She glanced at her watch. “Oh no, I promised my mom I'd be home before dark.  She's going to kill me if I'm late.”

“Go ahead.  I'm going to train a little longer before I head home.”

“Okay. Don't strain yourself and, remember, you promised to meet me in the park tomorrow to help out.”

“Don't worry, I'll be there with bells on!”

Fluttershy gave a final wave over her shoulder and jogged in the direction of her apartment.

x----x

Fluttershy took another look at her watch and nearly fainted.  At the rate she was going, she would almost certainly be late, and if she was late her mother would ground her and she wouldn't be able to go to the park as planned.

She stopped at an alley she knew to be an almost direct route to her house.  Normally, she would go up the street another block and come across before coming back down to her house, essentially making a giant u-turn.  Her mother had warned her to stay away from the alley but she was never specific as to why.

Flutters didn't want to disobey her mother, but she didn't want to be late either.  Quickly, she started down the alley.  She was vigilant of her surroundings, watching every little detail for any sign of trouble.

“Hey girl, what are you doing on our turf?”

Fluttershy, suddenly confronted with two large men, let out a squeak.

“There's a toll for coming through here, y'know,” one said.

“I-I'm sorry.  I don't have any money.”

The other clicked his tongue and shook his head before giving her a leer. “I guess that means you'll have to work for us in...other ways.”

“Think again, losers!”

Something small and green launched past Fluttershy, startling her, and smashed against the ground near the two gangsters, enveloping them in foul-smelling green smoke.

A boy, a few years younger than her, ran up and grabbed her wrist. “Let's get out of here!” He immediately turned and ran back they way they had come, dragging her along with him. “What were you doing down there.  It's dangerous!”

“I'm sorry.  Who are you?”

“Name's Spike and I'll be your rescuer-” Spike's words were cut off with a grunt as he ran into a third gangster.

“Where do you think you're going, kid.  Nobody moves through Diamond Dog territory without paying the toll.”

Fluttershy knelt and helped Spike sit up. “P-Pl-Please, don't hurt us.”

A shrill whistle from the alley's entrance caught their attention. “What are ya'll doin', messin' with them kids?  Wouldn't ya rather mess with someone yer own size?”

Fluttershy looked and saw the muscular farm-girl from school.  The same one who favored the Stetson hat she was wearing and who all of the boys wanted to have.  She had never spoken with the girl but she knew her name.

Applejack.

“Scram, girl.  This isn't any of your business,” one of the gangsters snarled.

“Don't worry, boss.  I'll get rid of her.” A second gangster, the smaller of the three, approached the blonde.

“That so,” Applejack asked, cocking her head.

“Hey, doll.  Why don't you learn your place and show us men some of your southern hospitality.”  The gangster leered at her and stroked the underside of her chin.

Applejack's grimace turned into a grin...

...as she drove her knee into his groin.

The gangster let out a strangled groan as he curled up and fell to the side.

“How ya likin' my 'southern hospitality' now, boy?”

The first gangster balled up his fists and charged her. “You're gonna pay for that, you stupid bitch!”

Just as he swung, she dropped into a crouch and planted her hands on the ground.  Rotating upward, she straightened her legs, placing a powerful kick into his chest and launching him back several feet.  As she stood and turned, the third gangster was on top of her.  She raised her hands and gripped his, blocking his attack.

“Let's see who's the strongest here, girlie.”

“I reckon,” she said in a strained voice, “that would be me.”

She flexed her hands, crushing both of his in her grip.  She spun and leaped, using a combination of her momentum and strength to fling him over her head and into a nearby dumpster.  “Never used a dumpster to get ridda trash before.” She said with a snort, “Kinda obvious, now that Ah think about it.”

Fluttershy helped Spike to his feet. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah.  I'm fine.”  He looked about for the mysterious girl with the amazing combat skills and spotted a blonde ponytail vanishing around the corner.  “Hey!  Wait up!”

It took only a moment for them to catch up with her.

“You're amazing!” Spike gushed. “Thanks for back there.”

“Don't worry about it, kid.  Just make sure ya stay outta trouble from now on.”  She turned to glare at Fluttershy. “An' you, just what kinda stunt were ya pullin' back there?”

“I-It was a mistake.  I won't go back there again, I promise.”

Applejack let out an irritated groan. “That ain't what Ah was talkin' about.  What if this kid got hurt or somethin'?  Whatcha gonna do then, eh?  Cryin' and beggin' ain't no help to nobody.  What if one of yer family got hurt?  What's yer plan then, bein' paralyzed by panic?”

“I-I'm sorry.”

Applejack turned and adjusted her hat. “Ya'll best get on home now.  It's late.”  She said as she began to walk away.

“Th-thank you, friend.”

She froze mid-stride. “What did ya just call me?”

Fluttershy began to tremble. “F-f-f-friend?”

Applejack spun and marched back to Fluttershy, who squeaked as she was grabbed roughly by her collar and pulled close. “Now you listen here, girl, and listen good.” She spoke slowly, over-enunciating each word. “Ah am not, nor will Ah ever be, yer friend.”  She shook Fluttershy. “Ya got that?”

Fluttershy nodded, terrified and on the verge of tears.

Spike intervened, breaking the two of them apart and shoving Applejack away. “What is your problem?  She only called you a friend.”

She turned her ferocious glare on the boy, who stood his ground, meeting her gaze levelly.  For a moment, her countenance changed from seething wrath to...vulnerability.  There was terrible pain behind her eyes and it became obvious to Spike that the anger was just a facade she hid behind and used as a barrier to keep others away.

With a final sigh, she turned away. “Friendship ain't nothin' but a joke.  Ya want mah advice, son?  Don't let any friends close.  Don't trust anyone.  You'll only get hurt in the end.”

x----x

It was well past dark when Rainbow decided on a final run.  As she began with a sprint to build up momentum, another runner cut across her path.  She pulled up short and was ready to rebuke him when she noticed what he was doing.  He vaulted a wall and made a perfect precision leap to the railing on the other side before flipping off and rolling backwards to his feet.

“Woah,” Rainbow whispered in awe.

She watched him dart across the lawn and scale a building's front with the ninja leap, alternating sides of a crevice to climb to the roof.

“No way,” she cried. “Only Spitfire, Fleetfoot, and Soarin, the Wonderbolts' Elite, can do that.”

The runner turned and beckoned her up behind her.  She had never done a ninja leap before, convinced it was well outside of her ability but, “If he can do it, so can I.”

She began her run, cutting across the lawn at a full sprint before making her first leap.  She gathered her strength and leaped to the second point, then the third, then the fourth.  Finally, with a fifth leap, she was within an arm's reach of the edge of the roof.

But there was a problem.  She had run out of energy.

She struggled to claw her way up.  Her grip was slipping and she was certain she was going to fall when a hand reached out and grabbed hers.  She looked up to see the stranger gazing down at her.

“I've got you, Rainbow.”

Chapter 8

After catching her breath and her composure, Rainbow climbed to her feet. “Thanks for that.  Looks like I bit off a little more than I could chew.”  She noticed her savior.  She couldn't see much of him with his hood up but he bore a striking resemblance to...”Soarin?”

He laughed as he shook his head and pushed back his hood. “Sorry.  They call me Descent.”

She couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that her savior wasn't her idol. “I thought you might be Soarin of the Wonderbolts.”

“You know them?”

Her eyes lit up as she started in on her favorite topic. “Do I?  There's Spitfire, who's unmatched in speed and reflexes.  Fleetfoot is beyond flexible.  She can slip through even the narrowest gap.  Soarin, oh God, Soarin is so strong.  He can clear gaps like you wouldn't believe.  It was him who made me fall in love with Parkour.  I mean he-”

“I get it.  I get it, Rainbow,” Descent replied with a laugh. “You love the guy.”

“Wait a sec.  How do you know my name?”

“Well, even if your hair wasn't a dead giveaway, I'd still know who you were.  Everybody who's anybody in extreme sports knows you.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I'm talking about that near-victory at the Wonderbolts competition three years ago.  It was incredible what you managed to do at only ten years old.”

“That's not how I remember it,” she confessed. “I lost.  I just wasn't good enough or I'd be studying at the Wonderbolts Academy.”

“To be honest, I'm kinda glad you didn't get in.”

“What the-?  How dare you?” She snapped.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, I didn't mean it like that.  If you managed to get in, I would have never had the chance to tell you about my team, the Shadowbolts.”

“Shadowbolts?  I've never heard of that academy.”

“We're not academy nerds.  We're pros and each of us has multiple championships to our names.”

“No way!  Is that why you're so awesome?  What's a champ like you doing in a dump like Ponyville?”

“We're recruiting for a tournament in Moscow.  When they asked me who I thought we should bring aboard, I immediately thought about you.  You have real potential to be as good as any one of us, maybe even better.  All you need is a little bit of polish.”

“I was kinda hoping to train with Soarin.”

“Why?  You already proved that you're as good as any one of them and I know you've been training like crazy since then.  You're the best, plain and simple, and we want you.”

“But, it's always been my dream to compete with Soarin.”

“Wouldn't it be better to compete against him?  You consider him to be your trainer right?  What better way than for the student to surpass the master in combat?”

“You really think I'm as good as Soarin?”

“I know you are.”

Rainbow stared at Descent with new found respect. “Alright.  I'm in!”

He smiled. “Excellent.  I want you to meet me here after school tomorrow.”

Rainbow remembered the promise she made to Fluttershy. “Can't we do it at this same time?  I kinda made a promise that I really want to keep.”

He shook his head. “You need to showcase your talent before the rest of the team if you're going to join.  As such, I want to teach you some sick moves to impress the others and we'll need as much time we can get.  I'm sure your friend will understand.”

She nodded. “Yeah.  Yeah, she'll be alright.  After school, right?”

He pulled something out of his pocket. “I knew you wouldn't disappoint me.  Take this.  My trainer gave it to me.  Think of it like an all-access pass.  Security won't give you grief if they see that.”

She slipped the necklace around her neck and inspected the pendant.  “Sweet!  You're trainer gave you this?”

“Yeah.  Her name is Luna.”

“Is she an extreme athlete like you?”

“She's the best.”

x----x

I found the note from Rarity on my locker telling me to meet her in the Home Economics department after school.  I went there, down the silent empty halls, wondering what it was Rarity wanted me for.  When I opened the door, a really strange sight greeted me.

“Rarity, what is Pinkie wearing?”

The one-piece body suit was bright pink and extremely form-fitting.  On her thighs, were the tattoo usually appeared, were three balloons, exactly like her tattoo.  The boots, gloves, and cowl all matched the suit and were finished it all off with a pair of pink ears mounted on her head.

“It's an example of our new battle suits.” Rarity exclaimed, applauding herself.

“Told you she'd like them.”  Pinkie squealed.

“Why do we need battle suits?”

“Oh, please.  Everybody wears suits, cops, firefighters, soldiers.  Besides, yesterday's battle left me doing laundry for nearly two hours.  I will not be doing that again.”

“Have you forgotten that Faust told us that we would have more complete transformations when we find all of the Element Bearers?”

“Right and, until then, we can wear these.”

“These creatures could appear at any time.  Do you think we're going to have time to change into those?”

“We can wear them under our clothes.  Besides, Pinkie really seems to like hers.  Don't you, Pinkie dear?”

Pinkie was curled on her side, on the floor, with the suit's fluffy pink tail in her mouth.

“What on earth are you doing, Pinkie?”

Pinkie gave an embarrassed giggle and stood. “Sorry.  I was just thinking about how much that tail looked like cotton candy and then I realized how hungry I was and when I realized how hungry I was I began to wonder-”

Rarity held up a hand, “Enough, I get it.  Just be sure to wash it.”  She picked up another suit, dark purple with a star burst markings, “Twilight, this one is yours.”

Oh no.  I would have none of that.  Without another word, I turned and left, leaving my two stunned friends behind.

“Twilight, where are you going?”

x----x

“Ponified humans, of all the nerve.  Only Rarity could think up something that ridiculous.  I mean, really, absolute nonsense.” I ranted under my breath as I left the school and crossed into the park across the street.  Standing near one of the fountains, I could see a willowy girl with light-pink hair holding a bulky bag.  She was wearing filthy coveralls and seemed to be waiting for someone.

Something about this girl seemed very familiar.  I knew I had seen her before and was pretty certain I had a class or two with her but, for the life of me, I couldn't remember her name.

Since beginning this little quest for friendship, I had found that making friends was a lot easier than I had anticipated.  Pinkie was a lot of fun and Rarity was a wonderful person.  I wondered if this girl might like to be my friend, as well.  If not, it might still be nice to know a classmate that I partner up with for group projects and lab work.

“Hello,” I said.  She started a bit at my voice and watched me shyly from the corner of her eye. “My name is Twilight Sparkle.”

She mumbled something.

“I'm sorry.  I didn't quite catch that.”

Somehow, she managed to mumble even more softly.

“Okay.  I still didn't quite hear you.”

The girl turned a glowing red and let out something of a multi-syllabic squeal.

“Hey, Twi.  Have you seen Rarity?”

I turned to find Spike standing right behind me. “She's inside with Pinkie, working on some kind of project.”

“SPIKE!” The girl squealed with enough volume to make me wince before rushing forward and wrapping my brother in her arms. “How are you?  Oh, it's so good to see you!”

“I-I'm fine, Fluttershy.  How are you?  Didja get home alright?”

“Wait, wait, wait one second,” I said.  Spike didn't even go to the same school as me. “How do you two know each other?”

“He saved my life!” Fluttershy proclaimed.

I turned to my brother. “This is going to be good.  I can tell.”

Spike immediately launched into a story about seeing Fluttershy go into an alley marked by the Diamond Dog gang and rescuing her from certain doom.  I wouldn't have believed it if Fluttershy hadn't been there to back-up everything he said.

“How many times have I told you-” I began, my voice steadily rising, “-to stay out of that area!”

“It was my fault, really.”  Fluttershy explained quietly, “He only went down there to protect me.  My mother always told me to not go down there but I was running late and I thought it would be a shortcut.”

I sighed and pinched my brow.  Why did life have to be so difficult? “You did a good thing, little brother.” I told him, patting his shoulder. “Never do it again.  I do not want to have to explain to Mom and Dad why their son has had his throat slit when I was supposed to be watching him.  Please don't put me in that position.”

“She was going to be hurt, Twilight.”

“I understand, Spike.  I'm not saying what you did was wrong.  What I'm saying is I don't want you making a habit of it.”

“Like I said, it was my fault.”

I turned to Fluttershy and smiled. “Don't worry about it.  At least, you all made it out okay.”

“Alright, I'm off.” Spike said, “Gotta go see what Rarity's up to.”

“Don't be a pest, Spike.  If she's working, leave her alone.  I'd better not get any complaints.” I warned him.

Fluttershy waved, “Bye, Spike.  See you soon.”

I turned to her. “I have to ask, what are you doing out here with that bag?”

“Well, I was waiting for a friend but she's running really late.  That's unusual.  I hope nothing's happened to her.”

x----x

Rainbow sighed with exhaustion as she sat down and guzzled the water from the bottle Descent handed her.

“Excellent, Rainbow.  You're picking this up faster than I thought.  That last run was perfect.  Again!”

“Sure...thing,” she panted. “Gimme a...couple...ah...minutes.  Need to...catch my...breath.”

“Alright.  Let's take five then I'll show you the next set.  You're really gonna wow the team.”

“Thanks for showing me those moves.  I just hope Flutters isn't too upset about me backing out on her.  I'll have to make it up, somehow.”

x----x

“So this is what you do after school?” I asked as I held the tiny sapling steady while Fluttershy piled the dirt in around it. “Why?”

“I'm an only child but I've always wanted a brother or sister.  My mom says that, when I prove myself responsible and a good caretaker, we'll adopt.  When that happens, I want this park to have plenty of trees for my sibling to play on.  Also, there's a lot of small birds and animals that need a safe place to build their nests.”  She plunged her trowel into the dirt and wiped away the sweat on her brow. “Thanks for helping me out.  Spike was right about you.”

“It's no problem,” I assured her. “I had some free time today anyways.  What did Spike say?”

“Well, when I talked to him, he told me you were a kind-hearted girl...”

Who knew that my geeky little brother said such wonderful things about me.  I should bake him his favorite cake.

“...But he also said that, sometimes, you can be a grump and kind of nasty. You really shouldn't be that way with him.  He's only a little boy.” She admonished me.

I gave an embarrassed laugh as I rubbed the back of my head.  Yes, Spike, I'll bake you that cake.  Then, I'll smash your face into it.  A quick change of subject was in order. “Why is it that I always see you by yourself out here?  I though I was the only girl who didn't know anybody.”

Fluttershy sighed. “I don't really have any friends, besides Rainbow.  The truth is that I don't really trust my classmates.  They always pick on me and call me nasty names.”

“Nasty names?”

“Uh-huh.  Sometimes, they even throw things at me.”

I gasped. “That's bullying.  That's against the law.  Why do you let them do that to you?  Why not tell somebody?”

She shrugged. “I guess I've learned to deal with it.  I've never been strong, like Rainbow, I deserve to be treated like that.”

“No!  Nobody deserves to be treated like that.  From now on, Fluttershy, nobody's going to bother you while I'm around!”

She giggled. “You sound just like Rainbow.  Thank you.”

A cat's yowling broke through our little bonding moment.  We both looked up to see a small tabby struggling with something in the grass by the lake.  When we got up to take a closer look, we saw that a length of old fishing line was wrapped around its leg.

“I'll get it.” I volunteered, kneeling down and reaching for the animal.

The cat growled and swiped at me, digging its claws into the back of my hand and tearing the skin open, leaving three red scratches behind.  I helped and hissed as I gripped the painful wound. “It's too wound up to let us anywhere near it.  What are we going to do?”

Fluttershy smiled kindly. “Don't worry, Twilight.  I can get it.”

“No, don't do it.  It'll scratch you.”

She pulled off one of her work gloves and carefully held out a hand to the cat.  It sniffed the back of her fingers delicately before purring.  She picked it up while speaking in a soft, quiet voice and carefully unwrapped the clear line from the cat's leg.

Something warm was in my pocket.  I grabbed the jewel mold and saw that Kindness was glowing brightly.  I looked over at Fluttershy, who had set the cat down and was holding out the line for it to bat at.  I checked Kindness again and it continued to glow.  Fluttershy was the Bearer of the Element of Kindness.

Chapter 9

“Bye-bye, kitty.”  Fluttershy called and promptly let out a squeal as I embraced her.

“Fluttershy, it's incredible.”

“Don't scare me like that.”

“I'm sorry, but you're someone I've been looking for.  You're a Bearer of Harmony!  Oh, this is so exciting!”

Fluttershy blinked, “I don't think I understand.”

“Oh, don't worry about it.” I grabbed her hand and began to pull her along behind me. “You need to meet my friends, up at the school.  I'll explain everything on the way.”

x----x

“Well, you've certainly proven yourself, Rainbow.  I'm always happy when I have the right hunch about an athlete.”  Descent said when they had finished training. “The rest of the team just got here.”  He gestured to a slim woman with well-defined muscle, “This is Nightingale, the de facto leader of our group.”

Nightingale crossed her arms and gave Rainbow an appraising eye. “You're the little girl Descent's been raving about.  I figured you'd be taller and older.”

“Size doesn't matter.” Rainbow shot back, “I can win any competition, anywhere!”

“Whoa-ho.  I like the fire in this one.”

“Don't tease her, Nightingale.  Rainbow's a tough act.  That's Haze, behind you.”

Rainbow turned to find what was, quite possibly, the largest man she had ever seen.  Each of his massive dark-skinned arms were about as big around as her entire torso and he stood her height plus half.  His gaze was completely expressionless as he watched her.

“So, Rainbow,” Nightingale said, “Descent tells us you're into Parkour.  Are there any other sports you do?”

“Yeah.  I surf in the summer and, during the winter, I snowboard, but I've been concentrating on Parkour for the Wonderbolt's tournament.”

Nightingale took Descent's notes and started reading through them, “You've got a good record here but I'm the kind of girl who has to see it to believe it.”

“Well, then, what are we waiting for?  I'm more than ready to show you that I'm more than just hot air.”

“You might be but we're not.  It'll take us a couple of hours to get set up.  Come back in, oh, two hours or so and we'll see what you can do.”

“Yeah, sure thing.”  Rainbow turned and took off for the park.  Two hours would be more than enough time to help Fluttershy.

“Did you give her the necklace?” Nightingale asked Descent as they watched the girl leave.

“Yes.  She's wearing it right now, as a matter of fact.  I don't agree with the plan, though.  It would be so much easier to just take her to Luna against her will.”

“Luna wants Rainbow as an ally, not as a slave.  We must be patient.  The necklace's spell will do its work soon enough.

“By the way.  Luna wants to speak with you.  Be sure to contact her immediately.”

They both turned as Haze started to wander away.

“Where are you going?” Nightingale called.

“I have things to do.  I'll see you two tomorrow.”  He rumbled, giving a wave of one massive hand.

“Do you ever get the feeling that he's hiding something?” Descent asked.

“I do.  We should watch him carefully.  He's very good at what he does and I don't think he's stupid enough to cross Luna.  That would be like crossing Death itself.”

x----x

“YAY!  Another new friend!”  Pinkie cried as she picked Fluttershy up and spun her around. “I love making new friends!”

“Oh, please.  Please, put me down.  I'm terrified of heights.”

“Twilight, darling, I can understand your enthusiasm to gather Element Bearers but are you certain Fluttershy is one of the ones we're looking for?”

“Yes.  The jewel was glowing and the jewels never lie.  You should have seen her calm a cat that had its leg tied up in fishing line.  It was great!  I have no doubt that Fluttershy is the Element of Kindness.”

“If you say so.”  Rarity replied, eying Fluttershy doubtfully.

“Was I really a pony in another life, and can I transform?  I've only ever seen magical girls transform in Anime.”

“Yes, Fluttershy, you can transform.” I assured her. “We all can, but we have to find someplace safe to do so.”

“Oooooh,” Pinkie squealed, raising her hand and hopping excitedly, “I have an idea.  Why don't we have a slumber party?”

“That's an excellent idea, Pinkie.”  Rarity replied, “A slumber party would be the perfect opportunity to show Fluttershy that we're telling the truth and to coach her through her new abilities.  Oh, we can have it on Friday!”

“A slumber party?” I asked.

“Twilight, haven't you ever had friends over for slumber parties?”

“Well, considering that I've never had friends before, no.  No, I have not.  I wouldn't even know what to do at them.”

“Oh, it's very simple.” Fluttershy assured me. “We get together for a night at somebody's house.”

“Oh, and it's so much fun.” Pinkie squealed. “Especially with games like Karaoke and snacks.”

Everybody winced at the thought of Pinkie Pie doing Karaoke.

“Have you ever had a slumber party, Fluttershy?” asked Rarity.

“Yes, with my friend, Rainbow.”

x----x

Rainbow crossed over the threshold of the school's front gate and wandered across the empty courtyard.  Fluttershy hadn't been anywhere in the park. “I hope she's not still waiting for me in front of the school.”

She rounded a corner and spotted Fluttershy talking with three other girls.  One of which was Rarity, one of the popular girls. “Oh no, not again.”

x----x

“Did you have slumber parties when you were little, Pinkie?”

“Yes, I had them all the time but my guests were a bit quiet.  I guess that wouldn't be unexpected.  They were rocks, after all.”

I blinked and scratched my head. Rocks?

“FLUTTERSHY!!”

Fluttershy started and turned to the source of the voice. “Rainbow!  There you are!  Hello!”

The tiny rainbow-haired girl marched up and poke Fluttershy in the chest. “What are you doing with these girls?”

I tried to step in and introduce myself. “Are you Fluttershy's friend?  My name is Twilight-”

“Shaddup!  I wasn't talking to you!” Rainbow snapped.

“Rainbow, be nice.  These are my new friends.”

“No!  I am your friend, your only friend.  Do you hear me?”

“Don't speak to people like that,” Rarity admonished as she stepped up.

“Shut up, grandma.”  Rainbow responded.

Rarity stood in open-mouthed shock. “She...she called me 'grandma'.”  An inferno leaped into her eyes as she launched herself forward, only to be restrained by Pinkie.

“Rarity, calm down.”

“She called me 'grandma'!  That insolent little whelp!  I'll tear her apart!”

Rainbow gave a contemptuous glare over her shoulder before returning her attention to Fluttershy. “Them or me.  You decide!”

“I...I, uh.”  She stuttered.

Without waiting for a full reply, Rainbow seized Fluttershy's hand and began to drag her away.

“Fluttershy?” I called.

“I...I'm sorry, Twilight.”

x----x

Rainbow kept up a furious pace as she marched away from the school, dragging Fluttershy along behind her. “I don't want to see you anywhere near those girls again.  Ya got me, Flutters?  They will never be our friends.”

“If only you knew them.  You might see that they aren't that bad.”

“Not that bad?  Are you kidding me?  Rarity's one of them and she's the most popular girl in school.  Don't you remember what happened the last time those popular girls were your friends?”

Fluttershy remembered those girls and how they seemed to take a genuine interest in her life.  They had invited her to sit with them at lunch, picked her to be on their team during Physical Education, and included her in their group.

Until one day, after school, they dumped a bucket of soiled water from a backed-up toilet onto her.  She was an absolute mess, smelled horrible, and was a laughingstock.  She had fled from the school in tears.

She remembered standing on an overpass, staring at the street below, and wondering if dying hurt.  It certainly couldn't hurt worse than the humiliation she had received at the hands of those girls, or the humiliation she would receive for years to come.  She climbed over the railing, closed her eyes, and was prepared when a hand grabbed her arm.

That was the same day she met Rainbow.

“If I hadn't been there, at that moment, you would have taken your own life and only because of some idiots' mockery.”  Rainbow sighed, “I'm the only one you can trust.”

“These girls aren't like those other ones.  I'm sure of it.”

“No!”  Rainbow whirled on Fluttershy and grabbed the straps of her coveralls. “They're all the same!  I only want to protect you but you keep insisting on trying to get hurt like before!  Why?  You know that nobody at that school likes us and that we can only depend on ourselves.

“That's going to change really soon.  I know some good people and they're going to help us get out of here.  I just have to do something really quick and we can go.  It's going to be okay, Flutters.  I promise.”

“I don't understand.”

“Don't worry about it.  Just trust me.  I gotta go, I'm meeting them now.  Wait for me in the park and I'll come and find you as soon as I'm done.  I'll make up for not being there earlier, I swear.”

“Okay, Rainbow.  Please be careful.”

Rainbow nodded and rushed forward, pulling Fluttershy into a tight embrace.  She was startled by this show of emotion from the normally stoic athlete.

“I love you, Fluttershy, and I won't fail you, like I did with Gilda.”

x----x

“Little cat, my princess tells me that you possess the soul of a powerful Equestrian beast.”  Descent declared as he picked up the cat.  He pulled a Discord jewel from his pocket. “It is time to reveal your true form for all of the world to see.”

x----x

Fluttershy sat in the rays of the fading sun, wondering what was keeping Rainbow.  Her friend had been acting strangely and, frankly, it scared her.

A finger slipped along the back of her neck, gentle as a breeze. “Fluuuuuutttterrrshyyyy.”

Fluttershy snapped around to look but saw no one.  “H-hello?  Is somebody there?”

Something gently tugged on her hair, “Fluuuuuutttterrrshyyyyy.”

She snapped around again to find no one.  Something told her to look down and she saw Pinkie staring up at her from beneath the bench.

“Why did you leave?”  The girl asked with a frightening grin on her face.

Fluttershy's shriek echoed off of the nearby buildings as she rocketed up from her seat and fell back into the grass.

Twilight marched up and collared the pink-haired girl, “Idiot!  You're scaring her.”

“I just wanted to play a joke.” Pinkie objected.

“What are you girls doing here?”  Fluttershy asked.

“We were passing through and saw you sitting here.”  Rarity explained, “We thought it was a little odd that you would leave us to go sit by yourself.”

“Yeah, besides, you looked all saddy-waddy.” The pink-haired girl chimed in.

“I'm waiting for Rainbow.” Fluttershy explained. “Please leave, I don't want anymore trouble with her.”

“She can't forbid you to see other people.” Twilight objected.

“She just doesn't want to see me get hurt again.”

“What sensible friend would?”  Rarity asked as she sat down next to Fluttershy. “That's no reason to isolate yourself.”

“Please don't make me choose between you and Rainbow.”  Fluttershy begged.

“We'd never make you choose.  We just wanted to talk with you and Rainbow both.  We want to be her friends, too.”  Pinkie explained.

“You'd really do that?”

“Oh, look at the cute kitty.” Pinkie squealed.

Twilight glanced over, “Fluttershy, isn't that the cat from earlier.”

The cat growled menacingly and began to glow.

“What's that?”  Fluttershy cried.

The shape grew and grew.  Great leathery wings sprouted from its back.  Its tail lengthened and hardened, growing an armored carapace and a large spiked tip.  It's claws grew and sharpened and its fur darkened.

Fluttershy shrieked again.  Pinkie immediately began to change into that ridiculous outfit that Rarity made.

“I recognize this creature.” Twilight announced. “I saw a picture of it in that book Celeste gave me.  It's a Manticore.”  She glowed as she transformed.

Fluttershy's jaw fell open as she witnessed the transformation. “It's all true.  You are powerful warriors.”

“Yes, yes,” Rarity interrupted a little more brusquely than necessary. “Now, if you'll please stand back so that we can take care of this, there will be plenty of time for amazement later.”

“Oh, of course.” Fluttershy retreated to a safe distance.

Twilight turned to Rarity, “You ready?”

“But, we have class tomorrow and I'll get all icky.”

Twilight rolled her eyes, “Whatever.  I'll do your laundry if it'll make you feel better.  Pinkie, are you ready?”

Pinkie was busy pulling on her boots, “Just a minute.”

The Manticore decided to take that moment to attack.  It leaped at Pinkie, who barely rolled out of the way in time.

“I said in a minute, kitty.”  She cried as she hobbled away.

“Do you see my point about the costumes?”  Twilight asked Rarity.

“Yes, it seems these creatures grow ruder by the day.”

x----x

“Excellent Rainbow.  You followed my instructions without stopping.  That has to be some of the best work I've ever seen.” Nightingale complimented

“Was there any doubt?  Where's Descent?”

“He had some things to take care of but my decision will be upheld by the team.”

“And what is your decision?”

Nightingale paused for dramatic emphasis, “Congratulations, Rainbow.  You can now consider yourself a Shadowbolt.”

“YES!  This is great!”

“Now, I'm sure Descent told you we're currently operating out of Cannes.  If that's acceptable, we can begin drawing up the paperwork.  We'll talk with your father and have you in France for training by next week.”

“Awesome!  Fluttershy's going to be so psyched!  She's always wanted to go to Europe.”

Nightingale's brow creased, “Who's Fluttershy?”

“My best friend and personal trainer.  She's going to be coming with me.”

“I'm sorry, Rainbow.  This invitation is open to you and only you.”

Rainbow stopped celebrating. “No way!  I promised her that she could come with me.  I can't leave her behind.  She's like a sister to me.”

Nightingale shrugged, “Take it or leave it, kid.”

“I...uh...I.”  Rainbow felt a strange sensation come over her.  As if something was compelling her to accept Nightingale's offer.

She sat on the edge of a rooftop, next to her idol and crush.

“I need you to  promise me something.” Soarin said.

“Anything.” Rainbow squeaked.

“I want you to promise me that you'll never change.  Always be loyal to your friends.  They're all you'll ever have in this world.”

She lifted a pinkie and smiled when he hooked his in hers, “Promise.”

“No!” She snapped.

“No?”

“I'm not going to leave Fluttershy.  I'm her only friend and she needs me!”  She pushed back her hood and met Nightingale's gaze. “Thanks, but no.  I'm afraid I'm going to have to turn you down.”

And, with those words, she stalked off into the sunset.

Nightingale felt her anger rise.  Never before had she been turned down. “Her loyalty for this Fluttershy is greater than the necklace's spell.  Descent was right.  It'd be easier to take the brat by force.”  She called her magic, a simple stunning spell would do.

“Nightingale, stay thy hand!”

“Princess, you can see me?”

“I can see everything and I know what you're thinking.”

“Luna, Rainbow's loyalty for Fluttershy is really strong.”

“And that is the reason that her loyalty will be in our favor in the end.  Whether it's the sadness of seeing her dead friend or her rage at seeing that same friend with others, her loyalty will be what brings her to us.”

Chapter 10

Celeste had been working incredibly hard to translate the entirety of the book she had found and, every day, I would wake to find more and more pages in my email in-box.  I, in turn, worked to learn to use the spells to their full effect and, as such, I now had several powerful incantations at my disposal.

I leaped into the air and threw out my hands, “Tempestatem caelestia!”

A fury of stars flew through the air and struck the ground where the Manticore stood.  The battle had been raging for some time, but the infuriating creature had managed to dodge all of our attacks.

As I began to fall, I noticed the manticore inhale sharply.  On the exhale, it breathed an inferno.  At the rate I was descending, I would land in time to be consumed by the flames.  I willed my direction to reverse, to fling myself into the sky, into orbit, beyond the galaxy, anything to escape being burned to a cinder.

“Murum lapideum!”

A massive wall of stone erupted from the earth and sheilded me from the attack.  Rarity stood just behind it, covering her face in a defensive gesture.  I landed behind her and fell back into the grass.

She glanced at me, “Pinkie and I can handle this.  Get Fluttershy to safety!”

“Wait a sec,” Pinkie squealed.  “I want to try something.”

“This isn't the time for experiments, Pinkie!”  I retorted.  We were getting our butts kicked and she wanted to play around with her powers?  Unbelievable.

“No!  Wait!  This is gonna work.”

Pinkie leaped into action, moving with blinding speed as she constructed something with ice.  I could see a trapizoidal base supporting a cylindrical object.  She straddled the cylinder as the vapor from her work dissappated to reveal a cannon made of ice.

“Party Cannon Freeze Beam!”

The frost-white shot that fired from the cannon arched towards the manticore, who tried to leap to safety.  However, the shot struck, encasing the creature in solid ice several feet thick.

Pinkie giggled, falling back into the snow and making an angel. “Yay!  I love snow!  This is fun!”

I stared out in amazement.  Not only had Pinkie's powerful attack subdued the creature, it had covered the park and much of the surrounding landscape in ankle-deep snow.

“It's beautiful.” Rarity whispered in awe.

“And very cold.” Fluttershy added.

“She defeated the manticore in just one blow.  Her power level has increased dramatically.”

Rarity turned to me. “I'm certain that thing has a Discord jewel in it.  We need to get it out.”

I nodded, “Agreed.”

Not so fast, Twilight Sparkle!

I froze in my tracks.  The voice sent chills down my spine and froze me in a way Pinkie's faux-winter never could.  I knew that voice.

We have only begun!

With a deafening crack, the manticore shattered its icy prison and was free once more.

“Hey!  That wasn't fair!” Pinkie cried, leaping to her feet and stomping her foot in a childish manner. “You broke my pretty ice cake!”

The realization of just who the voice belonged to hit me like a hammer. “Luna!  Celeste put a spell on you that keeps you from entering Ponyville!  How are you able to speak to me?”

Foolish girl!  While I cannot physically enter Ponyville, there is nothing that states that I cannot send my aura or one of my minions.

“It was you who turned that cat into this...thing?”  Rarity asked incredulously.

Apparently, they could all hear Luna's voice.  Good.  For a moment, I had thought I was going crazy.

All I needed was a shard of Discord and a bit of my aura.

“How did you make these creatures appear in Ponyville?”  Rarity asked.

Do you seriously believe that your horrible little cesspool of a city is the only place Discord sends his minions?  No.  These creatures apear all over you world.  The current incarnation of Celestia is responsible for stopping them.  I simply stole one of the Discord jewels and put it in that cat to renew the spirit of the Manticore that resides within.

“How...how could you be so horrible?”  Fluttershy cried.  I started a bit at the sound of her voice.  It wasn't quite a yell, but it was louder than she had been the entire day.  Honestly, I had forgotten she was even there.

I cannot believe that one as weak as you is a Bearer of an Element of Harmony.

I laughed and pushed Fluttershy away. “No.  Nonononono.  She isn't a Bearer.  She just wandered through and got caught up in the crossfire.”

Do you think I am stupid, girl?! I can sense the Element within her!  Manticore, kill the weak one!

At its mistress' command, the manticore leaped into action.

I threw up my hands, conjuring a shield to protect Fluttershy and I.  I hadn't had time to prepare it so it was weaker than usual.  It wouldn't stand long against the onslaught of the manticore's attack.

“Fluttershy, run!”

She nodded and took off, slipping and sliding in the snow as she fled.

“Bad kitty-cat!  You need to chill!”  Pinkie threw out a jet of water, made more powerful by the snow-covered ground, and knocked the beast aside.

Pinkie had adapted well to her jewel.  The ice cannon wasn't a simple spell like I had seen before.  It was a complicated elemental conjuring that had the added effect of blanketing the ground in frozen water.  Pinkie had given herself a decisive advantage.

Apparently, there was a great deal more to this girl than what she showed.  She was quite the strategist.

Manticore, Rain of Thorns

The creature leaped into the air and, with a single flap of its leathery wings, sent a shower of spikes down upon us.

“Scutum fictili!”  Rarity cried, raising the earth to cover us in a stone umbrella.

Manticore, ignore them and go after the weak one!

The manticore used Rarity's sheild as a launch point and leaped for Fluttershy, who stood frozen in terror.

“Fluttershy!”  I cried.

The manticore raised its paw, its massive claws arching toward the terrified girl.  I saw blood and gore splattered across the field.  Fluttershy would not survive.  It was only a matter of time.

A pink blur leaped between them, taking the blow for Fluttershy.  Blood flew as the claws raked across Pinkie's back.

“No!”  Rarity screamed.

“Pinkie!”

Pinkie slammed into the ground with a sickening thud, tumbling like a rag doll before sliding to a halt, leaving a smear of blood in the grass.  Fluttershy rushed to her side

Robbed of its origin, the field spell vanished.

Now, Manticore, use your inferno!

The creature spread its jaws and exhaled, the air igniting with green flame.

Immediately, Rarity threw up another stone barrier, which I reenforced with my sheild magic.

“Rarity, you need to help Pinkie!  Use your healing spell!”  I shouted.

“Are you mad?  You can't possibly hope to hold off this thing on your own!”

“I can hold it off.” I assured her.  “You need to help her.  She'll die.”

“You'll die!”

x----x

“Hold on.”  Fluttershy took Pinkie's hand and held it tightly. “Just hold on.  We'll find some way to help you.  You're going to be okay.”

Pinkie gave a weak giggle. “I suppose...that wasn't such...a good idea.”

“Why?  Why did you do that?”  Fluttershy could feel her tears trickling down her cheeks.

Pinkie smiled.  Already the light in her eyes was dying. “That's what...friends do...for each other...and you're my...friend.  You're already...part...of our...family.”

“Pinkie.  Hold on just a little longer.” Twilight called out.

Enough of this nonsense!  Manticore, finish them off!

The creature took to its wings and soared high into the sky before doubleing over and descending, building speed until it was engulfed in flame from the friction of its passage.  It slammed into the barriers that Rarity and Twilight had erected and shattered it, sending both girls flying.  It landed softly in the grass, quietly stalking the helpless Fluttershy.

“It defeated them,” Fluttershy whispered to herself, “and I'm next.”

A hard stone of fear locked her throat as her vision blurred with tears to the point that she could barely see the beast.

Cryin' ain't good for nothin'

Her eyes instantly cleared as she remembered Applejack's harsh, but true, words.

What'll you do if, one day, the people you love need your help?

She glanced back over her shoulder at the barely-breathing Pinkie. “You're suffering for my mistake.”

She locked eyes with the Manticore and noticed a tear slowly leaking from its eye.

“I don't want...”  She felt anger fill her.  Anger at the world for the suffering within it, and at herself for doing nothing to stop it.  “I don't want anybody to suffer anymore!!!”

An overwhelming power filled her.  She was suddenly aware of the life around her, filling her senses with their presence.  A sharp pain eminated from her shoulder blades as something grew from her back.  A weight was placed upon her brow and she knew she could do anything.  She was no longer the weak, helpless, shy, little girl she once was.  She was a being of true power and she would prove it to the world.

x----x

I sat up and rubbed at the sharp pain in the back of my head.  I was covered in dust and debris from the shattered barrier.  The realization that the manticore had broken through hit me like a blow.  If it had gotten through...

I turned to see it standing just beyond us and, practically beneath it, lay Pinkie, but Fluttershy was nowhere to be seen.  Immediately, my blood ran cold.  How long had I been out?  Had the manticore killed both Fluttershy and Pinkie and was merely waiting for its meal of timid girl before starting in on the second course?  I barely suppressed a scream as my mind conjured unwelcomed images of Fluttershy being devoured.

“Twilight, look!”  Rarity urged, pointing into the sky.

I followed her arm and saw something beyond amazement.  Fluttershy was flying, held aloft by great golden wings.

“Incredible,” Rarity uttered.

“She looks like...an angel.”

Damn this!  Manticore, eliminate her!

The manticore opened its mouth and prepared to fire again.

“Stop!”  Fluttershy barked.  She gave a single beat of her powerful wings, sending a ferocious gust at the manticore.  Immediately, the creature closed its mouth.

What are you waiting for?  Kill her!

“I feel your pain.”  Fluttershy told the creature.  “I can see into your heart.  You're not evil, but you feel compelled to do this monster's bidding.  It pains you like a thorn in your paw.”

The manticore closed its eyes and whimpered.

Fluttershy closed her eyes and folded her hands, seemingly, in supplication.

The grass beneath the manticore shifted and changed, growing into thick vines that wrapped around its limbs and torso.  The manticore roared as it tried to free itself.

“Now, Twilight!”  She commanded.

I immediately began to grope for the Discord jewel and draw it from the manticore.

Fool!  You think your powers are enough to free this beast from my spell?  You're still too weak to defeat me!

“You're wrong, Luna.  I'm no longer that girl you met in the park before.  I now have a power far beyond anything you could command.”  I felt Rarity take my shoulders as she lent her energy to me.  “I have the power of Friendship.”

With a mighty mental yank, I snatched the jewel from the manticore.  Its power taken, it returned to the feline it once was.

While Rarity and I rushed to our fallen friend, Fluttershy landed and knelt to pick up the cat. “Are you okay, little kitty?”

Carefully, I rolled Pinkie onto her side and gasped as I got my first real look at the wounds she had suffered.  The three gashes had carved deep into her sides and back, shredding muscle and exposing bone.  She was barely breathing as I felt for a pulse, which throbbed weakly against my fingertips.

“Rarity, you have to heal her!  We're running out of time!”

“That battle took most of my energy,” she confessed.  “I might not have enough left.”

“Well, do something!  Anything!  We can't just let her die!”

Rarity nodded and held out her hands, whispering her healing incantations.  The emerald aura surrounded Pinkie's body, but it was weak and kept flickering.

“Keep trying, Rarity.”  I urged.  “Put more power into it.”

Rarity's face screwed up and sweat broke out across her brow as she strained to put everything she had into healing Pinkie.  Slowly, I could see the wounds begin to knit shut.

“C'mon, Rarity.  You're doing it.  Just a little more.”

Rarity let out a whimper and the aura vanished with her transformation as she collapsed.

“Get up,” I cried.  “We don't have time for this.  She's dying!”

“'M sorry...Twilight.  I...don't have...anything...left.”  She choked back a sob and beat her fists against the ground. “Oh, Pinkie!  Damn it!”

“No. No, no, no, no.  Pinkie, hold on, please!”  For the first time in my life, I didn't know what to do.  I didn't have any answers.  Just a few short days after discovering the joy of friends, I was about to lose one of the few I had made.  “We need to do something.”

“Let me try.”  Fluttershy said softly as she dropped to her knees and held her hands over Pinkie, mimicing Rarity's posture.

Immediately, Pinkie was enveloped in a blinding golden aura and the scent of spring, of trees and grass, of flowers and wild things, washed over me.  Everything was warm and soft and new and it was all going to be okay.

Fluttershy pulled her hands back and the aura dissapated, but I was too terrified of what I might see to look  Rarity was our healer and, if she wasn't successful, what chance did Fluttershy stand?

I felt Pinkie murmur and stir, rolling in my arms as she came around.  My fingers brushed the frayed edges of the ridiculous uniform Rarity had created and I instinctively drew them back.  I didn't want to cause Pinkie any more pain than she was already in.

It took a moment for my brain to decypher what had just happened.  My fingers had brushed Pinkie's wounds, but she had not reacted.  Carefully, I ran my fingers over the rents in the fabric a second time.

Pinkie giggled. “That tickles.”

My eyes snapped open and I took in the sight.  Pinkie's ghastly wounds had not only vanished, but there was no trace of them having been there at all.

“Pinkie!  You're healed!”

She sat up with a gaspe and ran her hands along her sides, “Twilight, I'm healed.”

“Amazing.  Fluttershy, that magic doesn't seem to exhaust you.”  Rarity observed.

“It was nothing.  I just asked the energy of nature to help.”  Fluttershy laughed as she and I helped Pinkie to her feet. “Are you okay?”

Pinkie's face split into an incredible grin. “I'm better than okay.  I haven't felt this good in forever.”  She pulled Fluttershy into a bone-crushing embrace. “It's all thanks to you, my friend.”

“It was the least I could do after causing so much trouble.”

“What do you mean,” I asked. “You helped us and we're happy to have you.”

Pinkie let out a growl. “It's that bad cat.  I'll get rid of it.”

Fluttershy immediately latched on to Pinkie and held her back.  “Don't!  Leave it alone.  He's not really bad.”

“It's going to attack again, Fluttershy.  I'll protect you.”  Pinkie cried as she stomped at the animal, scaring it off.

“I can't believe it.”  I said, shaking my head, “In a week, I've made three wonderful friends.”

“You're right, Twilight,” Pinkie chirped, her mood shifting instantly.  “In fact, we should record this moment for posterity.”

Without waiting for a reply, Pinkie pulled each of us close and conjured a camera from somewhere.  “This is going straight to my Facebook!”

“Absolutely not,” Rarity objected, “I look simply deranged after that battle.”

“Are they always like this?”  Fluttershy asked.

“Yes, but you'll get used to it.”  I replied.

With a click, Pinkie snapped a photo and, before Rarity could stop her, did as she promised and posted it.

“So...you chose them over me.”

We all turned to find Rainbow standing behind us.

“How could you, Fluttershy?  I gave up everything for you.” She said, tears coursing down her cheeks. “How could you stab me in the back like this?”

“Rainbow, please, I can explain.”  Fluttershy reached out for her friend, who immediately slapped the hand away.

“All I asked was that you wait for me.  I told you I would come back.”

“It's not what you think.”

“They liked me.  They offered me a position on their team.  I was going to travel the world and compete with the Shadowbolts, but I turned them down.  Do you know why?  Because they said I couldn't bring you with me.  I didn't want it if I couldn't share it with...with you.”  Rainbow took a breath and screamed, “How could do this to me?!  I gave up everything for you!  All that I wanted in return was your loyalty, but I come back to find you with...them!”

“Rainbow, if you would just let me explain.”

“Save it!  I don't want to hear whatever lame-ass excuse you have!”  She trembled with rage and pain, hate filling her eyes. “I hope you enjoy your new...friends, Fluttershy.  Stay the hell away from me.  I never want to see you again.”

Fluttershy fell to her knees and began to sob.

“And you three,”  Rainbow pointed an accusitory finger at us. “You'll pay for what you've done.  I promise you that.”

And, with those words, she turned and fled.

x----x

“Princess Luna could not defeat the Bearers.” Descent informed his partner.

Nightingale took a bite of an apple and chewed contemplatively before answering. “This battle was decisive.  She said that, no matter the outcome of the battle itself, it would be a victory for us.”

Descent cocked his head, “What do you mean?”

Someone cleared their throat and they both turned to see Rainbow standing behind them, staring at the ground, gripping her elbow, and looking thoroughly dejected.

“Is there something we can do for you, Rainbow Dash?”  Nightingale prompted.

“I...uh...I wanted to see if that offer was still open.”  The girl said quietly, without her usual boisterousness.

“Why the sudden change of heart?”

“There's nothing tying me to this city anymore.”

“But what about that girl.  The one you said was closer than a sister to you?”

Rainbow sighed, “Apparently, she didn't feel the same way.”

It was too dark for her to see the grin that Nightingale and Descent shared.

“Rainbow Dash, we'd be happy to have you with us.  Welcome to the Shadowbolts.”

x----x

And so, we have another in our group.  Her name is Fluttershy and she's a wonderful girl with a heart overflowing with kindness.  Though it should have been a day of celebration.  We couldn't. Because of us, Rainbow, one of Fluttershy's oldest friends, broke off the relationship and left.  Poor Fluttershy was absolutely devistated...

I sat back and reviewed the letter I had written to my sister.  Lately, I had been sending them regularly to keep her up-to-date on our progress at bringing the Elements together.

After walking Fluttershy home, we all parted ways, each of our hearts troubled by what had happened.  Though we could all agree that Rainbow's actions had been unreasonable, we still couldn't help but feel responsible for ending what had, obviously, been a very dear friendship.

With a sigh, I sent the letter and turned out the light.  I had school in the morning.

Chapter 11

Recent events were troubling me.  I was still very new to this whole friendship thing and I really didn't know how to help Fluttershy, despite my desire to do so.  The poor girl had been in a constant depression since Rainbow had left and I knew I had to fix this before Rainbow left Ponyville for good.

Celeste had been one of the most popular girls in school, to such a degree that it would make Rarity green with envy.  Yet, she had never let any of that go to her head, remaining just as sweet and kind as she had always been.  She did everything she could to help all of her friends and had seen everything from break-ups to a rather unfortunate prom night accident involving her best friend, a car, and too much alcohol.

She would know what to do.

I met her on the astral plane, wanting training in some of the more difficult spells that I hadn't mastered on my own.  I tried my hardest to pay attention while she explained and demonstrated the aura analysis technique that would help me identify the final two Elements.  Unfortunatly, I found my mind returning to Fluttershy.  That girl, in such a fragile emotional state, might do something tragic.

“-So you can use this spell to see the level of energy in an opponent or anybody else you might be curious about.”  Celeste pointed to her dimly glowing eyes. “And, the best part is that it doesn't use that much magical energy.”

She blinked, “Twilight, are you listening to me?”

I wasn't.

“Twilight?”

I suddenly felt a sharp pain in my ear, snapping me back to the present moment. “Huh?”

“Twilight Sparkle, I can't believe you.  You ask me out here to teach you about Aura Analysis and the Stella Magna technique and you're not even paying attention.  What's with you?”

I sighed, “Sorry.  I can't figure out what to do with Fluttershy and Rainbow.  I feel so guilty.”

She gave me a sympathetic smile. “It's not your fault.  If their friendship is true, they'll find a way to fix it, but they'll need your help and the help of the others.”

“I hope you're right.” I told my sister.

Celeste rubbed her hands together energetically. “Alright, let's finish up here so you can get to bed.  You have school in the morning.”

I shook my head. “I'm not going.”

Celeste's jaw dropped, “What?”  The thought that I was considering skipping school was incredible.

“Fluttershy's terrified that Rainbow will leave before they have a chance to fix their friendship.  I have to find her and convince her to, at least, sit down and talk with us.”

I heard a low snore behind me and turned to find my sister sitting on the ground, pretending to sleep.  I seized her shirt and shook her violently.  “Oh, so now you're not listening to me?”

Celeste grinned, “Do you see how uncomfortable it is when you're talking and no one is listening?  Besides, Mom and Dad will skin you alive if they find out you've skipped.”

I snorted, “Rarity's school president so she can justify our absences.”

She hugged me, “Alright, I think we're done for tonight.  Go to bed, go to school tomorrow, and give Spike my love.”

I groaned as I sat up and looked out the window.  I had to find some way to convince Rainbow to stay.  For Fluttershy's sake.  I shuddered at the memory of the look in her eyes as she made her threat, promising retribution for stealing Fluttershy away from her.

x----x

Alone in her house, Rainbow sat in the dark with her legs pulled up against her chest, face pressed to her knees.

“Why couldn't things have stayed the way they were?”

She glanced over at the lightning bolt pendant that her idol had given her three years before. “Where were you when I needed you the most, Soarin?”

x----x

Pinkie waved happily as she spotted Rarity and Fluttershy. “Here I am!”

Rarity took a moment from her impromptu manicure to shoot her a glare, “Keep it down.” She rocked her head towards Fluttershy, who sat, hunched over, with her face in her hands.

“Is she still crying?”

“After ending such a treasured relationship, I'd be surprised if she wasn't.”

Pinkie skipped up to Fluttershy and pulled the girl into a tight embrace. “Don't worry.  Rainbow won't forget all of the good times she spent with you.”

Fluttershy sniffled, nodding slightly. “You're right.”

“Unless, of course,” Pinkie continued, “she gets new friends, forgets all about you, and never wants to see you again.”

Fluttershy froze, hyperventalating, before breaking down and crying harder than before.

“Oh, well done Pinkie.”  Rarity observed, dryly, putting a comforting arm around Fluttershy.

x---x

I ran as fast as I could, mentally kicking myself for oversleeping.  I had gotten Rainbow's address from Fluttershy and had intended to meet the girl before she had a chance to leave.  Now, it was nearly mid-morning and I had to hurry or I would miss her.

It was simultaneously a rush and a relief when I saw the distinctive rainbow mane bobbing towards me.  I slowed my stride as the girl passed me, not even breaking hers.

“Hey, Rainbow.  I need to talk to you.”

“Well, I don't want to talk to you.”  She retorted.

“Rainbow, please.  Fluttershy's devastated.  She doesn't want you to leave.  None of us do.”

“Why should I care what she wants?  Why should I care about her when she didn't care enough to do like I wanted and stay away from you?”

“You don't understand.  All of this is just a huge misunderstanding.”  I reached out and grabbed her arm, spinning her to face me.

“Let me go!  I'm running late!  I gotta go meet Nightingale and Descent.  We're leaving today.”

“You're not going anywhere until I've had my say and you've talked to Fluttershy.”

“I told you, I want nothing to do with her.  I don't associate with those I leave behind.”

“Do you hear yourself?  How could you talk about her as if she was some kind of stray animal?  I can understand you wanting to be her friend, but it's not fair that you forbid her from seeing anyone else.”

“I...”

“Shut up!  I'm not done speaking yet!  She wasn't the only one we wanted to be friends with.  We wanted to be with both of you.”

I saw it.  Her conviction faltered at that revelation and she stopped trying to pull away.  For a moment, I felt relief, but, then I felt a cold draft pass over me and Rainbow's body went completely rigid.

“Rainbow?  Are you okay?”

She shoved away from me, stumbling back a few steps. “You...you took her...away from me.”  She mumbled, holding her head.

The cold draft became a frigid wind and I knew something was wrong.  Celeste had told me that I couldn't use the gem in everyday situations, but she reminded me that I was, in fact, a unicorn.  I could use a bit of magic whenever I wanted.  I just needed to be wearing my horn.  Quickly, I dug the headband out of my bag and settled it over my hair.  Concentrating, I began to see Rainbow's Aura.

It was a weak, sickly green with a pale blue just beneath.

Celeste had explained the significance of auras colors to me.  The brighter and more intense the hue, the more natural and powerful the aura.  Rainbow's natural blue aura was being surpressed.  She was being controlled by outside forces.

“Rainbow!  Resist them!  I can help you!”

Her eyes snapped to me and her expression twisted into a mask of rage and hate.

The impact knocked the wind from me and threw me to the pavement.  She straddled me, wrapped her hands around my neck, and began to squeeze.

I squirmed, trying to throw her off.  “Ra...Rain...bow...I...c-can't...breathe.”

The aura was eminating from the strange crescent moon pendant she wore.  The pendant was the source of the control.  If I could get that thing away from her, she would realize what she was doing and stop.  I tried to move my hands, tried to reach up to take it from her, but my wrists were trapped beneath her legs.

The sound of blood, throbbing in my ears, was deafening.  My vision was growing fuzzy and darkening at the edges.  Rainbow was going to murder me, right here in the middle of the street.  My stuggles began to grow weak as my oxygen-deprived brain began to shut down.

Dying really sucks when you're smart enough to know exactly what was going on.

“Once you're gone,” Rainbow sneered, “she'll come back to me.”

Somebody...anybody...help...me...please.

The pressure was suddenly released as Rainbow launched back.  Greedily, I sucked in air as my brain began to function once more.  My head was pounding and I became slightly dizzy as I sat up.

Standing directly before me was a powerfully-built blonde in a brown stetson hat.

Applejack.

“Good thing Ah decided to take the scenic route today.  What gives, half-pint?  Doncha know killin's against the law?”

Rainbow flipped, regaining her feet. “Stay outta this, bumpkin!  This ain't any of your business!”

Applejack let out a dry laugh. “Nah.  Normally, Ah don't go against girls, but somebody's gotta teach ya some manners, midget.”

Her words only served to anger Rainbow further. “How dare you insult me?!”

Removing her stetson, Applejack dropped it into my lap. “Hold on ta mah hat, will ya, sugar?  'Atta, girl.”

I had seen kung-fu movies before, with Spike, but what I saw was insane.  Neither girl seemed to stop moving as they tried to out-maneuver each other, simultaneously delivering and blocking blows.  Applejack depended on her superior size and strength while Rainbow seemed to blur through any hole the blonde left open.  Both opponents were equally matched.

Rainbow leaped up and aimed a devestating kick at Applejack's head, which was immediately blocked.  Rainbow flipped back, landing on her hands, and let out a second kick, which was dodged.  She flipped back to her feet and leaped at Applejack, who flipped back and caught Rainbow's stomach with a booted foot, launching the girl several meters.

“Don't hurt her!” I cried.

“Tryin' to, but that girl's fast as a monkey and twice as pesky.”

“No, you don't understand.  She's being controlled.  That pendant around her neck has a magic spell that makes her act like that.”

Applejack gave me an incredulous look.  “Magic?  Like witchcraft and stuff?  That's all hogwash!”

She looked up to see Rainbow regaining her feet.

“No way,” the blonde muttered. “I've put guys three times her size on the ground till mornin' with that.”

Rainbow charged again and Applejack swung a fist, trying to connect with the back of Rainbow's head.  Rainbow slid between the girl's legs, reversed direction, sprang up, and grabbed the girl's wrists, pulling her arms behind her back and bracing herself with a knee between Applejack's shoulders.

The move was a complete surprise, judging by the look on Applejack's face.  She glanced back at Rainbow, doubt crossing her expression.  I knew she was beginning to believe me.

Suddenly, she threw herself back, slamming Rainbow into the ground and forcing her to release her arms  Applejack rolled off of her and landed in a crouch.

“Sorry, kid,” she said to me. “But I ain't lookin' to go out today.  I gotta win by any means necessary.”

Chapter 12

I watched as the two powerful fighters squared off, dodging and delivering blows.  I had to do something to stop them before somebody got hurt.  Applejack had sworn to use any means at her disposal to stop Rainbow and I had a fairly good idea of what that meant.  If the blonde managed to get her hands on the tiny athlete, she would crush the girl.

Thinking hard, I realized that a kind girl like Fluttershy would never associate with Rainbow if she was truly a bully.  I remembered seeing how Rainbow's aura was depressed by the necklace.  If I could get the necklace away from Rainbow, she would likely quit the fight before things got out of hand.  I was too small and slow to slip between the two combatants without risking serious injury.  Staring down at the unicorn horn hair-band in my hands, I decided to use Telekinesis to try and snatch the pendant from afar.  However, I wasn't so precise that I could do it while they were moving about.  Rainbow would have to be restrained first.

I was about to call out this advice to Applejack when my world suddenly went dark as a pile of clothes was dumped onto my head.  I reached up and yanked the garments away, noticing that they were Applejack's.

“Stop throwing your clothes on me!” I bellowed. “I'm not a coat rack.”

“Just hang on to them for me 'til Ah'm done here.”  Applejack turned to Rainbow and widened her stance.  “Alright, pipsqueak.  Let's see what you're made of.”

“You'll regret pissing me off, Hick!”  Rainbow threatened.

“Ya gonna stand there and call names all day or are we gonna finish this?  Go all out, monkey girl. Ah can take ya.”

Rainbow charged, leaping up and swinging a leg out in a powerful arc.  “I'll show you 'all out'!”

x----x

Fluttershy glanced at the girls on either side of her. “Uhm...Is it just me or do you feel like Twilight needs our help?”

Rarity sighed and tucked her book away in her bag. “I'm glad you said something. I was beginning to think I was the only one.  But, where could she be?”

Pinkie leaped to her feet and pointed to her left.  “She's that way!”

Rarity blinked, “Forgive me if I meet your directions with a bit of skepticism.  How do you know?”

Pinkie shrugged. “I dunno.  It's just a gut feeling I get sometimes.  I call it my 'Pinkie Sense' and it's usually right.”

Rarity nodded. “Let's go, Fluttershy.”  She took the girl's hand and they both began running to the right.

“Hey!  Didn't you hear me?  I said Twilight is this way!”

“Indeed, you did,” Rarity called over her shoulder, “But, as a general rule, I'm going to do the exact opposite of whatever you tell me to.”

Pinkie crossed her arms and snorted. “Alright, Miss Smarty McSmartypants,” she muttered to their retreating backs before sprinting after them. “Wait for me!”

x----x

Nightingale's head suddenly snapped up and her eyes scanned the sky. “Something's wrong.  Rainbow's aura has suddenly turned dark.  Was that supposed to happen?”

Descent shook his head. “The pendant was only supposed to increase her negative emotions, not completely change her aura.”

She let out a snarl as she realized that something, or someone, was tampering with the pendant. “Change in plans, Descent.” She said as she pulled her hood up and settled her goggles over her eyes. “We're going to go get Rainbow now.”

With a snap, a pair of massive black wings spread from between her shoulders.  Descent's pair was nearly identical, but slightly larger.  Both Shadow Bolts shot into the sky.

x----x

The battle raged on between the two girls.  Rainbow sprinted at Applejack, who lifted her leg in preparation for a powerful kick.  As the blonde lashed out, Rainbow ducked and slid beneath the limb, planting a hand and using it to pivot around and deliver her own devastating kick to Applejack's waist.  Applejack grabbed the leg and, with a twist, sent the smaller girl flying.

I watched in awe as Rainbow recovered with incredible speed, tumbling across the ground to put her feet back beneath her.  While Applejack, despite her strength, seemed to be wearing out, Rainbow showed no signs of slowing down and was quickly gaining the upper hand, despite the beating she had already received.

“You can't see me!”  Rainbow yelled. “I may not be as big as you, or as strong.  But I'm faster and my reflexes are better.  All thanks to my years of Parkour.  I know what move you're going to make before you do!”

“Yer ass is mine, midget!”  Applejack wound up for another kick as Rainbow lunged forward.  As the leg swung out, aimed for the athlete's head, Rainbow ducked beneath it, tumbling across the ground.

“Stupid Redneck!  You just don't get it, do you?”

Rainbow straightened and swung a fist as Applejack suddenly ducked into a crouch and planted both of her hands.

“Taste mah boot heels!”  The blonde roared, rotating up as she straightened both of her legs.  The blow would have been powerful enough to smash Rainbow's torso.

If it had landed.

In a flash of speed, Rainbow gripped both of Applejack's ankles and swung her legs up.  The change in balance proved too much for the robust farm girl.  Rainbow flipped her over and slammed her back into the dirt.  Without so much as a breath, Rainbow leaped back into the air, spinning and flipping, to bring both of her knees crashing into Applejack's stomach.

The girl's breath left her in a cry as Rainbow leaned down and seized a strap of her undershirt.

“Well, ain't ya somthin'.” Applejack grunted.

The blows came with unmatched speed and fury.  Rainbow aimed fists at every accessible point of Applejack's head.  I didn't know how long the blonde could withstand such abuse.  She made no move to defend herself, but lifted a hand to grip Rainbow's thigh.

Surprised, Rainbow paused for a moment.

That moment was all Applejack needed to bring both of her knees into Rainbow's back, catapulting the smaller girl off of her.

While both girls recovered, I saw my chance.  I concentrated on the evil pendant, seeing it snap from around Rainbow's neck.

Nothing happened.  I concentrated harder, putting every ounce of energy I had into yanking that demonic jewel from around Rainbow's neck, but I got nothing more than a powerful headache for my efforts.  Something was blocking my aura.

Applejack forced herself to her feet. “Mah turn!”

She charged as Rainbow tucked her legs beneath her, planted her hands, and rotated upwards.  Applejack had just enough warning to turn her face away before both feet slammed into her head, throwing her back a few meters.

The blonde sat up, grinning hugely while she rubbed at the cheek that was already starting to swell.  “Ah gotta hand it to ya, monkey girl.  Yer a lot tougher than ya look.  Ah thought Ah had ya with that last one.  But yer the only one, in a month of Sundays, who could match me in a fight.  Apart from mah brother, that is.  I had to do what was necessary to win.”

I blinked, thinking that last blow had done more damage than either of us assumed.  I hadn't seen Applejack grab a weapon.  In fact, I had only seen her take a beating.  Apparently, Rainbow was confused, as well.

“What are you talking about?  Have you gone soft in the head?”

“Y'know, Ah always got a Plan B ready.  Just in case somethin' doesn't go mah way.”

Rainbow tried to stand, but, the moment her legs took her weight, they began to shake and spasm and she fell back to the ground. “What's happening?  What did you do?  My legs are cramping.”

Applejack chuckled. “Almost thought Ah had missed, but Ah got ya.”

“What?  What are you talking about?!”  Rainbow squeaked as she massaged her legs.

“Ya said so yerself.  Yer faster than me.  Ah couldn't hope to beat yah in brute force so I let ya hit me.  Ya study that Parkour, meanin' ya use yer legs a lot.  Ah was countin' on that.  Even if ya pride yerself on yer speed, Ah pride mahself on mah physical condition.  A lifetime of farm labor will toughen ya up, ain't no mistakin' that.  Some of yer shots put a hurtin' on me, 'specially those ones on the face.  So, Ah had to use every opportunity ta immobilize ya.  And the only way ta do that was ta hurt yer legs.”

I remembered how Applejack had gripped Rainbow's thigh.  She must have struck a pressure point there, which caused Rainbow's muscles to tense up prematurely.  When Rainbow performed that last kick, she must have overextended the already injured muscles.  The injury was painful, but temporary.  The blonde could have easily crushed the smaller girl, but had allowed herself to be hurt so that she would gain the opportunity to attack Rainbow's legs directly.  I had assumed Applejack was some dumb brute, but the girl displayed a considerable bit of cunning.

“And, so, Ah had ta follow the three basic rules of combat.”  She plucked a large clod of dirt from the ground. “One: Analyze yer opponent.  Two: Take things carefully, step-by-step, so that it fits mah game.  And three, mah personal favorite, crush 'em!”  Her forearm muscles stood out in sharp relief as she crushed the clod in her hand.

She charged forward and snatched Rainbow up, holding the girl off of the ground with one hand. “Game over, midget.  I win. You lose.”

“No!  Applejack, don't hurt her!” I cried.

Applejack's hand wrapped around the pendant and snapped it from around Rainbow's neck. “Ah'm gonna crush this demon trinket!”  Her fist tightened around the pendant, which snapped in half.

Immediately, Rainbow began to shriek as a black aura left her body, dissipating into the air around her.  Surprised, Applejack released her and she fell to the ground.

I breathed a sigh of relief.  I was thoroughly convinced that Applejack would smash Rainbow's skull, rather than the pendant.

“Twilight!”

I turned to see Rarity, Pinkie, and Fluttershy running up behind me.

“Are you okay?”  Pinkie squealed, grabbing me in a bone-crushing hug. “We were all worried 'cause we knew you were in trouble, but we didn't know where you were, so Rarity and Fluttershy tried to come to you, but they wouldn't listen to my directions and we got lost and we were so worried that you'd be hurt or sick.”

“Pi...Pinkie Pie...I can't...breathe.”  I gasped out, sucking air greedily when she released me.

“Oh, Twilight, where did you get such an awful hat?  It looks just like the one that brute wears to school every day.  I swear that girl has absolutely no fashion sense.” Rarity asked, plucking Applejack's stetson from my head.  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the blonde tense.

“I'm fine, girls.  Really.”

Fluttershy looked around and spotted the unconscious girl. “Rainbow!”  Immediately, she dashed to her friend's side and knelt over her, glaring daggers at Applejack.  “You bully!  What did you do to her?”

Two shadows swept over us as a woman and a man in dark clothing descended from the sky on black wings.

Wings exactly like Luna's.

“Who are they?!” Rarity cried.

The man dropped to the ground and shoved Fluttershy away from Rainbow before stooping to pick up the athlete.  Then, without a word, they spread their wings and disappeared into the sky.

“Rainbow!  No!  Bring her back!”  Fluttershy screamed, sprinting after them.

“Twilight, we can't let them do this!”  Pinkie cried, pulling at my arm.

“Yeah, just a second.”  I quickly gathered up Applejack's clothes and brought them to her. “Thanks for all of your help.”

The blonde shook her head, clearly confused. “Ah can't, for the life of me, wrap mah head around any of this.  But, ya better go after that girl.  Ya seem to know what's goin' on better than me.”

“I'm sure you have a lot of questions and, when I get back, I'll be happy to answer all of them, with my friends.”

Applejack looked away and tucked her golden crown back beneath the brown leather hat. “Nothin' personal, sugar, but Ah don't give a squat about ya or yer friends.  Ah only helped 'cause y'all were gettin' strangled in the street.  Ah don't have the least bit of interest in meetin' any of y’all.”

I blinked. “What?”

“Twilight, we need to go before Fluttershy gets too far ahead.”  Rarity called.

I stared at Applejack a moment longer while the blonde refused to meet my gaze. “Yeah, let's go after Rainbow.”  Rejoining the group, we all took off in the direction we had seen Luna's minions disappear in.  I spared a glance over my shoulder at Applejack, who looked so small and fragile.  It had to be tough, being an island.

x----x

“Ain't Ah a mess.”  Applejack muttered, beating her uniform blouse against her leg in an effort to get the dust off. “Ah can't go ta school lookin' like this.  Granny'll have mah hide if she finds out Ah've been in another fight.”  She looked up into the sky, wondering where the bird-people had taken that Rainbow girl.

“This day's been one fer the books.  Ah still can't figure it out.”

“Then perhaps I can enlighten you.” A low voice rumbled from behind.

Applejack spun to see a massive dark-skinned man who wore the same kind of clothes the bird-people wore.

“It's an honor to meet another Bearer of Harmony.”

Chapter 13

Rainbow's head throbbed.  The last thing she remembered was that blonde bimbo plucking her up and preparing to rearrange her face.  She let out a soft groan as she opened her eyes, wincing as the light pierced her pupils to lance her brain, making her migraine all the worse.  With a bit of concentration, she was able to make out the face of the person carrying her.

“Uhhhh...Descent?”

He gave her a brief smile and returned his attention to the path before them.

Rainbow blinked dully.  She was being carried.  She remembered on time when she had hurt her knee after a really bad fall.  Her dad had carried her to his truck, then into the hospital.  He had jostled her quite a bit and it hurt.  This, however, was as smooth as silk and faster than she ever remembered traveling.

Another thing she noticed was that she didn't hear the sounds of running.  Even if Descent was able to keep her steady while running faster than she ever thought possible, she still should have been able to hear his steps.

She looked around and noticed the bushes around her were rather odd looking, like the tops of trees.  Her eyes tracked down until she saw that the ground was much further away than it should have been.

She nearly leaped out of his arms. “How did we get up here?  Are you flying?  How can you be flying?”

He fought to hold her as she struggled. “Rainbow, hold still.  You're going to fall!”

“Put me down, you freak!”  She screamed.  “Help!  Somebody help me please!  I'm being kidnapped!”

“Descent!”  Nightingale called out. “Land before you drop her!”

Descent wrapped an arm around Rainbow's waist and pulled his wings in, dropping rapidly and wincing as Rainbow let out a piercing shriek.  When they still had another ten feet, she suddenly swung a leg up, connecting with his crotch.  Descent groaned and released her, folding to comfort himself.  Rainbow fell, her years of parkour training taking over, and folded up to tumble across the ground to a safe landing.

As she sat up, Nightingale dropped to the ground before her.

Rainbow immediately skittered back until she found her way blocked by a tree.  She took in the two bird-people before her, Descent having recovered from the unexpected blow.  “Wh-what are you people?”

Nightingale spoke soothingly. “Relax, Rainbow.  Give us a second and we'll explain everything.”

x----x

We raced in the direction we had seen the two bird-people take Rainbow, hoping they hadn't changed course suddenly.  Fluttershy seemed a girl possessed as she sprinted, muttering oaths under her breath.  I explained everything that had occurred before they reached me.

“Why was Rainbow being controlled?”  Fluttershy asked.

“I couldn't begin to guess,” I confessed,” but ever since seeing those two bird-people, I'm certain that they're under orders from Luna.”

“Maybe she's controlling Rainbow as a means to get at Fluttershy.”  Rarity suggested.

I shook my head.  “I don't think so.  Fluttershy only developed her powers yesterday.  Rainbow was being controlled long before that.  I'm sure of it.  Oh, how did I miss all of this?”

“Hopefully, we can convince her that we just want to help.  No offense, Fluttershy, but Rainbow's stubborn as a stone.”

“Before it all escalated, I had a chance to actually talk with her.  I could see that she wants to be our friend.” I informed them. “If we can't convince her, maybe Fluttershy can get her to come to her senses.”

Fluttershy shook her head. “I don't think so.  She probably won't listen to me after all that happened.  There's only one person she'd never ignore.  If only he was in town.”

x----x

“I can't believe it.”  Rainbow mused.  “It's too amazing, but it must be true.  I was a pegasus, just like you.”

Descent shook his head. “Not like us.  Our wings were created by the power granted to us by Princess Luna.  It was our intention to reveal the truth slowly, but we can't wait any longer.  We may not have the souls of Pegasi, but you do.  Your true power will be awakened soon and Luna can help you control them and reach your full potential.”

“But Fluttershy was a pegasus.  You said so.  Why isn't she here?”

Nightingale shook her head.  “The fact that you want to look out for your friend is admirable, but you need to start thinking about yourself.  She abandoned you for those other girls.  She thinks you're not good enough for her.”

“Luna has something special planned for everyone who was a pony of Equestria and she needs somebody to help her.  Somebody like you.  In return for your help, she'll grant you full control of your powers.”

“Just imagine, Rainbow.  You could be a hero to Ponyville and the world, able to use your powers without any limitations.  And all you have to do is prove your loyalty to Luna.”

“Come on, Rainbow.  Join us and follow your destiny at the side of the true Princess of Equestria, Luna.”

Rainbow sat silently, thinking.  Her friend had abandoned her, everything she had been taught by those she had idolized was shattered.  She wished Soarin was here.  He'd know what to do.  He had told her once to trust her instincts and follow her heart.  “I...I'll do it.”

They both smiled.  Nightingale knelt and placed a hand on Rainbow's shoulder. “Well done, my friend.  Go west.  Luna will meet you just outside of town.  We'll be with you in a while.”

As they watched Rainbow jog away, Descent turned to Nightingale.  “Why don't we bring her straight to Luna?”

Nightingale shook her head.  “She needs to cross the barrier of her own free will.  Besides, those other girls are coming. We need to hold them up.”

x----x

“So, you're tellin' me that those girls an' me were some kinda magical ponies?”  Applejack chuckled humorlessly.  She had only been on her way to school, now she was talking to some weirdo, who was big enough to give her brother a run for his money, about magical horses in some fantasy world. “Well, this certainly rates a nine-point-oh on mah weird-shit-o-meter.  Today's just been a parade of fools and you're certainly at the front of the line, ain't no doubt about that.  Not only do ya have the wrong gal, sugar, but Ah ain't seen those other girls before in mah life.”

“On the contrary, your demonstration just minutes ago has proven to me that you are the person I seek.  The reincarnation of the Bearer of Honesty.  Anyways, I never said that you had known them in this life.”

“Just who the hell are ya, anyway?  Some nonsense-babblin' weirdo.”  She retorted.

“At the present, you may call me 'Haze'.  Besides, it's the message that's important, not the messenger.  In the very near future, chaos and destruction will threaten this world.  You must unite with the other Element Bearers to-”

Applejack turned and began to walk away. “Granny always told me never to talk to crazies.”

“Your attitude surprises me.  As far as I can tell, your personality doesn't match that of your original pony self at all.  You don't seem to have any commitment to protect this world at all and, if that's the case, then I'm sure you won't mind if I took this ribbon I found tied around a tree.”

Applejack froze and turned back.  In his hand, Haze clutched a length of black ribbon.  The same one that was tied around a certain apple tree on her farm.

“Listen here, bub.  If you don't want your ass kicked from here to next Tuesday, Ah recommend ya hand that there ribbon over now.”

Haze grinned.  “Interesting that something as mundane as ribbon would provoke such a reaction.  I'm excited to see how you'll react when the world is threatened.”

x----x

Finally, we had caught up with the two bird-people, but Rainbow was nowhere in sight.

“Where's Rainbow?!”  Fluttershy screamed, “What have you done with my friend?!”

The woman chuckled. “Who knew that the weak little crybaby had such a spine?  Ah, but where are my manners.  Allow us to introduce ourselves.  My name is Nightingale and my partner is Descent.  We are the subordinates of the true ruler of Equestria, Luna.”

“I knew it!”  I cried, feeling vindicated.  “I knew Luna was behind this, but why attack Rainbow?  She has nothing to do with any of this.”

Nightingale snorted. “Don't tell me you're still unaware that Rainbow is the Bearer of Loyalty.”

“But, how would Luna know that?  She doesn't possess the Jewels of Harmony.” Rarity pointed out.

Nightingale sneered, “Insolent little twit!  Luna sees all!  Soon, Rainbow's powers will be awakened and she will be in the service of my lady!”

“You're wrong!”  I cried. “The powers will only come to full realization if the Bearers of Harmony work together.”

Nightingale laughed. “It's true, when together, the Elements of Harmony form a great power.  However, they can be used individually.  Luna told me that, if the Bearer has not realized their power.  In Rainbow's case, the loyalty she possesses can be turned from Fluttershy to Luna.  When that occurs, she can only use that power for whomever she was loyal to at the time of its awakening.

“Which is why we've been manipulating her consciousness.  So that she will leave Fluttershy and join Luna.”

Fluttershy let out a horrified gasp. “How...How could you do that?  You're the reason she's been so angry and hateful?  You witch!”

“And we had two magnificent helpers in this endeavor.  The first was the necklace that Rainbow so eagerly accepted.  It exacerbated the negative emotions she felt.  The second was you, Fluttershy.  When you joined these girls, the jealousy and fear she felt at losing her only friend only increased her anger.”

“But Celeste cast a spell keeping Luna out of Ponyville.  She can't get Rainbow.”

“The barrier affects only Luna and Rainbow will soon cross it.  You can't go get her because you'll be exposing yourselves to Luna directly. Even the four of you don't have a hope of defeating my lady in direct combat.”

“You evil, heartless sow!”  Fluttershy screamed.  She was enveloped in a golden glow as the kindness she possessed took physical form and she transformed. “Nobody does that to my friends.”

“Hold your ponies, Flutters.”  Pinkie shouted, blocking the girl with an arm.  “We've got this one.”

“What do you mean?”

“Pinkie's quite right, dear.”  Rarity said, carefully removing her hat and setting it, neatly, in her purse. “We'll handle them.”

“You need to find Rainbow.” I said as I called up my powers and transformed.  “With your flight, you can reach her faster than we.  Find her before she crosses that barrier and convince her to stay.”

“But, what about you three?  They can fly.”

“Don't worry about us.” Pinkie assured her. “Twilight and Rarity can take care of that old hag-”

“Who are you calling old!”  Nightingale screamed.

“And I'll handle that handsome hunk of muscle.”  She turned to Descent. “C'mon, cutie.  Pinkie's ready to play.”

Descent smirked. “Don't think we're going to let you leave without saying goodbye!”  He charged forward, preparing to strike Fluttershy down, when massive pony with a poofy mane, conjured of water, appeared before him and threw out a hoof.

Pinkie swam past him on a suspended stream of water.  “Don't think so, sweet cheeks.  I told you, the only girl you get to dance with is me.”

“Well then, let's see what dance moves you know, crazy chick.”

“Mirage!”

Fluttershy and I were surrounded by a bright light, blinding Nightingale.

“Your attacks are pathetic.”

She noticed the conjured image of Fluttershy jet over her head.

“Where do you think you're going, cry-baby?”

She flung a bolt of black magic, which passed through the illusion, allowing the real Fluttershy the chance to escape.

“Excellent work, Twilight.”  Rarity complimented.

“I may not be at my full potential, but that doesn't mean I don't have a few tricks up my sleeve.”

“Parlor tricks and nothing more!”  Nightingale spat.  “Now, show me something a little more impressive.”

The ground shifted as Rarity pulled up a literal wave of earth that flung itself at Nightingale, who barely managed to leap to safety.

“Call me a 'twit', will you?”  Rarity snarled.

x----x

“Jackass, gimme that ribbon!” Applejack growled.

“Oh, I'll give it to you when you prove to me you're committed to join those girls and save the world.”

“Ah told you, Ah ain't got nothin' to do with those girls.  All Ah want is for me and mah family to live in peace.  Ah don't believe in that friendship hogwash!”

“Pity.  There must be some way to make you understand.”  Haze thought for a moment. “And I think I have the perfect idea.  Perhaps if I showed you the pain of losing somebody because you chose not to help when you could have might convince you to reconsider.”

“Wha...What're ya talkin' about?”

Haze chuckled darkly. “Your sister, Apple Bloom, is in Cheerilee's class over at the elementary school, is that right?”

Applejack's blood froze.

“I should like to meet her.”

She saw red and charged forward. “You stay away from mah family, you sick freak!”

She leaped, winding up for the most brutal, most powerful kick she had ever delivered.  This would be one for the record books.  She could already see the psycho's neck snapping.

Haze blocked the kick.

With one finger.

Chapter 14

“How...?”

Applejack stared incredulously at the man before her.  Yes, he was big.  Yes, he was strong, but he had blocked her kick with one finger.  One. Freaking. Finger.

“How did you do that?  That kick should have ripped your finger off.  How did you block that with such ease?  It's not possible.  Who are you?”

The massive man chuckled. “You're certainly strong, but did you really think a girl like you, whose powers haven't even awoken yet, can defeat one like me, who knows all of the secrets this soul holds?”

“Ah ain't got no idea what you're talkin' about.”

“I'll put it to you simply.  You fighting me is like a tiny pony trying to defeat a fully-grown stallion in a race.”

“Ah don't care about ponies and stallions.  You ain't getting anywhere near mah sister!”

He snorted derisively.  “That's hardly your decision.  Anyways, I didn't come here to fight you.  All I wanted was some sort of positive response on your part, but you reject any intention to follow your destiny as a Bearer of Harmony.  This isn't at all what I expected and I'm curious as to what caused it.”

“You stay away from me!  If ya come any closer, Ah'll kick your ass.”

He pulled something out of his pocket and held it out to her.  Above his palm hovered a small, oddly-shaped jewel.  Applejack felt her muscles seize up and she fell to the ground.

“This is called the 'Emerald of the Damned'.   I used it earlier to prevent the Element of Magic from interfering in your battle with the girl named Rainbow.  If I can completely paralyze the Element of Magic, just imagine what I can do to you.”

Applejack strained to look up at the man.  “What do you intend to do?”

“I intend to find the memories within you that left the strongest marks.  I intend to find out why you hate friendship.”

x----x

The battle raged on.  Pinkie was doing an excellent job of holding off Descent, giggling and flirting as if it was all some huge game.  Nightingale, however, was proving to be a bit more problematic.  What attacks she didn't dodge were blocked by her own magic.  She flung her own attacks, which we were barely able to block.

“Lorem Tempestatem!” I cried, throwing out a shower of golden stars.

“Materia Obscura!”  Nightingale sent a shower of pure darkness to meet mine.  Neither attack penetrated the other.  With her distracted, I nodded to Rarity.

“Incarcero!”  Rarity clapped her hands together.

The ground beneath Nightingale shifted.  She looked down to see a pair of hands, formed of earth and stone, raise up to grasp her.  She shot for the sky, flapping furiously, and slipped out moments before the trap snapped shut.

She laughed derisively. “You can't catch me.  I'm too fast.  Give up now and my Lady may let you live.”

She was really beginning to annoy me.

“You think your wings will save you?”  I pushed off of the ground, leaping into the air as my arm began to glow.

“Laminas industria!”  I cried as I swung my arm, slinging the deadly energy blade.

Nightingale dodged it easily, tumbling over my head.  She righted herself and delivered a powerful kick, sending me over the edge of the cliff.  I heard Rarity scream my name as I fell through the open air.

x----x

Pinkie giggled as she dodged Descent's attacks.  No matter how fast the bird-man charged, she seemed able to weave around him.  Finally, he collapsed from exhaustion.

Pinkie stuck her thumbs in her ears and wiggled her fingers as she blew a raspberry.  “Too fun, but, if those are your best moves, I don't think I'll partner with you for the party I'm planning when we find our final friend.”

Descent let out a growl, thoroughly pissed at this pest's antics.

“I guess I'll have to show you the best moves.”  She swung her hips, building her power.  Suddenly, three tendrils of water swung out.

Descent launched up a tree, dodging the magic water that seemed to actively seek him out.  He swung from tree branch to tree branch, too tired to fly.  Finally, her power dissipated, leaving him in one of the high branches.

“Sorry, baby.  I'm just too fast for you.  Besides, we have absolutely nothing in common.”

Pinkie blinked.  “What do you mean?  I'm a girl, you're a guy, we're compatible.”

Descent chuckled.  “What I mean is, while you like to see people smile...” He called a flicker of black fire into his palm. “I live to see them suffer.”

He cast the black fire, which enveloped the pink-haired pain.  Descent began to laugh, simply pleased that he had rid himself of the girl's antics.

As the magical fire began to die, he noticed something unusual.  The girl had managed to protect herself, enveloping herself in a bubble of water.  Her giggle was distorted as she blew a heart-shaped bubble and shot him a wink.

x----x

Nightingale's attack was unending and all Rarity could do to defend herself was encase herself in stone.  However, each blow chipped away at the only barrier between her and certain death.  Already, she could see daylight through the tiny cracks in the stone.

“Now, girl,” Nightingale said, “You're very powerful when you can keep your distance.  Unfortunately, you're useless in close-combat.”

Something landed atop her stone barrier and a golden glow erupted around her.

“How?”

Rarity lowered her barrier as the sounds of battle reached her ears.  She looked up to see Twilight flying over her head, engaging a very surprised Nightingale.  With her wings, Twilight was able to flit around Nightingale with ease.  She slammed a leg into Nightingale's back, sending the bird-woman into the ground.

Twilight's wings disappeared as she gracefully landed.

Rarity blinked.  “Wings,” she wheezed.  “You can fly?”

“I think of it more as jumping with style.  The wings increase the altitude I can achieve and allow me to glide a bit.  Celeste taught that spell to me last night, but this was the first time I was able to successfully perform it.  Once we're done here, I'll teach it to you.”

Rarity sighed and became starry-eyed. “Oh, can you imagine how I'd look with beautiful butterfly wings, with an outfit to match?”

“I'd rather we focus on the fight.”  Twilight dead-panned.

A glow caught her eye and Twilight turned to her pack.  “Rarity, Honesty is glowing.”

“Is the Bearer nearby?”

Twilight nodded. “Can you handle Nightingale on your own?”

“I don't think so, but I'll leave that decision to you.”

“Best to leave it for now.  If Nightingale finds out, she could hurt her before we have a chance to awaken her power.  I hope she's not in any trouble.”

x----x

Haze stared down at the blonde warrior whose memories had reduced her to a blubbering child.  She lay in the dirt, curled into the fetal position, and was rocking slightly.

“No more.”  The girl wept. “No more...please...Ah can't take anymore...Ah don't want to remember...Ah just want to live with mah family in peace.  Why can't Ah have that?”

He didn't expect this.  It seemed that Applejack was born to suffer for others.  The memories he had seen shocked even him.  How the girl had managed to avoid a total mental break, he would never know.

One thing he did know was that her hatred of friendship was legitimate.  It wasn't some lone-wolf act, but something that came from her very heart.  There was nothing more that he could do.  If the Element Bearers were to stand a chance against the Chaos, the Element of Magic would have to change her heart.

“Applejack, I see now that my presence here served no purpose.  I understand that you don't know them and don't wish to be their friends.  I can only hope that you will change your mind.”  He reached down and wrapped a massive hand around her shoulder and she froze at his touch. “As for your sister, fear not.  I have no interest in her.  However, the danger I mentioned is true.”

He spread his wings and lifted into the sky. “I am needed elsewhere.  I hope we meet again, Bearer of Honesty, but I doubt you'll remember me.”

Applejack remained on the ground, trembling as years of repressed memories assaulted her. “Ah don't want to have friends.” She sobbed. “Ah don't want to suffer anymore.”

x----x

Trotting through an open field, Rainbow remembered back to a time, four years before, when a friend gave her a piece of wisdom she would remember for the rest of her days.

“You're leaving tomorrow, right?”  Gilda asked.

Rainbow gave a dejected nod. “Yep.  If it wasn't for dad following his work, I'd stay here with you.  I don't want to go.”

“It's amazing that all of our years together will end.”  She turned to Rainbow. “Whatever happens, don't forget me.  You have to come back.  Promise me we'll see each other again.”  She pulled Rainbow into a tight hug. “You live your life in high-speed and I'm the only one who can keep up with you.  I'm your one true friend.”

Rainbow returned the embrace. “I promise.”

Rainbow sighed as she remembered the last day she had spent with Gilda, her first friend.  It had been years since she had last seen her friend.  She thought Fluttershy could fill the void that Gilda had left, but the timid girl had chosen to go with Rarity and those other girls.

“I see now that the only person I can rely on is me,” she growled, picking up her pace.  “I'm leaving Ponyville and Fluttershy behind and I'll never be back.”

“Rainbow!”

She turned to see Fluttershy descending like an angel from the sky.  She doubled over and panted hard as the wings disappeared.

“So it was true.  You do have wings,”  Rainbow breathed as she stared at the girl.

“Rainbow...please,”  Fluttershy panted. “Don't...leave...me.”

Chapter 15

Descent flung attacks with blinding fury, trying to strike the randomly-moving pink-haired pain and failing spectacularly.  The girl seemed to enjoy making him look like an impotent fool, if her giggles were any indication.  The fight, however, was beginning to take its toll on him.  It was a constant drain on his energy to fling his most powerful attacks at this girl, who wouldn't do him the courtesy of staying still for a moment.

As if she could sense him weakening, she turned and stopped.  “You're all mine, sweetcheeks.”

Four pillars of water erupted from the ground to meet over his head.

“All mine!”  Pinkie cried again.

The pillars converged to wrap tightly around him.

Descent felt his choler rise.  He was putting out everything and this...cretin was toying with him.  He was a serious threat to her and she was acting like this was one big game.  How dare she not see him for the menace he was.

How. Dare. She.

On pure will, he broke her bonds and shattered the watery wrappings.  He lowered until he hovered a few meters above her, growling in anger.

“Oh, don't you look all hot and bothered.”  She taunted, giving him a smug smile. “Admit it, it's because of me.”  She tugged at the collar of her powder-blue shirt and fanned herself. “Actually, that last dance made me all hot and bothered too.”

“Freaking nut job!  Take this seriously.”

“Ohhh, you need to lighten up.  You don't want to become some grumpy old codger, do you?  Besides, being a nut job is fun.”  Her eyes took on a faraway look. “You don't want to see me upset.  I don't want to be that kind of girl anymore.”

The tears in her eyes were obvious when she turned back to him.  Her lip quivered and, for a moment, he was afraid he had upset her.  For a moment, he was overtaken with a feeling he had never before experienced.  Was it....remorse?

Suddenly, the girl's face broke into a massive grin and she laughed.  “Fooled you!”

x----x

I leaped from tree branch to tree branch, dodging Nightingale's attacks.

“Bounce about all you please, little girl.  You can't escape from me.”

I checked my angles and the distance and did the math.  Rarity was below me, unnoticed by Nightingale, slowly building her power for a manifestation she wanted to try.  Remembering how well Pinkie's experiment had worked, and how much time this battle had already consumed, I was willing to try anything.

Rarity met my eyes and gave a single nod, signaling that she was ready.

I snickered as I spun to face Nightingale.  “I wasn't running.  I was readying my best attack.”

I flung my Stella Magna and watched as the ball of energy hurtled toward Nightingale.  Moments before impact, she dropped to the ground and the Magna smashed against a tree.

Perfect.

She glared up at me. “Stupid girl!  Don't you get it?  Your attacks are too slow.”

“You're calling her stupid?”  Rarity called out with a triumphant smile.  “You're the one who has just fallen into my trap!”

Nightingale looked down to find Rarity had molded several layers of stone around her foot.  She tugged at it, but was unable to free herself.

Over Rarity's head, manifesting from the ether, was a massive arm.  It was easily twice the size of a bus and seemed to be made of pure diamond.

“I call forth the right arm of the Diamond Golem.  I may not have the power for a full Golem but the right arm should be more  than enough for the likes of you.”

The arm extended a single finger and began to press forward, preparing to squash Nightingale like a bug.  It began to build speed as it continued to descend.

It happened almost too fast.  One moment, Nightingale's demise was a certainty.  The next moment, a massive shield appeared.

“Impossible.” Rarity gasped.

The man had appeared out of nowhere and stood between Nightingale and the arm, one arm outstretched and casting the powerful shield that had brought the attack to a halt.

“H-Haze?”

Rarity turned to me. “Is there some way you can find out how powerful this guy is?  Some sort of aura-reading hooba-jooba?”

I shook my head. “I-I was going to have Celeste teach me about aura analysis tonight, but we just fought the manticore yesterday.  I didn't think we'd be dealing with these guys so soon.”

“Well, what about the Architect?  Surely she can shed some light on this guy?”

“No, no.  That requires a lot of spiritual energy.  That's why I wanted Celeste to teach me aura analysis, to see if calling the Architect would be necessary before the battle began.  I don't have enough energy now.  Besides, Celeste told me that calling and Alicorn for nothing more than information is extremely disrespectful.  Especially towards a deity like the Architect.”

Nightingale stood beside Haze and fixed Rarity and I with a disgusting smirk. “Now that our numbers are a little more even, let's see who is the better fighter: Celestia's Element Bearers or Luna's Warriors.”

“I'll take the big one.”  Rarity said out of the side of her mouth.

“Are you sure?”

“Oh, yes.  He made my attack look pathetic.  I have a score to settle.”

I began to move away. “Alright.  Be careful.”

Rarity stomped her foot and rode the pillar of earth up fifteen meters.  Above Haze, she would present a more difficut target.

“Alright, let's try this again.  Once more, with feeling!”

“Listen closely, child.  I am not in the mood for your silly games.  I'm going to give you one chance to retreat.  Only one, but, if you choose to stay and fight, know this.  I will not hold back, even if you are a woman.  I will unleash everything you have and I will crush you.”

Rarity gave a derisive laugh. “I'll dispatch you before you can even lift a finger.  Diamond Golem, smash him!”

“Venom Blade.”  Haze responded in a bored voice and leisurely flick of his finger.

The bright green energy blade erupted forward, cleaving through the Diamond Golem's fist as if it were nothing before proceeding to Rarity's position.  She barely had time to leap out of the way, avoiding her own demise.  She sat up and stared at the pillar, cleanly bisected where she had been just moments before.

“How?” She squeaked.

Haze chuckled.  “I did warn you, girl, that I would not hold back.”

“B-but, the Golem.  It was diamond.”

“I have to admit you've impressed me.  The Diamond Golem is a very difficult summon and, if you manage to do it successfully, the battle is practically won, even if you only manage one arm.  However, you managed to forget an important piece of information.  The indestructible property of the Golem relies heavily on the strength of the summoner.  Unfortunately, your strength was far too little to make the Golem effective.  In reality, it was as fragile as crystal.”

Rarity snorted, “That's fine.  My Golem may not be effective against you, but that doesn't mean I don't have other tricks up my sleeve.”  She grunted as she tried to return to her feet, only to find that her body was unresponsive.  “What's this?  I-I can't move!”

“Ah, a side effect of the Venom Blade, I'm afraid.  You see, the blade gives off a certain aura.  Anybody unlucky enough to be within the proximity of that aura is afflicted with paralysis for a short time.”

“Paralysis?”  She echoed.

Haze grinned. “I did warn you, did I not?”  Without another word, he took to wing and charged at her.

Time seemed to slow as I watched the massive man advance on my friend, knowing I was too far away to stop it.

“Oh, God.” She moaned. “Somebody...Anybody...please...help me!”

x----x

Spike gasped as his heart clenched painfully within his chest, causing his legs to buckle.  He dropped into the grass and sat for a moment, massaging is chest.

“What the hell?”  He muttered. “That hurt.  Feels like somebody punched me.  Uh, something is wrong.  The girls are in trouble.  I know it.”

x----x

Fluttershy recovered admirably and stood tall. “Don't do this, Rainbow.  Don't go with Luna.  They're just using you.”

“Oh?  Like those other girls are using you for their jollies?”

Fluttershy let out a frustrated growl and flung her hands up.  “They aren't like that!  How can I make you understand that?”

“All I understand is that I am your friend.  You're only friend!  You should listen to me and only me!”

The look in Fluttershy's eyes caused the smaller girl to take a step back.  “You're right, Rainbow.  I'm your friend.  Not your slave, not your pet, not your possession.  I've always been there for you, but I have a right to friends other than you.”  She took a deep breath and, for the first time in years, spoke her mind. “I love you, Rainbow, but you don't own me.”

Rainbow nodded. “Fine.  Go have fun with your new friends.  I have new friends too and I made a promise to them.”

“And what about your promise to him?”

Rainbow's blood ran cold. “I-I don't know what you're talking about.”

“Don't lie to me, Rainbow Dash.  You made a promise to him, same as I did, three years ago.  Soarin.  Don't tell me you've forgotten about him.”  She pulled something from her pocket, a lightning bolt pendant on a golden chain, and pressed it into Rainbow's hand, pressing the smaller girls fingers around it.

“So...Soarin.”

“Don't forget your promise,  Rainbow.  Please don't forget your promise.”

Chapter 16

THREE YEARS AGO

Soarin lay back in the grass, hands tucked behind his head, and relaxed in the warm sunlight.  In the field before him, a group of kids played soccer, shouting and laughing as they kicked the black and white ball around.  It was the perfect chance to chill before he and the rest of his team left for France.  The Wonderbolts Elite were in high demand, always being invited to compete and interview with the media, and be at sponsor dinners.  This hectic lifestyle left him little time to pursue his favorite activity: lounging.

Something hard and round bounced off of his head, startling him.  He looked to his side, saw a ball rolling down the hill, and caught it.

He stared at it curiously, “What the...”

“Hey, Slacker!”

He looked and saw a tiny, athletic, girl waving up to him.  Her scarf and hat obscured most of her features.

“This yours?”  He asked, displaying the ball.

“Yeah!  Ya mind tossin' it back?  We gotta game goin' on here.”

“Hey, Daring.  Let's do this!”  One of the other players, a boy, called out.

“Be right there!”  She called back.

Soarin tossed the ball back and watched as she rejoined her teammates.

She dribbled the ball, moving with amazing speed and agility as she jockeyed against an opponent.  Finally in a position that suited her, she kicked the ball high and over the head of her opponent.  In the span of a millisecond, she changed position by about a meter and, with a back-flip, accurately sent the ball into the net.

“Goal!” she crowed, throwing her hands up victoriously.

He was amazed that someone so young possessed such amazing coordination and agility.  That wasn't just skill, that was talent.  He brought his hands together in loud and enthusiastic applause.  “Bravo!  Bravo, girl!  You're amazing!”  He cheered.

One of the boys, her opponent, took on a suspicious scowl.  “Girl?”  He reached over and snatched the hat from her head, revealing the long, sky-blue, strands that had been piled up underneath.  “Hey!  You're that girl who wanted to play with us yesterday!  I thought we told you to get lost.  We don't play with girls.”

“Hah!”  She barked.  “You're just jealous that I beat you, fair and square.”  She made a face.

“You wanna act like a kid, we'll treat you like one!”  Another boy said.

She gestured rudely. “Slowpokes!  You can't catch me!”

One of the boys lunged for her, but she flipped over his head and took off, pumping her little legs as hard as she could.

“She's quick.”  Soarin said to himself as he watched her go. “Good reflexes, great agility, she might have what it takes.”  Getting to his feet, he trotted after her, using his longer stride and greater speed to catch up.

“Hey there!”  He greeted, keeping pace.

She let out a startled yelp, surprised that he had caught up so easily.

“That was pretty great!”  He said.  “I've never seen somebody with such talent win a match like that.”

“Yeah, and I would have kept my victory if it wasn't for you, meddling busybody!”  She replied.

He laughed. “Alright, I screwed up.  Let me make it up to you.  I can help you escape if you just do what I do.”

Without waiting for a reply, he sprinted ahead of her.  A few meters ahead, there was a massive wall.  Building speed, Soarin leaped, bounced off of the wall, and nimbly landed on the top.

The girl nearly stumbled in shock, but her face took on a grim mask as she tried her hand.  Mimicking his movements, she gripped the lip of the wall and struggled up, her short stature proving slightly problematic.

Soarin scaled a building, leaping from window sill to window sill.  She stayed on his heels, slipping only a few times.  On the roof, he cleared the alley to the next roof, clambering up a drain pipe to the next level.  The girl hesitated for only a moment before following, struggling to reach the roof.

He looked down to see the boys pursuing them from the street, occasionally glancing up to check their position.

Taking off again, he leaped to the next roof, gripping the edge and pulling himself up before trotting to the side to give the little girl clearance to try.  She poured on the speed, taking the leap and just barely making it.

Next was the toughest part.  A full street-width stood between them and the next roof.  The difference in the height of the buildings would make judging the distance a little more difficult, but the wind was at his back and he was  confident he could make it.  He leaped, extending to his full length, and flew through the air.  When he was sure he had cleared the distance, he curled up, tumbling to a safe landing.

The girl stood at the lip of the building he had just left, staring at him across the gap.

“C'mon, kid.”  He called out to her.

“No way!”  She called back.

“Look, the way I see it, you've got two choices.  Either you can turn back and see if you can beat both of those boys, or you can jump down and I can show you something new and incredible.”

She scoffed. “You're nuts if you think I'm jumping down there.  It was fun while it lasted, but my daddy didn't raise a crazy girl.”  She spun on her heel. “I'm outta here.”

He stepped back, slightly confused.  He was so sure she had what it took.  Despite her inexperiance, she had kept up like a pro, right on his heels the entire time.

A shriek erupted from above him and he looked up to see the girl leap out into the open air. “I am a crazy girl!”  She screamed as she flailed her arms and legs.

His impressed smile vanished as he realized she had underestimated the distance.  She wasn't going to make it.

A moment later, she came to the same conclusion.  “Oh, God, no!  Why did I do this?!  I'm gonna die!”

He leaped, catching her in mid-air, flipping off of the side of the building she had just left, and landing back on the roof.

She clung to him, trembling.

“Hey, you're okay.  You're okay, Little Pegasus.”  Still holding her, he leaned over the edge and called to the boys below. “Hey, if you two can get up here, I'll give you this girl.”

“What?!”  She squawked.  “What do you think you're doing?!”

Soarin quickly hushed her. “Just wait.”

“No stupid girls worth climbin' all of that!”  One boy said.

“Yeah.  Ya can't stay up there forever, girl.  Sooner or later, ya gotta come down.  Then, you're dead meat.”  Another threatened.

Slowly, shooting glares up at them, the boys dispersed.

Soarin' chuckled.  “See, there's always a way to tell the losers from the winners.”  He said, ruffling her hair.

She shoved away from him. “Get off of me, blockhead.”

“That isn't how we thank people who've saved our lives.”  He scolded, fists pressed to his hips.

“Heh, I wouldn't need saving if you hadn't ratted me out in the first place.”  She shot back.

He nodded. “Touche.”

“How did you know I was a girl?”  She asked.

Soarin shrugged. “I've spent years competing with and against women.  Fundamentally, the fairer sex moves differently.  Why did you try to disguise yourself as a boy?”

“You saw.  They won't play with girls.”

“I thought it was because you're under the age of six.”  He observed.

She glared at him before delivering a sharp kick to his shin.  “I'm ten, numb-skull.”

He gripped his leg and wince.  “Ow, okay.  Sorry, sorry.  But, why don't you go make a team and play with your own friends?”

She shrugged.  “My dad and I just moved to town a few weeks ago.  I haven't really had a chance to make any friends.”

“What about your classmates?”

She scoffed.  “They're all interested in make-up and pretending to be teenagers.  I like sports because I like the feel of achievement through my efforts.”

Soarin began to laugh.

“What the...?  Are you mocking me?  Don't mock me!”

He paused in his laughing, realizing he had just offended her.  “I wasn't laughing at you.  I'm just really happy I heard you say that, Little Pegasus.”

“And don't call me 'Little Pegasus'.  I have a name.”

“And what is that?”

She hesitated for the first time since their meeting. “Ra-Rainbow.”

“Ah, what an adorable name.”

She nervously clutched at her elbow. “You think so?”

“Of course.”  He assured her, crouching down to ruffle her hair. “Y'know what would look good with a name like that?  If you dyed your hair with all of the colors of the rainbow.  That would be perfect.”

She snorted. “You're a nut, ya know that?  Whaddaya think I am, a clown?”

Soarin shrugged.  “That's just my opinion.  I happen to like rainbows.”

“Hey, you haven't told me your name.”

He laughed and stood, posing with his hands on his hips.  “Too right, I haven't.  Where are my manners?  I'm Soarin of the World-Famous Wonderbolts Elite.”

He looked down at Rainbow, who had cocked an eyebrow.  “The what now?”

It was his turn to be surprised.  “Oh, little girl.  You've live in this town and you don't know the Wonderbolts Elite or the Wonderbolts Extreme Sports Academy?  Shame on you.”

“Hey, it's not my fault.  I told you we've only just moved into town.”

He nodded.  “Right, so let me lay it all out for you.  The Wonderbolts Academy is a center of higher learning.  Not only do we prepare students academically, but we're responsible for turning out athletes of the highest caliber.

“But not in the common sports, you understand, only in extreme sports.  Over the years, extreme sports have grown in popularity with the likes of Stacy Peralta and the Bones Brigade, Matt Hoffman, and Shawn White leading the way.  There are events comparable to the Olympic Games.  But the Wonderbolts Academy is only one of many in the world.”

“Awesome, but you said you were with the Wonderbolts Elite.  What's that mean?”

He smiled, always happy to talk about himself. “Even though I'm only sixteen, myself and two other girls are considered the best in the whole school, but we wouldn't be considered Elite if it wasn't for our second job.”

“What's that?”  Rainbow asked, growing more excited by the moment.

“Spitfire, Fleetfoot, and myself make up the Tactical and Rescue Division of the Wonderbolts.”

“Tactical and Rescue?”

He nodded. “For example; if a building collapses, or there's some sort of natural disaster like an earthquake, we use our talents and acrobatics to safely get in to the area and get supplies to those who might be trapped until First Responders can get to them.”

“No way!  So, you're like superheros?”

He laughed. “I guess that's one way of thinking of it.”

She let out a squeal.  “That's like twenty-percent cooler!”

He cocked an eyebrow.  “What did you say?”

Soarin's question was lost on Rainbow, who was hopping with giddiness. “I want to join this academy too.”

“I think you have what it takes, Rainbow.”  He assured her. “All you need is twenty-thousand dollars for one year of study.”

She stopped short and her jaw fell. “There's no way that dad has that kind of money.  Your family must be millionaires or something.”

He laughed again and knelt to her level.  “I don't have a family.  I came from an orphanage, but I entered the school on a scholarship I won at a tournament.”

“At a tournament?”

He nodded. “Every four years, the school holds a tournament in Skateboarding, Snowboarding, Motocross, and Parkour with scholarships going to those who place first in each individual competition.  The Parkour tournament is the best, in my opinion, because the one who wins that is automatically eligible for Elite training.”

“What's Parkour?” She asked.

“What do you think you've been doing with me all of this time?  But, unlike a regular track race, there is no set path, only a time limit.  It's up to you to choose the best path to reach the goal.  This year, in three months, the tournament will be held again.”

“Do you really think I could win?  I mean, I'm still just a...girl.”

He shook his head.  “It doesn't matter what I think.  Do you think you have what it takes?  By entering the tournament, you might find what you've been looking for.”

She made a face.  “What have I been looking for?”

“That's entirely up to you.  However, if you're that desperate for my opinion, I think you have the potential to be one of the very best at the school.  Just look at what you did today, and you didn't even know what you were doing.  When you made that jump, you showed me you have the determination to achieve the impossible.

“You also have to admit that, for those few seconds you were in the air, you felt like you belonged.  Like this was what was right for you.”  He shrugged. “I dunno.  Maybe you were a hawk, or a mythological Pegasus, in another life.

“And, personally, I'd love to work beside you as a Wonderbolt Elite.”

She pumped her fists. “Yeah, I wanna be a Wonderbolt!”

Soarin checked his watch. “I have to catch a plane at eight, so I'll have a little time to teach you a few basic things that will help you in the long run.”

She nodded excitedly. “Yeah, teach me!  I'm a good student.”

He smiled. “Let's see what you've got.”

x----x

“For the rest of the day, we trained hard.  I fell down a lot, but I always got back up.  I think that's what impressed him the most.  I felt so close to him.  Like he was the older brother I've always wanted.”

x----x

Soarin set his bag down as he knelt before Rainbow.  “Alright, Little Pegasus.  You've done good, but it's time for me to go.”

“Already?!”  She whined. “But I was having so much fun!”

“And just think of how much fun you'll have as a Wonderbolt.  All you have to do is practice, and you'll get there.  As sure as I love apple pie.”  He pulled something out from under his shirt, removed it from his neck, and handed it to her.  “Keep this for me.  I'll let you have it so long as you promise to return it on the day you join the Academy.”

She looked down at the lightning bolt pendant he had given her.  “What is it?”

“It's the symbol of the Wonderbolt Elite.  A symbol of our lightning-fast response to any danger.  You hold on to that for me and remember to practice every day.”

x----x

Rainbow gripped the pendant as her eyes held a faraway look. “He left for France that night.  I kept my promise to him, practicing every day so that I could be the best.  Even though my classmates taunted me for not acting like a real girl, the thought of being where I would be truly appreciated kept me going.  I thought he was the only one who could truly understand me.

“That was until I met you.  Unlike my old friend, Gilda, you were never an expert in sports.  You, the shy and fragile Fluttershy.”

Chapter 17

Rainbow stretched as she left the school, already clad in her athletic gear of a white tank and red shorts, her uniform stuffed into her school bag.  She was glad that boring school was over for the week.  She had two full days of training to look forward to.

Nearby, a group had gathered around something.  Rainbow cast a wary eye in their direction.  She didn't get along well with her classmates, given that they always mocked her for being such a tomboy and always being scraped up and covered in bruises.  She showed up to school in such a condition so often that the other students had taken to calling her “Rainbow Crash”, and the teachers had begun to worry.  She couldn't count the number of times that she had to convince them that she had gained those minor injuries from training, throwing herself around the city rather than being thrown around the house.

While she tried to ignore them, the mutterings from the group piqued her interest and she wandered over to see what had their attention.  A young pink-haired girl that she vaguely recalled sharing homeroom with knelt on the pavement, weeping pitifully.  She was covered in a brown sludge that smelled horrible.  Around her stood three of the more popular girls in school, mocking her.

“W-why would you d-d-do this?” the girl managed to get out between her sobs.  “I thought we were friends!”

The taller of the three girls snorted derisively.  “Us?  Friends with you?  Puh-leese.  Like we would want to be friends with some tree-hugging freak.”

Her two cronies snickered meanly.  The blonde said something about the pink-haired girl being good for nothing while the brunette shoved her down.

Rainbow nudged a boy next to her. “Hey, what's going on?”

The boy pointed over to the group. “That girl in the middle, I think her name's Fluttershy, just got a bucket of sewer water dumped on her.  Those other three spent most of the year picking on her.  Last week, they started acting really nice to her.  Surprised me.  Anyway, she was supposed to join their little group with some sort of official thing, but they used that to pull a prank on her.”

“Maybe we should help her,” Rainbow suggested.

The boy gave her a look. “No way.  She brought all of this on herself.  She's never stood up to anybody for any reason and never demanded respect.  The way I see it, she got what she deserved.”

Fluttershy climbed to her feet and bolted out of the schoolyard, crying all the way.  Rainbow watched her go.  The boy was right.  If she wasn't willing to stand up for herself, then she got exactly what she deserved.

x----x

A few hours later found Rainbow walking home, cutting her training a little short.  She didn't like the look of the dark clouds rolling over the horizon.

Ahead of her was a bridge that passed over the highway.  On that bridge was the girl from before, Flutter-something.  The girl stared down at the fast-moving traffic with a sad look, then climbed up onto the railing.

Rainbow broke into a sprint, hoping she would make it in time.

The girl began to lean forward, shifting her center of gravity over the abyss as Rainbow threw out a hand.  Strong fingers wrapped around the girl's wrist and, with an mighty yank, Rainbow pulled her back.

The girl began to struggle.  “No!  Let me go!  I wanna die!  I wanna die!”

Rainbow threw her to the pavement, hauled her back up, and shook her.  “What is wrong with you?!  How could you be so freaking stupid?!”

“Please,” the girl wept. “Please just let me go.  I don't want to live anymore.”

“Why?!  Because of those stupid girls from earlier?”  Rainbow gave her another shake.  “Listen to me, don't you dare try to please them when all they do is hurt you.”

The girl shoved away.  “You don't understand.  Ever since I moved to this city, all everybody has done is make me miserable.  Nobody wants to be my friend and everybody hates me.”

“Bullshit!”  Rainbow bellowed, startling the girl into silence. “There's always someone out there who loves us.  You know who they are.  Name them!”

She began to break down again. “M-my Mother.”

“And you would hurt her like this?”

She shook her head.  “My problems bring her more pain than anything else.”

Rainbow crossed her arms over her chest. “More pain than anything else, huh?  How about your death?  Just imagine the amount of pain and confusion your mom would go through while she tried to figure out why her little girl would take her own life.  I'll bet that she'd blame herself and might follow your example.”

The girl gasped, looking absolutely horrified at the thought.

“Uh-huh.  That's what I thought.”  Rainbow put a hand on the girl's shoulder. “Instead of dying for people who don't like you, live for somebody who does.”  In a sudden show of rage, Rainbow grabbed the collar of the girl's blouse and shook her again.  “And if I ever catch you doing that again, I'll beat you myself.”

She shoved past the girl and marched off. “And go take a shower!  You stink!”

x---x

“I saw something in you, that day,” Fluttershy said. “I saw someone who knew love, loyalty, and the real meaning of friendship.”

“Yeah, I remember,” Rainbow replied. “You stalked me for a week after that.  I knew you were there.  You weren't very good about hiding and you still aren't.  I figured you were just trying to mock me, like everybody else.  Until the day you approached me.”

x----x

Rainbow glanced to the side, just in time to see pink-hair duck behind a tree.  She ignored her and squatted down, setting herself before breaking into a wind-sprint.  She dashed, going as fast as her short legs could carry her.

A root caught the toe of her shoe, sending her tumbling through the dirt.  She lay there for a moment, waiting for the ground to stop spinning, before rolling over and trying to stand up.  A sharp pain from her knee caused her to hiss and sit back down and she glared at the small cut, left by a small stone.

“Uhm...hello?  Are you okay?”

Rainbow looked up to see pink-hair standing over her.  “Fine, just tripped.”

“I'm Fluttershy.  I was on the bridge...”

“I remember you.  Why have you been spying on me?”

“Oh, I didn't mean to spy.  I was just admiring your efforts.  I'm not very good at sports and what you do is pretty impressive.”

“Thanks.  Now, I've gotta keep practicing, so...” She tried to stand back up, but her knee refused to take any weight.

Fluttershy gasped.  “You're hurt.  Oh, I didn't mean to distract you like that.  Let me help you.”

Rainbow shook her head. “It's fine.  Just a little cut.”

“No!”  Fluttershy's sharp command startled her as the girl set her bag down and began to dig through it.  “It needs to be taken care of right now, or it might get infected.  Then you wouldn't be able to train at all.”

Rainbow shook off the surprise from seeing this new side of Fluttershy. “Okay.”

Fluttershy pulled out a small disinfectant pad. “Now, this will only hurt for a moment.”  She dabbed the pad at the cut, eliciting a hiss from the smaller girl.

“Almost done,” Fluttershy assured her as she unwrapped a plastic bandage and pasted it to the cut.

“Why do you carry all of that medical stuff in your bag?  You wanna be a nurse or something?”

Fluttershy shook her head. “No.  I'm just really delicate and I get hurt easily.”

“'Delicate' my ass,” Rainbow replied.  Those girls do more than just pick on you, don't they?  They hit you.”

Fluttershy looked away and busied herself packing up her bag.  “I don't like to talk about it.”  She stood and gave a pixie-like giggle. “There, all better.  You can keep practicing, just remember to change the bandage every day.”

“Thanks.  Uhm...I'm Rainbow.”

“It's a pleasure to meet you.”

x----x

“From that day on, you were always there.  Sometimes, I didn't even begin training until I was sure you were there.  At first, you just stood and watched, but, after a while, you started helping out and keeping records of my times.  You were a big part of the reason why I became good enough to enter the Wonderbolts Tournament.”

Fluttershy giggled.  “I remember that day.  You were so excited.”

x----x

“Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls, welcome to the Fourteenth Annual Wonderbolt's Academy Scholarship Tournament, here in the city of our humble beginnings as a small school for extreme sports enthusiasts, Ponyville.  Today, the Wonderbolts Academy is one of the most prestigious schools in the world, accepting only the most outstanding of young athletes.  Let's congratulate our newest student; winner of the Parkour competition in the children's category:  Lightning Dust!”

The roar from the crowd was deafening, but Fluttershy's heart sank slightly.  “Wasn't that the competition you wanted to win?”

Rainbow shook her head. “That's for those who just want to enter the academy.  Soarin told me to enter the Adult category if I wanted to be an Elite.”

“Ah...right, you mentioned that.  Er...can I ask you something else?  Why did you ask me to dye your hair?”

Rainbow self-consciously ran a hand through her rainbow-colored mane.  “Well, I figured since I'm going to win for sure, I'd better have a new look to show off.”

“Oh, okay.  Er...Rainbow?  If you win this tournament and go off to France to study, does that mean that we won't see each other anymore?”

I hadn't really thought about that,” Rainbow admitted.

Fluttershy giggled. “Don't worry about it.  Even if you do go away, we'll still be able to send letters and emails and stuff.  Besides, I'm stronger and more confident than ever because of you.”  She looked down and saw a shadow.  Yelping, she jumped behind Rainbow.

“Fluttershy, what's your problem?”

“Somebody's following us.  Didn't you see their shadow?”

Rainbow blinked.  “Uh...Fluttershy?  That's your shadow.”

“And now, the moment you've all been waiting for.  It is our great pleasure to introduce you to the pride of Wonderbolt Academy:  The Elite Wonderbolts!”

The crowd cheered as Rainbow began to bounce with excitement.  “This is it, Fluttershy.  You'll finally get to see him!”

“First, from the shining city of Venice, California.  Our own siren of the sea and master of all things aquatic.  The one...the only...Fleetfoot!”

The massive screen onstage depicted a lovely woman with tawny skin swimming elegantly through the sea.  Each pump of her long, powerful legs pushed her onward, building speed as she rocketed for the surface.

“She looks like a mermaid,” Fluttershy gasped as she watched in awe.

With a final stroke, Fleetfoot broke the surface with enough momentum to launch herself clear of the water and land safely on the waiting boat.  The screen froze on the image of the smiling girl as Fleetfoot herself walked onto the stage and waved to the cheering crowd.

From above, they heard the drone of an aircraft.  Rainbow and Fluttershy raised their eyes, mimicking the rest of the crowd as a small speck separated from the craft.

“Descending from the skies above Ponyville,” the voice on the loudspeaker announced as the speck glided along the thermals but steadily grew larger.  “An expert in the areal sports and Captain of the Wonderbolts.”

A canopy opened above the speck, which was clearly a woman, and slowed her fall.  She pulled her toggles as she worked her angles.  Somehow managing to avoid the light rigging and power lines, she landed safely on the stage and removed her helmet to reveal short, choppy, ginger-and-gold hair.  Stage hands ran out to gather her forgotten parachute as the woman took her place beside Fleetfoot.

“Captain of the Wonderbolts: Spitfire!”

Spitfire waved, but, unlike her counterpart, the serious woman did not smile.

“And now,” the voice began, “Ponyville is proud to introduce her native son.  An expert in all terrestrial sports.  The one, the only, Soarin!”

The audience roared as they stared at the stage expectantly.

And Soarin didn't appear.

After a solid minute of dead silence, he was shoved out onto the stage, obviously still waking up.  Stumbling, he fell forward with an echoing thud, pushed himself up, shook his head, and joined his incredibly embarrassed teammates while rubbing sleep from his eyes.

“That...That's the incredible Soarin?” Fluttershy asked Rainbow, who was mortified that her hero would be caught in such a state.

Fleetfoot grabbed Soarin and began to shake him, spouting words that Rainbow knew would get her in trouble if she ever repeated them.

“Attention competitors; the registration for the Adults category of the Wonderbolts Parkour Challenge will be closing in five minutes.”

Rainbow grabbed Fluttershy's hand and began to drag her towards the registration booths.  “C'mon Flutters, I need to sign up!”

She saw the two registrars, a brown-haired boy and a blonde girl, begin to pack up their things, obviously thinking that everyone who was going to compete had already signed-up.  She broke into a sprint, practically leaping onto the table to get their attention.

“Hey!  I want to register.”

The boy was a little slow. “What?”

“I said I want to register,” she repeated.

“That's nice, sweetheart, but the children's competition ended an hour ago.”

Rainbow rolled her eyes.  She hated it when people called her “sweetheart”.  “Yeah, that's great, but I wanna register for the adult's competition.”

The two registrars glanced at each other before breaking into loud laughter. “You're kidding me.  Like we're gonna let some six-year-old pipsqueak join.”

First, a “sweetheart”, which only her Nana was allowed to call her, and, then, mistaking her for a six-year-old?  With a snarl, she leaped up onto the table and grabbed his shirt. “Idiot!  I'm ten!”

He scoffed, clearly not impressed.  “Either way, I can't allow you to compete.  The minimum age is fifteen.”  He pointed to a sign, indicating this.

Slowly, Rainbow slid back to the ground, tears forming in her eyes as she watched her chance at greatness slip away. “But...but...but, I was gonna be the best,” she moaned.

“Hey, guys?  Everything set to go?”

Rainbow's heart lifted at the familiar voice.  Now they'd have to let her compete.

Chapter 18

Rainbow turned to see her hero, Soarin himself, looking on with curiosity.  “Soarin, you've gotta help me.  These idiots won't let me compete in the adult competition.”

Soarin blinked. “I'm sorry.  Do I know you?”

For a moment, she felt her heart stop. “But...but...Soarin.  You remember me.  You taught me about parkour, and called me your “little Pegasus”, and we had ice cream, and you told me to enter the adults competition if I wanted to become a Wonderbolt like you.  I trained really hard.”

Soarin was silent as he continued to stare at her, his brow furrowed with concentration.  As the silence dragged on, Rainbow could feel those tears forming in her eyes.

His face broke into a grin and he let out a snort, which grew into giggles, then to guffaws as he doubled over.  “Man, you should have seen the look on your face.  Of course I remember you, Rainbow Dash.”

She swung her fist, landing a solid blow to his stomach and emptying his lungs with a wheeze.  She might have been small, but she was still ridiculously strong.  “Idiot, don't ever tease me like that again!”

It took him a moment to regain his breath and, when he looked up again, his face split into a huge grin.  “Ah, I see you colored your hair just as I said you should.”

“What,” Rainbow squawked. “I did this because I wanted to do something different and I thought it would look good when I creamed the competition.”

He frowned. “Shame.  I actually liked it better the old way, when it was all blue.”

Rainbow's blood ran cold. “You...you said it would look good and...”  She stopped when she noticed his snickering.

She leaped at him. “Jerkwad!  I told you not to tease me like that!”

He laughed as he caught her and swung her around again.  “Seriously, though.  I'm happy that you showed up and I really like your hair.”  He paused as he noticed Fluttershy. “Hello, little one.  What's your name?”

Fluttershy let out a few squeaks and stutters before Rainbow came to her rescue. “Her name is Fluttershy and I met her right after you left.  She's been helping me train.”

“Awesome!”  He crouched down to Fluttershy's height.  “Hey, cutie.  It's great to meet you.”

Fluttershy let out several rapid squeals as she sought to make eye contact with anything but Soarin.

He shifted and leaned next to Rainbow. “Is there something on my face?  She keeps acting like she's afraid of me.”

Rainbow nodded. “Yeah, she's kinda shy.  Don't worry about it.  She does this all the time.”

He straightened.  “Alright.  It's almost time for the competition.  Have you signed up yet?”

Rainbow blinked, having completely forgotten about the infuriating Registrar.  “This jerkwad won't let me compete.  He says I'm too young.”

“She's only ten, Soarin.  You know the rules.”

Soarin nodded sagely as he crossed his arms over his chest. “Ah, yes.  The rules are the rules.”

“What!”

“But...rules are meant to be broken, aren't they?  Just imagine what would happen if we didn't break the rules.

“No way, man.  What if she decides to take the rooftop route and falls?  I know you don't want that on your conscience,” the registrar countered.

“Hmm, I hadn't thought of that.”  Soarin turned to Rainbow, “You must promise me that you'll keep to ground level and use only the techniques we practiced.  I don't want you getting hurt out there.”

Rainbow nodded excitedly.  “Sure thing, Soarin.”

He turned back to the registrar.  “Problem solved.  You can go ahead and give her a number now.”

“Are you freaking kidding me?!  There's no way I'm going to let some underage kid risk her life.  They'll skin me alive.”

“So, just tell them that I made you do it.”

“Soarin, the competition is starting.  Why are you arguing with the personnel?”

Soarin turned to see Spitfire and Fleetfoot watching him.  “Hey, Spit,” he drawled.

Spitfire's eyes narrowed. “What are you up to?”

“Nothin'.”

“'Nothin'', eh?  You only draw my name out like that when I've caught you raiding the cookie jar.  What are you up to?”

Soarin broke.  There was no way around it.  She'd find out anyways.  “Okay, this girl, her name is Rainbow.  I met her a few months ago and she's an incredible athlete.  I think she's got what it takes to be with the best of us.  She just needs someone to give her a chance.”

Spitfire leaned down to inspect Rainbow.  “She's got the right build.”  She reached out and gave the girl's arm a squeeze.  “Pretty fit.  You might be right, but she's a bit small.  Are you sure she meets the age limit?”

Soarin let out a nervous chuckle.  “That's just it.  Er, she's actually ten, not fifteen, but she'll do really well and...”

He had heard rumors of Spitfire's temper.  She could send guys twice her size fleeing when she got her choler up.  Luckily, he had never been on the receiving end of one of her tantrums.

Until today.

“Have you lost your ever-loving mind,” she screamed as her arms flailed with energy.  “I know you're reckless, but this goes beyond that.  She's too young!  She'll be hurt!  She'll be killed and all because you're on some kind of power trip!”

“Spitfire, calm down,”  Fleetfoot urged.

“No!  I will not calm down!  This idiot flaunts the rules and does whatever he wants!  I'm sick of it!”

“But, Spit-”

“Don't you 'but, Spit' me!  Why do you insist on doing this?!  Do you want to disgrace everything we have worked for?!”

“She's a great athlete.  She has real potential,” Soarin replied defensively.

“Then she can sign up when she's old enough and we'll see what happens from there.  If she's as good as you say she is, she can only get better,” she sighed as her rage died down. “I don't know what you're up to, but I'll not have it.”

“Hey, lady,”  Rainbow tugged on the sleeve of Spitfire's jacket, trying to get her attention.

“What do you want, girl?”  Spitfire growled, still not having completely regained her composure.

“Are you his girlfriend?”

Spitfire and Soarin had identical looks of shock.

“Are you kidding me?” she snapped. “Do I look like I want to be associated with this good-for-nothing slacker?”

Rainbow nodded. “Alright, that answers that.  Let me participate.”

“I already gave my decision.  The answer is still no.”

“But...”

“I don't care.  You're too young and too inexperienced.  You'll get hurt and I don't want that.  Believe me, kid.  This is for your own good.”

“Please, ma'am.  She's worked really hard every day to be able to run in this race,”  Fluttershy pleaded.

“Yeah, Spit, don't be mean or are you telling me these little faces don't completely break your heart?”

“Yeah, I promised myself.”

Spitfire grimaced in a way that Soarin knew.  She could be stubborn, but it wasn't impossible to change her mind.  Her resolve was beginning to crack.

“Fleet,”  Spitfire turned to the third Wonderbolt, looking for backup.

Fleetfoot raised her hands. “Don't look at me.  I'm over here, staying out of that drama.”

“That's new,”  Soarin muttered.

She turned back to the trio and huffed a few times.  Soarin was nearly shaking with anticipation.  This was it.

“No.”

Soarin stood with a look of steely determination.  “That's it, Spit.  I didn't want to do this, but you've left me no choice.”  He put his arm around the woman to whisper in her ear.  Nosy Fleetfoot tried to eavesdrop on the conversation only to be shoved aside by Spitfire.

Spitfire's expression shifted from confidence, to curiosity, to complete shock. “You wouldn't dare.”

“I could and I would,” Soarin replied with confidence.

“But it's a lie!”

“Oh, I know that, and you know that, but nobody else does.  Oh, just imagine what it would do to your reputation.  Spitfire the hardass is actually-”

“Not another word.”

Soarin giggled.

“You would really sink so low as to blackmail me,” she asked.

He shrugged. “Like I said, you left me no other choice.  So, are you going to let her participate or what?”

“And have you spreading rumors across the globe just to spite me?  No thank you,” she turned to the registrar. “Let her participate.”

Rainbow and Fluttershy cheered as Spitfire collared Soarin. “This had better not come back to bite me or I will make you rue this day.”

“Don't worry, Spit.  What's the worst that could happen?”

“I can think of a few things.  Why are you doing this, Soarin?  Why do you care so much about this kid?”

“Yeah,”  Fleetfoot chimed up. “I'll admit I like her, but she's got a snowball's chance in Hell in this race.”

Soarin grinned confidently. “I'll say this:  Keep an eye on Rainbow. I have a feeling she's going to be a big surprise.”

As Rainbow jogged off to join the other contestants at the starting line, he turned to Fluttershy. “Hey honey, do you want to come with us?  We have front row seats and you can see the entire race.  Not to mention, it'll be easy to find Rainbow when she's done.”

Fluttershy blushed brilliantly. “O-okay.”

He offered her his hand and walked with her towards the stands and their private viewing booth.  Behind him, he could hear Spit and Fleet's conversation.

“I don't think I've ever seen him so invested in getting somebody into the academy,” Fleet said.

“If he was that invested in Rainbow's future, he would have encouraged her to compete in the children's competition, where she would actually stand a chance of winning,” Spitfire agreed. “Make no mistake, he wants something else out of this girl.”

x----x

Rainbow was practically vibrating with excitement as she gathered with the rest of the racers at the starting line.  They were all larger and older than her, but she knew her small size would prove an asset when it came to speed and agility.  She would beat them all.

“Well, I knew this competition had been declining over the years, but they must really be desperate for new blood if their letting a dwarf like you race,” a contemptuous voice said.

Rainbow turned to the speaker, taking in his stout frame and heavily muscled body. “And just who are you?”

“They call me Thunderlane.  Tell me, girl, who let you join, or are you just lost and looking for your mommy?”

“I'll have you know that Soarin himself entered me into this tournament.”

Thunderlane scoffed.  “That explains it.  Only Soarin would be stupid and careless enough to let a toddler compete.”

“Why does everybody believe I'm a baby?  Also, Idiot, nobody calls my friends 'stupid'.  Got it?”

He shrugged. “Whatever, but you're fresh outta luck, half-pint.  I'm gonna win this tournament.”

“Why are you so pressed to be an Elite?  You've got no respect for them.”

“An Elite?  No, girl, no.  I want to best Soarin at his own game.  The dude's been unbeatable since the beginning.  He's known as the Achilles of the modern age, but I'm going to show him to the world as the fraud he really is.  Then, I'll be the best, a legend in my own time.”

He glanced over at Rainbow, who was making a big show of falling asleep, much to the amusement of some nearby competitors.  She snorted and shook her head.  “I'm sorry, are you finished?  Oh, I must have nodded off there.  That's not important, what is important is the fact that I'm going to wipe the floor with every single one of you.”

x----x

“See?  Isn't this a great spot, Fluttershy?  Told ya.”

“M-Mister Soarin?”

“Hey, don't call me 'Mister'.  It makes me sound old.  My name is Soarin.”

“Yes, M...Soarin.  But, you aren't bothered by me being here?”

“Why would I be bothered?  Any friend of Rainbow's is a friend of mine.”

Fleetfoot stepped into the box. “Soarin, it was very sweet of you to give little Fluttershy your seat.  You'd be quite the gentleman if you hadn't taken my seat.”

Spitfire pressed against her brow, feeling another headache coming on.

“Now, now.  Didn't your mother teach you to be polite and give your seat to your elders?”

“No, my mother died in childbirth, or have you forgotten?  You ass!”

Spitfire swatted Fleetfoot's thigh. “Language!”

“Yeah, Fleet, there are small ears nearby.  Watch your temper.”

“Get out of my seat!”

“No.  I'm actually rather comfortable.”

Spitfire turned towards Fluttershy, and ignored the other two.  “You know, if you were her friend, you should have convinced Rainbow to run in the Children's competition.  She could get hurt, or worse.”

Fluttershy nodded. “I know, but the past few months have been the happiest times of my life because she was my friend and supported me in everything I did.  What kind of friend would I be if I didn't support her in turn.”

“Sweetheart, being a good friend doesn't just mean supporting your friends.  It also means being loyal enough to tell them that what they're doing isn't a good idea.”

“You're right,”  Fluttershy replied, “But she's not doing this just for herself.  This is her way of thanking somebody who's really important in her life.”

Spitfire nodded. “I know what you mean.  Sometimes, I forget that I started for somebody too.”

x----x

The crowd roared as Ponyville's Mayor, Christine Mare, took to the podium to begin the race.  “Allow me to extend my appreciation to all of the competitors who are risking everything to give us a show of effort, skill, and fair play.  Competitors, to your marks.”  She raised the starting pistol and began the countdown.

“Ten...Nine...” Fleet and Soarin stopped their fighting, turning their attention to the track.

“Eight...Seven...”  Spitfire's lips tightened.  She didn't like the idea that this little girl was competing.  Something bad was going to happen.  She just knew it.

“Six...Five...”  Soarin grinned in anticipation of what Rainbow's competitive spirit would bring.

“Four...Three...”  Fluttershy silently wished her friend the best of luck.  If anyone deserved this, it was Rainbow.

“Two...”  In the stands, a tiny girl with purple hair, a true lover of parkour, bounced in her seat.  She wanted to run in the Children's competition, but a birth defect prevented that.  She wasn't able to walk without the assistance of her crutches, and running was well beyond her abilities.  As such, she had to be content as a spectator.  This was the closest she could get to the sport she loved.

“One...”  Rainbow felt her muscles tighten as she prepared to spring off.  She was going to win this.  She was going to smoke them all.

The starting pistol cracked and the racers surged forward.

Chapter 19

“Three…”

“Two…”

“One…”

“Go!”

The starting pistol barked and the racers surged forward.  Rainbow may not have had the reach of the older and taller competitors, but her smaller size gave her unmatchable agility and speed.  Her tiny legs pumped as she kept pace, falling behind only a bit to the center of the pack.  Let the others wear themselves out before the race was even half-over, she’d pace herself and break ahead while they slowed to rest.

She felt the slightest nudge between her shoulders, just below her neckline.  It was barely noticeable, but more than enough to disrupt her balance.  Her eyes widened as the ground rushed up to meet her.  With a grunt, she slammed into the pavement, skidding slightly on the hot, black surface.

“The race has just begun, and already we have a few competitors down.”

Rainbow looked to see that she wasn’t the only one who had fallen.  Half a dozen others were on the ground, a few clutching minor injuries.

x----x

Fluttershy raised her hands to her eyes, horrified at the site of people, especially Rainbow, sprawled out in the middle of the street.  She fought back her instinct to dart out there and help and was relieved to see trained medics already assisting the injured.  “What happened?”

“Most likely, she was pushed by another competitor.”  Fleetfoot stated.

Startled, Fluttershy turned to the older woman. “What?!  And that’s allowed?!”

Fleetfoot looked hurt at the accusation. “Of course not.  This competition has only two rules: don’t use transportation, and don’t attack other competitors.”

“So, why do they do it?”

“We have over fifty mobile cameras set up along the route as well as the town’s CCTV system that the mayor gave us access to.”  Spitfire said. “These allow the spectators to see every moment of the race as well as allow us to catch cheaters in action.  Unfortunately, this doesn’t solve the problem of the chaos at the starting line and some of our less virtuous competitors take advantage of that to eliminate as many of their opponents as possible.  The more seasoned racers know to take positions along the edges of the track.  Your friend, aside from being a beginner, is small and more likely to become the victim of such trickery.”  She raised her voice and swatted Soarin’s arm. “One of the things that I was concerned about.”

Soarin returned the swat to her abdomen, earning a grunt. “Nothing to be concerned about.  Look, she’s already getting up.”

“And it looks like one of our competitors has recovered!” The commentator announced as Rainbow pushed herself to her feet and sprinted to rejoin the pack. “Let’s have a look at this girl with such admirable will.  Competitor One-Nineteen’s name is Rainbow Dash, entering her first competition at...ten-years-old?!”

Even in the V.I.P. box, the Wonderbolts could hear the crowd murmurs, growing into cries that the underage competitor be removed from the race.

Spitfire scowled at Soarin. “Happy now?  They’ve started to boo her out.  Doesn’t surprise me, really.  The people of this town take this race very seriously.”

“Poor kid.”  Fleetfoot sympathized. “That’s got to be discouraging.”

Soarin simply laughed. “Don’t worry about Rainbow.  That girl has been mocked for her entire life.   I doubt a few boos and hisses are going to get her down.  Matter of fact, I’m sure it’s going to strengthen her resolve to win, to shut these people up for good.”

“It seems that the one who allowed this underage entry was Soarin.  Really no surprise there.  What is surprising is that Fleetfoot and Spitfire allowed it.  Make no mistake, folks, heads will roll for this.”

Soarin’s face split into a huge nervous grin. “Heh, that commentator is a real card, isn’t he?”

A pair of hands seized his collar and hauled him to his feet. “Listen here, numbnuts.” Spitfire snarled, “If I end up expelled from the Academy for this little stunt, I promise my head won’t be the only one rolling.”

A second pair of hands seized his shoulders and spun him around, bringing him level with the murderous glare of Fleetfoot. “And if I get expelled from the Academy for this little stunt, I promise your head won’t be the only thing you lose.  Comprende?”

“Mommy,” he squeaked.

x----x

Rainbow fought the urge to sprint as she hurried to catch up with the pack.  Soarin had informed her that the race was one of skill and endurance.  It would span all of Ponyville and would take most of the afternoon to complete.  Occasionally, she passed opponents who had petered out and were now resting on benches and in the grass or where they had dropped.

Her fall at the start had really cost her and she had struggled to catch up now for over an hour, but she hadn’t made much progress.  She could just spot the backs of the other runners, dipping in and out of sight as they moved through the course.

Glancing to her left, she noticed a familiar feature.  The blinking warning lights alerted pedestrians and drivers to the section of sewer pipe, left open for maintenance crews.  It would be a tight fit, but it was an almost direct route to another section of the course.  It would shave several minutes off of her time.

x----x

“Soarin had warned me that the race would be intense.”  Rainbow’s eyes were still glazed over and Fluttershy knew she wasn’t seeing her, but her memories of the race. “He wasn’t kidding.  It was an uphill battle the entire way, both figuratively and literally.  The starting line was always on the coast, with the finish mark in the hills on the outskirts of the city.  The intensity and difficulty of the race became obvious as the novice contestants began to drop out from exhaustion.  After only an hour, of the one hundred and nineteen contestants, only fifty-six remained, but one stood out above all the rest.”

x----x

Thunderlane grunted as an opponent he had been blocking for ten minutes tried to shove past him.

“Let me past or you’ll regret it.”

He shot an annoyed glare over his shoulder. “If you think you can knock me down like you took out that Rainbow-haired kid, you’ve got another thing coming.”

Just as the idiot was about to take another shot, Thunderlane leaped away, springing off of a billboard, and safely clearing the gap.  He took a moment to glance back, seeing the pest sprawled out on the roof.

x---x

“This is amazing!  Number Twenty-three is really pulling out all of the stops on this course, folks.  This may be a bit early for a prediction, but I think we’re looking at the newest member of the Wonderbolts Elite!”

“He’s pretty amazing.”  Fleetfoot breathed, a light blush tinting her tan cheeks.  “I wonder what his name is.”

“Athlete twenty-three: Thunderlane,” Spitfire recited from memory.  “He’s an up-and-comer from South Africa.  Seventeen-years-old.  He’s won local, regional, and national competitions before coming here.”

Fleetfoot blinked, thinking she wasn’t the only one to take interest in this kid. “How do you know all of that?”

“I keep up to date on anyone interesting in our sport of choice.  Being team captain, it helps to know what your future players might be capable of.  You should be doing the same.”  She said, addressing Soarin.  “He looks like a threat to your position as World’s Best Parkourist.”

Soarin laughed. “I’m not worried. He didn’t count on entering the same tournament as Rainbow.”

“Speaking of your little protege, I haven’t seen her in nearly an hour.  Do you think she quit the race?”

Fluttershy spoke up for the first time in so long, they had nearly forgotten she was there. “Oh, no, Miss Fleetfoot.  Rainbow would never quit on her lifelong dream.  Still, you’re right.  Where could she have gotten to?”

Soarin snickered. “I have a feeling she’ll turn up right...about...now!”

“What’s this?!  One-Nineteen has just reappeared from the sewers.  It seems her little trick has put her ahead of the pack and she’s gaining on the leaders!”

“There’s no way!”  Spitfire cried. “That place is way too small for anybody!”

“Not for a girl the size of my Rainbow.”  Soarin replied.

“Really hope that’s dirt on her face.”  Fleetfoot muttered, taking no pains to hide the disgust on her face.

x----x

“That race took everything I had.  I used every trick Soarin had taught me and even a few I had made up, but I kept going.  Little by little, I began to win the crowd over.  Everyone was astonished that me, a little thing of only ten-years-old, could kick the butts of players older and bigger than me.”

x----x

Fleetfoot was genuinely impressed. “I have to admit, Soarin.  That girl has some incredible resilience for someone so young.”

“Oh, you haven’t seen anything yet, Fleet.  Let’s see who wins the competition.”

She snorted. “It’s endearing to see you so invested in this kid, but Thunderlane has the lead and there are seven more athletes between her and him.  I don’t think she’s got this one.”

“You think so, eh?  Let’s not forget that the others have been on the rooftops, wearing out their legs.”

Fluttershy snapped her fingers as the realization occurred to her.  “That’s why you told her to stay off the rooftops, not only to protect her, but to prolong her endurance.  Right, Mister Soarin?”

Soarin flashed her a wink in reply.

“I know this competition is freestyle, Soarin, but the final few meters are a climb to the top.  There’s only one way up and no more shortcuts between her position and there.  She can’t win.”

“Ah, but girls, you’re forgetting one thing.  There’s one more path to the top.”

On the screen, Rainbow Dash stopped dead, sizing up the imposing obstacle.  The other competitors, who had chosen the easier path by going up the hill, paused when they noticed her.

Spit stared at the screen for a moment, putting two and two together.  “She isn’t!”  She broke into a cold sweat as she stared at the obstacle, a flood of memories nearly overwhelming her, of trials and failures, some of which had nearly ended her career and her life.  “D-do you think she can make the jump?”

“What?!  No!  That’s insane!  We were twice her size and had years of experience under our belts before we even made our first attempts.  And we all know how those ended.  The Ninja Jump isn’t for amateurs.”

“What’s a ‘Ninja Jump’?”  Fluttershy asked.

Soarin grinned, remembering when Rainbow asked that very same question. “It’s what we call it when we do a series of jumps to ascend to the top of this wall, where the finish line will be.”

“But that’s impossible.  Has anybody ever succeeded at that?”

“Spitfire, Fleetfoot, and I all have, but never in competition.”

x----x

“I understand.” Rainbow said with a nod. “Nobody would risk their chance at victory with such a difficult stunt.”

Soarin laughed and ruffled the girl’s blue hair. “Winning isn’t everything, Rainbow.”

“But my entire life, I’ve been taught that winning was the only thing that mattered.”  She objected.

“The only thing winning gets you is a trophy.  Give them a few months and the people will forget about that.  The important thing is to leave an impression, to shake them to their core and leave them hoping that the impossible is within their grasp.  That is what it means to be a Wonderbolt.  Not to win trophies or be the best, but to inspire and be remembered.”

x----x

“Enough, Soarin!”  Spitfire barked. “Now, you are going to tell me exactly what you told that little girl who is, right now, planning to tempt fate and risk breaking her neck.”

He turned to her and smiled.  “I told her that only she could achieve what all three of us lost years ago.”

Spitfire blinked, more confused than ever. “What do you mean?  What did we lose?”

His eyes glazed over slightly as his voice grew slightly somber. “The ability to inspire, to help others believe that dreams could be achieved.  Do you remember when we came to town last year and visited the hospital.  There was that one girl, the one that couldn’t walk very well.  Scootaloo, that was her name.  She said she admired us and, if she didn’t have those problems, she’d be the best runner in the world.”

Spitfire nodded, smiling at the memory of the little girl with the shock of purple hair.  “Yes, you said that you had been in an accident as a child; that you couldn’t walk well just like her, but you pressed on anyway.  She said that she was different.  She saw us as some sort of superheroes with super powers or something.”

“Exactly.”  The break in Soarin’s voice caught Spitfire’s attention.  She noticed a single tear slip down his cheek. “Exactly.  At that moment, I realized what had happened. We no longer represented an example to be followed, but idols to be admired from afar.  Do you remember when we started the Elite?  We wanted to show the world how anybody could overcome the greatest of adversity.  Little-by-little, through each endorsement and each competition, we lost that.

“But I had a dream.  In this dream, there was a young woman with rainbow-tinted hair.  She wasn’t a member of the Academy, but she could do incredible, unparalleled things and I would find her here.”  He sat back and pondered a moment. “I never imagined that woman would be a ten-year-old girl named Rainbow, but when I saw what she could do at her age, with no experience, there was no doubt in my mind that she was the one.  She would be the one to inspire the people in a way that we never could.  She would be the example that we should have been.

“Don’t get me wrong, I would love it if she entered the Academy.  The best athlete in the world would be a Wonderbolt, but that would mean she’d end up like us, admirable, but not inspirational.”

“They’ve all stopped.”  Fluttershy pointed out, her attention fixed on the screen.  The eight leaders had all paused in their positions, watching Rainbow.

“Despite the fact that some are cheaters and others want nothing more than victory, they’re all sportsmen at heart.”  Fleetfoot said. “They’re giving Rainbow their full attention, knowing she’s going to attempt the impossible.”

x----x

Rainbow heard her pulse in her ears.  Everything around her ceased to exist as she focused on the column gap before her.  She knew what to do, she knew how to do it, but she had never done it before.  The few attempts she had given had all ended in failure.  She could take the easy route and climb the hill, like the others, and fail, or she could give this everything she had and be the youngest Wonderbolt Elite ever.

With a roar, she broke into a sprint and bolted for the gap before she had a chance to change her mind.  Her eyes darted up and down the gap, plotting every leap point for maximum effect with minimal loss.  Without a second thought, she took off from the ground, landing at the first point, fixing her angle, and launching again.  Six times she repeated this maneuver, each leap becoming more difficult as her strength waned.  Finally, two-thirds of the way up, she could go no further.  She panted from the exertion, using the last of her energy to brace herself.

x----x

The three Wonderbolts and Fluttershy watched with baited breath as Rainbow seemed at the end of her rope.  The camera zoomed in on her, clinging precariously to the wall.  After a long moment, her eyes snapped open and she sprang away, the camera operator hurrying to keep up.  They caught a glimpse of her springing away from the opposite wall and reaching for the lip.  She was going to do it.  Rainbow Dash was going to win.

As her hands wrapped around the lip of the wall, she hung for a moment.  Then, her strength seemed to fail her completely as one arm fell away.

Spitfire leaped from her seat as if she intended to jump through the screen and give Rainbow the help she so desperately needed.  “Come on, Rainbow!  You’ve got this!  Just a little bit further girl, and everything you’ve worked so hard for...is…”  She suddenly became acutely aware of the three pairs of eyes locked onto her.  Her face flaming, she sank back into her chair, folded her hands, and tucked them between her thighs.

Soarin chuckled. “What was that you were saying yesterday, Spit?  Something about not getting emotionally invested in the competitors?”

“Shut up!” She snapped.

They stared at the screen for a long moment as Rainbow continued to dangle, putting no effort into pulling herself up.

“What’s wrong with her?”  Fleetfoot finally voiced what they had all been thinking.  “She shouldn’t be too tired to pull herself up.”

x----x

Rainbow watched the trio of pink and blue butterflies that had joined her at the lip of the wall, fluttering around her hands.  Her mind was drawn back to another time when she had seen these same creatures.  They had hovered about Fluttershy as the distraught girl covered in filth stood over the abyss and contemplated the unthinkable.

“You don’t understand!  Ever since I’ve moved to this city, all everybody has done is make me miserable!  Nobody wants to be my friend and everybody hates me!”

Her mind raced as memories she shared with them flashed before her eyes: Memories of work and of relaxation. Finally they culminated into the most recent and powerful memories of the two people she shared them with flashed to her forefront.

If you win the tournament, does that mean this will be the last day we’ll spend together?

By entering the tournament, you might find end us discovering what you’ve been looking for.

And what am I looking for?

Rainbow swallowed past the hot lump that had suddenly formed in her throat.  She couldn’t leave her.  She was still needed.  “I’m sorry, Soarin.  I can’t leave, not yet.”

x----x

Soarin watched, well aware of what was going on behind Rainbow’s eyes.

“What is she doing?”  The moment was beginning to get to Spitfire. “If she doesn’t hurry and pull herself up, Thunderlane’s going to win.”

“She’s not going to.”  Soarin replied in a low voice.

“What do you mean?”  Fleetfoot asked.

His gaze fell on little Fluttershy, who cocked her head in confusion. “She’s finally found what she was looking for:  A faithful friend.  That’s what she wanted, what she needed.  That’s what makes her happy.”

A chorus of gasps erupted as Rainbow released her grip and fell back to earth, her fall broken by the stunt bag beneath. Only the voice of Soarin was quiet as a stream of liquid pride fell down his cheek.

x----x

Scootaloo watched as that Thunderlane guy leaped over the gap to be the first to cross the finish line, but her mind was on the girl with  rainbow hair.  She was so awesome, competing with those bigger kids; and almost beating them too.  Sure, she had lost, but it was still amazing what that girl had accomplished.  And, if that girl could do it, so could she.  Scootaloo resolved to double her efforts in physical therapy.  She would walk without the crutches.  She would run, and jump, and climb, and be just like the girl with the rainbow hair.

x----x

Rainbow sat in the dirt, staring up at the gap that had been the last obstacle between her and her dream.  Why had she given it up;it was everything she had ever wanted.

A gloved hand gently gripped her shoulder, bringing her out of her contemplation. “Good race, Rainbow.”

She turned to see Soarin smiling down at her and the emotional dam finally broke.  She felt the hot tears slide down her cheeks as her mind turned to her idol and how she had failed him.  “I...I’m so...sorry, Soarin.  I failed you.”  She looked away, unable to meet his eyes.

He knelt down and gently gripped her chin, turning her to face him. “Rainbow, what do you mean?  I couldn’t be more proud to be your friend.”

“But, I lost.”

Soarin chuckled. “What did I tell you about winning?  It isn’t everything.  You made an excellent decision, staying with Fluttershy and staying loyal to her.  She needs you, Rainbow, far more than the Academy does.”

“It’s true, Rainbow.”  She noticed Spitfire and Fleetfoot standing with Fluttershy.  “I’ll admit that I couldn’t understand why Soarin held so much faith in you.  Now, I see that you’re someone very special.”

“And you need someone very special by your side.”  Fleetfoot said, giving Fluttershy the gentlest of nudges.  Timidly, the girl came forward.

“Fluttershy…”

She knelt down and carefully inspected Rainbow’s hand. “You’re hurt.”

“Yeah, the edge of that wall was kinda sharp.”

Fluttershy nodded.  “Let me help you.”  She reached into her bag and pulled out her little first aid kit, gently applying a bandage to the cut.  She stood and offered a hand. “Come on, we need to start training again.  The next time you compete, you’ll win for sure.  But, first, you need to shower.  You smell like sweat and sewage.”

Gladly, Rainbow accepted Fluttershy’s help.  Four more years to train and, with her friend by her side, there was nothing that was going to stop her.

“You see, Rainbow?  You chose the best option.  You and Fluttershy are in perfect harmony.  You’re the strength and loyalty that she needs and she’s the serenity and humility that was missing in your life.”  He held out a pinkie. “Promise me this: no matter what life throws your way, no matter what problems come between you, never forget what you are.  You’re more than friends, you’re sisters.  Promise me that you’ll never lose that trust you share.”

She hooked her pinkie in his as Fluttershy joined in. “Promise,” the smaller girls said in unison.

x----x

Rainbow’s eyes widened in realization and Fluttershy smiled with the knowledge that she had broken through.  “I remember.”

“I promised to never stop trusting you, Rainbow, and I will stick by my promise.”

“But how can I trust you, Fluttershy, after everything that’s happened?”

“Because we’re sisters,” she stated as though it were the simplest fact in the world. “I have complete faith in you, and you need to have complete faith in me when I tell you that Twilight and the others are true friends.  I can’t stop you from leaving, but know that if you choose to go with Luna, even if we never see each other again, I will always love you and always be your friend.

“You need to make a decision, now.  Go with her, or stay with us.”  Fluttershy locked gazes with Rainbow. “I hope you make the right decision.”

In the distance, a sound like thunder rumbled, drawing Fluttershy’s attention for a moment. “I have to go.  The others need my help.  Please be careful, Rainbow.”  With those words, she transformed.  As single flap of her wings sent her airborne and away towards the raging battle.

Rainbow stared after her.  After everything that had happened, after all of the words that had been said, Fluttershy still trusted her. “Fluttershy…” she whispered, watching as her figure shrank in the distance.

Chapter 20

Friendship, a force for good, is valued above all else.  Many would go to extreme lengths for their friends, even going so far as to offer up their own lives.  Or their very souls.

l-l-l-l

Comfortably perched on a high branch, Pinkie glanced at her opponent from the corner of her eye.  “Descentie, why don’t we give up this game?”

Descent chuckled. “I couldn’t agree more, you little, pink-haired monster.  I’m more than ready to finish you off.”

Pinkie clicked her tongue. “I don’t think so.  I really don’t think you want to hurt me.”

“Oh?  Shows how much you know.  I’ve been trying to kill you this entire time.”  Descent folded his wings and dove at Pinkie, who deftly dodged, just as she had countless times before.

“I can’t help but disagree.  You’ve done nothing to hurt me.  All you’ve done is try and tackle me, which I always avoid, try and trap me with those dark spear-thingies of yours, burn me up when I know you know I can use water, and heat up the entire field.  You’re playing to my strengths.  Not that I don’t appreciate that.  I ate way too much cake for breakfast today so you’re helping me burn those calories, keeping me slim and trim.  I didn’t know you cared so much.”

Descent hovered and crossed his arms. “Are you saying I’m not trying my hardest?”

“No, no no no.  I’m saying you don’t really want to do this.  You don’t really want to hurt me, or anybody for that matter.  I don’t know why you joined sides with Luna.  Maybe it’s because of your sister, however all I know is that it’s clear that you don’t agree with doing this.”

Realizing what she was saying, he found himself approaching closer to her. “I’m afraid you’re wrong, Pinkie Pie,” he said in a barely audible voice, “I am not a good person.  I’m not friendly, I’m not loving, and I’m not happy.”

“I’m only happy with good people and you, Descent, are a good person.” Pinkie started giggling a little. “That’s why I like being with you.”

“And besides, who wants to spend all of their time fighting?” she asked, her voice taking on her normal timbre, “Now me, I’m not for fighting all of the time.  Life’s too short to spend it in combat.  Personally, I’d rather party and have fun.”

Any further conversation between the two was silenced as the sound of a heavy impact sounded from a distance.

l-l-l-l

It all happened so fast.  I could barely keep track of the attacks.  With Pinkie distracted with Descent and me holding off Nightingale, Rarity was completely defenseless.  I could hear bones breaking, punctuated by her cries of pain, with each blow.  Finally, Haze delivered a final, fatal attack.  The powerful kick sent Rarity into a solid oak with a shattering impact.

“Rarity!  No!”

She slumped over onto the ground and did not move.  Her armor had dissolved and I couldn’t see Generosity glowing.  Blood trickled from her mouth, her nose, her everything, and she didn’t look to be breathing.

Oh, God.  Rarity, my friend, was dead.

What was I going to tell her parents?  Her sister?  My sister?  Fluttershy?  I had led us into a foolish battle against all odds for some twit who had tried to kill me not twelve hours before and what had that gotten us?  Now, Rarity was dead and it was all my fault.

Haze stood to his full height, Generosity glowing in the palm of his hand.  “So this is the power of the Bearers of Harmony?  How disappointing.  Little more than girls playing at war, really.”  His dark eyes locked onto me.  “Now, end this game and surrender, or you will suffer far worse than this weak woman.”  He threatened.

I sensed a shift in Pinkie’s aura which drew my attention to her. It wasn’t like how Rainbow’s aura had been with her natural blue being smothered by the darker green.  Pinkie’s had shifted entirely from the girl’s natural bright pink having changed entirely to a dark crimson.  There was a subtle physical difference about her.  Her normally bouncy, curly hair had straightened and darkened from bubblegum-pink to almost rouge.  She seemed in a trance as she watched the scene, slowly raising one arm and gathering her power.

Alarm bells in my head went off.  Something was very wrong here.  Haze seemed to notice as water began to seep up from the soil and gather beneath him.

“Impalement!”  Pinkie roared.

The water erupted upwards into jagged peaks of solid ice.  Had he not leaped away in time, Haze would have been skewered by them.

Pinkie leaped from her branch and vanished.  A moment later, she reappeared and drew back a fist that was rapidly covering itself in ice.  Now a more powerful weapon, she swung her fist.

Haze brought an arm up, barely blocking it in time.

I stood in utter confusion.  Never before had Pinkie acted this aggressively.  She wasn’t trying new powers, wasn’t dodging any attacks, and wasn’t cracking jokes.  It was like she was an entirely different person.  She didn’t even smile.

She was terrifying.

Haze hurried to put distance between him and the now homicidal Pinkie, but Pinkie kept up with him, phasing in and out of view as she darted about, finally appearing behind Haze.  The giant spun with surprising grace and seized her by the throat.

“You’ll have to get up earlier than that if you want to get the drop on me, girl.” He rumbled, tightening his fist and squeezing the life out of her.

I was not about to lose another friend.  I charged for the pair, intent on breaking them up.  An arm appeared in my vision and connected with my head, throwing me to the ground.

“Where do you think you’re going?”  Nightingale taunted.  “Haze is going to take care of your friend and I’m going to take care of you.  You Bearers have bitten off more than you can chew.”

I leaped to my feet and tried to push past her a second time, but, again, I was blocked.  I didn’t have time for this.  Pinkie might already be beyond help.  I swung at her.  An attack which she dodged.  I followed up with a high kick, intending to take her out quickly and easily, only to catch a knee to the stomach.

A cry from Haze caused us to return our attention to the pair.  Pinkie had vanished and her form was held by a sculpture of water.  That, too, evaporated after a moment.  Almost immediately after, a massive puppet, shaped like a pony and constructed of water, appeared and wrapped an appendage around Haze’s still-extended arm.

The real Pinkie had mounted her spires of ice and glared down at the massive man, laughing darkly.

My blood ran cold at the sight of her.  While I could write the straightened hair down to the fact that she was drenched in water, but that wouldn’t account for the general strangeness about her.  She looked demented with her narrowed eyes and manic grin.

She leveled a finger at Haze. “Your skin looks like chocolate.  I like chocolate.”

“That last attack with the water clone was surprising, Bearer.  It’s not often that people surprise me.”  He complimented.

Pinkie’s grin grew wider, making my blood run cold at the sight of it.  “I really like chocolate.  I like to break it up into little bite-sized bits.  I think I’ll break you up.”

Without warning, the watery restraint around Haze’s arm began to contract, twisting as it tightened.  Inside, I could see Haze’s arm began to rotate.

“Pinkie, what are you doing?”  I cried.

From the other side of the field, I could hear the pop as Haze’s arm broke.  Bile churned in my stomach and I fought the urge to vomit. However, in spite of this, Haze expression never changed.

Pinkie cackled gleefully. “Not even a grimace.  Well done, chocolate man. Looks like I’ll just have to be a bit rougher with you.”

A second watery appendage appeared beneath Haze and began to wrap around his legs, climbing and tightening until it was clear up to his torso.

Nightingale made to rush to Haze’s aid, but a water clone appeared behind her.  It wrapped a watery arm around her shoulders as its hand warped and flattened, becoming a blade, which it held to her throat.

“Where do you think you’re going, bitch?”  The clone hissed in Pinkie’s voice, distorted by the water. “Patience. First, I’m going to finish with him,  then, I’ll come for you.”

Nightingale’s already pale complexion lost several shades at the water clone’s threat.  She stood perfectly still, with the fluid blade held to her throat, and watched as the real Pinkie continued to tear apart Haze.

“You hurt Rarity.” Pinkie snapped, her smile growing a bit darker, “That was a serious no-no.  For that, you die!”

The water began to twist and tighten, constricting Haze.  I could hear bones and joints cracking and popping as she crushed him with her power.  He withstood it for a while and I watched in horror as his body finally gave in and he coughed blood.

Pinkie let out a sadistic laugh at this sight. “I haven’t had this much fun in a long time.”

What was happening to my friend?  She had never acted like this before and it sickened and frightened me to think of what she had become.  What she was now capable of?  Was this it?  Would Pinkie truly kill this man without a second thought?  What kind of leader was I if I let her go through with this?

“Pinkie, that’s enough!  Stop it!  Stop it now!”  I screamed.

I must have broken through because the fluctuations I had been sensing in her aura had ceased.  Her hair somehow sproinged back into it’s naturally curly nature as she blinked and let out a confused “Huh?”

Haze saw his opportunity and used the last of his strength to lift one swollen arm.  There was a flicker before he and a nearby tree switched positions.  He was free of Pinkie’s water constrictions while the tree was smashed to splinters within.

Haze lay within the dirt crater, gasping and groaning as his body healed.  Shattered bone reconnected and became whole.  Organs that had been crushed and ruptured sealed once more.  Blood rushed back into veins and arteries, which sealed to keep the life fluid within.  The heal was costly, but Haze would live to fight another day.

And fight, he did.

He immediately took to the sky and charged Pinkie, who barely had time to throw up another of her pony-shaped water defenses.  Haze crashed through it without slowing and delivered a savage blow to Pinkie’s stomach.

Time seemed to slow as I watched blood and vomit spew from Pinkie’s mouth.  She folded around the offending appendage as terror and confusion dawned in her eyes.  Haze’s ham-sized fist seemed to disappear completely within her.

His other hand reached out and seized one of Pinkie’s legs as he lifted her higher and higher.  Finally, he threw her down, slamming her into the dirt with a sickening thud that echoed across the field.

Slowly, Pinkie’s armor faded and vanished.

I bolted across the field, charging for my fallen friend, who wasn’t moving.  Haze stopped me, grabbing me by the throat, lifting me up and slamming me into the ground.  The impact drove the breath from my lungs and I lay in the grass, gasping around the lump in my throat.  We had failed.  The task Celeste had given me was lost and Luna had one.

Nightingale had stepped up to Haze.  “Are you okay?”

“She did a fair bit of damage.  Such an enigmatic girl, for a few moments there, she had a different aura.  Not like Celestia’s or Luna’s, but different entirely.  It was like a succubus or something.”

“Your injuries?”  Nightingale pressed.

“Don’t worry about me.  I used regeneration to repair the bones and organs she crushed.  I’ll be fine.”

“Regeneration takes a lot out of you.  Can you still fight?”

Haze chuckled.  “I don’t even need half of my available strength to defeat these children.  Like I said, don’t worry.”

“I don’t understand.  If you could replace yourself at any time, why did you let her inflict as much damage as she did?”

Haze shook his head. “My life is irrelevant.  The only thing that concerns me is victory for Luna.  If Pinkie had killed me, her jewel would have left her.  There’s nothing more prohibited by Harmony than wanton murder, but I knew that Twilight would stop her before she went too far.  This break in concentration gave me the opportunity to attack and eliminate Pinkie.  Either way, Luna wins.

“Though one thing had me worried.  At no point did Pinkie’s connection with Laughter weaken, despite the evil she was displaying.”  He turned his attention to the unconscious girl at his feet.  “What secrets are you hiding, Pinkie Pie?”

Descent stepped up and seized the giant by the shoulder.  “What the hell were you doing?  You didn’t need to beat her half to death!”

Haze scoffed. “What’s your problem?  Did you really believe what she said?  Listen, Pinkie is characterized by her need for laughter and her yearning for a good joke.  Truth means little to her if she can have a good chuckle at your expense.  What do you think she would have done?  Thrown you a party later and gotten to know you better?”  He snorted. “Stupid boy…”

Descent was taken aback by Haze’s words and stared at him balefully.

“Descent, what’s gotten into you?”  Nightingale asked.

Startled, he turned his attention to her. “S-sorry.  I-I was just...for a moment, I was wondering if what we were doing is right?”

Nightingale’s gaze took a hard edge. “Listen to me, nitwit.  Don’t forget what’s happened.  Don’t forget the accident that occurred.  You were blinded and I was paralyzed.  We needed help, but nobody would answer our call.  She did.  She gave us back what we lost and we vowed to do what she required of us without question.  Whether good or bad. Never forget that, Descent.”

“Yeah...you’re right.  I’m sorry.”

She gave his shoulder a companionable pat. “It’s okay.  C’mon, let’s finish this.”

l-l-l-l

Rainbow stood in the field where Fluttershy had left her, clutching the lightning bolt pendant that she had been given all those years ago.  “Soarin.  What do I do?”

She was perched on the edge of the last obstacle, staring out over the town when Soarin joined her.

“What’s on your mind?”  He asked.

She shrugged. “I’m a little confused. You said that you were happy that I had made the right decision by staying with Fluttershy.  Does that mean you never wanted me to with the tournament?”

“Not at all.  If you had won and decided to join the Elite, I would have been just as happy.  Every path you choose in life is the right one, provided that it’s the one that makes you happy.  The important part is that youchoose them and that nobody, not even me, chooses for you.  So don’t forget to choose whatever makes your heart happy, Little Pegasus.”

“Choose with the heart… Choose whatever makes me happy.”  Rainbow muttered to herself.  “Fluttershy makes me happy.”  She turned and sprinted in the direction Fluttershy had gone in.  “I’m so stupid.  How could I have doubted Fluttershy?  What kind of a friend am I for not trusting her?  She must really love me to come to me like she had.  Hold on, friend.  I’m coming, just hold on.”

l-l-l-l

Haze reached down and gripped a fistful of my blouse, pulling me to my feet.

Nightingale chuckled darkly as she and Descent joined him. “Tell me, Twilight, after we’re done beating you into the ground, how do you want the corpses of you and your friends displayed?”

Terrified, I stared at the three.  This was it.  There was no way we could win, no way to retreat.  I could throw up a spell and use the distraction to fall back and rendezvous with Fluttershy, but I would leave my friends at the mercy of these three monsters.  If I stayed, then I would meet the same fate.

I could still see them in their current broken states. Rarity was covered with so much blood and dirt that if she were to have seen herself, she would’ve shrieked in disgust. Pinkie looked strangely at peace, as though she were in a deep sleep. I didn’t notice their how their breathing was, but something told me if I couldn’t get them some help soon, they wouldn’t make it.

I felt the first tear as it slipped from my eye.  “Pinkie.  Rarity.  I’m so sorry.  I’ve failed.”

Chapter 21

Rarity and Pinkie were down, injured terribly, I was alone against the three Shadowbolts, and there was no sign of Fluttershy or Rainbow Dash.  I hoped that we would be able to keep them occupied until she was able to return with Rainbow Dash and bolster our numbers.  I hadn’t expected the Shadowbolts to chew through us with such speed, even with what happened to Pinkie.  I would have to ask her about that later.

If we survived.

I took an involuntary step back, fighting the urge to flee.  I couldn’t leave Rarity and Pinkie at the mercy of these thugs.  I could never forgive myself for abandoning them, but we were in over our heads.  We needed Fluttershy and her healing techniques.  Without her and the others, I didn’t stand a chance.

A powerful wind blew through the clearing, knocking Descent and Nightingale askew.  The monster, Haze, merely braced himself against it, but did not budge.  My heart leaped as I looked to the source of the wind.

Fluttershy had returned.

Haze noticed as well. “Ah, the daughter of Gaia has reappeared.”

His voice caught my attention.  He had been so silent that I had nearly forgotten that he was even there.  I felt rage blossom and grow inside of me as I took him in.  He had hurt Pinkie and Rarity.  He showed no remorse, no emotion whatsoever, for his actions.  To him, we were no more than pests to be swatted.

I would make him pay.

I prepared my Stella Magna.  Fluttershy’s distraction had bought me time and opportunity to charge it properly.  I fed my magic and my rage into it.  I would see him wiped from the earth, leaving nothing more than a stain and a bad memory.  When the charge was at its peak, I launched it at point blank range.

The explosion was deafening, throwing up dirt and debris.  Smoke billowed as I hunched over, panting from the exertion.  Sweat rolled down my brow and cheeks and I nearly vomited from the nausea rolling in my stomach, but I managed to remain standing, albeit on shaky legs.

As the smoke cleared, I noticed a hazy shape, standing tall within the destruction.  The shape became gradually clearer and the pit of my stomach dropped out.

Haze remained, a poison-green shield standing between he and I.

I blinked back tears of frustration.  That was everything I had and he was completely unaffected.  What did it take to defeat these things?

He stared at me, expressionless, before giving a single grunt. “Poor, naive sorceress.  You thought your power was enough to vanquish me.  You still have much to learn about magic.”  He began to advance, drawing ever closer.  I wanted to run, but I was rooted where I stood.

“Though this makes me wonder.  If you couldn’t defeat me, what hope do you possess when the day comes that you stand before my master?”

My blood turned to ice. “Luna is that powerful?”

He reached out, cupping my cheek in a hand, his thumb massaging soft circles into the skin.  A shiver ran down my spine.  The hand worked its way to the back of my neck and he yanked me closer. “Silly girl, did I ever say that Luna was my master?”

Luna wasn’t his master?  If that was true, how was he a Shadowbolt?  How had he infiltrated them and for what purpose?

“Get away from her!”

Fluttershy’s scream startled me as vines erupted from the ground, twisting and flailing for Haze, who had sensed the danger and flown to safety.  With a grunt, Fluttershy landed beside me.

“Are you okay?”

I rubbed my brow, the drain on my magic had given me a powerful headache. “Yeah.  I’ll be fine.”

“That remains to be seen, but I doubt it.”  Nightingale snickered.

“Where are Pinkie and Rarity?”

I nodded to their bloody and broken bodies.  “I tried to heal them, but I’ve already used too much magic.  Did you have any luck with Rainbow?”

“I hope so,” she said quietly, her voice sounding less than hopeful.

“Ah, how sweet,” Nightingale said mockingly, landing in front of Haze with Descent at her side, “Seems like Rainbow’s crying friend decided to join the fun.”

Fluttershy’s mouth worked as she stared over Pinkie and Rarity in shock, seeing their battered forms for the first time.  “You three did this?  You fiends!  How dare you?!”

Nightingale chuckled. “Aww, what a sweet compliment.  You’re making me blush.”

Descent looked uneasy and a little...ashamed?  That’s what caught my attention.  Ever since Pinkie had spoken to him, he seemed to be going into this fight with less and less enthusiasm.  Even when he did mirror Nightingale’s actions, it seemed forced.

What was up with him?

Haze turned, stepping away from the group.

“Where do you think you’re going?”  Nightingale challenged.

“This confrontation serves no purpose for me.” He replied. “I have no interest in fighting girls, particularly those of their caliber.”

“But, Haze-”

“I’m confident that the two of you are more than capable of ending this battle efficiently.  Furthermore, though she doesn’t want to show it, Fluttershy is terrified.  She only received her abilities yesterday and hasn’t had any chance to develop her powers.  She is, by far, the least experienced of the group and the most likely to try to avoid any direct confrontation.

“And Twilight.  She’s been fighting since the battle began.  She dared to use the Stella Magna, an ability that draws substantial magical energy, twice in quick succession.  She’s exhausted and it’s a miracle that she’s still standing, much less able to fight.”

As if his words had broken the spell, my shaky legs finally buckled and I sank to the ground.  Fluttershy was beside me in an instant, but I waved her away. “I’ll...be fine.  Just...tired.”

“Finally, despite the fact that you two have been fighting since the battle began, neither of you are showing fatigue.  That’s because Luna has been feeding magical energy into you from her place.  She may not be able to act directly, but she knows enough to act without risking direct intervention from Celestia.”

Was that true?  If it was, it would explain how they could fight so viciously without exhausting themselves and it would also explain how we had only lost ground since the battle began.  If only there was some way for me to get in touch with Celeste.  If Luna could feed them power through an indirect means, there was no reason why Celeste couldn’t do the same.

“You’re right.”  Nightingale conceded. “You took out the last two, so it’s only fair that we finish off these two runts.  Go ahead and sit this one out.”

I quickly thought of a plan.  It was risky, but we had no other option.  I reached out to Fluttershy, mentally calling her.

Twilight, is that you?  You can communicate telepathically?  How?

I’ll explain later.  Right now, we need to finish this battle.  Listen carefully.  Neither of us have the power to defeat them.  We’re going to need Rarity and Pinkie.

But, they’re injured.  I would need to heal them before we even think about going into battle, but I can’t get anywhere near them with those three in the way.

That’s why I’m going to be a distraction.  Once I have their attention, you’re going to move in and do your healings as quickly as possible.  We’re only going to get one shot at this, so it needs to work.

Are you sure you’re up to the task?  You’ve used a lot of magic so far and you’re so exhausted, you can barely stand.

Don’t worry about that.  I can out-perform them, provided Haze stays out of the battle.  I get the feeling that the other one, Descent, is working against his will.  I can use that to my advantage.  The only one that might cause trouble is that Nightingale.  I’ll just have to keep an eye on her.

If you say so, Twilight.

I shifted my weight, preparing to charge in and put my plan into action. When I say so, cover your eyes.

I narrowed my eyes, bringing my targets into sharp focus.  Launching, I charged at Nightingale.

She laughed as she braced herself.  “So you wish to be the first to fall?  Very well, Twilight.  I’ll oblige you.”

“Now, Fluttershy!”  I cried as I cast out a spell.  A brilliant flash illuminated the clearing, blinding Nightingale, who screamed in pain and surprise and threw herself to the ground.  That left a very shocked-looking Descent open.  I launched myself at him, pushing everything I had left at the move.  Catching him around the waist, I threw both of us into the air.  Descent beat his wings in an effort to escape, dragging me up with him.

Nearby, Fluttershy focused her magic on Rarity, having the worst injuries.  Slowly, flesh began to knit over wounds and shattered bone realigned.  Despite all of this, the girl did not stir.  Fluttershy desperately wished that Rarity would wake up so that she wouldn’t be so defenseless, but there was no time to waste.  She moved on to Pinkie.

I had Descent cornered while Nightingale was otherwise occupied.  I had noticed that Pinkie’s words during their earlier battle had an effect on the Shadowbolt.  He had become hesitant and reluctant, only working when egged on by Nightingale.  This was something I hoped to exploit.

“You don’t have the power to defeat me.”  He snapped.

“I’m not looking to defeat you,” I replied, “I just want to talk.  I’m not blind and I’m not stupid.  You’re conflicted about what you’re doing here.  You’ve had the opportunity to finish us off over a dozen times and you’ve taken none of them.  Pinkie was right.  You’re not a bad person.”

“Knock it off!  You’re just trying to mess with me like Pinkie did.”

“Pinkie wasn’t trying to mess with you.  Why can’t you see that she just wanted you to show your true feelings?”

That hesitation appeared again.  “We owe Luna so much.  She came and healed us without knowing who we were, without a single condition or demand of repayment.  We were the ones who tracked her down and begged her to let us return her kindness.”

“There are more ways to pay a debt than the ones that conflict your morales and ethics.”

The doubt raged in his face.

“You have the last word in all of this.  You can make all of this stop or you can let it rage.  You can decide-”

My words were cut off as a powerful blow caught me between my shoulders, launching me through the air.  One particularly large tree loomed in my vision as I rushed towards it, unable to stop.

This was going to hurt.

x----x

“I’ve healed them both, but they’re still out.”  Fluttershy began to panic as she reached over, gripped Pinkie’s shoulders, and gently shook the girl.  “C’mon, Pinkie.  Wake up.  Please wake up.”

A low, heavy voice chuckled behind her.  “Poor girl.  You may have healed their wounds, yes, but don’t confuse that for restoring consciousness.”  He tuttered. “It certainly looks like Twilight’s plan to bring you all together as a combined force has failed.”

An  incredible crash sounded behind her and she turned to see Twilight slumped against a nearby tree.  She hurried over and knelt beside Twilight.  “Don’t worry, my friend.  You’ll be fine.”

x---x

I awoke to find a pale, sweaty, shaking Fluttershy kneeling over me.  I sat up, feeling small aches and pains all over.  She sat back on her legs and shook her head.  Carefully, I helped her to her feet.  “Are you okay?”

“Yeah.  Only a little dizzy.  I’ll be fine.”

I didn’t like our options.  Fluttershy was looking terrible and probably felt worse.  Rarity and Pinkie Pie, despite being healed, were still down, and my magic was seriously depleted.  We had no option, but to retreat before we were all killed.  I would grab Rarity.  She would get Pinkie, and we would make a break for it.

“Fluttershy…”  I began, trying to get her attention.

She threw out a hand. “Don’t worry, Twilight.  I’ll protect you.  Just stay behind me.”

She closed her eyes and concentrated.  A bubble of air rushed around us, creating a thin shield.  What was she planning?

Though I couldn’t hear past the wind roaring in my ears, I saw Descent and Nightingale having a heated debate.  It lasted only a moment before she shouted him down.  They spread their wings and threw out their hands, a swirling black vortex forming between them.

That didn’t look good.

I tried to get Fluttershy’s attention again.  She had to stop this.  We needed to leave before they had a chance to complete whatever spell they had started.

“Don’t...Don’t worry...Twilight.  I...I will protect you.”  She gasped, visibly weakening under the strain of maintaining her shield.

The vortex charged, battering against the weak shield that was the only thing that stood between us and certain destruction.  With each blow, Fluttershy cried out, as if being physically harmed by the attack.  Sparks ran along her headband and bracelets, which began to fade.  And with it, our protection.

In a final desperate bid, I used the last of my magic to call a shield of my own, which flared brightly before disappearing and taking my armor with it.

Together, we were drawn into the darkness.

x----x

A massive black tornado met Rainbow Dash as she burst into the clearing.  She had chased Fluttershy back this way and was surprised when her friend had outdistanced her by a wide margin.  When had she become so fast?

“What is this?”  She whispered as she took in the scene.  The three Shadowbolts stood near the cyclone, completely unaffected by the winds.  None of the foliage was moving and, while she was no egghead, Rainbow knew it would be impossible to stand so close to the windstorm.

Inside the tornado, she recognized the shapes of two people, spinning so quickly that it made them difficult to recognize.  However, one distinct feature, a long mane of pink hair, was clearly visible.

Fluttershy was in that monster.

But Fluttershy had magical wings, couldn’t she just fly out?  Rainbow searched for some sign of the bright, golden feathers but they had disappeared along with the rest of the strange things Fluttershy had been wearing.

Suddenly, the cyclone vanished, but the momentum it had created did not.  Fluttershy and that Twilight girl were cast over the cliff.

Rainbow broke into a sprint, running faster than she ever had.  She rushed past the Shadowbolts and, without a second thought, leaped from the cliff.  Her slim, but strong fingers wrapped around the wrists of her friends, and she caught herself against a massive exposed root of a tree.

While she was strong for her size, she did not possess the strength necessary to pull her friends to safety.  She grunted and strained, trying to pull them up onto the root.  Footsteps sounded in the dirt above her and she turned her head, catching a glimpse of Nightingale out of the corner of her eye.

“What are you doing here, Rainbow?”  Nightingale growled.

Rainbow fought against the tears in her eyes.  It felt like the weight of her friends would pull her shoulders clear from their sockets.  “Help me.  I can’t hold them much longer.”

“I can’t believe what I’m hearing.  After all of the pain and misery those two have caused you, you still want to save them?  I thought you’d be glad to be rid of them both.”

Rainbow felt her grip begin to slip.  “Please, I’m begging you.  Help me.”

“Certainly. I’ll be more than happy to help you.”

Rainbow breathed a sigh of relief.

“Just as soon as you let go of them.”

Rainbow’s face twisted in a snarl. “Never!  Fluttershy is my best friend.  I’d never dare let her down.”

Nightingale frowned for a moment, thinking.  “Alright, Rainbow, I’ll make you a deal.  We’ll save you and Fluttershy.  I think we can even convince Luna to let her join.”

“Yes!  Anything you want.  Just, please, help me save her.  My grip is slipping!”

“We ask only one thing in return.  Let Twilight fall.”

Rainbow’s breath caught in her throat. “W..what?”

“Well, she’s not your friend, is she?  Not to mention, she and her friends caused your fight with Fluttershy.  They nearly cost you your best friend, didn’t they?  She doesn’t deserve your help.  She’s to blame for everything.  Just let her fall!”

Rainbow’s grip tightened around Twilight’s wrist as the girl dangled unconscious and oblivious to the danger she was in.

“No!  This was all my fault.  They only wanted to be friends with Fluttershy and me, but my jealousy made me blind to that.”

Promise me this: no matter what life throws your way, no matter what problems come between you, never forget what you are.

“I’ll never abandon my friends!”  Rainbow declared loudly.

Nightingale’s face twisted into a sneer. “As you wish...Bearer of Loyalty.  Be with your friends, stay by their side, even in death.” She hissed.

The root beneath Rainbow lurched and snapped with a thunderous crack and she plummeted down to the water below.

As she fell, she pulled Fluttershy and Twilight in close, holding them tightly.  I’ll never leave them, no matter what, because Loyalty to my friends is the most important thing I have.

A power she had never known surged through her, causing her to gasp and spasm.  Sharp pain wracked her spine as something grew.  An overpowering instinct took over and she followed it, stopping their descent short and causing them to rise.  Opening her eyes, she noticed that she, like Fluttershy, now had wings.  She didn’t care how they had come to be where there were no wings before.  All that mattered was that they were the most beautiful things she had ever seen and they were carrying her, and her friends, to safety.

Atop the cliff, she set her friends down in the grass and admired the bladed gauntlets that surrounded her forearms.  Curious fingers reached up to the weight on her brow to find a metal band encircling her head.

Finally, she took in the two Shadowbolts staring at her with a mixture of  amazement and horror.  She had begged them to help her when she needed it and they had actively tried to kill her.

Rage filled her as she stared into their cold eyes.

It was going to be a really bad day to be a Shadowbolt.

Chapter 22

Rainbow stared down at the two Shadowbolts that she had thought were her friends.  They were more than willing to allow Fluttershy, Twilight, and herself to fall to their deaths.  Had it not been for the wings that she had suddenly grown, they all would have been lost at the bottom of the cliff.

“Damn,” Nightingale snarled. “How could you do this to us, Rainbow?”

Rainbow stared at the woman in shock.  This woman had tried to kill her and she was acting as if Rainbow was the betrayer.  If there was one thing she hated, it was having her loyalty called into question. “Enough.  I’m through with you, Luna, and the Shadowbolts.  Let’s finish this.”

Rainbow shot into the air, luring the two Shadowbolts into the sky and away from her injured friends.

“Descent, come!  Let’s end this twerp!”

Descent stared at the two unconscious girls, slumped against a tree where Rainbow had placed them.

“I don’t understand it.  She never let go of them, even when it looked like she was going to die with them.  She refused to let go.  She didn’t think twice about risking her life for them.”

“Descent, what are you waiting for?  Let’s go!”

Descent looked up at his sister, the woman he had followed unquestioningly since the beginning.  Never before had he entertained the idea of doing what he was about to do. “No.”

Nightingale blinked. “What did you say?”

“You heard me.  I will not go through with this.  I won’t be part of these evil deeds anymore.  I can’t.”

Nightingale dropped to the ground in shock. “You’re betraying me?  Your own sister?!  I’ve done nothing but keep your well-being in mind.”

“I’m sorry, Nightingale, but my decision is final.”

Nightingale’s upper lip curled back in a snarl. “And what about our promise to Luna?  What about showing our gratitude for saving us?”

He shook his head. “I’ll be forever grateful to Luna for what she has done for us, but I can’t, I won’t go against what I know to be right any longer.  Besides, our mission was to bring Rainbow to Luna before she accepted her Element, but she decided to join her friends.  There’s nothing more we can do.”  He shrugged his shoulders. “Face it, sister.  We’ve lost.”

The slap to the face caught Descent completely off guard.  He rubbed at the sore spot and stared at Nightingale, who seethed with anger.

“Never,” she hissed. “I never lose.”

Before he could do more than call out her name, she disappeared into the sky.

x----x

Flight.

Now she understood why Soarin had called her “Little Pegasus”.  Now she understood why she loved Parkour so much.

She had been trying to fly and, now, she had achieved it.  She didn’t know how, but she had grown a pair of massive cyan wings and was using them as effortlessly as if she had been born with them.  Each powerful stroke pushed her farther and faster than she had ever thought possible.  This wasn’t a dream.  The feeling of cold wind in her face, the burning in her chest and back as new muscles worked, felt too real to be a dream.  But, if it was a dream, she hoped it would never end.

And it all felt so familiar.  As if she had already done this a million times before.  Something awoke within her.  Something that told her this was where she belonged, in the air with the birds not on the ground.

“Rainbow Dash!”

She spun in the air, confronting Nightingale who glared up at her.  “You foolish girl!  You should have taken us up on our offer.  We would have given you whatever you wanted.  Now, you’ll pay for refusing Luna.”

“I’d never join a cult of freaks like you, especially if it meant abandoning my friends.”  Rainbow retorted.

Nightingale chuckled.  “You still want to believe they’re your friends?  Very well.”  Her expression twisted into a dark mask of unbridled fury and hatred. “After I’m through with you, I’ll end them.  Then you can spend all of eternity together...in Hell!”

The Shadowbolt charged, winding up for a powerful punch.  Rainbow rotate in the air, dodging the blow as it brushed her abdomen.  She brought her leg up, delivering a vicious knee to Nightingale’s forehead, sending the woman tumbling through the sky.

Nightingale righted herself and fired a blast of dark energy.  Rainbow looped, dodging the lethal missile.  Nightingale answered with a barrage of more dark energy, trying to shoot the swift and agile Rainbow out of the sky but only managed to become more and more frustrated as each attack was dodged effortlessly.

Rainbow cackled. “You’ll never catch me.  I’m too quick for ya.  Cry home to your Luna.  She’s waiting for ya.”

Nightingale smirked.  “I can keep this up forever.  The only thing you can do is dodge.  Eventually, you’ll wear out.”

Rainbow’s blood turned cold.  She had a point.  Rainbow had a good deal of stamina, but she couldn’t keep dodging forever.  She needed some way to put Nightingale out of the game.

Rainbow…

A voice she had never heard before echoed through her mind.

Rainbow...Dash…

“Who’s there?”

I am Celeste.  Before, I was the Alicorn Celestia.  Twilight is my younger sister.

Rainbow spun, trying to find the source of the voice in her head. “You’re Twilight’s sister?  Where are you?”

Do not try to search for me.  I’m nowhere near you.  I’m communicating telepathically

“Well, I figured that much.  Why are you so far away?  We could really use your help.”

I must stay away.  I created a spell to keep Luna away from Ponyville and give you girls time to develop your powers so that you might face her in the future and stand a chance against her.  To make the spell resistant to counterspells, I had to make a covenant of sorts.  I cannot enter aPonyville.  Not yet, at least.  Unfortunately, your opponent won’t get tired and give up.  Luna is feeding her strength and energy.

“Why can’t you do that for us?”

Because her powers were granted by Luna whereas yours and the other girls are from the Elements of Harmony, not me.  I can’t help you in this way.  What I can do is teach you some techniques to help you defeat her.  Your ability to learn techniques that you’ve only just seen will shorten this process considerably.  I need only implant the memories into your mind.

“Like saving files on a computer?”

Precisely.

x----x

Below, Nightingale could hear Rainbow muttering to herself, but couldn’t make out any actual words.  “What are you planning, Gnat?”

All throughout this muttering, Rainbow continued to move, keeping her flight quick and erratic and making herself impossible to target.

Rainbow suddenly descended to her level with a triumphant smile on her face.

“So, you’ve finally run out of energy.  Ready to face your end?”

Rainbow chuckled.  “You’re wrong, Nightingale.  It’s my turn.”

She took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, gathering electrical energy.  It arched around her body, flowing along her limbs and gathering at her torso.  Nightingale felt her hair stand on end as Rainbow extended her hand, her fingers glowing.

“Oppugnare electrici!”

Nightingale had only a moment to throw up a shield against the barrage of ball lightning.  It thundered against the energy barrier, driving the Shadowbolt back.

“What the hell?”  Nightingale snarled.

Rainbow brought her palms together, sending out a wave of powerful sonic energy that shattered Nightingale’s shield.  The Shadowbolt nearly exhausted herself trying to compensate for the powerful attack.  Rainbow took full advantage of the opportunity and flung a bolt of lightning at Nightingale, catching the woman in the upper torso and knocking her back.

Nightingale clutched at her throbbing chest, trying to massage the twitching muscles back to rest.

“Give it up, Nightingale.  You can’t win.  Light will always drive back the darkness.”

Nightingale chuckled. “You’re a fool, Rainbow.  Darkness covers all!”

She raised her hands, building a mass of dark energy and preparing for one of her most powerful attacks.  This would surely splatter the gnat across the skies.  The swirling sphere of destruction grew as she fed more and more energy into it.  This was it.  This would be the end of Rainbow Dash.

She flung the sphere and watched as Rainbow threw up her hands in a vain attempt to ward off the attack.  The punk didn’t stand a chance.

She caught just a glimpse of a glowing shield made of swirling prismatic light before her attack detonated, the explosion echoing through the air.

The attack had exhausted what little energy she had left.  Nightingale panted as she watched the space where Rainbow had been and waited for the lingering energy to dissipate.  When it did, she saw Rainbow Dash hovering behind a prismatic wall of magnetic energy.

“What!”  Nightingale bellowed.  “How...W-what did you do?!”  It was inconceivable that Rainbow could so easily block her most powerful attack, especially after only having just acquired her new abilities.

Rainbow shrugged. “I focused part of the Earth’s magnetic field to deflect your power.  For someone with my special talents, it was a piece of cake.”  She folded her wings back and reclined on a nearby cloud, tucking her hands behind her head.  “I can also levitate without having to move my wings.  Pretty slick, huh?”

Nightingale snorted and shook with rage.  How could it be that Rainbow was so strong?  She had only just gotten her abilities, didn’t have any training to learn how to use them, but had several techniques that were as powerful as her own with ease.

Suddenly, she remembered a warning that Luna had given before they left.  If the Bearers were successful in gaining Rainbow as a member, each individual’s strength would grow as a result.  Each of the five Bearers were now equal to or greater than the Shadowbolts.

Nightingale realized just how screwed she was.

“Now, Nightingale, I’m going to give you one last chance.  Stand down, retreat, fall back, whatever, and stay out of Ponyville.  I will not join with the Shadowbolts or Luna.  You’ve lost.”  Rainbow spoke with a deadly calm.

Pride would not allow Nightingale to back down now.  She tightened her fists.  “Never!”  She roared.

Rainbow sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Then you leave me with no other option.  Goodbye, Nightingale.”

Raising her arms, Rainbow began to gather the clouds, which began to darken and spin as they built a vortex around the two combatants.  Thunder rumbled mutely and strobes of lightning flickered within the black mass.  Wind began to build, buffeting the two, and Nightingale found it hard to maintain control.

“Málleum tonitrui!”  Rainbow cried.

There was a flash of light and all went dark.

Rainbow panted as the clouds began to clear, returning the bright sun and blue sky.  “It’s over.”

“For now.”

She looked up to find Descent hovering before her, holding Nightingale in his arms.

“How badly is she hurt?”  He asked.

She shook her head. “Not bad.  I just used the thunder to knock her out.  I didn’t want to hurt her.  Despite everything she...and you...have done to me, I didn’t want to hurt her.  I don’t betray my friends, Descent.  Even if they betray me.”

“She could have fallen to her death, you know.”

“I couldn’t risk giving her the opportunity to attack me again.  It was a good thing you were there to catch her.”

“Thank you for sparing her.”

Rainbow nodded. “What will you do now?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know.  I think I’m going to leave.  Go far away from here and start over.  I need to do a lot of thinking.”

“And escape from Luna?”

“She’s not all that bad.  I think she’s just lost and trying to find her way.  Sooner or later, she’ll pick the right path.”

“Let’s hope you’re right.”

“If you could pass on a message for me?  Let Twilight know that she was right.  And Pinkie.  Let her know that I don’t think I’ll be able to come to the party she’s throwing for when all of the Bearers are together.  It’s a shame.  I really wanted to dance with her.”

Rainbow reached forward and clapped his shoulder. “Good luck to you, Descent.”

He chuckled. “That name.  Luna gave it to me and I never have cared for it.”  He reached up and removed his goggles, giving Rainbow her first look at his eyes. “Call me Flash.”

x----x

In the clearing, I sat up and rubbed my throbbing head.  Around me, I could see Pinkie, Rarity, and Fluttershy regaining consciousness.

“Ugh.  What happened?”  Rarity groaned as she got to her feet.

“I think we got our butts handed to us.”  Pinkie replied.

“Oh, please don’t use such vulgar language, Pinkie Pie.  Tell me.  Does my coiffure look terrible?”

Pinkie gave the other girl an appraising eye. “Don’t worry about it.  You look divine.  In fact, I love the fashion statement you’re making.  So radical and risque.  Do you mind if I copy it?”

“Fashion statement?”  Rarity mumbled, looking down at her shredded clothing.  Her eyes bulged out of their sockets and her jaw fell as she took in the remains of her favorite outfit.  “Oh my God!”  She charged at me and seized me by my collar.  “Twilight, for the love of all that is beautiful and aesthetically pleasing, you must help me!”

“Rarity, they’re just clothes.  I’m sure that you can put together something a million times better than that.”   I replied in a casual tone.  Rarity stared at me as if I had just spat on her grandmother’s grave.

“Just clothes!I’ll have you know that this outfit is part of the Chanel summer line and it cost me a king’s ransom!  Please, Twilight, I’m begging you.”

I took a deep breath. “Alright.  Okay.”  I didn’t exactly have a spell tailor-made to repair clothes, but I thought a simple utility spell would work. “Ut Supra.”

Rarity seemed to shimmer for a moment, the lavender aura of my magic encompassing her entirely.  As the aura faded and vanished, I saw her dress was whole.

With no small degree of trepidation, Rarity inspected my work and gave a happy squeal when she saw it was to her satisfaction.  She immediately threw her arms around my neck, nearly squeezing the life out of me.

“Oh thank you, thank you, thank you Twilight.  It’s marvelous.  You absolutely must teach that spell to me.”

“Of course.”  I gasped.

“Oh and thank you for the confidence you have in my skills.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Pinkie was watching us with a wry grin.  I cocked an eyebrow, which she answered by pointing at a spot on Rarity and mouthing: You missed a bit.

I followed her finger down Rarity’s back to the massive hole that my spell had somehow missed, either because I hadn’t noticed it or because my magic might have a sick sense of humor.  Either way, Rarity’s underwear was clearly visible through the gap.  Thankfully, Spike wasn’t here to see this.  I raised a finger to hush any further comments from Pinkie.

Seeing her smiling reminded me of the time before, just after Rarity had been knocked out, when Pinkie’s demeanor had changed.  Her grin had been less mirthful and more menacing and there had been a sadistic gleam in her eye, as if she had enjoyed inflicting pain on Haze.  But this went against everything I knew about her.  Granted, I hadn’t known her for very long, but nothing she had ever done or said indicated she was dangerous. However, the thought still nagged me.

“Pinkie, how are you feeling?” I asked. “Are you okay?”

Rarity hadn’t seen what had occurred earlier.  She glanced between Pinkie and I, utterly confused.

Pinkie seemed a bit confused as well. “Me?  I suppose.  I’m a little sore but nothing worse than that.  Why?”

“It’s just that, earlier, you were acting a bit…”  Pinkie kept staring at me as if I had started speaking in Greek.  Was it possible that she had no memory whatsoever of what had occurred?  Was it possible that I had imagined the whole thing and Pinkie’s anger had simply gotten the better of her?  “Nevermind.  It’s nothing.”  I made a mental note to keep an eye on my friend.  If there was a negative aspect to Pinkie’s personality, I didn’t want to risk her losing control while engaged again.

I heard a soft thump and turned to find that Rainbow had returned and, apparently, had discovered her Element.  Somehow, she had activated and mastered Loyalty in a very short span of time.  I recalled my sister’s advice about how one’s experience with their element influenced how quickly they could master it.

Fluttershy ran up and embraced Rainbow.  “You came back for us, sister.  I’m so glad.”

I stepped forward and extended a hand to the newest member of our team.  “Thank you for saving us, Rainbow.  You got here just in the nick of time.”

Rainbow ignored my gesture and held up a hand to silence me.  For a moment, I wondered if she was still under Luna’s influence and was merely tricking us to get close enough to finish us off.

“Hold that thought, Twilight.  We’re not done yet.”  She nodded to Haze, who had begun to rise from his post by the tree.

“Well done, Bearers, on acquiring a new member.”  He rumbled. “Now, let’s see how much your powers have grown.”

Together, we transformed again and stood shoulder-to-shoulder against the mountain of a man.  Together, we could stand against any threat.

Chapter 23

Haze called a glowing orb in his hand and tossed it to the ground.  We braced ourselves, expecting some sort of area spell, but a small portal opened beneath him and he began to descend into it.

“I wasn’t serious.  You’ve just earned your fifth member and I’m certain you all are very tired from battling Nightingale and Descent.  I admire your spirit, but I will not fight you unless you’re at full strength.  Therefore, I think you’ve earned a bit of a reprieve.  Rest well, Bearers of Harmony, for when I return, I will not be so merciful.”

And, with that, he vanished.

Rarity was the first to speak. “What just happened?”

“Did we win?”  Rainbow asked.

Pinkie giggled. “I think we just got trolled.”

“It’s just as well.” I replied. “He’s right.  We’re all exhausted.”

Pinkie began to move about the clearing, checking behind trees and under rocks.

“Are you okay?”  Fluttershy asked. “What are you looking for?”

“Where did that cute boy go?”

“You mean Descent?  He left with Nightingale a while ago.  I’m sure they’re miles away from here.”  Rainbow said.

Pinkie charged at Rainbow and seized the straps of her top, shaking her vigorously. “He said he’d be back, right?”

“I don’t think he has any intention of returning to Ponyville.”

Pinkie crushed Rainbow’s face to her breast in an exaggerated fit of emotion. “Noooo!  He didn’t even leave a phone number or his Facebook!”

Rainbow let out a few muffled words of protest as she struggled to free herself.  Rarity scoffed. “I cannot believe you’ve fallen for somebody who, not only rejected you, but was party in an attempt to kill you, to kill all of us.”

“That’s why I liked him.  That’s much more fun than the ones who just say ‘yes’.”  Pinkie responded.  “I like men that present themselves as a challenge.  The thrill of the hunt!”

“Be that as it may, Pinkie,” I countered, “he and I spoke while you were unconscious.  He has absolutely no interest in you.”

“What?  You talked to him?”  Pinkie released Rainbow, who sagged to the ground gasping for air, as she shot to her feet and crossed her arms.  She gave a huff. “I never figured you for a boy-stealer, Twilight.”

I’ll admit, that accusation both confused and annoyed me. “What are you talking about?”

“I would have been more than happy to share.  You didn’t have to try and steal him.”

“Ste-Steal him?!  We just talked!  I don’t even like the guy!”

Pinkie huffed again.  “Likely story, homewrecker.”

Seizing Pinkie’s shirt, I gave her a furious shaking.  “Don’t you dare call me that!”

Rarity sighed and turned away.  “They’ll be at this for some time yet so I suppose I’ll go home.”

“Yeah.”  Rainbow agreed. “I’m outta here.  Ya comin’ Flutters?”

“Can we get something to eat on the way?  After all of that fighting, I’m famished.”

“Sure thing, but I’m not eating plants.”

“Rainbow, you know I’m a vegetarian.”

“That’s fine.  I suppose you can have a salad or something.  Hey, Rarity, isn’t your back kinda cold?”

“No.  Why do you ask?”

“Oh, er… nothing.  Just curious.”  Rainbow snickered at the thought of Rarity’s reaction upon seeing the massive hole in her dress.

x----x

On a seaside cliff, Luna stood at the mouth of a cave, staring out at the rolling waves as she brooded.

“I have failed.”  She muttered to herself.  “I was a fool to send those siblings after the Bearers.  I thought their power would be enough to stand against Celestia’s champions.  I thought wrong.  Furthermore, the one called Haze was not as he appeared.  He has deceived me for his own purposes.  I don’t know what those purposes are, but I will find out.”

Behind her, filling the cavern with an unnatural green glow, was a chrysalis.  It pulsed and shifted, sustaining the creation within as it grew.  Luna turned to the chrysalis.  “But you, Arcana, will accomplish far more than any of those imbeciles ever could.  You are my finest creation, and when you are ready, you will crush the Bearers of Harmony.”

x---x

While we had all remained vigilant, the rest of the week was devoid of any monster attacks or the return of Haze.  When Friday finally arrived, we finally had the opportunity to relax and unwind.  I had banned Spike from entering my room, lest he cause a scene, and declared it to be an official No Boys Allowed zone.

Before the party, I had picked up a book from the library.  It was a comprehensive guide to slumber parties and I found the ideas to be understandable and helpful.  I planned and prepared everything beforehand, partially out of excitement for the event.

The girls had all arrived by mid-afternoon and we had retreated to my bedroom.  The room, which I had always thought of as fairly large, suddenly seemed a great deal smaller with the addition of four others.

We got down to business almost immediately.  Rarity pulled a sketchpad and pencil from her bag and sat on my bed, working away at something.  I could only assume it was some sort of fashion design.

Fluttershy began to cuddle and play with a white rabbit plush that she had named Angel.  She seemed perfectly content to be by herself for the evening and I hoped to begin the process of pulling her out of her shell tonight.

Pinkie and Rainbow Dash were fighting over an old Karaoke set that I had dragged from the closet.

All of the jewels of Harmony had been claimed by their Bearers, save one.  Honesty remained locked in its mold, giving brief occasional flashes as it connected with its Bearer.  I let out a sigh as I looked it over, promising both myself and my future friend that we would not be apart for much longer.

Everybody seemed to be getting along well.  Pinkie and Rainbow were playing together, much to the delight of myself and Fluttershy.  Since this was my first Slumber Party, I was relying heavily on my reference material for ideas.  There were some interesting games that I wanted to try, a recipe for S’mores, and some rather spooky stories.  I figured we’d leave the stories for last.

“What are you reading, Twilight?”

I turned to Fluttershy and showed her the cover of the book. “I borrowed this from the library this morning.  Even though it’s a little outdated, it’s got some pretty good ideas.  I figured we could try some.”

I started as the book was snatched out of my hands.  Rainbow tossed it up for Pinkie to bounce it off of her butt.  I watched, helpless, as it sailed out my bedroom window and into the night.

Rainbow cackled. “You don’t do Slumber Parties by the book, egghead.  They’re better if you improvise.”

“That wasn’t my book.”  I snapped. “I borrowed it from the library and it’s probably ruined now.  They’ll make me pay for it and probably take away my library card.”

Rarity let out an excited squeal. “It’s finished!”

“What’s finished?”

She rolled over and showed me what she had been working on.  There was a sketch of a woman in a rather tight outfit wearing a full-face mask, a wide-brimmed hat, and a cape billowing out behind her.

“I know our last attempts at battle costumes were somewhat lackluster, but I’m confident you’ll like this one much better.”

I rolled my eyes.  The brightly-colored garb she had insisted that we use had taken forever to don and had lost us a chance at a critical first strike.  There wasn’t any time to put on fancy clothes before combat.  She knew that.

“I’ve told you that we’ll received full battle armor when we’ve found the final Bearer.  Armor that will be applied as we transform, eliminating the need to change clothes or wear that under our street clothes.”

Rarity pouted. “But I wanted to…”

“No.” I drawled.  I would take no more argument on the subject.

She rolled onto her side and continued to stare at the sketch.  “You’re right, of course.  Still, I really like how this turned out.  Perhaps I’ll make it all the same.”

There was a knock at my door. “Hey, Twilight.  I brought those snacks you wanted.”

“Thanks.  You can bring them in.”

Spike was being more helpful than usual today.  It probably had something to do with Rarity or with several young women having a slumber party mere steps from his bedroom.  Boy’s minds were all the same.

Spike entered, balancing a tray in one hand.  Fluttershy helpfully stood to get out of his way.  “It’s nice to see you again, Spike.”

“Yeah, you too, Fluttershy.”  He mumbled as his eyes scanned the room.  Typical boy.  His noticed Rarity and froze, trembling slightly as his eyes roamed her body.  “R-Ra...ri...teee.”

His hand went slack and the tray plummeted, connecting with Rainbow’s head and making a terrible mess.  Startled, Rainbow leaped to her feet and immediately began chewing my brother out.

“Watch it, pipsqueak!  I freaking soaked!”

Spike simply glared at Rainbow, examining her from top to bottom.  “Hey, Twilight.  You lied to me.  You said that there wouldn’t be any boys here tonight.”

I winced as Rainbow popped my brother over the head. “Idiot!  Can’t you see I’m a woman?”

“A woman?  No way.  Your front is just like mine.”

“Just like yours?”  Rainbow asked, more than a little confused.

“Yeah.”  Spike began to rub his chest.  “I don’t see anything up here.”

My jaw went slack.  Spike could be a witless wonder, but this went beyond even him.  I’d have to have a talk with him if Rainbow didn’t kill him first.

x----x

He sat alone in the dark, quietly waiting for his brother’s return.  It had been some days since his brother had left on his mission and he was eager for a report.

The door to the apartment opened, revealing a massive shadow, which slipped in without a word.

“Welcome home, Edward.  I’m happy to see that you’re well.  Tell me, what have you learned?”

“My mission was a success.”  Haze rumbled. “I was able to infiltrate Luna’s inner circle.  I learned of Luna’s attempt to sway the Bearer of Loyalty, which was a failure, and that the Bearer of Kindness has awoken.”

“So, five of the Bearers of Harmony are active?”

“Correct.”

“Excellent.  Everything is going according to plan.  And what of the other mission you were given?  What news do you have?”

“Your suspicions were correct.  The young woman named Applejack is, indeed, the sixth Bearer.  For some reason, her presence seems familiar.”

He merely chuckled.

“But we may have a problem, brother.  It seems Applejack has no desire to join the other Bearers.  I’ve searched her mind and discovered some sort of trauma from her past.”

He waved away Haze’s concern. “No matter, brother.  We will leave that task for the Bearer of Magic.  I’m confident she’ll yield results in due time.  The final goal is to have all of the Bearers of Harmony active, no matter the price.”  He was silent for a moment. “One final thing, Edward.  Has Luna realized you were an imposter?”

A green aura surrounded Haze as he began to shrink.  Slowly, his mass was reduced until he was a third of his original size with pale skin and dark hair.  “No. I hid my physical appearance and spiritual essence from her.  She was ignorant of my true identity  Though, now she may have come to the conclusion that I was not who I appeared to be.

“Christopher, what is our next objective?”

“Now that these girls have begun to form their little group, I think it’s time we form one of our own.”

“Shall I handle this?”

“No, Edward.  You’ve worked very hard these past weeks.  You deserve a rest.  I will handle this.”

“So, you’ll be travelling to Ponyville then?”

Christopher lifted a glass cover and removed the treasure within.  It was a headband with a white unicorn horn.  A single heart-shaped ruby sat against the horn.  “Yes.  I have been following two women who I think may become allies of ours.  However, I’m also interested in the beautiful reincarnation of the white unicorn and I’m interested in seeing the potential of her imposing beast.”

Chapter 24

In the days following our battle with the Shadowbolts, we hadn’t heard from Luna, which was a welcomed relief.  But, that doesn’t mean we were idle.  Several more creatures, mutated with Discord jewels, appeared.

However, with the addition of Rainbow, we were a more powerful force.  Her lightning attacks could stun multiple opponents and allow us to gather the jewels at our leisure.

Unfortunately, since that day when we battled the Shadowbolts and Honesty glowed, I’ve made no progress in finding the sixth Bearer.  Whatever connection the jewel found with its Bearer was severed and it remained dark.

I was asleep the morning that the jewel found the connection again.  The light was so bright that it had awoken me from what was actually a rather deep sleep.  I rubbed my eyes and stared at it before turning to the clock on my wall.

“Six.  It’s six in the morning.” I muttered. “Why can’t these things work on a more reasonable scale, like, say, ten.”  I sighed as I climbed out of my warm bed.  “Well, duty calls.  All I can say is Celeste better appreciate the sacrifices I make for her.”

I quickly dressed and fetched my horn.  I took my bicycle and followed the spiritual link that connected the jewel to the Bearer.  It was still very early and the town was quiet, making my journey through the deserted streets easy.  I crossed Ponyville and headed out into the open country, still following the trail and marvelling at the range of the connection.

Eventually, the link deviated from the road and into the trees.  I wasn’t exactly sure where I was, but I knew I was only a few miles outside of town.  Leaving my bicycle by the road, I began to climb the hill.  As I neared the crest, I began to feel a strong presence.  It was difficult to describe, but I believed the Bearer of Honesty was in the clearing just ahead.  What she was doing all the way out here, I hadn’t the foggiest idea.

I crouched just behind some bushes and parted them to see through.  Standing before a stately looking apple tree was a young woman.  She was tall, powerfully-built, very tan, and wore a distinctive brown Stetson.

“There.” she drawled, straightening the massive black ribbon that was wrapped around the tree. “That’s enough for today.  Ah think Ah ought get on now.”

I stared hard, trying to remember where I had seen this woman before.  The build and the voice were so familiar.  I distinctly remembered that battered old stetson being dropped onto my head.

Could she be the final Bearer?

“It is you!” I cried, pushing free of my hiding place.  Startled, the woman turned around to face me, the mask of surprise transforming into one of annoyance.  “You’re that girl!  The one from before!  Applejack, right?”

“What are ya doin’ here?  How did ya find this place?”  She snarled, widening her stance.

“I just came by.  I need to talk to you ab-”

“No!”  She barked.  “Get outta here!  Get lost!”

“Applejack, if I could just have a minute.”

“Ah said leave!  Ah’m busy.  Ah’ll talk to ya later, but ya need to leave now!”

I noticed how she was standing, with her head and shoulders down and her arms and legs spread.  I had seen this kind of behavior before.  She was on the defensive, as if she was protecting the tree.

I thought it best that I did as she said.  “Alright, I’m going, but promise me we’ll speak later.”

“Yeah.  Alright.  Sure, just get movin’.”

“O-okay.”  I mumbled.  I left her to whatever she had been doing, confused as to what I had done to receive such a poor welcome.

x----x

“Faster, Rainbow.  Time’s almost up.”  Fluttershy reported as Rainbow sprinted past her.

“Right!”  Rainbow replied, doubling her speed.

“Hey, Flutters.  Good morning!”  Pinkie called as she arrived.

“Oh, Hi, Pinkie.  How are you?”

Pinkie watched the steadily shrinking figure of Rainbow. “Is this what you two do all day?”

“Yes.  Rainbow usually trains in the afternoons after school, but all of the recent monster attacks have forced us to change up routine.  She trains in the morning, now.”

“Sounds like fun!  I wanna try!”  Pinkie cried as she broke into a sprint and rapidly caught up with Rainbow Dash.  As soon as she was a few paces ahead of the girl, she spun and began sprinting backwards.  “I see you’re having fun without me.”

Slightly startled by Pinkie’s speed, Rainbow managed to recover admirably.  “Fun?  I’m doing some serious training here.”

Pinkie giggled. “I know.  You’re playing seriously or seriously playing.  I have an idea.  Let’s race!  Loser has to clean the winner’s feet with her tongue!”

“You’re on.  Wait...what?”

“Onetwothreego!”  Pinkie blurted before disappearing in a cloud of dust.

Rainbow stared after her in confusion.  “How the hell did she manage to accelerate like that?”

Fluttershy’s high-pitched scream echoed across the park.  Rainbow skidded to a stop and turned to see her friend pointing at a rapidly-disappearing figure.  “Thief!  She’s got my stopwatch!”

Without thinking, Rainbow took off in pursuit of the thief. who was already half a block away.  Rainbow’s instincts, developed over years of parkour training, kicked in as she began to observe everything around her and calculate distances.  She was one hundred and fifty meters behind the thief and closing the distance at a rate of two meters per second.  Thirty meters away and to her left, a cab was coming towards them.  If it continued on its present course at the same rate of speed, it would intercept the thief in three seconds.

The thief seemed very fast.  Rainbow judged her speed at just over ten kilometers per hour.  If she was taken out by the cab, that was all fine but if she managed to dodge it, that would reduce her speed by about two full kilometers for a few seconds, allowing Rainbow some much needed distance.

One of the things Rainbow noticed was that the thief wasn’t as skilled a runner as she.  While she could angle for a quick wall turn, the thief needed to slow quite a bit to avoid crashing.  Another thing was that while the thief was fast she did not posses Rainbow’s stamina and was beginning to slow.

Through the streets and alleys they ran, each turn allowing Rainbow another chance to close the gap.  The thief’s turns were random, indicating that she was unfamiliar with the layout of the city.  There were even a few instances where Rainbow saw her double back from a bad turn.

The thief made one final blunder.  With Rainbow only a few steps behind, she turned down an alley Rainbow knew to be a dead-end.  She kept back a few paces, blocking the thief’s retreat, but with enough distance to give her time to react if things became violent.  “Alright, punk.  You’ve had your fun.  Hand over the watch and you get to go home without the taste of asphalt in your mouth.”

The thief chuckled.  “I gotta say, Dash, I’m impressed.  You’re certainly not the whiny little kid I remember.”

“Wait a second.  Only one person has ever called me ‘Dash’.”

The thief spun and threw back her hood, revealing a shock of snow-white hair.  Sharp golden eyes narrowed as she glared at Rainbow from over a hawk-ish nose and a smirk.  “It’s been awhile Dash.  How’s it hangin’?”

Rainbow’s jaw fell as she stared back at a face she hadn’t seen in nearly four years, since before she moved to Ponyville. “Gilda?”

x----x

“So you’re telling me that Applejack is the last Bearer of Harmony?”

I leaned against the counter of The Carousel boutique.  I had forgotten that Rarity would be at work.  I didn’t want to bother her, but this was a bit important.  “She seems to be.”

“Well, I must say I am surprised.”

“Is there anything you can tell me about her?”

“I’m sorry, Twilight, but I don’t know much about her.  I do know that she just recently transferred here from somewhere near Appleloosa.  She’s in the same graduating class as I, but we’ve never spoken.  Not the most sociable girl.  But, Twilight dear, if you’re so curious about her why not ask her yourself?”

“I tried that but she just kept telling me to get lost.” I confessed.

“Hmm, yes.  That does sound like her.  Give me just a moment and I’ll see what the school files have on her.”  Rarity pulled out her phone and began to tap rapidly at the screen.

“Aren’t those files confidential?”  I objected.

“Being student body president does have its perks, Twilight.  All the same, I’d prefer this stay between us.”

“Oh, no need to tell me twice.  I’m sorry for bothering you at work.  I had forgotten you would be here.  Are you sure you won’t get into any trouble for this?”

“Not to worry, Twilight.  I’m certainly the best employee here.  Why, I’m always punctual, always committed, and always serve the clients with a smile.”

“Excuse me, miss.  I’d like to purchase this dress.”  A young woman with light blue hair stepped up to the counter, earning a glare from Rarity.

“Excuse me, madame, but I am in the middle of a conversation.  Patience is a virtue.”  She returned her attention to me as the woman set her dress on the counter and hurried out the door. “Twilight, are you certain that Applejack has any interest in becoming our comrade?  She rarely speaks to anyone, unless it’s absolutely necessary and, as far as I know, she has no friends.”

“All the more reason to show her that we want her to be with us.  I’m confident that once she and I have had a chance to talk and she sees that we’re genuine, she’ll come around.”

x----x

“I can’t believe you came all the way from Siberia just to see me.”  Rainbow exclaimed as she sat down next to Gilda on the boardwalk overlooking the shore.

“Did you forget my promise, Dash?  I said I’d find you again and I meant it.  It took a long time before I was able to leave my home, but I’m here now.”  Gilda turned to Pinkie and Fluttershy, who were standing about, looking awkward, a short distance away.  “By the way, Dash, who are they?”

“Oh.  That’s my gal pal, Pinkie.  We met just a few days ago and that’s Fluttershy.  She’s been my friend for a few years now.”

“Pleased to meet you, Gilda.”

Pinkie took a few steps towards the pair. “Rainbow, how long have you known Gilda.”

“We met in Siberia when I was about six and hit it off right away.  We always competed against each other in various sports.”

“And I always won.”  Gilda boasted.

“As if!  You had me beat in endurance but I kicked your butt in speed.”

“Okay but don’t forget that you always needed my help whenever you got into trouble.”

“Did you protect her a lot?”  Fluttershy asked.

“All the time.  Dash was so shy and such a crybaby.”

“Liar!  I wasn’t a crybaby!  Don’t listen to anything she says.”

“So you were just like Fluttershy.”  Pinkie pointed out. “A shy crybaby.”

“Yes!”  Fluttershy agreed.  “Wait.  I’m not a crybaby.”

“But you look a hella lot tougher, Dash.  Don’t care for that rainbow hair of yours.  You tryin’ to look like a clown?”

“Don’t joke like that.  I’m solely devoted to parkour now and just wanted to change up my style some.”

“Is that it?  I do a lot of free-climbing now.”

“Seriously?!  Tell me what you’ve been up to.”

“Great to see ya, Dash.  We’ve got a lot of catching up to do.”

Pinkie blinked in confusion. “Did they forget we’re here?”

Fluttershy hushed her. “Don’t worry about it.  Rainbow’s reunited with an old friend and is just really excited.  She hasn’t forgotten about us.”

x----x

Rarity showed me the map on her phone.  “There it is.”

“She lives there?”

“Yes.  It’s just on the outskirts of town, not far from where you met her this morning.  There’s a bus that runs out there.”

“To buy all of that land must have cost a fortune.”

She gave me a sidelong glance. “You really don’t know who Applejack is, do you?”

“Well, if I did, I wouldn’t be asking you so many questions, would I?”

Rarity nodded. “True.  Applejack’s family owns Apple Acres.  It’s one of the largest agricultural enterprises in the world and is recognized internationally.”

“And that means what to me?”  I prompted.

“She and her family are multi-millionaires.  They’re incredibly wealthy.”

A few hours later found me standing outside of one of the largest houses I had ever seen, the way to the door barred by a huge iron gate.  I stared at the house, hoping Applejack would give me the time of day and that she wouldn’t think I was trying to gain her friendship for her money.

I couldn’t see a way around the gate.  The wall surrounding the property was taller than I was so climbing that wasn’t an option. “I’ll just have to climb the gate.”  I concluded, gripping the topmost bar and trying to pull myself up.  I should have brought Rainbow with me.  She’d be better at this than I.

“Hey.  What’re ya tryin’ to do there?”  A low voice behind me asked.

I replied without turning around.  “I need to get in and speak to Applejack.”

“Maybe ya’ll should try ringin’ the doorbell.  It’s right there on your left.”

“A doorbell?  Yeah, that would probably work better.”  I released my grip on the gate and dropped to the ground.

“Make ya look better, too.  Less like a troublemaker.”

“Yeah.  You’re probably right.” I responded, pressing the button to the side of the gate.

“‘Course, ya could just wait for me to open the gate.”

“Oh, do you work here?”

“Nah.  Ah live here.”

I finally turned around to see a massive mountain of a man standing directly behind me.  He was all tan skin and rippling muscle under a messy mop of reddish-gold hair.

“Howdy.  I’m Macintosh, Applejack’s brother.  Everyone calls me ‘Big Mac’.”

I could feel sweat trickle down my back and my face felt suddenly hot. “You don’t say.”