MLDC Next Generation: Love Conquers All! Avarice Takes It All!

by Michael_Ravencroft

Rating: teen
Tags: Crossover, Alternate Universe, Twilight Sparkle, Sad, Gore, Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Romance, Fluttershy, Adventure
Length: 121489

Anthea, a kind and loving mare, must take up the power of the Star Sapphires if she is to bring back her friend from a path of a criminal. Meanwhile, Nidra will learn avarice's might when she sets her sights on a dragon-pony who has stolen her h

Anthea, in the wake of Starburst departure, wants nothing more than to find the mare she called friend, and reunite her with her mother, Twilight, and her newfound love, Golden Delicious. But Annie knows that in the face of the overwhelming power that Starburst possesses, she need power just as great to rival that of the Fear Lantern’s. Unfortunately, during a harrowing event, Annie’s plans may be skewed slightly when a delegation to the Mintoaurs takes a turn for the worst, to keep love alive, and to find the missing mare Annie must shine with violet light…

Nidra, having lost her best friend, and angered by the actions taken by her fellow Royals, seeks comfort in the dragon-pony stallion, Turquoise. Seeing that Annie is away on a mission with High Princess Twilight, Nidra sees this as an opportunity to show Turquoise Blitz just how much she loves him. But, when things don’t go as planned, Nidra will need a little help, and that help comes in the form of orange light. After all, avarice is just another form of love, right…?

Update: Now with its own TV Tropes Page, courtesy of DarknessRising.

It is highly recommended that you read "Know Fear!" to keep the continuity straight. Based on kilala97's Next Generation OC's and DC Comic's Green Lantern universe.
Anthea's Bio
Turquoise Blitz's Bio
Nidra's Bio

Published 2014-08-17 01:20:02 UTC
Last updated 2015-04-27 20:41:58 UTC

Prologue: Hail to the Empress

2 Months Later…

It was terrible, the pride of the Empire, the capital, Griffonia, decimated in less than a night. A trail of destruction could be followed like a path through the enormous city, from the first tier, all the way to the seventh, and further to the palace. Some say it was luck, only the parts of the city that were in the Fear Lantern’s path were damaged immensely, one half was alright, and so was the other, but the middle was were the bulk of the damage had been done.

Many griffon soldiers and volunteers worked feverishly to find any and all survivors from that night so long ago, some were still finding remains and few were found alive, although with some considerably bad injuries. Still, they worked to rebuild as much as they could, families and friends lost during the battle, and others slaughtered by the droves. It still baffled others, how a single pony could do so much damage, an alicorn was easier to fathom, and truthfully would have been preferred. But the fact that it was a lone pegasus pony, that one fact made it all the more startling, knowing that Equestria had such a warrior on their side, had  a weapon that could bring the level of destruction that a deity could wrought, made this all the more terrifying.

All this was laid out before a single griffoness as she looked upon the capital from her balcony with sadness and remorse. Her brown feathers sheened in the sunlight, her white plumage that covered her neck and head was glossy and bright. Her cleaned up appearance was thanks to the royal clawgriffonesses, she usually hated being made to look all prim and proper, but she didn’t have much of a choice, she needed to be presentable. Although, she was able to talk them into keeping her light shade of purple eye shadow over her eyes, she needed something that still remained her when looked at herself in the mirror.

“Are you alright Gilda?”

The griffoness turned around and saw a black griffon walk into her room; he had been so silent that she didn’t even hear him.

“Dammit Nox, give me some warning that you’re there! Clear your throat or something, geez!”

Nox chuckled, “Sorry, it’s a habit. But seriously, how are you doing?”

Gilda sighed, “I guess I’m alright. I mean, as ‘alright’ as I can be all things considering…”

The griffoness walked into her room, it was once her father’s room, but his bed and furniture had been removed in place of hand picked furniture by Gilda herself, if she was going to stay in this room she wasn’t going to sleep in the same bed that her now dead father had slept in. She shuddered upon remembering what Nox had told her about how their father died.

“Pinned to the floor by spears, and putting his severed head on a pike! What kind of medieval, sick crap is that?!”

“Apparently one that is meant to make a statement dear sister, the Fear Lantern showed us just how powerful she was, and now we need to step up our plans.”

“I still can’t believe you survived that fight…I’m glad you did, don’t get me wrong, it’s just that when they told me you were dead as well…” There as a hint of sadness in Gilda’s voice, remembering hearing the news of her father’s passing as indeed sad, but felt even more worried when she heard of her brother’s death.

Nox walked over to Gilda and placed a claw on her shoulder, “I’m sorry I had to be secretive about this, but we stand a better chance if the Fear Lantern thinks I’m dead, as well as everyone else. Besides, it allows me to better see just who my enemies and allies are.”

Gilda placed her right claw over Nox’s, smiling slightly. “Well, you don’t have to worry, I’m not abandoning you again…Can you forgive me, for leaving you alone with dad…?”

“Gilda, I don’t blame you for leaving. It was my choice to stay behind. I became a Wing Commander, and I was able to advance my abilities further, which is the only reason I was able to survive the encounter.”

The griffoness moved closer and hugged her brother, with Nox embracing her as well. The siblings parted and Gilda’s gaze drifted over to a stand where her royal regalia and cape awaited to be worn. “I still don’t think I’m the best choice for this, being an Empress and all…”

“I know, but I’ll be there, in the shadows, helping you out. So you needn’t worry. Just look regal, and above all else, do not lose that fervor in your heart dear sister. Do not forget what the Equestrians have done to us.”

Gilda still couldn’t believe that the ponies were capable of such destruction. Truth be told she really didn’t believe in this war from the beginning, having lived in Equestria for a good length of time, but upon hearing of what happened to Griffonia, she was starting to think that maybe her father wasn’t so crazy to wage war against them. Equestria had many a powerful being in their homeland, four alicorns, each a demi-deity, a Spirit of Chaos, and there’s the added new danger of the Fear Lantern. The Equestrians were more dangerous than she first thought, but, then again, even a mouse will lash out if it’s cornered.

“So, what’s this ‘plan’ I keep hearing about? Commanders Carmen and Silva haven’t really…saw fit to inform me. I mean, how can I be an Empress and help with this war if I don’t know the whole plan!?” Gilda growled.

Nox patted his sister on the back in a placating fashion. “I’ll fill you in, come with me.”

Nox lead Gilda to the study in the adjacent room. The two of them stopped before a round table in the middle of the room. Nox then waved his right claw over the main entrance and the door they had just entered from. A veil of darkness layered itself over the doors for a moment and within the next moment melded into the doors themselves. The black griffon noticed the look his sister was giving him, remembering that this was the first time she had seen his dark magical abilities to this extent.

“Sorry, I forgot, you haven’t seen my powers like that, but it’s just a protective field to keep eavesdroppers from overhearing anything, only the Wing Commanders and the current ruling head of state can be told this, or see it, lest the public or a spy get wind of it.”

Nox then placed his right claw on the table. Gilda noticed something on his middle talon that she hadn’t before, he was wearing a ring, a black one, with a strange symbol on it. An upside down triangle, with five vertical bars sticking up from it, this ring then began to glow with an eerie light, it was actually emitting a black light, as weird as that sounded. Before them constructs made of darkness appeared, depicting old Emperors and Empresses from past generations.

“It is no secret that during the founding of Equestria, and the subsequent expansion of the realm, the griffons and the ponies have had a long standing rivalry. Back in the ancient times, skirmishes and full out wars were common place back then. But, the arrival of the Princesses known as Celestia and Luna more or less brought these battles to an end.”

Gilda shrugged her shoulders. “Makes sense, going up against two ponies who can move the sun and moon on their own would seem like suicide.”

“Quite.” The constructs shifted, showing battles upon battles with the griffons and ponies. “But nonetheless, our ancestors only bided their time, watching and studying the ponies. Some of our past rulers had launched full scale wars against Equestria, and of course, they either ended in stalemates or we were defeated outright.” Another shift in the constructs, this time showing a regal Empress griffoness that bared some semblance to Gilda. “But, it was thanks to Empress Claudia, who believed that, in lose, there was victory. She kept a record of all the losses we suffered, how, why, where, and when. Upon her passing, she bequeathed this knowledge in the form of a tome, writing down all she knew, and making sure that any future ruler who challenged Equestria, write down their strategies, tactics, as well as conditions of each battle, whether it was a win or a loss.”

Gilda had to admit, she was impressed. This was going on for centuries without her knowing, even when her grandfather was Emperor. “But what’s the point in all this?”

“The eventual downfall and occupation of Equestria, that is the point sister. By studying the tome, we can refine and build upon what we learned since then, adding it to what we know now and finding correlations in their fighting and training, when their most vulnerable, where their weakest, and how much their military strength has grown from one generation to the next. It all culminates into a single war to end all wars. The Age of the Equestrians has lasted too long, now this new era will be ours.”

To emphasize the point, a construct of the Griffon Empire flag appeared atop a mountain of pony corpses, along with a single griffon beside the flag, holding chains that were bound to the four alicorn rulers of Equestria. Gilda couldn’t keep her slight discomfort from showing, she had anger management issues, was violent from time to time, would cuss out the occasional passerby if they bumped into her, but…this was a little out of her league.

“You’re scared sister.”

Gilda looked to Nox, surprised. “I-I’m not scared!”

“I know you are, I can tell. But you don’t have to be. You won’t be alone in this big sister.”

“I know…and thanks. I don’t deserve a little brother like you.”

Nox waved his right claw again and the constructs vanished along with the protective spell over the doors, his ring having stopped glowing with its supernatural light. “No, no you don’t.”

Gilda scoffed, “Always gotta be a wise guy don’t ‘cha bro?”

“Only when you’re around sis, now I’ll leave you to get ready, they’ll be swearing you in soon, and I need to make myself scarce.”

Gilda nodded to her little brother and bade him farewell as he created a portal of darkness and passed through it. She then sighed heavily, gazing at the regalia and cape once again. This was her future from now on; she was to be the Empress of the Griffon Empire, and wage war against a land that she had come to call home for the latter part of her youth. Few of the ponies on the other side she called friends, but even now, her thoughts traveled to one pony in particular, a rainbow maned pegasus mare to be exact. Although, for a good part of that time, “friend” may not have been the word she would’ve used to describe her feelings for the mare in question. But that was in the past, that mare was married and had children now, any possibilities were quashed when the “I do’s” were spoken.

But…that doesn’t mean things can’t change.

Gilda shuddered again, was she seriously contemplating that making this mare her own when all was said and done really something she should look forward to? If things went as planned, from what Nox had told her, such a thing could be possible, since the Griffon Empire, at the end of this scenario, was to bring the Equestrian’s down to their knees. It certainly was a thought.

All the while, Gilda never knew that she was being watched from within the shadows. Though her younger brother appeared to have left, he remained between the realms of the physical and shadow world, watching his sister.

He saw within her many conflicting colors, red, yellow, orange, green, blue, and violet. All of them beaming with emotional energy, and he didn’t know which of them he liked more. Within this netherrealm, his ring blinked a few times, Nox raised it up closer to his face and nodded as if hearing a voice.

“I understand Master, but be patient, things aren’t ready yet for your arrival. The pieces have yet to fall into place.”

Aftermath

Six months, that’s how much time had passed since Starburst had been branded a renegade, an outlaw. Her identity as the Fear Lantern was spread throughout Equestria and to some of the territories as well. The reaction from the public was mixed to say the least. There were those, from Stalliongrad, Cloudsdale, and Maretonia, that praised Princess Starburst for saving their lives and making their cities safe for them. While on the flip side, there were those who thought that her actions were dubious; this mostly came from the nobility and concerned Equestrians. It didn’t take long for them to figure out that her power stemmed from fear, and many of those skeptics were spreading the rumor that Starburst was secretly plotting to overthrow her mother and the other High Princesses.

In Ponyville, the majority was split between those who supported Princess Starburst, and others who were adopting a “wait and see” stance, while the minority was certainly afraid when these rumors were flying about. Of course, those closest to the mare in question did what they could to quash these rumors, but there was always somepony who wouldn’t be swayed. Out of all those whom this affected the most, Anthea, or Annie as she liked to be called, was the most vehement about protecting Star’s good name.

It was the New Year, but there was little to celebrate. Despite it being festive at Ponyville, those who knew were less than joyful, knowing that a certain pegasus mare hadn’t joined them and would not be with her family. The land of Equestria was already shrouded in snow; most were just out walking about, refusing to be cooped up by the cold. Annie and her mother, Fluttershy, were two such ponies. They had stopped by a little shop to get some hot chocolate; they sat outside, under the warmth of the magical heat lamps that were arranged around the patio.

“Sorry to have you take me to T’s place, mom,” said Annie.

“Not at all sweetie, it’s fine. I know you can’t see everything too well with all the snow, and that Turquoise doesn’t really like coming out into the cold.”

Both mares giggled at that, knowing how difficult it was going to be for Annie to rouse the dragon-pony stallion from his “cave”. All the while, Fluttershy watched the falling snow, and occasionally, stared at her adopted daughter, watching her enjoy her hot beverage as they both sat and in content. Anthea must’ve felt her staring gaze, because the pink unicorn mare cocked her head to the side quizzically.

“Mom, what’s wrong?”

“Oh, nothing honey. I, well, sometimes I just can’t believe how lucky I am to have been given the chance to raise a daughter like you, Annie.”

Annie blushed a bit from hearing the praise. “Mom, seriously, you don’t have to say that.” It was here that her smile turned coy. “If you really want to thank me Mom, how about finding yourself a nice stallion and get married!”

Fluttershy spluttered her cocoa at hearing that, her face turning a bright shade of red. “A-A-Annie, I-I told you, I don’t need to find a special somepony, I’m happy with just the two of us!”

“Mooooom,” Annie moaned, “you can’t be like this forever. You deserve to spend your life with somepony who will treat you right, love you, and take care of you! Of course, I could understand your apprehension, I mean, if stallions aren’t your thing mom.”

Once again, Fluttershy spluttered her cocoa onto the ground, coughing and gagging a bit. “A-Anthea!”

“I’m not judging Mom, if that’s how your barn door swings then –”

“Anthea, mommy loves you,” Fluttershy smiled, but at the same time, there was a subtle, warning edge to it, “so please, stop making her spit out her hot chocolate.”

Annie sighed in defeat. “Fine, Mom, I understand, sorry.”

Fluttershy’s smile lost its edge and once again radiated her natural kindness. “It’s okay sweetie. But, I promise you, when I meet my very special somepony, you’ll be the first to know. I want to make sure you approve after all.”

The unicorn mare couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at that. “Mom, you don’t need my approval, you’re a grown mare, you’re free to love who you want to.”

The cream-yellow pegasus mare took a sip of her hot chocolate before answering. “Yes, that’s very true. But I also value what you think Annie. Because the pony I love will be just as much a part of your life as they will be mine, and, also, I trust your judgment when it comes to these matters too.”

Anthea blushed a little from hearing that. “Mom, I don’t have some super special magic for love, that’s more High Princess Cadance’s thing, I just get feelings sometimes, I don’t know how to describe it. But, if that’s how you feel then alright.”

Fluttershy nodded happily and took another sip.

“Even if they happen to be mare.”

Cue the third spit take, unfortunately aimed right at Annie. She saw a brownish blur moving towards her and quickly erected a small shield in front of her to stop the liquid projectile from drenching her face, and from getting into her own drink.

“Annie!”

“I’m just saying, Mrs. Rarity told me about that time when you were a supermodel, and how you got love letters from A LOT of stallions and mares. Just saying. It’s a fact.”

Fluttershy opened and closed her mouth several times to try and argue that her daughter was wrong, unfortunately, she wasn’t. In the end, Fluttershy huffed and drank her hot chocolate. But she couldn’t stay pouty for long, not with her daughter. As they enjoyed their drinks, the two mares watched as two stallions wearing light blue armor walked to one the tables after ordering some drinks of their own.

They were part of the newly formed Local Guard or LG, a sort of police force for towns and cities made up of official Royal Guards and volunteer members alike, of course after a thorough background check. The war had shown, especially with Cloudsdale, that the need for such a force was necessary. They mostly performed patrols around the town or city they are assigned to, keeping an eye out for suspicious activity, and generally doing what they could to keep the crime rates down.

“This has got to be the easiest assignment I’ve ever had,” said a gray stallion.

“Don’t jinx it, this is Ponyville after all. Element bearers, home of a dragon, occasional visits from High Prince Discord, and is all around a general magnet for crazy crap to happen,” said the green stallion across from him.

The gray stallion laughed, conceding the point, and honestly, Fluttershy and Anthea chuckled too, knowingly being at the center of some of that quote: “crazy crap”.

“But seriously, why here? I mean, we’re not that far from Canterlot, heck, this town’s practically next door to the High Princesses and Princes. And, yeah, it’s a little big, but I don’t think this place needs a LG Regimen here.”

The green stallion leaned closer to the table and spoke quietly to his partner. “Between you and me, besides the Element bearers, this is where Princess Starburst, the Fear Lantern, was hiding out for months before she freaked out during that radio broadcast.”

The gray stallion shivered, “Ugh, I still get the chills from hearing High Princess Twilight scream like that. So wrong! But, really, I didn’t know that?!”

“That’s one of the reasons the LG Regimen is here, protecting the locals from the fallout of ponies finding out about her secret,” said the green stallion.

The gray stallion took a sip of his drink before speaking again. “But bro, seriously, whacking off twelve Royal Guards, breaking out of the dungeon, and going on a rampage in Griffonia, which was kickass by the way, all in a few days. Whatever she’s packing must be some serious magic weaponry.”

“I hear that she’s probably had that thing for a while and made her debut in Stalliongrad, trying to get the public to side with her.”

“For what?”

“To take over the throne –”

“THAT’S A LIE!!!”

There was a crashing of mugs and a sudden jostling of a table. Both stallions turned to see Anthea glaring at them. At first they were confused, they were talking low as to not be overheard during that last part of their conversation, and they were sitting some distance from the two mares, so they didn’t understand why this mare was looking at them like that.

“Miss, is everything alright?” asked the green stallion.

“I heard what you said about Starburst! She would give her left foreleg before doing anything to harm Equestria! Especially her mom!” Anthea shouted.

“Miss, we were just –”

“How could you even think those kinds of things?! She’s my friend, and a friend to most of the ponies in this town! How dare you –!”

Annie stopped when she felt her mother’s forehoof on her shoulder. The look on her mother’s face a silent plea to stop. She took a calming breath, becoming visible in the cold air.

“Come on Annie, let’s get going.”

Carousel Boutique…

“I just can’t believe they were saying those things about Starburst!” Anthea shouted.

Fluttershy and Anthea had arrived at the home of Spike and Rarity, Claire was at Canterlot seeing Illusion, and Turquoise, well, as per usual, was sequestered in his room, wrapped up in his blankets. The pink unicorn mare had made her way into the room and, for the last five minutes, fumed about what she heard the LG stallions had said about Starburst. T, for his part, had poked his head out from under the blankets and listened to his fillyfriend, knowing that she, just like himself and their friends, had been hearing false rumors about their friend, and had been doing what they can to stop the spread of the rumors. But that didn’t stop it from getting under Anthea’s skin.

“It’s just two guys talking nonsense Annie, they probably haven’t been here long like the majority of them,” said Turquoise.

“I know, I know, it just…” Annie sighed, “It’s just really upsetting to hear them say that about her…despite what we heard from the news.”

A heavy feeling fell over the room, Turquoise knew what she was talking about. It was big news when they all heard about the Fear Lantern’s attack on the Griffon Empire capital, Griffonia. How most of the city was decimated and the Emperor, Stratus at the time, had his head mounted on a pike, killed by the hooves of the Fear Lantern. They couldn’t believe Starburst would be that ruthless, or, it would be more accurate to say that they didn’t want to believe that she could be.

“All we can do is believe in her Annie, from what the news says there are sightings of the Fear Lantern in different parts of the Equestrian Territories. If we’re lucky, she may run into Prism.”

“Now that was a surprise…Guess she really motivated him, huh?” Annie went silent for a bit before moving on to something just as touchy. “How’s Del been doing?”

Turquoise sighed, “As well as can be expected, we knew he had a thing for Star, but…He’s just kind of been in a bit of a funk since then.”

The unicorn mare made her way to T’s bed and flopped herself onto of the mound that was T’s body. The dragon-pony stallion looked up at his fillyfriend with a bemused smile, making Annie reflect this smile back at him.

“So, can we at least go out?” asked Annie.

T groaned, “No.”

“Oh c’mon, it’s snowing outside!”

“Exactly, I don’t like the cold, and snow even less.”

“Please~” she whined.

“Not coming out.” T said with finality, burying his head under a pillow for emphasis.

Annie puffed out her cheeks into a pouty face. Using her magic she levitated the pillow off of T’s head and stared at him coyly. “I’m going to do it.”

“You wouldn’t dare?!”

“Yes I would~”

“Annie!”

The pink mare took in a deep breath, “Do you want to build a snowcolt –!”

“Okay, okay, let’s go out!”

“Yay!” Annie hopped off T’s back and onto the floor, letting the pillow plop back onto his head. “Really though, I don’t see why you don’t like that song just because you cried.”

Turquoise snorted, “Not my fault that it was practically the saddest song in the movie…”

Annie lifted the pillow off of his head again and kissed him on the cheek. “And that’s why I love you, my big, strong, sensitive stallion.”

T blushed, but leaned forward and kissed her back on the cheek, and then the two nuzzled, enjoying each other’s warmth.

Canterlot…

Twilight was lying down on her bed, the curtains weren’t drawn, she didn’t much like being in the dark these days, not since her encounter with Steel Wing. Twilight shuddered every time she thought about that demented griffon, and, as much as she didn’t like thinking this, was glad that he was dead. But that wasn’t the most prominent cause of why she was alone in her room.

The High Princess of Magic usually found herself here for another reason, more or less, she was sulking. Ever since Starburst left, and attacked the Griffon Empire, Twilight and Flash had been worried about her. But...of anything that weighed on her mind, it was what her friends said to her. They had either talked to them separately or together, but all of it was the same, even now she could hear their voices in her head.

“Twi I hate to say it – no actually I don’t hate to say it, this is pretty much yours and Valiant Heart’s fault! I mean, c’mon, what did you think was going to happen when you banned her from the Royal Guard?! You could’ve banned her from the RG for a couple of years, grounded her for a year or two, Tartarus, even spanking her would’ve been better! But to take away your kid’s dream, something that they’ve been working towards most of their life! That’s just damn cruel Twi!

That’s like, the equivalent of me telling Prism he’s worthless because he didn’t become a Wonderbolt! And now he’s joined the RG, do I like it, a little because he’s defending our home and people! Am I worried that he might get himself killed? Of course I am! But I’m not going to stop him if that’s what he has his heart set on Twi, because I believe in him! Is it any wonder she chose that freaky ring’s power, you took what mattered most to her, and then you were going to take it away, again! I know she wasn’t born a unicorn Twi, but seriously, you should’ve tried harder…”

“I did…I thought I did…”

“Twilight, I understand where you’re coming from. It wasn’t easy for Rarity and me when we helped Claire set up her shop, especially when we knew what happens when she exhausts her magic and fire, she gets really weak and tired. We were always afraid that she’d be working on something and pass out without warning, either while working or on the street on her way to a client. But, despite that, we still let her continue, because we knew that this is what she wanted to do with her life, and we shouldn’t stand in her way, if anything we helped her, and were there if she ever needed help…

I guess what I’m saying is, maybe you should’ve listened to her more, believed in her…”

Twilight began to sniffle a bit, “But she’s my daughter…my first child, I just wanted to protect her…”

“Um, Twilight, I know what it feels like to be scared for your foal, believe me, I was terrified of something happening to Anthea. Even so…I think, if any mare could make it the Royal Guard, my bits would’ve been on Starburst, she just trained so hard and pushed herself a lot, I just knew she’d make it. I was afraid for her, just as you were, of Star getting hurt or something terrible. But then I look at Annie, and see just how much stronger she’s gotten over the years, pushing herself to be more independent, despite my constant worrying.

So Twilight, I don’t blame you, but, maybe there could’ve been a different way to go about it…”

The purple alicorn hit the bed with her hoof, “How?! Just what else could I do?! She…She stowed away on a Royal Guard airship, put herself in the middle of a warzone, and nearly died! How else was I supposed to react?! She’s – Star can be strong, but…”

“Twi, Ah know yer afraid of Star gettin’ hurt in the Guard. Heck, Ah was plum terrified of losin’ Del, he was just a tiny little thing that Ah thought, Ah dreaded, that one day Ah’d wake up one mornin’ and find my baby boy no longer breathin’…but that wasn’t the case, he was a fighter like his momma, and in the end, Del grew up to be as big and strong as his uncle.

In a lot of ways, Star and Del are similar. Ah remember you tellin’ me how she was kinda shy, would cry all the time, Ah think Ah joked to Rainbow that you gave birth to your own Fluttershy. But just like Del, Ah watched that young mare on my farm, seein’ her grow stronger and stronger each time. Ah guess it’s no surprise mah boy started likin’ your Star. And honestly, Ah couldn’t pick a better mare for him to be with. But just like Ah said, all ya need is faith that everythin’ will be alright, we raised good kids, there’s no need to worry…”

“But I do worry…And because of it I drove my own daughter away…!”

“I hate you…”

Those were the last words Star had spoken to her before she left, and it wounded Twilight in her heart. Twilight buried her face in the mattress, crying softly as she lamented the choices she had made for her daughter.

“That ring…i-it has to be that ring…Star, if that ring never appeared to you, then…”

It was the last bastion of sanity that Twilight held onto, even though Starburst told her that the ring chose her, it was still possible that it was influencing her without her knowing. Twilight remembered Trixie and the Alicorn Amulet, how it gave her powers almost equal to an alicorn’s, but at the same time it twisted her mind and turned her into an evil dictator bent on ruling Ponyville and enslaving the populace. Even separated from the ring, Starburst was still under its control.

“I will find a way to free you from that thing’s control, I swear it Star…”

There was a knock at the door, Twilight hurriedly wiped her face of the dried tears, but the door slowly opened and she quickly looked away.

“Twi, it’s me Flash…” Twilight glanced slightly at the door. “Can I come in?”

“Yes…”

Flash entered the room, he could tell that Twilight was crying, though she might’ve wiped away the tears, the matted fur around her face was proof enough of that. He climbed onto the bed and lay beside Twilight. Without any prompting, Twilight rested her head on her husband’s shoulder, letting his presence comfort her.

“Thinking about Star?”

She nodded.

“That makes two us.”

Twilight looked up at Flash, “I’m a terrible parent…”

“Well, if you are, you aren’t the only one,” said Flash, nuzzling the top her head.

“But she at least liked you more…I just couldn’t connect with her. We used to be so close when she was a filly, but…”

“It’s just the way some teenagers are, they get older, and they get moodier, look at Nidra,” said Flash jokingly.

Twilight jabbed Flash in the foreleg, “I’m serious Flash! Am I a bad mother…?”

Flash Sentry knew that this was farthest thing from the truth. “You’re not a bad mother Twilight, have we made some bad choices? Yes. But I still believe in her, and I believe in you Twi, we’ll see her again.”

Twilight sniffled a bit and nuzzled into her husband’s neck, happy to have him there for comfort. It was then that they both heard something at their bedroom door. Both the alicorn and pegasus turned to see that Nighty was poking his head in tentatively, wondering if he should intrude.

“Mom, Dad…?”

“You can come in Night Light,” said Flash.

The purple unicorn colt entered his parents’ bedroom, he tried to climb up to join them but found that he lacked the height. Taking pity on her son, Twilight used her telekinesis to lift the colt up and brought him to rest before the two of them. “Now, what’s wrong?”

“…N-Nothing…”

The mother and father looked to each other, knowing what it was that had their son looking down. “You miss your big sister don’t ‘cha?” asked Flash.

“N-No I-I don’t! Why would I miss her?! I mean, now I-I don’t have to fight with anypony in my own house, or get called names by her…” Nighty tried to appear indifferent about Starburst’s absence, but really, Twilight and Flash could see that he was missing her just as much as them.

“Now Nighty, you don’t mean that. I know you and Star don’t always get along, and honestly you two bicker like a cat and dog, but you can’t say that you’re glad she’s gone,” said Twilight.

The colt didn’t want to admit it to himself, but he did miss Star. For all the times that they did fight, Star just as many times stood up for him and protected him against bullies at Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. Despite her teasing and occasional attitude, Nighty guessed, as far as big sisters went, Star wasn’t that bad.

“No, I’m not…I wish she’d come back and stop making everypony worry about her,” said Nighty.

The unicorn was told only a few of the details about why his sister was gone; Twilight and Flash didn’t need to tell him what had happened in the dungeons, or what had occurred in the Griffon Empire. Just then, a scroll popped up in front of them out of nowhere. Twilight took the scroll with her magic and opened it. Both the High Princess and High Prince read over the scroll and their expressions changed to ones that conveyed the seriousness of the message.

“Nighty, we gotta go champ,” said Flash.

“I know, royal duties right?”

“Yes, but we’ll talk later if you want, is that okay with you?” asked Twilight.

Night Light Jr. nodded his understanding, and with that the three of them exited the bedroom. As they moved through the hallway, Twilight stopped for a moment in front of Starburst’s room. She opened the door slightly and stuck her head in. It was as she left it, undisturbed, with posters of the Royal Guards plastered on the back wall of her bed, and on other walls. A black leotard stuck out from its hidden spot underneath the bed, a reminder of when they had Starburst learn ballet. Twilight chuckled at the memory, she was annoyed by it, but in no time she began to enjoy it more and more to the point where it became a secret passion of hers. The room still held her scent within it, which was deeply nostalgic.

Twilight retracted her head and closed the door, deciding to not revel in the memories for too long, lest she allow her sadness to creep back into her heart yet again.

Twilight and Flash sat at the round table within the War Room. A map was placed on the table, showing Equestria proper and its territories, along with the nations of Minotaurus, Draconia, the Griffon Empire, and Zebrica. There were magically created constructs that marked their forces and the griffon forces. All High Rulers assembled looked upon the map with a grim expression.

“The griffon forces are being kept at bay for the moment, but from what we’re getting, they’re pushing forward inch by inch,” said Discord.

“The death of their Emperor hasn’t seemed to stop them in the slightest, if anything it has bolstered their fighting spirit,” commented Luna.

Twilight winced for a brief moment after hearing that.

“Regardless, we have another pressing matter. The griffon forces are being kept at bay for now, but there are different ways that they can get around our forces and possibly evade Equestria Proper.” Supernova pointed to a mountain that snaked along the borders between Minotaurus, the Griffon Empire, and Saddle Arabia. “The griffons could use this mountain range to bypass our blockades and enter Minotaur territory, and from there, work their way unseen through their country and enter Saddle Arabia, or, they could press on for the homeland.”

Celestia rubbed her chin as she contemplated what Luna’s husband had just said. “This is a problem, but, maybe one that we can work to our advantage.”

Cadance looked to her Aunt confused. “What are you getting at?”

The High Princess of the Sun stood tall before her fellow rulers and declared the following. “We forge an alliance with Minotaurus.”

“Um…Celestia,” Shining Armor spoke up, “the Minotaurs aren’t exactly the alliance type. They already expressed their neutrality in this war and don’t want to get involved.”

“True, but, neither are they keen on others using them as a means to an end,” said Flash. “If we make them aware of the little shortcut, we could spin it to our advantage.”

“How so?” asked Discord.

“We convince them that the griffons could use this as a way to invade Minotaurus. It wouldn’t be too hard of a sell, think about it, if the Griffon Empire is as ambitious as to go to war with us, and if they were to defeat us, what’s stopping them from going after them next?”

The assembled rulers thought over the proposal. It would give them a strong ally in the war, and the Minotaurs were known for their prowess when it came to combat and warfare. It could work, providing that they could make the stubborn race agree. The only question now was who was going to do the negotiations?

“If this is what we’re agreeing to, then I’ll go and negotiate with the Minotaurs,” said Twilight.

Many in the room, including Flash, seemed hesitant about letting the young High Princess go on such a mission.

“Twilight,” Cadance spoke tenderly, “maybe it’s better if Luna, or maybe I, should go considering…”

Twilight sighed deeply, “Look, I know you’re all worried about me after my ordeal in Maretonia,” her eyes met Flash’s to indicate he wasn’t left out in this conversation, “but I can’t just stay here in Equestria and not try to help. Besides, it’s not like I’m going to another battlefield, this is politics, and if anything, I’m confident in my skills as a diplomat to make this alliance work.”

There were still some hesitant looks among the others, but, there was no denying that Twilight had diplomacy skills that rivaled even Celestia’s. With a heavy sigh, Celestia looked directly at Twilight.

“Very well, but take every precaution before you depart. I want background checks on every and all Royal Guards accompanying you on this mission. And Twilight, I would like for you to choose at least three to be your Personal Protection Detail for the duration of your diplomatic mission, is that understood?”

Twilight nodded, adopting a professional and serious expression. “Yes Celestia, I will.”

Promotions & Delegations

“That’s good Annie, just breathe and concentrate,” said Twilight.

Annie did as her mentor instructed. Her horn was alight with light-green mana as a sphere of the same colored magical energy floated before her, its form somewhat wobbly as Anthea attempted to smooth out the orb. If she was straining, the young mare didn’t show any signs that she was. To her right was Nighty, the periwinkle unicorn colt was definitely showing some signs of strain. His brow was furrowed as sweat dripped down his face, his horn glowing light-blue as his orb struggled to actually become one. Twilight was surprised that he was having a little trouble with this particular spell training, even if he showed great magical prowess like Annie, he was still a colt and his mana reserves weren’t as developed yet as Annie’s.

Currently the three were in Twilight’s old observatory tower, which had been converted into a training and studying area for those whom the High Princess of Friendship taught personally, which meant that it was mostly used by her, Nighty, and Anthea.

Twilight watched as Annie’s orb began to rise up, climbing higher and higher into the air. When it reached a certain point, the orb burst open, creating a mock nebula of stars. Fireworks-like explosions went off as the image of a dove appeared; formed by the light-green mana Annie then ceased the flow of magic, allowing the display to dissipate at a steady pace before it completely vanished from sight. Twilight clopped her hooves to together as she beamed at unicorn mare.

“That was great Anthea! You’re really showing improvement!” Twilight praised.

Annie blushed a little from hearing the Princesses’ words, she had received such praise before, but it never seemed to lose its effect on Annie every time she heard High Princess Twilight say it. “Thank you, Princess.”

Twilight couldn’t help but blush back, she had many a time said those exact words to Celestia when she was her student, and now she was hearing those same words directed at her. It was nostalgic and at the same time a little weird being on the other end of it. The alicorn mare shook her head lightly to break herself out of the reverie she was about to slip into, refocusing her attention onto her son, seeing as he was still struggling a little with the spell.

The object of the training was to practice illusion spells, Twilight had been given a crash course in this field, more thoroughly, by Trixie. Of course the showmare didn’t teach Twilight everything, to do so would ruin her magic shows and loose her audience and income. But, thankfully, Twilight was able to delve more after Trixie pointed her in the right direction. The spell itself called for creating a kind of image, something dazzling. Annie had just shown her ability by adding sound to her illusion image, something that Twilight wasn’t expecting since it took a little more effort to manipulate sound waves and weave them into the illusion spell as well.

Nighty’s orb had become a little stable, but it still bubbled, with some parts of it slipping up in globs. It was starting to remind Twilight of the old “lava lamps” that were popular during the “Disco Era”, Cheerilee having an extensive collection hidden away from prying eyes, at least until Twilight happened to stumble upon it one day while visiting.

“Ugh, I-I just can’t get it to  stay still!” Nighty groaned in frustration.

Twilight was about to go to her son’s side to help, but Annie beat her to the punch. “You’re thinking too hard Nighty. Thinking is only part of it; you have to feel the magic give it form and shape.”

“I am feeling it, but it still won’t hold still!”

Annie smiled and moved closer to Nighty. “Stop the flow of magic for a second,” Annie could tell that Nighty was giving her a confused look even if she couldn’t see it, “trust me.”

Nighty looked to his mother who nodded in return. With a sigh, and an irritated grumble for having to start all over again, the unicorn colt stopped the spell, his horn losing its magical aura.

“So…now what?” asked Nighty.

“Shhh.” Annie placed her hoof on Nighty’s mouth.

“Miss Annie, that’s my nose.”

Anthea now moved her hoof lower to place it on his mouth. “Now, put your hoof over your heart.”

With a reluctant sigh, Nighty did as Annie instructed. The unicorn colt looked to his mother again, wondering if she was going to chime in and say something. But, strangely enough, she sat there and watched, her face scrunching up into that noticeable expression whenever she was thinking hard or observing something interesting and analyzing it as it happened. Basically, he was the guinea pig. Thanks a lot Mom.

“Now close your eyes, and focus on the beat of your heart.” Annie instructed.

Nighty did as she said and closed his eyes. His world blackened, Nighty was able to feel the thrum of his heartbeat against his hoof, but not just the steady rhythm of its beating, but the sound echoing within him.

“Do you feel your heartbeat? Can you hear it?”

“Yes.”

“Good, we’re halfway there,” said Annie cheerfully, “next, I want you to focus your magic – don’t cast any spells – just light your horn for now.”

The purple unicorn colt lit his horn as instructed, letting his magic ignite around it. Nighty felt that it was different this time for some reason, he felt a steady pulse coming from the magic that was much akin to his heartbeat, there was even a subtle sound. Although it was less of a pounding thump like his flesh and blood heart, and more like a tone of music.

“Now, what do you feel, what do hear?”

“My…My magic’s pulse, I guess? And there’s also a sound, like a choir or something.”

“Good. You see Nighty magic isn’t just power, or just a tool. It’s alive, look at the Everfree Forest, its magic is alive, and it shows in the things that live and grow in it. It’s almost the same thing, if you push against it, it will push back, but if you let it flow naturally, you’ll find that it will respond in kind.”

“But…I don’t understand how this will help with the spell?”

“Match the chorus with the sound of your heartbeat; keep trying to match them together until the two are indistinguishable from each other. I know you can do it Nighty.”

Nighty didn’t open his eyes; instead he followed Annie’s instructions. He listened carefully for the rhythm of his heart, and the song of the magic. The two of them sounded so different, yet, as the seconds rolled by, the two sounds were starting to converge. What Nighty didn’t know was that his mother, Twilight, and Annie both had their horns glowing. By no means were they aiding him, that wasn’t the reason for their glowing horns. They wanted to sense what was going on with Nighty’s magic, and Twilight could sense that her son’s magic was definitely starting to harmonize.

Soon, Nighty felt the two merge together, it was uncanny, and this feeling was certainly different from the other times he had connected to his magic. It was as if the magic and Nighty were one and the same. Emboldened by this newfound confidence and energy, Nighty recast the spell. Opening his eyes, the colt saw that the orb of his light-blue mana was stable, becoming a perfect sphere. He then launched it into the air, when it reached a certain height, the orb burst open. Creating…

“Starburst…” Twilight whispered.

Much to the surprise of Twilight, Annie and even Nighty himself, the orb had created the silhouette of young pegasus mare with large, intimidating wings. She stood tall and proud, surrounded by stardust and bursting supernovas, showing both the beauty and intensity that was his big sister. Nighty quickly ceased the spell before the embarrassment of having conjured the image, as well as the guilt for showing that to his mother, got to him.

Annie watched Twilight, thinking that seeing that might make her mentor sad. But Twilight seemed fine, in fact, she smiled and walked over to Nighty. When she sat before him, Nighty lightly shrank away, feeling like had done something wrong.

“I…I’m sorry Mom! I-I didn’t even know it was going to come out like that! I don’t know why it looked like Star –!” Nighty clamped his hooves around his mouth before he could make the situation worse.

Twilight, however, shook her head as she continued to smile at her son. “Nighty you have nothing to be sorry for nor do you have to feel ashamed that it appeared like that. I think it’s wonderful, and you did such a great job! I’m proud of you!”

Nighty soon found himself brought into a wing embrace, bringing him closer to his mother’s chest as she hugged him.

“I think it’s time we wrapped this up for today, we’ve been practicing for over two hours and I don’t want you to tire yourself out.” Twilight then looked to Annie. “And I certainly don’t want you losing your sight for hours while your mana reserves regenerate.”

The two unicorns agreed to their teacher’s decision and the three set out to help clean up the room before going on about their day.

Anthea was staying the weekend in Canterlot, usually Twilight would come down to Ponyville to give Annie her magic lessons, but Annie decided she wanted to come to Twilight instead. With everything that was going on, she thought she’d make the extra effort and go to her. Canterlot was still in the midst of winter, like most of Equestria. There was still another month of winter left to go after the current one, and soon after that it would be spring time and Winter Wrap Up would start.

Currently, Annie and Twilight were still in the observatory, having had some tea and pastries brought up to them as they sat and enjoyed themselves. They sat near a window for the view, well, Twilight did, normally Annie, even in her semi-blind state, could still make out the shapes and colors of the city below. But as it stood, all she could see was a vast ocean of white nothingness. She may’ve liked to play in the snow, but it still didn’t make it any less annoying. It was one of the reasons why she liked spring time more, the snow was gone and nature itself woke up rejuvenated and vibrant.

“Annie,” the mare in question brought her attention to her mentor, “you taught Nighty one of the first steps in Harmonics.”

Annie rubbed the back of her head nervously, “Yeah…sorry, I thought it would help him connect better with his magic…I didn’t know he’d create…well…”

“Uh-uh, don’t apologize. It’s actually great that you learned it, and now Nighty has too! Although…I’m probably going to have to teach him how get better control of his emotions when using Harmonics, he’s just a colt after all…And it’s understandable, Nighty may be reluctant to admit it sometimes, but he does miss Star…we all do…”  Twilight shook her head not wanting to slip into sadness, not with what she had to say. “Actually, seeing this has confirmed something for me.”

Annie’s ears perked up, “Oh, what is it?”

Twilight took a sip of tea and placed the cup back on the table before speaking. “Anthea, for a long time now, I’ve watched as you struggled to overcome, not just your blindness, but all manner of challenges that I or life has brought before you. Every lesson I’ve taught you, you’ve excelled, showing an understanding and talent for magic that is truly spectacular! I don’t really know your future plans are Anthea, but…I would like to offer you the chance to become my first apprentice.”

Anthea nearly dropped her teacup as her eyes went wide from hearing what her mentor said. “P-P-Princess Twilight…you…you want me as your apprentice?!”

“If you don’t like ‘apprentice’ we can change it! Personal student, protégé, you don’t have to worry about the title if it makes you feel uncomfortable…!”

“No…No, it’s just…Princess, I mean…you’ve already taught me a lot and – whoa.” Annie felt dizzy as her mind struggled to grasp the fact that High Princess Twilight Sparkle had asked her to become the student to her teacher.

“Annie, I don’t make this decision lightly. I really want to foster your potential, and I see a lot of it in you. Recent events have shown me that I need to be more decisive and attentive of certain things, Nighty and Starburst are one, and you, Anthea, are another.”

Anthea was still taken aback from the offer, not that she didn’t mind being the Princesses’ apprentice, but there was still some doubt to her worthiness of such an honor. “Princess, why would you want me as your first apprentice? I can barely see and, despite what others may think, I have made some mistakes when casting spells. Plus, whenever I use too much of my magic, I go completely blind and…tend to freak out a little… I just think that…maybe there’s some other unicorn you should look into…One that’s –”

“‘More suitable?’, ‘More capable?’” Twilight interrupted, “Annie, I don’t ask this out of pity or because your mother is one of my best friends. I see the potential in you, and I want to nurture that and see you excel at so much more. But, the decision is yours Anthea. As I said earlier, I don’t know what plans you already had for the future and I don’t want to impede those plans in any way. If you need time to think about it go ahead, there’s no rush.”

Anthea didn’t know what to say, becoming High Princess Twilight’s first apprentice in, like, ever, was truly an honor.

“Can I…Can I talk to my Mom and Turquoise first? I really think I need to discuss this with them before I make any big decisions,” said Anthea nervously.

“That’s completely alright, like I said, there’s no deadline for your answer. My door is always open, whether you accept it or not.”

2 Days Later…

“Seriously, High Princess Twilight wants you to be her apprentice?!” asked Turquoise.

“Uh-huh!” Annie answered.

“Darling that’s wonderful! And, personally speaking, you deserve it,” said Claire.

Anthea blushed when she heard those words of praise from Claire; she blushed even more when her mother gave her a big hug, letting out a slight squee of excitement for her daughter. She was surprised; however, that they had no real objections to the offer of apprenticeship, especially after what her mother told her about talking to High Princess Twilight concerning what went on with Starburst.

“So…you guys aren’t against this? I mean, Mrs. Rarity, Mr. Spike, Mom, you guys didn’t really look all that happy after your talks with the Princess.”

The three in question each looked at each other, a sort of understanding passed between them as they each turned to look at Annie.

“Dear, what happened with Starburst is one thing, and…Twilight and Flash will just have to work it out the best way they can when the time comes. Of course, we’ll be there next time to make sure thing go more smoothly,” said Rarity.

“But, that has nothing to do with Twi asking you to be her apprentice. I know she’s always wanted to pass down what she learned, obviously she was going to do that with Night Light Jr. and Starburst, but I think she also secretly wanted somepony else, her own ‘faithful student’. I mean, believe me, if there’s anypony I would want to teach me crazy high level magic stuff, it would be Twi, and I know she’d be a great teacher to you Annie.” Spike added.

“You see Annie, despite what has happened recently, we still believe in Twilight and Starburst. Me, Rarity, and Spike have been friends with her for a long time, and we’ve been through and done a lot of dangerous things that required us to put our completely faith and trust in each other, even when things got bad. So that’s why we would never abandon her, and why we don’t doubt her when she makes a decision like this. So, Anthea, honey, what do you feel like you should do?” asked Fluttershy.

Anthea was somewhat stunned to hear this; the overwhelming support from her mother and family friends was, well, overwhelming. She looked to T, the dragon-pony showed no sign of objection to this, in fact, he was grinning happily for his fillyfriend. Claire was much the same way, smiling at the pink mare as her tail swished back and forth in response to this happiness.

“Okay, I’ll do it!” It was this point that Annie also remembered something else important. “Um…there was something else I needed to talk to you guys about.”

The others looked at any with curiosity. The unicorn mare took a deep breath, though they may not have had any objections to the apprenticeship, they may have some about the other piece of news.

“The Princess is going on delegation mission soon to Minotaurus, the minotaur homeland. And…well…I was thinking about asking her if I could…go along with her…?”

Now they stared at her with slightly widened eyes, some with worry, and others with intrigue. Fluttershy, most obviously, showed her concern. “Anthea…a-are you sure you really want to do that? Y-You’ve never been that far away before.”

“Well…that’s also kinda why I want to go. I love Ponyville, it’s my home, but I also want to experience new places. I know I won’t be able to actually see things clearly, but the smells, the sensations, the sounds, I want to hear and feel a new place…that, and I may not get that many chances because of y’know.” Annie waved her hoof in front of her faces for emphasis.

“I think it’s a grand idea,” said Claire as she moved closer to Annie’s left side. “I’ve travelled a lot with my work, and Mother, you and Father have done the same, and have even brought Turquoise and I on some of those trips. And really, if she is going to be an apprentice of a Princess then Annie is going to need to know how politics work, maybe not extensively, but enough to get by. And what do you think little brother?”

Annie and Claire looked to the dragon-pony stallion. He became a little nervous with all eyes on him. To be honest, he didn’t want Annie to go to some strange land, inhabited by minotaurs who weren’t exactly known for always being kind and courteous. Yes, High Princess Twilight would no doubt keep Annie close by, but what would happen if they got separated? Annie would be frightened and alone amongst creatures who could do – Celestia knows what! And what if the delegations got violent? Could the Princess protect them both?!

Turquoise felt his dragon instincts starting to rise, a fierce urge was building inside of him, telling the hybrid stallion to take Annie to a safe place and guard her, threatening to burn anypony or thing that dared get too close to her. But the green dragon-pony shook his head, trying to quash those draconic tendencies. He then looked down to Annie as she stared back up at him with those milky blue eyes and hopeful expression.

“Honestly…I don’t want her go.” Turquoise noticed the round of indignant looks he was getting, especially from his big sister, nonetheless he continued. “There so many things going through my head about what could happen to you Annie…and with this war going on, and you being in a strange land far from anypony who knows you and could help you, it…it freakin’ scares the crap out me!”

“Turquoise –!” Rarity was ready to speak up for Annie. But a quick raise of the claw from Spike stopped Rarity’s potential tirade from taking place.

“…I also know that this is something good for you Annie…and I get that you want to stretch your independence from time to time. Going to Minotaurus, a place far from Equestria, and closer to the fighting…” Turquoise took a calming breath; he couldn’t just focus on the negative, not for what he had to say next. “But, this is also something that I know you want to do, and, as crazy as I think it is, I’ll support you in this.”

Like always, Annie couldn’t see when her coltfriend or friends smiled, but she could sense the happiness they radiated from a smile, and that was enough to let her know that T was there for her. She leaned in close to his chest and started to nuzzle him affectionately, “Thank you, T! I promise, nothing bad will happen, I’ll come back and tell you guys all about Minotaurus!”

Canterlot, Royal Airship Launch Bay 4…

Anthea stood before the flying fortress airship and personal vessel of High Princess Twilight Sparkle, the Avalon. Even though she couldn’t see it properly, there was no denying that the blob that Annie could see was indeed massive. She was a little nervous, after accepting the Princesses’ offer to be her protégé; Annie was told that her first lessons were going to begin as soon as Twilight returned from her delegation mission to Minotaurus. The pink unicorn mare had talked to Twilight, asking her if she could come along since she, personally, hadn’t been anywhere further than Canterlot, Ponyville, and the Crystal Empire.

And while she loved her hometown, her adventurous side was peaked at the prospect of visiting another nation. Heck, she would’ve been satisfied with going to one of the territories, if most of them weren’t in a state of warfare with the Griffon Empire, that is. But, the chance to go someplace as exotic as the minotaur homeland was a treat in and of itself. Anthea’s mind was simply buzzing with all the strange new sounds, smells, and sensations of a foreign land; it was almost like a Daring Do adventure.

However, the importance of the delegation mission was not lost on her. Twilight had informed Anthea what the trip to Minotaurus was, primarily, to secure an alliance with the minotaurs. And of course, Anthea saw this as a perfect opportunity, not just to go to new places, but to get used to her role as High Princess Twilight’s apprentice, since it was sometimes common for mentors in political fields to bring their protégés along to learn.

Now here she was, with Turquoise right beside her, with his wing draped over her back. The dragon-pony stallion had offered to be with Annie right up until she boarded the airship. Now standing before the Avalon Turquoise gulped, for a long while he had been the tall one of their group of friends, even more so when he stood on his hind legs. But being under the shadow of this behemoth made him feel normal sized for once. It was then that T felt his fillyfriend tremble a bit, he knew why, and it was one of the other reasons why he thought this wasn’t a good idea.

“Annie you hate flying,” said T.

“I know…”

“And yet you’re willing to step inside that airship to go to Minotaurus?”

“Y-Yes…!”

“You do know what the meaning of the word ‘contradiction’ is, right?”

Annie jabbed an elbow into Turquoise’s side, giving him a pouty expression at the same time. “I know, I know, but I really do want to go! Yes I’m nervous about flying in…in that, but I’m also excited that I’m actually getting to go there at the same time!”

“Soooo…you’re nervouscited?”

“Exactly!” Annie beamed.

Turquoise’s eyes scanned over the ship and saw High Princess Twilight walking towards them from the cargo bay of the ship. Annie didn’t need to see her completely to know Twilight was walking towards them, she could sense her mentor’s unique magical aura. Annie stood up straight and carefully bowed her head before Twilight, prompting Turquoise to do the same.

Twilight groaned inwardly, she really didn’t like it when friends, especially the children of those friends, kowtowed like that. She had always told them that friends and family never had to bow before her, of course doing so at certain events was unavoidable as it would appear rude to others who did not know of the personal relationships between certain members of Twilight’s circle of friends. So, even though Turquoise was considered her nephew, the polite dragon-pony stallion felt that he show his respect in a public setting, less in Ponyville, but more so in Canterlot. The High Princess of Friendship motioned for them to rise, feeling that that was enough bowing.

“It’s no problem Aunt Twilight; honestly, I can’t say I’d act too hospitable myself. I’d be too busy wanting to protect Annie that I might cause an international incident, and the last thing we need is another nation gunning for Equestria,” said T.

Twilight giggled a little, knowing how protective Spike was of Rarity when she was pregnant, and seeing that same trait in her surrogate little brother’s son was nostalgic. “Well, we don’t want that. Don’t worry Turquoise, Annie will be safe with me, I promise that. So Annie, are you ready to go?”

“Y-Yeah…just need to take the first step,” said Annie nervously.

“It’ll be okay, besides, I know something that might help you get over your nervousness,” said Twilight grinning knowingly.

Annie tilted her head in curiosity. “Really? What is it?”

“Not so much a what as a who. You see, when I volunteered to go on this mission, High Princess Celestia wanted me to personally pick a certain number of Royal Guards to be my Personal Protection Detail. So, with High Prince Supernova and my husband’s help, I was able to pick three trustworthy ponies to do the job, and when I told them about your coming along, well…let’s just say they were really happy to get to see you.”

Anthea’s eyes steadily grew wider as the realization slowly dawned on her who it was the Princess had spoken of.

“You don’t mean –?!”

“Oh yeah she does!”

Twilight stepped aside and allowed Annie an unobstructed view, even if all she could see were blurry color blotches, she could never forget these three, even if she were an old mare. Annie’s smile grew wide, threatening to break past its normal boundaries and go up to her ears.

“Hot Head, Lucky, Amber!” Annie cried out.

The rusty red pegasus stallion, garbed in golden Royal Guard armor, stepped closer. “Yep, been a long time kid.”

Turquoise raised his wing up, knowing Annie would want to go to her old friends. And just as he predicted, she quickly rushed towards them, hugging Hot Head. A twinge of jealousy entered T’s heart for a moment before he reminded himself that Annie was just happy to see him. T hated this about himself sometimes, feeling like Annie was going to be taken away by some stallion when his back was turned and getting jealous when she showed her affectionate side to others, but that wasn’t her fault, Annie was just a loving mare, even to strangers, which meant that Turquoise had to learn self-control, but often times he gave into his draconic instincts and whisked Annie away without warning.

But, this particular stallion T wasn’t so friendly towards, not for a lack of trying, but Hot Head had it in his mind that Turquoise was dangerous for Anthea to be around. To be honest, Turquoise suspected that Hot Head would keep them apart if it wasn’t for the other two to rein him in.

Lucky, a light-purple unicorn stallion wearing the same golden armor, walked beside an earth pony mare. She wore silver armor to contrast against her light-gold coat, she was Amber Lily, but to her friends, just Amber. The two of them came up on either side of Hot Head; Annie ended her hug and proceeded to hug the other two in turn.

“I can’t believe it, you guys are coming too?!”

“Of course, High Princess Twilight wanted the best, and she’s got it,” said Hot Head in his usual arrogant tone.

“Gotta say Annie, it has been awhile, and yet somehow you seem even cuter than the last time we saw you,” said Lucky.

His comment earned him a low growl from Turquoise, ending any further comments on how cute Annie was, even if they were true statements. Amber took notice of T and made her way towards the dragon-pony stallion, she circled him, scanning his form from every angle.

“Turquoise Blitz, have you gained some more muscle since we last all got together?” asked Amber with a sly smile.

T gulped a bit, “Um, yeah I guess…I mean…I help out at Sweet Apple Acres from time to time, so it’s kind of a work out for me.”

Amber turned around to face Anthea and shook her head back and forth, “Tsk, tsk, tsk, no fair Annie! Using your cuteness to seduce a stallion is cheating!”

“Wasn’t you who told me to ‘use it if I got’?” Annie shot back, matching Amber’s sly smile.

Amber gave a dramatic gasp, “Vile temptress, using your adorableness to steal the hearts of stallions and leaving other mares alone and miserable!”

“I learned from the best.”

There was silence for a moment before both Amber and Annie broke into a fit of giggles, “Touché.” Amber conceded.

Twilight couldn’t help but smile, seeing the four friends’ reunion made her happy. Just then, the horn from the Avalon sounded, signaling that it was time for departure.

“Alright everypony, it’s time to get going,” said Twilight.

Annie nodded and went back to Turquoise; the two stared into each other’s eyes for what felt like minutes. T raised his left foreleg and cupped Annie’s right cheek with his claw, she leaned into the claw, nuzzling it and enjoying this gesture of her coltfriend.

“I’ll miss you, Annie.”

“I’ll miss you too, but don’t worry, I won’t be away that long, until then…”

Annie closed her eyes and tilted her head up and pursed her lips. Turquoise knew what this meant; he leaned forwards and kissed Annie. It wasn’t a passionate kiss; it was a light peck, enough to convey a promise to return to one another. T broke the kiss and smiled at Annie; both had blushing faces when it was over remembering where they were. Annie made her way to Twilight, where she extended her wing over Anthea and guided the pink mare slowly up the Avalon’s cargo ramp.

“Hot Head,” said Turquoise in a serious tone.

“You…all of you…protect her, alright.”

It was less of a request and more an order, Hot Head snorted upon hearing that. “Idiot, like you need to say that.”

Turquoise, satisfied with that answer, joined the rest of the ponies who had cleared the launch deck. The massive airship’s heat engines flared up, pushing the ship up. The engines then rotated till they were horizontal and released a stronger burst of heat, propelling the Avalon forward and setting it off on its course for Minotaurus.

Light

The Avalon, 48 Hours Later…

Had Anthea mentioned she hated flying? Well if not here it is: she really hated flying. For one thing, the airship was constantly on the move, so, even though her hooves were on something solid, Annie still felt the slightest movements of the ship. Not to mention all the sounds the ship made, the metal only intensified the echoes of the engine room, the talking voices of the ponies inside, a normal pony wouldn’t hear or feel even half of this, but for Anthea, with her heightened senses, it was a flood of sensations hitting her all at once.

Luckily, Twilight had a sound dampening spell placed upon certain rooms that was designed to affect only Annie when she visited them, it would block out the excess noise so that it wouldn’t overwhelm her, and allow her to hear a conversation being held in the room she was in. When she roamed about the ship either Hot Head, Luck Star, Amber Lily, Twilight, or one of the crew of the Avalon would help her out. It was during those times that Annie had to cast a similar sound dampening spell to move about the ship.

Though it proved effective in keeping her sense of hearing from being shot, her sense of touch and motion was still sensitive, and unfortunately, there was nothing she could do about that, except maybe lay down on a bed, but Annie found that boring after a while.

It was currently night outside, and most of the crew was asleep. Anthea bunked with Amber, the two deciding that the nights until getting to Minotaurus and back would be their time to hangout. Anthea was lying on the bed, her front legs tucked underneath her as the two mares shared stories about each other and their past exploits, as well as reminiscing about their time in the orphanage together.

“I swear Amber, you really are a flirt!”

Amber Lily was currently taking off her silver plated RG armor and popping her joints from the stiffness of carrying around such heavy armor, earth pony strength or not the armor was still murder on her back.

“Whatever are you talking about?” asked Amber in mock innocence.

“Oh please, you were totally checking out Turquoise back in Canterlot! I know he’s hot and all, but he’s my coltfriend,” said Annie with a fake pouty face.

Amber giggled and plopped herself onto the bed where Annie was, causing the pink mare to lift off a good two feet off the bed before she landed down, on her back and looking a little annoyed at her friend. Amber laid beside her, looking at the state Annie was in when she plopped on the bed.

“No harm in looking Annie. Believe me though, I would never do that to you,” said Amber with sincerity.

Anthea smiled at hearing that, “Thanks Amber.”

“Wait – What?!”

Before Anthea could inquire further, Amber Lily quickly pinned the younger mare under her and looked down at her with a devilish smile. “I’ve been waiting for payback for a long time!”

Amber sat up, practically straddling Anthea. She then raised her forelegs and quickly dove down. With her forehooves, Amber began tickling the unicorn mare underneath her, lightly fluttering the tips of her hooves against Annie’s barrel, chest, neck, and even under her forelegs. And yet, during this, Annie didn’t laugh, giggle, or even snort. The only thing she did do was smile coyly at her assailant, waiting for the right moment when Amber realized that this was having no effect whatsoever.

“…Still not ticklish…are you?”

“Uh-uh.” A devilish grin soon appeared on Annie’s face as she looked at the mare on top of her. “But I’m willing to bet you still are.”

“Annie wait –!”

Anthea’s horn glowed as she wrapped Amber in her magical aura, lifting the earth pony mare off of her. She then set Amber down on the bed and conjured three feathers made of her magical energy. Amber gulped as she felt Annie’s telekinetic magic lift her forelegs over her head and held them there. The three feathers then began to mercilessly attack her, tickling her sides, her stomach, and the nape of her neck. The mare squirmed, writhed, and laughed under Anthea’s ministrations.

“Annie – AH HA AHAHA HA – no fair using m-m-magic!”

“Oh, and you pinning me down was fair game, earth pony strength and all?”

“Com – AHA HAHA – pletely different, at least you had a chance to retaliate!”

Amber eyes started to water as Annie continued her magical tickle attack on her friend. Annie was just humming a tune as she listened to her friend laugh away, waiting for her to say the magic words.

“I GIVE, I GIVE!” Amber shouted.

Satisfied that her victory was assured, Annie released her hold on Amber and dismissed the floating light feathers. Amber laid splayed on the bed, panting as she took in big gulps of air.

“Damn Annie, any longer and I seriously would’ve wet myself!”

“Ew, and I wouldn’t have done that…or maybe I would,” said Annie with an impish smile. Amber rolled her eyes, but smiled all the same.

Annie crawled up to Amber and rested her head on the mare’s shoulder, humming contently. Amber wrapped her foreleg around Annie’s neck, bringing her into a hug.

“I missed you and guys, and sorry for asking for…y’know, this.”

“It’s alright Annie, I don’t mind. Besides, as cute as you are, I always wanted to snuggle up with you.”

Annie giggled a bit, although it didn’t help to alleviate the slight embarrassment of asking her longtime friend, now a grown mare, to sleep in the same bed with her. Turquoise and her mother were one thing, but Amber was her friend and she didn’t want to make things awkward for her. She would’ve been fine with a small light within the room, but she didn’t want it to annoy Amber during the night, so this was the only other choice. Annie had said that she was fine as long she knew Amber was in the room since her cot was right across from her, but apparently Amber didn’t mind.

“Thanks Amber,” said Annie as she snuggled closer into her friend’s embrace.

“I still can’t believe you’re officially High Princess Twilight’s apprentice Annie! I’m really happy for you, and so are the guys!”

“To be honest I was a little surprised by the offer, I mean, I never – in my wildest dreams – would’ve thought I could be an apprentice to one of the High Princesses!”

“Well, if anypony deserves it, Annie, it’s you. Who knows, maybe I’ll soon be calling you High Princess Anthea soon.”

Anthea blushed at what Amber had just said. Becoming an apprentice was one thing, but a High Princess?! “Nonononono! That’s not going happen Amber! I am not Princess material!”

Amber smirked at hearing Anthea’s words. “Oh please, I’m sure High Princess Twilight thought the exact same thing when she became High Princess Celestia’s student. I’m not saying she has some ‘grand master plan’ to make you an alicorn, but if you showed that you had the qualities, I’d think you could be one. And besides,” Amber nuzzled Annie’s cheek, “you’d make one damn adorable alicorn!”

“Amber!” Annie didn’t push away from the nuzzle, but she did giggle a bit. “Well…if that were true, I don’t think Starburst would take it too well…”

Amber stopped her nuzzle upon hearing that name, her happy expression turning to one of solemnness. “Annie…you can’t blame yourself for not being able to stop Princess Starburst. The three of us, trained Royal Guards, weren’t expecting that one of our own would help her, nor did we think she would be able to get at that ring from a secured vault! And given how powerful it made her, added to her training as a RG, you’re lucky she didn’t do more than just distract you.”

Annie shook her head vehemently, “No, Star would never do anything to hurt her friends! But…that Guard, her name was Sunny Skies, right?”

“Yeah…the only daughter of Spitfire and Fleet Foot, both highly decorated former Wonderbolts. Did you know her?”

“Uh-uh, but Prism Bolt did, at least a little through his parents. He had this really angry face the day after he came back from Canterlot, and he looked like he had gotten in a fight with somepony, but he didn’t say much about it. It wasn’t long after Sunny Skies’ funeral that he joined the Academy, by now he’s already shipped out somewhere…”

Amber rubbed Annie’s mane comfortingly, “You’re worried about him, aren’t you?”

“Him and Star both…She may have that ring, but she’ll run herself into the ground and with what she’s doing that’s not good! And Prism…he’s quick, strong, agile, a flier on par with Hot Head, and when he’s really angry a good fighter. But still, I just…”

Amber suddenly felt her chest get a little damp, along with the sounds of a few whimpers coming from Anthea. The amber-yellow mare held her friend closer, silently telling her it was alright to cry.

“I worry about them…my friends are out there doing dangerous things when they should be home with us, having fun, being with their friends and family, not…not having to fight and kill, and suffer through those horrors!”

“Annie…”

Amber could only hold her friend, despite some of the bad habits Annie had picked up from the motley trio back during the foalhood, the unicorn mare was a lover first, and a fighter second. She’d rather see enemies become friends then see them hurt each other. Her kind and loving nature allowed for almost anypony to approach her and speak openly with her, and Anthea was all too happy to lend an ear to their problems.

If anypony deserves happiness, it’s you. Anthea, you don’t know it, but you’re better friend and mare than I am…all three of us see it. And we’d do anything to protect that part of you, just as we’d give our lives for the Princes and Princesses, we’d gladly do the same for you.

Minotaurus…

Twilight, Anthea, Hot Head, Amber Lily, and Luck Star all stood in the cargo bay of the Avalon. The ship had entered the airspace of Minotaurus and was now about to land at the designated site just outside the city. Twilight could’ve easily teleported the five of them down below, but thought a more formal landing was better. For some reason though, Twilight was feeling nervous. It was understandable, after all she was about to go into negotiations with the King of Minotaurus, and discuss a possible alliance with the minotaurs in order to help thwart the Griffon Empire from getting any closer to Equestria Proper. It wasn’t like she had done things like this before, so why did she feel a sense of dread…?

{Attention: The Avalon is landing, all crew members prepare for landing.}

Twilight placed her wing over Anthea, keeping her close and bracing her, knowing that there was a little jostling shake when the airship landed. And just as she predicted, the ship landed on the ground with the softness and subtlety of a heavy cannon. Anthea lost her balance slightly, but thanks to Twilight, she was able to become stable. It was then that Anthea gave her mentor, and teacher, a curious look.

“Princess, are you okay?” asked Annie.

“I’m alright Anthea, why do you ask?”

“Well…it’s just, you’re shaking a little.”

Twilight didn’t notice it, but when she looked down at her right forehoof, she saw a little tremble in it. Why am I trembling? Twilight shook her head. Just nerves, everything’s going to be fine.

{We have now arrived at Minotaurus’ main gateway. No sign of hostility. Now opening cargo bay door and extending ramp.}

Just as the Captain of the Avalon had said, the cargo bay doors slowly lifted up; at almost the same time a long ramp began to form, jutting out further and further as the door opened up. The light of day entered the cargo bay and made the ponies within squint from the drastic change. When the group heard the “thunk” of the ramp hitting the ground, Hot Head, Amber, and Lucky were the first ones out.

Lucky went to the right, Amber the right, and Hot Head down the center. The three Royal Guards scanned the area with eyes, and were slightly surprised by the landscape. There were white columns, and a paved stone road which lead to the city itself. The grass was green and sky was semi-clear. Off in the distance were vast mountain ranges, and at the base of that range was a harsh looking, rocky terrain. So far, there was nothing threatening in sight.

“Lucky, sense anything?” asked Hot Head.

Lucky’s horn was glowing with a lavender aura, his eyes closed as he concentrated on the spell. The spell sent out waves of magical energy that went out for a good fifty yard radius, and about twenty feet up. So far, all he could see was just the landscape, nothing unusual other than the magical energy of the Princess and Anthea.

“The area’s clear Hot Head,” said Lucky.

“Roger that.  Amber, what ‘cha got?”

The earth pony mare’s detection was different from the others. She developed a method of sensing movement from the vibrations in the ground; she honed it more during a trip among the Buffalo tribes of Appleloosa.

“We got movement, a regiment, twenty or so, heading this way. Probably the minotaur escort,” said Amber.

“Hold tight until we can confirm it’s them.” Hot Head ordered.

Anthea felt Twilight’s wing give a stronger squeeze around her. The blind mare glanced over to her teacher, though her vision of her was blurry, Anthea could definitely feel Twilight’s tension. It was almost as if she were expecting something bad to happen. But Anthea’s worry would have to be put off till later, her sensitive ears perking up at the approaching sound of hooves against stone.

Outside, the trio watched as a contingent of minotaurs headed their way. Each one was garbed in bronze armor, and crimson red capes. On their left forearms were round shields almost bigger than they were, at their sides was a short sword, well, short by minotaur standards, but to ponies it was at least the length of two grown ponies. In their right hands they carried long spears, a black shaft, with a bronze colored arrowhead tip and a round ball at the butt of the spear. The other minotaurs had war plumes on their helms, similar to that of the Royal Guards, but the lead minotaur’s was turned sideways, indicating him as the leader.

The garrison continued to head towards them at a steady pace, fast enough to get them there, but not too fast as to seem as a threat. The minotaur troops made their way to the cargo ramp, stopping a good ten meters from Hot Head, Lucky, and Amber. The lead minotaur stopped moving, but the others continued to walk in place. The lead raised his spear and spoke in a loud voice.

“COMPANY, HALT!”

The other minotaurs, about twenty aside from the lead, stopped their stepping and gave a mighty “HA-OOH!” hitting their shields with their spears, and then standing at attention. Each one was fierce, muscular, and well disciplined, which was really not what the trio expected from the minotaurs. The leader stepped forward, his coat a dark cobalt blue, with gray fur around his legs and his short cut mane of similar color.

“I am Prince Steel Nerves, leader of the 101st Battalion, and your escort to the palace. Where is High Princess Twilight Sparkle?” The minotaur asked in gruff voice.

Twilight took a deep breath and performed the calming technique Cadance had showed her growing up. Anthea thought it wise to do the same, and found that it really did help. Once their resolve was cemented, the two mares stepped further out of the Avalon. Steel Nerves took notice of Twilight’s approach, her golden regalia shining in the sunlight, her horseshoes and collar each embedded with a magenta crystal, cut to match her cutie mark.

The two mares continued to walk down the ramp and a little past Hot Head, prompting Lucky and Amber to move a little closer. Twilight gave a small bow to the Prince, as too did Anthea.

“Greetings Prince Steel Nerves –”

“Steel, just Steel,” he interjected.

“Oh, um, Steel then.” Twilight shuddered for some reason. “I am grateful that you have come to escort us to your home, and that you are willing to hear Equestria out in this dire matter.”

Steel snorted, he then turned his attention to Anthea, eyeing her critically. “And who is this?”

“Her name is Anthea; she is my apprentice and assistant in these diplomatic matters.”

“Hmmm, her speaking and listening skills must be of high use, seeing as how this mare is blind.”

Anthea winced when Steel called her out on her blindness, although she could see his blurry image, she had hoped it would not be too obvious. Hot Head leered at Steel, finding the minotaur’s words rude and insensitive. He would’ve struck the Prince, had he not been given a sharp glare from Amber Lily.

“And who are these three?”

“Hot Head, that’s Amber Lily, and Lucky Star, we’re part of High Princess Twilight’s personal protection detail.” Hot Head answered.

Steel gave another snort as he stared at Hot Head directly. “Undisciplined, and prone to outbursts, often charging ahead without thinking first.” He then turned his head to address Twilight. “My soldiers are amble protection your Highness, you needn’t worry about entrusting your safety to…them.”

Hot Head bit his lip, trying his hardest not to cuss the minotaur out, or worse, deck him and cause an international incident.

“Thank you Steel, but I would appreciate it if they come along. They have orders not to leave my side, by order of High Princess Celestia, the senior ruler of Equestria.”

Steel looked over the motley trio, giving one last snort, this time there was a hint of disapproval in it. “As you wish. If you are ready, we can leave now.”

Twilight nodded a yes and Steel turned to face his thirty minotaur warriors. “COMPANY, MOVE OUT!”

Anthea senses were bombarded with different sensations. The air smelt differently here than in Equestria, even though they were surrounded by twenty minotaurs, their scent wasn’t overwhelming to her nose. The feel of the paved stone pathway under her hooves was smooth, not at all grainy or coarse as she imagined. As they entered the city, Anthea was treated to even more sensations. The sounds of merchants hawking their wares, children laughing and running around, the sound of female minotaurs chatting and whispering as they watched their visitors be escorted through the city.

The smell of fruits, vegetables, and other assorted spices wafted through the air. Even though Steel was scary, it still didn’t put that much of a damper on the excitement of being someplace new. Soon the group had made their way to the center of the city, a large, stone white structure, the true center of the government. Steel showed his pony guests inside, the regimen of minotaur soldiers broke off till there was only five remaining, seeing as there was no need for a force of twenty walking through the halls of the palace.

During this time, Anthea still took in all she was hearing, smelling, and sensing. The vibes from the palace were similar to Canterlot Castle, but were still different. The tension, the cacophony of sounds emanating from several rooms at once, each filled with politicians or nobles bickering or actually discussing legitimate matters of state. Of course Anthea did her best to tune them out; she didn’t want to be thought of as an eavesdropper, especially in a place like this. Suddenly Anthea stopped in the middle of the hallway, making the group stop along with her.

“Annie, what’s wrong?” asked Twilight.

“I…I thought I heard something that was…off.”

“Off, off how?” asked Lucky.

“Can’t really be sure,” Anthea’s eyes wandered the hall, her hearing wasn’t the only thing picking up on something, her other senses felt it too. There was subtle shift in the air, oppressive, dangerous even, “I just feel something not right for some reason…”

“Most likely the blind one has taken in too much and it is confusing her senses.” Steel spoke, yet, his eyes did wander around the hall before giving a thoughtful hum. “Let us keep moving. My father is not one who likes to be kept waiting.”

Ignoring the strange feeling for the time being, Anthea and the others pressed onward. They eventually ended up stopping at a large pair of gilded bronze doors. Steel stopped a few feet from the doors and signaled the others to wait. After a few seconds the doors opened and out came a flood of minotaurs, each one garbed in a specially colored toga with gold clasp on the shoulder strap.

Once they had exited, Steel motioned for them to enter the room. Twilight, Anthea, and the Royal Guard trio entered the room and stared at what they beheld. It was rotunda room, similar, Twilight thought, to the war room back in Canterlot Castle, albeit this room was brighter than the one they used. A large table was at the center of the room, with map of Minotaurus and the surrounding lands. Sitting at that table, in a modest chair no less, was the King of Minotaurus, Thunder Fist. Aptly named for his remarkable strength and the fact that when his fist made contact with any object, it sounded like rolling thunder and felt like it too.

His coat was stormy gray color, with intense piercing blue eyes, much akin to his son Steel Nerves. The King wore a golden laurel wreath around his head, with purple toga wrapped around him. King Thunder Fist rose up from his chair and strode over to the ponies. Each step he took made the floor tremble a little, it wasn’t so noticeable to others, but to Anthea and Amber, they could tell how strong this minotaur was just by his steps. The king stopped before the group and gave a small bow before them.

“High Princess Twilight Sparkle, glad you could make it.”

Twilight and the others bowed back in return. “No, thank you for allowing Equestria the chance to present its case to you.”

“Hmm, come, sit down.”

The King returned to his seat, while Twilight sat on one of the cushions that were put across from Thunder Fist. The minotaurs who had accompanied them stood sentry outside, closing the doors and making sure no one interrupted their meeting. Steel took his place at his father’s right hand side, taking off his helmet and placing it on the table, and leaning his spear against of the gallery seats. Anthea did the same, sitting at her teacher’s right side, showing as much of the proper etiquette that Twilight was able to teach her on the way to Minotaurus. Hot Head, Lucky Star, and Amber Lily stood some feet behind Twilight, close enough to reach her, but far enough to give her some breathing room.

“The letter you sent via magic spoke to us of something of great importance, and of mutual gain.”

“Yes, and once again, I’d like to thank you for hearing us out King Thunder Fist.”

“Just Fist or King Fist, if you please. And let us make one thing clear, your Highness, I am here to hear you out.”

Twilight looked upon the king with confusion. “Um…sorry, but what do you mean King Fist?”

“We do not normally get involved with foreign affairs, war being one of them. We were content to just let the war between your country and the Griffon Empire play out, survival of the strongest. But…” King Fist leaned in, resting his elbows on the table and bringing up his hands into a contemplation gesture. “When it was said that you were to lead the fight to free your territory of Maretonia, I was intrigued. Regrettably, our airwaves were hijacked as was yours, so we heard everything that happened that day.”

Twilight visibly winced, the memories of her capture and torture in Maretonia were not pleasant ones, and talking about them, even now, was making long since healed wounds sting with phantom pain.

Anthea could see that this was making Twilight uncomfortable and tried to steer it away from the current topic, “Um…King Fist maybe we could –”

“Hush child, I have not finished speaking,” said King Fist in a scolding tone.

Hot Head, Amber, and Lucky were already tense from hearing what the King was saying, more so when he spoke that way towards Annie. But they bit their tongues, keeping any and all objections to themselves for now.

“Fighting to free your people, suffering painful torture, and yet, here you are. You’re resolve to act and sacrifice yourself for your people shows you have great bravery. That is the reason why I say I wish to hear you out. For only ones who have suffered in war can truly understand one another.”

It took Twilight a minute to understand that King Fist wasn’t insulting her or trying to make her feel uncomfortable, he was, in his own way, paying her a compliment, and saying that she had earned a bit of his respect at the same time. Emboldened by this knowledge, Twilight straightened her posture and tried to appear as regal as possible.

“Thank you King Fist.” The king nodded and waved his hand to indicate that she may proceed. “Well, as you know, I have come here on behalf of my fellow royals to propose that Minotaurus and Equestria form an alliance in the face of the threat that the Griffon Empire poses – not just to Equestrians – but to your people as well.”

“Ah, but the Griffon Empire is at war with Equestria, and its territories, pray tell, why should Minotaurus worry about being attacked?” asked Steel.

Twilight nodded to the Prince. “A valid point, and to that, I do not believe they are just after Equestria. They seem to be on a mission to kill or subjugate all equines. There are reports from Zebrica that the griffons occasionally perform hit and run aerial bombings on some their villages, places that have no strategic or military value. Just homes of innocent civilians. With that said, I would like to show you the other reason. Tell me, is this map current?”

“It is,” said King Fist.

“Very well.” Twilight lit up her horn and formed a sphere which transformed into a single griffon near the border of the Empire. She then formed a second, taking on the larger form of a Saddle Arabian. “Currently, Saddle Arabia is fending off the Griffon Empire’s army here, but we discovered something that could prove to be detrimental to Equestria Proper and Minotaurus. What do you know of this path?”

Twilight’s horn created a line through a mountain range that snaked its way through the Griffon Empire, along the edge of Saddle Arabia, and straight through Minotaurus. The King and Prince eyed the path that Twilight lit up on the map.

“That is the Long Road, a winding path that leads to the Gates of Volkan,” said Steel.

“Yes, now, if you were to follow this path, through said gates,” Twilight’s magic created 3D construct of the rest of the map that cut off, “the mountain range acts as a land bridge, connecting Minotaurus and Equestria Proper. In other words, the griffons could conceivably march through your country, unnoticed, and invade our homeland through the back door.”

“Have you not thought to create defenses along the entry?” asked King Fist.

“We have, but depending on the size of the force, what we have there might not be enough, it would be a slaughter if they appeared in masse,” said Twilight.

“So then, your Highness, you’re proposing an alliance to stop the griffons from using our country as a shortcut to get to yours?” asked Steel.

“Short of them actually conquering your country, yes. This way avoids needless confrontation with your armies; also, this could serve as a way for them to attack you from another angle as well. The passage is big enough that medium to small sized airships could move through the path, and, pardon me for saying, given your limited air force, the griffons would have a major aerial advantage.”

King Fist sat back and thought over what Twilight had said. Steel seemed to be doing the same, noting the military disadvantage of being left vulnerable to a two prong attack on Minotaurus.

“Her Highness does have a point father, the Griffon Empire has already broken a treaty law that stated that Cloudsdale was deemed neutral territory, safe from invasion and occupation by foreign powers,” said Steel.

It was true, had the Griffon Empire gotten their claws on Cloudsdale’s Weather Factory, they could’ve essentially used the weather to send Equestria, or any nation, into a long period of drought, flood it with rainwater, create devastating tornados, or bring about a lasting winter. The end result would be a ruined ecosystem and food crops completely destroyed, starvation would run rampant and the nations would tear themselves apart from the inside out. A fine way to defeat your opponent just let them tear themselves apart.

“Be that as it may, you are not completely helpless against the Griffon Empire. Word has reached my ear of this ‘Fear Lantern’, how she has saved three of your cities and in one night decimated the Griffon Empire capital, Griffonia. There is also tale that the identity of the Fear Lantern is in fact your daughter, is there any truth to this rumor?” asked King Fist.

A pang of sorrow, guilt, and pain stabbed at Twilight’s heart, and Anthea’s. They knew that this might become an issue during the delegations, but now that it was out there, there was no denying it or sugarcoating it.

“Yes, King Fist, the Fear Lantern is indeed my daughter, Princess Starburst. But…she has been classified as a rogue agent of Equestria until we can determine that she is not a danger to herself or others…”

“Actions speak louder than words more often than not, High Princess, and it seems to me that the Fear Lantern is doing all she can to protect your people, from what reports trickle in,” said Steel.

The King gave his son a pointed glare, “It is not our place to interfere in matters of family, which I’m willing bet is where a little of the tension in your voice stems from.”

Twilight held her regal posture and gaze, but Anthea knew that her teacher was saddened, in fact, she could feel it deeply.

“For now King Fist, what is your position in this matter? The griffons have shown to be working towards an endgame that could potentially do harm to all the nations, yours included. Will you stand with Equestria and allow us to work together to defend both our homelands?”

The King reclined back in his chair, rubbing his short beard with his left hand as he thought of her proposal. “Hmmm…do we put the barking pup in its place now, or save ourselves the trouble of having to deal with it when it’s grown and more dangerous. A tough decision…I –”

Anthea’s ears swiveled towards the door, her head followed suit as it jerked in that direction. The King, Prince, Twilight, and her friends all looked at her confused.

“Anthea what’s wrong?” asked Twilight.

“That feeling again, it’s back, but I thought I also heard something outside…!”

The others strained their ears to listen for any indication of what Anthea was saying, but all they heard was silence. That’s when the King rose from his chair and assumed a fighting stance, while the Prince donned his helmet, drawing his sword and strapping the shield back onto his arm.

“Whoa, whoa, what’s going on?!” Hot Head shouted.

“It should never be this quiet, even in here.”

Twilight took a moment to carefully listen and found that the King was right, with the amount of light being let into the room, there had to be at least some sound penetrating through, and since Twilight hadn’t sensed any kind of sound dampening spell upon entry…

Just then the bronze doors slammed open and the bloody corpses of the four minotaur guards were thrown splayed out onto the floor. Blood seeped from their mouths and stab wounds; one of them was even missing an arm. The occupants within set their sights on the open door and were shocked to find out who it was, griffons, about twenty of them. Each was of a different coat color, but their armor was all the same, a dark purple with crystals placed at different points along the armor.

“High Princess Twilight, we’ve come to collect your head as your Fear Lantern did our Emperor!”

“Griffon Pretenders!” Lucky shouted in disbelief.

“When did they get here?!” yelled Amber.

“Better question is: is this a set up?!” asked Hot Head.

To answer that question, King Fist jumped over the table and landed with a great boom in front of the Royal Guard trio. Without even looking at them, King Fist charged for the griffon Pretenders, cocking back his right fist and punching the first griffon in his sights. His meaty fist struck the griffon’s chest plate, letting out an audible crunching of bone and creaking of metal caving in, with a final follow through the punch created a light rumbling sound like thunder before sending the griffon sailing across the room and into the wall a few feet away. King Fist glared at the intruders, rage prominent on his visage.

“YOU DARE THREATEN A DIGNITARY – A GUEST – IN MY HOUSE?!” King Fist roared.

It wasn’t long before his son Steel did the same, jumping over the table and landing beside his father. With his shield raised and his sword pointed, Steel charged for one of the griffons, bashing the first with his shield and using his sword to slice off the wing of a second close by him, his crimson cape flapping in the air with each swift slash of his blade.

At that moment two explosions went off overhead, sending debris falling down from the ceiling. Twilight immediately put up barrier to protect both her, Anthea, and the trio. Stone and mortar struck the rosy barrier and broke apart upon impact. Twilight gasped when she looked up to see that the two explosions opened up two holes in the ceiling, and that more Pretenders were entering through the holes.

King Fist and Prince Steel were still in the middle of fighting the twenty that had come through the door. They hated to admit, but these twenty, now nineteen, were skilled and were taking much of their concentration to fight. Leaving Hot Head, Lucky, and Amber to deal with an increasing amount of griffon Pretenders entering through the breach in the ceiling. Soon the other half of the room was filled with just as many griffons, for a total of thirty-nine, leaving the middle of the room as the neutral zone for now.

The Royal Guard trio got into a triangle position, with Amber at the back, watching the fight that Steel and Fist were engaged in, and Lucky and Hot Head facing the new arrivals.

“Just three pony Guards, no weapons, no sweat,” said one of the Pretenders.

Hot Head smirked confidently, to which Amber and Lucky mirrored. “Who said we weren’t armed!”

At once, the three friends struck the emblems on their chest armor; the crystal stars on them began to shine, radiating magical light. The chest plate armor began to extend panels that wrapped around their forelegs and hind legs. Another went up their necks and covered their heads with a helmet, allowing their manes to come out as a vertical war plumes. Around the flank area of the armors was their individual cutie marks. The three armors looked similar in design, but with a few differences.

Hot Head’s armor covered his wings and made the lead primaries sharp as sword blades, Lucky’s horn was encased in an amethyst crystal, honed to a sharp point, and free from any flaws or imperfections in the crystal itself. Amber’s forelegs and hind legs had thicker armor, as was the rest of her armor, but Amber seemed to move around as if it weighed nothing.

“Courtesy of our High Princess Twilight, she learned how to create these prototypes from watching your late Wing Commander, Steel Wing,” said Lucky.

“We get the new toys and have permission to go wild and get the kinks worked out,” said Amber.

“And you guys are perfect practice dummies!” Hot Head yelled.

The griffons were noticeably angry at hearing that their fallen Wing Commander’s greatest weapon was reversed engineered for the use of the ponies.

“You will pay for disgracing Chalyvas the Steel Wing!” A griffon screamed as he lunged for Hot Head.

Hot Head jumped into the air and slashed with his right wing, lobbing off the head of the griffon and letting its body fall past him onto the floor. Lucky’s crystal horn flared up as he unleashed multiple magic bolts at the griffons. Thanks to the wide area of room and tall ceilings, the griffons were able to fly around and maneuver within the space. Another griffon charged, this time for Lucky. The unicorn stallion saw the attack coming and powered up his crystal horn, the energy built up till it shot forth, creating a mana blade. The griffon saw this and was too late to stop his charge, his momentum carried him forward, impaling himself on the magically formed blade. With a flick of his head, Lucky tossed the body off his energy blade and assumed a defensive stance.

Amber watched as two of the Pretenders were able to get around Fist and Steel and were now heading towards her and her charges. Amber Lily grinned underneath her face plate as she stood on her hind legs at the last second, clotheslining the two griffons with such force that there was an audible snap of their necks as they hit the floor. Another one had broken off from the other attack group and tried to attack Twilight from the side, but Amber was quick, she galloped forth and jumped into the air with great speed. Using herself as a battering ram, she plowed into the griffon and smashed him into one of the seating stands, leaving a body sized crater as she rose and a very broken griffon body.

Anthea’s senses were in overdrive, the danger of the situation making everything more vivid and powerful. She heard the pounding of fist to metal, the clashing of blades, the squelch of severing limbs, and the death throes of the occasional griffon. Her nose was being assaulted with the pungent odors of blood, metal, and sweat, creating an inescapable cloud from which there was no relief. And then there was the feeling, with each strike, punch, and sever, Anthea could feel it, rattling through the air and ground and into her body, making the blind mare tremble and yelp as if it were her receiving the blows. While she couldn’t see much more than colored blurs, Anthea was able to see the various spraying of red that seemed to fly from one side to the other.

The unicorn mare held her hooves over her ears, trying to shut out the overpowering, horrible sensations her senses were being subjected to, letting out little whimpers as her eyes watered. She had never been in a fight, sometimes she was near one, but nothing this brutal and bloody.

Is this what Starburst sees and goes through every time she fights?! I can barely keep my mind together right now, how can she go and put herself into these situations again and again?! Make it stop, please Faust above make it stop!

Twilight could see Anthea was on the verge of a breakdown at the rate things were going. She had brought up a barrier to keep the two of them safe, though her powers were still unsealed, releasing a strong spell in such a confined space was bound to cause harm to her allies. But right now, focusing on protecting Annie was her top priority. Hot Head, Lucky Star, and Amber Lily seemed to be handling the new group of griffons, even with their experimental armor. Fist and Steel had taken down at least ten griffons between the two of them, using their brute strength and amazing combat prowess, but the Pretenders weren’t just known for their infiltration skills, they were deadly assassins and could fight extremely well in a group.

Suddenly, Twilight heard a sound, something that made her stiffen. Her eyes darted around trying to find the source, she eventually found it or rather it found her. A griffon Pretender had made it around the two lines of defense and was now heading towards Twilight’s barrier. The alicorn mare charged her horn, preparing to annihilate the foolish griffon that dared to attack her directly. But that’s when she saw it, the griffon was holding some kind of hilt, and from the top stretched out a ten foot long magically charged whip.

Twilight’s breathing started to quicken, her heart rate skyrocketed, pupils becoming the size of pinpricks as a cold sweat overcame her body. The sight of that weapon made her back and flanks burn with a familiar pain, bringing back a sense of helplessness.

“No…” Twilight whispered.

“P-Princess…?” Annie spoke in a worried voice.

“No…please no!”

The griffon brought the whip around and lashed out with it, striking the barrier and causing it to crack slightly. The moment the whip struck, Twilight immediately fell to the floor, crouching low and shivering like a scared little filly.

“Not again, don’t hit me again, please not again! NO!!!”

Anthea brought her hooves away from her head, looking down at Twilight as she heard her say those things; she was truly afraid, no, terrified! “Princess, are you alright, what’s wrong?!”

The barrier began to waver as Twilight’s concentration waned; fear was gripping her heart, mind numbing, paralyzing fear.

Anthea watched as the barrier was wailed on by the griffon, each strike only making Twilight shrink more and more away from the sound and sight of the attacking griffon. Fissures appeared all around the protective bubble, Anthea thought to create her own barrier, but she knew hers wouldn’t be any stronger. She quickly looked behind her, seeing that the blurred images of her friends were still in midst of battle, although they appeared to be trying to get to them, but the griffons were making it so that they couldn’t.

The crack of the whip brought Anthea’s attention back to the griffon overhead. The barrier was nearly in ruins, it would take but a single hit and they would be at the griffon’s mercy or lack thereof. Anthea gritted her teeth; she then charged her horn, making it glow with light-green mana. Annie had never cast an offensive spell in her life, she had learned the mechanics behind it since it was basic unicorn self-defense, but she had never needed to cast a magic bolt spell. Usually her calming magic was enough to diffuse a situation, but the bloodlust she sensed from this griffon told her that that would not have any effect on him.

With one final strike, the griffon shattered the barrier, grinning evilly as he relished the sight of the frightened alicorn mare. But that moment of basking was all Annie needed, taking as careful as aim as she could, Annie released the pent up magical energy in the form of a beam. The beam struck the griffon in the face, sending him falling onto his back, clutching his face in pain from Annie’s attack.

The unicorn mare had never intentionally, or unintentionally, hurt anypony before, and feeling that she had caused someone pain made her sick. Unfortunately, the griffon wasn’t down long, when he rose, there was a burn mark on the left side of his face. Annie could sense his murderess gaze as it fell on her, but it quickly shifted to Twilight, his true target. The griffon twirled the whip about, building momentum for a killing blow.

Anthea watched as a blurry purple disk hovered over the blurred image of the griffon. She was out of options, what spells she knew would not do her any good against this trained assassin. Her friends were desperately trying to get to them, but could not, and the King and Prince were surrounded by twelve griffons, two of which had separated from the other attack group to aid the first. There was only one thing left to do, for her mentor, teacher, and friend; she would do what she could to protect her.

The pink unicorn mare quickly stood in front of Twilight, using herself as a shield to protect the fearful mare behind her. She would not allow Twilight to die, the one who saw the potential in her since the moment they first met, the mare who she loved as a second mother!

The scarred griffon brought down his whip as it sailed towards Anthea. She closed her eyes tight and awaited the end.

That’s when it happened; a bright, violet-pink light shined outside and quickly entered the room. It zipped about like a fast moving lightning bug, weaving in and out of any obstacles in its way till it reached its target. The light burst forth, bathing the entire area in a beautiful violet-pink light, a sphere of light appeared around Anthea, engulfing her completely.

Within the sphere, Anthea opened her eyes, her vision was filled with the color of this light, but it wasn’t magic, that much she could tell, but it was powerful, very powerful. An object floated before her, glowing bright. Anthea tentatively ran her hoof over the object, not wanting to use her horn. Her eyes shot wide open upon recognizing the shape. It was a ring.

[Anthea of Equestria, you have great love in your heart. Your willingness to make the ultimate sacrifice for those whom you love is proof of how far you can go to protect those closest to your heart. You are worthy…]

“Worthy…? Worthy of what?!”

[Worthy to take up the crusade to keep love alive, and to protect it against those who would seek to eradicate its existence.]

“Wait you’re…you’re like Starburst’s ring! A Fear Lantern ring!”

[The violet light is not one of fear; it is the light of Love itself. Fashioned into a weapon that only the chosen can wield, it is a power that is a double edged sword, dangerous and powerful, yet protective and caring. You have that potential, Anthea of Equestria, to protect those whom you love, and I shall be the instrument to give your love form and strength. Now, do you accept this power…?]

Anthea was filled with uncertainty, this ring was saying it wasn’t the same as Starburst’s, but there was no denying that there were some similarities.

“Honestly Annie…You can’t really stop me…”

Starburst’s departing words, they cut her deep, she wasn’t strong enough to help her friend or stop her from leaving, and now, she wasn’t even strong enough to protect her friend’s mother. Anthea had had enough, she wouldn’t lose any more friends because she was weak and helpless, she wasn’t the same filly from back then, she wasn’t just some blind mare who needed looking after! Anthea, with a serious and determined look in her eyes, held out her right hoof.

“I accept!” Anthea proclaimed.

[Welcome to the Star Sapphires.]

Canterlot Royal Castle,  Night Time…

Dear Nidra

By the time you read this…well, let’s just say that you’ll no doubt have heard about what I did in the Griffon Empire.

I don’t want to get into too many details, but, suffice to say, I can’t  come back to Canterlot, probably for a long time…

I don’t know what will happen to me in the time from which I write this and when you actually get to read it, but there’s something I’d like to tell you. I wanted to let you know that you are, and always have been, my best friend. We’ve shared our gripes about each other’s moms; I’ve saved your flank from getting in trouble more times than I care to admit.

Honestly, when we first met I wanted to throttle I wanted to kick your you were less than friendly and I was very close to doing something that neither of us would’ve liked. But, as years went on, I came to consider you one of my closest friends, maybe, more than the rest of our friends. It just felt easier to talk to you, yeah you’d give me a hard time about being a buzzkill, but you took it in stride, and, I have to admit, that ONE time you got me to sneak out with you was fun…Don’t you dare tell the others!

Anyway…I’m sorry for not being able to tell all this to you face to face, but, with Canterlot being on high alert when I made my exit, and after the Tartarus I went through earlier tonight, I don’t feel much like sneaking through the city or getting into a fight with the Royal Guard or worse…my Mom. That’s why I had asked Annie to bring this to you. And if you’re wondering, yeah I will say goodbye to Del…I have no doubt that’s going to be worse than  writing this…

Nidra, I’m sure that there’ll be fallout from what happened in Griffonia, and…it’ll be bad. I can’t come back home, not with the Griffons still continuing to fight. I have to defend our home, even if it means being labeled a rogue or criminal, but I have to do it!  But…when the dust settles, and the war is over, I promise I’ll come back to Canterlot. Be it a hero’s welcome or as a criminal, I have one selfish request…can we still be friends?

I know it may not sound like much, but if all those closest to me turn out to shun and condemn me, even family, I would at least like it if we were still okay. But I can’t make you, and I won’t.  Well, Annie looks like she’s about to wake up soon, I have to leave now or face a barrage of questions from her, and right now, the less either of you know the safer you’ll be.

Sincerely

Best Wishes

From

Your Friend,

Starburst Senturia Sparkle

P.S.: I know you and your mom don’t see eye to eye a lot, but… for me, try not to push her away…like I did.

Nidra must’ve read that letter a hundred times or more, she figured. Yet each time felt like the first, she still couldn’t believe that Star would never come back, Nidra had been waiting to surprise the mare upon her return to Canterlot, a night of partying and acting like bad girls for one whole night, and maybe other nights depending on how it went. But that plan would never happen, Starburst exiled herself from her home and was now a renegade mare, using that mysterious ring to fight against the Griffon Empire.

I shouldn’t have given her back that ring, she thought, if I didn’t, then Starburst would still be here…No…more than that, if I hadn’t cast the damn spell on her, none of this would’ve happened at all! It’s all my fault…!

These were the thoughts that would plague Nidra’s mind, knowing that she was given the chance to stop all these events, not once, but twice. Starburst’s letter made her sad, though she was considered a popular mare around Canterlot and had many “friends”, Nidra only counted a select few as her real friends, and only one as her best friend. Nidra felt as if she had not lost just a friend, but a sister, somepony who understood her and, in a way, had similar issues.

One of those issues being of a certain pink unicorn mare, Nidra hated this side of her, and so did Starburst, it was no secret to either of them that they both harbored some resentment towards Anthea. For Starburst it was Anthea’s raw talent and prowess in magic which garnered the attention of her mother, Twilight Sparkle. Nidra could see the slight envious pain that it caused Starburst to see Anthea and her mother together and happy as they were, but when it came to Starburst and her mother it was awkward between them.

In retrospect, Nidra couldn’t fault Star for feeling that way, even though the pegasus mare repeatedly spoke of how she hated feeling that way. It was, in a way, better than why she resented Anthea a little. Turquoise, the hybrid, dragon-pony stallion, when Nidra saw him it was love at first sight. However, knowing that he was taken was a bit hard for her to take. Turquoise Blitz was the only pony Nidra thought she could have a relationship with, being that they were hybrids and intimidating to most of their peers, aside from those who knew them personally.

Why can’t I get over this…Annie’s nice to me, she even calls me a friend…so why can’t I get over T?!

Nidra jumped out of her bed and let out a frustrated sigh, she then made her way to her balcony and opened the windows to stand outside. The night air was chilly, but a welcoming contrast. She gazed up at the sky, wispy gray clouds started to part in the breeze, showing the bright full moon overhead. Nidra often thought it a shame that her mother went through the trouble of creating a beautiful night sky, and yet, nopony would be able to see it through the clouds. Her mother’s moon, gazing at it gave a sense of calm and solace. She felt at home when the sun was down and the night took over. It wasn’t just because she could see better, but for how Equestria seemed to come alive even during this supposed time of rest.

Night clubs, private parties, nocturnal animals, all were awake with her during the night. And in a way, the night also revealed a pony’s other side. Nidra noticed early on that ponies act differently when they feel that the darkness of the night would conceal them, she learned more as she grew into teenage years. Just as the night gave ponies the chance to indulge in the other side of themselves, so too did Nidra, allowing her mind to imagine a world where she and Turquoise were together.

Images of herself and the dragon-pony stallion appeared, looking upon her with those intimidating green eyes. How they would shift to a reptilian slit when Turquoise got serious, and, in her fantasy, he was serious about Nidra. Her eyes too could shift, from normal pupils to slit ones, matching her loves gaze. They would kiss passionately in her fantasies, the two of them finding acceptance and love in each other. The two of them, sadly, would withstand the test of time, being half alicorn and half dragon; their lifespans were considerably longer than normal ponies. Yes it would be sad when their friends all grew old and fell one by one around them. But that was fine, they would have each other, a love that was eternal, and so would their children. Forever lovers, until Equestria fell or the world came to an end.

It feels so right to be with him, just being around Turquoise feels right…Nidra stomped her hoof against the balcony floor. So why does he have to be with her?! If we met first we’d be together, not Anthea! She’s so…irritatingly perfect sometimes! A good daughter, a practical savant of magic, and everypony’s friend! She acts like she wants to be independent and all that crap, but in the end she still clings to the side of somepony like a leech!

Nidra glared into the night sky as if seeing her problems made manifest. “If I had the chance I would make Turquoise see that I was the mare he was meant to be with! To prove to him that I love him more than Anthea ever could, to be together forever, to be mine!”

Nidra paused at uttering that last word, “mine”. It sounded so possessive, so greedy. Technically, winning him over and giving of herself to him would make her his as well, so in a sense, they owned each other.

“Mine…” Nidra spoke the word again; it had a nice ring to it. “To be mine and mine alone…” Nidra was starting to like the word played on her lips and rolled off her tongue so easily.

The alicorn threstral was about to head back into her room, but, as she turned to close the window, she spotted something twinkling in the night, a bright orange star. It was a strange thing to see, the only light around close to that was the sun, and it was currently down at the moment. The light of the orange star blinked several times like a beacon, the blinking became more rapid until it finally stopped and continuously shined. Nidra was about to blow off the strange occurrence, if it wasn’t for the fact that the orange star started to get bigger.

Nidra blinked her eyes several times, thinking it was just her eyes playing tricks. Then she realized that her vision was perfect during the night, so there was no way that that was the reason. It was at this point that Nidra made a startling realization.

“It’s not getting bigger…it’s getting closer!”

Indeed, the orange star sped right for her room, before Nidra could make it to the door the orange star zipped into her room and filled it with orange light. Nidra shut her eyes as the blinding light shone.

[Nidra of Equestria, you want it all!]

And So It Begins

All in the room were silent as they watched the swirling sphere of violet-pink light surround Anthea. Hot Head, Amber, and Lucky could only stare in suspense at what had happened to their friend, while Twilight, being right next to the sphere, felt something emanating from it. A feeling of calm, caring, and nurturing, in essence, it felt like love. Suddenly the sphere of light changed, solidifying into sapphire crystal of the same color, forming itself to that of a unicorn mare. At once the entire thing shattered apart, the fragments lifting up into the air and changing into light particles. Twilight and the trio gasped at what they saw.

Annie was in violet pink outfit that covered her neck, torso, and a little of her face. The cowl opened at the top allowing her horn and some of her mane to show, with the rest of her mane flowing out in a tightly woven braid. Her hind and forelegs had boots upon them, coming up just a bit above her knees on her forelegs and past the hocks and covering a bit of her thighs on her hind legs.

At the center of her chest was a violet-pink sapphire crystal, with four leaf patterns coming out from it. Upon her right hoof was the ring that appeared before her, shining with its powerful light. Annie slowly opened her eyes, at first, everything was blurry blotches of color as usual, but at that moment the symbol the Star Sapphires appeared in her eyes and quickly disappeared.

The blurry blotches started to come into focus, finer details that Annie had never before seen were coming into view. Her mouth began to steadily open as the image of the griffon who attacked them became crystal clear, she could see everything! The columns that held up the ceiling, the gallery seats spread out around them, the splattering of blood on the floor, and the looks of confusion she was getting from Steel Nerves and Thunder Fist.

“Anthea…?”

Annie looked behind her and, for the first time in her life, she could see the face of Twilight Sparkle, every hair in her mane, her deep lavender eyes, and she had to admit, she was prettier than she imagined she was. Annie stretched out her right hoof towards Twilight’s face, gently placing it on her right cheek as if confirming what she was seeing was indeed really there.

“Princess…I see you…”

“Anthea what…what do you mean?” asked Twilight.

“I-I-I can see you, every detail, not just some blurry blotches of color, I can see you!” Annie proclaimed in a jubilant voice.

Twilight couldn’t believe what she was hearing, Anthea could actually see her. The alicorn’s eyes drifted to the ring that was wrapped around Anthea’s right hoof, her mind flashing back to Starburst, remembering her story of how the ring appeared to her and why it did. Fear was starting to well up inside her, but not the kind from earlier; this was born out of worry and concern for her young protégé.

But…it doesn’t make sense! Annie isn’t one to make other ponies afraid of her; she has none of the qualities that would strike terror into somepony! I don’t doubt that she has a strong sense of justice, but she’s more of a pacifist than anything! So why, why did another ring appear?!

The griffon Pretender shook off his initial shock of seeing the transformation and readied his whip to attack Anthea while her back was turned.

[Warning: Enemy attack.]

Anthea turned just in time to see the griffon lash out with his whip once again, the unicorn mare brought up her forelegs in an attempt to protect herself, shutting her eyes tight and wincing in preparation for the pain of the blow. The ring, sensing Annie’s intent, shined and created a crystal construct shield, making the whip bounce harmlessly off the barrier. Anthea dared to open her eyes and gasped when she saw the barrier, her eyes fell to the ring.

“Another Fear Lantern?! I’ll get vengeance for our fallen Pretender brethren as well!” The griffon lunged for Anthea, roaring in anger and bloodlust.

[Rage and hate, a being devoid of love.]

She could feel it; everything the ring said was true. Anthea could always sense the feelings of others, but with the ring, she was being attuned to them. “You…you’re loveless, you care not for anyone…your anger and fury is born of loyalty and bitterness towards others…”

Anthea pointed her right hoof at the griffon and fired a beam of light from the ring. The beam blasted the griffon, but, instead of obliterating him it encased him in a cocoon of violet-pink sapphire crystal. Annie turned to face the griffons that her friends were fighting, her eyes shining with the light of love.

[Multiple loveless beings, subjects are marked.]

The pink unicorn mare raised her right hoof as the ring shined even brighter, “Love conquers all!”

The ring fired multiple beams of violet-pink light, at first her friends, the King, and the Prince thought the beams were going to hit them, but they bent around them, aiming solely for the griffon Pretenders. When the beams struck their target, they too became encased in sapphire crystal. The Pretenders scrambled about, trying to dodge the beams, some fumbled into each other, ending up with them getting hit. In all, fifteen Pretenders were captured in sapphire, with the remainder fleeing in terror from seeing their comrades trapped in crystal.

Anthea ceased her attack as the light of ring dimmed. The minotaur King and Prince, Twilight, and Annie’s friends just stared at her in disbelief, she had just single hoofedly drove off the griffons and captured a good amount of them to boot. Annie was blushing from attention she was getting, that, and she felt ready to collapse, which she did. Twilight was quick to catch Annie in her telekinetic aura, keeping the young unicorn close to her. With a stern and serious expression, Twilight turned to her Guards.

“We’re leaving, NOW!” Twilight then turned to King Fist. “I’m sorry your Highness, but given what just occurred, I am taking my apprentice and leaving for my homeland immediately!”

King Fist snorted and nodded his head in agreement. “Steel, round up any soldiers you can get, we’re escorting High Princess Twilight and her entourage to their ship!”

“Yes sir!”

Annie felt groggy and tired, yet strangely powerful. Lazily her eyes started to open, the first sight greeting her was a dome made of violet-pink sapphire crystal, confused, Annie turned her head to her right and saw a strange sight. Amber, Hot Head, Lucky, and High Princess Twilight were standing at the other end of the room, a mixture of concern and determination plastered on her three friends’ faces, and worry plain on Twilight’s face. It was then that something else registered with Annie, she could see them, actually see them.

She bolted upright from the bed, taking in more details as her senses were becoming aware of her surroundings. Her bed was inside a crystal dome, five feet in diameter, Annie quickly looked around before remembering a bit of what happened. The unicorn mare looked to her right hoof and finally saw it, the violet ring. The mysterious object that appeared to her at a critical time. It was glowing, resonating with the sapphire dome that surrounded her. At first she thought to panic, but she sensed no hostility from the dome or the ring. Taking a calming breath, Annie addressed her friends.

“Um…could somepony explain to me why I’m in a dome made of crystal?” asked Annie.

The three friends looked to each other and then to Twilight before one of them, Amber, decided to speak up. “Annie…we uh, we…”

[Subjects attempted to remove me from my bearer. I deployed self-defensive measures until such time as you awakened Anthea.]

Everypony gasped at hearing the ring on Annie’s right hoof speak, even Annie herself. Thinking it rude not to respond, Annie spoke back to the ring. “Um…so you put up this…barrier I guess, around me to protect me?”

[I sensed that you loved these subjects, and that they possessed love for you as well, which is why I only deployed the barrier and not more lethal measures until you awakened and could determine the status of these subjects.]

“‘Status’?”

[Are they friend or foe?]

“Oh – OH! Yes, yes they are my friends not foe, definitely NOT foes!” Annie spoke clearly and strongly, making sure the ring did not mishear her.

[Subjects: Twilight Sparkle, Hot Head, Amber Lily, and Lucky Star. Designation: Friendly. Love: Familial/Platonic. Cancelling defensive measures, and my apologies.]

Almost instantly the barrier started to shatter apart, the crystal sounding like tiny pieces of glass breaking as it turned into light particles. Once the barrier was gone, and they were sure that the ring wouldn’t try anything else, Amber broke away and hugged Anthea fiercely, nearly knocking the wind out of the mare. She held on tightly, afraid that she would leave them. It wasn’t long before Hot Head and Lucky joined in, making it a group hug.

Annie could feel their love for her; literally, through the power of the ring she could feel it. The love that could only be born from the bonds forged in childhood, four orphans who regarded each other as both family and friend, and loved just as much and even more, the kind of love that would make them gladly do whatever it took to protect each other from harm. It was almost overwhelming for Annie, she knew that they cared about her, but she never knew just how much till now. Out of all of them, Twilight stood far from the hug, giving them a small smile.

“I’m fine you guys, really. Better than fine, I can actually see you!” Annie blurted.

The three friends separated themselves from Anthea and looked upon skeptically, but with a little sense of hope.

“Really…?” asked Lucky.

“Yep!”

“Alright, let’s make sure,” said Hot Head.

The pegasus stallion walked over to a cabinet, knowing that Annie could only see blurry blotches of color, she couldn’t make out details in another pony so he was going to make sure that her sight truly was healed or if it was just a cruel trick that the ring was playing on her. Being in the medical ward of the Avalon, Hot Head was able to get out three tongue depressors, he stayed where he was, since he knew that Annie couldn’t make out details from a certain distance, even with her blurred vision. He managed to hold all three in the crook of his left hoof and held them out.

“How many of these things am I holding?”

Annie blinked. “Three.”

“Hmm, lucky guess.” Hot Head brought his wings over his hoof to hide the depressors; he then removed his wing and revealed the same number of sticks. “So how many do I have now?”

“Three again, and the middle one looks like it has a crack in the center of it,” said Annie.

Hot Head inspected the depressor and it was true, it did have a small crack in it. Amber and Lucky just stared at Anthea, mouths agape. Hot Head dropped the sticks and immediately went to join his friends in their joint excitement. Meanwhile, Twilight, while still happy that Anthea was okay and that she could see clearly for the first time in her life, was weary of the whole situation. Another ring had just appeared in Equestria, and it sought out Anthea. The ring was different from Starburst’s, both in color and ability it seemed. The power it radiated didn’t feel intimidating like what she felt at Maretonia, the power of Fear. If the ring was to be believed, it worked on love.

A ring that works off of a specific emotion? How can such a thing be possible, this ring doesn’t even feel like the kind of love magic that Cadance uses! I can feel some similarities but the power doesn’t appear to be magic based! Why now, why has another one of these things appeared in our world, and to somepony like Anthea?!

“Princess?”

Twilight snapped out of her revere and looked upon her apprentice, putting on a smile. “Y-Yes Anthea?”

“What exactly happened, where are we?” asked Annie.

Twilight sighed heavily. “Well, what do you remember?”

Annie brought a hoof to her chin. “Let’s see…I remember getting the ring, the griffon, shooting him with a beam that wrapped him in a crystal cocoon, and then doing the same to other griffons all at once. Then I think I passed out after that…”

“Alright…” Twilight filled in the blanks of Annie’s memories. After Anthea had passed out, Twilight had ordered an evac from Minotaurus, the King and Prince, along with some of their guards escorted them swiftly and cautiously back to the Avalon. Once aboard, Twilight cast a spell that would jam all Pretender cloaking magic, and once assured that there were none on the ship, the Avalon took off with great haste. “Right now we’re on course for Canterlot, and should arrive there by nightfall since we’re flying at nearly top speed.” Twilight then turned around and made her way to the door.

“Princess where are you going?” asked Annie.

The alicorn mare magicked the door open and closed it quietly behind her as she exited, leaving the four ponies within to wonder the cause of Twilight’s sudden change in demeanor.

Canterlot Same Time…

Nidra’s room was completely glowing in orange light from the ring that just flew into it. She stood before the item, mystified and at the same time fearful of what the object was. Yet, she couldn’t help but feel a rampant need to make the object hers and hers alone. Nidra shook her head, trying to focus her thoughts.

“What are you…?”

[I am what you want. I am power, the power that will help you to obtain anything and everything you ever wanted in your life, and more.]

“A ring…power…? Wait you’re…you’re like Starburst’s ring aren’t you, a Fear Lantern ring?! But, why is your color different from hers?”

[I am not a ring of fear. The light of Avarice is what powers me, and it is avarice that I have detected in you.]

Nidra thought over that word, “avarice”. If I remember correctly, avarice is another word for…greed.

[You desire something…or perhaps someone? Take hold of me and you will be able to have it all.]

Nidra didn’t know what to do, this ring was saying it wasn’t a Fear Lantern ring, and yet it boasted that it could give her power enough to get everything she ever wanted. But what more could she want? She was a Princess, a future ruler of Equestria (although she wasn’t quite looking forward to the burden of becoming a High Princess), there was hardly anything she couldn’t get if she so wished. But there was one thing, one stallion she wanted more than anything, one she desired to be hers and love only her.

Could this ring really give me that kind of power…? But if I did I’d be stealing him away from Annie.

So what?! Anthea doesn’t deserve him! His life is wasted on her, taking care of a hypocritical blind mare who speaks of independence and yet becomes a whimpering mess whenever she’s alone! All Anthea will do is drag T down and keep him from being truly happy!

But T is happy with Annie, I mean, yeah, it does annoy me…

And why can’t he be happy with you?! You’re a hot, immortal goddess of Slumber who can make all his wildest dreams come true! He’ll be royalty; we can rule together, eternal lovers, the dragon and the princess!

It does have nice ring to it…

[What is your decision Nidra of Equestria, do you want it all?]

“I…I…” Within Nidra’s slit eyes the symbol of the ring started to appear, slowly fading into existence as a maniacal smile formed on her lips. “I…want…I want –!”

“Nidra, what’s going on in there?”

The alicorn thestral was snapped out of her trance and stared wide eyed at her bedroom door. “Crap it’s my Mom!” She cursed in a hushed whisper.

Nidra knew there was no way her mother would condone her having a ring like this, not after what happened with Starburst, she’d soon take it away before she could find out more about it. She looked to the ring and then to the door, the ring, the door, the ring, the door, the ring, the door!

“Nidra I’m coming in.”

Finally, with a frustrated grunt, Nidra cast a spell upon the ring, encasing the alien object in a crystal made of her mana energy. The ring’s light all but faded away as soon as it was captured within. Nidra quickly kicked the ring under her bed and plopped herself onto it as quickly as she could. At the last second the door opened and Nidra put on her most annoyed expression that she could muster.

“Jeez Mom, thanks for knocking and barging into my room, not like you could’ve walked in on something private!”

Luna, now standing in the doorway and without her regalia at the moment, gave her teenage daughter an indignant look. “Nidra if you were doing something ‘private’ as you say, I assure you it isn’t something to be embarrassed about, I was once a teenage mare too.”

Nidra cringed, wishing she had come up with something better than that. “What do you mean ‘was’? You still act like one from time to time.”

Luna thought about Nidra’s statement, she then shrugged. “Touche. But, really now, are you alright?”

“Yes Mom, I’m fine, why do you ask?”

“I saw a strange orange light coming from your room, I got worried because it felt…off.” Luna’s visage became one of worry. “I got a little scared when you didn’t answer right away so I…forgive me, I should have knocked.”

Nidra was taken aback a little by her mother’s apology, it wasn’t unusual for them to butt heads now and again, she still loved her and she knew her mother did love her as well, it was just that there were times when she really got on her nerves. Nidra was so lost in thought that she didn’t realize that her mother had crawled onto the bed and laid down beside her.

“I guess recent events have made me…worrisome as of late.” Luna confessed.

Nidra raised an eyebrow at that, “Worrisome about what? Do you think I’ll go rogue like Starburst or something?”

Luna winced; apparently Nidra hit the nail on the head. “It’s just; I know you took what has happened to Starburst hard. I know how close you two were –”

“Are.” Nidra corrected.

“Sorry. I know how much it hurts because Twilight Sparkle is a dear friend to me, before she ever became a Princess. When I see you and Starburst together, I am reminded of those times long ago. So I know how you feel in a way…”

Nidra leered at her mother angrily from behind her bangs. You think you know how I feel?! My best friend is a criminal and barely anypony is taking her side! And you have the nerve to actually tell me that you know how I feel?! You –!

“…for me, try not push her away…like I did.”

The fury in Nidra quelled upon remembering her friend’s words. Maybe she could make some effort. Letting out a sigh, Nidra maneuvered her head under her mother’s chin, nuzzling her in a comforting fashion. Luna was a little surprised by the action, but nonetheless nuzzled the top of her daughter’s head in response.

“Don’t worry about me Mom, I’m fine, really.” Her eyes drifted downwards, peering past the mattress and sheets to what lay hidden underneath. “…Maybe better than you think.”

Welcome Home

“NOX GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE!!!” Gilda shouted into the darkness of her room. “I KNOW YOU’RE THERE NOX, WE HAVE A PROBLEM!!!”

The Empress of the Griffon Empire waited, watching the shadows that were created by the moonlight and candlelight respectively. Soon some of the inky blackness of the shadows began to wisp across the floor and walls, collecting themselves a few feet from where Gilda was standing. The shadows rose up and created a swirling vortex of darkness. The griffoness felt a chill run down her spine, Nox’s shadow magic never failing to make her feel just a bit creeped out.

A single talon emerged from the doorway, followed by another and next Nox’s head. The black griffon continued to walk out of the vortex till he was standing in the room. With a flap of his wing the portal he entered through disappeared, the darkness meshing into the shadows of the room. Nox looked upon his elder sister with the same calm and collected expression he always wore.

“Now Sis, you really should watch what you say. If the guards heard you they’d think you crazy or worse, they’d find out I was still alive.”

Gilda took a few calming breaths before speaking to her little brother. “Sorry, but we really do have a big problem! I was just told that the Pretenders attempted an assassination mission on High Princess Twilight Sparkle!”

Nox quirked his head in confusion to his sister’s odd words. “Is not killing one of the High Rulers of Equestria a good thing? My Pretenders are good at such things, but from the distress and anger in your voice I assume it did not go well?”

“Oh ho no, it was a total freakin’ disaster! They attacked Twilight Sparkle in Minotaurus –Minotaurus! You know, a neutral party in our war, not offering aid to us or Equestria! They attacked her while they were having delegations with the King of Minotaurus, and even attempted to kill him as well!”

Nox stroked his lower beak with his left talon, mulling over the information. “Hmm, interesting, the King must’ve fought them, the Pretenders don’t tend to attack any other targets needlessly. If they have a chance to take out the main objective then they take it, otherwise they kill whatever’s keeping them from it, still, something to learn from.”

“‘Something to learn from’ is that all you can say?! Nox, you told me that this war was solely to bring Equestria down and have the Griffon Empire rule over it! We’re already putting a lot of resources into fighting just them; we run the risk of spreading out our forces too thin if we have to fight on two different fronts!”

Nox put his claw on Gilda’s shoulder in a comforting fashion. “Easy big sister, calm down. The minotaurs are a strong force, of that there is no doubt. But they lack air superiority, and we have the ferocity to meet them in battle on equal ground, if worse comes to worse we may need to adjust the plans a little, a swift aerial attack will quash their opposition should it become a problem.”

Gilda gently placed her claw over her brother’s. “I didn’t even know they were doing this. The Pretenders are the elite; they follow the orders of the ruling head of the Empire. Even after six months none have any faith in me…”

Nox knew of this, ever since Gilda took the throne, questions about her ability to lead the Empire, militarily or otherwise, were being raised. So far any naysayers were quickly dealt with. Carmen the Blood Wing and Silva the Beast Wing had doubts about Gilda taking charge, but, being the loyal Wing Commanders they were, Nox knew they’d follow her orders unless Gilda made a reckless or foolish call, in which Nox himself would have to intervene in some way.

Gilda let out a heavy sigh, “I guess you’re right, but…there’s something else that one of them reported. They said they saw another Fear Lantern…”

Nox tensed his body. “Another what?”

“Well they think it’s a Fear Lantern – OW!”

Gilda suddenly felt a painful pressure being applied to her left shoulder, Nox’s strange black ring let out a black aura as the triangle symbol glowed with eerie light. The gryphoness looked to her brother and saw within his eyes the same symbol as the air around him became cold and foreboding.

“Another Fear Lantern, are you sure?”

“Nox could you ease up a li –”

“Are! You! Sure?! YES OR NO GILDA!!?”

Gilda felt a stronger pain pulse from her shoulder; it was almost too much to bear. “Ahh, Nox stop it! No, I’m not sure! They said that she was glowing with some kind of violet light, not yellow like the Fear Lantern!” Nox immediately released Gilda; she held her shoulder as the pain began to fade, giving her brother an incredulous look. “What the buck is wrong with you Nox, what was that for!!?”

Nox shook his head as the ring’s light began to dim. “Sorry Gilda…the fight I had with the first Fear Lantern rattled me a bit, the prospect of facing not one but two made me lose my composure for a moment, forgive me.”

Gilda’s anger quickly subsided, she couldn’t really blame him. After seeing their father killed and narrowly escaping getting killed himself, such a traumatic experience was bound to leave a scar on him, mentally anyway. Gilda stepped forward and wrapped her arms around her brother, hugging him. For this moment she threw away the title of Empress or speed demon, in this moment Gilda was a big sister, comforting her little brother.

“It’s okay Nox…It’s okay.”

Nox rested his head on her shoulder, gently nuzzling his sister’s neck in appreciation for the display of affection. But unfortunately for Gilda, Nox was past such things, his new “lease on life” afforded him many advantages, one of which was not letting petty little displays like this get to him, it may’ve moved him before his transformation, but not anymore. Still, he had to pretend like he still had a heart.

Well my Master, it would seem we need to have a talk about a new player in this game.

The Avalon, 24 Hours Till Canterlot arrival…

Anthea was well enough to return to her shared room with Amber. The two mares had turned in as the day had begot night. As much as the others wanted her too, they decided to let Annie keep the ring on until they could determine that taking it off so soon would not physically or mentally harm her.

She laid in her bed, staring up at the ceiling. For the first time in her life her eyes adjusted to the darkness of the room, allowing her to see what was within without the help of a candle. She even forewent having Amber sleep in the same cot with her, feeling emboldened by her ability to see. And as she thought, it wasn’t as scary as before since she could see Amber in the other bed. The other mare’s body was turned to face Anthea, watching her diligently until exhaustion overcame the earth pony and she fell asleep.

Despite this, there was still something bothering her, something that had to do in the way her mentor left the room in the medical ward. She couldn’t help but hear the subtlest hint of hurt, maybe shame? She wasn’t sure. Anthea raised her right foreleg up so that her ring was at eye level with her. Even in the dark room the ring still had a faint aura emanating from it, so it acted as a nightlight in a way. She stared at the ring, thinking that the mysterious object would somehow answer the questions she had about Twilight. And why not, it could talk apparently.

Yet no answers were forthcoming from the ring, with a frustrated sigh, and the need to be a slight bit adventurous now that she could see, pushed the blankets off her body and quietly made her way to the door. She used her magic to ever so gently open the door, taking great pains as to ensure that it would not squeak and wake her friend. After exiting her room, Anthea made her way down the corridor.

It was strange, she had walked these halls a few times for the past two days, and yet it was like she was walking through them for the first time all over again. Most of the crew members who weren’t on the night shift were either busy at their stations or passing the time until the next rotation. She couldn’t rely on a crew member helping her to Twilight’s room, that and some of them seemed a bit skittish around her now that she wore that ring. Unfortunately, she had not yet fully memorized her mentor’s room location by feel alone. And the location of such was only known to a few crew members and not marked on any directional plaques.

“I wish I paid more attention to the directions…” Annie looked down one of the corridors and then another, choosing at the proverbial and literal, fork in the road. “Oh, which way is the Princess’ room?”

[Anthea, if you so wish it I can find the one you seek.]

Anthea raised her right hoof up and looked at her ring in confusion. “You can find her? How?”

[You love and care for this “Twilight Sparkle”, a love that is born out of respect and admiration. Platonic and Familial at the same time. So long as you continue to feel this way towards her, there is no being in the universe that love cannot find.]

The unicorn mare was now slightly intrigued by the ring’s proposition, and since she had no other way currently to locate her mentor’s room, she decided to take a chance.

“Alright…um, locate Twilight Sparkle, I guess?”

[Releasing Sapphire Tether, locating love.]

The ring released a violet-pink rope made of light, it snaked its way down a hall and continued onward, it was only a short few seconds before the rope stopped moving and went taut.

[Love found, would you like me to take you to her?]

Annie just stared at the rope in amazement, almost not believing the things this ring could do. “Uh…no thanks, I’ll just follow the…tether.”

And so she did, with each step taken the rope disappeared a little more as she got closer to her destination. After turning a few corners here and there, Anthea was brought before the door to the Princess’ room. The rope completely vanished, the particles receding into the ring. She stared at the doors for a bit, not knowing if she should intrude on her teacher or if the Princess even wanted to see anypony right now.

But it wasn’t in Annie’s nature. She cared about those close to her heart, she didn’t like it when they were sad, hurt, or angry, she wanted to help them and if for nothing else than to be there and listen to their problems. I mean, let’s face it, I’ve been blind for most of my life, listening is kinda my specialty.

Steeling herself, Annie knocked at the door three times.

“Who is it?!” Twilight had said those words quick and with a slight sense of panic.

“It’s Anthea, Princess.”

The unicorn mare heard a scrambling of hooves; she then noticed the door being wrapped in her mentor’s magical aura before it quickly swung open and revealed Twilight. Much to the Princess’ surprise, Anthea was there, alone, with nopony around to help her maneuver through the ship and back to her room.

“Anthea, where is Amber, shouldn’t she be guiding you?”

“Well…after what happened she was really tired, and I didn’t want to wake her,” said Anthea.

“Be that as it may, you shouldn’t be wandering the halls of the ship alone! I knew I should’ve set up a spell or at the very least had designated one of the crew to be your escort around the ship at night!”

Annie quickly waved her hoof in a dismissive motion. “No it’s alright Princess, the ring helped me find you so I didn’t get lost. Okay, I was a little lost at first, but that was before the ring offered to help.”

Twilight raised an inquisitive eyebrow at that. “The ring showed you where I was?”

“Well it said it used my love for you to help lead me to you…” Anthea blushed as those words exited her mouth. “Not that I love you in any other way! I mean, I do, but it’s more like how I love my Mom! Not romantic stuff – I mean – that would be wrong, not that I’m saying that mares liking other mares is bad – wait no that’s not what I meant! I – I…….I’m going to shut up now before I say anything else that makes this more awkward…”

Twilight giggled a little from Anthea’s attempt at trying to explain what she meant. So she spared the mare the awkwardness and decided to get to the other question. “Well, was there something that you needed Anthea, is the ring giving you problems?” The alicorn could’ve sworn she saw the object throw off some sparks as if offended by her accusation.

“No actually…I came to see if you were alright. You didn’t seem to be back at the medical ward, so I just wanted to check on you,” said Annie.

Twilight smiled a little at the young mare’s concern for her. “I’m fine Anthea, you don’t need to worry about me.”

“Oh…” she muttered in a disappointed tone, ears drooping slightly.

“But,” Twilight added, “If you wanted to talk, as friends, then I wouldn’t mind.”

Annie’s ears perked up as a smile arched across her face. Twilight moved aside and ushered her student into her quarters. It was probably the largest room on the ship, not counting the bridge and cargo bay, with the Captain’s quarters coming in at a close second.  There was a shelf of books in the corner of the room, next to a wooden desk that seemed fastened to the floor to prevent it from sliding about. The floor was carpet, plush and soft to the touch, almost velvety. A door separated the sleeping area from the rest of the room, which held its own private bathroom for Royalty use only. She was directed to sit on one of two cushions that rested on either side of a small coffee table. Annie waited for Twilight to sit in her spot and soon she followed suit.

There a period of silence, Annie had an idea of what she wanted to ask, but was not sure how to broach the subject given the recent events. Twilight could see the hesitation in Annie’s eyes and thought it best to address the elephant in the room.

“PTSD…”

“W-What?”

“PTSD…Post Traumatic Stress Disorder…it happens to ponies – anyone really – who has gone through a very traumatic experience in their life. You see it often in those who have come back from those in the military as well as other areas. For some, a sound, an image, or even a familiar smell from that time can trigger an episode, causing the subject to flash back to that traumatic event, making all the feelings from that time as strong or even stronger than the first time it happened…” Twilight let that hang in the air for a bit to see if Annie would say anything.

For Anthea’s part, she had heard of PTSD, but had never actually met anyone who had it, or if she did they didn’t show it or weren’t affected by it anymore. The only thing that Annie could think of that would cause her mentor to develop this would be…

“Maretonia…” Annie meant for it to come out as a whisper, but it was just loud enough for Twilight to hear it, making her wince visibly as if physically struck. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to –!”

Twilight held up her hoof, “No…it’s okay. It’s my fault in the end. After we came back, Celestia had me go see a team of doctors, even though I healed my injuries she still wanted to make sure that there wasn’t something I may have missed. After that, she had me see a…a therapist who specializes in those sort of cases…I felt fine, I didn’t see a need in seeing one. If we weren’t betrayed by Pinpoint then I don’t doubt I would’ve found a way to beat Steel…” Twilight shuddered, “…Wing.”

Hearing this made Anthea think back to when they were arriving in Minotaurus, how Twilight was holding her tight, the sensing of tension, and, of course, Twilight’s distressed reaction in the meeting room.

“When the fighting started all I could think about was protecting you, Anthea. Don’t get me wrong, during the fight I worried for Hot Head, Amber, and Lucky, the armor hasn’t been fully tested yet, and what they’re using are prototypes. I didn’t know if the armor would fail them or not, and then there was the King and Prince fighting behind us, keeping the other griffons at bay. They were all skilled fighters so while I was worried for them, most of my concern was for you. I never wanted you to be put into a situation like that Anthea, believe me, had I even the slightest bit of knowledge that I was being targeted then I would’ve had you stay in Ponyville where it was safe…

But in the end all of that happened, and you heard and saw things that many ponies shouldn’t. When I saw that griffon coming for us, I knew I had to protect you, I wasn’t going to let the daughter of one of my dearest and best friends die or be hurt! But…when I saw that whip…when I heard the cracking sound it made…all the fears and anxiety that were hidden away inside me overflowed in that moment. I remembered how helpless I felt…” Twilight started to hug herself as her body trembled. “The sting of the whip…the searing, burning pain of the lashes on my back, wings, and cutie marks… and the cold stare of that griffon…the cruel, sadistic, and bloodthirsty look in that griffon’s eyes as he counted each and every strike…”

Anthea watched as her mentor held herself tight, tears starting to flow down her face as she recounted her traumatic experience.

“I was…I was calling out for my mother in my head over and over again…I-I-It’s my fault, I’m sorry Annie…! I’m so sorry!”

Anthea could take no more; she got up from her seat and slowly walked over to Twilight. She then wrapped her forelegs around her, bringing her into a comforting hug. Annie’s horn started to release calming wave of magic, her special talent taking effect. Twilight couldn’t hold it in anymore, she cried into Anthea’s chest, forgetting her status as her teacher and Princess, she was a pony, a mare seeking comfort in the embrace of a friend. It was the same for Annie, in her forelegs she held not her mentor, a Princess, nor the mother of her friend, but a pony who needed help and needed the kindness of a friend.

At that moment Annie’s ring reacted, synchronizing with the magic of her horn. A wave of violet-pink light and lime-green magic pulsated through the room.

[Fear and despair are the enemies of love. For hearts long lost and full of fright, Love will bring comfort through its shining light. That is the power of Love’s Caress.]

Annie was glad that her ring was actually helping her to calm Twilight. The alicorn mare could feel the dual energy of Annie’s magic and the strange power of the ring, it wrapped around her, like a protective blanket, making the fear and pain melt away and become nonexistent. She felt like a foal being held her mother’s forelegs, despite the fact that the one holding her was a mare twenty years her junior, but at this moment she really didn’t care. This feeling of comfort, love, care, and protectiveness was something that she sorely needed to sooth the pain within.

Minotaurus…

Steel was ticked, no, he was more than ticked. He was pissed off! The Captain of the 101st Iron Horns had spent most of the day and night finding out how forty plus griffon Pretenders were able to get into Minotaurus, and stage a sneak attack on the delegations right under their snouts. A lot of yelling, ass chewing, and torn new ones were done that day, but in the end the Pretenders method was undetermined, which greatly unsettled the young minotaur.

Steel made his way to his father’s study, stomping through the halls and making any other minotaur hug the wall as he approached. Steel didn’t even wait for the two sentries to salute as he threw open the doors and slammed them behind him. Steel found his father looking out a window to the city below, arms behind his back as he continued to stare at his kingdom under the moonlit night. Steel continued to walk to his father’s desk; he stopped when he reached the front of it and noticed a piece of paper with the seal of the Griffon Empire.

“What’s this?” asked Steel.

“An official letter stating that the griffons who attempted the assassination were a rogue faction and were acting on their own. They formally apologize for dragging us into their affairs and wish that we respect the neutrality clause in the Treaty of Nations. They also go on to say that we can do whatever we wish with their rogue agents, execute them or let them go, it’s our choice.” Thunder Fist turned his head to look at his son. “By the way, where are we on that?”

Steel snorted in indignation. “We can’t get those griffons out of the crystal; whatever it’s made of is impenetrable with conventional weapons. We even used blasting powder and we didn’t even make a dent. Whether they are alive in there is another matter altogether.” Steel took the piece of paper in his hand and looked it over with an angry expression. “You’re not seriously buying this crap are you Father?!”

“Well I did attack first,” said Thunder Fist.

“What else were we supposed to do?! Just let them kill the Princess, her guards, and her apprentice while under our protection and in our own home?! That goes against our laws of hospitality towards foreign dignitaries!”

Thunder Fist turned around; he then sat in his chair and glowered at his son. “I am well aware of our laws, son. And the griffons know it. Because of that, we have no evidence to the contrary that they were targeting us as well as the High Princess. While we’re on the subject, how did they manage to get into our territory unseen?”

Steel pulled up his own chair and sat down; he then rubbed the bridge of his snout, trying to stave off a potential headache. “No one knows. The Princess may’ve been right about that shortcut to our nation. It’s possible that they came that way and laid low until it was time for them to strike. Still, the fact that they knew that High Princess Twilight was arriving is a mystery in and of itself. The only ones who knew of her arrival were you and me. Now either they have been lurking about for days on end waiting for her to come here or…”

“Or we have a leak that needs plugging up,” said the King, cracking his knuckles in anger.

Neither one of them liked the fact that the griffons, even if it was a rogue faction, were able to so easily slip through the backdoor of their nation. That area was hardly ever patrolled because there was never a need to in the first place.

“So, do you think we should join the Equestrians in this war?” asked Steel.

Thunder Fist had been thinking long and hard about this. Doing so would mean that they would have to get involved, and if they did, it would mean painting a target on their backs. The minotaurs were a strong and mighty race, they believed in glory through battle, and honor among enemies and friends. These griffons were warriors, savage and strong, and a little prideful. In a head to head battle it would be anyone’s guess who’d come out the victor. Unfortunately, the alicorn princess did make a point. The griffons had the aerial advantage, airships and the ability to fly, whereas minotaurs strictly had a ground force, and maybe five or seven airships at best.

“Get a messenger flame ready, I’ve made my decision.”

The Avalon…

Amber woke up as the morning light entered through the porthole; she rose up and stretched out her limbs, hearing an audible popping sound here and there.

“Hey Annie, why don’t we head to the galley and get some breakfast, I’m starving –” Amber turned to the cot across from her and gasped when she noticed that Annie wasn’t there. “ANNIE!”

Amber Lily jumped out of bed and ran out through the door; she immediately headed to High Princess Twilight’s room, wondering if she was taken away by the ring or worse. Amber didn’t want to imagine the worst. The earth pony mare raced down the halls, turning sharply at each corner till she found the High Princess room. She didn’t bother to knock on the door, there was no time, and not when Annie’s safety was at stake. She quickly opened the door and entered the room.

“PRINCESS WE HAVE A PROBLEM ANNIE IS – is…is…”

The fervor in her died upon entering the room, gazing upon the sight before her. Anthea was in the room, so that helped in easing her worry, but she was on the floor, and entangled within the grasp of Twilight, both hugging each other, hind legs intertwined, and wings covering the younger mare in her grasp. Annie’s head was nestled underneath Twilight’s neck, while the elder mare rested her head atop her apprentice’s.

At first, Amber’s eye twitched almost uncontrollably at seeing her best friend and surrogate sister laying on the floor with a Princess, her teacher, and married, with two kids, one of which is her friend. Amber’s head began to spin with all the things that could happen if somepony found out about this, the Princess’ reputation would be ruined, Annie’s mother would most likely try and kill Twilight, Starburst might come back just to kill Annie for what she did. And let’s not forget, the divorce from High Prince Flash Sentry, Prince Night Light’s confusion over this situation, Turquoise being heartbroken!

Amber quickly shut the door behind her, locking it to make sure that nopony would enter and see this. The quick slamming of the door stirred the two sleeping mares. Twilight was the first to wake, craning her neck up to see what the cause of the noise was.

“Hmmm…Amber Lily…What are you doing here?” asked Twilight.

“Princess, don’t take this the wrong way, but how could you do…that, with Annie?!”

Still drowsy, Twilight tried to understand what she was saying. “Do what exactly Amber Lily?”

The sun yellow mare said not a word, but instead pointed at the body next to Twilight. The alicorn mare turned her head and now noticed that she was embracing somepony and that they were embracing her as well. Twilight’s pupils shrunk to pinpricks and her mouth hung open.

“Oh…my…Celestia…!”

Annie finally stirred awake, opening her eyes and looking up happily at Twilight. “Oh…good morning Princess.”

“Anthea…w-w-what happened?!”

“What do you mean?” Anthea was becoming more aware of her position, seeing how they were entangled in each other’s legs. “Oh my, well, this is awkward.”

“We didn’t do anything Amber, so would you please wipe that pervy grin off your face!” said Annie.

After explaining what had occurred the other night, Annie was able to put Twilight’s fears to rest, and – when Amber was out of the room – thanked her protégé for being there for her. Amber Lily, on the other hand, wouldn’t let what she had seen escape her mind, nor would she let Anthea forget.

“Oh my sweet, innocent little Annie, trying to excel in her studies by starting an illicit relationship with her married teacher.” Amber raised a hoof to her forehead, looking aghast in a melodramatic fashion. “Oh what will Turquoise think?! The scandal, the drama, the kinkiness of it all!” Amber then got in front of Annie and placed her hooves on Annie’s shoulders. “Don’t worry Annie, I’ll keep your secret and stay your true friend through this forbidden relationship!”

It never dawned on Annie how dramatic Amber’s facial expressions could get, now that she could see, she found them funny, but at this moment, a little on the annoying side. “Thank you Amber, I’ll be counting on your confidence in this perilous matter.”

“Cool! Now let’s go and get some grub, I’m freaking starving!”

Amber continued to walk down the hallway, her cocky smirk prominent on her face the whole time. Anthea shook her head, but smiled nonetheless. The two of them joined Hot Head and Lucky Star in the galley, the four of them shared a table and spent most of the time reminiscing about old times and what they had been doing since they last saw Annie. The unicorn mare noticed that the other crew members were giving her weary glances upon seeing the ring on her right hoof. Some of them actually moved away from their table.

Hot Head quickly jumped to Annie’s defense, calling out the other Avalon crew on how they were avoiding her now that she had a ring. It was true though, Annie couldn’t deny the cautiousness of the ponies on the ship. Before, they approached her with a carefree attitude and kindness, but now, they seemed afraid of her, as if they expected her to attack them at any moment or destroy the ship from the inside out. Of course Annie bade Hot Head to stop and that it wasn’t a big deal.

Later after breakfast, Annie decided to walk about the ship alone for the first time. Being able to see opened her up to new sensations, as well as some embarrassing limitations. Like the fact that she couldn’t read the signs on the plaques, having learned braille for the majority of her life. Now that she could see, she was definitely going to need to learn how to read words.

Luckily, she ran into Lucky Star and he was kind enough to take her to an observatory on the ship. After biding him farewell, Annie carefully made her way to the railing, looking down through the glass to the landscape below. It was quite the wonderful sight, even if she was becoming a little nervous at being high up. The clouds, the various greens of the trees and grass, the blue hues of the lakes they flew over, and the majestic purple mountains in the distance. It was all so vivid and beautiful, seeing it all for the first time in her life.

Annie sighed happily as she continued to look down at the scenery. “It’s so great to actually be able to see. My friends look exactly how I imagined them. Lucky’s habit of raising his brow whenever he tries to act all suave, especially when he was talking about my outfit when I changed, and then there was that expression he made when Amber gave him a swift elbow in the gut.”

[Your friends are quite…peculiar.]

Annie sighed, “Tell me about it, but I love them. And I wouldn’t trade them for the world.”

[I sense this in you Anthea, and it is a wonderful feeling. You seem to have a heart filled with love, and open enough to accept it and give it to others.]

Annie rubbed the back of her head with her left leg as she heard the ring compliment her. “I-I don’t know about that…I’m just not the kind of mare to stay mad at anypony, it’s too much of a waste of energy to hold grudges and being angry, when it’s easier to forgive and make peace.”

[You shall make a great Star Sapphire, Anthea of Equestria.]

“Thanks…but, you really didn’t go into any specifics about what being a ‘Star Sapphire’ means.” Am I really having a conversation with a piece of jewelry? Yes, yes I am. But how else am I going to find out about it?

[If you wish I can show you, as well as tell you.]

“Well…” Annie took a look around the room, making sure that there was nopony around. “Sure I guess. Tell me about the Star Sapphires.”

[Accessing database, selecting Star Sapphire information.]

The ring shined with its violet-pink light, bathing the entire room in its radiant glow. Annie watched as crystal constructs of multiple female beings appeared before her. Each one varied in height and appearance, not one of them was equine, although maybe one or two of them may’ve shared similar traits, not a one looked like they were from Equestria. Anthea remembered her friends, Prism and some of the other colts, talking about comics that featured stories about beings from other planets.

Of course she never saw what those comics made them look like so she didn’t have anything to compare them to, but the one unifying thing amongst them was that they all had the same uniform, with varying styles, and they each sported the same ring Anthea did. At the head of this group was a female dressed in violet and black with the symbol of the ring on her chest.

[The Star Sapphires, an organization comprised of only females. The duty of a Star Sapphire is to keep love alive and to protect it from those would destroy it, and harm the loved ones of others.]

The constructs shifted about and showed a planet, it shifted a few more times and zoomed closer to the surface. The crystals changed to show a vast city with numerous structures sticking out. Standing on a giant hill was a giant lantern, the center of which was glowing bright as even more unknown beings stood sentry before the lantern.

[They were established long ago before many sentient life forms ever existed by a race of ancient beings known as the Zammarons. The home base of all Star Sapphires is located on the planet Zammaron; it is here that the Central Power Battery is stationed, the power source of all Star Sapphires. From this planet the Zammarons insure that all love will continue to be spread throughout the universe.]

Annie could only stare in awe at the images and the information she was being given. She had no idea that the universe was so large and vast, and filled with so many beings. An entire organization made of multiple races, and all of them were chosen to protect love and spread it throughout the universe. Anthea started to feel a sense of comradery from seeing these faraway beings. That’s when something popped into her mind.

“Um, ring, have you ever heard of a ‘Fear Lantern’?”

The constructs shifted once again, now showing a new group. Each of them was different, and all of them were terrifying. Some had demented looks on their faces, others were just plain creepy, the things that nightmares were made of, and yet, each bore a ring and wore the same uniform. At the head of the group was an alien male, his stare was intense and yet you could feel that this person radiated authority and respect.

[“Fear Lantern” is one name they go by, another that they are more infamously known as is the Sinestro Corps. Founded by a former Green Lantern by the name of Thaal Sinestro, using the yellow light of Fear, Thaal Sinestro foolishly attempted to bring “peace and order” to the universe through the power of fear. Their rings are able to look into what frightens another and use that fear against them. The rings search out those who can instill great fear in others.]

The constructs shifted again, showing the multiple Sinestro Corpsmen fighting against others who bared a symbol different from theirs, but not just against them, it appeared that they fought against Star Sapphires as well.

[Thaal Sinestro and his Sinestro Corps waged war on the universe, seeking to bring all under the heel of his yellow light of Fear, battling against the Green Lantern Corps for control. The Star Sapphires also waged their own war with them as well, but the Sinestro Corps was eventually defeated by the Green Lantern Corps.]

“Instill great fear…” Starburst’s special talent is being able to intimidate others…but, could that really be the only reason? And why would it choose her?! She’s nothing like these guys!

[However, after the “First Lantern Incident” Thaal Sinestro took his remaining Corpsmen and left for parts unknown. Further information regarding the Sinestro Corps cannot be obtained due to this, it is unclear if there are new members added to their ranks or if there are other parameters placed upon the selection process.]

Annie dared to hope, “Is it…Is it possible to contact a certain Fear Lantern?!”

[I am sorry, it is impossible for members of one Corps to contact another due to the conflicting nature of the Emotional Spectrum lights. As such, lines of communication are restricted to those within their respective Corps. Star Sapphires can only communicate with other Star Sapphires, and Fear Lanterns can only communicate with other Fear Lanterns.]

Annie’s head lowered upon hearing this, her ears flattened against her head. She thought that there might be a way to talk to Starburst through the rings, but it seems that their rings won’t let that happen. “Thank you, ring, you can stop now. I need to tell the Princess about what I’ve found out and maybe you could show her as well?”

[If you wish, Anthea.]

“Call me Annie, if we’re going to be together then I’d prefer it if you called me that instead.”

[Annie, then, saved to memory.]

Nightfall, Canterlot Launch Bay 4…

Twilight, Annie, and the trio stood within the cargo bay, waiting for the moment when the Avalon had eased its way into the hangar and landed within. Concerned looks passed between all five ponies. How were they going to explain why Annie had a ring, the assassination attempt, the botched delegations with the minotaurs? And let’s not forget the High Princess’ epic freak out and becoming as helpless as a little filly. Although the information the two got from the ring about the two Corps was helpful, it may not assuage the doubts and fears of the others.

Twilight and Annie sighed heavily, knowing what kind of reactions and possible hysteria was about to accompany the finding of another ring bearer. The alicorn mare looked to her young protégé and gently her wing draped it over Annie’s back, causing the unicorn mare to flinch from the sudden contact.

“A little nervous?” asked Twilight.

“J-Just a little,” answered Annie.

“Don’t worry; nothing that happened yesterday is your fault.” Twilight looked down to the floor bewildered. “If anything it was mine…I should’ve double checked the area before we even started, I should’ve protected you better and prevented the ring from ever coming to you…”

Annie looked to her teacher with a kind smile and shook her head. “You don’t have anything to apologize for, if nothing else, maybe we can find some way to use this to find Starburst. I know what the ring told me, but maybe you can find something. I just don’t know what I’m going to tell Mom…or everypony back home for that matter.”

A sullen look fell over Annie’s visage, prompting a slight sting of guilt within Twilight. Guilt from being unable to cope or help her daughter in the exact same situation, before Twilight could say anything Hot Head, Amber, and Lucky walked over to their longtime friend.

“Hey, don’t think you’re alone in this. We’ve always got your back,” said Hot Head.

Amber and Lucky nodded confidently to Annie, making the unicorn mare smile broaden. Twilight felt slightly out of place in this picture, but the familiar jostling of the Avalon landing and docking into the launch bay drew her attention back to the matter at hoof.

The door slid up as the ramp extended outwards; with each passing second a little more of the launch bay was seen. Once it was halfway open the group of five gawked at what awaited them. Celestia and Luna, along with Discord, Supernova, and Flash Sentry, stood before a small contingent of Royal Guards and Night Guards, about twenty for each. Worry crept into Twilight’s heart as she saw the cautious looks upon the faces of the Guards, along with slightly stern and concerned expressions of her fellow Royals.

Annie could clearly see the intimidating force, making her tremble a little. So…is this what you felt too Star…? Having everypony look at you as if you were dangerous?

Hot Head, Amber Lily, and Lucky Star got in front of Twilight and Annie, putting on defiant and serious expressions as they stared down the group awaiting them down below.  Sensing a repeat of Starburst’s escape, the Guards all assumed a defensive stance in preparation for a battle with the three ponies. Twilight hurriedly moved to the front of all four and spoke in her most confident voice.

“What is the meaning of this?! High Princess Celestia, Luna, High Prince Discord, Nova, Flash, please explain the reason for this show of force?!”

The Royals each glanced to each other, Luna then lit her horn, levitating something to Twilight. The purple alicorn quickly took what appeared to be a scroll into her telekinetic grip. She inspected the scroll with her magic, trying to sense if the scroll itself held a delayed spell. After a minute of scanning the scroll, Twilight determined that there was no such booby-trap, but it did have traces of having post-teleportation magic used on it. She then unfurled it and noted that it possessed the royal seal of Minotaurus on it.

To the High Royalty of Equestria,

Yesterday your ambassador, High Princess Twilight Sparkle, and her entourage arrived to our city and were greeted by my son, Prince Steel Nerves. Upon a swift escort and arrival to the palace, we entered into negotiations.

Following some good points made by the High Princess, we were attacked by Griffon Empire assassins, whom I believe you know by the moniker “Pretenders”. Myself and my son fought to protect your ambassador, along with her personal Guard.

Though the battle was taking longer than we had thought, a long griffon made it passed our defensive line and attacked your fellow Royal. Rest assured she did not come to harm, for a phenomenon occurred. Her apprentice, a blind mare, boldly stepped forward and attempted to protect High Princess Twilight.

When this happened, a mysterious light appeared struck this blind mare. When the light settled she was now wearing odd clothing and bared ring upon her right hoof.

She quickly used this ring to dispatch many of the Pretenders and made the rest flee in fear, the cowards. But I digress.

The Griffon Empire has already sent me a letter of apology for the actions of a rogue group. I can only take this letter at face value, since I do not have evidence to the contrary that they were attempting to take my life as well.

But to that end, this incident has shown me that there may or may not be a lapse in security in my court, and that a passage that your ambassador has made me aware of could be the way they got into our country. So, I will grant High Princess Twilight Sparkle passage into the Gates of Volkan, to verify whether or not there is a threat of the Griffon Empire attacking Minotaurus, you will receive no further assistance beyond that.

However, we do make one request in exchange for passage. We ask that during her venture into the Gates and Long Road she’d bring her apprentice, no doubt her newly acquired abilities will be put to good use. If she is not part of High Princess Twilight’s party upon their return, no passage will be granted. We await your message upon High Princess Twilight’s return.

The King of Minotaurus,

Thunder Fist

“Well Twilight, I believe an explanation is in order,” said Luna.

The Decision

Whether it was out of respect for Twilight, fear of retaliation by the Troublemaker Trio, or because the once blind mare looked as harmless as a butterfly, instead of placing Annie in a holding cell, they put her in a guest room, but with Royal Guards standing sentry outside her door and a few outside her window. Some were pegasi and thestrals that hovered and flew in patrolling patterns or unicorns down below, ready at a moment’s notice to fire stun spells.

Anthea was scared to say the least, more and more she was starting to understand why Starburst felt the way she did. She never had anypony look at her with such fear and aggression, even when she smiled to the Guards she was met with the stony, stoic expressions that many had when they were in a serious situation, apparently counting Annie as one. To be honest she never knew what a ponies face looked like when it was angry, but if the looks the High Princes and Princesses were anything to go off of, it wasn’t good. She wasn’t all that attentive to the murderous gaze of the griffon she fought back in Minotaurus, but now that she was coming to grips with her newly acquired vision, she was starting to link various expressions to feelings.

“Starburst…I’m starting to understand why you left, a little bit at a time.”

“I’ve come to see Anthea,” said a familiar voice outside the door.

That sounded like…

“I’m sorry Princess Nidra, but the –”

“What, ‘prisoner’, is that what you were going to say?!” Nidra snapped, cutting off the stallion.

“Um, well…maybe not ‘prisoner’ per say,” said a female Royal Guard in a placating manner.

“Oh, then I suppose all these Night and Royal Guards filling the hallway and the courtyard below are just for her protection?”

There was a round of stammering before Annie heard the alicorn thestral speak again.

“Look, either we do this the easy way and you let me in to talk to her, or we do this the hard way. Which involves you all taking an unscheduled nap on duty, do you understand me?”

There were a few murmurs outside her door before it finally opened up, revealing the Princess of Slumber and the Guards, who now looked thoroughly intimidated by the young Princess’ vague threat, unfortunately, Annie knew she might go through with that threat if she had to. The gray mare entered the room, offering her a small smile as she did so.

“Hello Annie,” said Nidra.

“Hey, Nidra,” replied Annie.

Nidra then glanced in the direction of the Guards behind her. “Close the doors, I wish to speak with her alone.”

“Um, Princess, with all due respect, it may not be wise to be alone with her while she’s wearing…that,” said the male Guard, nodding to the ring on Annie’s hoof.

The unicorn mare moved her right hoof behind her left, trying to hide the ring as if it were a shameful thing to be seen. Nidra glared at the stallion.

“I will be fine Guard, thank you. Now please shut the door and give us some privacy. And that’s an order!”

The stallion and mare Guards glanced at each other sighing in defeat. “Ten minutes,” said the mare, “and no more your Highness.”

The door shut behind Nidra, she then stuck her tongue out in the same direction at the Guards who waited behind it. She then gave a frustrated sigh as she shook her head. “Honestly, the way they’re acting, you’d think I was talking with Tirek or something. Anyway, how are you An –?”

Before Nidra could finish her sentence, the alicorn thestral found herself wrapped in a fierce hug by the unicorn mare. She was taken a little by surprise at the sudden embrace, but once her mind caught up to what was happening, Nidra gingerly wrapped one of her forelegs around Annie, returning the hug. After a minute of hugging, Annie separated herself from Nidra, sniffling as she smiled at the mare.

“S-Sorry Nidra, I just…after they had me moved to this room I got a little scared and was happy to see a friendly face. I’m sorry again, I know you don’t like ponies touching you,” said Annie.

T, Starburst, and Illusion are the exceptions to that rule, but I can tolerate you hugging me. “It’s no problem.”

Annie grinned upon hearing that, she then did something that Nidra didn’t expect. The unicorn mare started to walk around her, her eyes seemingly going over every inch of her body. And apparently Annie felt the need to push the boundary of “it’s no problem” by using her magic to gently stretch out Nidra’s wings and examine them as if she was an odd specimen. She even looked over the strands of her mane and tail, ending with Annie looking over the alicorn thestral’s face, bringing it almost uncomfortably close.

Oooooooh-kaaaaaay Annie, did we forget about personal space and boundaries during this trip? Or did that ring make your barn door swing the other way? If the latter, yay, T’s up for grabs. Oh wait…she might be thinking of…oh Faust!

Annie finally put some space between them; she then smiled happily at Nidra. “Wow, I always wondered what you looked like Nidra. But, and I’m speaking objectively mind you, you look beautiful.”

Nidra felt her face heat up, “Oh…well, thank you I guess – Wait minute! What do you mean ‘you look beautiful’?!”

Annie playfully bonked her head with her left hoof. “I forgot to mention that this ring made it so I can see clearly for the first time in my life. I can see everything, and when I saw you with my own eyes for the first time, I wanted to see every detail –” Annie’s face grew red. “Not that I meant every detail I meant that I wanted to get a good look at you! Wait. No. That sounded wrong too…I just – Ugh, why is this so awkward?!”

Nidra was in a bit of stupor of confusion and embarrassment from Annie’s words. She then shook her head and brought her attention back to the spazzing unicorn. “It’s alright, I get it, and you can stop now.”

Annie sighed, “I don’t know if this being able to see is temporary or permanent. If it’s not, I want to burn the image of everypony I know into my mind, every vivid detail, every little quirk, scar, or stand of hair, so if it does go, I’ll never have to wonder what my friends look like.”

Nidra felt a lump form in her throat upon hearing those words. She calls me a friend, and goes so far as to not forget what I look like. And yet I act the way I do around her Turquoise…

Ha, don’t look at it that way. Now it’s fair game, she can see, you can see, now she doesn’t have that “Oh woe was me, I’m a cute little blind mare” shtick anymore. Hey, she might even break up with T if she gets a load of him for the time, seeing what her coltfriend really looks like might be a shocker for her.

Ugh, you’re still here?! I thought I silenced that ring and this annoying voice?!

Can’t silence what lies in your heart, I’ve always been a part of you, that weird light from the ring just allowed my voice to be heard clearer.

Oh lovely, I’m going insane. Well then “non-existent-voice-in-my-head” could you shut up for five minutes while I try and console Annie through this mess?! Since I may or may not be finding myself in the same boat it would be good to have somepony else on my side.

Fine, be a nice girl. I’ll be waiting when you’re ready to talk.

Fat chance of that happening.

Meanwhile…

Twilight had just gotten through reporting on the events that occurred in Minotaurus, a mixture of embarrassment and shame washed over Twilight when she had to recount her episode to not just her husband, but her former mentor and her best friend in magic, and their husbands as well. She could see the looks of pity they were giving her, she didn’t like it. She hated feeling like she was a weak and helpless filly when she was this nearly all-powerful wielder of magic. The mood changed again when Twilight spoke of the appearance of the ring, and the information that it showed Annie earlier that day.

Currently the Royals all sat in silence at the round table, contemplating what their next move should be. Anthea was not Starburst, if asked she would most likely give up the ring. But there was the unknown; none of them had a clue as to what adverse effects removing the ring would have on the unicorn mare. It was clearly different from Starburst’s ring, of that they were in agreement. So the question became: If it is different, does that mean that it behaves differently when removed?

Would removing the ring kill Annie? Would it take away her sight, something that the young mare had never had since the day of her birth? Would it make her go crazy and make Annie fight tooth and hoof to keep it on? There were too many variables, too many negative possibilities in removing the ring. They knew next to nothing about them, and now that a second has appeared, the need to research and study these mysterious, otherworldly objects was sorely needed. But that was another matter, but just as importantly linked to the bigger one.

“Should we take up the King’s offer and investigate the Gates of Volkan and the Long Road? And if so, should we allow young Anthea to accompany Twilight aboard the Avalon?” asked Luna.

“I still say we should remove the ring, between the five us, our combined magic should prevent any supposed ‘adverse effects’,” said Discord, making air quotes with his claw and paw.

“The odds are fifty-fifty, either something bad will happen or nothing will happen. When it comes to Anthea’s safety, I’d rather have the odds more in our favor.” Twilight shot back.

“Oh dear Twilight, you of all ponies should know that taking risks when it comes to these sorts of things is just part of life, once in a while you gotta roll the dice.” Discord shook his right paw and tossed a pair of dice on the table, both coming up as one and one. “Damn, snake eyes!”

The purple alicorn mare slammed her hoof on the table, “This isn’t a joke Discord! I will not risk hurting her or doing something that could have unforeseen consequences to her wellbeing down the road!”

“Someone’s a little testy. But I suppose nopony here wants a repeat of –”

“Discord, that is enough,” said Celestia in a warning tone.

“Getting back to the matter at hoof,” said Flash, trying to steer the conversation back to the topic, “we need to give King Fist an answer soon.”

Twilight quelled her anger, putting on her mask of calm to continue the discussions. “Although I don’t understand why King Fist needs Anthea to be present? The Avalon alone is more than well equipped to deal with a small fleet of griffon airships. Due to the linear workings of the mountain range, and the turbulent winds at higher altitudes, the Long Road will make it impossible for a fleet to attack the Avalon. So long as we keep them forward of the ship’s firepower will be more than enough.”

“But,” Luna interjected, “it’s been proven that a ring wielder has power enough to fell dozens of warships. It’s this fact might be the reasoning behind King Fist’s request. He must believe that if the griffons see another ring bearer that they would give up and retreat.”

“Even so, I will not allow Anthea to be put in that kind danger.” Twilight added.

“You know we could just create a duplicate out of magic, the king will never tell the difference,” said Discord.

“If we did, and if he was able, then we’d lose what trust he gives us,” said Celestia.

“Excuse me, but I believe we are missing the obvious elephant in the room.” Nova waited till all eyes were on him. “What is the decision of the young mare in question, Anthea?”

All in the room were silent, now that they had stopped to think about it, none of them really knew what the young mare wanted to do since this affected her the most. Taking the silence as an acknowledgment that his fellow Royals didn’t think this part through, the thestral Prince took the reins of the conversation.

“Let us think for a moment, and I’m sorry Flash, Twilight, but when Starburst offered to help us while in the dungeon, she reacted desperately when the choice of wielding the ring was taken from her. Correct?”

Twilight nodded shamefully.

“While I doubt that young Anthea would become overtly violent if this did come to pass, we must not overlook the element of choice here. It was her choice to accept the ring’s power and save you Twilight, and for Starburst, she chose to accept her ring’s power to save, not only her life, but the lives of others. I don’t think the rings coerced them into being worn; otherwise they would’ve just slapped themselves onto anypony and not have taken the time to find a right bearer. So, in keeping with this, I say we let Anthea choose.”

Twilight’s jaw hung open at the suggestion of such a thing. Celestia seemed to ponder Nova’s words, finding a nugget of truth in them. Luna was on the fence, though she saw the logic in her husband’s train of thought, there was still the fear of the unknown, and the consequences of such a choice.

“Y-Y-You can’t be serious?! She shouldn’t even be in the middle of this! I…”

“Twilight,” said Flash, “we need to think about this. After what happened with…with Star, most of the public’s been on edge about Fear Lanterns. If this Star Sapphire thing can work for us, then we should give Anthea a chance, like Nova said, ‘let her make the decision’.”

Twilight didn’t like this in the slightest. She knew Anthea, she wasn’t a fighter! The biggest difference between Anthea and Starburst was that the latter had been training herself to be a Royal Guard, learning their fighting techniques and tactics, which, admittedly, is probably part of the reason why Starburst was so adept at combat with the alien object. And now, these assembled ponies are thinking of putting her in the middle of danger.

The only silver lining is that Anthea may choose to forgo the ultimatum of bringing the unicorn mare to Minotaurus, but the downside would be angering the King of Minotaurus and possibly losing an alliance. Although if she did say yes, it would mean Anthea would be thrust into the battlefield, and potentially get killed…

Nidra had left after the ten minutes the Royal Guards allowed her. She was sad to see her go, but Annie didn’t want to get Nidra in trouble with her mother, or the other Royals. The last thing anypony needed was a repeat of the “Starburst Escape”, lest they incur the wrath of Captain Valiant Heart, and there was little doubt that he’d be as forgiving if a needless loss of life happened again.

So here Annie sat, staring out the window at the night sky, at High Princess Luna’s crescent moon and beautiful stars. The unicorn mare sighed sadly, yet she didn’t let it get her down too much. Being able to see the night, and all it had to offer and not being afraid of it was welcoming. Just then, Annie heard a clicking of the door locks and stood up quickly to face the door. The one entering, to her relief, was her teacher, Twilight Sparkle. But her expression was grim, her horn alight as she levitated a scroll next to her.

“Princess, what’s wrong?” asked Annie.

Twilight looked up to the young mare; she then averted her eyes as she sighed ruefully. She then levitated the scroll between them, “Do you know what this is?”

Upon further inspection, Annie was able to make out that it was the same scroll that High Princess Luna showed her mentor upon their arrival. Annie nodded a yes.

“The King of Minotaurus, he’s going to allow us to patrol the Long Road, via the Gates of Volkan…”

Annie’s face lit up upon hearing the good news. “Princess that’s great news!”

“…But only under one condition…the King has asked that you, Anthea, accompany me and the Avalon on the patrol run. Otherwise, he will not allow us to enter the Gates, or Minotaurus.”

“W-What…?” asked Annie in a stunned state.

“He believes that the power of your ring will be useful in keeping any and all Griffon Empire resistance from entering or attempting to enter the Long Road. The High Princes and Princesses have come to an agreement that, while this is a matter of state, this decision is ultimately your own Anthea. In other words, we’re giving you the decision if you want to do this or not.”

Annie’s head was starting to spin; the Princess was giving her an important decision, one that could impact not just her, but other Equestrians. To fight or not to fight, those were her options, and both had somewhat bad outcomes, one more than the other. Twilight seemed to catch on to her apprentice’s worry, the mare’s eyes were shaky, her breathing shallow, and her body swayed slightly to and fro.

Twilight moved closer to Anthea and gently placed a hoof on the young mare’s shoulder. “Listen to me Annie; you don’t have to do this.”

The pink unicorn looked up at her mentor with wide eyes, “B-But…Princess, if I don’t then…then Minotaurus…the King –!”

“We can figure something out. All that matters to me is your safety. Annie, I don’t want to put you in the middle of this! What you heard and saw at Minotaurus, it was barely a sample of what you would see out there. Take what you saw and magnify it times a thousand, that’s what you would be in for! So please Anthea, I won’t fault you for saying no, nopony will. But this has to be your decision.”

Was it alright to say no? Could she be that selfish? Was it selfish to think about your own safety, your life? Annie remembered the fighting at Minotaurus, the sounds, smells, and feelings she had during that brief period of time…could she really face all that again?

The Princess already said that nopony would blame me...but…if I don’t…

Annie’s eyes drifted down to the ring that was on her hoof. Her worry and fear suddenly started to melt away as she thought about the moment when the ring appeared to her.

“You have that potential, Anthea of Equestria, to protect those whom you love…”

That’s right, Annie thought, I accepted this ring…and its power. I chose to be a Star Sapphire…

“Honestly Annie…You can’t really stop me…”

That’s right…that was other reason. This ring’s power can help me bring back a friend. Anthea then looked to the alicorn mare before her. And reunite a family. If Starburst can go through everything she does and still fight for Equestria, how can I do any less!

Twilight started to notice a change in Annie’s eyes, she recognized the look. It was one of determination and reinforced resolve. A pit formed in Twilight’s stomach, she knew the answer before she even spoke.

“Princess…I-I want to help! I’ll go with you to Minotaurus again!”

Twilight’s head lowered as she backed away a few inches. “Please Anthea…I urge you to reconsider.”

“Princess I’m sure that this is the right thing to do,” said Annie.

“Would you please…please reconsider…?”

Annie looked at Twilight in confusion, sure it was a big decision but she was thinking clearly and this was what she wanted, what she believed in her heart of hearts was something that needed to be done.

“Princess, I want to go.”

“BUT I DON’T WANT YOU TO!” Twilight finally looked up at Annie; her eyes were watery as a distressed expression was plastered on her face. “Don’t you understand Anthea?! You could be killed out there, we don’t know what that ring is capable of or if it will do something to you!”

[**I assure you, I am not a threat to my bearer. All my functions are working perfectly.**]

“YOU STAY OUT OF THIS!” Twilight yelled at the ring, earning a few sparks of violet-pink light flying from the ring.

Annie hadn’t seen her mentor like this, it was almost disconcerting. “Princess, I know you’re worried for my safety, I really do understand. But if we work this out together; we can learn about the ring’s power and protect Equestria together.”

“I WON’T – I CAN’T LET YOU DO THAT STARBURST –!!!”

Twilight gasped, she fell onto her rear and clasped her hooves over her mouth in surprise. It was then that all was made clear to Annie and to Twilight as well. She was comparing Annie to Starburst, and it made Twilight sick. Annie wasn’t her daughter; she was her protégé, her apprentice. This was not some second chance and somehow she lost perspective of that. Twilight began to cry a little, looking away from Annie in shame.

“I’m sorry Annie…I-I didn’t mean to…I…please forgive me…”

“Oh Princess…” Annie moved closer to her teacher and smiled gently. “I miss Star too, a lot really. If I could have, I would’ve stopped her. Not a day goes by when I wish I could’ve tried harder, despite the fact that she had that ring. I want to understand what she’s going through, I want to fight alongside you and the Avalon. To prove that Starburst isn’t the scary pony those stupid rumors make her out to be! Although…yes, I am scared…but, I don’t feel as scared knowing that you will be there beside me…if you will, Princess.”

Twilight looked up to the young mare, “Of course, I promise, I’ll do everything I can to help you. I…I won’t make the same mistakes again…”

Anthea sighed happily; knowing that she wouldn’t be going through this alone was a comfort. “Before we start getting underway, I kinda want to go back to Ponyville…Oh boy, what will my Mom say…?”

Twilight winced upon thinking about Fluttershy’s reaction to such news. “I have a vivid idea of how she will react…”

Farewell For Now

“TWILIGHT MOTHER BUCKING SPARKLE!!!”

It was the cry heard ‘round the town. Many knew that Fluttershy wasn’t a violent mare, quite the opposite in fact, she feared her own shadow. But it was just as known that the same timid, often painfully shy mare, could boast serious aggression, speed, and strength when one endangered her friends, loved ones, or her animal friends. Of course there were varying degrees; sometimes she would just use “the Stare” to make the poor unfortunate soul submit to her will. Other times she’d tell the offender off, but when she was pushed far enough, that’s when, ahem, “New Fluttershy” came out to play.

Case in point, when one mare, Twilight Sparkle, tells the mother, Fluttershy in this case, that her daughter is now the proud owner of a Star Sapphire ring and that said daughter wanted to go to Minotaurus to help fight in a war…well, the result was this.

The front door to the peaceful cottage was suddenly blasted to pieces as a blur of purple flew through it and outside, skidding to a halt on the ground. Twilight groaned in a slight amount of pain, thankful that her earth pony magic kept her from being seriously injured, which was probably why Fluttershy hit as hard as she did.

The second to come out the door was Annie, rushing to the side of her mentor with a worried look upon her face as she checked Twilight for any serious injuries. And lastly, Fluttershy walked, menacingly, out the front door and towards Twilight. Her gaze was hard, predatory, like a lion cornering its prey, she had never raised a hoof to her friends before, but this was just one of those times where you find yourself having the strength to do things you never imagined yourself capable of.

“Twilight Sparkle, I trusted you to keep my daughter safe! I trusted you, as a friend, to teach her well and to become the best I know she can be! And you…you just destroyed all of that trust! Years of friendship and trust! How could you let this happen to my daughter?! I knew I should’ve never allowed her to go with you! I – I – I – GRRRRAAAH!”

The alicorn mare slowly rose to her hooves, doing her best to not appear hostile. She expected Fluttershy to be aggressive, but it did surprise her that the kindest of their group of friends would actually strike her with enough force to send her flying through a door. Realistically though, Twilight could easily have protected herself with a barrier or a quick teleportation, but in some small way she believed she deserved that.

“Fluttershy please, I understand how you feel –”

“The Tartarus you do! Twilight, I am sorry for your loss of Starburst, I truly am. But that does not give you the right to try and make up for it with my daughter! Just because you failed as a parent doesn’t give you the right for second chance with Annie!”

Twilight felt the strength in her legs nearly give out; Fluttershy’s words cut deep into her soul. She cast her gaze down to the ground in shame, Twilight knew it was semi-true; she did compare Annie’s and Starburst’s situations to be similar and tried to do it over again. It was a harsh realization she made, but one that needed to be said to avoid future mistakes. Still, that didn’t make the words less painful to hear.

Annie stepped in the middle, putting herself between her mother and her mentor. “Mom stop, this wasn’t the Princess’ fault! I chose the ring, and it chose me!”

Fluttershy’s gaze softened when she looked at Annie, “Annie, sweetie, I know what you’re saying but…but this shouldn’t have happened in the first place. Don’t get me wrong honey, I’m happy that you can see again, but that ring it’s…it’s dangerous, you shouldn’t be wearing it all!” Fluttershy then returned her glaring gaze back to Twilight, “And as I’ve said, you should have made sure that this never happened!”

Twilight sighed sadly; she then gently nudged Annie out of the way so that she could face her friend. “I know that Fluttershy, I’ve been torn about it ever since it happened. But this…this is happening right now, and we can’t just ignore it…I want to make this right, and not just because I’m trying to make up for Starburst! Think of me what you will, but I’ll support Annie in her decision. And…I suggest you do the same before you make the same mistakes I did…”

That set off Fluttershy; her wings fluttered furiously as she lifted off from the air and zoomed right for Twilight, the alicorn mare braced herself for the impact of a strike from an angered pegasus. Suddenly a wall of violet-pink crystal rose up and divided the two sides. The wall cut a path straight down, ten meters long and eighteen feet high. Fluttershy stopped immediately upon seeing the giant construct, her eyes wide with surprise at seeing the creation suddenly pop up. Twilight was in pretty much the same boat; the crystal was transparent enough to see through, but thick enough that nothing could shatter it.

Both mares looked off to the side and saw that Anthea’s ring was glowing bright. “That’s enough! I don’t want to see you two fighting! Mom calm down, please!”

The two older mares looked at each other for a moment. Fluttershy saw the slight trickle of blood from Twilight’s lip from when she first struck her, guilt was starting to grip at her heart when she realized she was about to do that a second time in front of her daughter. Fluttershy gave a little smile and nodded to Annie. The ring on her hoof flashed and the crystal construct disappeared in the next moment.

“Fluttershy…I’m…I’m truly sorry. I promise you, even if it costs me my life, I’ll protect Anthea, and do whatever I can to help her get rid of the ring…”

The light-yellow pegasus mare glanced at Twilight, she then walked over to Annie and gave her a serious look. “Annie, is this really want you want to do? Not because of the ring and not because of Twilight and the others?”

Annie stood fast and looked right into Fluttershy’s eyes. “This is what I want Mom, honestly and truly.”

Fluttershy quickly enveloped Annie in a tight hug; the unicorn mare was caught off guard by the sudden embrace, but after figuring out what was happening she returned the hug. “You be careful, don’t do anything reckless, and do what Twilight tells you. Alright?”

Annie nodded, “Yes, I will Mom.” The pink mare separated herself from Fluttershy, her eyes a little watery as she looked at her. “Mom, there are some things I want to do in town before we head out tomorrow…and, do you mind if I go on ahead?”

Fluttershy was about to say no, but the look in her daughter’s eyes told her that whatever she had to do was something private. Reluctantly, the older mare nodded her head. Annie then started walking down the dirt road, heading to Ponyville proper. Twilight, carefully, walked up beside Fluttershy as she waved at her daughter.

“Fluttershy…are you…are you okay with this?”

“No Twilight, I’m not. I don’t want Annie to go with you. I don’t want her put in the middle of a warzone. And I definitely don’t want her wearing that ring.”

Twilight looked at her friend confused. “Then…why did you say all that to her? Like you were okay with her going.”

Fluttershy turned to Twilight, “Because, Twilight, I believe in my daughter. She’s eighteen now, a grown mare, and she’s capable of making her own decisions. I don’t like any of this, but I can see that this is something she believes she has to do, and I will respect that decision. Otherwise I risk repeating a certain somepony’s mistakes.”

Twilight’s gaze was downcast; she knew whom Fluttershy was referring to. She noticed movement from Fluttershy and braced herself for yet another punch from the pegasus mare. Twilight was totally unprepared for what happened next. Fluttershy threw a foreleg over the alicorn mare and brought her close, Twilight’s eyes widened in surprise from the action, especially when she felt Fluttershy’s cheek nuzzling hers, not expecting this show of friendly affection.

“I’m sorry Twilight. Please forgive me for what I said…”

Twilight smiled through watery eyes, she then nuzzled her friend back, leaning into the half hug and grateful beyond what she could express that her friend, while angry, was still her friend.

“Thank you Fluttershy…”

Annie made her way through the town, making sure that nopony saw the ring. She didn’t think anypony would make a big deal out of the ring; most ponies associated the yellow ring and light with the Fear Lantern. Only those who saw Annie use it and those finding out later on the Avalon were the only ones who knew of its power. So, for now, Annie just needed to be careful and not activate any of the rings powers while walking about the town. Although she was getting a few odd looks.

Probably because nopony’s ever seen me walk alone.

Even though Annie was seeing Ponyville for the first time, she could find her way around without any help. It was her hometown after all, the familiar dirt road beneath her hooves, the sounds that were unique to the area nearest Turquoise’s house, as well as the smell of the small garden that Mrs. Rarity kept in the back of the house. It didn’t take long before the once blind mare saw the structure known famously as Carousel Boutique. Annie had to stop and stare at it for a moment; the home of her coltfriend, friend, and his family was just as whimsical and beautifully designed as she imagined it. After taking it in for a moment, Annie walked up to the front door and raised her hoof to knock on the front door, but stopped mid-knock.

Wait…this will be my first time actually seeing Turquoise…

Annie felt a twinge of uncertainty about seeing her beloved. Since she first heard of Turquoise and his big sister, Claire, the other pony foals would regard them as dangerous and unstable, monsters even. It was understandable, they were the first dragon-pony hybrids ever born, and they could breathe fire and had amazing strength to match their ferocity. Of course Annie never paid any credence to those rumors; it was part of the reason why she hated rumors. Being blind, she wasn’t concerned too much about physical appearances, allowing her to get to know them by talking with them.

Claire was a bit intimidating though, especially when she started to actively take an interest in T. The elder dracony mare would often come between them, snorting puffs of smoke or growling at Annie. To others, it would appear that Claire was trying to scare and pick on a blind filly, but really, Annie could see it for what it was, a big sister trying to protect her little brother from being hurt. It wasn’t until later on when Annie and Turquoise became a serious couple that Claire apologized for her actions and explaining how, when she was growing up, there weren’t that many other foals who were nice to her because she was different. So, naturally, she assumed that others would do the same, and given T’s gentle nature, she worried even more.

But now she could see, and that was just a bit scary. What if she saw her coltfriend and got scared when she saw him?  Or worse, what if she saw him and realized she preferred normal stallions over a dracony? Annie gulped; she then shook her head and put on a serious face. She wasn’t going to be concerned with “what ifs”, this was her coltfriend, the stallion she fell in love with and would continue to love, no matter what he looked like, scary or not. She knew who he was beyond that, and that was the T she loved.

Annie proceeded to knock on the front door and heard an excited and happy voice call out from the other side “I got it! I got it!”

The unicorn mare immediately smiled, having recognized the voice. The front door was quickly opened and Annie looked down to greet the foal who answered. It was a little, off-white unicorn filly, with an orange mane and a streak of pink, her golden eyes grew wide at the same time as her smile. She then bounced up and down happily and rushed to hug Annie’s left foreleg. This pony was the pretty filly of Ponyville, avid gamer, and a bundle of energy all knew as Pixel Bit, or Pixie, Pix, or Bit, whichever, she wasn’t picky.

“Anne you’re back home! I missed you, and so did cousin Turquoise and Claire! How was Minotaurus? Did you see a whole bunch of minotaurs? What did they eat? What did they wear? Were they all big? Did they all carry swords and shields like in the ‘Skyedge’ game? Or more like Alogo in ‘Alicorn of War’?”

“I missed you too Pixie,” Annie lowered her head and nuzzled the little filly, “And to answer your questions. Minotaurus was nice. Yes there were a lot of minotaurs. Mostly vegetables and fruits from what I could smell. Some wore togas, mostly the official types. They had swords, shields, and spears, but they seemed to favor the big shields and long spears than their swords. I don’t know what ‘Skyedge’ is. And aren’t you a little young to be playing ‘Alicorn of War’?”

Pixel blushed and gave Annie a sheepish smile, knowing she just got caught. “Um…please don’t tell my Mom and Dad!”

“‘Don’t tell Mom and Dad’ what?”

Annie looked up, recognizing the melodious voice. The mare before her was a white unicorn, her curly mane was two toned purple and pink, eyes a shimmering light-green, and a cutie mark with a microphone attached to a heart. Annie knew this was Pixie’s mother, Sweetie Belle, the singing idol. She was as pretty as she imagined her to be, a beauty to match her musical voice. Next to her was a brown stallion, with an orange mane and light brown eyes. His cutie mark was that of a videogame controller, showing his quote “mad skills” and ability to create new games, storylines and all, Button Mash.

“Yeah, what can’t you tell your cool Mom and Dad about?” asked Button.

Pixel Bit looked up to Annie pleadingly. The unicorn mare giggled and decided to take pity on her possible future family member. “Oh you know just some top secret stuff from my trip to Minotaurus. I’d tell you guys, but I don’t want you to get banished or thrown in a dungeon, or banished and thrown in a dungeon in the place you’re banished to.”

Sweetie and Button laughed at the “threat”, earning a round of laughter from Pixel Bit and Annie as well. The young married couple trotted over to Annie, Button Mash helped his daughter up on his back, where she comfortably plopped herself on his head. Sweetie Belle came in and gave the young mare a hug.

“We missed you Annie, Turquoise especially,” said Sweetie Belle.

“I missed everypony too. Is T here, and while we’re at it, is Claire here? I wanted to talk them about something important.”

“Spike, Rarity, and T all left to the market a couple of hours ago, they should be back soon. As far as Claire’s concerned…I honestly have no idea.” The stallion leaned his head to the side a little, looking past Annie. He then smirked. “Well lookie who just got back.”

Annie glanced over her shoulder and stared at the three walking towards them. Mrs. Rarity was, wow. She had always heard that T’s mother was gorgeous, but now she was seeing it for herself, and they were right. Annie looked back at Sweetie Belle, Pixel Bit, and then back to Rarity.

Wow, beautiful mares and fillies must run in the family…

She then looked upon the hulking being walking close to Rarity, a dragon, as she assumed since she never really saw one before, clearly anyway. Sinewy muscles rippled under his purple scales as he walked. His large membrane wings were flared to keep the bags on his back from falling off to the sides. The green underbelly scales ran from his lower jaw down his chest and further down. Emerald green slit eyes gazed happily at his wife next to him, who returned the loving gaze with one of her own, winking one sapphire blue eye. She knew this was Mr. Spike, Claire and Turquoise’s father.

That’s when she saw him, light-green scales, with a darker shade of green for his mane, matching his claws, tail end, the membrane of his wings, and the spines that ran along his back. His eyes were a light-crystal blue, yet not slit like his father. Even for most of the other pony stallions, he was a bit larger than them, muscular yet overly.

“Hey Turquoise,” Button called out, “guess who came to visit!”

Turquoise Blitz stopped walking and looked in Annie’s direction. An elated look ignited on the dracony stallion’s face. Before his parents could figure out he was gone Turquoise was already dashing towards Annie. The dracony skidded to a stop before Anthea, which was impressive given his size. Annie looked up at the familiar, somewhat bulky, size of Turquoise. Now looking upon her coltfriend clearly for the first time in her life, she was able to see why many of the foals, and even Hot Head, thought T was scary and intimidating, and possibly dangerous. But, the moment she looked into his eyes, gentle and caring, with no hint of malice, anger, or anything that she saw back in Minotaurus.

“Hi Annie,” said T.

The pink mare said not a word; she merely moved forward and hugged her coltfriend tightly. Turquoise was surprised by the action; he brought his right foreleg around and hugged his fillyfriend back. Annie found safety and security in his broad chest and strong foreleg, his inner warmth soothing and calming like a fireplace on a cold winter day. She missed this, this closeness with the one she loved and loved her back. She wanted to stay like this, and after everything that happened, she didn’t mind doing just that. But that comforting thought was broken when she remembered why she was there in the first place.

Annie separated herself from T and looked up at him. “I missed you T, like you wouldn’t believe.”

Turquoise blushed, “S-So did I, it’s been a little lonely without you here.”

“Hey!” Pixel jumped off her father’s head and strode up next to Annie, gazing at her cousin with a pouty face. “So the whole time I was here you still felt lonely?! Humph, well, sorry if I’m not exciting enough to cheer you up.” Pixel sat on her haunches and crossed her forelegs in front of her chest, her pouty face still prominent.

Turquoise nervously rubbed the back of his head, Annie giggled from the annoyed and pouty expression Pixel was making, and so were her parents. Rarity and Spike finally caught up with their son and promptly came to his rescue.

“Now Pixel, darling, Turquoise was indeed happy having you around, but it’s not the same as having your very special somepony with you. It’s the same way as when you still miss your mother and father even though your friends and the rest of us are here with you,” said Rarity.

Pixel shifted her glance between her Aunt Rarity and her cousin Turquoise, seeing the apologetic look on his face. The unicorn filly thought it over for a minute and let out a huff as she uncrossed her forelegs. “Alright, I understand and I forgive you. But, next time tell me, that way I can think of some super fun things for us to do! ‘Kay?”

Turquoise ruffled the filly’s mane as he smiled at her. “I promise Pixie, honest.”

“So Anthea how was Minotaurus? You guys are back earlier than I thought you would be, I thought it take a lot longer to convince the minotaurs to help out. Guess Twilight browbeat them or something, right?” asked Spike.

Annie flinched upon hearing that question. She was sure that Twilight was going to inform the others about what happened herself, so she didn’t know how to tell them without revealing what happened, it was going to be hard enough talking to T and Claire about it, but she wasn’t sure how all of them would react.

“Um…well…the Princess is actually here. She’s talking with my Mom, but I’m sure she’ll be coming by later. Actually, I was wondering if I could talk to T and Claire alone for a bit, I kinda wanted to catch up with them.”

The others couldn’t tell, but Turquoise could sense the nervous tension in his fillyfriend’s voice. With no visible or verbal objections, T and Annie were given the go ahead to leave. That is, after Sweetie Belle used her telekinesis to pry Pixel Bit off T’s tail and float her back into the house. Now alone, the couple stood up on their hooves, Turquoise took his normal place close beside her, about to drape his wing over Annie’s back. She flinched and almost backed away when he made contact with her back.

“Annie what’s wrong? Are you hurt, d-did I touch a sore spot or something?”

Annie mentally berated herself for reacting like that, the recent bout with the Pretenders made her a tad bit jumpy, that, and she was starting to not need to be lead around now that she could see. But Turquoise didn’t know that yet, so she couldn’t blame him.

“Sorry, sleeping in a strange land and airship cots, isn’t always good for the back. I’m fine really, you can go ahead.”

T slowly draped his wing over Annie’s back, being as delicate as he could. Seeing him take such care in his actions made Annie smile, reaffirming her believes in the dracony stallion and wondering how anypony could say he was scary.

“So, you wouldn’t happen to know where Claire is would you? I really needed to talk to you guys about something important.”

“Let’s see, it’s actually a nice day. Not too cold and not too warm, my guess is she’s probably taking a nap on her favorite rock.”

“Great, let’s go!”

Turquoise and Annie walked for a good thirty minutes to the outskirts of town. The only ones who knew where Claire liked to unwind and take a nap were her friends, so she wasn’t out of reach if the need ever arose. Not a lot of them really knew why Claire liked to sleep perched on top of a rock, it was a good twenty or so feet in up and was riddled with claw marks, evidence of the many times Claire had climbed it. Some equated this to some draconic instinct, the need to be high up when sleeping, inaccessible to other predators, and having the strategic high ground in case of confrontation. But really, the only ones who could reach her were pegasi and the occasional unicorn, but most of the ponies in town knew not to mess with Claire.

Annie had been silent about her adventure to Minotaurus, either steering the conversation back to T or placating him that she would explain with both the brother and sister present. Right now the two were debating who was going to be foolish enough to wake the sleeping she-dragon. Annie thought about using a telekinetic spell to lift Claire up and off the rock, but then she thought about Claire waking up during the spell and blasting out dragon fire in self-defense. Then she thought about using the ring, Claire wouldn’t sense it, but then she’d freak out T sooner than she would want.

“So…normally I’d say let sleeping dragons lie, but…”

“I know, I know. Believe me when I say: I’m used to it.”

T stepped back from Annie and stretched out his wings. He gave a few flaps and ascended into the air, hovering towards his big sister who was sleeping peacefully on the sanctuary that was this rock. The dracony stallion looked down on his sister as her body rose and fell with each breath, a look of content as she slept. T mentally sighed.

Sorry sis…this is going to hurt…me mostly. But it’ll be fun too.

Taking a page out of his foalhood, Turquoise did something he hadn’t done since that time in his life. He found Claire’s right ear, bared his fangs and chomped (the dragon equivalent to a nibble) on it. The reaction was immediate. Claire’s eyes shot wide open as she let out a rather unladylike yelp, jumping up to her hooves only to stumble backwards until she fell from her perch. Claire instinctively lashed out with her forelegs, grabbing onto the assailant, adopting the old “if I go down then you’re going with me” tactic. The two draconies stumbled down the slight slope of the rock face until the two of them landed on the ground.

Claire had done a reversal mid roll, allowing herself to land on top of her little brother, pinning him down and digging her extended claws into his shoulders, they didn’t pierce; it was more of a warning to not move an inch. She then glared down at T with bared fangs and a predatory warning growling. Her eyes were intense slit pupils, horns glowing in preparation to unleash her dragon fire. For a moment, Annie thought that Claire would mistakenly attack her little brother and injure him. But her worries ceased when she noticed that T wasn’t afraid, in fact, quite the opposite, he was calm. Her worries were soon put to rest when Annie noticed that Claire’s bared fanged grimace was slowly turning into a cocky smile.

“Pinned ya again darling,” said Claire.

Turquoise rolled his eyes playfully, “Yeah, yeah Sis, that’s why you’re my big sister and I’m your little brother.”

“And don’t you forget it.” Claire punctuated her point by giving Turquoise a light nip on the ear as payback.

Now Annie knew why many ponies said that Claire was intimidating and scary, this was but a glimpse at her ferocity, making her wonder how bad she got when they were little. But to T, all he saw was his big sister, even in that scary moment, he didn’t believe for one iota of a moment that Claire would intentionally or unintentionally cause him harm. Claire got off of Turquoise, allowing the larger dracony to stand and brush himself off. The mare dracony was busy licking her claws and groomed her mane back to its normal appearance.

“Now Turquoise, not that I don’t like a good scrap with you now and again, but was there a reason you decided to wake your big sister via such a method?”

Turquoise nudged his head in Annie’s direction. Claire turned her head and gasped upon seeing the unicorn mare.

“Annie!”

Claire quickly went up to Annie and gave her a hug, gently of course. Annie took a moment to see the details in her coltfirend’s sister. Her scales were purple, with a darker shade for her mane, claws, and spines. She had the same colored eyes as T, but instead of wings she had twin horns growing from her head, the very same ones she would see light up whenever she performed magic or called upon her fire breath. Now that she was closer, Annie could see the little violet scales that acted as freckles on her muzzle, overall making her look adorable, but fiercely beautiful. She looked over at Turquoise, remembering how Sweetie Belle, Rarity, and Pixel Bit looked and compared them mentally.

Yeah…it’s official, the ‘Hotness’ gene definitely runs strong in this family.

“I can’t believe you’re back so soon, we weren’t expecting you back for at least a week or two,” said Claire.

“Y-Yeah, things kind of got wrapped up in a hurry…”

“Well, guess we need to alert Candy, she had this ‘Welcome Back from Your Delegation Trip’ party thought up.”

“Um…Claire I need to talk to you guys about something, so, could you sit with T so I can explain.”

Both Claire and Turquoise gave each other worried glances. Claire brought the unicorn mare closer to her. “Dear, is everything alright? You aren’t in trouble are you?”

“Well…” Annie looked down at her ring, “Depends on how you define the word ‘trouble’.”

Neither of the draconies liked the sound of that, but they saw that Annie wasn’t going to divulge any information until she did as she had asked. Claire released Annie and went to sit next to T, both waiting to hear what Anthea had to say.

The unicorn mare took in a deep breath, exhaling slowly as she collected her thoughts. She began her story of how she arrived in Minotaurus, recalling all the new sounds and smells of a new land. Annie spoke of King Thunder Fist and his son, Prince Steel Nerves. How they sounded big and strong, and slightly intimidating. She was starting to read the reactions on the brother and sister’s faces; they were so far intrigued but still on edge, waiting for Annie to give them the bad news.

Annie spoke of the Pretenders, how they killed the minotaur guards and announced that they had come to assassinate High Princess Twilight. T and Claire’s eyes went wide with shock, she could see the protective urge in Turquoise start to come to the surface, his wings flared and his eyes slowly turning into slits, angered that anypony, let alone a griffon had the gall to attack his fillyfriend. Despite these reactions, Annie continued. Telling them of the battle that occurred against forty assassins, how Hot Head, Amber Lily, Lucky Star, the King, and the Prince attacked the griffons.

There was some reluctance on Annie’s part to tell them about their Aunt Twilight’s…condition. But she knew if she didn’t they’d probably blame her, so she told them how Twilight had become terrified beyond belief when one of the griffons broke through and attacked them.

“And that’s when this ring appeared to me.” Annie held up her right hoof, showing the violet ring. “It asked me if I wanted to become a ‘Star Sapphire’ a protector of love. I accepted it.”

Annie went on to tell them of how they left Minotaurus in a hurry and upon their arrival, Annie was detained in a guest room until the Royals could determine if she was threat or not. Thankfully they seemed divided on that topic. Lastly, Annie told them about King Fist’s ultimatum to allow passage into the Gates of Volkan and the Long Road, but only if she, Annie, would be there as well, and apparently it was a non-negotiable term.

The two draconies sat there in silence, letting everything sink in. They couldn’t believe Annie, theirAnnie, was being called upon to fight in a war using some strange alien weapon that was similar to Starburst’s ring.

“Well, it’s not all bad. I mean, ever since I got the ring I can see clearly now.”  Annie looked to Claire. “I can see the freckle like scales on Claire’s face, and I can see Turquoise’s eyes, which right now are slit and very dragon-like.”

“This is…quite a lot to take in,” said Claire.

“T…?”

“Show us.”

“Excuse me?” asked Claire.

“I want to see it, the difference between your ring and Star’s. Don’t forget we were right there when she transformed, I could feel the power coming off of her same as you. I want to know if it gives me the same feeling.”

Claire seemed to understand her little brother’s reasoning and nodded that she too wanted to see it.

Annie sighed, and hoped that it wouldn’t be the same. “Ring…c-can you hear me?”

[Of course Annie.]

Annie noticed both siblings jump at the sudden voice coming from the ring. “Um, can you change me into a Star Sapphire again? You know, with the uniform and everything?”

[Yes I can, do you wish for me to initiate the process.]

“Yes please.”

[Initiating now.]

The ring shined forth with violet-pink light, wrapping Anthea in a sphere made of star sapphire crystal. The energy within swirled about for a few seconds before the sphere cracked like an egg and shattered apart. Fragments and shards of the crystal sphere quickly changed into light particles that disappeared into nothingness a moment later. Claire and Turquoise had shielded their eyes from the strong light, but slowly they opened their eyes and Annie, donned in her Star Sapphire uniform as a thin violet-pink aura outlined her form. Annie nervously rubbed her right foreleg, looking at the two draconies with worry.

“So…what do you think?”

Claire separated herself from Turquoise, her critical eyes gazing upon Anthea’s form. The dracony mare stopped before the younger mare, making Annie wonder if she was angry or even appalled at her for having something that got one of their friends labeled a renegade and a criminal.

“When Starburst changed in the middle of town square all those months ago, I felt that strange power like Turquoise did. It was intimidating, and it exhumed oppressive, terror inducing power, as if it wanted to push everypony away from it. But with you…” Annie shut her eyes as Claire reached out with her right claw, she then felt those same claws, flat like a hoof, gently tilt her head up. “It’s the exact opposite.”

“W-What?”

“It’s, how shall I put this, inviting, nurturing, protective even. It feels, well, like you darling.”

Annie’s ears perked up at hearing her friend’s words. “So you’re not afraid of me? Or mad because I have a ring?”

“Darling you look positively radiant. And if what you say you’re going to do with it is true, then I have no qualms with it. We miss Star, whether she is misguided or being controlled by her ring we cannot say, but if there’s a chance you can bring her back to us, I think you of all ponies can do it.”

Annie quickly gave Claire a hug, holding the dracony mare tight between her forelegs. “Thank you Claire! I promise I’ll bring her back home!”

Claire hugged Annie with her left foreleg, while gently patting and stroking her mane soothingly. “There, there now, we know you can do it. Turquoise,” Claire glanced over her shoulder, “come over here and comfort your filly…friend……………Well now…that’s certainly something I didn’t need to see, and from my little brother no less”

Annie moved her head to look at Turquoise, he was just sitting there, his face red as an apple, and his wings fully flared. At first Annie didn’t understand what it meant, but then she remembered a particular physiological response that winged equines have when they look upon something…stimulating. Annie, for the first time since Minotaurus, took a moment to look at herself. The outfit was, she admitted, a tad bit suggestive. Accentuating her body in the “right places” as some would tactfully put it. Annie then smirked at her coltfriend. “Checking me out while I’m hugging your big sister? That’s dangerously kinky T~”

“I wasn’t checking you out! I swear!”

“Oh, so you’re saying I’m not hot enough to look at?”

“What – NO! You are hot and cute too!”

“So you were checking me out while I was hugging Claire?”

“No! Just when you were out of the crystal bubble thing!”

“So are you saying your sister isn’t beautiful and cute enough that she isn’t worth checking out? ‘Cause that’s a little hurtful.” Annie teased.

“Of course not! Claire’s –!”

At that moment a giant torrent of blue fire was unleashed into the air, cutting off the awkward teasing. Claire released Annie and gave the couple a stern look.

“Please refrain from including me in whatever silly teasing you’re doing with my brother, I get enough of that mess with Illusion.”

“Oh, like that time during Hearts and Hooves day when he changed to look like T and you kissed him?”

Claire’s eyes flew wide open at hearing that, while Turquoise just stood there, eye twitching like crazy.

“H-H-He did not tell you about that?!”

“Sis…why did you have Illusion turn into me for Hearts and Hooves Day?” asked Turquoise with worry.

Claire looked at her little brother, face just as red as his. “I-I-I didn’t have him turn into you! I had my eyes closed when we were kissing, he changed then! I only realized it afterwards!”

“Well, to be fair, I think T would be a better kisser,” said Annie.

“I’M GOING TO KILL YOU ILLUSION!!!”

The Next Day, Sweet Apple Acres…

The talk with Claire and T’s parents about what she and Twilight were going to do came as a shocker, but thankfully, Fluttershy attended this talk to ensure that she was supporting Annie in her decision to go. Pixel had heard what was going on from the other room and had held onto her tightly, afraid that she might go too. After many assurances from Annie that she was coming back, she went about retelling the story to the rest of their friends.

Candy was sad to hear this, but happy knowing that she might be able to bring Starburst back home. That still didn’t mean she liked seeing her friend go off to fight, it was hard enough when Prism left to join the Guard, and Whirlwind, while understanding, worried greatly, three best friends now separated by war.

And now Annie came to the last stop before heading back to Canterlot. She stared at the rustic farm, taking it all in. So many times did they all gather to Sweet Apple Acres, either to help Del and his family with their harvest or just hanging out in the barn and amongst the trees of the orchard. Applejack was waiting for Annie when she arrived, agreeing to escort the young mare to where her son, Golden Delicious, was caring for the trees. She was aware of Applejack’s glances at her ring, having been informed by Twilight and Fluttershy of what was going on.

“Ah sure wish that this never happened to ya Annie…ain’t right that ya have to go out and fight in this ugly war.”

“I’ll admit, it is scary, knowing that I’ll have to…fight.” Annie really didn’t like that word. She wasn’t the combat type; she was more for making peace. “But we’re just going on a patrolling mission through the Gates and Long Road; the Princess says there’s a thirty percent chance that we won’t find any Griffon Empire ships.”

“Mmm-hmm, if Ah know Twi, and Ah do, she’s probably gone over those numbers a hundred dozen times by now. But don’t you fret none Annie; just know that we’ll be waitin’ for ya when you come back.”

“Thank you Mrs. Applejack.”

“T’ain’t nothin’, ya’ll are honorary Apples, part of the family.”

The two mares continued to walk through the orchard, Annie noticed the tree branches had signs of budding blossoms, which would soon bloom and give way to ripe shiny apples for the town to enjoy. They eventually reached Del, hauling a wagon filled with watering buckets. The tan earth pony stallion was busy, focusing on his work as he had always done before.

Applejack and Annie were still a bit far from him, out of earshot, which was why Applejack said what she said next. “He ain’t been too right after Starburst left…missin’ her something’ fierce. He still does his chores, but it’s not like he used to move. Ah saw how those two were gettin’ along and Ah was happy when my boy said he wanted to go out with Star. Ah was afraid he’d never find a gal that he’d like, but, that’s love, ya don’t know when it’s goin’ to sneak up and bite ya on the flank.” Applejack let out a sigh. “Shame, Ah was lookin’ forward to bein’ in-laws with Twi.”

Applejack turned around and walked away to give Annie and Del some privacy, but not before Annie’s sensitive ears caught Applejack’s last words on the wind.

“…Still am…”

Annie smiled at those words and went to Del, he had been told about what was going on along with his mother and father. But now Annie wanted to do something, she knew how much this has been hurting Del, because he told her that Starburst came to say goodbye to him before she left. Annie cleared her throat loudly so as to not startle the stallion while he was working. He stopped for a moment to see who it was, when he saw it was Annie, Del placed the bucket down next to the tree.

“Howdy Annie,” said Del.

“Hey Del.”

Annie walked up to Del, looking the stallion in the eyes with a serious gaze. She raised her right hoof and placed it over Del’s heart. The ring began to pulsate with violet-pink light.

“A-Annie what’re you do –?!”

“Shhh.”

Annie’s ring allowed her a glimpse inside Del’s heart, past the bonds of family and friends, sifting until she saw the face of the pony that occupied his heart. Large wings, a small slender frame, and an intimidating gaze, but with a confident smirk upon her face. Annie retracted her hoof and smiled at Del who stared at her in confusion.

“Just needed to make sure that she was still there,” said Annie.

“Who was?” he asked.

“Star, she’s still in your heart Del, you still love her.”

The stallion snorted indignantly. “Of course Ah do, not a day goes by when Ah don’t worry about her.”

“Same here, sorry. I guess you could say, it was my way of reaffirming my resolve,” said Annie.

Del looked upon the young mare before him, and then at the ring fastened to her right hoof that hummed with power.

“Yer still goin’ to help the Princess, and try and get back Star too?”

Annie smiled, “With any luck I’ll bump into Starburst out there. I mean, she’s fighting near the Territories, and the Long Road connects to Saddle Arabia where there’s fighting, so chances are good.”

A silence fell upon them for a short while before Del noticed that Api was heading towards them, a dour look upon her face. Annie followed his gaze and noticed the expression she had.

“She really looked up to Star, didn’t she?” asked Annie.

“Still does, she gets into a fight here and there at school whenever somepony talks smack about Starburst. Sometimes she mouths off to an older pony, or she picks a fight with another foal when they say stuff about Starburst, as much as I like that she’s doin’ that, Ah know Star wouldn’t want her do that.”

Poor Api…Starburst you jerk, don’t you know what you being gone is doing to everypony? Anthea brought up her right hoof, staring at the glowing ring. This time I have the power to make a difference, I’m not helpless, I’ll drag you back kicking and screaming if I have to.

“I gotta go Del, the train leaves soon and there’s one more stop I need to make before I leave with the Princess.”

Annie got up to turn and walk down the path and back to the farmhouse, but Del’s large hoof rested on her shoulder, stopping her from leaving just yet.

“Wait.” Del used his hoof to undo the knot on the bandanna around his neck. “Take this with you.”

Annie gasped, “Del, no, that’s your –!”

“Ah know…if you do see Starburst out there, give it to her. If nothing else, it’ll be a piece of home, and maybe it’ll help to bring her back.”

Annie took the bandanna, holding delicately within her telekinetic aura. She knew how important this bandanna was to Del, it was once his favorite blanket as a foal, his aunt having turned that same blanket into the bandanna he wore around his neck every day since. If Annie wasn’t sure before, she was now.

“I’ll make sure she gets this.” Annie resumed walking towards the path; she then stopped briefly and glanced back at the stallion who was watching her leave. “This isn’t goodbye Del, not for anypony, it’s just farewell for now.”

Canterlot Castle…

So, Anthea’s going to leave. Perfect news for you, lonely Turquoise will need somepony to be there for him when she leaves.

Ugh, you insufferable, nonexistent echo! Why the buck don’t you just shut up?! For the last time I’m not stealing T from Annie!

Don’t think of it as “stealing” just think of it as trading up to a sleeker and sexier model.

………I appreciate the compliment, but that still doesn’t change the point of this! I don’t need some alien ring of power to get Turquoise to fall in love with me, if I were to pursue him romantically.

That ring could do more than just that. You know what Starburst can do with it, and now Annie has one as well. We need to be on even ground now that she can see and all! Surprisingly she still finds him attractive, not that he isn’t. I mean, how many nights you have spent fantasizing that he’d –

Finish that sentence and I swear I’ll fly out the nearest window and smash my skull into the hardest fortified wall in the castle!

Touchy, touchy. It’s me remember? Your other half that’s been quietly watching from the sidelines until now, it’s not like you're talking to Mom about this stuff.

Thank you for yet another mortifying thought.

“Nidra!”

The alicorn thestral stopped her internal dialogue and noticed that Annie was rushing towards her. She stopped before crashing into Nidra, letting out a relieved sigh that she did not get bowled over.

“Annie, what’s going on? Aren’t you supposed to be at the launch bay with Aunt Twilight?”

Annie took in a few gulps of air before speaking, apparently having been running around searching for the mare. “Nothing’s wrong, and yes I am. But there’s something important that I need to tell you before I leave, and if I don’t I’ll feel like I’ll regret it forever…”

Oh, maybe she’s coming out of the closet?

Do you ever shut up?!

Do you?

…Touché.

“Nidra…you’re one of my friends –”

Are we now? The voice asked.

“– and…I…Don’t get me wrong, I plan on coming back with everypony…but…” Annie began to rub the back of her left foreleg nervously as she tried to get whatever it was off her chest. “Nidra, if for some reason I…well…if I should, you know, die out there –”

“Stop!” Nidra shouted, causing Annie to flinch. “You’re not going to die Annie, don’t say stuff like that.”

“Nidra please let me finish,” said Annie in a stern voice. “If I should…die out there I…I want you to look after Turquoise for me…”

Nidra’s jaw dropped, and if the voice had one it would surely be mirroring the expression.

“Annie…what are you saying?”

“Don’t pretend like you don’t know Nidra, I know you love Turquoise the same as I do.” Nidra visibly flinched, her heart feeling like a knife had been driven in and somepony twisted it for good measure. “I know, and…I’ve tolerated you teasing and flirting with him, even when I’m there and you think I don’t notice…Despite all that, you left us alone when it was important, you care enough about Turquoise to let him be with me. And that’s why, if I don’t make it back…Nidra, I want you to promise me that you’ll look after him, even if that means you two become a couple, just promise me you’ll continue to love and care for him!”

Nidra didn’t know what to say at that moment, “yes” sounded pretty good, but she felt so unworthy of this level of trust, and dirty. Anthea was thinking of Turquoise’s happiness even now as she was about to fly off into potentially dangerous territory. Despite the negative voice within her, she couldn’t say no to this, not when it was about something the two mares agreed upon.

“He’s kind of oblivious to your feelings, but he does care about you too…so, will you Nidra?”

“…………Yes….but you’d better make it back Annie!” Nidra’s voice was full of conviction and sincerity. Even with what her darker half was saying, she did still care about her rival’s wellbeing.

“Thank you Nidra…” Annie sniffled a bit, looking up at Nidra with watery eyes and smile on her face. “I think I can do this now…I’ll see you, hopefully soon.”

Nidra walked up to Annie and gently brought her into a half-hug, “Soon.”

After a while Annie left to meet up with Twilight Sparkle, and not long after that the Avalon launched yet again, heading back to Minotaurus. Nidra watched from the balcony of her room as the warship made its way towards the horizon and disappeared not long after.

Unknown Location…

Nox meandered through the Land of the Dead, tombstones and headstones of various shapes and sizes littered the ground in rows upon rows, stretching on in this endless monochrome world of grays, blacks, and whites. Each one was carved with the name of a deceased, many were names of beings that Nox had never heard of, and some weren’t even in Equish or Griffsh, although there was one that came close to Equish that he took the time to read.

“‘Here lies William Hand, Harbinger of the Blackest Night, and Entity of Death.’ Hmm, must have been my predecessor.”

Nox continued to walk through the fields of stillness and death, spirits and wraiths would occasionally rise from the rows and float by, some were aware of his presence while others actively avoided him.

Finally, the griffon known as Shadow Wing stopped before a large and intimidating coffin, the name “Nekron” was engraved upon the surface. The entire thing was wrapped in chains, but they showed signs of weakness, the coffin door slightly cracked open, allowing a darkness to seep from it in the form of an ominous and oppressive miasma.

However, Nox felt no fear as he stood before this coffin, not even when the dark miasma flowed around his legs.

“Master, I feel that there is need for explanation. I found out that there is another ring bearer residing in my world that isn’t me or the Fear Lantern. I believe knowledge is required in this particular situation.”

A low growl echoed in the vastness of the Land of the Dead, its master waking and stirring. A single white dot glared at Nox from the opening in the coffin.

NOX OF EQUUS, THE LIGHT IS SLOWLY GAINING STRENGTH, BUT IT IS A FALSE STRENGTH. THE LIGHT IS WEAKNESS; DEATH IS THE TRUTH…THE TRUTH OF ALL THINGS…GREAT AND SMALL…POWERFUL AND WEAK…THE TIME HAS COME FOR YOU TO KNOW, MY ENTITY OF DEATH…

Trainig Day / Cheering up a Friend

Once again Anthea found herself on the Avalon, but it was different this time around. She felt more confident and stronger than ever, maybe it was due to the ring, or maybe because her self-confidence was steadily growing. Whatever the case, Annie felt good. During the first day out, Twilight had taken it upon herself to help Annie learn how to read words. Having been blind for most of her life she was used to feeling braille, but now that she could see, Annie knew she had to learn what certain words looked like. Luckily she was a quick learner, although she had some ways to go, Annie had a good enough grasp to at least read the signs in the corridors.

There was one thought, one worry that made Annie cringe before she left home. Given the events that occurred in Minotaurus during their first visit, it was made clear that Annie was hilariously unskilled in the ways of combat and combat magic. She only managed a single magic bolt and a flimsy shield spell that shattered upon getting hit once, once! If they were going to encounter more griffon resistance, it was clear that Annie’s current level of fighting skill was nowhere near adequate enough to make a difference, let alone survive a fight. The only thing that evened those odds was the Star Sapphire ring, but even it was limited by her lack of combat knowledge.

“So you’re saying that as long as I have love in my heart, I can create anything I imagine?”

[That is correct Annie; my primary ability is to create objects, of almost any form, shape, and size from the violet light of love. Whatever you imagine, within reason, the violet light can make reality. However, what I can and cannot create is limited by your imagination. The more you can imagine, along with the level of your creativity and concentration, can make constructs either very strong or weak.]

Well that explains why Starburst was asking Claire and me about concentration and energy conservation techniques. She was learning how to maximize the amount of power of the ring so she could create more elaborate “constructs”.

It was clear now what Annie had to do, there were three ponies she could ask whom she knew would help, but whether or not they were going to was another matter. Though they have been supportive, Annie wasn’t sure how thrilled they would be about her coming to them for lessons in fighting, the idea of hurting another living being didn’t sit well with her. But it was necessary if she was to be of any help in this mission.

And so, here she was, standing in front of the door to the training room. Annie knew her friends were inside for their daily training exercises so she wouldn’t have to worry about tracking each of them down. Taking a deep calming breath, Annie used her magic to open the door. What she saw was surprising.

Hot Head currently had Amber in a headlock; the earth pony mare was struggling to get free of his hold. Their eyes were narrowed with determination, one not willing to let go, and other not willing to submit. Both were standing on their hind legs, with Hot Head using his wings to give him better leverage. Lucky Star was standing by a couple of feet away, horn aglow in preparation for a spell. From what Annie could infer, Hot Head was using Amber as a shield to keep Lucky from casting his spell on him, which meant that this was possibly a two on one sparring match.

“What do ya say Amber, you tapping out?” asked Hot Head smugly.

“You kidding, I’m just about to get loose,” said Amber with a cocky grin.

“Really, and how do you plan on – Whoa, whoa, whoa!”

Hot Head suddenly felt Amber’s tail graze his lower regions in a very suggestive manner. The pegasus stallion quickly released Amber Lily, allowing her to flip in a very stylishly till she landed back on the floor, facing Hot Head and giving him an alluring stare.

“Dirty pool Amber!”

“What, I can’t use my sex appeal to create an opening? ‘All’s fair in love and war’.”

Hot Head snorted dejectedly, he then muttered under his breath, “You’re not that sexy…”

Annie’s well attuned ears heard that little remark, and unfortunately for Hot Head he didn’t mutter that low enough. Lucky Star took ten steps back away from Amber, knowing full well the kind of Tartarus that Hot Head just raised. Amber swiftly, and silently, appeared before Hot Head. The pegasus stallion realizing too late that any sort of apology wasn’t going to prevent what was about to happen to him. Amber then cocked back her right hoof and thrust upwards, while simultaneously jumping up and adding a little spin. The resulting blow struck Hot Head in the jaw, sending him flying backwards from Amber’s powerful uppercut.

The dark red pegasus stallion bounced around on the floor a couple of times before landing on his stomach, splayed out on the floor. Amber spun around three times in the air before landing gracefully back to the floor. Whipping her mane around nonchalantly, she then addressed the pegasus she just assaulted.

“Care to rephrase that?” Her question was more of an order.

“You’re damn sexy Amber, alright!”

“And don’t you forget it.”

Hot Head picked himself up from the floor, rubbing his jaw with his hoof and checking for any broken teeth. Thankfully Amber had spared him a trip to the dentist, the mare was strong, but she had great control over that strength, only hitting him with enough force to launch him and to get the point across, but not so much as to cause injury, a “love tap” as she so eloquently liked to call it.

“Jeez Amber did you have to hit that hard?”

“To be fair Hot Head, bringing a mare’s attractiveness into question is a very big no-no. You should remember that if you ever get a fillyfriend,” said Annie.

The three pairs of eyes finally took notice of the unicorn mare standing by the door. The trio made their way to their friend, curious looks apparent on their faces.

“S’up Annie, did you need something?” asked Hot Head.

“Yes…actually I need do, but it’s something that I can only ask of the three of you, and it’s something you know well.”

The Troublemaker Trio were actually stunned by this. Annie was incredibly smart and adaptive, there was hardly anything she didn’t know compared to them.

“Well, if what we do know can help then we will, although you’re a pretty smart mare. I doubt there’s much we can teach you,” said Lucky in his gentlecolt tone of voice.

Annie chuckled nervously. “Actually in this particular field, you three are probably the only ones who can teach me, or be willing to.” The unicorn mare steeled herself. “I want you guys to teach me how to fight like a Royal Guard.”

There was silence in the room, so quiet you could actually hear the engines running from five decks down. Suddenly all three of the ponies began to laugh hard, some even tearing up because of how hard they were laughing. Annie wore a deadpan expression, there were many scenarios she played out in her head, and this was not one of them.

Amber was the first to calm down enough from her laughing fit to speak. “Oh-ho-oh, good one Annie. Alright, seriously, what did you need help with?”

“I want you to guys to teach me how to fight like a Royal Guard.” Annie repeated.

“Nah, c’mon, what did you really want?” asked Hot Head.

“Do I really need to spell it out for you guys?!”

Annie’s horn lit up, mana energy began to form above her, taking the shape of large glowing letters as to emphasize her point.

I WANT YOU TO TEACH ME HOW TO FIGHT!!!

“Get it now?!”

There was silence once again, but the looks on their faces was enough to tell Annie that she had made her point. Realization that Annie was indeed not joking around crashed down on them, as well as disbelief. For as long as the three knew Anthea, she was not the kind of pony to go starting or ending fights, if anything she was a peace maker. She would join in on a prank or two if asked, but she certainly wasn’t one for causing harm to another. So it came as a great shock when they did see she was serious, not just by the big glowing letters, but by the determined look in her blue eyes.

“Annie…why –”

“Why would I want you to do that?” asked Annie, finishing Lucky’s sentence. “Because I know what we’re flying into, and I don’t want to be anypony’s burden like I was in Minotaurus.”

“Annie, sweetie, nopony expected you to do anything. You weren’t trained to fight, that’s why we were there,” said Amber.

“But you guys won’t always be around, and what if what happened last time happens again? I couldn’t even protect the Princess! If the ring hadn’t come to me we’d both be dead! Plus, now that I do have this ring, I have a responsibility to use it wisely. And if we do face griffons in the Long Road, I won’t be of much help! I need to learn how to fight you guys, not just to protect myself, but to help protect you and everypony on the Avalon.”

Disconcerting looks befell the trio. “Why do I get the feeling that that’s how Starburst thought of it at first?” Hot Head pointed out.

“There’s a big difference between what happened with Starburst’s situation and mine. She chose to keep it secret, but you guys, my Mom, and even the Princess knows about it. With you guys around you can make sure that I’m not doing something wrong or going down a path you know I don’t normally tread. I’m asking you three because I trust you to watch out for me and to keep me in line should that happen.”

Annie continued to stare at her friends, looking each of them in the eye.

“So please, as your friend, I’m asking you. Will you teach me?”

Hot Head, Amber, and Lucky each had hesitant expressions. Annie did make a point, but they weren’t sure if doing this would be history repeating itself, and the last thing they wanted was for their friend to become ostracized and feared by those closest to her. It wasn’t an easy decision to make.

Meanwhile…

Why am I even going to Ponyville, this is so stupid?!

Because Candy sent you a letter asking you to, that’s why. Turquoise is lonely and down because Annie’s gone to Minotaurus, and you did make a promise to Annie to take care of the big lug for her, remember?

Yeah I do…It just feels too soon, she’s only been gone two days now…

Strike while the iron is hot, there’s a hole in his heart, and who better than you to fill it?! Even if it is temporary. Who knows, maybe this just the opportunity we need to –

Let me stop you right there. We’re going to cheer him up, not to hit on him or flirt with him; we’re there for support and comfort. Got it?!

…Fine…You know you’re starting to become a buzzkill like Starburst.

Nidra would’ve slapped the voice upside the head if it had a tangible body to slap. But from what Cotton Candy had said in the letter, Turquoise was mostly moping around the town, not really doing much or having fun, and of course, to a daughter of the infamous Pinkie Pie, being in such a mood was unacceptable and was cause for intervention. Thankfully Nidra was able to ask her cousin, Illusion, to cast one of his, well, illusion spells over Nidra. A kind of glamour charm that worked off of the ambient magic in the air, as well as the magical energy within the target, this way the false form would not waver easily or be restricted to a time limit. Nidra glanced at her reflection in the glass window.

A pegasus mare with an intimidating expression and sharp aquamarine eyes. Her coat color was the same shade of gray as her real self, but her mane was a light-blue with navy blue highlights. Nidra didn’t often ask her cousin to use such spells; she honestly thought that being in disguise was pointless. Being a royal of Equestria was not something to hide, more than a few times Nidra went out about Canterlot, unescorted, and went clubbing with an entourage of ponies. Yes she knew they were there to just hang out with a royal Princess, but she didn’t care, she liked the attention it brought her. Besides, she already had real friends, her cousin Illusion, Turquoise, Starburst of course, and others in Ponyville, although she didn’t associate with them that much.

But for this particular venture she thought it best not to bring attention to herself, and so here she was, in the form of her civilian disguise, Jet Stream. The group of friends she had in Ponyville knew of her disguise as well as Illusion’s. Even though the town probably wouldn’t make a really big deal about her coming to town, having had a Princess and High Princess  live there for some time, she still didn’t want ponies to flock to her, not today anyway.

Nidra heard the screeching of the tracks as the train rolled to a stop before the platform. Once completely stopped the conductor announced their arrival and where the train would depart to next. The Princess of Slumber exited the train and stood upon the platform, eyes searching for any sign of the pink maned earth pony. Her search didn’t take long as she watched a blur of pink and blue rush towards her and smiled widely at her.

“Nidra – Oops! I mean, Jet Steam, you made it!”

“Y-Yeah, of course I did.” Nidra took another quick glance about the station. “Is Turquoise with you or something?”

Candy sighed, “No, he’s helping out Del at the farm, although he should be done by now. So he’s probably home, c’mon I walk you there.”

The two mares began walking through town towards Carousel Boutique, and just as she thought, the disguise was working. Nopony other than Candy or the others would know it was her. In a weird way, it was kind of fun, the anonymity of it all. But right now, what Candy said was getting to her.

Nidra couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at that. “Really? I can’t imagine Del’s the right pony to be around right now, considering how similar their situations are at the moment.”

“It’s probably a stallion thing, but I do know T would be happier if he was with you. He likes hanging out with you, y’know.”

Nidra couldn’t help her cheeks tinting red from hearing that. “O-O-Oh…he, uh, he does?”

Candy giggled. “Of course he does silly. I mean, don’t get me wrong, he likes hanging out with all of us, and especially going on dates with Annie. But when he’s with you, it’s different, in a way. Don’t know how to put it right, just a feeling I get.”

Seems I’m not the only one who thinks you two could have something.

Could we please not do this now?! I want to at the very least enjoy my visit without your commentary.

Candy and Nidra were already heading through the town square and were coming up on the market district of Ponyville. The blue earth pony mare would occasionally glance at Nidra, a hesitant look in her eyes.

“What is it Candy?” asked Nidra.

“Nidra, I know you like-like T.”

The alicorn thestral stopped dead in her tracks and stared at Candy incredulously. “I-I-I…”

“I’m not saying it’s a bad thing or anything. Just…” Candy seemed to be choosing her words carefully, not wanting insult or anger the mare beside her. “I was hoping that you could keep the flirting down to a minimum when around T, I mean, I know he’s attractive and sweet and kind, but he’s also kind of oblivious at times…I just don’t want you to get into something that could potentially hurt you or him, if that made any sense.”

Nidra blinked. I swear to Faust on high and the All Mother Zacherle that this mare is psychic or something!

Oh calm down it’s not like she can hear me, Candy’s weird and random like her mom, but she isn’t “psychic”.

“Also, I’m sure you have a little nagging voice inside you that’s probably telling you it’s a good idea to hit on him, but I don’t think you should listen to it.”

…Okay, this mare officially scares me now…

Shaking off Candy’s words, Nidra adopted her normal bad filly look. “I know Candy, Faust, why would you think I was going to flirt with T in the first place?”

Candy looked down at the ground, ashamed. “Sorry…I just wasn’t sure if you were doing it on purpose or if you weren’t aware of it. So I wanted to make sure you didn’t get hurt…”

She…Candy’s trying to look out for me. Keep me from having my heart broken.

Well that’s kind of insulting; she’s saying you don’t have a chance at all.

Just shut up!

Nidra raised her wing and placed it over Candy’s shoulder. “Don’t look sad okay, I know what you mean, and I won’t. Besides, I already made a promise with Annie that I plan on keeping as well.”

Gaining a cheerful smile from Candy, the two pressed on. It didn’t take them long before they arrived at the whimsically designed house. Candy knocked on the door. Normally they would just go in, the house doubling as a clothing store, but since the “closed” sign was up, etiquette dictated that one should knock before entering another’s home. Candy tapped the door a few times with her hoof, and rang the bell that hung above for good measure. It didn’t take long for them to hear the clip-clop of hooves come rushing towards the front door, along with an energetic voice accompanying it.

“I got it! I got it!”

The door was quickly opened by Pixel Bit who smiled at blue earth pony mare before her.

“Hi Pixie!” Candy chirped.

“Hi Candy!” The unicorn filly then turned her attention to the mare beside Candy, eyeing her suspiciously. “Who are you?”

“My name is Jet Stream, I’m a friend of Turquoise,” said Nidra.

Pixel eyed the mare critically, making the alicorn thestral a bit nervous at how serious she was looking at her. She knew that Illusion’s glamour charms were undetectable, and that it would take a highly skilled unicorn or alicorn to actually see through the guise. Yet stranger things have happened, for all Nidra knew, this Pixel could be a prodigy and was in fact highly skilled. After another tense moment of staring, Pixel gave Nidra a deadpan look.

“Yeah, right, I know all of T’s friends, and I’ve never seen you.”

Nidra was stumped, she was sure she had met Pixel Bit at least a few times before whenever she visited. Although, to be far, Nidra wasn’t assuming her alter ego Jet Stream, at the time.

“Pixie –”

Before Nidra could finish or even begin her sentence, Pixel Bit had somehow managed to get Cotton Candy into the house, the filly then stood before the mare, her right hoof resting on the edge of the front door.

“Look ‘Jet Stream’ my cousin is missing his fillyfriend right now, and doesn’t need some random mare coming to see him, so not to be rude but, goodbye!”

With that Pixel Bit promptly slammed the door in Nidra’s face, leaving the disguised alicorn thestral standing there, dumbfounded.

Did that filly seriously slam the door in my face?

There was some intelligible murmuring going on inside the house that Nidra’s ears were able to pick up on, some of it sounded surprised and just a tad bit angry. After about a minute or two Nidra heard heavier hoofsteps approaching the door, she stepped back, knowing full well who it was going to be. The door then opened and revealed the bulky form of Turquoise Blitz. At first Nidra felt a deep sense of worry at seeing the dracony’s appearance, he had bags under his eyes, like he hadn’t had a good night sleep. Even his ears were drooping against his skull and his mane had lost some of its luster. But, miraculously, seeing her seemed to make some of that tiredness ebb away.

“Ni – I mean – Jet Stream, you’re really here?!”

“Y-Yeah, I am,” said Nidra nervously.

The dracony stallion glanced over his shoulder; Nidra followed his gaze and saw that Pixel Bit was hiding behind Candy’s fluffy, curly tail.

“Pixie, this is a friend of mine and Candy’s. I know you don’t know her, but you know it’s rude to shut the door in somepony’s face like that.” Turquoise’s tone was scolding, authoritative even, almost like a father. It was actually kind of sexy to see him act like that, a thought that Nidra promptly put away for the time being.

“Sorry cuz, I just…well…I’ve never seen her before, and she’s kinda scary and pretty and…I didn’t want you to…”

Nidra leaned up a little so that she was closer to T’s ear. “Turquoise, Pixel Bit’s never seen me in my Jet Stream disguise; don’t be too harsh on her. She’s just looking out for her favorite cousin.”

After hearing this T relaxed a bit, his gaze less intense. Turquoise walked over to where Candy was, the earth pony mare smiling at the green dracony as she moved her tail a little to reveal Pixel Bit. He then lowered his head so that he was at eye level with the unicorn filly. Pixel Bit sniffled a little, she didn’t like it when T was angry, and she liked it less when she was the one who made him angry. Pixel kept her gaze downcast, not wanting to meet his eyes.

“Hey, I’m not mad okay Pixie? You didn’t know, but Jet Stream is actually a good friend of mine. Annie knows her, so does Candy and some of my other friends. But regardless, you really shouldn’t slam the door in somepony’s face, that’s not good manners and you know Aunt Rarity wouldn’t like it if she heard about you doing that. So no more of that, alright?”

Pixel nodded in understanding.

“Good.” Turquoise leaned forward and nuzzled the side of Pixel’s face, making the unicorn filly smile from the contact. “No more frowny faces either, you’re cuter when you smile Pixie.”

The unicorn filly giggled and nuzzled her cousin back. She then looked to Nidra and walked over to the disguised mare and stood in front of her. She rubbed the back of her left foreleg nervously as she gazed up at the slightly scary pegasus mare.

“Um…Sorry Miss Jet Stream…”

“Miss”?! I’m not that old, I’m only eighteen years old!

Nidra took a deep breath, knowing that Pixel was just trying to be polite. “It’s alright Pixel Bit, you were just looking out for Turquoise, I understand.”

After that little misunderstanding was taken care of, Nidra and Turquoise left the house and went on a walk by themselves. They weren’t going anywhere in particular, just going wherever their hooves took them. Nidra could already tell that T’s mood was uplifted, even though they didn’t talk much, it seemed as if Nidra’s presence alone was making him feel less anxious and more calm and happy.

“So…how have you been?” asked Nidra, breaking the silence.

Turquoise sighed heavily. “Not so good, I guess. I know I shouldn’t worry so much, especially with Annie’s old friends, High Princess Twilight, and that ring of hers. But…”

“That’s why you’re worried,” Nidra finished. “T, you shouldn’t worry like this, it’s not healthy for you. I mean, I know you have a crazy strong immune system and stamina, but even you can’t keep being like this the whole time Annie’s away.”

“I know I know…I just can’t help it sometimes, I worried about her even before she got that ring. And now that she does have one it only makes it worse! Who knows what it’ll do to her! Her mind could be warped, she could turn to solid crystal, or she could…turn on everypony…”

Nidra stopped walking and looked at Turquoise seriously. “You know damn well Annie would never turn on her friends and loved ones, even if that ring made her, she’d die before hurting those she loved.”

Turquoise had a look of shame on his face for even contemplating that that might happen. That very look made Nidra curse herself for bringing it on.

Great job, you wanted to cheer him up and now you went and made him sad again.

I didn’t mean that, but it’s true! Annie would never do that and she would die before hurting others!

Yeah, yeah, yeah, Anthea’s a saint; we should all be so humble as to follow her example, blah, blah, blah. Oh, I have an idea!

Really, oh do tell? Nidra made sure the voice heard her sarcastic tone.

Invite him to stay with you in Canterlot for a bit.

Excuse me – what?!

It’s perfect! Look, being in this town isn’t doing the big guy any good. Surrounded by reminders of Annie every day doesn’t exactly help him relax. Just bring him to Canterlot, show him a good time and help him to worry less on Annie and focus on youinstead.

Nidra was about to rebut the voice’s suggestion, but the more she thought about it, the more the voice had a point. Being in Ponville and surrounded by constant reminders of his fillyfriend wasn’t exactly helping him to stop worrying, and at this rate, she was sure that the healthy dracony would undoubtedly fall prey to sickness if he had to endure this long period of Annie’s absence longer than anypony might have calculated or expected. Reluctantly, Nidra conceded the suggestion to the voice.

“Hey T, can I make a suggestion?”

“Hmm, sure, what’s on your mind Nidra?”

Nidra’s eyes shifted about, a slight blush forming on her cheeks. “What if you come with me and stay at Canterlot for a while. You know, get away from Ponyville and take your mind off things?”

Turquoise pondered the question; apprehension was gripping at his heart at the thought of leaving home. “Well…it’s not like I wouldn’t want to, but I just can’t up and leave like that Nidra. I’d need to talk it over with my Mom and Dad, and you need to clear it with your mom too don’t you?”

Nidra flip her mane hotly, “Please, I’m a Princess of Equestria; I can invite anypony I want to the castle anytime I want. Besides, you’re not a stranger or some foreign dignitary, and your dad used to work in the castle too so it’s cool. But, yeah, you probably should talk to your folks first. If they said yes, would you though?”

The green dracony stallion took a moment to collect his thoughts. For a moment the alicorn thestral believed she may’ve overstepped her boundaries or thinking that it might have been too soon to be asking him to go anywhere. After a few tense seconds, for Nidra anyway, Turquoise looked to the mare beside him and grinned.

“Sure. You know, if my Mom and Dad say yes.”

“GREAT –!” Nidra shut her muzzle, realizing she just said that too loud and out loud. “I mean, that’s cool. Let’s head back to your place and ask.”

The two hybrid ponies turned around and made their way back to Carousel Boutique. Nidra had a pip in her step as she walked side-by-side with the stallion she had feelings for.

You’re welcome by the way.

I never said thank you!

You didn’t need to.

A few miles away, halfway between Equestria Proper and Minotaurus…

Annie was sure that her friends were getting some kind of sick, sadistic kick from what they had her do. The trio had unanimously agreed to train her in the ways of combat, and in so doing they divided up who would be training Annie in what. Hot Head was going to work on her conditioning, putting her through various exercises to build up her stamina, endurance, and strength. Now Anthea was no stranger to hard work, she helped her mother take care of most of the critters around the cottage and in the forest, even when Golden Delicious would ask for help on the farm Annie was the first to volunteer.

That being said, what Hot Head was putting her through didn’t compare in the slightest. Hot Head had her doing pushups, sit ups, running circles around the workout area, and doing sprints from one end of the room to the other.

Lucky Star, with a little help from Twilight, was in charge of Annie’s magic defense and attack training. The unicorn stallion taught her how to use her magic bolts more effectively, as well as how to maintain a barrier while it was being assaulted. Case in point, one training session had Annie erecting a magic barrier around herself while Lucky lobbed one magic bolt after the other at her shield. Several times did her shield break, and several more times did she conjure it up again. Although she was getting better, it started to take at least five shots before shattering.

Amber Lily handled close quarters combat. The two of them sparred on a mat, where Annie had the privilege of finding herself on again and again. The earth pony mare instructed her how to move when close to an opponent, how to weave in and out, and how to strike when the opening presented itself. Of course the few times Amber did seem open was only a feint so that she could body slam Annie back to the mats.

Technically this was her fault, she had added to the condition of them training her that they wouldn’t go easy on her, apparently they obliged. Although Annie couldn’t help but think that they were taking it easy on her. She remembered the times Starburst spoke of her personal training and the Royal Guards’ training, how intense and serious it was. Comparatively, she thought they were only giving her a slight amount of the same punishment they endured. Annie noticed that each of them had an elated grin during each session.

They were the ones being put through training…taking orders and having to work hard to fulfill them. And now they get to be the ones giving orders and I’m the one who gets to suffer. Just wait you three…the day when I finally master that “Gender Swap” spell – Whoa-ho-ooooooh-nelly – are you in for a rude awakening!

That thought often brought a mischievous grin to her face. Now, when it came to using the ring, there were different conditions. One: Twilight and the Trio were to be present during any experimentation with the ring. And two: the testing would be done on the ground in an uninhabited area. Twilight had the captain of the Avalon set down the warship in an open field, far from any minotaur or pony settlement, and far enough away from forests that the woodland creatures would not be injured. The crew of the ship were more than willing to accommodate this order, since none of them wanted the ring Annie was wearing to do something dangerous and damage the ship, better it happen on the ground than hundreds of feet in the air.

Annie stood in the middle of the open field, with her mentor and friends standing by a few feet away upon her request to give space to work. What the ring had told Annie about creating “constructs” stuck in her mind, and, after looking up all of Starburst’s exploits as the Fear Lantern, she was able to determine what the ring was capable of creating. Since the two rings of Fear and Love appeared to have almost similar functions.

It seems like almost nothing is impossible to make with the ring’s power. So long as you imagine it clearly it will appear, but I must also feel the love in my heart or it won’t form.

Anthea sat on her haunches and pointed her right hoof in front of her. The ring glowed as she set to concentrating, forming an image of what she wanted to make real. She decided to go for something she knew well, or rather someone. Violet-pink light flashed before Annie, the light started to solidify until it was a crystalline light construct of Turquoise Blitz himself. Annie gasped at the sight, everything from his mane, spines, the membrane of his wings, the number of scales on his body, and even the kind and strong look in his eyes was a perfect match.

Twilight, never one to pass up a research opportunity, was busy scribbling down everything she saw. Hot Head snorted, wishing Annie had created something cooler with the ring’s power than her coltfriend.

“Looks like even if it perfectly recreates a pony’s appearance, it doesn’t change the color to match, it must be a result of the power source, this ‘violet light of Love’. That would explain why all of Starburst’s constructs were yellow in color, even though some of the things she did create would naturally be different colors and shades,” said Twilight.

Annie, having been staring at the construct longingly, sighed heavily and dismissed her creation. The construct still holding its smile as it changed into fragments of crystal and light. Moving on, Annie created another replica, this time of her mother. The light flashed once again, and the full bodied form of Fluttershy was standing in front of Anthea. Feeling confident, the unicorn mare decided to run the whole gambit.

Multiple flashes of violet-pink light appeared before Annie, one right after the other. After a few short seconds all of Annie’s friends and family were standing before in the form of crystalline light constructs. Each of them moved and shuffled about, showing that they were not statues but moving creations. Everypony was there, even replicas of Hot Head, Amber, Lucky, and Twilight…and Starburst at the head of the group.

Hmm…If I layered them with a glamour charm, they could look just like the real thing! Oh my gosh, when Prism gets back, him and Candy are going to get pranked so hard!

Filing that devious plan away for the time being, Annie decided to push the limits of how much the ring could really create. Dismissing her constructs, Annie went to work on a more elaborate creation. She stood on her hind legs as the ring shined brighter than before, the ground beneath her hooves crystallized, spreading outwards and creating a platform a hundred feet wide. The pink unicorn then gently raised her forelegs, causing the crystal to move with her. Pillars rose up and to a point and stopped, walls formed around the pillars and stretched up to meet the points. The foundation extended a bit more as even more pillars and walls were erected, building up the structure more and more.

Twilight and the trio watched this spectacle as half of the structure was completed. They could see it after a little time; Annie was trying to recreate Canterlot Castle. The castle rose up higher and higher, almost half the height of the real thing. Annie stood within the crystal building, watching as her creation continued to grow. However, Annie didn’t notice just how much dimmer the light of her ring was getting the more she pushed this creation.

The towers were now created, Annie didn’t know much about the interior save for a few rooms and the throne room, so she just focused on the exterior. Although, she had to admit, it was getting a little harder focus on the crystalline construct, especially when she had to squint her eyes a little to see it, but she wasn’t too worried about it. With a wave of her right hoof, Anthea finished the recreation of Canterlot Castle, the entire thing, from what the others could tell, was simply beautiful. The sunlight passed through the violet crystals, making it sparkle and shine.

[Warning: Power levels are at 20%.]

“Wait what?”

Annie could feel the construct waver; she concentrated harder trying to keep the castle together. But she gasped when she noticed that the construct wasn’t the only thing wavering, her vision was too!

“WHAT’S HAPPENING?! MY EYES, EVERYTHING’S –?!!!”

[Power levels are now at 15%. Cancelling the construct is highly recommended.]

“DO IT!”

The recreated Canterlot Castle showed cracks all along the crystals, and in the blink of an eye, the whole thing shattered apart, changing into fragments of shimmering star sapphire and dematerializing into particles of violet-pink light. Chunks of the castle fell off and for a moment the others thought that the debris would crush Anthea, but their fears were put to rest as they witnessed the entire thing burst into pieces, and then into sparkling light, leaving Annie standing where she was when she made the castle.

[Power levels at 10%, now entering Power Save Mode.]

The four ponies breathed a sigh of relief, but that relief was short lived when they noticed that the unicorn mare was huddled down onto the ground. All four of them ran to the unicorn mare with worry in their hearts, when they got there, Annie was in a full blown panic, shivering and frantically swiveling her head to and fro as if looking for somepony.

“Anthea what’s wrong?!” asked Twilight.

“I-I-I can’t see anymore!”

Those words hit the others like a ton of bricks, their eyes wide with shock from hearing this. Was it all just a trick of the ring? Was Annie’s ability to see just temporary? They couldn’t imagine this to be true, it was too cruel to give someone who was practically blind their whole life the ability to see, and then rip it all away.

“…Y-You mean…” Twilight fought a lump from forming in her throat. “You’ve completely lost your sight?!”

“Well…not ‘completely’…it’s just; my sight is back to the way it was before, just colored blurs.”

Everypony, except for Annie, let out a small sigh of relief, even though it wasn’t good news, it was better than her losing all of her sight.

“I don’t understand, you could see before, so why can’t you now?!” asked Hot Head angrily, more at the situation and the ring than at Annie.

“I-I don’t know…I…” Annie stood up on shaky legs; Lucky Star quickly went to her side and held her hoof in his, resorting back to the old ways of staying by her side. “Thank you Lucky…”

“A-Any time,” said the unicorn stallion, a slight blush forming on his cheeks.

“I heard the ring saying something about ‘power levels’ and then my vision became blurry like it used to be, I cancelled the construct and now my eyes are back to the way they used to be…” Annie sniffled a little at the loss of her sight. “Why…Why did this happen?”

Twilight moved closer to Annie, she leaned in and looked the pink unicorn mare in the eyes. It was true; her light-blue eyes were dull once again, lacking the vibrancy of when they were healed.

“‘Power levels’…? Wait…could it be possible?” Twilight asked herself.

“Could what be possible Princess?!” asked Amber.

“Anthea, you said the ring was talking about ‘power levels,’ ask it to tell you about it again.”

Annie nodded and gingerly raised her right hoof to bring the ring to chest level. She paused in her question, wondering if something bad would happen. She leaned a little closer to Lucky for comfort and security, the stallion not minding at all how her fur was brushing against his. With a bit of trepidation, Annie asked the question.

“Um, ring, what was it you were saying earlier about ‘power levels’?”

[During your creation of the castle construct my power levels began dropping to maintain the construct. Your concentration was excellent, but my power levels during your time training were at less than 50%. Had I been at full power your construct would’ve held. As such, I had to advise you to stop lest my remaining power drop to zero.]

Twilight pondered the words of the ring. “So what you’re saying is that your power isn’t infinite but finite.”

[Correct.]

Just then a thought popped into Lucky’s head. “Wait minute, now that makes sense!”

“What does?” asked Hot Head.

“Back when we were guarding the vault where Princess Starburst’s ring was kept, she called for the thing and it passed through the vault door to her. It said something about how low its power levels were and that it needed a recharge!”

The memory rekindled in Amber’s mind as she too remembered that night. “You’re right, it said that after calling for this ‘power battery’ it would be completely out of power. She pointed her ring out and it opened some kind of portal, afterwards some yellow lantern floated out and landed in front of Starburst. The ring didn’t glow anymore when that happened, it was already dim when it appeared to her, but when she did that it wasn’t shining anymore, kinda like how yours is Annie.”

[Recharge is highly recommended.]

Annie looked to Twilight for guidance; she didn’t know what do right now, although she calmed down, a part of her was still afraid. She didn’t know why her eyes reverted back to their former level of clarity, and now her ring was almost out of power. If she didn’t recharge it, she wouldn’t be of any use to anypony on this mission, there would be no point.

Twilight saw the look Annie was giving her, an almost pleading, desperate look for instruction. After thinking it over for all of thirty seconds, Twilight made the decision.

“Annie, ask the ring how you can recharge it. We’ll deal with this problem first.”

“Okay.” Annie spoke with a little more confidence. “Ring, how do I recharge you?”

[You must call forth your Star Sapphire power battery, once summoned; you must place me to it – while wearing me – and speak the oath of the Star Sapphires to initiate the recharging process.]

“And where is this ‘power battery’?”

[Within a pocket dimension that is only accessible to you.]

Twilight quirked an eyebrow at that, she had studied up on the theory of different dimensions, ones that could potentially have intelligent life or ones that had utterly nothing within them, basically acting as a huge storage space for whatever the user had. Twilight had once thought about playing around with such a thing so that she could store more of her collection of magical tomes for better access, but there were too many variables involved. For one thing, she wouldn’t know if the pocket dimension would be a suitable place for books, and there was the fear of not being able to connect to it, resulting in the loss of all her precious tomes. Needless to say, she was definitely intrigued now to see how this worked, even getting a piece of parchment and a quill ready.

“So I just point you and you’ll bring it out?” asked Annie.

[Correct.]

“A-Alright…you guys might want to stand behind me, if you want to.”

Twilight, Amber, and Hot Head did just that, but Lucky stayed close to her, knowing that she’d probably freak out if she didn’t have anypony there next to her, giving her contact. Annie pointed her right hoof out to the open space and gulped.

“Okay, um, I’m ready.”

[Initiating power battery retrieval.]

The ring fired a beam of violet-pink light that punched a hole in the middle of the open space. From the other end the light drew out a large object, a violet lantern. The lantern slowly exited the portal and landed before Annie, the portal closing as soon as the lantern touched the ground. Annie brought her hoof down and began feeling the lantern, normally she’d use her horn to get a better idea of how it felt, but even with just her hoof Annie could sense the power radiating through it and into her, it’s shape wasn’t that odd, big and obtuse at the top and bottom, and a rounded center with an open port for the light to shine through.

She also made note of the handle bar that rested on the ground, strange that she would be called a “Star Sapphire” while her main source of power was a lantern.

[Now Annie, place your hoof into the open port and speak the oath of the Star Sapphires.]

“B-But I don’t know the oath!”

[Place me within and repeat after me.]

Annie nodded and motioned for Lucky Star to move away from her. She became a little panicky when she felt him leave, but Annie didn’t want something to happen to him while he was close to her. Taking a deep calming breath, Annie placed her hoof into the port, the reaction was immediate. The lantern blazed to life, shining forth with the stored power of the violet light of Love. Anthea could feel it coursing through her foreleg, into her heart, and to the rest of her body, filling her with its radiant, loving power.

[For hearts long lost and full of fright…]

“For hearts long lost and full of fright…”

[For those alone in blackest night.]

“For those alone in blackest night.”

[Accept this ring and join our fight…]

“Accept this ring and join our fight…”

[Love conquers all with violet light.]

“Love conquers all with violet light.”

At that moment the light from the lantern released and glowed brighter, almost blinding the others. When the light faded Annie was garbed in her Star Sapphire uniform, she drew back her ring from the port, its form now glowing just as brilliant as the day she first received it. Even though the light was bright, Annie didn’t close her eyes, it didn’t hurt her to look directly at it. Just then Annie gasped, the blurriness of her surroundings started to sharpen with each passing nanosecond until everything was crisp and clear.

[Power levels now at 100%.]

“I…I can see again!”

The others moved closer to Annie, inspecting her for any changes or damage. Satisfied that there were no visible injuries, they allowed themselves to smile at hearing the good news. But Twilight was still inquisitive.

“I don’t understand, why can you see better now that the ring is charged, but you couldn’t when it was at a lower power level?” asked Twilight.

“Yeah, why is that ring?”

[One of my primary functions is to ensure the survival of my bearer, you Annie. As such, I am equipped with a cellular regenerator, which enables me to heal minor injuries done to you, through battle or otherwise. When I placed myself upon you I immediately ran a scan of your physical makeup and found that your eyesight was less than adequate to fight as a Star Sapphire.

Since it was a preexisting condition I could not heal it, but further analysis revealed that your internal energy, your “magic” as you call it, is connected directly to your eyesight. I infused the power of the violet light into this same physiology, allowing me to enhance your eyesight to a 20/20 level.]

Annie’s ears drooped at hearing this information, “In other words, if I use too much of your power my eyes will go back to the way they were. But at the same time, if I overuse my magic then I’ll lose my sight completely until my magic regenerates or I recharge you.”

[Correct…I am sorry Annie, while the violet light of Love is powerful; it is incapable of performing healing of that level.]

“No, it’s alright, better I know now than in the middle of a fight. I’ll just have to be more careful about how much power you have.”

Hot Head snorted at hearing that. “I’m starting to think that this whole thing was a really, really bad idea! Annie can’t fight now that we know that, she’ll be in even more danger!”

“For once I’m agreeing with Hot Head,” said Amber, “if the ring runs out in the middle of a battle Annie will be completely vulnerable until she recharges – if she even gets the chance.”

Annie turned to her two friends, her eyes a crisp light-blue and the dullness of her pupils gone. “I’m not quitting now, I just have to be more careful, fight smarter not harder.” The unicorn mare then began to move away from her friends and mentor. “Excuse me; I need to train a little more before we leave.”

Before she got far, Annie used her ring to create a lasso that wrapped around her power battery and tied it so that it hung over her right shoulder.

Annie, your determination is admirable, but please, don’t let it consume you, thought Twilight.

Griffonia, Royal Palace…

“You want us to do what?!” Silva shouted.

Silva the Beast Wing and Carmen the Blood Wing, along with a few of the generals of the Griffon Empire army were standing before their Empress, Gilda. The griffoness, garbed in her royal regalia, had proposed to them a plan to get around the Saddle Arabian defenses, a plan that Silva felt the need to question.

“You heard me; I want to send our reinforcements through the Long Road. I have reviewed the maps of that area and found that there’s a passage that leads directly to Saddle Arabia. We can sneak behind them and attack them from behind. While their main forces occupied with the ones on the front line, we can swiftly make our way to their capital from the passage and strike. Their front line will be in a state of confusion, it’s a classic pincer move, and one I’m sure you’re all aware of.”

Carmen stepped forward. “Your Highness, it’s not that we aren’t aware of the passage or the tactic that we can employ to strike Saddle Arabia down. The Long Road goes through Minotaurus, a nation that is neutral to our war. If we use the Long Road, which passes directly through minotaur territory, we run the risk of antagonizing them and possibly other neutral nations.”

Gilda, who dug her talons into the throne, glared down at the red female griffon. “Do you think I am stupid, Commander Carmen?”

Carmen flinched, “No your Highness! I just think that maybe we should not use the Long Road, given the recent actions of the rogue Pretenders.”

Gilda rose from her seat and walked down the steps to Carmen the Blood Wing. The regalia clad speedster stood before Carmen and looked her directly in the eyes. “Again, do you think I am stupid?! I know all of that! But I also know that neither you,” Gilda then glared at Silva, “nor him have made any headway in either of your areas. The actions of the Fear Lantern have kept us from advancing further than we should be! So, either we wait until one of you deals with the Fear Lantern, or we can gain some ground!”

The other generals gulped at seeing the newly crowned Empress get right in Carmen and Silva’s faces, she may be the Empress but those two were undoubtedly the two most dangerous griffons in the entire empire. Silva snorted, grinning in respect to how the young Empress bared her fangs and sharp tongue at the both them. Carmen on the other hand, while happy that the Empress had seemed to have grown a pair, was a little annoyed by Gilda getting in her face. The last creature – a pony mare she believed – who did that ended up, well, let’s just say that there was a lot of blood.

“This is my order, send the 808th Legion and the 702nd Legion as well, we’ll strike hard and fast. Is that understood?!”

The griffons struck their fists against their chests and proclaimed in one powerful voice, “Hail, Hail!”

Gilda nodded, “Now leave me.”

The gryphoness watched as the generals and two Wing Commanders left the throne room. The moment the large double doors closed Gilda let out a long held sigh, her shoulders slumped as the tension left her body.

“Oh good Grafas, I thought she was going to slit my throat! Or Commander Silva was going to, literally, bite my head off!”

“Oh I don’t know sister; I think you did quite well.”

Gilda looked to the shadows of one of the pillars in the room. From it emerged Nox, smirking at his big sister satisfactorily. The griffoness let out a loud scoff at her little brother’s comment.

“And despite what you may think, those two wouldn’t kill you, most likely curse your name under their breath, but not kill you.”

“Nox…I…I don’t know about this plan…Do you really think it’s necessary to send two-thousand troops through the Long Road? What if we end up aggravating the minotaurs? We’ll have to fight them too if they get wind of this,” said Gilda, her voice carrying a tinge of worry.

Nox made his way to his sister and placed his claw on her shoulder. “Relax my sister, the 808th and 702nd will be more than enough, the airships will take some doing to get through the Long Road but it can be done.”

Gilda sighed heavily again. “I just don’t want to make a big mistake here Nox; I want to be the Empress that our Empire deserves!”

“And you will, remember that no matter what they say I will always be here to support you and to protect you.” Nox then drew Gilda in for a hug. “You can always take solace in knowing that the shadows will keep you safe, because that’s where I’ll be.”

The griffoness returned the hug. “Thanks Nox…”

What Gilda didn’t see, however, was that Nox had a toothy grin splitting his face.

Yes…it’s all part of the plan, just as you are, my dear big sister.

Alliances / Arrival

Alliances / Arrival

The journey back to Minotaurus was long but eventually they arrived. Per some instructions given to them before the start of their journey, the Avalon was to land at a designated spot and from there King Fist would greet them and stipulate any further instructions regarding their investigation into the Long Road.

The airship landed near barren terrain a little outside of Minotaurus Proper, the Gates of Volkan, the entrance into the Long Road, several miles behind them, the mountain range visible even from this distance. Annie, the Troublemakers, and Twilight waited near the Avalon’s bay ramp, waiting for the king to arrive. Their wait wasn’t long as they soon saw large chariots come rumbling towards them. The chariots were pulled by two very large and angry looking razorback boars, with long goring tusks, dark brown fur, and gleaming eyes.

The chariot skidded to a halt as the two boars came to a stop. Two more chariots thundered behind the first, coming to a stop on either side of the king’s chariot. King Fist hopped out of the chariot, followed by his personal guard. He wore a mauve cape, clasped with the royal seal of Minotaurus. The king stopped before Twilight and Annie, the Trio readied themselves in case something happened.

Twilight and Annie gave respectful bows to the large minotaur. “King Fist, on behalf of Equestria and its citizens, I’d like to say thank you for permitting us to investigate.”

King Fist grunted as he folded his burly arms across his chest. “Your thanks in unnecessary, while I trust the griffons’ word that the attack on me, my son, and you, was the work of rogue factions, the point is that we lack the means to quickly travel through the Long Road to find out how they got here in the first place. Your airship will ensure that there are no further surprises waiting for us, griffon or otherwise.”

“Still, thank you,” said Twilight.

“Just know that if you encounter griffon forces while in there you will receive no support from us. If you fall in there then it is your own undoing, our hands are clean of this. Is that understood?” King Fist asked while staring at Twilight with a level gaze.

Annie and Twilight couldn’t help but feel small – stature wise the minotaur was bigger, but as far as intimidation was concerned, he had the high ground – but they nodded respectively to his terms. Once that was out of the way, the five ponies reentered theAvalon and set forth on their journey ahead.

The Avalon soon appeared before the entrance to the mountain range, a long chasm just big enough to fit their airship fortress. The captain and Twilight knew that the ship would not be able to fly at a higher altitude for fear of the strong winds smashing the ship against the jagged peaks, and to be able to turn around they had to find a wide enough area to do so. All in all, if they were attacked from behind it would really mess up their day. So with that in mind, the captain had all the crew members on standby at their battle stations, all guns and weaponry ready to be deployed at a moment’s notice, and by order of the captain, the Avalon entered the passage.

Tension was high within the ship, Annie for one stuck close to her friends on the bridge. She knew all her training with her friends was to prepare her for the moment when they would need her power to fight back against the griffons, but Anthea still had doubts about herself. The unicorn mare was not by any means a soldier, she wasn’t trained to fight, to take the life of another for Princess and country. She was a pacifist, and if anything the violet light of love symbolized that, but like a double-edged sword, the light also showed her resolve to protect those whom she loved. Annie noticed Twilight glancing at her from her command post, she then smiled at Annie, telling her in her own silent way that she needn’t worry.

[Detecting multiple life forms. Distance: 500 meters.]

“Wait what?!” Hot Head shouted.

“All crew members prepare to engage, I repeat, prepare to engage!” The captain yelled.

The alarms were sounding off one after the other, signaling all ponies within the ship to make ready their armaments, but just before the first cannon could stick out from the flying fortress, a trail of white smoke shot into the air some distance away. The trail went higher and higher till it burst in midair, releasing a white cloud of smoke.

“Wait captain, belay that order! That smoke is white, their signaling for non-aggression.”

“Um, Princess, maybe they're trying to lull us into a false sense of security, I wouldn’t put anything past them,” said Hot Head.

Annie moved closer to the window of the bridge, her ring shined as she focused its energy to create a pair of binoculars that hovered over her eyes. The pink unicorn then gasped at what she saw, turning her head to her mentor and friends.

“They aren’t griffons, they’re minotaurs! And Prince Steel is there as well!”

Everypony on the bridge of the Avalon couldn’t believe what she was saying. The ponies who acted as the spotters quickly looked through their own spyglasses, after a minute they too confirmed that it was Prince Steel and a contingent of minotaur soldiers down below.

“The terrain is level enough for us to land. Set the Avalon down here and we will go and meet them.” Twilight ordered.

Twilight was dressed her battle regalia armor, Annie was donned in her Star Sapphire uniform, and the Trio were fully covered in their experimental armor. Along with them were fifty Royal Guards, all marching behind the Princess and her protégé. The group of ponies stopped when they saw Prince Steel and his minotaur soldiers, keeping a sizeable gap between them. Twilight and Annie broke off from their group and walked towards the middle, and at the same time, Prince Steel and his lieutenant were walking to them. Both leaders met at the center, their respective forces at their backs.

“Princess Twilight Sparkle.”

“Prince Steel, why are you here, and with soldiers at that? Your father, the King, made it clear that we would receive no aid from your country, so again, what is your business here?” Twilight asked calmly.

Steel snorted, but grinned. “Appearances can be deceiving, Princess. Whatever that attack was about, it was clear that they had some inside knowledge of when you would arrive to Minotaurus, and where you would be during your visit. Meaning my kingdom has a leak somewhere, and make no mistake, we intend to plug it up once it is found. But with that in mind, it also indicated that there might possibly be an attack on Minotaurus in our future, so my father and I decided to lend you some aid. Behold.”

Prince Steel then gestured with his left to the minotaurs standing and waiting a few feet behind him. Each of them was donned in their bronze armor, carrying their shields which were bigger than them on their left arms, while holding a long spear in their right hands. Their capes flapped in the crosswinds of the mountain passage, their eyes each had a steely glare that seemed to pierce through whomever they laid their eyes upon.

“My 702nd battalion, otherwise known as the Brave Horns, three-hundred of my strongest and most skilled warriors, ready to fight.”

Hot Head felt the need to comment on the number. “Only three-hundred? We have an airship flying fortress, and five times that many Royal Guards on board.”

Steel smirked at the comment. “Tell me, pegasus, what is your talent?”

The others blinked in confusion, not many minotaurs took interest in a pony’s cutie mark.

“I’m fast, and blazing hot in the skies,” answered

“I see, and you former blind one?”

“Oh! I-I’m able to calm others with my magic.”

Steel nodded, “And you earth pony?”

“Hun, you don’t even want to know.” Amber shot back.

“I see…” Steel then turned to face his troops. “BRAVE HORNS, WHAT IS YOUR SPECIAL TALENT!!?”

The three-hundred minotaurs raised their spears into the air and released in singular voice “HA-OOH! HA-OOH! HA-OOH!” The chasm echoed with their voices, ringing out all the way down one end and the other. Steel then returned his gaze to Hot Head and grinned superiorly.

“Three-hundred yes, but each is worth fifty of your strongest soldiers. Only three-hundred, and yet I brought more warriors than you have.”

Hot Head spread his armored wings and growled angrily at the prince, but Anthea quickly looked at her friend, giving him as stern a look as she could muster to halt any reckless move he was even thinking about doing. Annie’s stare seemed to stave off his fury, seeing the pegasus stallion fold his wings and look away, very much miffed, but Annie knew he would not do anything else.

“Prince Steel, with all due respect, your country is neutral. Taking a stand with Equestria will paint a target on your nation’s back,” warned Twilight.

“Who said I’m taking a stand? I’m just a prince out for a leisurely stroll with his personal guard. If we just so happen to be in the area during a possible battle between you and the griffons and they threaten my safety, then my guard would have no choice but to defend me.”

It was quite a clever plan the Prince, and subsequently the King, were proposing, a secret alliance to help in the protection of both nations’ interests. The ramifications for the minotaurs were higher than for them. Minotaurus has remained neutral, and by taking a side they essentially mark themselves as targets of the Griffon Empire, now Twilight was wondering if this was their intention all along, forming a secret alliance in order for King Fist to assure the protection of his kingdom and people. There were many theories that Twilight could think about, but right now she was going to take a note from one of her friendship lessons, that being never to look a gift horse in the mouth.

“Alright Prince Steel, then the alliance of the Avalon and Brave Horn 300 is made. We shall work together in order to repel any threat that we may encounter,” said Twilight.

The Prince nodded his affirmation and Annie let out a relieved sigh, happy to see that the minotaurs were indeed on their side in this matter.

Canterlot, a few hours later…

Turquoise was a little reluctant to go to Canterlot, although he had been there a few dozen times before, it was still a bit scary. Some of the ponies there still gave him looks of shock and distress, seeing a half-dragon pony like creature tends to do that to a pony. And the fact that the upper crust mostly populated the mountain city didn’t make it any better. But Nidra was insistent that Turquoise stay a few days in her home. Luckily he was able to get the okay from his mom and dad, and why shouldn’t they have said yes, he was going to be living amongst friends that treated him as if he were their own.

Currently, Nidra and T were sitting in a private train car; both the alicorn thestral and dracony watching the scenery pass them by. T couldn’t help but still miss Anthea, he was so worried about what would happen to her with that ring. Granted she was a tough mare when she had to be, but Annie was not at all a fighter, not like his cousin Starburst, or like her friend Amber Lily. But then again the ring had the power to decimate an army and then some, so Anthea had more than a good chance of making it back to him.

As the dracony stallion thought about that day he saw his fillyfriend transform in front of him, he felt his cheeks heat up at the sight of her uniform. How the fabric hugged each curve of her body and accentuated them all at once. Now ponies didn’t wear clothes, except for extra fancy occasions, sometimes to just express a sense of individualism, and other times it was…a fetish. The fact that everypony wore nothing, made the act of covering their more private area that much more alluring. Turquoise shook his head violently, trying to dislodge the naughty thoughts of Anthea giving him a come hither look as she posed in her uniform.

Stupid sexy Annie! Don’t think about it! Don’t think about! We don’t need to create an awkward situation in front of Nidra!

Speaking of Nidra, T’s eyes drifted towards the hybrid mare before him. Her normally intimidating look had softened, for some reason it always seemed to do that whenever Nidra was around him. The stallion also noticed the elegant curves of the mare’s body, compared to Annie the two were just a tad bit different. Nidra was a bit thinner and skinnier than Annie, and the curvature of her form was more defined, he wondered if that was due to her thestral heritage or her alicorn heritage, maybe both.

Just then, the less than gentlecoltly side of his mind decided to chime in, his mind taking Anthea’s Star Sapphire uniform and placing it on Nidra. And, with a hint of guilt and embarrassment, Turquoise found that the outfit was just as alluring on her as it was on Annie.

THAT’S IT!

Turquoise then started to knock his head against the wall repeatedly.

Stop!

*Thunk*

Thinking!

*Thunk*

Dirty!

*Thunk*

Thoughts!

*Thunk*

About!

*Thunk*

Your!

*Thunk*

Friend!

“Um…T…are you alright?” Nidra asked.

Turquoise ended his berating and smiled awkwardly at Nidra. “Y-Yeah, I’m good! I was just thinking about how pretty you look –” Turquoise immediately slammed both his hooves over his mouth.

Nidra was blushing just as hard Turquoise was. The dracony stallion couldn’t believe he had just said that, of course it was true statement, Annie having had said the same thing to T about Nidra several other times before. But that was Annie, another mare, which, usually, meant something completely different from when a stallion said it to a mare.

“No, no, I didn’t mean that – Wait no, I mean you are pretty but I didn’t mean it in that way! I…I…I’m just going to shut up now.”

Nidra face was tinted red from hearing T say she was pretty. Nidra knew she was hot, that was nothing new, but to hear Turquoise say she was pretty…she wasn’t prepared for that. Nidra tried to put on her confident expression, but she was failing miserably at it. In the end she sighed and gave up on trying to hide her flustered look.

“I-It’s alright T, I don’t mind, I know what you meant. Thank you, that was sweet.” Nidra then turned her attention back to the passing scenery before adding. “And…I think you look good, too.”

Now Turquoise was the one looking more flustered and Nidra couldn’t help an impish grin from forming on her lips, knowing that she was the one who got Turquoise like that.

How much you want to bet he was imagining naughty things about us?

I don’t care, and even if I did, whatever he imagines in the privacy of his mind is his business.

Oh, then you imagining that T would ravage you like a beast in this train car hadn’t crossed your mind?

Nidra groaned loudly and, much to T’s surprise, the alicorn thestral began banging her head against the wall in much the same way Turquoise was earlier.

*Thunk*

You!

*Thunk*

Please!

*Thunk*

Stop!

*Thunk*

Talking!

“Um…Nidra…are you alright?” Turquoise asked.

The alicorn thestral stopped and looked at Turquoise; she then smiled sheepishly and nodded.

“Never better…!”

Thankfully, to the sanity of both ponies, they had arrived at their destination. The train’s brakes screeched as it came to a halt at the platform, letting out the hissing steam that created a fog for a few seconds before disappearing. T and Nidra, who was still in her Jet Stream disguise, left the train and proceeded to the castle. Turquoise had packed a single bag, he would’ve packed another but Nidra insisted that whatever he needed would be provided for by the maids at the castle. The thought of being waited on made the dracony stallion just a little uncomfortable, he wasn’t one to be waited on, since he was mostly the one helping others out, especially thanks to his ridiculously strong immune system, he was pretty much the go to pony when one of his friends was sick.

When they reached the castle gate, as expected, the Royal Guards all took an aggressive stance at the sight of the dracony stallion. Nidra discontinued the spell that held up the illusion and revealed her true form to the guards. They immediately stood at attention; she then gave them a stern lecture about how Turquoise was the son of an Element of Harmony and the Royal Archiver, and nephew to High Princess Twilight. She then ordered them to spread that to the other guards so that Turquoise could enjoy his stay without worrying about some stupid Royal Guard ambushing him within the castle.

After the two of them were further inside inner courtyard Turquoise turned to Nidra. “You didn’t have to do that Nidra, I’m used it.”

The alicorn thestral snorted indignantly. “Well that doesn’t mean it’s alright! Just because you’re half dragon doesn’t automatically label you a monster! I mean, considering who your parents are, and who you’re related to, you’d think they’d treat their children with a little more respect!”

Turquoise couldn’t help but chuckle at Nidra’s protectiveness.

“What’s so funny?”

“You remind me of Claire,” said T.

“I-I do?!”

Turquoise nodded. “Yep, she used to be super protective of me when I was a foal. I have this really faint memory of her promising that she’d protect me and keep me safe from others who saw us as monsters. And she kept true to her word, believe me. It was a task getting her to let Anthea anywhere near me, she kept thinking that Annie would try and bully me or break my heart in some way.”

Nidra’s eyes widened slightly, she had no idea Claire was that protective of her sibling, she had always thought that Claire and Annie had hit off when they were younger, becoming instant friends. Apparently the reality was a far cry different from what she initially thought.

“I wonder if she would’ve acted the same way around me…?” Nidra thought aloud.

“Probably not, the moment she saw your wings she’d probably think you were like us, still cautious, but less hostile.”

Hearing that made Nidra happy, knowing that if they had met sooner that she may’ve stood a better chance of becoming T’s fillyfriend and gain Claire’s approval probably quicker than Anthea did.

“That’s good to know, wonder how it would’ve been if I met you first,” said Nidra, saying the last portion under her breath.

“What was that?”

“Nothing!”

With that established, the two hybrids entered the palace. Many of the ponies inside bowed before the sight of Princess Nidra, but also shot worried glances between each other when they noticed a dragon flanking her. Luckily the word had spread to the Guards about Princess Nidra’s guest and the consequences that were to befall the unfortunate soul if any hostile or deferential treatment was shown towards said guest.

Nidra brought the dracony to his temporary room she blushed a little. “Um, just so you know, my room is just down the hall and to the left in case you need anything or if you just want to talk.”

Turquoise smiled at Nidra. “Thanks Nidra.”

The alicorn thestral then made her way to the door and glanced over her shoulder.

“So…ahem…you’re free to roam about the castle, you can go visit Nighty or Illusion anytime you want. If you want me to show you around town don’t hesitate to come and ask me, but I’m sure you know enough about Canterlot to find your way.”

“Actually, my family moved out of Canterlot a little after I was born. Claire and my Mom and Dad know Canterlot better than me; I just know where the castle is and wherever Star or Anthea and her three friends take me.”

“Oh, well duh, I forgot you didn’t stay here long, silly me!”

Way to act like an airhead.

“But I wouldn’t mind a tour, whenever you have free time,” said Turquoise.

Nidra nodded to T and exited the room, a gleeful pip in her step as she did so. The stallion of her dreams was staying with her under the same roof, and maybe, just maybe, if luck was on her side, she would be able to show the stallion the kind of mare she was and how happy she could make him. Nidra shook her head at that last part.

I don’t want to steal him from Annie; I want to cheer him up! That’s all!

I know plenty of ways we can ‘cheer him up’ if you catch my drift?

I WILL DESTROY YOU!

Perils / Sleep

The addition of the minotaur forces was welcome, even if it was only three-hundred of them. As they predicted, the wind speeds in the Long Road made it nearly impossible to fly at higher altitudes. The Avalon was able to fly smoothly at its current position, but for pegasi it would be a bit more difficult. Luckily this meant that any griffon resistance would be limited the same way, keeping any fighting between airships and ground forces.

The Avalon was almost near the Gates of Volkan, a crossroads that lead to Saddle Arabia, Minotaurus, and the Griffon Empire. There were several other passages for them to take, each one either leading to a valley or a dead end. They actively avoided dead ends; backing up an airship fortress was not easy in a confining space like this. Within the airship, the minotaurs mostly kept to the cargo bay; just as well, they liked to remain focused and ready at all times.

Currently, Anthea and Amber were in the training room, practicing more close combat techniques. The pink unicorn mare had grasped the ability to dodge and weave in and around her opponent’s attacks, and Amber was thoroughly impressed. She even figured out how to effectively toss another pony across the room, but now it seemed they had reached a sort of block. During their sessions Annie didn’t seem to throw a single punch, or even try to kick her. She either skirted her attacks by redirecting the blows away or going into leg sweeps. Admittedly this was good, but Amber knew this wasn’t enough.

“C’mon Annie, you can’t expect to win a fight if you don’t land a blow,” said Amber.

“I know, I know, I’m trying!” Annie replied in frustration.

Amber rushed towards Annie, rising on her hind legs to deliver a punch. Annie sidestepped the blow and spun around till she was behind Amber. The earth pony mare balanced herself on her forehooves and positioned herself to kick out with her hind hooves for a buck. Annie saw the attack coming and quickly jumped back just in time to dodge the attack. Luckily Amber caught herself and was able to get her hooves under her again.

Both mares stood off, brows and coats dripping with sweat as they panted from the workout. This time Annie was the one on the attack, she dashed forth, with Amber waiting to deliver a punch to the young mare, but once again Annie used her keen evasion skills to feint to the left. Amber realized too late that there was nopony there to hit and tried to correct it, but Annie was quicker, she dropped to the ground and swept Amber’s legs, sending the earth pony mare on the ground and landing on her back.

Annie then pounced on Amber, making her let out an “oomph” from the impact. Annie readied her left hoof to deliver the final blow, but she paused midway, now staring down at the mare whom acted as a big sister to her during her time in the orphanage. Amber saw that Annie’s left hoof was slowly dropping; her expression became one of disappointment as she took advantage of Annie’s hesitation. Without warning, Amber quickly bucked Annie off her, sending the mare landing on her back. Before she had time to recover, Amber was already on top of her, bringing down her elbow till it rested just a few inches away from Anthea’s neck. Had she gone full force, the blow would’ve crushed her throat and windpipe all at once.

“You hesitated, again,” said Amber.

“I know…”

“You can’t keep doing that.”

“I know, I know, I just can’t…! I just can’t bring myself to hit you, alright! It won’t happen when the real fighting starts,” said Annie.

“Wrong, you should be treating this as if it were a real fight. Do you think a griffon would’ve been as nice? That one moment of hesitation was enough time for another griffon to skewer you with a spear, or even for the one you’re pinning to gut you with his claws.”

[I would never allow an opponent to blindside Annie.]

“Not talking to you alien-space-ring.”

The Star Sapphire ring let off a few sparks of violet light, showing its agitation.

“I’m sorry…”

“What will you do when Princess Starburst shows up? If she resists you’ll have to restrain her Annie because none of us can match her power, and it may involve you having to knock some sense into her.”

“………I get it.”

Amber sighed as she retracted her elbow, she then smiled a little and kissed Annie on the forehead.

“I’m not mad, but I will say you are getting better at this.”

Anthea smiled back, “Well, I have an awesome instructor.”

Just then they heard something hit the floor behind them. Amber and Annie both glanced in the direction of the door and saw Lucky and Hot Head standing there. Hot Head’s jaw dropped as his right eye twitched a little, while Lucky just smirked suavely and chuckled. Amber was about to ask what was up until she realized why. Looking down at herself and Annie, taking into account their sweat matted fur, panting from their sparring, and the position they were in, it didn’t take much to understand what this looked like out of context.

“Well Amber, I knew you two were working out, but I didn’t think that was part of the sparring session,” said Lucky.

“LUCKY!” Hot Head barked.

“What, like the thought didn’t cross your mind the moment you saw them?”

“T-T-That’s – I mean – Annie wouldn’t – Amber’s not –!” Hot Head continued to fumble over his words.

An impish grin formed on Amber’s lips as she rose off of Annie. “Oh, is my little Hot Head thinking naughty thoughts about Annie and me doing inappropriate things?”

“HAY NO!”

“C’mon, you’re a growing colt, it’s not like colts don’t think about this kind of stuff from time to time, no need to be shy,”  said Amber.

“Mare – you – ugh! You are seriously a pervert!”

“Oh, and who’s the bigger pervert? Us or the one ‘saluting’ us?” Annie asked, not even attempting to hide her own devilish grin.

“‘Saluting’? I’m not – oh crap!”

Hot Head immediately crossed all four of his legs.

“C’mon Annie, let’s hit the showers.” Amber suggested.

Annie got up off the mats and walked along side Amber, leaving the two stallions in the training room. Lucky then glanced at Hot Head, still smirking smugly.

“You know, I can lend you some of my magazines if you want?”

“I will seriously break off your horn and stab you with it!”

“Aaaaaaaaah~”

The showers’ soothing hot water cascaded over the two mares, letting the warmth relax their tired muscles from the sparring session. Anthea was glad that the ring was apparently waterproof, so she didn’t have to worry about taking it off when bathing. Annie ran her hooves through her long mane as the water fell over her, giving her mane and coat a sparkling sheen. Amber was much the same way, but you could make out the well-toned muscles now that her coat was watered down. Her training in the Royal Guard helped sculpt her body into a perfect balance of strength and elegance.

Annie couldn’t help but admire Amber’s form; again, now being able to see, she was dead set on making sure she committed every visual detail of her friends and family to memory. Although the ring gave Annie the ability to see, it was only as long as it was within a certain power percentage; otherwise her vision would revert back to what it once was until she recharged the ring. Although she knew she might have to give up the ring one day, part of her didn’t want to. Annie was able to see those closest to her for the first time in her life, not just hear them or see colored blotches. It was then that she sighed forlornly, gaining Amber’s attention.

“What’s up?”

“I think I’m starting to understand why Starburst didn’t want to give up her ring,” said Annie.

“O-Oh, and, uh, what do think the reason is?” Amber asked with worry.

“They grant you the one thing you’ve always wanted, that, or they grant you the power to obtain it. Starburst trained practically every day of her life to become a Royal Guard, but when her dream was denied, that yellow ring flew down from the sky and granted her the power to become what she always wanted…”

“But it didn’t make her Royal Guard.”

Annie shook her head. “No, but it did the next best thing, and it was what she really wanted all along, to become a protector of Equestria, to defend it with everything she had no matter who the enemy is.”

Amber thought for a moment. “So, what you’re saying is the Royal Guard was just a means for her to achieve that goal, but when she couldn’t join, the ring gave her a different avenue to pursue that dream.”

Annie nodded.

“And…did the ring grant you what you’ve always wanted?”

“I think so…I’ve always wanted to be able see, I know I say I’m alright and even though it’s been hard, I’ve found ways to make my blindness work for me and try not become a burden to everypony. But now that the ring has given me my sight back, I’m afraid of losing it…I may not be helpless, but somehow I feel weaker than ever…”

Annie then gave a little “eep” when she felt Amber come up from behind her and give her a hug, draping her forelegs over her shoulders and resting her head on top of the unicorn mares’.

“You aren’t weak because you’re afraid of losing your sight. You just discovered a fear that some ponies have, nopony wants to lose their sight it’s just natural. You, Annie, are stronger because of it, sure it may be scary, but you know how to deal with it better than most.”

Annie held onto Amber’s hooves tight. “I just don’t want to let everypony down, I have this power, but I’m not a fighter, I try and try but I’m not like Starburst…”

Amber held onto Annie tighter. “And nopony expects you to be. There’s nothing wrong with disliking fighting, it’s gritty, it’s bloody, and gory, but unfortunately, there are those who can’t be reasoned with. Sometimes you have to meet them head on. Okay?”

Anthea sighs reluctantly, she knew Amber’s words were true, but that didn’t mean she liked it. There was always a better way, and hopefully her ring would show her one.

“Can I ask you a favor Annie?”

“Of course.”

“Don’t lose this, the kind, caring, and loving mare you are, don’t let go of her. Even with all this craziness going on around us, so long as you don’t lose yourself Annie, there’s still hope for everypony. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

Annie sniffled a bit and nuzzled up against Amber’s neck. “I won’t, I promise.”

“Good.”

[Warning: Enemy presence detected! Single enemy vessel approaching from the stern!]

“We’re trying to have a moment here and – Wait enemy vessel!!?”

The Avalon was under fire from a Griffon Empire airship, the enemy ship blasted the flying fortress from behind, unloading their arsenal upon the Equestrians. Within the Avalon, the captain and Twilight were trying to organize a counter offensive. This was one of the drawbacks to the narrow canyons of the Long Road, if an airship appeared in front of them they could easily blow it out of the sky, but their rear was open to attack and there was no room to turn about.

Another explosion rang off the canyon wall, sending chunks of rock and sediment cascading down to the ground below. The rear cannons were firing in succession, one after the other, but the Griffonian airship was in their blind spot, and they could only nick the enemy here and there. Hot Head and Lucky Star made it to the bridge to get a status update, followed by Prince Steel who was not happy with the jostling. The next to arrive were Amber and Anthea, both dripping wet from just running out of the showers.

“What’s going on?!” Prince Steel demanded.

“We’re being attacked from our stern, an Empire ship just rounded the corner as soon as we past one of the canyon passages, and now we’re taking heavy fire,” said Twilight.

“No kidding,” said Steel sarcastically.

“And we were so close to the Gates! We can’t fight back in this position we have to break for higher ground!” The captain suggested.

“The winds will throw us against the mountains and tear us apart!” Amber yelled.

“So it’s either get blown out of the sky or get shredded by the jagged mountain peaks, great options!” Hot Head grunted.

Annie looked to the incoming Gates of Volkan, a plan formed in her head, not a very safe one, but a plan all the same.

“Princess, how much time would it take for the ship to turn around in the Gates?!”

Twilight looked to her apprentice in confusion. “About two minutes, why?!”

With that said Annie ran through the doors of the bridge and headed up the stairs. She climbed one level after another till she reached the top. Taking a deep breath, she braced herself as she opened the hatch. The sound of wind and thunderous explosions echoed out from every direction, Annie cautiously stuck her head up and took in where she was at. She had made it to the top of the Avalon’s balloon, Annie quickly yet carefully got out of the hatch and onto one of the steel beams that held the balloon in place.

Anthea then pointed her ring away from her, mentally ordering the ring to bring out her power battery. A violet-pink light shined from the tear in space as the violet lantern landed before Anthea. She quickly thrust her hoof into the open port, activating the lantern, and feeling the power of love course through her.

“For hearts long lost and full of fright,

For those alone in blackest night!

Accept this ring and join our fight,

Love conquers all with violet light!”

A bright light shined from the top of the Avalon’s balloon, when it dimmed, Anthea was donned in her Star Sapphire uniform, her eyes shimmering with the same light of the ring for a few moments before changing back to their natural color.

[Power levels at 100%.]

“Great, now let’s make sure I don’t fall off!”

Anthea’s ring shined as a harness appeared around her barrel, from it shot out four construct cables that attached themselves to the metal of the girder she was standing on. The unicorn mare then raised her right hoof and pointed it at the incoming Griffonian ship, the ring shined brighter as a mass of star sapphire crystals formed in the space between their ship and the enemy's. The mass of energy and crystal then burst open, transforming into a giant heart shaped shield with the Star Sapphire insignia at its center. The griffon airship continued its barrage, firing one volley after the other, but no matter what they shot it with, the construct shield didn’t break.

Down below on the command deck, Twilight and everypony there watched as Anthea protected their rear against enemy attack.

“Why isn’t she firing back?!” Prince Steel asked.

“Because she’s giving us time to get to the gates and turn the Avalon around to counterattack, if one of those hits the engines we would’ve gone down. Captain, get us to the gates and prepare for a hard sidekick!”

All the ponies attending their stations looked upon the Princess with unease. “Ma’am, a sidekick has never been done in this tight a space before, and certainly not at the speed you’re thinking of doing this at!”

“Captain, I’m well aware of the Avalon’s specs, its strengths, weaknesses, and limitations, it can make this happen.”

The Captain was reluctant, but there was no other choice at the moment. “ALERT ALL HOOVES WE’RE GOING TO INITIATE A SIDEKICK, AND THAT ALL PERSONNEL ARE TO SECURE THEMSELVES AND BRACE!”

The command was sent out and now Twilight sent her own to Anthea. Using one of the telecrystals, she tuned to the frequency that the ring could pick up on.

“Anthea, can you hear me?!”

{Loud and clear Princess!}

“We’re going to attempt a maneuver to turn the ship quickly, it’ll be fast and sudden, try to hang onto something sturdy out there!”

{Yes Ma’am, will do!}

The Avalon continued forward, moving at twice the speed it was earlier in an effort to make it to the gates. Every pony and minotaur braced themselves for the inevitable shift that was to come, and hopefully survive. During their speeding towards the gate, Anthea continued to persevere in keeping the shield up, the griffon ship showed no signs of letting up its barrage, trying everything it could to pierce the obstacle in their way.

The bow of the ship finally made it to the entrance to the Gates of Volkan. Although “gates” was a bit a much, what it really was, was a giant five hundred meter wide circle that had giant canyon passages that spider webbed in different directions, and walls stretching just as high. The rocks that formed the mountainous region around here formed in such a way that over each passage was stony gateway, thus it was named after the minotaur who first discovered this area, Volkan, and from then on it was called the Gates of Volkan.

The ship continued forward, now halfway through the entrance, when Annie saw that the tail end of the ship passed through, she focused the shield to create a wall that completely covered the entrance, preventing the griffon ship from progressing any further and essentially keeping them pinned down.

“We’re through your Highness!”

“Okay, all hooves prepare for sidekick on my mark! Four…three…two…ONE! SIDEKICK STARBOARD!”

The Avalon’s starboard side engine lit up like a furnace, it then blasted a stream of fire continuously. The force and power generated by the engine made the ship turn its stern around quickly. All the crewmembers braced as they felt the g-forces of the sidekick ignition push them against the walls. Annie’s ring created a gyro sphere, allowing Annie to stay facing straight while the entire ship turned about, giving her a perfect view at the speed at which the flying fortress turned.

The ship’s bow was almost aligned with the passageway they came from, their momentum carrying them backwards towards another entrance.

“Now, fire the port side engine, and main engines full ahead!” Twilight ordered.

“Aye, aye!”

The second sidekick engine fired, causing the turning speed of the ship to slow down considerably until it leveled out, while the main engines blasted to keep the ship steady. Once the ship was properly aligned, all the engines ceased firing, bringing them to a hover, the crew of the Avalon all moaned and groaned as they tried to get their bearings from the sudden shifts in momentum and speed. Twilight cleared her mind as she tried to bring out the words she had ready in her mind.

“D-Damage report?!”

Most of the ponies on the intercom didn’t answer for a bit, but soon each section rang in with various reports of straining to different parts of the ship.

“It seems we didn’t take too much damage from the sidekicks, and the fires from the earlier attacks are all put out.” A mare crewmember spoke.

“Checking in from weapons, all cannons and munitions are stable and undamaged,” said a stallion.

“Alright, all hooves BATTLE STATIONS! ALL WEAPONS ARE FREE, I WANT EVERYTHING LOADED!” The Captain ordered.

Twilight went to the telecrystal to speak with Annie, worried that she might’ve been thrown off. “Anthea are you there, come in?”

{I’m here Princess, I’m fine. That was kind of crazy!}

“It felt crazy too. Listen we’re about to launch our counterattack, when I say so, release the barrier.”

{Understood!}

Outside the ship many gun ports opened up, along with rocket silos, each one primed and ready to fire. Once all weapons were loaded, the Avalon unleashed its righteous hellfire upon their enemy. Hot cannon mortar and blazing rockets sailed through the air as they approached the wall made of Anthea’s star sapphire crystals. The barrage was only a few meters away, any moment now it would hit against her shield.

“Bring it down now!” Twilight ordered.

Annie cancelled out her shield allowing the Griffon Empire frigate to exit the passage and right into the barrage of cannon fire and rockets. All weapons hit their mark as the griffon’s ship exploded magnificently, crashing down to the valley floor in the form of a giant fireball, where it exploded a second time, and turning into a heap of twisted metal and molten slag. Black smoke rose up and obscured the entrance, but it was of little concern.

[Warning: Second enemy vessel approaching, attack imminent!]

Anthea looked back with wide eyes as another griffon ship, a warship, plowed through the smoke and opened fire on the Avalon. The Equestrian warship quickly resumed fire, blasting the enemy with everything they had, although they were at a slight disadvantage, having taken damage earlier from the frigate and now the strain to the hull from the sidekicks.

One of the rockets from the warship zoomed outwards and made a wide arcing turn till it struck the port sidekick engine, blowing it up. Another rocket flew out and did the same, striking the starboard sidekick engine. The two explosions pushed the main engine to its boiling point causing it to shut down completely and leave them slowly falling to terra firma.

[Warning: Damage to hull and engines is critical, ship is rapidly descending!]

If this keeps up we’ll be blown up before we reach the ground! Anthea then looked to the enemy warship as her eyes narrowed with fury, their normal azure color changing to that of the violet light of love. I won’t let you kill my friends!

Annie raised her right hoof into the air, calling upon the power of her ring. A hundred feet above her, another mass of energy and crystals coalesced. The mass then elongated until it took the shape of an ornate spear. Annie then made a throwing motion with her hoof right hoof, causing the giant spear to hurl itself directly at the griffon warship. The enemy redirected its fire at the incoming object, but it was already too late. The spear pierced through the hull, slicing the warship down the middle and embedding itself there. At that moment the spear exploded, destroying the ship and sending it down in a massive collection of burning debris.

Anthea panted from the effort as her eye color slowly shifted back to normal. She put a hoof to her head as she came down from the rush of power she felt, but Annie didn’t have time to properly recover. At that moment the starboard and port side engines exploded and the main engines gave out to the strain. The ship’s steady decline in altitude was now becoming a sharp drop. Annie could feel the sudden shift as the Avalon fell from the skies. She could hear the alarms raging from the outside, the tension in the air, the fear. The ring could sense it as well; the chasm of despair and loneliness that would be created in the wake of all their deaths…Anthea couldn’t let that happen!

Her body flared up with the power of the violet light, the aura lapping off her body in the shape of flower petals as her horn blazed with light-green mana. She then pointed her ring into the air and –!

Canterlot Castle…

“ANNIE!”

Turquoise awoke with a start, the bed sheets flung off at his sudden rise. The dracony stallion huffed as sweat rolled down his brow, he looked around the room, instinctively wanting to protect and keep Anthea close, but it soon dawned on him that she wasn’t there. Within a span of a few seconds the doors to his room flew open as Nidra entered, looking worriedly at the dracony stallion.

“T are you alright?! I heard you yelling!”

When Turquoise regained his senses, fully recovering from the bad dream, he looked directly at the Princess of Slumber.

“Y-Yeah, I’m fine Nidra, just a bad dream,” said Turquoise.

“Don’t lie to me T, my Mom’s the Princess of the Night, and the Immortal Dream Walker, so I know a few things when it comes to telling the difference between bad dreams and nightmares.” Nidra explained.

Turquoise chuckled nervously, he really should’ve remembered who he was talking to, whom else but a daughter of High Princess Luna would be able to catch him in a lie about dreams. Turquoise felt a sudden shift in weight on the bed as he watched Nidra sit at the foot of the bed and looked at him with deep concern.

“I want to help you T, don’t pretend you’re alright for my sake.”

“You’ve done a lot for me already, getting your Mom to let me stay over for a while and letting me stay in the castle too.”

“Pfft, T, don’t forget who you’re related to. If you wished you could’ve asked for a more luxurious room, which can be arranged if you want?” Nidra asked, hiding the trepidation of the notion of having Turquoise further away from her room.

“No, no, that’s fine, I like this room. Besides, it helps knowing that you’re close by.”

Nidra couldn’t help but blush at the statement, knowing that her presence was comforting to him sent her heart a flutter.

“So, w-will you tell me what made you cry out like that?”

Turquoise looked away, towards the window into the vast night sky.

“T?”

“I…I felt something, like Annie was in trouble.”

“Oh…”

The dracony stallion let out a deep sigh. “I know she’s with Aunt Twilight and her friends, and has that ring. But I can’t help but feel that something bad has happened. I know I’m probably worrying for nothing, but I can’t help it…”

Nidra couldn’t blame him for worrying; she was the same with Starburst. She knew the pegasus mare was gritty, strong, and no pushover, she was completely relentless when it came to doing something, be it her training or her drive to protect Equestria. And although she had that powerful ring, Nidra couldn’t help but worry that she was in some distant battlefield, fighting tooth and hoof without anypony to help her, seen as a renegade and hero to the populace. Nidra sighed; she then gave Turquoise a small smile as a thought entered her mind.

“Do you want me to help you sleep?”

“Huh?”

“I…I don’t have the same calming magic that Anthea does, but my slumber magic has the same effect, ‘cept it does so after you’re asleep.”

“Oh, Nidra you don’t have to.”

“It’s better than you waking up in the middle of the night looking like you’re in a panic and about to fly out the window to Faust knows where. Please T…” Nidra moved closer to Turquoise and placed a right hoof over his. “…for my peace of mind at least?”

The last thing Turquoise wanted to do was to make his friend worry more than she had already, and admittedly, his sleeping has been hard as of late.

“Sure.”

Nidra smiled, she waited for Turquoise to lay back down before lighting up her horn. Her magic slipped out as tendrils of wispy mana energy. The spell fell upon Turquoise, making his eyelids grow heavy as he swiftly slipped into slumber. Nidra crawled up the bed till she was sitting on the left side, watching the large dracony stallion as he quietly slept. She couldn’t help but admire his sleeping form, Turquoise was the very definition of a “gentle giant”, big and strong, a fierce visage, but all that was the surface. Only those closest to him knew of his kind, caring, and protective sides. T was a great friend to all, willing to take care and aid them whenever they asked or needed it, and loving big brother figure to his cousin Pixel.

He truly is a great guy.

Yes he is, and I’m happy to know him.

He looks so tranquil thanks to your magic.

I hope he is. He deserves that much for worrying over…her.

You know, if he’s this deep asleep, maybe he wouldn’t notice.

Notice what exactly?

A kiss.

Nidra’s face went red at her inner demon’s suggestion. Even more when her eyes drifted towards the stallion’s sleeping face, focusing more and more on his lips. The thought was enticing, very enticing. For so long had she fantasized about pressing her own lips to Turquoise's, sharing in an intimate kiss, or even a light peck. And here was an opportunity to do just that, with the spell cast, there was little chance he would wake up until sunrise. Nidra took a cautionary look around the room, checking to make sure that they were indeed alone, fearing something would jump out of the shadows and deal out retribution for betraying the blind mare’s trust.

A…A quick peck…but that’s it!

No complaints from me go for it.

Nidra slowly leaned her head down, brushing her mane to the side to keep it from tickling the stallion and waking him up early. She could feel her heart pound against her rib cage with each passing second, her blush intensified, and her mouth quivered. She was now just a few inches away from touching her snout with Turquoise’s. Just a few inches, one miniscule gap separated Nidra’s lips from the love of her life. Nidra closed her eyes and gulped, puckering her lips in preparation to kiss Turquoise.

Just before their lips met, a mental image of Anthea flashed before her, along with the echo of the promise she made. Nidra quickly jerked back her head, eyes wide open, showing a slight orange tint around the edges of her irises, guilt and shame replaced the excited feeling she had earlier. She then lowered her head to the pillow and lied there next to the stallion.

This is enough; I don’t need to steal a kiss from him.

Eh, I’d call you a spineless coward, but you have a point. Better he be awake to enjoy it.

I won’t dignify that with a response.

Gates of Volkan, Five Hours Later…

The Avalon was situated at the entrance that led to what would’ve taken them to Saddle Arabia if they could still fly. Giant remnants of star sapphire crystals lay around the airship, still dissipating into particles of light. Many pony engineers were walking about the outside of the ship, checking it for any more damage and fixing as much of the engines as they could with the parts they had.

Twilight was inspecting the outside as well, having just finished doing so inside the vessel. Thankfully many of the crewmembers only suffered a few nasty bruises and bumps to the head thanks to the sidekick maneuvers, but otherwise they were still in good condition to keep going. Prince Steel and his three-hundred minotaur soldiers were busy securing the area, they knew that their downed ship made them an easy target for any future attacks. There was enough to worry about from the air; they didn’t need to get ambushed while on the ground. The Prince walked over to the High Princess noting her gaze upon her warship.

“How bad is this?”

“Bad, but could be worse. The engines are strained, so lift off will be hard. I could reconstruct them with my magic, but I’m not sure if the materials could take the infusion of magic in their condition, so we’ll just have to let the crew make repairs and see what we can do after that, we’ll be grounded for a while, something I don’t like given our recent incident.

Prince Steel snorted. “It would seem you were correct in the griffons using the Long Road and Gates to slip behind our borders. But you did notice that that was a frigate and warship, and if they were here, chances are there are more somewhere in the passages.”

Twilight and Steel looked out to the wide valley. Large passages that snaked and winded multiple ways, the two imagining an attack coming from one of those exits, the fear that a whole fleet or more could be awaiting them was a bit overwhelming.

“Thankfully, your ship couldn’t have crash landed in a better position. The Saddle Arabian Gate keeps both our flanks protected, while giving your weapons a clear line of sight to fire freely.”

“At best the Avalon is reduced to a fixed heavy cannon for the time being.”

Prince Steel looked among the various ponies scattered about, working feverishly to repair the ship, as well as the multiple Royal Guards that were constantly on patrol.

“I don’t see your protégé or personal guard, where are they?” Steel asked.

Twilight didn’t answer right away, thinking of the best way to put her answer. “They’re with my apprentice, she…she wanted to see.”

“See what?”

“The deaths she says she’s responsible for…”

Annie couldn’t believe she was capable of such destruction. She looked upon the twisted metal of the Griffonian warship. She used her ring to create an airtight bubble around the burning ship, starving it of oxygen to keep the fire from spreading. When it was out, Annie just stared at the charred remains of the ship, if there were any bodies in there they were surely burned beyond recognition. They may’ve been the enemy, but this…this was the first time Anthea had ever taken a life, and not just one, no, she killed at least a hundred or more in one blow by destroying the ship and annihilating the crew within.

Amber, Hot Head, and Lucky watched their friend with concern. Their first times taking the life of an enemy was hard; it’s never easy to take a life, even if it was the enemy’s. But knowing that they did it to protect themselves and those around them helped to ease it, only slightly though. But that was maybe a few, but this was many in one go.

Annie couldn’t believe what she had done; she killed so many, so quickly. Those were somepony’s mother, father, sister, brother, uncle, aunt, lover, or friend, and she killed them all. And the worst part was how easy it was, she now knew just how powerful the ring was and how Starburst was able to reclaim Cloudsdale on her own and devastate the Griffon Empire’s capital. The ring made you a one pony army, turned you into a weapon that could upheave a nation and lay waste to everything that stood against you, and it was nearly as easy as just thinking it. Annie felt a sudden sickness wash over her was the gravity of what she had done fell upon her, her eyes began to water as she wept for the lives he had taken, and then she felt her stomach lurch.

The former blind mare’s legs wobbled as she vomited, she did so a second time, and then a third, by the fourth her hind legs gave out and she fell to the ground on her stomach. She threw up a fifth time before she felt her nausea ebb away. Amber, Hot Head, and Lucky rushed to her side with worry. Sweat beaded down her face as snot dripped from her snout and her eyes continued to cry tears. Anthea panted heavily, trying to catch her breath from her vomit session.

“Annie just breathe normally, don’t hyperventilate or you’ll pass out.” Amber motioned for Hot Head to help her move Annie away from her puddle of bile to keep the smell from triggering another episode. Amber then removed her armor and sat down beside Annie, pressing her bare side next to the unicorn mare.

“Anthea just relax, feel my barrel as I breathe, try to match it. Breathe in…” Amber took in a slow deep breath. “And breathe out…” She then exhaled her held breath, making sure to keep close to Annie so that she felt it. “Just breathe with me, hun.”

Annie complied with the older mare, breathing in and out in time with Amber’s breaths. Slowly she was starting to get a handle on her breathing, her heart rate returning to normal. Her leg muscles however were tight and threatened to cramp up on her if she did anything too strenuous. So she just lied there next to Amber while Lucky and Hot Head kept watch, all the time glancing back worriedly at their surrogate sister. Lucky conjured a handkerchief for Annie to clean her face up, which she gladly accepted. Hot Head gave Amber his water canteen so that Annie could get a drink. Annie took small sips, swishing it in her mouth and then spitting it out to get the taste of throw up out of her mouth. Once she was sure she could keep it down, Annie took a longer sip and swallowed it, the cool liquid having a soothing effect on her sore throat.

“Thanks you guys…guess all that time being a nurse came in handy.”

“Well what’s the point of having that job if it couldn’t come in handy during situations like this,” said Amber proudly.

“And you say you don’t act like a mom,” said Hot Head.

“I never said I don’t act like one, I just don’t like being called ‘mom’.”

“Oh but you’re so good at it, Mom,” teased Lucky.

“Watch it Lucky.”

Annie giggled a little from the three’s back and forth, she glanced over at Amber, still hardly believing that she adopted the two stallions before her when she turned eighteen. They were always like family, but now it was like it was official.

“I can’t believe I did this…”

“Annie, you didn’t do anything wrong,” said Hot Head.

“Taking a life – lives – isn’t a good thing.”

“No, it isn’t, but they were going to kill us, you stopped them, and saved everypony on the Avalon.”

Anthea thought back to that moment…

~~~

Anthea channeled her magical and love light energy together; she then fired a sphere of violet light that flew down to the ground below. The sphere exploded and created a bed of star sapphire crystals, she then wrapped the entire ship in a combined aura of her light and magic. She slowed the ship’s rate of descent, bringing them to a near halt in midair. She then commanded the crystals below to rise, becoming a pillar that climbed higher and higher to meet the damaged warship.

The crystals opened up, becoming a platform for the Avalon to land on. Once gently placed onto it, Annie kept her control on the flying fortress while having the pillar retract, bringing them closer and closer to the Saddle Arabian Gate entrance. With a great effort the ship was finally brought to rest upon the bed of star sapphire crystals, despite their crystalline structure there was enough give for the ship to sink into it a little, as if it was a giant pillow. When Annie felt that the ship wasn’t in any danger she released her hold on it, feeling the draining effects of using her ring and magic in tandem with each other. Her vision was slightly blurred but nothing like it usually was, she could still make out things at a distance, but close up was another story.

“Ring, is anypony hurt?”

The violet ring let out a pulse wave that washed over the entire ship, after few seconds the wave ended and the data was compiled within the ring.

[No loss of life detected, minor injuries but nothing life threatening. Ship’s integrity is at 65%, massive damage to port and starboard engines, and main engines are damaged. Power levels are currently at 50%.]

“That’s good…”

Suddenly a bright flash of rosy light appeared before Annie, revealing Twilight with a worried expression plastered on her face.

“Anthea! Are you alright?!”

The unicorn mare smiled at her mentor, grateful for her concern. “I’m fine Princess, a little weak kneed from using so much energy and magic at once, but otherwise fine, now……Could you please get me down from this high place!”

Twilight giggled at Annie’s sudden reminder of her latent fear of heights. She walked over to the Star Sapphire and helped her down the ladder to the inside of the ship. Once inside, Annie was showered with thanks from all the crewmembers, having forgotten their fear of her and embracing her for what she was, a hero, even Prince Steel acknowledged her heroism. Not with words, he simply gave an approving nod, that one motion speaking volumes.

When her friends caught up with her she was assaulted with three way bear hug, and Amber shouting “Don’t you ever do something that crazy again!”

~~~

“The entire crew was praising you and thanking you for what you did, if they were afraid of you before, now they love you,” said Hot Head.

“Thanks to you we get to live another day, if you hadn’t done what you did the griffon ship would’ve blown us out of the sky and taken pot shots at the wreckage just for the heck of it,” said Lucky.

Annie knew what her friends said was true; still, it didn’t take away the fact that she just blown away somepony’s family member or girlfriend or boyfriend. But if she hadn’t, then they’d be the ones dead.

“Just remember Annie, T’s waiting for you back home. We’ll be here to help you.”

Anthea looked to the all three of her friends, each of them smiling at her, no, these weren’t just friends. They were her family, just as much as her adoptive mother was to her. Though they shared no blood between them, she regarded them with the same love and affection as if they were her own flesh and blood, and so too did they.

“Thank you…I –”

[Transmission coming in from the Avalon.]

{Anthea come in! Anthea!}

All four ponies looked to ring, hearing the Princess’ distressed voice.

“This is Anthea, and with Hot Head, Lucky, and Amber, what’s wrong Princess?”

{I need you all back here immediately, our scouts have returned saying that there was an unknown group coming towards us. Could be griffons or something else, but until we can confirm I want everypony to be close by and ready.}

“Yes, Princess!”

Twilight and Prince Steel stood at the forefront of their forces. The minotaur only had his sword strapped to his waist and still fully armored, while Twilight was in her war regalia armor, watching the unknown group approach them. They met the unknown incomers halfway between them and the ship, making sure to that any surprises were as far as possible from their ship.

It didn’t take long before the two of them could make out who it was that was coming their way, and it wasn’t who Twilight or Steel suspected. The group was a contingent of twenty Diamond Dogs, but they weren’t like the ones from back in Equestria Proper, they looked more feral, except the lead Diamond Dog. He had a black coat, golden eyes, a long pointy snout, large pointed ears that swiveled about to pick up on any miscellaneous sound. His armor was silver, with a curved sword, a khopesh if Steel was remembering right.

One of the Diamond Dog soldiers carried a flag that bore the insignia of the Griffon Empire, making both the alicorn and minotaur wonder what was going on here. The black Diamond Dog strode towards them, arms behind his back, acting so proper that it was creepy. When he met the two rulers he gave a slight bow to them.

“Greetings, my name is Anubis, and I come as an envoy of the Griffonian forces.”

“A Diamond Dog, why are you on the side of the griffons, I thought the tribes were neutral?” Twilight asked.

Anubis seemed to find this funny, “Really, High Princess Twilight, my tribe made no such agreement. I am of the proud Jackal Tribe, and these fine fellows are part of the Dire Tribe. A race of Diamond Dogs that’s, how shall we say, not as ‘developed’ as we are.”

Prince Steel snorted angrily at hearing his explanation. “The ‘Dire Tribe’, I know well of your dealings Jackal. You’re tribe took in theirs ages ago, and have brought them up through inbreeding and violence to make them your personal attack dog army. Using these pitiful souls as soldiers, I feel sorry for them.”

Anubis eyed the Prince suspiciously. “On the topic of neutrality, why is it that the Prince of Minotaurus is with you High Princess? I thought they too were neutral?”

“The Prince was out on a training mission in the Gates of Volkan, we just happened to run into him and his bodyguards and they offered us aid when our ship went down,” said Twilight.

Anubis stroked his lower jaw in a contemplating fashion. “Is that so?”

“It is so, if you happen to attack, I will take it as an act of aggression against Minotaurus. Now I’m sure you don’t want to incur Minotaurus’ wrath after the Empress formally apologized for the assassination attempt on the High Princess while in our borders?”

“Of course not my Prince, far from it, but as it stands you’re in the middle of something that needs to be seen through, we’d be more than happy to have a Griffonian ship transport you and your guard back to your country.”

“Now what kind of a Prince would I be if I left a Princess to fend for herself out here alone.” Steel spoke, a hint of pride and smugness in his tone.

I hope he realizes I’m well into my thirties and I hope that wasn’t some subtle way of hitting on me, thought Twilight.

Anubis’ eyes narrowed as he looked between the two rulers. “Be sure of what you’re doing here, staying means you support the Equestrians and will thrust your nation into a war that is not yours. Leave now and you can avoid a nasty international incident. But let’s make it your choice shall we?”

Prince Steel stroked his chin hairs as he thought. “Hmm, do let's.”

Suddenly the Prince drew his sword and pointed it at Anubis. One of the Dire Diamond Dogs stepped out of the group and lunged for the minotaur. Steel twirled around, making Anubis jump back when his cape flapped about. Steel then slashed upwards, cutting through the plate armor of the lumbering beast and leaving a large diagonal gash across its chest, spraying blood like a fountain before it fell to the ground, dead.

Anubis looked to his fallen and glared at Steel. “You’re mad!”

“I am angry, but madness, that’s been debatable about many of my kind for a while now.”

“Fool, we have an army coming for you!”

“We have a Star Sapphire, a being equal in power to the Fear Lantern.”

Anubis bared his fangs, he heard his soldiers prepare to attack but he held out his hand in a gesture that meant “stay”.

“I will bring with me a storm like no other minotaur, our cannon fire will rain down on you like retribution from the heavens!”

Prince Steel pointed his sword back at Anubis and smirked. “Then we’ll fight you while under the shade of an umbrella.”

Anubis huffed and did an about face, taking off with his soldiers the same way they came. When the Diamond Dogs were far enough away Twilight turned to the young Prince and stared at him incredulously.

“YOU ARE INSANE! You just antagonized the only source of information we had! We could’ve learned of the amount of forces they have waiting for us, I could’ve drawn it out of him!” Twilight yelled.

Prince Steel grabbed the hem of his cape and used it to clean the blood off his sword blade before sheathing it. “You don’t know the Jackals, High Princess. They’re conniving, sadists, and vicious when crossed. I was not lying when I described those beasts he had with him. They are a subservient tribe, brainwashed for generations, forced to inbreed by the Jackals till any ability to think for themselves is quashed out. Leaving them to be molded into the perfect, savage soldiers for their use, that way they don’t have to get their hands dirty too often. There’s no reasoning, no compromising with their kind.”

Twilight sighed heavily, although she still thought that it was a boneheaded move, she had to defer to the Prince’s knowledge of that tribe.

“I guess we should prepare for an imminent attack,” said Twilight.

“They’ll most likely take advantage of our being grounded and send in airships, but we’ll have the advantage, they know not that the ship’s weapons can still function, they’ll be forced to fight by land and low flying griffon soldiers.”

“I assume you have a plan?”

“Yes.”

Assualt / Harbored Resent

Assualt / Harbored Resent

Annie had been busy outside, training in the use of her Star Sapphire ring. She had learned to create different constructs since the airship dogfight. The spear was a good weapon for her, she noticed, having a long reach and all, it almost acted like a walking stick. For now though, Annie kept it in the form of a pole. She stood on her hind legs as she twirled the staff around in her hooves, normally ponies would have to work hard at learning how to fight with such a weapon, being a bit unnatural to wield without a minotaur’s hands or a dragon’s claws. But since it was her own construct, the weapon was light and offered no resistance, most of the difficult maneuvers were compensated by the ring, calculating the best angle to make the staff appear where Annie needed it, as well as to adjust the weight.

She remembered a time long ago, back when Starburst was still with them. She told Annie all about the time she saw the Royal Guards train in the use of spears, how they twirled and thrust with the weapons, threatening to turn everything that got within their range into a literal nostallion’s land. Star even demonstrated a few of their moves, she admitted, she couldn’t see them very well, only a rapidly moving brown slender object. But it was more about how passionate the young mare was back then, how she spoke with such vigor. The only other time she spoke with such vigor was when Annie was able to pry her out of her shell about dancing.

“She was really into dancing, I know she said it was to help her with coordination and balance, but she sounded like she really loved doing that,” said Annie as she thrust with her staff. “Why couldn’t she pursue that instead of this?”

“Because a warrior cannot be swayed from the call of the battlefield.”

“EEP!” Anthea jumped up and turned around quickly. She let out a relieved sigh when she saw it was Prince Steel standing a few feet away. “Oh, P-Prince Steel…um, how long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough to see that your spear technique could use some work.” He replied.

“Well…I haven’t ever fought with a weapon till I got my ring. And I just thought that this would be a better weapon for me since without the ring and my magic I’m mainly blind.”

The Prince strode up to the unicorn mare, looking down on her with a critical gaze. Anthea felt so small under his gaze, granted he was into his mid-twenties, but he still held the same authority and strength of someone who had trained in battles for many years. Prince Steel then reached behind his back and unsheathed his spear from its holster. He twirled it overhead before slamming the butt of the weapon onto the ground, making Annie flinch from the reverberating impact.

“Then it’s time you learned how to properly wield that weapon.”

“Prince Steel?”

“If you believe it to be a good weapon for you, then you should know how to use it.”

Prince Steel motioned for Anthea to move to his right, which the unicorn mare did without hesitation. The Prince brought his weapon into both hands, getting into a fighting stance. He then twirled his spear around, kicking up a whirlwind from the sheer speed of which he was spinning his weapon. Anthea watched in awe as the weapon blurred from sight, appearing to wrap around his body in a protective zone. Steel stopped spinning and brought the spear in for a one-handed thrust into the empty air before him, stopping the whirlwind with a “whoosh” sound. Keeping the long shaft held firmly against his forearm and lower back, he swung the spear in a wide arc, cutting down whatever invisible enemy laid before him. Steel loosened his grip slightly and passed the spear to his left hand, giving it a twirl and a spin before gripping it with both hands and slashing down with it.

Annie continued to watch Prince Steel perform complex moves with his weapon, she was so transfixed with the speed of which he was moving the spear around his body, noticing it was a similar tactic to the feint. Misdirecting her opponent’s perception of where she was going to be and instead moved to where she wanted to at the last second, with the spear, the twirling and spinning acted as intimidation. Nopony in their right mind would want to get in close to that, and the actions themselves made it hard for somepony to actually anticipate how he was going to attack. Prince Steel finished his sequence, returning to the original stance he was in when he started. The minotaur looked to Annie and exited his fighting stance and brought his weapon to rest in his right hand.

“The spear is a weapon that can give you a long reach, both keeping your enemy at a safe distance while also being able to attack him. But it can also act defensively as well, any fool who cares for his life will try and keep out of your weapon’s reach, believe me, a quick spin of the spear can give you some breathing room, even if it’s for a few seconds those seconds can mean the difference between victory and defeat. Now, I may not have the time to teach you everything, but at least I can make you a near decent spear wielder amongst your kind.”

“Y-You would do that? But…”

Steel snorted. “Your concern for your enemy is unneeded in battle, Star Sapphire. Theywish to kill you and will do whatever it takes to make sure that happens, true for us all who step hoof on the battlefield. Focus more on those at your back, tis the way of a phalanx.”

“Phalanx?”

“A tactic long used by minotaur warriors. It shows our complete faith in our comrades, one line defends, the other attacks, that attacking line shifts to defend, while the defenders attack. It can only work if you know the soldier who is at your back will keep it defended, and the soldier after him, and the one after him. If your friends and Princess, these Royal Guards and crew, have your back, then you have a duty to make sure that you put down whatever is a threat to them in front of you. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

Annie stood there a moment, digesting Prince Steel’s words. She understood it well, but still, the taking of lives was not something she was comfortable with, Annie doubted she could take it if she killed any more than she already had.

“Alright then, follow my movements and copy them, this is a basic attack sequence. Thrust.” Prince Steel entered his attack stance and thrust his spear with both hands. “Strike.” He then slid his right leg forward, while simultaneously bringing the butt of the spear across. “Slash.” Steel swung the spear in a wide arc and then stopped. “Finally, thrust again.” The burly minotaur took one hard step forward and did just that. “And repeat. That’s it, think you can do that?”

Annie nervously nodded her head. She got up on her hind legs and summoned her staff again. Thrusting forward, a strike, followed by slash, and ending with a thrust. Annie dropped down on three of her hooves and used the staff as support.

“W-Was that any good?”

“Your form is good, but we must work on your speed and technique. Experience will cover for the rest. But you are a quick learner, which means you may become at least a decent spear fighter. Now, let’s go again!”

“Yes sir!”

After getting trained by Prince Steel, Annie got hungry, so she went inside the Avalon. Thankfully, the kitchen and the cabins weren’t damaged and the ship was safe enough to move around in. As she walked down one of the halls, Annie decided to see if the Princess wanted to have lunch. She hadn’t seen her eat lately, and from what she remembered Turquoise’s father, Spike, told them, the Princess would often forget to eat if she wasn’t reminded or brought something before she keeled over in hunger.

Annie made her way down the corridor where the Princess was and knocked on the door, strangely, the door creaked open and Annie peeked inside. On Twilight’s desk was a lamp, shining down on some papers. Curious, Annie walked over to the desk and had a look at what was on them. She gazed upon the papers in confusion, they seemed to be diagrams of some sort, detailing the theoretical construction of some kind of device, it almost looked like a helmet, and even some horseshoes that seemed to go with the helmet-like apparatus.

“Anthea?”

Annie turned around and saw Twilight standing in the doorway, a sandwich held in her telekinetic aura.

“Oh, Princess! I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to spy on your work! I was just coming to see if you wanted to grab something to eat, but…”

Twilight smiled and shook her head. “You’re fine Anthea, actually, I was hoping to show you this someday soon. Guess that day is today.” The alicorn mare strode over to her desk and organized the papers, showing them to Anthea in a more orderly sequence. “This creation was inspired by you.”

“Why is that, and what is it?” Annie asked.

“Do you remember the day we first met, when my friends and I visited your orphanage?”

Annie remembered back to that day, seeing the fabled Elements of Harmony, the six mares responsible for defeating countless menaces that threatened Equestria. She remembered all the foals, Lucky, Amber, and Hot Head included, were scrambling to see them. Annie also recalled speaking to, at the time, Princess Twilight Sparkle, how the purple alicorn mare spoke to her.

“I do, I could never forget, you said you felt something special inside me. It was also on that day that Mom adopted me.”

“Right. You see, I thought because of your blindness that it might’ve been difficult for you to grasp certain things about magic. But when I started instructing you during my visits to Ponyville, I saw how quickly you grasped each lesson, and how far you excelled in them. I realized then that you had so much potential, which was why I made it my mission to teach you and, when you were ready, to become my protégé. But that also got me thinking, how many more are out there, protégés waiting to be discovered, not given a second look because of some disability. That inevitably led me to create this, a device that can help the blind see.”

Annie’s eyes widened at what Twilight had said, a machine that could cure blindness?! “Y-You really found a way to cure blindness?!”

“Well…not exactly. It can help the blind to see. I got the idea from seeing bats use echolocation, and the thestral ponies ability to do the same. What this will do is create a solid image of objects with the use of sound waves. I haven’t quite worked out all of it yet, but theoretically, it will take in sounds via the auditory sensors connected to the ears of the pony wearing, those sound waves will paint a three-dimensional image of the object to the receiver’s mind and allow them to see everything up to a certain distance, the horseshoes function in much the same way, collecting sound that travels through the ground and allows them to see it and anything else that the waves hit clearly. Although, unlike your level of blindness, it won’t allow for color, mostly black, white, and some gray, but at least it’ll let them see.”

Annie couldn’t believe that the Princess had been working on this, it was truly amazing what the device, when built, could do for ponies like Annie who had it worse than her.

“Princess…I don’t know what to say…I can’t believe I inspired you to think of something like this,” said Annie, getting a little choked up.

“I was originally going to make a version that worked with your current level of eyesight. Since your mind already knows what color is, it should be just a matter of tweaking some variables so that you can have perfect vision. And…maybe you wouldn’t have to wear that ring anymore.”

Annie looked down at her right hoof, to the violet ring that remained fastened to her. Though the idea of parting with the ring did make her feel strangely sad, Annie couldn’t help but feel elated that there would one day be a way for her to see her friends and family without the use of the ring.

“I plan to make other such devices. Do you remember the armor your friends are wearing?” Twilight asked.

“Yes, you reverse engineered it from…ahem…that griffon’s armor, right?”

“Correct, although theirs is just a prototype, it already shows that it can advance combat efficiency, maybe if applied correctly, we can help ponies who have lost their legs or wings, recreate lost limbs that were taken through some tragic event or accident or even if they weren’t born with one at all?!”

Annie couldn’t help but admire the way Princess Twilight spoke with such confidence and hope, she could see a twinkle in her eye, something that had been hidden since Starburst’s departure, but the way she was talking about helping other ponies, it brought it back.

“Princess…I don’t know what to say…I can’t believe I inspired you to think of something like this,” said Annie, getting a little choked up.

Twilight smiled and nuzzled Annie’s cheek in thanks. Just then, the door to Twilight’s room creaked open, revealing Amber Lily.

“Princess, Prince Steel wants to have a war council with you to discuss –!” Amber stopped and watched as Twilight and Annie both stared at the earth pony mare, cheeks still touching. The amber colored mare had an impish grin form on her lips at the sight. “Oh my, Princess, Annie, you guys really need to learn to lock the door if you plan on continuing your illicit Teacher-Student love affair.”

“Amber Lily!” Twilight cried.

“Amber that’s not what’s happening and you know it!” Annie retorted.

“Oh and do take it easy on her Princess, I know you’re an ‘experienced mare’ and all, but there are some things that I’m sure she hasn’t learned yet,” said Amber with a wink.

Twilight’s face turned a bright shade of red as she went stiff as a statue and tipped over onto the floor. Annie was in a similar position, but now her concern was for the fallen Princess.

“Amber look what you did! She’s knocked out!”

“Bet’cha she was imagining what I meant.”

“AMBER!”

“Okay, okay, I’ll go get a bucket of cold water.”

Canterlot Castle, Hours Later…

Nidra lied on her bed, the orange ring of Avarice settled on the mattress just a foot away from her. She eyed the trinket that fell from the heavens above, a small ring, yet it held the power to decimate an entire country and make a blind mare see again, such power, and it all came from a power source that felt similar to magic, and yet, it was not. Nidra still couldn’t get what the ring said out of her mind, that this ring’s power worked off of avarice, greed.

And what’s more, it appeared before her! Sure she could act like a spoiled brat sometimes, that she wasn’t denying, but she never saw herself as a greedy pony. If anything, she was surprised such a ring didn’t appear before a dragon, they were naturally greedy creatures. Claire, Turquoise, and their father, Spike, being the obvious exceptions to that. Even now, as she looked upon it, trapped in its crystalline prison, she could still feel its power. It was tempting, really, such a ring of power.

Starburst could defeat entire armies with it, and Annie, well, it could make her see for the first time in her entire life. It’s like these things grant wishes or something! So…does that mean that if I wanted, I could have T…?

You won’t know unless you try, think of it, you could become a Princess like no other.

Ugh…I don’t want to be one, especially the way things are going now!

True, but with that ring’s power, who could stop you? You could end this war alongside Starburst.

Star…me and her, fighting together…it-it does sound nice.

And the one who would be awaiting our return would be Turquoise, impressed by our skill and ability to defend Equestria. You can offer him the kingdom and all the riches within, as well as your undying love and affection, he’d be all over us!

Hmmm…also wouldn’t be too bad a thing. I mean…Ugh, I don’t know! I just want T to fall for me, not because I have some glowing ring from space! I want him to fall for meand mealone!

Listen to yourself, “I want, I want”, you sound perfect for the ring’s power. I don’t see why you don’t embrace it. After all, greed is just another form of love, is it not?

Nidra shook her head vehemently. NO, it’s not the same at all! Love means you bothfeel something for each other, wanting to give part of your lives to the one you care about. Greed only possesses, I don’t want to possess T, that’d make him no less special than an item at an auction!

Nidra levitated the ring back underneath the bed, it was a foalish hiding place, but right now it was the best place she could think of hiding it. Her alicorn magic wasn’t very strong, so casting things like illusion spells would be too noticeable to a trained eye. So until she could think of a better one, it would remain under there. Nidra decided to go search for T, normally she’d get in a little nap time in, being able to move about during the day can take it out of a half-thestral, which was why she took little naps in between the daylight hours to keep herself from falling asleep fully. But today she wanted to spend these hours with Turquoise.

She was glad that her magic was able to give the dracony a peaceful night’s sleep. She wished she could do more, but, she thought, nothing short of having Anthea back was going to ease his worry and angst about her safety. Part of Nidra just wanted Anthea to come back already so he wouldn’t be so sad, but another part, an annoyingly darker part of her, wanted the unicorn mare to stay gone, giving her more time with the one she loved.

After some walking, Nidra found herself closer to where Starburst and her family’s wing of the castle was. Her sensitive ears picked up on the distant sounds of voices, and her horn sensed the workings of magic in the air. She followed both towards the courtyard and looked down upon it from the balcony. Down below she saw Turquoise and Nighty, both seemed to be playing some sort of game.

“Stand fast evil doer! The Great and Powerful Night Light has come to vanquish you!”

Turquoise, after giving a little chuckle, flared his wings and pretended to be the “evil doer”.

“Raaaaaarrrrrr! You, a single unicorn against a mighty dragon?! Ha, don’t make me laugh! I have defeated many a warrior, burned down entire villages, and razed kingdoms to ashes! What do you think you can do to stop me?!”

Nidra had to admit, he does that “bad guy” role well. Most likely from watching his cousin play video games.

Nighty smirked at Turquoise as he used an illumination spell to light his horn. “I have dedicated my life to following in the hoofsteps of the greatest unicorn wizard to have ever lived, Star Swirl the Bearded! He defeated many monsters and villains, and just like you, you too will share the same fate!”

Nidra spied some of the Royal Guards on patrol, one or two eyeing the spectacle wearily. She scoffed in utter annoyance at their paranoia of Turquoise. For Faust’s sake, the stallion was related to Spike the Dragon, husband of Rarity, the Element of Generosity, and surrogate brother to High Princess Twilight Sparkle and High Prince Shining Armor, if that didn’t ease their tension towards him then she supposed nothing short of severe reprimand from her or another royal would keep them from jumping the gun.

Nighty then raked his hoof against the dirt a few times, indicating he was preparing to charge. Turquoise extended his claws and did the same, making sure to retract them once he was done. Soon Nighty reared back and galloped for Turquoise. The dracony stallion did the same, his hoofsteps thundered against the ground. Though they were seemingly on a collision course, Turquoise knew what to do, having had plenty of experience playing with his more energetic cousin.

Turquoise leaned towards his right just as he felt Nighty’s horn graze his left foreleg. Normally such a thing would hurt somepony, probably leave a bruise since the young unicorn’s horn wasn’t sharp and had a dull point, but Turquoise’s thick scales made such things nearly impossible, the hit registered in his head, but it felt more like a small pebble hitting a wall. Turquoise then went down, sliding on the ground to a complete stop and laid there motionless.

Nidra let out a small gasp at the sight of the stallion going down so hard, but reminded herself that Turquoise was made of tougher stuff. She watched as Nighty skidded to a halt just a few feet away from where Turquoise lay. The young colt then ran up to Turquoise’s body and stood atop him triumphantly.

“Once again, the Great and Powerful Night Light has saved Equestria from a horrible fate! Evil doesn’t stand a chance whenever I appear, and let that be a lesson!” After grandstanding for a few more seconds, Nighty looked down at his cousin with worry. “Um, Turquoise, are you alright? I didn’t hurt you when I hit you with my horn did I?”

No response.

“Turquoise?”

Turquoise quickly shot his head up and stared directly at Nighty and let out a quick “BOO!” The sudden reaction from the dracony stallion made Nighty jump up in surprise, but thankfully Turquoise was able to catch him before he plopped onto the ground, or his stomach. Both boys laughed, T for scaring Nighty, and Nighty for allowing himself to be scared that easily.

Nidra unfurled her bat-like wings and jumped off the balcony, slowly descending to the ground where the colt and stallion were playing. Once her hooves met the ground, she slowly made her way towards them, allowing the two time together.

“Seems as if you two are having fun,” said Nidra.

Turquoise turned his head in the direction of Nidra’s voice and smiled at her. “Hey Nidra, want to get in on this?”

Nidra stopped mid-stride. “Oh…um, I’m not one for playing games…I haven’t done such things since I was foal.”

“C’mon, it’d be fun! What do you say Nighty? It make it more exciting to save a Princess in distress,” suggested Turquoise.

Nighty looked to Nidra, normally she was an intimidating sight, but right now, she was…well…more approachable than normal. The idea of saving a Princess was fun, and really, Nidra wasn’t bad to look at, she was actually cute when wasn’t scowling or looking down on somepony.

“I-I don’t mind if she does, I mean, it would be fun,” said Nighty, blushing slightly.

Nidra wasn’t expecting that from Nighty, often times the little colt avoided her or hid behind Star when she approached. But the fact that he wanted her to play with them, it was warming. And, for some reason, she found her cheeks heating up.

Ah, see something else you might like?

WHAT?!! Nighty?!! No, oh gods no! He’s Star’s little brother for crying out loud!

Still, he is kinda cute. Imagine what he’ll look like in ten years, quite the possible stud, no?

Okay one: I am sooooo not even going to consider such a thing. Two: Nighty is more or less like my ownlittle brother!!!

Just saying, why should the other fillies get to have him all to themselves? You heard what Star told you about Nighty and fillies, he’s hopelessly chasing after a filly – who just so happens to be T’s cousin and…Huh, now that I think about it, you two have something in common.

Ignoring the pondering of the voice, Nidra decided to play around with the stallion and colt. They pretended to be a ragtag group of adventurers, went through the classic “Damsel Princess in Distress” even though Nidra detested being a helpless maiden, it was still fun nonetheless. Hours flew by until it had become lunch time, and only the growling of their stomachs reminded them of how long they had been out.

“Well it looks like you guys are having fun out here.”

All three ponies turned towards the archway of the courtyard and saw none other than Valiant Heart standing there. Nighty became excited at seeing his older cousin and ran to meet him. Turquoise was about to get up but felt Nidra’s foreleg wrap around his. The dracony stallion looked to the alicorn thestral and noticed that her eyes were downcast, bangs covering her eyes.

“Nidra what’s wrong?” T asked.

“I don’t want to see him.” Nidra stated.

“Why not? It’s just Val.”

“Exactly…”

“Nidra –”

“Hey Turquoise!” Valiant Heart called out as he walked towards them, Nighty right by his side. “I heard you were in Canterlot.”

Turquoise stood up and bumped hooves with Valiant Heart. “It’s been a long time since I last saw ya, what, a couple a years ago on Sweet Apple Acres?”

“Heh, yeah, more or less…How’s uh…How’s June doing? I haven’t been writing to her as much and…”

Turquoise knew what Valiant meant. “She’s fine, worried about you, but fine. She’s still waiting for you to write back, at the very least you should go to Ponyville and visit with her a bit. I’m sure June would be happy to see you again.”

“Same here…” Valiant Heart noticed how Nidra wouldn’t look at him, in fact, she was about to leave when Valiant spoke again. “Nidra wait!”

“What do you want?” She asked curtly.

“I just…I wanted to ask…”

“For my forgiveness? Sorry if you wasted a train ride for that, but I don’t.”

“Nidra, what’s wrong?” Turquoise asked, taken aback by the harsh tone in her voice.

“What’s wrong is I can’t believe he even has the nerve to show his face around here!” Nidra stated, turning around to face the alicorn stallion.

The words she spoke wounded Valiant Heart, but at the same time, he didn’t deny them. “Nidra…I know you blame me for Star’s leaving…”

“And why shouldn’t I?! Not once did you back her up! Not once did you defend her when they threw her in the dungeons! Star’s mom and dad may’ve not been totally onboard with her being in the Royal Guard, but she looked up to you! Counted on you! If there was one pony – just one – that Star knew she could talk to and know she’d be safe, it was would’ve been you Valiant Heart!”

Nidra then got right in Valiant’s face, her yellow eyes gleaming with resentment towards the stallion before her.

“But no…in the end, you fight against her, and try to capture her as if she were some common criminal! I thought you two were close! You–!”

“NIDRA!” Turquoise interrupted. “That’s enough!”

The alicorn thestral was brought out of her anger fueled rant and saw the look on Valiant’s face, but it was Nighty’s frightened look and the way he hid behind Turquoise that really sobered her up to the situation.

“I’m going to the kitchen, I’ll…I’ll be waiting for you guys…”

Nidra walked off without saying another word. Leaving the two stallions and one colt standing there with all that out in the open. Nighty placed a sympathetic hoof on his older cousin’s right foreleg as he looked up at him.

“It’s okay Lance, she didn’t mean that stuff,” said Nighty.

“No, Nighty, she’s right…If I hadn’t been so hesitant, had I’d been more supportive of her, all this wouldn’t have happened…I left Canterlot and went back home to get my head straight after everything…but really, I was just running away like a dog with its tail between its legs,” said Valiant.

“None of that’s true, what happened was some heavy stuff for everypony, especially you,” said Turquoise.

Valiant Heart sighed forlornly. “Doesn’t excuse my actions, or my ability to reign in my troops from killing an innocent bystander who got caught in the crossfire…But that’s why I came back. I heard that Aunt Twilight and Anthea are investigating the Long Road, and looking for Starburst while they’re at it. I can’t just sit around and feel sorry for myself, so I came back. So don’t blame Nidra for being like that, she’s not wrong. And…Nighty…I wouldn’t blame you for hating me either…”

The young colt was still unsure of how to feel about everything that had happened to his big sister within the past few months. He knew she was the farthest thing from renegade or criminal, what with how long she had talked about becoming a Royal Guard and protecting Equestria. And there were some ponies who supported her as the Fear Lantern, it wasn’t like she was misusing her strange power, she was using it to defend Equestria. But, given the kind of power it was, Nighty could understand why some of the nobles and even the other royals saw Starburst as somewhat of a threat.

But first and foremost Star, no matter how annoying she was, no matter how much they fought, she always defended him. She was his big sister, and despite their fighting, Star had never once forgotten that. Plus, she never looked down on his ambition to become the next Star Swirl, in a way, they were both shooting for slightly impossible things. Nighty knew it would take a lot of training, study, and talent to become like that, but it was the same for Starburst. She believed in him, and, even though he’d never admit to anypony, he believed in her too and hoped she’d become a Royal Guard.

But Valiant Heart, he wasn’t to blame, not as far he could tell. Nighty wasn’t there for most of it, but whatever happened to cause his older cousin such sadness, he could tell that he was sorry. All three cousins were best friends, and Valiant was as much a big brother to him as he was to Starburst.

“No, I don’t blame you Lance, it’s just a little confusing with everything everypony’s saying…I just want to believe in Star – don’t tell her I said that!” Nighty quickly added.

“I won’t,” said Valiant as he ruffled the young colt’s mane, “I won’t.”

Turquoise smiled at this, seeing the two family members bond again. But Nidra was another story, he had no idea she harbored such feelings towards Valiant.

Turquoise went looking for Nidra, eventually finding her in the place she said she was going to be. The alicorn thestral was busy using her telekinesis to make herself a simple sandwich. She noticed Turquoise enter, nodding towards him while she continued making her meal.

“Is Nighty joining us? I didn’t know what he liked exactly so I just went with a standard PBJ, or did I scare him off?” Nidra asked.

“No, he was just surprised is all. And…he wasn’t the only one Nidra. Why didn’t you tell me that you felt that way towards Valiant Heart?” Turquoise asked.

“It’s not like you could do anything about it T, it’s just how feel and what I know. You can’t tell me that what I said wasn’t true, at least somewhat?!”

The dracony stallion couldn’t really find a reason for her not to feel like she does. Star was her best friend next to Prince Illusion, losing her must’ve been harder on her than it was for the others in Ponyville. Turquoise walked around the island counter till he was sitting beside Nidra. He then extended his right wing and enveloped the alicorn thestral in a wing embrace. The suddenness of the embrace made Nidra go stiff as a board as she felt her body being pressed against the bulking frame of Turquoise.

“T-Turquoise, w-what are you doing?!” Nidra asked nervously.

“You, uh, looked like you could use a hug,” said Turquoise bashfully, “Do you want me to stop?”

Nidra shook her head quickly. Was this slightly embarrassing? Yes. But then again, she was being held by the pony she had fallen for since the first day they met, so it wasn’t like she was going to say “Oh yes, please stop because it’s embarrassing for me to be held by the pony I’m madly in love with.” Yeah right.

“Nidra, I know you don’t like Val right now –”

“I doubt I ever will after what he did.”

“Just to be clear, why do you hate him more than Aunt Twilight and Uncle Flash? From the way you described it they’re just as much to blame as Val?”

Nidra sighed heavily. “I get parents are supposed to be on their kids’ case. My Mom is the same, so that’s to be expected, but Valiant Heart was her cousin! Her family T! If you can’t count on your family to back you up on something, then what else do you have?! The support of friends is good and it does help, but it’s sometimes not enough! For Star, if Valiant Heart had her back, then…then…I don’t know what, but it wouldn’t be like this!”

Turquoise could feel the young mare shudder, hearing a slight sniffle from her. “Have you talked to Illusion about how you feel?”

“I-I have…and he also thinks I should forgive him. But I can’t!”

“Listen Nidra, when this war is over and Starburst finally comes back, she’s going to need a lot of support. Val’s admitted he was wrong and wants to start being there for her, Star will need her friends too, otherwise, everything she fought for and sacrificed would be for nothing. I’m not asking you to forgive him right away, but, when the time comes, when everypony’s back together. Can you at least try, for me?”

Nidra looked up at the kind eyes of the stallion, an honest warm smile beamed down on her as her eyes watered. She then pressed her face up against his foreleg and let some of the tears she held back fall.

“I-I’ll try…”

Mid-Afternoon, Gates of Volkan…

Anubis, a proud general of the Jackal Tribe, and leader of the numerous Dire Tribe Diamond Dogs, stood upon the bridge of the Griffon Empire battleship. He watched with evil glee as his Dire Diamond Dogs marched through the canyon as his ship and others made their way to their designated positions. The canyon walls made it nearly impossible for radio or other means of communication to go through, luckily the ships had agreed upon a meet up at one of the wider valley’s, allowing them to coordinate their movements against the Equestrians.

The black jackal had reported that the personal, fortress airship of High Princess Twilight dubbed the Avalon was currently scuttled. Leaving the crew, the High Princess, and the Prince of Minotaurus stranded within the gate that led to Saddle Arabia. The Avalon was a formidable airship, but now that it was out of commission, the fleet had little to worry about, other than the rumored pony with another of the strange magic rings.

But Anubis was unafraid, yes there was a chance this unknown element could pose a threat, but what did it matter? The opponent was at their mercy, carpet bombing or death by claws and fangs, speared, cut, beheaded or even disemboweled, it was an inevitable outcome. Ponies have bragged about their resilience and strength, but in the end they were soft and weak. Mare, stallion, foal, it mattered not. They were all weak, even the so called “goddesses”, their High Princesses, were not un-killable. The torture that High Princess Twilight Sparkle endured was proof of that, and she was just as capable of fearing for her life as any mortal being.

“Once you strip away the title and otherworldly powers, they are just ponies in the end. Nothing more and nothing less.” Anubis spoke.

One of the griffons, a female wearing a captain’s uniform, walked up beside the Diamond Dog and looked down at the horde that was running towards their objective.

“You’re right about that, still, there’s something to be said about that ‘otherworldly power’. Don’t forget that they also have a Spirit of Chaos on their side.”

“Oh Captain Morgana, you aren’t scared are you?”

“Pfft, fat chance! No, but I can’t say there haven’t been those of us who haven’t wanted to see the Empire at the top of the food chain for years, me included. So be it Tirek himself, I’ll see it happen.”

“Good ambition, it will serve us well in this battle. However swift it might be.”

“Ma’am, we’re arriving at the gate entrance, we’ll be in firing range of the Equestrian airship within a few minutes.” A griffon navigator spoke.

“Good, all weapons are to be loaded, salvos, cannons, and bombs, I want this to be swift and bloody, understood?!”

“YES CAPTAIN!”

As the ship approached the archway that led to the valley, many eyes widened at the sight before them.

“What in the name of the late emperor is that?!”

Half of the valley floor was covered in star sapphire crystals, each one jutting out of the earth in the form of gigantic spikes. The gateways on either side of the Saddle Arabian Gate were completely closed off by a giant wall of violet-pink crystals, while at the center of the gateway rested the Avalon, its bow tilted upwards slightly by a column of crystal. A clear zone, about eighty feet in diameter, gave the ship and anypony near it some breathable fighting room. Despite half of the valley being covered in these monstrous crystals, there was one path that was clear, and it led right to the ship.

A narrow passage about two-hundred feet wide, with walls stretching just as high. Unlike the rest, the walls were smooth and the ground was natural dirt, and at the other end of the mile long passage were the three-hundred minotaurs. Each one had their shield placed in front of them, with only small gaps in between a few of the rows. The Royal Guard stood behind the minotaur blockade, ready to fight whatever got through them.  Anthea was there as well, although her role was different. High above, unnoticed by anypony or griffon or Diamond Dog, three doves flew overhead. They weren’t ordinary doves, these doves were made of crystal and light. Their eyes acted as relays to give them an aerial view of the battlefield. Whatever they saw was transmitted to three light-screens that hovered in front of Anthea.

She could feel the thundering rumble echo through the ground as a massive army of Dire Diamond Dogs stampeded towards them. Annie wasn’t sure of this plan, but at the moment it was their best shot. The griffons had the numbers, but the Prince had devised a plan where their numbers would mean nothing. He had Annie create the crystals, using them to block any attacks from the side, leaving only the narrow passage for the enemy to charge through. The jagged crystals would prevent any rationally thinking creature from trying to traverse through them or jump over them.

The Avalon’s cannons and rockets were all still functional and ready to be unleashed, and with plenty of ammo to go around. The griffon warship continued to advance towards them, along with two frigates leaving the adjacent sides of the gate. The moment they did so, the Avalon unleashed its full fury, firing off round after round of cannon fire in quick succession. Rockets blazed out of their salvos and towards their targets, spraying the sky with a barrage of hellfire.

Explosions went off in the distance one right after the other, some of the blasts were direct hits, while others grazed the ships, but it was clear that none of the three griffon ships were expecting the Avalon’s weapons to be functional, and it showed. The warship and two frigates were quickly backpedaling, trying to get back to the cover of the canyon walls and out of the range of the fortress airship’s fire.

Down below, the Dire Diamond Dogs snarled and grunted as they ran straight for the jagged crystal spikes, some, thinking they could smash through the fragile looking stone, attempted to charge straight through it. The end result was a few hundred of them being skewered. A few others tried to jump the wall, thinking that it was only that part that was blocking them. While they did jump up at least twenty feet into the air, when they got over they realized too late that what awaited them was more crystal spikes. Soon the Dire Diamond Dogs stopped advancing, hearing the death cries of their fallen as an early warning not to go the way they went. The beasts grew frustrated as they searched for a way to get their prey, they needed blood, they needed carnage, and they needed it now!

One of the Dire Diamond Dogs found the narrow entrance and howled loudly to signal to the rest of the pack. It wasn’t long before the rest of them filed through the passage. The walls reverberated with the sound of their thunderous stomps. The minotaurs braced themselves, knowing that what was to come would be the equivalent of a mighty tidal wave. The Dire Diamond Dogs saw the first indication of their enemy, bronze shields blocked the exit of the passage, their simple minds came to one conclusion, “These are in my way! Kill what’s in my way! And kill whatever’s in front of me!”

Prince Steel was on the front line with his fellow warriors, gritting his teeth and tensing his muscles for what was about to hit.

“HOLD!!!” He ordered.

The wave finally crashed against their shields as a torrent of roars, snarls, scraping metal, and gnashing teeth pushed against the mintoaurs’ defensive line. Their hooves dug into the earth as they were slowly pushed back by the multitudes of Dire Diamond Dogs that pushed against them. On the other side, the Royal Guards watched as the three-hundred backed up inch by slow inch as their brethren braced their backs against their shields.

Annie watched with growing worry as she saw this unfold, it would be a simple matter of commanding the crystals to lash out and spear all the Dire Diamond Dogs at once, or better yet, crush them. But her heart was already heavy with the lives she had taken, and from what the Prince had told them, these beasts were never given a choice whether to fight or not. They were forcibly bred to be what they are, nothing but mindless killing machines, only capable of following the simplest of orders.

“HOLD YOU BASTARDS, HOLD!!!”

The minotaur warriors did just as their prince commanded, digging their hooves into the ground and awaiting for the crucial moment.

“STEADY…NOW!!!”

The minotaurs tensed up and gave out a loud battle cry as they pushed back against the pack, throwing them off and putting a good five feet of distance between them. A few of the Dogs charged for the wall again, but from the gaps in the shield wall, dozens of spears lashed out like cobras, piercing through the armor of the Dire Diamond Dogs and felling them in one blow. Some of them were struck in the heart, lungs, or head, killing them instantly.

“SECOND LINE!!!”

The mintoaurs who struck with their spears replaced the ones on defense, recreating the shield wall and advancing towards them. The Dire Diamond Dogs knew nothing of strategy or tactics, only that they needed to kill their enemy. So, with the simple mind of a beast, they charged forward yet again. The wall pushed them back and spears jetted out once again, killing another dozen or more. Again and again the minotaurs repeated this tactic, their impenetrable phalanx maneuver was a sight to behold. It wasn’t normally done with just three-hundred warriors, but thanks to the crystalline walls, they made it work, in this space, it was a deadly attack.

The minotaurs continued to cut down more and more droves of the Dire Diamond Dogs, all of them dropping like flies before their might. Eventually they worked their way back to the entrance where the rest of the pack waited. One-hundred of the minotaurs stayed behind to defend the opening, while the remaining two formed a semicircle around that area. Some thrust their spears into the ground and drew their swords, while others held onto them, partnering up with those that had none.

The Dire Diamond Dogs attacked again, Prince Steel, using his sword, slashed upwards and carved the beast from its left shoulder to its right side. Another came at him, but one of his soldiers thrust forth with his spear and impaled the Dog before it got to him. Another tried to attack the one that had speared its comrade, but the Prince brought down his blade in an overhead slash, cleaving the mongrel in half as blood sprayed from its corpse. His cape flapped in the crosswinds of the battlefield as he stood fast and cut down three more. His fellow soldiers did well to keep the beasts from advancing. The simple minded creatures had no concept of the real martial training, so were unprepared for the minotaurs’ skill and proficiency with their weapons.

The body count was stacking into the thousands now, with not one of the minotaurs showing signs of fatigue, in fact, they had the creepiest, happiest smiles you could imagine. Their culture was that of a warrior race, and for them, there was no greater thrill, no higher honor, than fighting on the battlefield and dying upon it.

Several times did the Griffonian airships try and return fire, each shot either fell short or ended up blowing up their own troops or the hit the crystalline walls. Whenever a shot did get too close for comfort, Anthea would conjure a shield construct, allowing the round exploded harmlessly against it.

The body count was rising into the tens of thousands now as the mintoaurs held their ground and the Avalon continued its barrage. Suddenly, Anthea’s sensitive ears picked up something, a high pitched whining sound. The Dire Diamond Dogs all stopped at once, their ears perking up and swiveling in the direction the sound came from. With reluctant looks, they bid a tactical retreat, running in same thunderous fashion that they had arrived.

Twilight had stepped out of the ship and joined her Royal Guards, waiting to see what was happening. Prince Steel and his three-hundred slowly made their way back into the narrow passage, keeping their spears and shields forward as they back stepped the whole way. After a couple of minutes, the minotaurs had regrouped with the ponies. Some had gashes and bite marks from the Dire Diamond Dogs, their shields were littered with claw marks, and some of their capes were torn and tattered, but otherwise they were all in good fighting shape.

“That was a little too easy,” commented Steel.

“You call that easy?! They sent in an army, a warship and two frigates! And you call that easy?!” Amber asked incredulously.

“It is when they didn’t press the attack. True we were slaughtering them, and suppressing them with the ships weapons, still…doesn’t feel right.”

Annie’s ears perked up as another sound made itself known. “Does anypony else hear a whistling sound?”

Everyone in attendance strained their ears to hear what Annie was hearing. Some closed their eyes and focused only on the sound. Soon the whistling came into the audio range of the others, causing Steel and Twilight to look up. The sky was littered with the dozens of glowing embers, nearly covering the entire valley.

“MORTAR FIRE!!!” Prince Steel called out.

There must’ve been hundreds of thousands of shells about to rain down on the ship and everything within the Gates of Volkan. There was nowhere to run or hide, the shells would decimate everything below and leave nothing but ashes.

Over my dead body!

Annie summoned the power of her ring and thrust her hoof into the air. A giant dome made of crystal and light formed overhead, covering their half of the valley in a protective shell just as the mortar rounds hit the dome. A cacophony of explosions rang out one after the other, from underneath the dome, it sounded like the stampeding of buffalo over a hard surface. Annie’s ring shined forth as it continued to project the construct, she showed some signs of straining, but Annie believed she could take it. Everyone was amazed that she could create something so big and wide, her shield was big enough to protect all of Canterlot, and the mountain with it. It was then that laughter could be heard coming from Prince Steel as he looked up at the sight, hilarious laughter.

“W-What about this do you find amusing Prince Steel?!” Twilight asked.

“Did I not say that we would fight them under the shade of an umbrella?! HA, HA, AHA, HA!”

It suddenly clicked in the rest of the minotaurs, and it wasn’t long before they joined in on the laughter. Once they thought it over, Lucky and Hot Head laughed, even Annie giggled. What was just a boast was made into reality, and it was just too damn funny not to laugh at it. Twilight smiled a little, seeing the Royal Guards and everyone laughing, even at this particular time, was uplifting.

“So, Prince Steel, is this still too easy?”

“Actually, this is about right.”

One thought ran through everyone’s mind at this moment, seeing how much shelling was going on, and still happening, must’ve meant that the Griffon Empire had sent a great number of their forces into the Long Road. Their battle was far from over.

Night Life / Game Changer

Night Life / Game Changer

Nidra was starting to get closer to Turquoise than she could’ve ever hoped. The dracony stallion was becoming less anxious about Annie’s safety, and that was the general idea, getting T’s mind off of worrying about his fillyfriend and all. But Nidra was enjoying how much time the two of them were spending together.

Whether it was just talking while walking about the castle, eating a private meal together, or simply just going out of the palace and heading down the shopping district. She found that T definitely had an eye for fashion, Nidra attributed that to his mother’s influence, and he knew exactly what worked and what didn’t. Nidra had at one point decided to be a little tease and slipped on something that hugged the elegant curves of her body. She almost melted from seeing his embarrassed reaction.

Of course, during their outings, Nidra couldn’t help but notice the looks they were getting from the citizenry. They had more than once seen Nidra walking about the streets of the city, but it was usually with a guard accompaniment. But since Turquoise was strong enough and fearsome looking enough to ward off any would be stalkers, robbers, or any other kind of neerdowell. But still, the other ponies still looked skittish and somewhat fearful of seeing a dragon-like pony walking about.

Still can’t get over the fact that he’s half-dragon! What’s wrong with these ponies?!

“Sorry T,” said Nidra.

“Sorry for what?”

“Sorry that practically EVERYPONY,” Nidra said loudly, “seems to think you’re dangerous or something.”

Turquoise shrugged. “It’s no big deal, I’m kinda used to it. Less in Ponyville since I’ve lived there most my life, but it really doesn’t bother me.”

Nidra sighed. “You’re a lot kinder than I am. I’d be infuriated that they couldn’t see beyond what I looked like on the outside! Honestly, I think my title as Princess is the only reason they don’t give me the same looks. But Illusion, oh Faust, there’s no end.”

“Really, Illusion gets weird looks too?” T asked.

“Well, yeah. I mean, he usually goes out in disguise so nopony knows it’s really him. But the times he does come out in his normal form, you can almost see the contempt behind their eyes. Even being a crowned Prince, they’re afraid because he’s half-draconequus that he’ll end up being like his father, and take over Equestria, plunging it into eternal chaos or some BS like that.”

Turquoise had no idea that Illusion was getting that kind of flak from others. He remembered Illusion telling him about why he went out in disguise, and how he pretended to be somepony else in order to find out who his true friends were, but he didn’t know the other side to the story. Now that he did, it was a little sad, and at the same time, he saw how Claire and Illusion got along so well.

“Guess we’re lucky, we’ve got friends who don’t care what we look like, and still want to be our friend,” said Turquoise.

“Yeah…” Nidra spotted something as they walked, making her ears perk up. “Say T, have you ever been to a club?”

“Umm, no not really. Ponyville doesn’t have much of a night life, well, beyond private parties that some folks have going on, but nothing like late night clubs. Why do you ask?”

Nidra motioned towards the building on the other side of the street. The two of them stood before the entrance, seeing a sign that read “Grand Opening Tonight, Midnight Bright Club”.

“What do you say we both come out tonight and see what the place’s is like?” Nidra asked.

Turquoise chuckled nervously. “Well…Nidra, I’m not what you would call the most graceful of dancers. Even when Annie dances I just tend to watch.”

Nidra blinked. “Anthea dances?”

“Yep, she’s a pretty good dancer too.”

Little miss perfect. Wonder if she’s perfect in the sack too?!

Okay, really did not need that mental image right now!

“C’mon T, just come with me and let’s try it out! For me, please?!”

Nidra gave Turquoise her most pouty, puppy dog face she could muster. She knew T was a big softy, and he couldn’t really say no to that face. With a heavy sigh, Turquoise smiled and nodded to Nidra. The thestral began hopping in a circle around Turquoise, continuously repeating “yes, yes, yes,” over and over again as she did so.

Wonder if Aunt Twilight’s rubbed off on her?

Saddle Arabian Gate, night time

A couple of days had passed since the attack on the Avalon, and everypony onboard was feeling tense from the lack of assault. Not they complained, it afforded them time to repair the downed airship, but the fear of being attacked at any minute, any moment, made it hard to relax. For the minotaurs it kept them on edge, they enjoyed this feeling, the tension while their enemy planned and readied for another battle.

Annie was still receiving instruction in the art of spear fighting, apparently getting better at it from what Prince Steel told her. Amber, Hot Head, and Lucky would still train with her, helping the formerly blind mare to hone her abilities and control over the violet ring of Love. She had to admit, the ring was becoming more in tuned with her as the days went by, needing little more than a couple of seconds before the constructs formed.

Annie had to admit, she was missing T a lot, and from time to time she’d create a construct of the dracony stallion, using a spell to wrap around the construct to make it look exactly like him. It helped ease her heartache of being separated from her lover for so long, trapped in canyon, surrounded by enemies, and with the high walls, made communication impossible.

Even now, under the serene night sky, Annie’s mind was still thinking about him. She had asked the Princess about the constellation Draco, and wondered if it was visible in this region. As luck would have it, they were in the right spot for it. Annie memorized the pattern and went to the top of the Avalon to view this constellation. It didn’t take her long to find the winding form of the star dragon, Draco.

Annie was told by T a long time ago, a story apparently passed down from elder to hatchling amongst the dragon race, about the constellation. According to the dragon philosophy, ponies and dragons used to live side by side with each other many years ago, before the founding of Equestria.

“The oldest of the dragons took pity on the ponies and sought to help them in the building of their nation. So he gathered them together and made them vow that they’d watch over the pony race, always. And upon the eldest’s death, the night became alive, and the constellation “Draco” was formed, the ‘Dragon’s Heaven’”.

But not all were permitted to this wonderful place, for to gain entry, they must prove they are indeed worthy, and earn their place in the lofty heavens. And what was sad, was that if one wasn’t, their soul would vanish, and lost as if never existing at all.

In so doing, although it has long been out of practice and lost to the ravages of time. The dragons sought to merge their hearts with those of ponies, connecting their races on a deeper level than ever was possible. Unfortunately, over the centuries, the dragon race grew arrogant and gave up any intentions about helping them or befriending them ever again. Some dragons still look to the heavens and see Draco, believing in the old stories and pondering on how best to earn their place till this very day…”

It made Annie wonder about Turquoise. He was certainly a kind and caring stallion, but did that mean anything to the Draco? Did it grant access to that place? And what of Claire and Mr. Spike? Certainly, being raised by ponies, and falling in love with one has to mean something, Claire and Turquoise were the first of their kind in over, Celestia knows how long! It pretty much bridged the gap between dragon and pony. Then again, Turquoise didn’t tend to do too much.

It was always a fear of Annie’s, if she died or that T would be like the Princesses and continue to live on. Dragons had very long life spans, and Annie didn’t doubt that T would outlive her, Claire was lucky, she fell in love with Prince Illusion, being born of an immortal sun goddess and spirit of chaos, there was no way that wouldn’t outlive many ponies. But T…T would be all alone when she died, and what’s more, he didn’t seem to have much of an ambition in life.

Annie didn’t want to say anything, but with the war and everything that’s happened, it’s made her rethink her priorities when it came to her coltfriend’s well-being. Turquoise had always been a helper, helped his parents, Claire, their friends, herself, practically being a jack of all trades. But she wanted more for him than to be a helper all his life, Annie wanted him to find something that he was good at, a special talent all his own.

“Thinking about T?”

Annie was snapped out of her reverie, turning her head to see Lucky Star approaching her.

“Oh hey Lucky…is it that obvious?”

“Kind of, yeah, but it’s only natural to miss somepony you care about. Especially when you have as strong bond of love like you two do,” said Lucky.

“Thanks Lucky.”

Purple stallion laid next to Annie, both looking up into the night sky, to the crescent moon that hung overhead as well as the billions of stars. Annie glanced to Lucky, she frowned slightly, something that the unicorn stallion didn’t miss.

“Annie what’s wrong?”

“Lucky…does…does it bother you, seeing me and Turquoise together?”

Lucky looked confused at hearing that. “Well, that’s out of the blue. But I guess…at first it did, since well, he’s half-dragon and it really worried us when you first introduced us to him. But after getting to know him better, I’m alright with it. Hot Head’s still getting used to it, guy still thinks T’s going to turn rabid or something down the line and hurt you.”

Annie sighed. “I’ll remember to talk to him about that, but that’s not what I meant. I’m sorry Lucky but…my ring, it senses love, all kinds. Even unrequited love.”

Lucky was still confused, but only for a brief moment before his cheeks went red and he turned his gaze out towards the sea of star sapphire crystals.

“I didn’t mean to, Lucky, I’m really sorry! It just happens, the ring senses it, and it kind of lets me know what kind of love another pony’s feeling! But, during the times I’ve been around you, I’ve felt that sensation, and it grew stronger whenever you were around me. Lucky, how long?”

The unicorn stallion was slow to answer, but with a reluctant sigh, he spoke.

“Honestly? For a while now, like, back when we were in the orphanage and since then.”

Annie’s eyes grew wide. “Lucky, why didn’t you tell me?!”

“Because I…” Lucky cut himself off, trying to collect his thoughts before speaking. “Because I didn’t think it was the right time.”

“‘Right time’?”

“When all four of us were in the orphanage, we weren’t just random kids huddling together, we were each other’s family. A brother, a little sister, a big sister. I didn’t want to mess that up by suddenly spilling that I had a crush on you! And when you got adopted, I knew that I couldn’t, because I didn’t want you to say that you couldn’t go leaving me behind.”

To some, that may sound selfish and corny. But Annie knew that she would have. As faithful as she was to T, she would’ve no doubt been the same way to Lucky, not wanting to leave her love’s side while he stayed behind.

“You have a good life with Miss Fluttershy, and I always hoped that maybe one day I’d get to tell you. But…when you said you were going to introduce us to your coltfriend, it kind of shattered all that.”

Annie’s head lowered, her gaze downcast. “I’m sorry…”

“Don’t be. You’re happy with Turquoise, right?”

“Yes, but…I feel like I cheated you out of a chance or something, or that you cheated yourself! I must really be blind if I couldn’t pick up on your feelings…” Annie lamented.

Lucky reached out with his right hoof, placing the tip under Annie’s chin and lifting it up gently as she turned to look at him.

“In truth, I would’ve been surprised if you had. Because I was doing my best so that you didn’t notice. But that’s a moot point. You’re with the pony you love, and me, well, I’ll find somepony else. Just know that…that there’s somepony out there that does care about you a lot.”

Annie felt a pang in her heart. “Well…I know it may not be much, but…do you want to come closer to me? At least you can say you spent the night gazing at the stars, with the pony you care about most.”

Lucky blushed but smiled nonetheless. Annie shuffled closer to Lucky, resting her side against his armor plated side. Annie frowned at the feel of the cold metal. She then used her magic to levitate the metal up off him and set it to the vacant left side. Annie scooted closer, pressing her left side to his right, making their coats mingle together.

“That’s better,” said Annie.

“Y-Yeah, a-a lot better!” Lucky stammered.

Annie giggled at the flustered look on his face. She may not be able to return his feelings, but this night, this moment, she could at least give him that much. For one of her closest friends, for somepony she saw as a cool older brother, this much she could do.

Late night, back in Canterlot…

“Nidra are you sure about this? We could get in a lot of trouble if we get caught,” whispered Turquoise.

“Relax T, I’ve snuck out of the palace hundreds of times,” said Nidra.

“Yeah, you alone is easy, but you didn’t have a green scaled, behemoth of a dracony following you those times!”

“We won’t get caught T, I promise.”

Nidra and Turquoise were currently trying to get off the castle grounds. Nidra decided that flying would be the best option for them, luckily the moon was in its waning crescent stage, and the light that emanated from it was lessened. The alicorn thestral mare concluded that a departure from the right side of the castle would be best; far enough away from the lights so as to not be seen, and just within the castle’s shadow to provide them cover. Nidra was aware that T, while a strong flyer, was not very agile in the air unlike herself. So she figured this was the best way for both of them to get out.

Turquoise was antsy about leaving the castle without permission from Nidra’s mother or any of the other royals. The fact that Nidra did this all the time kind of worried him, Nidra was a Princess of Equestria, even though Canterlot was a safe city, it wasn’t unknown to the criminal element. What was to stop some random mugger or assassin from trying to kill or foalnap her?! But that could wait for later, right now, Turquoise had to focus on the task at hoof, which was making it to the exit and taking off from there.

Nidra held the lead, while T’s draconic eyes were great at seeing in the dark, the Princess of Slumber’s eyes were even better, being the daughter of Luna and a thestral. Everything was a bright to her as if it were daylight, even the most minute of details was made known before he gaze. Her ears twitched here and there, listening for the clanking clatter of Royal Guard armor, or the soft thudding of their hoofsteps. Nidra had to stop them several times when she heard them, only moving when they receded a safe distance.

After about thirty minutes of sneaking around the palace, Nidra and Turquoise made it to the exit. They spread their wings and took off post haste, taking to the night sky. The two bat winged ponies flew carefully, no sudden movements or change in direction, they wanted to appear as nothing more than a couple of bats flying in the sky to anypony who looked up. Thankfully they weren’t spotted, having gotten near one of the taller buildings in the main part of Canterlot. Nidra guided Turquoise to a spot in an alleyway, landing softly inside while Turquoise landed with a great thud of his clawed hooves.

“Told you we’d make it out,” said Nidra with pride.

“Yeah…but still, it’s dangerous for you to be out like this.”

“T, please, as much as I love the nightlife, I’m far more cautious than you think. Observe…”

Nidra sparked her horn, letting it flare up for a moment and then flash. Turquoise averted his eyes from the brief change in lighting. When it was over, instead of an alicorn thestral standing before him, a gray pegasus mare was there, with a cobalt blue mane and intimidating eyes. Turquoise immediately recognized this form as Jet Stream, Nidra’s disguised form whenever she wanted to go somewhere and not be heckled by the citizens wanting to meet a Princess.

“Illusion taught me how to use his glamour spell, now I don’t have to go to him whenever I want to go out as Jet Stream! It’s a variation of his spell that uses less magic so I don’t have to worry about using up my own to maintain it!”

“Oh, well now that makes more sense. Still, Canterlot can’t be that safe at night, despite the presence of the Royal Guard.”

“In that case…” Jet Stream strode up right beside Turquoise, pressing her side close to his. “Guess you’d better act as my coltfriend while we’re out!”

Turquoise blushed. “C-C-Coltfriend?!”

“C’mon, it’s just pretend. Nopony will want to try and make a pass at me or hurt me when they see I’m with a big, strong, fearsome, and handsome, dracony like yourself, T.”

That smoldering look in Jet Stream’s eyes didn’t help to make this any less awkward. She had a point though, whenever T was with Annie, guys tended to keep away from her like the plague. Afraid of angering her half-dragon coltfriend and getting themselves burned alive. In Ponyville it wasn’t that bad, and they hardly went out at night there, but there wasn’t much to worry about at night around there. But in Canterlot, who knew what was lurking in the shadows, muggers, con-ponies, and some of the more unsavory lot that would take a mare and…Turquoise shook his head, not wanting to imagine stuff like that happening to Nidra.

“Alright, just…stay close.”

Jet Stream pressed closer to T. “No problem. From here, I think the club is down that way.”

“O-Okay!”

Turquoise and Jet Stream exited the alley and headed up the sidewalk. She couldn’t help but find the nervousness in his voice cute, this was the first time he no doubt had another mare this close to him other than Annie. But after the first couple of blocks Jet Stream noticed him visibly loosening up and growing more comfortable with her by his side.

“Hey Ni – uh – Jet Stream?”

“Yes?”

“Do you mind if I…put my wing over you? It’s just that I’m kind of used to doing that with Annie and all, so it just feels weird that I’m not…it’s okay if you don’t want me too.”

Jet Stream vehemently shook her head. “N-No, not at all! Go ahead, I don’t mind…”

The gray pegasus mare moved back a bit, allowing Turquoise to stretch out his right wing. She came closer to T and allowed him to drape his large dragon wing over her back, bringing her left wing pressed up against the side of his barrel. Jet Stream was practically glowing red right now, never did she ever think she’d be like this with Turquoise. For a long while now she had wondered what it would be like to be embraced and covered by his wing like she had seen Annie, and now it finally happened.

The two pretend lovers walked for about another block before the night club came into view. There was a bouncer out at the front, watching the different ponies exit and enter the establishment. At Jet Stream’s behest the two of them walked over to the club entrance. The bouncer eyed the two of them, T especially. Turquoise just grinned nonchalantly and Jet Stream did the same, trying to give off the aura of a happy couple. If the bouncer suspecting anything he didn’t show it, he merely nodded his head towards the door, silently telling them to go on in.

Once inside the real fun began. The music was loud, thumping and reverberating within their eardrums and in their chests. Young mares and stallions were out on the dance floor, which was made up of light up tiles that went off in random sequence and colors. Strobe lights swiveled around, flashing and beaming their different array of colors. Some of the ponies were sitting at booths and tables, just talking or enjoying a drink from the bar. At one point T and Jet Stream saw a booth with a couple making out, they turned away, their faces blushing hard. But they were now treated to the sight of a mare couple doing the same on the nearby wall, one of them pinned up against said wall.

They settled for just staring at the floor, unless of course the floor was see-through and there was another couple making out under them. Thankfully there wasn’t. The DJ up on the center stage was busy bobbing in his head to the beat of the music, using his hooves and magic to work the turntables and various knobs and switches to get the best sound from the music. Turquoise had to admit, he’d never been to a place like this, heard about them, but never been to one. It was cool. Jet Stream absentmindedly moved a lock of her mane from her face and looked up at Turquoise.

“So…T, do you want to dance?”  Jet Stream asked.

“Oh, uh, probably not the best of things for me to do. Like I said I’d prefer to watch.”

Jet Stream had a pensive expression, she really wanted to dance with Turquoise, but the beat of the music was too swaying, too addicting not to want and join in.

“Jet Stream, if you want to go and dance go on ahead,” said Turquoise.

“But T…”

Turquoise nudged the mare forward with his wing. “Go on.”

Jet Stream looked between the dance floor and Turquoise, with a reluctant grunt she conceded to him.

“Fine, but before this night’s over T you’re dancing with me!”

Turquoise shook his head, accepting her ultimatum. Jet Stream, not walked, but sauntered over to the dance floor. Her hips swayed back and forth tantalizingly, giving Turquoise a show as she went to the dance floor.

You know you lost your shot at dancing with him, right?

No I haven’t, I’m going to give T a show.

Ooooh, a little teasing, showing off your dance moves and getting his attention. I like it!

Not that I care about your opinion, but I’m glad you approve.

The DJ ended the song and started up a new one. Jet Stream made her way to the center of the floor, the other dancers parting to make way for her. She tapped her hoof to the beat, finding the rhythm of the music and her timing. Once she had both, Jet Stream began her dance.

T found a vacant table and sat on the cushion. When he looked out into the dancefloor his jaw dropped. Jet Stream – or rather Nidra – was on fire! The other dancers made a circle around her, captivated by her wild, and yet, graceful movements. Her mane jerked back and forth, going the opposite way of wherever her head was going. Her wings flared out, aiding her balance as she moved to her hind legs, using the avian appendages as fans to cover her all but her eyes, giving Jet Stream a seductive intensity that was enough to turn the heads of the stallions and mares in the room.

Her tail twirled around whenever she did a spin, becoming a blue streak from the speed of her movements. Turquoise had to admit, this was a lot different from the times he had seen Annie dance. Her blindness hindered her in learning the more modern dances, but that didn’t stop her from “twerking” as it was called. But the way Nidra moved, it was sensual, almost awe inspiring, for a moment he mentally stripped away the facade of the glamour and saw only the alicorn thestral, his mind matching the movements to her bat wings and intense yellow eyes. If she were in her real form, Nidra would no doubt truly be a graceful creature of the night.

After a few minutes more of dancing, the music stopped and so did Jet Stream. She had a few beads of sweat but nothing that bothered her, she didn’t like to sweat much, making her distaste for hard labor known to Starburst a while back, but working up a sweat by dancing was a different thing, if anything it made her shimmer and captivate all the better.

Why couldn’t Starburst just pursue her dancing more? This is a work out truly worth enjoying, and with our moves we could be the envy of every mare and stallion in Canterlot!

Eyes on the prize, what did T think?!

Jet Stream looked towards where T was sitting, noticing that he had his eyes glued to her the whole time. The faux pegasus mare felt a shiver of excitement run up her spine, knowing that Turquoise, the stallion she was in love with, had been watching her dance this whole time was beyond great! Jet Stream played it cool though, she didn’t want to let Turquoise onto just how excited she was, not yet at least. She sauntered towards Turquoise, the crowd parting as she did, all eyes still on her.

“You were great out there!” Turquoise exclaimed.

“Thank you,” said Jet Stream in a humble tone. “Believe it or not, Star and I used to be in the same dance classes a while back.”

“Seriously?” T asked.

Jet Stream nodded. “I learned the more classical stuff like she did, ballet, the waltz, and others. But I found my personal style to edge towards more modern types of dances. Star got what she wanted out of the classes, better balance, coordination, and whatnot, and I did as well. But instead I furthered my knowledge whereas Star dabbled back and forth. We actually used to dance with each other from time to time, since I was her partner during the classes.”

“Wow,” was all that T could say.

“Okay, now it’s your turn!”

“Wait what?”

“You. Me. Dance. Now!”

Jet Stream tugged at Turquoise’s left foreleg, but the futility in her actions was quickly becoming apparent. The hulking mass that was Turquoise refused to budge, she may be half alicorn, but that still didn’t make it any easier trying to move Turquoise, like trying to move a chunk of metal bolted to the floor.

“Jet Stream I told you I don’t dance, I’m not very good at it, and after all that, I’ll just embarrass you,” said T.

Jet Stream ceased her pulls and got close to T’s face. “Turquoise Blitz, know now that you can never, ever, embarrass me. I don’t care if you don’t know, I’ll show you how to move, all I want is to dance with you and see you have some fun. Forget what they think, so long as you’re having a good time, that’s all that matters, right?”

Turquoise never thought Nidra of all ponies as being the mature spirit lifter, but the way she spoke with such confidence and…affection? No he had to be imagining that. With a heavy sigh and a broad smile, Turquoise sat up and allowed Jet Stream to guide him to the dancefloor. He had to admit, he was nervous. The eyes of the other ponies on him as he walked towards the center with Jet Stream, Turquoise was starting to get more and more worried about embarrassing the mare. After showing off all those cool dance moves, she was about to dance with a lumbering, uncoordinated oaf like him?! He was a large stallion, he couldn’t perform the kind of aerial tricks that Prism, Whirlwind, or even Starburst could do. He was always limited by his size and bulk.

Before Turquoise realized it they had stopped walking and were in the middle of the dancefloor. The DJ began playing the music and everypony started into their own dance routines. Jet Stream remained still, looking up at the crystal blue eyes of Turquoise, seeing the nervousness and worry present within them. Jet Stream tapped her hoof against the floor, she nodded towards that same hoof, drawing Turquoise’s attention to it.

He was starting to get it. T listened to the music, tapping his own hoof against the floor in rhythm to the music. Soon he was bobbing his head to it, Jet Stream was doing the same, smiling at seeing the stallion find the rhythm of the music. She started to do a couple of simple moves, easily enough mimicked. Turquoise did the moves as best he could, both were going slow, Jet Stream not moving as fast as she was earlier. Most likely it was for his benefit, he guessed.

Despite not being able to dance, Turquoise had good rhythm, letting the music define his moves. Jet Stream and Turquoise continued their slightly quickened dance, while all eyes weren’t drawn on her like last time, Jet Stream only cared about one pair of eyes, and they were staring right back at her.

The alicorn thestral and dracony had stayed at the club, mingling, having a drink – non-alcoholic – and kept on into the midnight hour, and maybe an hour or two after it. Nidra could go all night partying around at different clubs, but her energy levels were higher at night than during the day, so it was expected. Turquoise however was starting to get visibly exhausted, not used to being up at late hours like this.

Nidra took pity on the stallion she longed for and decided that it was time to head back. The two of them easily slipped back into the castle undetected by anypony, all the while, Nidra could see the elation in Turquoise, as if all his worry about Annie and the war was gone tonight, leaving only her and him.

Turquoise and Nidra had made it to the hallway where their respective rooms were at. Nidra didn’t want to lose this feeling, these past few days and now this night, she had felt herself get closer to Turquoise, and had fallen in love with him more and more. She still wanted to be by him, so she dared ask.

“Turquoise?”

“Hmmm?”

“Do you mind if…I sleep in your bed tonight? I’m kind of tired and my legs are sore, and I kind of feel like just collapsing right now.”

“Oh sure, I’ll just sleep on the couch inside,” said Turquoise.

“Well…not like that. I mean you and me both in the bed…together.”

Smooth~

I’m totally not even thinking about that right now!

Turquoise was hesitant at first, sleeping in the same bed with Annie was one thing, they were a couple, and the two of them were too “goody-goody” to actually do anything while in the same bed. But Nidra…she was one of his best friends, Annie’s too. It wasn’t so weird to do the same thing, they were friends.

The dracony stallion nodded his head and could see the corners of Nidra’s mouth raise into a smile. Turquoise unlocked his door and let Nidra in first, the faint moonlight of the waning crescent seeped into the room, giving it a milky-blue coloring. Nidra dove into the bed like an excited filly, Turquoise rolled his eyes at the playful side of his friend and, with a bit of caution, entered the bed. Nidra kept her back to Turquoise, and Turquoise did the same, neither one able to sleep due to the other’s presence. For Nidra it was pure adrenaline, she couldn’t believe she was in the same bed with the stallion she had a crush on for years. For Turquoise it was the odd thumping in his heart, he didn’t understand why he felt so nervous about this, it was only Nidra.

Yeah, Nidra! The mare who’s a great dancer, gentle when she wants to be, caring, hot – wait what?! Did I just think Nidra was hot?! In all honesty Turquoise couldn’t deny that. Okay so she’s hot, and cute…and…UGH! Get a grip T, she’s your friend and you’re with Annie! Remember Annie?! The mare who’s out there fighting for her life and everypony else’s too?!

“Turquoise…?”

“Y-Yeah?”

“I wanted to tell you that,” Nidra turned around and faced T’s back, she then placed a hoof gently on the center of his back, “I really had fun out there tonight, and that…it was probably the best time I had sneaking out.”

Turquoise grinned upon hearing that. “I’m glad that you did, and honestly, I had a pretty good time too! Annie’s going to be surprised to hear you got me out dancing.”

Nidra’s smile faltered a bit. “………Hey, T, can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“If…If you never met Anthea…and met me first instead…do you think we could’ve been coltfriend and fillyfriend?” Nidra asked.

Turquoise arched his neck in Nidra’s direction. “Honestly?”

“Yes, honestly!”

The dracony stallion let out a long sigh. “I guess…We could’ve been. I mean, you’re fun to be around, a little rough around the edges, but you’re really kind and caring underneath.”

I’m not…I’m selfish…

“And if I’m not being totally weird by saying this, I think you’re cute too.”

Nidra’s eyes went wide upon hearing that. “Turquoise…look at me.”

T turned his body, just in time for Nidra’s hooves to shoot out and hold onto his muzzle on either side. She stared into his eyes, glistening with a tears and a happiness that T never saw in her before. Before he could utter a word, Nidra closed the distance between them, pressing her lips against Turquoise’s. It was a soft kiss, but one that caught the dracony stallion completely off guard. Nidra put more pressure on the kiss, pushing back as she was about to turn it into a more passionate kiss. But Turquoise was able regain his senses, he quickly tore his muzzle away from Nidra’s, jumping out the bed and landing on all fours on the floor.

“Turquoise!”

“No! Nidra, what was that about?!”

“I…I…”

“Nidra you really need to explain yourself right now! Why did you kiss me?! You know Annie’s my fillyfriend, and you’re her best friend dammit!”

“Because I’m in love with you Turquoise Blitz!” Nidra shouted.

Silence befell the room, with Turquoise staring dumbfounded at Nidra, and the alicorn thestral now starting to cry actual tears. Turquoise wanted to go and comfort her, but he couldn’t, not after what she said. This was unbelievable, Nidra was in love him, has been, and she just kissed him!

“H-How long?” T asked.

“Since the day I first saw you, at first it was just because we were alike y’know? Somepony who was as different as me, but the more time I got to spend around you, the more I realized that it wasn’t just because of how we looked! You’re…You’re the kind of stallion I’ve always dreamed of being with, somepony who could understand me and love me back, despite the way I scare some ponies, act like a spoiled brat, you’re willing to look past all that and see me for me! T…I love you…I really and truly do!”

Turquoise sat on his haunches, trying to absorb all that Nidra had said. He wasn’t going to lie, a part of him did find Nidra attractive, but he never let it bother him or grow into something. T had remained faithful to Annie, on the day she said yes to being a couple, Turquoise swore he’d never be unfaithful to Annie, and be by her side whenever she needed him. But now…now he felt something, something that he wasn’t even sure was right. That kiss from Nidra, although completely out of the blue, was nice…it was even as nice as kissing Annie.

Nidra looked upon the stallion, wondering what he was thinking, and at the same time fearing it. She had kissed him, in a moment she gave into her emotions and kissed the stallion she had pinned over for so long, and yet, at the same time she had just broken the trust of a mare who had called her friend. But maybe this was for the best, if T was thinking this hard, maybe he was contemplating even leaving Annie.

“Turquoise…It’s not too late for us to have something, the two of us,” said Nidra.

“What are you saying Nidra?!”

“If-If you want, we could be a couple! Starting now, we could give it a try!”

T shook his head at the idea. “You’re asking me to cheat on Annie while she’s away fighting?!”

“Anthea is more than capable of taking care of herself with that ring of hers! She’ll come back alright! But T, this is a chance, a chance for us to explore our feelings about each other, to pursue something that we never knew was even an option!”

“STOP!!!” T shouted. “Just…Just stop…”

Nidra crawled off the bed and slowly made her way towards T.

“T…I…I only meant…”

She reached out to try and touch his cheek, but Turquoise quickly jerked his head away. That one action was more damaging than any word or blow from a blade.

“I think you need to go back to your room now…”

Nidra wanted to protest, to keep fighting! But the look in T’s eyes, the tension in his body, this wasn’t a request, no, he was telling her to leave him alone as nicely as possible. The kind and caring nature in his voice and eyes had left, now all was left was the sounds of a pony who had been betrayed. Nidra hung her head low, passing by Turquoise who continued to stare at the window to the night sky.

“I’m…I’m sorry…”

Those were her last words as Nidra exited the room and closed the door behind her.

Gates of Volkan…

Anubis paced back and forth, the losses he had suffered at the hands of the minotaurs and the Star Sapphire ring wielder were great. They had attacked one other time since then, and the results were the same. The cannon fire halted the airships, and the crystal glaves that stuck out of the ground kept them from attacking with their ground forces. Oh they tried an aerial attack with the griffons, but the results were the same if not worse! The Star Sapphire would use her power to push the soldiers away, it was insulting! As if saying it they weren’t even worth the energy to kill!

 And when they tried another cannon barrage, nothing. The Star Sapphire would just summon forth a giant barrier and protect the downed ship and the crew. The only thing that didn’t make this worse was that the ponies couldn’t get any reinforcements from Saddle Arabia due to the interference from the mountains, but that also put them in a similar position. If they ran out of ships and troops then they’d have to retreat back to the Empire in disgrace! Anubis drew his sword and slashed at the air, striking rock from time to time in a fit of rage.

“They sent my pack and the rest of us running after having our snouts bloodied up! The Empress is not going to be pleased, and neither will the rest of the Jackal Chiefs!”

“Yes, quite the debacle you had indeed.”

Anubis took hold of his sword again, holding steady and entering a defensive stance. The voice echoed in the darkness, his sensitive ears swiveled to and fro as Anubis tried to pick up on the voice’s origin, but it sounded like it had come out from all directions.

“Who are you?! Show yourself!” Anubis demanded.

“If you insist…”

The shadows seemed to come alive, undulating and crawling like a living creature roused from slumber. Anubis took a few cautionary steps back, watching as the shadows gathered and shot up about five feet into the air. The coalesced into a sphere and then burst open, changing into a portal of darkness. What emerged from the portal was a griffon, clothed in black armor. A white symbol of an upside down triangle with five vertical bars was emblazoned onto his chest armor, his large and intimidating wings were black as night, it was as if they were made of shadows.

Upon his right middle talon was a ring, it glowed with an otherworldly, ominous black light as the white symbol at its center pulsated. The plumage around his head was stark white, but his eyes were like pools of darkness, irises an icy blue that pierced the soul. The portal behind the griffon closed, Anubis held his sword pointed at the mysterious griffon, though they were on the same side, he had no knowledge as to this one’s allegiance.

“Who are you?!” Anubis asked.

“My name isn’t terribly important, just know that I am here in secret on behalf of the Empress.”

Anubis lowered his sword a little, but not enough that he couldn’t quickly snap it back to cut the griffon’s throat.

“State your business then.”

“I hear you’re having a little trouble getting through the Equestrian’s defense? Got your rears kicked and sent running with your tail between your legs,” said the dark messenger.

The black jackal growled angrily. “That was a fluke! Next time I’ll –!”

“You’ll be in the same position you are now. So long as they have a pony with power similar to the Fear Lantern’s your forces will be halted each time. But there are ways to neutralize it. And ways to get around them.”

Anubis was skeptical that this griffon knew of such ways, but as it stood he really didn’t have many other options and strategies to go on right now.

“Continue…”

“I can give you a little edge, one that will allow you to get around their defenses. They are shipwrecked at the Saddle Arabian Gate, correct? Then all you need to do is hit them from one side and then the other. A pincer strike if you will.”

Anubis scoffed. “And how do you purpose we do that?! The gateway is blocked by their ship, which still has working armaments! There isn’t a way to get to the passage that leads to Saddle Arabia, unless one of our ships breaks the line on the other end and makes its way from there!”

“Hold out your sword.”

Anubis blinked.

“Do it!”

Reluctantly Anubis did as he commanded, holding out his khopesh sword straight out in front of him. The black griffon walked up to the weapon and gripped it with his left talon. That same talon began to glow with dark energy, it seeped into the sword and ran up the jackal’s arm. He tried to pull away, but the energy had bound his hand to the weapon. The darkness crawled further up his arm and sunk itself into his chest, making Anubis howl into the air! The black griffon released the weapon and let Anubis fall to his knees, panting hard from taking in the power.

“So then, General Anubis, how do you feel?”

Anubis began to chuckle as he rose up on his paws. When he looked upon the black griffon, Anubis’ eyes matched that of the griffon’s, but instead of icy blue, they were a bright yellow.

“Amazing, such power!” Anubis exclaimed.

“Yes, but keep your blade close. I couldn’t funnel all of it into your body directly so I used your sword as a conduit. With it you can form portals, with no limit to size, and wield a fair degree of dark destructive power. The Fear Lantern’s creations seemed to have adverse reactions to magic and dark magic especially, if you want to win, you must take out the one with the ring. Understand?”

Anubis swung his sword around, the black and purple aura flowing in the wake of each stroke of the blade. Anubis slashed once with the sword, and before him space was severed, creating a black gash that opened up into a portal. The black jackal willed the portal to close. He then pointed the sword at boulder jutting up from the ground, concentrating, he fired a blast of dark energy at the rock! Obliterating it in a single blast.

“You seem like you like it,” said the black griffon.

“Very! And I have the perfect way to use this power…Their day of reckoning comes at dawn!”

The Heroic End / Avarice Awakened

The Heroic End / Avarice Awakened

Annie woke up in the forelegs of Amber, despite being able to see, the formerly blind mare still felt like she needed somepony there next to her when she slept. But Amber didn’t mind, in fact, she even promised not to try anything funny while she did. Annie rolled her eyes at remembering that. Still, it was nice knowing that Amber was still Amber amidst all the turmoil. Annie gently moved her left hoof to Amber’s cheek, resting it against that spot. Through her ring, she sensed Lucky’s unrequited love, but for Amber…it was different.

She sensed love was there, she loved Hot Head and Lucky, she loved Annie as well. But she also didn’t know love. Annie could sense how deep inside Amber was searching for somepony to love her, Annie had often heard from Lucky and Hot Head about how Amber would go to some pretty wild parties and hit on stallions left and right, but of the ones she did date, they never lasted more than a couple a weeks, a month tops.

Annie closed her eyes and concentrated on Amber. Ring, show me…show me why Amber can’t find love, what’s keeping her from accepting it?

[Love’s Sight: Activated.]

Annie’s mind was aglow in violet-pink light, her heart and mind connecting to Amber’s memories. Her first stop was to her foalhood, Annie she saw Amber’s parents, the light of love was strong in both of them, and so bright within Amber, but her mother looked weak, sick even. The memories played out, showing Annie a little Amber as she played doctor with her mother, diagnosing her as best a young filly could. The memory shifted to when Amber awoke, nudging her mother awake, but her mother never stirred.

[Maternal Love: Lost…]

Oh Amber…

The memories shifted yet again, Amber was still a young filly. Her father walked beside her, both of them walking along through a town that was all too familiar to her. Annie recognized the matron of the orphanage that she and the others grew up in, Amber still held her bright smile, blissfully unaware of what was happening. The light of love was dim within her father, it wasn’t gone, but, it was just…dim.

[True Love: Lost…Paternal Love: Lost…]

From then on Annie saw the light of love within Amber go through chaotic changes, only finding solace in giving and receiving love from Hot Head, Lucky, and Annie herself during their time together. The memory of when Annie was adopted by Fluttershy appeared in her mind, showing Annie smiling as Fluttershy led her away to a new life. While oppositely, Annie saw the sad look in Amber’s eyes, feeling another sense of loss as Hot Head and Lucky comforted her the best they could.

[Sororal Love: Lost…]

I didn’t know…I didn’t know I had made her feel that sad! She’d lost her mother to death, and her father had dumped her in the orphanage…I just reopened a wound that had barely healed…

[Sororal Love: Reacquired.]

Annie was snapped back to another memory, the day that their little group was reunited once again, and how from then on the young mare continued to be a part of Amber’s heart. But that wasn’t all that Annie saw, she saw the wild parties that Amber went to when she turned fifteen, her graduation from school at a very early age, and being hired as a nurse before moving to the Royal Guard in order to keep an eye on Hot Head and Lucky. Memories of past coltfriends flashed before her eyes, showing the different flings she had with many different stallions. Some she got at parties, others were just some random ponies that she found attractive while out and about.

But even so, none of them filled the void in her heart. It was as if the only thing holding Amber up was the love of those closest to her, but her heart…her heart was closed to others who would love, her trust shaken by her father, unconsciously expecting every stallion she picked up to eventually abandon her as soon as they got what they wanted. Luckily, Amber never let it get further than a kiss and left. She hated seeing this, a giant heart formed before Annie, made of the crystal memories that the star sapphire ring made to represent how she felt, at the center was a giant hole. Despite her love for all of them, she knew not the full maternal love of her mother, her ability to open her heart fully to somepony, it ate at the center, kept away only by love of those closest to her.

I’ve seen enough…

[Very well, Annie.]

Annie was brought back to the physical plane, when she opened her eyes she felt tears streaming down them. And how could she not cry, seeing all that dwelling within the heart of a mare she saw as a big sister and even a mother figure, she was hurting. Annie unconsciously rubbed Amber’s cheek soothingly, the older mare started to shake a little, her face contorting with sadness.

“Mom…please don’t leave me…Mom…!”

“Amber…”

Annie used that same hoof to move some of Amber’s bangs away from her forehead, she then leaned forward and kissed the mare on the forehead, something that Amber herself had done for all of them many times in the past, but right now, she needed it the most. The kiss calmed the mare down, her smile returning a little as she held onto Annie tighter.

The pink unicorn mare used her aura to move Amber’s legs off her gently, when she slipped out, Annie used her ring to create a construct double of herself to replace her. She didn’t want to leave Amber alone, but she needed to see if Princess Twilight or Prince Steel needed her for anything, at the very least she needed to reinforce the sapphire barricades. Annie took one more look over her shoulder, watching as Amber held her construct double closer and the double doing the same, radiating love energy to sooth the mare in her embrace. With a nod, Annie left the room as quietly as she could.

As she went down the corridors Annie passed by many of the crew, they all nodded and said good morning to her, greeting her with smiles every which way she turned. It almost felt unfair to her, she wielded a ring almost similar to Starburst’s and yet Star was still looked down on. Annie sighed, she went on this trip to help with the relations with the minotaurs, and to find Star, but recent events have all but brought that mission to a halt. So long as the Avalon was down, and surrounded by enemies, there was no way any of them could conduct a search.

After a short walk about, Annie arrived at the bridge of the ship. Her mentor was there, looking over the shoulder of a stallion who was working the radio communications. Annie walked over and cleared her throat to announce her presence. Twilight turned around and nodded to Annie.

“‘Morning Annie,” said Twilight.

“Good morning Princess, how’s it going with the radio?” Annie asked.

Twilight sighed. “Nothing, our radio transmissions are scattered because of the high walls. If anypony’s listening they’d need to be within our range, otherwise we’re just talking to ourselves. The only good thing about this situation is that the griffons can’t communicate with their homeland, so they can’t call for reinforcements.”

“So if we can outlast them, they’ll have no choice but to leave,” said Annie.

“Or at the very least, they could try a suicide run. It would be a better fate for them to go out in blaze of glory and honor than just sit idly by. It’s a coward’s tactic.”

Both mares turned around, hearing the voice and thumping hoofsteps of Prince Steel as he joined them.

“Admittedly, knowing how large an enemy force we’re up against would help out, at least we’d know how many more ships and troops we need to whittle down until they finally retreat,” said Twilight.

[Enemy movement detected.]

Annie, Twilight, and Steel all looked to the violet ring.

“Looks like you’ll get your wish Prince Steel,” said Annie.

The Avalon crew scrambled to their offensive positions, readying the cannons and rockets for deployment. Alarms blared as the clopping of hooves against metal, clanking of armor, and the growls of minotaurs echoed in the halls. Cannon turrets popped out of their portholes, as rocket ramps were sprung out, all aimed in the direction of the canyon gates before them. The minotaur warriors readied themselves at the corridor that Annie had created via her violet sapphire crystals, Royal Guards were at the rear, with Annie and the trio of Troublemakers standing at her side. She had already sent out her construct doves, all of them acting as relays to display the images of the battlefield.

“What do you see?!” Prince Steel shouted.

Annie looked to her screens and saw something odd. “It’s…Anubis?”

Prince Steel and Twilight both looked at her with confusion.

“Anubis? That needle muzzled lap dog?!” Steel asked.

“Um, yes, it’s definitely him. He’s leading the charge, actually the whole Dire Tribe is just marching at a steady pace behind him!”

Prince Steel broke from the formation and ran to the opening of the barricade to see this for himself. Indeed Anubis was leading the charge, the Jackal Tribe general walked at a leisurely pace, his khopesh sword held tight in his right hand. Something about that weapon, actually, something about him altogether was off. Even from this distance, the jackal radiated an aura of power and carnage. Prince Steel could sense it, he could strip away the physical with his instincts as a warrior; it showed him the true beast that was waiting to be let loose from its leash.

“This isn’t good…HIGH PRINCESS TWILIGHT!”

The Prince ran down the corridor, barreling past his three-hundred soldiers to the other end. He skidded to a halt before the Royal Guard and Twilight, his visage intense.

“Prince Steel what’s wrong?!” Twilight asked.

“There’s something different about Anubis, the air around him is foul! It’s hard to put into words, but you need to get your crew and soldiers out of here, NOW!”

“Prince Steel you haven’t told me why other than –!”

*VWOOOOM!*

Far off in the distance, Anubis slashed with his sword, launching a wide black and violet energy crescent that sailed across the barren battlefield. The wave struck against the star sapphire crystals, shattering the spikes and part of the wall. A booming rumble echoed through the ground, accompanied by the sound of shattering glass. Anubis slashed a second time, releasing another wave that slammed against the wall of crystal, destroying it and encroaching on the ones it protected.

The ponies and minotaurs on the other side had no idea that was possible, even Annie herself was dumbfounded that something was powerful enough to shatter her crystals when even cannon fire did little to nothing other than scuff it, if that.

“Ring what’s going on?! Why are the crystals shattering?! I thought they were indestructible?!” Annie asked.

[Star Sapphire crystals are normally impervious and cannot be shattered easily. But readings show that the energy used to shatter the crystals is an augmented form of the magical energy you use. It is more hostile, black as night.]

“Dark magic!” Twilight exclaimed. “Anubis is using dark magic to destroy the crystals!”

[Correct. Dark magical energy has an adverse effect on violet light energy, I recommend extreme caution when engaging in combat.]

“The ring does not jest, if it’s dangerous to her as well then you must leave now!”

“Prince Steel you can’t win against dark magic,” said Twilight.

Another blast wave struck the crystals, and the shattering sounded closer than the last time. Prince Steel looked to Twilight and to Annie both. They didn’t want to abandon the fight before it began, but he was right, they needed to escape while they could. Twilight used her magic to funnel her voice into the intercoms of the ship so that all could hear her.

“Attention, all crew abandon the Avalon! We’re heading down the Saddle Arabian Gate immediately, this is not a drill, abandon ship, now!!!”

Annie rushed past Twilight and Steel, heading to the opening of the corridor that she created. She sat on her haunches and pointed her ring at the wall of star sapphire crystals, the violet ring glowed bright as the crystals obeyed her mental commands. The wall grew higher and higher, and thicker as she worked to create a solid structure before them.

“I’ll hold out as long as I can, just make sure that everypony gets out of the Avalon!” Annie shouted.

“Annie are you crazy?!” Hot Head shouted.

“We don’t have time to argue this just do it!”

Canterlot, around the same time

Nidra never felt more miserable in her life, she couldn’t believe what she had done – had said to Turquoise! She kissed him…the one thing she’d always wanted to do with the stallion – well that and more – and she couldn’t feel happy about it. Not after the look Turquoise gave her, and what’s worse, she had even suggested that he cheat on Annie!

How could I ask him to do that?!

It’s not like he didn’t like you kissing him, surprised, but trust me I don’t think he disliked it too much.

Oh shut up! Were you looking at the same eyes I was?! He looked betrayed! And why shouldn’t he look at me like that, I asked him to cheat on his fillyfriend, on Anthea!

And again, he can do much better than her. We belong with Turquoise, it’s as simple as that. He doesn’t need to worry about mares like Anthea, ones who look at him strangely for being half-dragon, it’s only a matter of time before she decides to trade up for another stallion. Heck, she’s probably getting it from her two colt “foalhood friends” right now!

Oh please, even though Annie can be a pervert at times, she’s not a whorse!

War changes ones priorities, if you thought you were going to die in battle the next day, wouldn’t you want to feel loved for one night, to remember the tender and loving touch of another instead of the sting and pain of a blade?

Well…I mean…

Exactly, besides, as much as “little miss perfect” likes to pretend to be all goodie-goodie, you and I know that’s never the case with some ponies! How many times did an entourage of mares and stallions form around you because you were a royal? I bet if you were some half-unicorn, half-thestral and not half-alicorn they would look at you just the same as they do Turquoise, or even Illusion for that matter!

I…I don’t…

Illusion found happiness with Claire, Turquoise’s sister for crying out loud! And he’s more jumbled than anything! It’s destiny Nidra, a half-dragon dating the son of a High Royal, and another half-dragon dating the daughter of another High Royal! I know ruling isn’t exactly something neither of us want, but think about it, think on how it looks! The two royal cousins, together with the two half-dragon siblings, a new royal line, it’ll be poetic, romantic even.

I never realized it, heh, Illusion and I had fallen for two ponies who happen to be the other’s sibling…maybe it is meant to be?

No “maybe” about it! Just go back to Turquoise and try again! Maybe show ‘em that you can give him what Annie can’t, or rather won’t.

And what exactly are you…? Wait minute, you’re not suggesting that I –?!

Hey, he’s a stallion, and as nice a stallion as Turquoise is, he’s like any other when it comes to that.

Nidra shook her head violently, very naughty images were now erupting in her head and her face wouldn’t stop blushing from them. Not that she hadn’t imagined those things before…with Turquoise. But still, using her feminine wiles and body to seduce him into being together wasn’t any way to start a relationship! She wanted him to love her, not her body, but her! But at this rate, she was running out of options, especially after her blunder the other night.

“S’up ‘Cuz?”

Nidra glanced over her right shoulder and saw Illusion walking onto the balcony. She sighed and went back to her sulking, staring out into the city below. The half-pony, half-draconequus took a seat beside his cousin, mimicking her sulking as he sat there. Nidra looked over at Illusion, rolling her eyes at his usual playfulness.

“Was there something you needed Illusion?”

“I saw my favorite cousin looking all depressed and decided to come and see what was up, that’s all,” said Illusion.

Nidra scoffed. “‘Favorite’, I’m your only cousin.”

“Oh yeah, you’re right! Phew, now I don’t have to worry about another cousin competing with you for my affection, ‘cause really, I’d pick you, like always.”

Illusion ruffled Nidra’s mane a little with his left hoof, he stopped after a few seconds when he noticed that Nidra didn’t try to bat his hoof away, or tell him to quit treating her like a little filly. Now he was worried.

“Hey Nidra, what’s up, seriously what’s got you down?”

Nidra didn’t know if telling Illusion was a good idea. He was, after all, dating the big sister of the stallion she just kissed. The alicorn thestral let out a shudder, imagining the wrath of Claire when she found out. It was times like these that she really missed Starburst, Illusion was a good pony to confide in, he was practically a brother to her, but still, there were just some things that were easier to discuss with another mare than a stallion. But as it stood, Nidra’s options were limited, she really, really, really didn’t want to talk to her mother about all this, her father…was an option, he was always willing to listen and help when he could. So with a sigh, Nidra bared her soul.

“Illusion…I’m going to tell you something that’s a little difficult to hear, and it’s…you might not like me after I do,” said Nidra.

“Oh Faust, you’re in love with me aren’t you?! Dammit, I knew it was only a matter of time before you gave into your dark fantasies!”

Nidra’s wings flared out in agitation as she turned on Illusion, her face red with a mixture of anger and embarrassment. “WHAT?! Ewww! No! I don’t – UGH! I’m trying to tell you what’s wrong now are you going to get serious or not?!”

“Okay, okay, just trying to lighten the mood a little, sorry,” said Illusion.

Nidra sighed heavily, this was not going to be fun. “Illusion…last night…I snuck out of the castle…”

“Pfft, nothing new.”

“And Turquoise came with me…”

Illusion’s ears perked up. “Okay now that’s new.”

“I just wanted him to get over his worry about Anthea, and it’s been working, these past few days I’ve seen a real lift in his mood.”

Illusion couldn’t deny that, in the time he’d spent with Turquoise here and there, he’d seemed much happier since when he first arrived at the castle. Nonetheless, Illusion felt that there was something more to this so he nodded for her to continue.

“When we snuck out last night we went to a nightclub, we had a lot fun, and I even got T to dance with me!”

“Okay, I’d pay good bits to actually see that big lug dance.”

“So he isn’t the most graceful, he’s still pretty good. Anyway…we got back late and…I…I asked T if I could sleep in his room.”

Illusion brought up his right paw right away. “Stop, hold up. Nidra, please tell me that you and T didn’t…‘do the do’ and that you’re asking me the best way to break it to Aunty Luna and my Mom…*gulp* and to Claire and Annie, ‘cause I’d sooner go Tartarus and fight Tirek for all eternity than do that!”

Nidra raised an eyebrow and gave her cousin a deadpan look.

Illusion then smacked his forehead with his right paw. “Okay, right, it’s Turquoise, forgot. Continue.”

“I guess I don’t blame you for thinking that…if things had happened differently I’d be asking for that kind of advice. Illusion, I kissed Turquoise.”

Illusion had to pause for a moment to let his brain catch up. “You…kissed T?”

“While were in his bed…we started talking and I asked him if I met him sooner than Anthea did if I would’ve been his fillyfriend instead of her! He said that he probably would’ve and when I heard that everything else went blank and I just kissed him!”

Illusion pinched the bridge of his nose with his paw as he contemplated this situation. “You kissed T, knowing full well that he’s with Annie still. Okay, it’s a little bad, but nothing that can’t be talked out, you just let your emotions get the better of you that’s all and you gave into your passion and now you’re sorry, even if you’re not just say you are.”

“That’s not the end of it…”

Illusion’s ears fell flat. “Oh boy, there’s more?”

“I asked Turquoise if he wanted to date me and try out being coltfriend and fillyfriend…”

“What the hay Nidra, you really asked him that?!”

Nidra averted her eyes.

“Nidra, I know you’ve had a crush on Turquoise for the longest time, and I know it must be a little painful to see Annie and him together –”

“PAINFUL?!!” Nidra shouted. “How would you feel if Claire was going out with Prism instead of you?! How many times would it hurt you inside, knowing how happy you two are right now, that that would never happen if she decided to date him or somepony else instead?!”

“I…! I…” Illusion had no words. It never really dawned on him how he’d feel if Claire up and liked some other pony.

“Exactly, and wouldn’t you do anything to even have one chance at that one pony you knew in your heart you belonged with?! It was the same thing, all I asked was for a chance!” Nidra argued.

Illusion shook himself out of the stupor. “That’s still not something you ask of a stallion who’s worried about his fillyfriend who’s off with some unknown ring power on a mission in another country!”

“Oh enough already! Everypony’s so damn worried about Annie and her ring, and now you all suddenly trust her but not Starburst?!”

“Nidra we’re not getting into that,” said Illusion.

“Well it looks like we are! Everypony seems to think her ring is a gift, while others think Star’s is a curse that made her into something bad! You…I don’t have anypony left Illusion!” Nidra lowered her head. “Starburst is gone…she was the only pony who saw me as friend, and I her! I may not have always seen eye to eye with some of the things she did, but I believed in her! And she was patient with me, she’d listen, she’d even give me a hard time about my attitude, but then we’d laugh about it later! And now she’s gone…now, when I have a chance to try and make a connection with the one stallion I love…”

Illusion watched as tears fell from under the bangs of her mane. Whatever anger or irritation that Illusion was feeling vanished at the sight of that. He moved in closer and gently brought Nidra in for a hug, she didn’t seem to fight it, maybe because she needed to be held. She rested her head against the fluff around his neck and chest, letting her tears fall.

“I’m sorry Nidra…I didn’t know how much this was eating at you. If…If you told me sooner maybe we could’ve all talked this out, I don’t know. But it’s not like you can’t make this right, T’s not the kind of guy to stay angry at somepony, just give him some space.”

I get it…

“Okay,” said Nidra. “Can you go for a bit, I need to think?”

Nopony can understand me…understand what I feel or how much it hurts…

“Sure thing, just come and find me if you need to talk. I’m here for you ‘Cuz.” Illusion patted Nidra on the head and then proceeded back into the palace.

The only pony who did is gone and is forsaken by practically everypony who cares about her…

Nidra turned her gaze towards the shadow of the white moon that lay hidden behind the blue sky.

I have to take what I want…Turquoise can’t see what I can give him, not with Anthea blocking his sight…

The yellow of her irises started to tinge with an orangey glow.

I’ll show everypony…I’ll take what they have…and show them the pain of never having that which your heart desires, all while the one thing, the one pony I want most belongs to only me…For that is my right…

Gates of Volkan, Saddle Arabian Gate

Annie was reaching her limits, Anubis’ attacks were pounding away at the barrier wall, and now the Empire’s air battleships had made an appearance, blasting at the wall with cannon fire and rockets. But Annie had to hold on, she needed to keep them at bay long enough to give the others a head start at the very least, she had to hold this line!

[Power levels at 70%.]

“Thanks for the update ring!”

“ANNIE!!!”

The Star Sapphire glanced over her left shoulder and watched as Hot Head flew down to her, his prototype shifter armor fully deployed around his body.

“The Princess said we got everypony and minotaur a safe distance away from the Avalon! You can fall back with the rest of us!”

“Are you sure?! If the griffons get a hold of the Avalon they might salvage it and use it against us!” Annie warned.

“Trust me, we got something in store for them. Plant that thing and let’s go!”

Annie nodded, she concentrated and made giant spikes shoot out from underneath the wall, anchoring itself right into the ground. When Annie was sure that it wasn’t going anywhere hopefully for the next five – Faust willing, twenty – minutes she nodded to Hot Head. The rusty red pegasus took off in the direction the others went. Annie gave herself a running start, she then jumped up and focused her violet light energy to where she would land. A wave of crystals jutted up and caught her, they moved like a tidal wave and Annie was its surfer. She rode the crystal wave and in no time flat was catching up with Hot Head.

Meanwhile Anubis continued to unleash one massive energy wave after the other. The jackal raised his sword up for an overhead strike. Dark magical energy swarmed around the blade, lashing out like a thousand angry vipers, Anubis brought the blade down in one swift motion, creating a giant crescent arc that cut into the earthen rock and struck right into the wall, fracturing it right down the middle. The airships unleashed their hellfire, blasting the fissure with rockets and mortar fire that made the cracks spider web out all over the structure. Ten airships moved in and added to the bombardment of the other seven, just a matter of minutes the entire crystal wall fell, falling to the ground in giant chunks and shattering to pieces upon impact.

Anubis raised his sword into the air and roared mightily. “CHARGE!!!”

The army of Dires ran, their large paws thumping against the ground as they did, Anubis led the charge sword in hand as he crossed the large barren field with a speed that was unnatural, even to the dog tribes. Anubis and about half of the army made it to the Avalon, ready to kill the ponies and minotaurs all at once. But when they got there, there wasn’t any sign of them. Some of the Dires sniffed at the air and then lowered their muzzles to the ground to sniff the dirt, after a few seconds the Dires pointed down the corridor that led to Saddle Arabia. Anubis gritted his teeth and clenched his hand firmly around the hilt of weapon.

“So you think you can run away do you?! Sic ‘em!” Anubis ordered.

The Dires roared out their affirmative and charged once again, but as they did so, the sounds of their plodding paws against the earth nearly drowned out a secondary sound. Anubis’ ears swiveled around, trying to pinpoint that annoying sound in the background. His sensitive ears pointed him in the direction of the ship. He approached it, the sound intensifying as he did. When Anubis got close enough he was able to discern that the sound was in actuality a ticking noise, like that of a clock. The jackal’s ears dropped down as he glared in the direction the ponies ran.

“Oh you sneaky little motherf–!”

Annie and Hot Head stopped for a moment. A giant explosion went off further on back where they just were, the sound echoed off the canyon walls and focused the concussive force enough to nearly knock Hot Head out of the sky and Annie on her rump. After a few seconds had passed, Annie was able to spot a giant column of black smoke rising into the air.

“What was that?!” Annie asked.

“Prince Steel and the Captain decided to leave a present for them. We rigged the entire ship to explode! If that blast didn’t get all of them, the burning fire and smoke will make it hard for them to get past the gate. Should buy us plenty of time!”

Hot Head took off once again with Annie right behind him.

“Plenty of time for what?!”

“High Princess Twilight said she was going to teleport us all to Saddle Arabia, but in order to do that she needs to cast two spells!”

“A scrying spell and the teleportation spell itself!”

Hot Head shook his head from the immediate response. “Wow, how’d you guess the scrying one?!”

Annie surfed the crystal wave, dodging a large rock that was jutting out from the ground before responding. “I figured she hadn’t been to Saddle Arabia enough times to know it in detail, so a scrying spell will help her get a fixed point on where she wants to appear in, but it takes a while to pinpoint the exact or general area when you don’t have an anchor point. Not to mention the amount of magic it’s going to take to cast a teleportation spell large enough to get everyone out of here at once. We’re going to need all the time we can get, hopefully the bomb did the trick!”

“You and me both!” Hot Head agreed.

Annie glanced towards the bellowing smoke, she then raised her right forehoof and saluted. Goodbye Avalon, you went out fighting to the end.

The mare and stallion caught up with the group, the minotaurs and Royal Guards formed a circle of protection around the crewmembers and Twilight. The High Princess of Magic was at the center, her eyes closed and her horn blazing with magical energy. Annie could tell that she was deep in the trance, stretching out her mind to find the point where she wanted them all to end up in Saddle Arabia.

Prince Steel was at the rear guard with his three-hundred, their shields and spears pointed in the direction that Hot Head and Annie just came from. “We must make sure she completes the spell with no interruptions, if those canine bastards get here we hold this line!”

Annie was able to sense it through her magic, the Princess was close to finding an anchor point, and her magical charge was nearly at full power to teleport them all to safety, another minute or two and they’d be at Saddle Arabia. But Annie knew it’d only be the beginning, the Saddle Arabians were already busy holding the front line, and now they would have to contend with another force coming from their rear. Annie wasn’t sure if she was prepared for that fight, she was hardly ready for this one, but she had to be ready, she was the only one powerful enough to face the griffons and Anubis’ magic.

“Hold on everyone! I’m about to initiate the teleportation!” Twilight yelled.

Her horn blazed with mana, a magic circle appeared beneath them, encompassing the ponies and minotaurs all at once, just a few seconds more and they’d be in friendly territory.

[Anomaly detected!]

“‘Anomaly’, what kind of anomaly?!” Annie asked.

[Spatial, readings indicate warping or wormhole generation. Distance…five feet!]

Annie looked around them, her eyes scanning the area, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Just then she spotted something, a thin black line was forming right behind Twilight, it was so strange, if she looked at it the wrong way she’d lose sight of it, or believed it was a trick of the eye. Annie saw the line begin to tear, as if space itself was being ripped open. Annie hurriedly pushed through the crew of the Avalon and hurried to Twilight. At that moment the line began a tear, and the tear transformed into a doorway made of darkness.

“TWILIGHT LOOK OUT!!!” Annie shouted.

The High Princess of Magic glanced over her shoulder and saw the door of darkness, just in time to see its occupant jump out! Anubis brandished his khopesh sword, hefting the weapon up like an executioner about to deliver the killing blow. Annie thrust out her right hoof, the ring shined and fired a beam right at Twilight. It was a race, the beam or the blade, one would save her, and the other would kill her! Just as the blade neared the nape of Twilight’s neck, Annie’s beam struck her, encasing Twilight’s entire body in armor made of the sapphire crystal. Anubis’ blade struck the armor, causing a shockwave that threw him back, making him dig his heels into the dirt to bring himself to a halt.

Twilight was blown back as well, being caught on a large construct pillow just in the nick of time. Unfortunately, the circle vanished, and Twilight’s horn was no longer blazing with the same magical energy it was earlier. The Royal Guard, the Troublemakers, and Annie took position in front of Twilight, all ready to fight Anubis.

“How in the hay did you survive that?!” Amber asked.

Anubis rose up and tapped his sword blade with the tip of his extended claw. “This little weapon of mine doesn’t just destroy, it can also rip open doorways for me to use. I’ll admit, you caught me off guard with that little explosion. You took out a good chunk of my forces, but not enough to stave off your deaths!”

Anubis slashed at the air just a few feet away from where the minotaurs were. A gash appeared in space, and from that gash fell the Dire Diamond Dogs! Hundreds continued to pour out, all landing with little effort and snarling at the minotaurs, no doubt wanting payback. Prince Steel looked to Twilight and nodded.

“FIGHT ON!!!” Steel bellowed.

The three-hundred followed their Prince’s lead, charging straight for the pack, shields first. The two sides met in the middle with a concussive thud and crunch, the minotaurs broke up into twos, one using their spear while the other used their sword, watching each other’s backs. Steel had one dog come at him from the side, but the minotaur swung upwards with his shield, smashing the beast in the face and knocking it to the ground. He then spun around and struck another dog in the face with the edge of the shield. He threw his spear, the long weapon impaling itself in the body of another Dire with a wet thud before it toppled over. Steel drew his sword and started hacking and slashing through many others, limbs were sent flying as blood painted the air a deep scarlet.

On the other spectrum, Anubis was fighting a fifty on one battle. The Royal Guards proved to be a joke, a few of them got in some good blows that he’ll admit, but nothing that could kill him. He grabbed one by the throat and squeezed until he heard the satisfying snapping crunch of his spine and larynx. He tossed the body at one of the others, knocking him down, Anubis then jumped into the air and came down stabbing through the already dead body and into the Guard who was knocked down. Magic bolts were flung at him from the unicorns, while others tried to hit him with spears and swords, but nothing was able to get to him.

Lucky used the power of his magnified magic, channeling it through the crystal blade horn and firing a powerful beam of mana. Anubis brought up his sword and blocked the beam, cutting into it with the dark magic that was imbued into it. From above, Hot Head came whizzing down, his wings sheened in the glow of the sun as he slashed with his left wing. The jackal cancelled out Lucky’s spell and turned his attention on Hot Head, slashing upwards and meeting the pegasus’ attack with his own. A powerful clank echoed in the canyon as their blades clashed, Hot Head continuously trying to slice away at the jackal.

Amber came stampeding from the side, she jumped into the air and cocked back her right hoof. Anubis’ senses alerted him yet again, he parried another slash from Hot Head before jumping into the air. Amber’s punch struck at the spot where he once stood, causing the ground to break apart and crater from the sheer strength and power behind that punch. Amber charged in again, spinning around to deliver a buck to Anubis. The black jackal used his sword to deflect the powerful blows, some nearly coming close to taking his head off.

Annie saw an opening and took it. She formed a lasso construct and had it fly towards Anubis, the jackal was completely unaware of the violet-pink construct wrapping around his legs, and by the time he did, the lasso became taut. Annie pulled on the lasso, bringing Anubis flopping onto the ground, she then pulled on it again, this time bringing it overhead. Anubis went straight up into the air, and within a few seconds he was reacquainted with terra firma with a harsh “BOOM!” The Star Sapphire then launched crystal construct rockets that flew up into the air, angling themselves until they were right above Anubis and struck him multiple times, detonating with each impact.

The black jackal roared out, creating a column of dark magic that shattered the remaining rockets. He jumped up into the air and prepared to launch a massive black crescent, but he was stopped when a large, elegant, rose colored claymore sword slashed at him, cutting his cheek in the process. Anubis landed back on the ground, but was given little reprieve when he did. Twilight came zooming towards him, her full battle regalia armor on, and a glowing sword made of her magical power at her side. The alicorn mare slashed right and left, but Anubis blocked them, but she parried on the third strike, allowing her to follow through with a thrust. The blade of her mana sword scraped against Anubis’ armor, cutting down until the blade was piercing the skin just slightly. Anubis arched his back, allowing the rest of the blade to pass him by harmlessly, he then swept upwards with his own sword, hitting Twilight’s blade away from him as he backed up.

“I see, getting your hooves dirty are you, High Princess Twilight?”

“I will not stand by and watch you kill my subjects, Anubis! I don’t know how you obtained that dark magic, but trust me when I say, you will not prevail here!” Twilight proclaimed.

Anubis chuckled. “Very amusing, this coming from the mare who was captured and publicly tortured while her screams were aired across her own nation?! Hard to imagine that you can act so high and mighty, tell me, Princess, did you cry for your mother?!”

Twilight’s body ignited with magic as she charged for Anubis! The two blades clashed, releasing a shockwave that raged out from the point of contact. Twilight and Anubis held their ground, both swords grinding against each other as their wielders were locked in a power struggle. Anubis’ yellow eyes shimmered with a sinister spark as he met those amethyst eyes of Twilight’s.

“I can see that fear in you, High Princess! Beneath this powerful, goddess-like power and visage, you’re really a scared little filly underneath, beaten, and humiliated, frightened like a child!”

“SHUT UP!!!”

Twilight’s sword burned brighter as she took a step forward, forcing Anubis to take a step back. The black jackal released more of his dark magic into the sword, allowing him to regain the step he lost.

“I’ve already won little filly, you just haven’t fully grasped it yet,” said Anubis.

The power struggle ended, both sword fighters were pushed back some feet, leaving a large gap of space between them.

“I know what is you fear…” Anubis channeled his energy into the blade, making a dark tendril that was at least twenty feet in length. “I know, because the darkness shows me!”

Anubis raised his sword and snapped it, causing the tendril to release a crack that echoed out. Twilight visibly flinched, her sword wavering. Another crack of the black tendril made Twilight flinch again, a third crack made her take step back, a fourth, a fifth, sixth, seventh!

“STOP!!!” Twilight shouted.

“Princess!” Amber, Lucky, and Hot Head cried.

“It’s alright Princess, don’t think about it! Concentrate on the fight!” Annie shouted.

“Forget it, she’s afraid, and with good reason!”

Anubis slashed at the air vertically, releasing a black crescent. The crescent traveled far down the canyon and stopped as if it struck something. The giant crescent had cut open another doorway, one that expanded to block the way for all of them. From the giant doorway a Griffon Empire airship flew out, but it wasn’t alone, two more came out right behind it. The ships released a flood of griffon soldiers, all flocking right towards their group.

“And there!” Anubis shouted as he pointed towards the other end.

Down the way another warship flew, seven frigates flew behind it, both letting their squadrons of griffons fly out to meet the fighting parties down below. They were trapped, griffons to their backs and to their front, a small army of feral diamond dogs, and a jackal with fighting skills and dark magic strong enough to match Twilight’s magic, and seriously do some damage to Annie’s constructs.

Twilight’s eyes became the size of pinpricks, her heart raced, going a million miles an hour. Her body began to tremble, a soreness came over her, a familiar pain that she kept wishing she could forget. The sword could no longer maintain its form with Twilight’s fear and panic returning, the magical construct shattered within a few seconds, becoming nothing but particles of mana. Anubis saw his opening and dashed for Twilight.

The black jackal raised his sword, ready to deliver the killing blow to the Princess of Magic, doing what the fallen Wing Commander could not and solidifying his place in the new world that would come from the fall of the mighty Equestrian Kingdom! Anubis slashed downwards and felt his weapon pierce through metal and flesh, a spray of scarlet blood obscured his vision for a moment,  he relished this, the satisfaction of cutting down a Princess with his own paws! But when Anubis cleared his vision to see his good work his mouth hung open, flabbergasted.

Annie, Hot Head, Amber, Lucky, and Twilight all looked on in horror and surprise as Prince Steel stood before Twilight, taking the blow that was meant for her. The blade had slashed through his giant shield, the armor, his forearm, and right to his chest, causing a fountain of blood to come spewing forth from the gash. The whole time Steel gnashed his teeth and grunted through the pain of the wound, his severed arm releasing even more copious amounts of blood.

“What’s the matter Anubis?! You look very surprised for a warrior who has the upper hand! Now C’MON!”

Prince Steel widened his stance and cocked back his right fist.

“LET ME SEE YOU GRIT THOSE TEETH!!!”

The minotaur Prince slammed his fist right into Anubis’ face, sending the jackal flying, bouncing like a stone on water till he smashed against the canyon wall some feet away from them. Steel smirked and then fell to the ground with a great thud. The five ponies rushed to the Prince’s side, Amber helping in turning the burly minotaur over to see how serious the injury was. She gasped, the blade had cut very deep, enough to where Amber could see internal damage. The severed arm was still releasing blood, Amber was at a loss of what to do first, even with her medical knowledge, the minotaur had taken too much damage for her to do any effective first aid!

“Amber get back I-I’ll see if I can heal him!” Twilight shouted.

Amber did just that. The alicorn Princess cast the strongest healing spell she knew on both the gash and severed part of his arm, but the moment the magic touched the wounds black lightning like energy lashed out from the edges of the wound. The black energy swatted at Twilight’s attempts to heal their victim, Twilight tried again and again, trying to overcome the dark magic with all her might, but there was something wrong with this dark magic, it was…different, menacing, evil. As if it had been plucked from the very essence of darkness itself!

Twilight lowered her head, tears falling from her eyes as she sobbed heavily. “I’m sorry…! I…I can’t heal him! None of my spells are working!”

“It is…alright…High Princess…”

“Don’t talk, you need to save what strength you have!” Amber urged.

“Heh-heh…you do not have to pretend…I can see by the look in your eyes…”

Annie approached Prince Steel. “You saved Princess Twilight…I…I should have…”

“I chose to defend her…for a minotaur, dying in battle is honor…dying while defending another in battle, is an even greater honor. I have earned my place at the table of the gods…Fight on, all of you…Anthea of the Star Sapphire…”

“Yes?” Annie asked with a trembling voice.

“You wield love…never let its light be extinguished within you…fight for what and who you love…in that, you can become a great warrior……………”

Prince Steel’s eyes closed, the minotaur warrior had drifted to the next world. All five hung their heads in brief mourning, but it was not to last.

Anubis burst forth from the body-sized hole he had been punched into, his snout bloody from the punch he had received from Prince Steel. The black jackal slowly stalked towards the group, his khopesh sword dragging against the ground as he got closer to them.

“Heh, and in the end, the fool dies in vain! He only delayed your suffering for a few moments!”

Annie narrowed her eyes and got in front of the group, her ring shining bright in response to her fervor to protect her loved ones.

[Power levels at 65%.]

Annie mentally cursed, at that level she would lose her vision during the fight, and right now she couldn’t afford such a thing. Plus, she didn’t think Anubis would even give her the opportunity to recharge.

I’m sorry T…looks like I won’t be coming back to you after all…

“Anubis! I’m not done! I’ll…I’ll defeat you, every last one of you!” Annie proclaimed as a flowery aura of violet-pink light flared up around her body.

Anubis laughed loudly into the air, finding amusement in the declaration from the pink unicorn mare.

“Look around you little unicorn whorse, an army to the back of you, an army to the front of you, and me, wielding a power that can shatter your precious light! It’s over, you’ve lost, and you are all going to di–!”

*BOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!*

Anubis turned around and watched as the warships behind him had all exploded and fell to the ground in the form of giant fireballs. The griffons, ponies, and diamond dogs all paused as they watched the event take place. A golden-yellow beam of light shot forth from the bellowing smoke, the force of the beam parted the smoke as it sailed straight for the other airships at the other end of the canyon, piercing one ship after the other. The light then fired up into the air, and split into multiple beams that spread out over the canyon walls. A chorus of mighty explosions went off one after the other all around them, black smoke rising up from where the beams were aimed.

Everyone just gawked in amazement at what they saw, some in shock, and others in complete terror as to what could’ve done that. There answer came when a bright yellow light shined from overhead. The light dimmed slightly, revealing a very familiar form. Wrapped in yellow armor, with giant yellow wings flared out like an angel of judgment, and eyes that intimidated with just a glance, it was a pegasus mare, a mare that everypony knew, a mare who had been labeled a rogue and a criminal, the wielder of the yellow light of Fear herself!

“Starburst…” Annie whispered.

“Impossible…the Fear Lantern, HERE?!” Anubis shouted in disbelief.

Starburst scanned the area, taking in every detail of the battlefield. Her eyes settled on the black jackal, looking directly at the sword which was wrapped in a black aura.

[Dark energy detected. Recommend caution when engaging.]

Starburst chuckled. “Partner, since when has ‘caution’ helped me?”

[Ah, that is a rhetorical question.]

“You’re getting better at this. Anyway…” Starburst flew down to the ground, landing a few feet away from Anubis. “…I take it that you’re the leader of this little escapade?”

Anubis turned to Starburst and held his sword firm in his hand, growling low. “I am Anubis, general of the Jackal Tribe of the Diamond Dogs, and future chief of all the tribes under the new world order of the griffons!”

Starburst rolled her eyes. “Geez, what a shocker. Well then, Anubis,” Starburst used her ring to create two broadsword constructs, bringing them both before her in an X pattern, “let’s do this.”

“RRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWR!!!!”

Anubis and Starburst charged for each other. Star slashed with her right sword, but Anubis quickly blocked it. The left blade came down for an overhead strike, Anubis parried the construct sword and slashed upwards, slapping the weapon away from him. Anubis slashed at Star, but she gracefully sidestepped to the right, the jackal placed his sword in a reverse-grip and cut horizontally to the left. Starburst jumped up and back, flipping in the air and landing with the poise of a dancer, making the jackal warrior growl in irritation.

The two went at it again, a series of parries, thrusts, and slashes that rang out in the canyon. Starburst could see that her constructs were starting to show cracks in them. She took one last look around, making sure every pony and minotaur was still in the same spot they were when they started. Thankfully they still were, which meant Star could finish this quickly.

“SOLDIERS OF MINOTAURUS, ROYAL GUARDS, ANNIE, MOM, STAY WHERE YOU ARE AND DON’T MOVE!!!” Starburst ordered.

Anubis came down with an overhead strike, making Starburst block with both blades. She jumped up into the air, letting the constructs shatter upon reaching her desired height. Star’s ring began to glow with bright yellow light, she remained still in the air, everyone waiting and watching, wondering what she was up to.

“Are you planning on staying up there or are you going to face me.”

Starburst stayed silent.

“Are you ignoring me now?! I’ll show you the penalty for such disrespect!”

Anubis channeled the dark energy into his blade, readying a black crescent attack to cut down the high and mighty mare.

“STAR!!!” Annie cried out.

“You won’t be showing me anything.”

Suddenly Anubis’ right arm felt something go taut around the forearm and shoulder joints. Within a matter of nanoseconds his arm was severed at the points where the pressure was placed, Anubis stared at his severed limb in horror as the two halves of his arm fell to the ground along with his sword, which his severed hand still held a death grip on. Anubis went to grab it with his other arm but felt more pressure around different parts of his body, even around his neck. The tautness of the pressure immobilized him, keeping him still as a statue.

“What…What did you do to me?!”

“Not just you…”

Starburst made her ring spark for a moment, the light traveled along something, thin wires were connected to the ring, spreading outwards and practically over everything in sight. The wires continued on, showing how they loosely wrapped around every griffon that survived the destruction of the airships, and every Dire Diamond Dog. Twilight, Annie, the Troublemakers, the minotaurs, and even the Royal Guards were the only ones not wrapped up in this invisible web, but they were cutting it close, the wires weren’t close, but if they moved too much in one direction, they risked getting tangled up in them.

“How did you…?”

“I laid this out the moment I released that last attack. I mentally weaved this constructs around every enemy I could see, it took me months to get this construct thin enough that it could barely be seen, but it was worth it. The wires are so thin and sharp they can cut through practically anything, and when it comes to a live body…it’s like a hot knife through butter.”

Anubis looked on at the Fear Lantern, his power was utterly useless now, and there was nothing he could do. Starburst could feel it, the fear in Anubis, and the fear in his subordinates, even the fear in her mother and the others. This fear only fueled the power of her ring, making it glow brighter.

“This battle ends…now.”

The ring flashed and suddenly all the wires went taut around their victims. The wires sliced through the flesh of the griffons and Dire Diamond Dogs, painting the air with crimson blood as limbs were severed and sent cascading down to the ground with wet thuds, Anubis was last, his head, arms, legs, and torso all sliced apart. The wires receded back to Star’s ring, and then there was silence.

Starburst flew down to the group of ponies and minotaurs. All of them couldn’t believe just how easily and…bloody Star had taken out all of them, and all at once! Star stopped where she was, but Annie walked away from the group stopping a foot away from the Fear Lantern.

“…Hi…Annie.”

Star let out a gasp as she suddenly found herself being wrapped in the forelegs of the pink unicorn mare, heavy sobbing breaking the eerie silence.

“Hi, Star…we missed you.”

You're still weak / I am stronger

The minotaurs collected those who had fallen during the battle, and so too did the Royal Guards. The body of Prince Steel was collected with them, the minotaurs offering an ancient prayer to their fallen, that they might find peace amongst the great halls of warriors past. The Royal Guard however were still on edge, although the griffon forces were decimated, and the Diamond Dog armies slaughtered, they weren’t completely safe, as far as they were concerned anyway.

Starburst, the daughter of High Princess Twilight and High Prince Flash, had returned to save their lives from the hordes, and with an impressive display of power and fighting skill. Still, this was the mare who had gone rogue and turned her back on the Royal Guard she looked up to, and the family that raised and loved her. She was the one who wielded a ring that had the power to raze a city to the ground with little effort, and it fed on an emotion, fear.

Even so, they took solace in one fact, the fact that Anthea, another ring wielder, was among them. She had proven to the Royal Guards and the minotaurs that her power would be used to defend them, and had fought to protect the Princess more than once. If anypony could match Starburst’s fear power, it was Anthea’s love power, not to mention that the young mare was also the High Princess’ pupil.

The rest of the crew of the fallen Avalon were busy checking out something that Starburst had brought them, an airship. From what they were able to tell it came directly from Saddle Arabia, and was one of their warships.

It wasn’t nearly as massive as the Avalon was, but it would at least fit everypony long enough for them to get to the Equestrian territory, and finally catch a break for once. During this time, Annie, Twilight, Star, Amber, Hot Head, and Lucky were standing away from other ponies and minotaurs, having a private chat with each other.

Star looked upon Annie’s friends, seeing their customized armor and giving them an approving nod. “Those the new armor the Royal Guard is issuing?”

Hot Head snorted. “Actually no, they’re ours. Prototype weaponized armor, courtesy of High Princess Twilight.”

Starburst raised an eyebrow at that. “You made those Mom?”

Twilight blushed slightly. “Y-Yes I did. I reversed engineered the magical and mechanical properties of Steel Wing’s armor ability, and I was able to create these different armor types for three different types of pony tribes. They’re experimental prototypes, but Amber, Hot Head, and Lucky volunteered to use them.”

Starburst took another look at the armor covering their bodies, it did seem stronger, and it hummed with power. “Well, nice to see you stepped up some things while I was away.” She then turned to Annie, glancing up and down at her uniform. “And…Annie, that outfit’s a bit suggestive for combat, don’t you think?”

Anthea took a moment to look herself over and giggled a little. “Yeah, I guess it is, but it’s comfortable. And T doesn’t seem to mind it.”

Star rolled her eyes getting the double meaning.

“You have a scar,” said Annie.

Star glanced at her left cheek, seeing the aforementioned scar. “Yeah, I got it during a battle a couple of weeks ago. Didn’t want to waste energy healing it so I just left it – wait a minute how could you tell?”

Annie raised her right hoof up, showing Star her Star Sapphire ring. “I have a ring now too Star, and it gave me the ability to see clearly. I can see you now, completely.”

The pegasus mare’s eyes went wide with surprise, a small smile creeping onto her intense visage. “Annie that’s great! You can see now, I mean, you could see colors before, but now you can actually see me?!”

“Yeah, I can!” Annie answered happily.

The pegasus mare got closer to Annie and hugged her, genuinely happy that her friend had been given the gift of sight, something that had eluded her since her birth.

“I have to say Star, you’re not really what I thought you’d look like.”

Star stepped back and looked at her quizzically. “How so?”

“Well, everypony said you were short, but you’re really not that short. And while you do look intense, you’re also pretty, like a majestic bird of prey or something. And your wings!” Annie went to stretch the wing, making it fan out to its full length. “When I saw them they looked like orange-yellow splotches, but now that I can see them, they look beautiful!”

Starburst was starting to blush from the attention to detail from Annie. “T-Thanks, and I mean it, I really am happy that you can see.” She then turned to her mother, a slight scowl forming on her face as she did. “See Mom, these rings may be powerful and dangerous, but they can also bring good things!”

Twilight hung her head low in shame. “I know Star…I know you’re not under the control of the ring…I know these rings are powered by certain strong emotions, and…I’m so sorry for everything.”

“How do you know?” Star asked.

“Because my ring showed her Star, I know about the Star Sapphires, how my ring is powered by love. I also know about the Sinestro Corps, and that you’re ring is fueled by fear. I know about the different Corps and lights. The Princess knows now that you’re ring wasn’t corrupting you, even though it was made by someone who was.”

Starburst scoffed. “Well, your ring needs an update. Mine’s different, the Sinestro Corps is gone, and the new Corps calls itself the Fear Lanterns. These rings don’t just seek out the ability to instill fear, but as secondary condition, the bearer must have a strong sense of justice. Sinestro realized what he did, and this is his atonement. Right partner?”

[Affirmative.]

“So how did you know we here Star, communications are scrambled around here?” Twilight asked.

“I was already in the neighborhood, I was on the front lines helping the Saddle Arabians push the griffons back. We gained ground and now they’re holding it. My ring was able to pick up some strange transmissions, detecting two rings entering Equus’ atmosphere.”

“Two rings?” Amber asked.

“Yeah, one of which is Annie’s. The other, I don’t know. I was listening to radio transmissions to see where I could better help and I picked up your ship’s message about being shot down. I…‘borrowed’ one of the Saddle Arabian ships and towed it here. But then I started picking up enemy transmissions further into the canyon. When I saw the explosions, well, you guys know the rest.”

Annie put a hoof on her friend’s shoulder. “I’m just glad you’re safe, now we can all go home.”

Starburst lowered her gaze. “Sorry Annie, I still have work to do out here.”

Twilight stepped forward. “What do you mean you ‘still have work to do’?!”

“The front lines need me to keep the griffons at bay. I can’t get to everypony, but as long as I’m out there they can’t advance much further. So I can’t come back, and besides, pretty sure that I’m still a wanted fugitive back home.”

“Star I can have that taken care of! With the evidence I have now about the rings I can prove that you weren’t under some malign control, and that you’re not dangerous! Please honey, everypony misses you! You’re father, brother, and me, we all do!” Twilight pleaded.

Starburst narrowed her gaze a little. “You figure that all now, when you should’ve trusted me, believed in me, at least half a year ago! I saved your life Mom, and Valiant’s! I will never forgive myself for killing those Guards who were under Pinpoint’s control, but neither will I forgive those ponies who killed Sunny Skies!

She only wanted to help me, to see Equestria safe! And in the end she gave her life for me! I have to keep fighting, if not for the ponies who need me, then for her! I owe her my life, and I’m going to make good use of it, but all that wouldn’t have happened if you and Lance believed in me, just some trust was all I wanted and maybe a thank you!”

Starburst saw tears in her mother’s eyes, she averted her gaze turning around and shrugging off Annie’s hoof.

“Forget it…take the ship and get back home. Annie, you have a choice to make.”

“What choice is that?” Annie asked.

“You have a duty now to protect Equestria, by wearing that ring and using its power. Come with me, two ring wielders will pretty much guarantee that the Griffon Empire can’t advance, we’ll push the armies back and turn the tide!” Star stretched out her right hoof towards Annie. “Will you come with me?”

Amber was the first to break away from the group and put herself between Annie and Starburst, the older mare looking down at Starburst. “She’s not going anywhere Starburst.”

“I think that’s her decision, and besides that, it’s her duty.”

“No, her duty is to her friends and family, she’s not going off with you to fight in one battle after the other! Royal Guards have a duty to do just that, to protect the citizens and defend the nation, not Anthea!” Amber argued.

Starburst flared her wings and glared directly up at Amber. “The moment the ring chose her was the moment it became her duty! To not use its power to defend our home and people is a waste! She might as well not have it all!”

“You cocky little –!”

“STOP!!!”

Annie released a wave of her calming magic, easing the tension back down to a slow simmer. She then looked to Starburst, bidding Amber to move away. “Star, I will protect Equestria, our friends, and our family. But not like you do. There has to be a better way than this I know it.

My ring lets me see and feel love Star, and every griffon, no matter how vile and cruel they are on the battlefield, they all have someone waiting for them back home, someone who loves them dearly, asister, a mother, father, brother, lover, so many.”

Star looked to Annie incredulous. “And what about our people Annie, what about all the families, loved ones, and friends that are never going to see those who died senselessly at the talons of griffons?! I’ve seen what they do to those who they capture, because I’ve freed them! They torture soldiers, and murder mares and foals, and if, if they’re lucky, they just become slaves! Anyone who can turn their back on the atrocities of what their ‘loved one’ has done as if it were meaningless will get no sympathy from me, or mercy.”

Annie narrowed her eyes, actually looking quite angry. “And then where will it end Star?! Will it end when every griffon is dead?! When everypony in Equestria is dead?! Because that’s how it will keep going, they kill some of us, so we kill them in retaliation, and then they kill more of us because we retaliated.

It’s an endless cycle, and that’s why we need to try a different way. I think…I think that’s what this ring chose me for, to bring peace and love, not fear and hate! And because of that, step one is bringing back somepony who’s my friend and is missed by many.”

Starburst had to admit, Annie was kind of cool when she showed her convictions so strongly and with such heart.

“Well…you do what you want, but I’m not coming back. Not until this war is over.” Starburst turned away was making ready to leave.

“So you’re just going to turn your back on us again? You’re going to turn your back on Del too?” Annie asked.

Starburst froze where she stood.

“He’s the one most worried about you Star! He loves you, and don’t lie to me saying that you don’t. Because my ring can sense it, you still do! Api gets in fights at school because she defends your name! Del just trudges around the farm because every day he’s worried that you’re not coming back! And if you need more proof of that then here!”

Annie used her ring to punch a hole in space, out of the hole floated her violet lantern, and tied around the handlebar was Del’s bandanna. Starburst turned around and stared wide eyed at the garment tied around the lantern.

“Is…is that…?”

“Del’s bandanna, he wanted me to give it to you if I managed to find you. You know how important this is to him, it was made from a blanket that he loved as a foal, the same way you hold onto that ribbon. Are you really going to stand there and tell me you’re going to keep him suffering longer?”

Annie used her telekinetic aura to float the bandanna to Star. She held out her hoof and took the red cloth, holding it as if it were the most fragile thing in the world. Star looked to her mother, there was a slightly shocked expression on her face, apparently she did not know of her affections for one of her best friend’s kids.

“Cat’s out of the bag Mom. So, do you approve? I know Del’s older than me, a bit older, but it’s like Annie said.”

Twilight shook her head for a moment as she regained her composure. “I…I had no idea. Star, my daughter, has a coltfriend and it’s Applejack’s son…Of course I approve, your Aunt Cadance rubbed off on me a while back. Who you choose to love is your business Star, heck, you could’ve fallen for a mare and as long as you’re happy I would be too.”

Hot Head snickered at the thought of Starburst with a mare, but not altogether rejecting that she would. Lucky elbowed him and shushed him before she noticed. Starburst was blushing a little, yet she maintained her stoic and intense expression.

“Thanks…at least you trust me enough to love who I want. And Annie, tell Del that I’ll come back soon. Not now…but someday soon.”

Starburst concentrated and had her ring bust open a hole in space, from it floated a yellow lantern. When the lantern stopped before her, she tied the bandanna around its handle, right next to her pink ribbon, keeping it secure.

“Goodbye…”

The lantern and Starburst began to rise into the air as her aura wrapped around her. Annie watched as her friend began to depart, memories of that night half a year ago resurfaced and made Annie clench her jaw. She then placed her ring to the port opening of her lantern, igniting the energy within it.

“For hearts long lost and full of fright,

For those alone in Blackest Night!

Accept this ring and join our fight,

Love conquers all with violet light!”

The ring shined forth with renewed power, covering Anthea in an aura of violet-pink light that lapped off her body in the form of flower petals.

[Power levels at 100%.]

Annie stood on her hind legs, a long rope started to form from her ring, with the end changing into a lasso. The Star Sapphire whipped her right foreleg back and lashed out with the lasso, the violet construct sped off towards Star, and like a snake, coiled around her left hind leg. The construct rope became taut as Annie pulled back, halting Starburst’s ascent. The navy maned pegasus mare turned around and looked down to see what was keeping her from moving, she was surprised to see that it was Annie.

“Last time Star, you said I couldn’t stop you from leaving. I’m not powerless and I’m not helpless, I have the power and the strength, and I’m bringing you back home with us! Kicking and screaming if I have to!” Annie proclaimed.

Starburst wore a neutral expression. “Be very sure you want to do that Annie.”

“Do I look unsure to you Star?!”

The Fear Lantern smirked. “Humph, I like that look in your eyes Annie. But we’re in two very different leagues, you can’t keep me here.”

“Watch me!”

Annie changed the lasso into a heavy chains that clinked and clattered. She fired an anchor construct to the ground and created another lasso that snaked onto Star’s other hind leg. It quickly transformed into the same kind of heavy chains and anchored themselves into the ground as well.

Starburst was essentially floating in midair, kept there by two violet construct chains that had a tensile strength like nothing on Equus. The light-orange mare had the yellow lantern float next to her, she then put her ring in the open port and the light from the lantern shined bright upon them all.

“In twilight’s dusk, in moonlit night,

Evil shall cower before my might!

When darkness comes to cloud my sight,

I’ll shine like my power – Fear Lantern’s light!”

Suddenly, Starburst’s body was wrapped in a powerful golden aura. The chains binding her hind legs had fissures of yellow light appear on them, and in the next instant, the chains shattered apart as if made of fragile glass. Both mares stared each other down, Star’s eyes taking on a glimmer of the golden fear light, while Annie’s glimmered with the violet love light, their auras flaring as if the lights themselves were challenging each other.

[Power levels at 100%.]

“If this is how you want to do it Anthea, then come on. Make me stay!”

Annie thrust her ring forward and fired a beam of violet-pink light that roared towards Star. The beam stopped just a couple of feet from Star and wrapped around her, encasing her in a bubble of light. Star countered, creating a katana and slashing at the sphere, slicing it open and flying out of it.

Starburst summoned large four javelins and hurled them at Anthea. They struck the earth, forming a square around Annie; the four javelins then transformed into a large tower cage, locking Annie within it.

“Annie!” Amber cried out.

“Dammit! Let her go Starburst!” Hot Head warned.

Lucky prepared to use his augmented powers to destroy the tower. But suddenly the tower started to fissure with violet cracks all up and down its structure. Starburst raised an eyebrow, watching as her tower quickly burst apart, the yellow construct shattering before the light of Love, and Anthea at its center.

“Lucky, Amber, Hot Head, Princess, everypony, stay out of this!” Annie ordered.

“Annie –!” Twilight began.

“I mean it!” she interrupted.

Twilight went silent, along with the Royal Guard, and the Troublemakers trio. Annie looked up and saw Star smirking impressively at her display. The Star Sapphire broke into a gallop, heading right for the canyon wall. Her ring shined and at the moment Annie jumped up, a wave of star sapphire crystals formed below her, catching her as her hooves connected to the shimmering crystal wave. Annie rode the wave up the side of the wall, bringing her almost near Star’s altitude.

Annie launched a barrage of dove constructs at Star, about five dozen of them, all flocking towards the Fear Lantern as streaks of violet-pink. Starburst retreated a bit and launched her own construct barrage. The yellow light took the form of hawks, five dozen to match Annie’s.

The hawks and doves battled it out in the air space between Annie and Star. Yellow hawk constructs exploded, along with violet dove constructs, each one destroying each other in midair. The doves were ganged up on by the hawks. The tiny birds unleashing beams of violet-pink energy to keep them at bay, but the hawks blasted the doves by releasing their feathers as yellow energy darts at them.

Multiple explosions went off in the air as the ponies and minotaurs below watched the spectacle, this duel between Love and Fear. Annie concentrated, making the crystals extend forward into a platform for her to stand on.

“I’m not going home without you Star!” Annie shouted.

“And like I said Annie, my work isn’t done! So long as the war continues, my power is needed to keep Equestria safe! You have that same power! You should know as well as I do why I need to do this!”

“I do understand! But you can’t just keep doing things on your own Star! Now for the last time, just come back with us!”

Starburst’s aura flared. “Like I said…make me!”

Annie scowled, she then thrust her right hoof into the air. A beam of violet-pink energy fired up into the sky, going higher and higher. The beam was cut off from the ring, but high above a violet star shined. The star shot back down, appearing before Annie in the form of a giant dragon.

The dragon had large wings, its scales were long, and making it look like the dragon had feathered wings. Its body was streamed lined, with violet crystals for its twin horns and spines, and diamond shaped spiked tail, talons, and claws. The dragon opened its shimmering eyes and released a powerful roar that reverberated through the canyon.

“Nice construct. Let’s make this fun!”

Starburst mimicked Annie’s actions, firing a beam of light right into the sky. A yellow star formed above, but a after a few moments, the star fell down from the heavens and appeared before Starburst. She too summoned a dragon, formed of yellow light. It had giant, membrane wings, with large spikes poking out from the bends and at the tips of the wings. Its neck was long, jagged spikes coming out of its head and on the side of its face.

The creatures muzzle opened wider than what a normal dragon should be capable of. Long fifty foot spikes protruded out of its forearms like blades. Its chest was like that of a normal dragon’s, but going lower, it turned into the trunk of a serpentine like shape, coiling all the way down as jagged spikes lined up as spines. It was truly a nightmarish dragon, a stark contrast to Anthea’s.

The two dragons squared off, roaring at each other. Both Annie and Star’s rings shined bright, their commands transmitted through their otherworldly weapons. The Love Dragon sucked in and bellowed forth a searing stream of violet-pink flames.

The Fear Dragon used its wings to cover its front, using them as a makeshift shield against the attack. The flames washed over the Fear Dragon, but that wasn’t the only thing in the flames. Within it were hundreds of thousands of sharpened crystal shrapnel, bombarding the wings and threatening to tear into it.

The Fear Dragon slammed its long tail onto the ground, propelling itself into the air. The Love Dragon ceased its attack and flapped its wings, taking off after the yellow construct. The two beasts of violet and yellow went up high, their creators watching their battle unfold as their wills pushed them to do battle.

The Fear Dragon lashed out with its tail, using the jagged spikes like a saw. The strike landed against the Love Dragon’s face, cutting it and making a gash of yellow light appear. The Love Dragon struck back, using its crystal claws to slash at the Fear Dragon’s chest. The claws dug into it, creating four long, violet marks. The beast hissed from the pain but continued its assault, opening its mouth really wide and blasting its polar opposite with an inferno of golden fire.

The Love Dragon unleashed its own inferno, both attacks striking each other in midair. The powers of Love and Fear, swirled about, grinding and lashing out at each other, both crying out their inability to acknowledge the others existence, two dragons glaring down the other beast.

Starburst was watching the battle, directing her dragon mentally, but at the last second she sensed movement from Anthea. Ten chains lashed out at her like angry cobras. Star created two katanas and danced in the air, slashing at the chains with her blades and smashing each one. But for every one she destroyed, another came careening towards her. Star glanced and saw Annie pointing her ring at her, the never-ending chains spouting from its violet brilliance.

Star danced around the chains, gracefully dodging one after the other, slicing them their links with no wasted energy on her part. She was impressed, even though their dragons were battling it out in the sky above them Anthea could still concentrate enough to produce more constructs to come after her.

Suddenly two large objects fell from the sky, plummeting right between the dueling Lanterns. The objects landed with a great “BOOM”, kicking up a dust cloud that obscured their vision. Within a couple of seconds the dust was blown away, showing the Love Dragon on top of the Fear Dragon, pinning it down to the ground.

Anthea fired missiles of star sapphire crystal at Starburst. The Fear Lantern readied herself for the attack, but the missiles just went past her. “Your vision getting bad Annie? You just missed me by a mile!”

“Wasn’t aiming for you!”

The missiles struck the other side of the canyon wall, coalescing into a crystal orb that reached out and swallowed Starburst.

[Crystal Stasis: Activated.]

Good thing I remembered that. This’ll keep Star docile and calm her down until –

[Warning: Crystal Stasis unstable!]

Annie watched as the cocoon glowed with a golden yellow light. The light burned brighter and brighter from within, until, the crystal fractured and burst apart in a shower of crystal shards. Starburst glared at Annie, her eyes taking on the glow of her ring.

“You can’t beat me Anthea.”

“A little early to be saying that Star.”

“No, because you don’t have what it takes.”

“What?!”

“……Resolve.”

Suddenly the Love Dragon let out a pain-filled roar. Everyone watched as the Fear Dragon stabbed the Love Dragon in its right shoulder with its left forearm spike, driving deep into its construct body and forcing it back. Then used its tail to wrap around its legs and pull them out from under the Love Dragon. The yellow construct then slammed the other dragon against the canyon wall, stabbing it in both shoulders all the way through, pinning it. The Fear Dragon, in the most brutal fashion, bit down on the Love Dragon’s neck and ripped its head off in one swift motion, tossing the severed head into the air as it roared victoriously.

Annie watched in horror as her construct was torn apart and disintegrated into particles of light. Star then fired a column-sized beam of yellow light at Anthea, the Star Sapphire created a barrier around herself in an effort to defend. The blast slammed against the barrier, picking up the bubble of light and hurling it into the side of the canyon with great force.

“I feel the fear Annie! The fear of my Mom from seeing me like this and the fear of the torture she suffered at the claws of the griffons!”

Twilight looked away with some tears in her eyes.

“I feel the fear from your friends, how they can only stand there helplessly and watch this battle, and how they might lose you to my hooves!”

Amber bit her lower lip, Lucky narrowed his gaze, and Hot Head gritted his teeth.

“I feel the fear of every Royal Guard down there, how they think I’m going to kill them all!”

The Guards entered defensive stances.

“All that fear, all that terror, I feel it, I become it, I wield it!”

Starburst flared her wings as her aura blazed around her, the ring doubled the size of the beam. The blast washed over Annie’s barrier, burning through solid rock and continuing to cut through all the mountains behind it. Starburst cut off the beam attack, seeing how Annie’s barrier had fallen now.

Annie looked down and saw that there was no longer a platform and suddenly her heart was gripped with fear at seeing the long way down. Suddenly a yellow construct claw shot out and grabbed Anthea, the Star Sapphire’s aura field quickly activated, covering her body. Starburst then raised her hoof up and slammed Anthea right down to terra firma with a powerful impact that shook the ground a little. A small plume of dust hung over the crater, the yellow construct still active.

Starburst flew down to the crater, flapping her wings to clear the air. Annie was on her back, groaning, and probably in a little pain from the harsh throw down, but otherwise she looked alright. Starburst created yellow chains that anchored themselves to the ground, wrapping around Annie’s body. Annie looked to Starburst with shock as she stood over her, looking down at the unicorn mare with cold eyes.

“I also feel your fear Annie. You’re afraid of heights, you could’ve battled me in the air. Your ring has the same power to make you fly. If you did that, the fight would’ve gone on, but you allowed me to get the upper hoof. And…” Starburst leaned down till her face was inches away from Annie. “…you’re afraid of hurting me.”

Annie glared back angrily. “You’re my friend, of course I am! Are you saying you’re not?!”

“……I don’t want to, but if you keep fighting me I’ll have no choice. It’s over Annie.”

Starburst dispelled the chains as she stepped away from Anthea, turning her back to prepare to leave. Annie still didn’t want to give up, her ring shining a bit in preparation. Just then two yellow sword blades appeared over her in an X pattern, their edges resting against the nape of her neck, making the unicorn mare’s eyes widen.

“This is the resolve Annie. The resolve you don’t have, despite the power you wield now. If you’re going to continue on like this, then you might as well take off that ring, sight or no sight, if you’re not ready to fight then there’s no point in wearing it.”

Star summoned her yellow lantern once again. The golden aura wrapping around the pink ribbon that was tied next to the red bandanna. She then levitated it to Annie, placing it on the ground before her.

“Take that to Del. Tell him I’ll be back to for it, and to give him back his bandanna……” Starburst looked to Annie, her eyes lowering in sadness. “Goodbye Annie.”

Starburst flew up out of the crater, the construct blades disappearing with her. She looked down and saw the worried faces of the Guard and Annie’s friends, but only two were looking up at her. Twilight, her mother, had a pleading look in her eyes, begging her not to go, and at the same time, Annie was as well, but something else was in there, doubt.

Annie still wanted to stop her, but…she couldn’t. Star just demonstrated the gap in their power, half a year fighting in countless battles had sharpened her fighting skills and her ability to wield her rings’ power. Her words resonated within Annie, cutting down to her core. She then fell onto her rear, she looked down and grasped the pink ribbon. Annie held it close to her heart as she cried, cried for her weakness, and for her inability to bring back Star after finally finding her.

Canterlot, a couple of hours later…

Nidra was no longer going to keep pining over the pony she wanted, the pony she knew in her heart she was meant to be with. Everypony, all those around her, they only pretended to understand her, their words only placating, nothing to ease the pain, the aching in her heart whenever she was around him. To look, but never touch, to talk to, but never profess, such was the mantra she had adopted for longer than she cared. Well, that would change.

The Princess of Slumber was tired of it all, she would have her true love, she would have everything that everypony desired and cared about. Like a mighty dragon, she would horde, keep all that fell within her sight, and keep everypony from the very things they loved the most. And the power she needed, the power that would grant her this was waiting for her, hidden under her bed.

“Nidra!”

The alicorn thestral stopped in her tracks, hearing the familiar voice. She turned around and scowled when she saw its owner.

“What is it Mother?!” Nidra asked.

Luna came trotting down the hall, her gaze serious. “We need to talk.”

“I’m busy Mother,” said Nidra simply.

“This is important!” Luna insisted.

“What could possibly be so –?!” Nidra turned around and saw something that nearly gave her a heart attack.

Within Luna’s aura, she held the crystal that she used to capture the orange ring, and had hid under the bed, but now that same ring was right before her.

“Where did you get that?!” Nidra shouted.

“I had heard from Turquoise Blitz of your…troubles. I went to see if you were in your room and when I entered, I found this under your bed, glowing bright. It emits a powerful aura, something similar to that of young Anthea’s ring,” said Luna.

Nidra glared her mother angrily as she flared her bat wings. “And you went and snooped in my room?! You had no right!”

“I have ‘the right’ for it is not your castle! Your privacy is a privilege, but that is not the concern right now. Why did you not tell me that you had such a ring in your possession?!”

Nidra’s eyes locked onto the ring, the aura within it started to glow a little, her eyes tinting with the same color. “Because I didn’t want you to take it from me! You already see Anthea and Starburst as dangerous for having their rings, why would I invite that scrutiny on myself?!”

Luna lowered her gaze, Nidra was right, the resception to those who have gained such rings has been less than inviting. Even Luna herself was apprehensive about Anthea’s wielding of the ring. But this ring, even within the crystalized mana, she could feel something from it. It hungered, it craved power, craved everything, like a bottomless pit that would not be satisfied otherwise. Luna had heard that Anthea’s ring was powered by love, and Starburst’s by fear, but this…she shuddered to wonder what emotion fueled this ring.

“I understand…but you should have at least come to me or your father first. I would not turn you away.”

Nidra scoffed as she slowly approached her mother. “I’m sure Star thought the same thing! She probably never imagined her family would turn against her and shun her because of the power she wielded to protect us! And what do you know about Turquoise?!”

Luna looked away for a moment. “Do not fault your cousin. Illusion means well and was concerned about you, and the way he spoke about the pain of your heart was…saddening.”

Nidra scoffed. “Oh what do you care?! You have no idea what how it feels!”

Luna rounded on her daughter with a glare. “I know exactly how it feels! To watch as other ponies revere and love another! It was the same way with your Aunt!”

“Aunty Tia?” Nidra asked incredulous.

Shame befell Luna. “Yes…I loved my sister, but…nopony, it seemed, cared to love me…not in the same way they did her! I wanted that, I wanted ponies to see the beauty in my night, but all they did was shun it! I became a monster…a Nightmare. And in the end I was banished for letting my jealousy and anger get the better of me! Now I see you making the same mistakes as I did!”

Nidra’s horn began to glow. “No Mother…I’m nothing like you…”

Suddenly a blast of mana burst before Luna, the elder alicorn mare put a barrier to protect herself from the attack by her own daughter. Luna looked at her with shock and disbelief, but then she noticed that within her yellow irises was a shade of vermillion, the same color as the ring.

“I’m not weak, I can get what I want! Love, reverence, everything you couldn’t take as Nightmare Moon!”

“Nidra!”

The alicorn thestral released more mana blasts at her mother, igniting the hallway in a flurry of crackling bursts. Luna held her barrier, watching the bolts strike against it and fizzle out. The midnight blue mare adopted a more authoritarian stance as she narrowed her gaze at her daughter.

“Nidra cease this! Your magic is not strong enough to best me, and your slumber magic has no effect on me.”

“I don’t need it! I have THAT!!!”

Suddenly the glow within the crystal flared up with orange light, the crystal began to crack and within the next second shattered to pieces. Luna was about to cast a spell upon the ring, but it zoomed away faster than she anticipated. Nidra held out her right hoof and the ring engulfed her in a sphere of vermillion light.

The within the sphere a black mesh formed over Nidra’s body, covering everything but her wings and neck. Orange boots formed over her forelegs and hind legs with jagged lines etched into them. Her body was covered in an armored vest that had the symbol of Avarice upon it, on either side were lines that formed folded bat wings, and her shoulders were protected by octagon shaped pauldrons.

When the sphere broke apart, Nidra stood there, her eyes still tinted with orange, wings flared, and a maniacal grin on her face. Her body was brimming with the power of the light of Avarice, lapping off her form and mane like flames.

[Power levels at 100,000%. About time you put me on!]

“Don’t complain, we’re one now!”

Luna shook her head in disbelief. “Nidra…what have you done.”

“What does it look like Mother? I’m an Orange Lantern!”

Nidra aimed her ring at Luna and fired a powerful blast of orange light right at her. The beam struck Luna’s shield with resounding force, making the elder alicorn mare grit her teeth and dig her hooves into the floor. The power of this ring was unlike any she had ever faced, pushing her back with each passing second. Luna’s eyes widened when she saw the shield begin to crack. At the last second Luna redirected the blast straight up, blasting a hole right in the ceiling.

The beam roared up, seen by every inhabitant of Canterlot. Luna hurriedly flew through the opening, not wanting this to continue inside the castle. The midnight alicorn floated in the air and watched as Nidra busted through the roof of the castle and met her mother in the air.

“Nidra what have you done?!” Luna shouted.

“I’ve finally gotten hold of the power I need to make Turquoise mine! I will take everything away that everypony cares about, their possessions, their loves, and if need be their very identities!”

That ring…it’s different. Young Anthea did not act like this when she wore her ring, and despite what has transpired, even Starburst did not look so…crazed!

“I do not want to fight you Nidra!”

“That’s funny Mommy, because I do!”

The Orange Lantern raised her ring into the air, at that moment bat constructs flew from her, screeching and chittering as they made their way towards Luna. The Princess of the Night took flight, releasing mana bolts at the constructs, but something was wrong. When her bolts struck the bats her mana was absorbed by them. Luna began to fly faster, watching the bats as they came together in a giant group.

Luna charged her horn and released a powerful blast of her mana right at them, bathing them in her navy blue magic. She seemed to overload the small constructs, making them shatter within an instant.

Nidra zigzagged into the air and charged straight for Luna. The elder alicorn created a spherical barrier, but the power of Nidra’s ring was too much as she crashed through it and into Luna. The mother and daughter nosedived straight down, a fierce whistling sound echoed through the air as a streak of orange continued to plummet. The two landed with a giant “BOOM” right in the middle of the gardens, sending flower petals, clumps of dirt, and leaves shooting into the air.

Nidra stood above the body of her mother as she coughed from the impact. Nidra pressed her hoof against her mother’s chest, her ring shined and suddenly cuffs latched onto Luna’s hind and forelegs, anchoring her down to the ground.

“Everypony always said that my magic was weak.”

“Nidra…”

“I hated it when they said that, looking at me as if I was less than a Princess, less of an alicorn because my magic was like that. Because I was some half breed!”  Nidra leaned down and narrowed her eyes as a toothy grin spread across her face. “Let’s change that Mother, you don’t mind if I take your magic, right? Of course not!”

The orange ring shined bright, coating her horn in its greed filled light. Suddenly Luna’s horn glowed with navy blue light, that same light began floating up and right to Nidra’s horn. Luna began releasing strained chocking sounds as she felt her magic being syphoned from her being.

“Nidra…! Stop…! Please…!”

The bright light of Luna’s magic began to fade as the last drops of it were completely taken. Nidra’s horn shined bright with the mixed colors of the orange, navy blue, and powder blue energy. She never felt such power before, even with the ring was one thing, but now her magical power was far beyond that of what it usually was. This was the power of a full blooded alicorn, now nopony would call her weak!

Nidra looked down to her mother, her head was turned to the side. She released the bindings and got off of her, watching as she weakly tried to look to her daughter. “Nidra…”

“Now I’m the Princess of the Night, Mother! I have alicorn magic! And now, I will have everything!”

Nidra flew up into the sky, with her trinity of magic and ring power, took hold of the sun. It was so easy, easier than she had thought it would be. The alicorn thestral then lowered the sun, and in that same moment, raised the moon. The sun set quickly on the horizon as the moon took its place high in the sky. But the moment it stopped the moon took on a crescent form, the white purity of its face changing into a bright orange that shined down upon the land below.

“To take what I want, that is my right,

I’ll steal your heart in the black of my night!

See my moon glow that is my sign,

The Night, the Stars, and the Light…ARE MINE!!!”

Turmoil of the Heart

Turmoil of the Heart

Luna couldn’t think straight, her body felt drained and very weak. Dazedly she rose to her hooves, legs shaking as she tried to get her bearings on what had happened. In a flash the memories flooded into her mind, the orange ring and her daughter. The High Princess of the Night looked up and her eyes went wide with shock.

Night had befallen the land, her moon was high above, bathed in vermillion and shining down that light upon the world. Another light appeared, a bright orange star, but this was no star, it was something else.

Luna focused her vision and saw Nidra. Her mane bellowed like vermillion fire, tinged with the natural blue of her mane and tail. Her body somehow had gotten taller, and more mature. Nidra’s horn was longer too, her bat wings flared out and were spiked at the tips.

But the most striking of all these features were on her face. Her eyes had become demonic slits, yellow with a flaring orange smoke coming from the corners of her eyes, and her teeth had become fanged. Luna briefly recalled Sombra and how much Nidra looked like him, but this was far worse. She was slowly becoming a Nightmare, something that Luna had never hoped her own daughter would become. And it was all that ring’s fault.

Suddenly a flash of chaotic light appeared before Luna, and from it Illusion stood at its center. “Aunty Luna, what’s going on?!”

“Illusion, dear nephew…Tell my sister and Discord to get as far away from here as they can, now! And that goes for you as well!” Luna ordered.

“But why, what’s going on –?” Illusion looked up to where Luna was staring, noticing an alicorn mare in orange armor with large bat wings. “Aunty Luna…that’s not – it can’t be, right?!”

“It’s…Nidra…She is possessed by a Ring of the Light, and is becoming a Nightmare with each passing second. She drained me of my magic and now has control of the night!” A single tear fell from the alicorn mare’s eye.

“Then let me talk to her! Maybe I can –!”

“NO! If she can take my magic, then she can take yours as well! The last thing we need to do is give her more power! The only reason I’m still standing is because of my sealed reserves, otherwise she would’ve stolen it all! If she gets ahold of your mother’s and father’s powers, along with your own, she’ll become a literal goddess!”

Illusion looked back up at Nidra, watching as her orange aura flared like flames around her. From her ring she created numerous Night Guard constructs, each one flying out towards the city. Screams could be heard coming from deep within the city as explosions and smoke rose up.

“Do as I say, or we’ll all pay a hefty price! Please Illusion!” Luna pleaded.

The half-draconequus was torn at this moment, he didn’t want to leave his Aunt alone, and he definitely didn’t want to leave Nidra. But right now he knew that neither of them had the power to stop her, not while she wore that ring. Reluctantly, Illusion nodded and teleported away.

When Illusion was no longer there, Luna saw somepony else. Standing in the doorway across from the gardens was Turquoise. The dracony stallion stared at the alicorn mare with worry and dismay. He rushed towards her as quick as he could. Luna was about to tell him to leave but the strength in her body left her for a moment.

Turquoise was able to get to her just in time to catch the Princess of the Night. Luna used the large stallion’s body to keep herself propped up as she gazed into his crystal blue eyes. “Young Turquoise Blitz, you should not be here…!”

“Sorry Princess, but I am! What’s happening?! It was day a few moments ago and now it’s night!”

“It is not my doing…but rather, it is Nidra’s…”

Turquoise looked up at that moment and saw the alicorn thestral floating in the sky, wielding the power of a ring.

“Why is Nidra like that?! What’s going on?!”

“…She’s making the same mistakes as I did in my youth…and I was unable to help her.”

Turquoise continued to stare at the Nightmare, seeing Nidra’s horde growing with each passing second. Deep down Turquoise knew, this was partly his doing. His rejecting of Nidra’s feelings for him, and being too dense to notice sooner, must’ve driven her to this state. He hated knowing that he caused her pain, caused her to become something this monstrous.

“I’m going to Nidra, Princess Luna,” said Turquoise.

“Nay Turquoise Blitz! In her current state, friend and foe are not definable!” Luna warned.

“I’m still going to try! I’m responsible for this! I have to do something!”

Turquoise helped Luna against the castle wall, once he was sure she was stable enough he spread his wings and took off for Nidra.

[Take it all Nidra! It’s all yours! The sky is yours, the moon is yours, and soon, HE will be yours!]

“Indeed, but before that, I must take it all! It shall be MINE!!!”

The light constructs flew through the city of Canterlot, each construct breaking into a shop. When a construct spotted something its body opened up like a giant mouth, consumed the item, and left just as quickly. The constructs would return to a spot where Nidra had designated and dropped their pilfered goods and went on to get more and more.

Gold, jewels, clothing, trinkets, and even a gumball machine – Nidra had no idea why she wanted that, but it didn’t matter, it was hers anyway! As a princess everything in this city was rightfully hers and hers alone. Damn her mother, her cousin, her aunt and uncle, she would have it all.

“NIDRA!!!”

The Orange Lantern turned to her right and looked upon the object of her every desire, her ring shined brighter as if responding to need to have this stallion. “T, glad you could make it. What do think of the new me?”

Nidra struck a pose, and admittedly, she was a combination of dangerous, demonic, and beauty all at once. Turquoise couldn’t believe how much her physical form had changed, she was barely the same mare he knew.

“Nidra, listen, this is the honest truth! I do like you! And I could even…with time…maybe be with you! But I love Annie, Nidra! I can’t betray her, and I won’t! Please, for me and for her, please stop all this!” Turquoise pleaded.

Nidra floated closer to the dracony stallion and placed her left hoof gently onto his cheek. “Oh T, I know you love Annie, but if I can be honest for a moment…I don’t care. I want you Turquoise! I deserve you, and nopony will take what is rightfully MINE!”

Turquoise moved away when he saw the flaring of power within Nidra’s eyes. Suddenly a couple of demonic thestral Night Guard constructs appeared from behind Nidra. Both of them charged for Turquoise, but the dracony stallion roared and bellowed a stream of dragon fire at both of them. The sudden attack disoriented the constructs long enough for Turquoise to fly away.

The thestral constructs gave chase, flying at high speeds. Turquoise knew he wasn’t the fastest flyer, or the most maneuverable, so he had to rely on his strength and fire breath to keep the constructs at bay.

One of the constructs flew up to his right, but Turquoise used his great bulk to slam into the orange creation, grinding it against the side of the castle wall until it couldn’t take it anymore and shattered. The second thestral construct flew at him, and crashed into the bulky dracony. It used its foreleg to pin him by the throat against the wall. Since it was made of light energy, it didn’t need to flap its wings to stay aloft.

Turquoise knew this might happen, he wasn’t quick in the air and doing that kind of aerial attack would cost him in recovery time. The dracony stallion growled and opened his maw wide. A torrent of flames struck the construct right in the face, the force of the fire blast was strong enough to send the construct flying backwards. Turquoise quickly flapped his wings, keeping himself in the air as he coughed.

Suddenly orange chains shot out from nowhere, each one wrapped around his legs and pulled him forward. Turquoise quickly flapped his wings to try and escape the chains, but a new set of chains appeared and wrapped around his wings, locking them up and preventing him from flying at all.

The chains kept reeling back until they brought him face to face with Nidra. “Hello my love, why did you run away?”

“Nidra that’s enough, stop this!” Turquoise ordered.

Nidra laughed maniacally. “Oh my dear T, this is only the beginning! You’ll be mine, along with this city and mountain! This will be my Horde, my sanctuary! And as long as I have you…well…everypony can go to Tartarus for all I care!”

Elsewhere, Saddle Arabian airspace…

The crew of the Avalon had boarded the battleship that Starburst had towed with her and were now on their way to Saddle Arabia. Twilight had promised the minotaurs that as soon as they were able, they would transport them back to Minotaurus, where they could give their fallen Prince a proper burial and send off. The Princess of Magic had expressed her deepest condolences for the loss of Prince Steel, and apologized that it was because of her that he fell.

The minotaur soldiers told Twilight to not disgrace his noble sacrifice by saying things like “sorry” or “forgive me”. “Dying honorably and gloriously in battle is the mark of true warrior. Dying while protecting a comrade is true honor, and worthy of praise.”

Twilight made no other apologies after that, but merely thanked them for their help. All this time during the journey to Saddle Arabia one passenger was at a loss of what to do. Annie was in the cargo hold, alone, with her ring still fastened around her right foreleg. She stared at it as the words Starburst spoke to her still echoed in her mind.

Annie finally had the power to bring Starburst back home, and yet, she was far from Star’s equal. Furthermore, for the first time since she donned the ring, Annie was questioning herself and the reason she wore it.

Did she keep it on so that she could finally be able to see? Did she truly intend to only bring Starburst back home? If that was the case, then what, would she give up the ring? Would she just sit idly by and allow the war to continue as it had been, without the aid of the “Fear Lantern” or the “Star Sapphire”?

Starburst questioned her resolve and reason for using this ring, and now Annie herself was doubting her worthiness to wield it. It chose me because of my love…but is that really all it chose me for? I’m not some kind of warrior like Starburst…nor am I a fighter like Hot Head or Lucky…and I definitely don’t have any kind of great strength like Amber…so why?

“Ring…why did you choose me?”

[Because you have great love in your heart, Annie.]

“I know, you said that when we first met. But what I want to know is why, the deeper reason. Starburst was chosen because she could instill fear, but also she has a strong sense of justice. I don’t condone anything that the griffons have done, but at the same time, I don’t like us hurting them back. It won’t end. I’m not a warrior, so why did you choose me? Amber would make a better Star Sapphire than me. She at least is in the Royal Guard.”

[I don’t make mistakes Annie, I chose you as my bearer, and I did so for a reason. All Star Sapphires fight for what they love, be it a planet, a group of people, their family, friends, or even their lovers. You have love for all, for your family, friends, your lover, and everything creature that dwells on this planet.]

Annie sighed sorrowfully. “And yet I couldn’t keep one from leaving. I understand what Starburst is doing is important…but…Ring, am I wrong? Was I wrong this whole time in bringing her back?! I love Starburst! I want her to come back! I want her to be happy with Del! I want all of us to be happy! Why…” Annie began to cry. “Why is that such a hard thing to grasp…?”

[…………]

Annie’s tears still fell as she laid on the floor of the cargo hold. All the while, Amber, Lucky, Hot Head, and Twilight were watching her from the doorway. Their hearts heavy with the knowledge that no matter what they said, it wouldn’t be enough to bring Annie out from the sadness that had overtaken her. The one thing she had set out to do, the one thing she was most adamant about doing, and come to find out, that despite her training and ability, she was nothing before Starburst’s might.

Amber couldn’t take it anymore and left the others to go to Annie. The goldenrod mare walked up beside Annie and laid down next to her, she then rested her head on top of the unicorn’s and gave it a gentle nuzzle. “It’s alright, Annie.”

“No it’s not Amber…it’s not…! Was I really that wrong in wanting to bring a friend back? Was I really that naïve?!” Annie asked desperately.

“Annie…I…”

“No you’re not Anthea.” The new voice grabbed the attention of both mares. Both watched as Twilight approached them. “What you wanted to do was noble, and something that a good friend would do. It’s just…Star…she’s still carrying the hurt, and the pain of what we…I…did to her. I know Star won’t rest until Equestria is safe, and the only thing I can do now – the one thing we can all do, is make sure she has a home to come back to. I don’t expect her forgiveness, and neither do I expect yours Anthea.”

Annie blinked some tears out of her eyes and tilted her head to the side curiously. “Why would I ask your forgiveness Princess?”

“I…”

[Warning: Love in danger!]

The sudden interruption of the ring caused all five of them to jump. But after a second Annie was able to calm down enough to ask, “‘Love in danger’, what are you talking about?!”

[Romantic love, the one you know as Turquoise Blitz. The life of your love is in danger!]

“TURQUOISE?!!” Annie shouted.

Hot Head and Lucky entered the room and joined the others after hearing the information. “Does that mean Equestria is under attack?!” Hot Head asked.

“It can’t be the griffons, the Princess made it so that Pretenders can’t stay cloaked in Equestria anymore, and as far as we know, they haven’t broken through any of our front lines,” said Lucky.

“Unless they used the Long Road, maybe one of them got passed Starburst and traveled down the Minotaurus Gate to get to Equestria?!” Amber suggested.

“No, can’t be, not even Starburst would allow one of them to get by,” said Twilight.

[Detecting energy signatures, orange Avarice light confirmed.]

“Orange Avarice light…the second ring! Starburst said that two rings entered Equestria, one of them was mine and another one must’ve appeared back home!”

Twilight’s mind started to think hard. “Even if we contact the Saddle Arabians, it’ll take too long for them to relay a message and for us to get a confirmation. By that time who knows what could happen.”

Suddenly Annie was engulfed in a crystal cocoon, after a few short seconds the cocoon shattered into particles of light and revealed the unicorn mare in her Star Sapphire uniform. “Then we’ll have to teleport there Princess!”

“I could cast the spell, but if we run into heavy resistance we’ll need all the power we have to stop it!” Twilight argued.

[That won’t be necessary, I can get Annie to her love, and all of you as well.]

“And how’s that?” Hot Head asked.

[The Sapphire Tether. Connected to each living being is a tether that links their love to another. These tethers are made of the light of Love and are invisible to those who do not wield the power of the violet light. As a Star Sapphire, Annie, you are able to see these tethers, and more importantly, use them to take you to those you love.]

“Seriously?! You mean you can teleport us to where T is?!”

[More like trans-warp you, but yes, it would only take a matter of seconds.]

Annie looked to her friends and mentor, all of which gave an affirmative nod. The Troublemaker Trio stood back a few steps and donned their armor with a smack of their breastplates. Twilight summoned her magic and trans-located her battle regalia armor onto her body.

“Alright, Ring, how do I use the Sapphire Tether?”

[Concentrate on the love you feel for Turquoise. Feel it stretch over vast distances, across time and space itself, and see him in your mind’s eye.]

Annie did as the ring instructed. Within her mind she grasped a clear picture of Turquoise, she was thankful for the sight she was granted, now she knew what her love looked like and more importantly, the feelings connected to him. The ring on Annie’s foreleg shined bright, at the same time, the sapphire stone in the middle of her uniform glowed as well. Suddenly Annie was lifted off the floor slightly, enveloped in the violet-pink aura of the ring.

From the sapphire, a long robe made of light shot out of the crystal and lashed about. It then coiled up like a cobra, looking for the direction it would strike. After a moment the tether found its mark and shot forth, the other end formed an anchor like arrowhead as it pierced through the hull of the ship and continued onward without impediment. Despite going through the ship, the tether didn’t damage the ship, more like it phased through it.

Annie floated back down to the floor, landing on all four of her hooves. She then looked the tether that was connected to the jewel on her uniform. “I guess this is the Sapphire Tether. Guys, I think you better hold onto me, I feel something tugging at the other end!”

Twilight, Amber, Hot Head, and Lucky each placed a hoof on Annie’s back. At that moment the tugging became stronger and stronger. The violet-pink aura wrapped around each one of them, and within an instant all five were completely engulfed in light and were shot straight along the Sapphire Tether.

Miles were crossed within a matter of nanoseconds, the scenery blurring into colorful, indistinguishable hues. Within the light, all five were mesmerized at the sights they were seeing. The tether allowed them a glimpse into the vast network of Sapphire Tethers, each one connecting a loved one to another.

They were numerous, incalculable, like a gigantic ball of yarn. Each one sparkled and glimmered with the violet light of Love, each one a connection to somepony special. For a brief moment, each of them saw a tether connecting each of them.

Hot Head had one connected to Amber, which made him blush and the mare smirk. One was connected to Amber from Lucky, and another to Anthea, but there was another that shot off in another direction, as if it was telling him that there was somepony out there. Amber had one connected to Annie, and through it she felt a connection from the young unicorn to herself, one of sisterly love.

Twilight saw one connected to Annie was well, but what surprised her was the love that was connected to it. It felt like the love she had for Starburst, the kind of love one has for their own child. Two more were seen shooting off in nearly the same direction as the one they were following.

Twilight had no doubt that those were connected to Flash and Nighty. More appeared around her, each one she could feel in her heart. Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Celestia, Luna, Cadance, Shining Armor, her parents, and…Starburst.

Annie had a few of her own going every which way. Some of which she could feel right now, connected to her friends and family. Del, Prism, Claire, Candy, Amber, Hot Head, Lucky, June, Illusion, her mother, Princess Twilight…Starburst, Nighty, Pixel, Echo, and Api, and…and…there were three other tethers for some reason. All three somehow felt familiar, but Annie had no idea who they connected to.

Whoever they were, it felt like at least two of the three loved her very much and the third seemed unsure, but did care about her. Annie shook her head, she couldn’t get distracted, she was after one of her loved ones, and it was the colt she pledged her heart to, and he to her.

I’m coming T!

Canterlot City, now…

Nidra’s Horde had grown in a short amount of time. Jewels, gold, clothing, random junk, all of it was piled up high around her. Orange constructs stood sentry around her pilfered goods, while others continued to scrounge up more and more, short of taking another pony.

Nidra had sensed her dear aunt and uncle depart the castle, along with Valiant Heart and Illusion. She wanted their magic too, but at the rate she was going, there wasn’t any need to rush it. She would soon have their power, dominion over the day and night, and over the power of chaos, soon she would also have the magic of love as well from Aunt Cadance.

[The heck with love, you don’t need it! That kind of magic wouldn’t taste very good anyway.]

Nidra was currently dining on a large bowl of fruit, for some reason she had developed a gnawing hunger deep in her gullet and sought to satiate it. “Good or not, it’s more power, and with that power, I’ll make T fall in love me and forget about that tease of a mare!”

“MMMMPH!!”

Nidra looked down to Turquoise, who was currently bound in orange construct chains, and had a muzzle fastened around his mouth to prevent anymore dragon fire attacks. Consequently it also muffled his speech. Nidra flew down to her love and stroked his chin with the spike tip of her bat wing.

“Oh don’t worry T, soon I’ll have the perfect place for us to live in, our own eternal kingdom, with riches that can’t be matched in any part of Equus!” Nidra got real close to Turquoise, her eyes staring directly into his. “I can see it in you, you know, that glimmer of Avarice deep inside. I know dragons love to gather things and create their own horde, and my horde will be yours, because you are mine.”

Nidra began to circle around Turquoise, like a shark biding its time before going in for the kill.

“Did you know your father once gave into his greed?”

Turquoise’s head snapped in her direction, giving her a look that said “You’re lying!”

Nidra placed a hoof to her chest, feigning hurt. “Oh T, I wouldn’t lie to you! It’s all true. Aunt Twilight told me so a long time ago. She said that Mr. Spike started collecting random junk, and the more he collected, the bigger, fiercer, and stronger he got. He eventually became so massive that he towered over Ponyville, becoming a full sized dragon within a matter of minutes! Can you believe it T! Haven’t you ever wondered if you could do it too?!”

Nidra wrapped her forelegs around his neck, pressing her cheek against his neck and nuzzling him.

“You would be magnificent, something worth more than anything in this world! And you could have me, because you’re mine, and what’s mine is mine, and you’re mine, so…you get the gist.”

Turquoise thrashed about, falling with a dull thud against the dirt and out of her grasp. He made a few muffled sounds, Nidra waved her hoof and allowed part of the muzzle to disappear so that he could talk.

“I won’t become that Nidra, and I’m not yours! You can’t own anypony! Stop this now, please, before it’s too late!” Turquoise pleaded.

“Oh T…it already is,” said Nidra with a smirk.

[At this rate he’ll never be yours. But, if you want, there’s another option.]

Nidra lifted her right hoof, bringing the ring closer to her chest level. “And what, pray tell, is that option?”

[I have the power to Steal Identity. Consume Turquoise and everything that he is will be made into a construct. It’ll follow your every command, never question you, but most importantly, he will still be Turquoise. Mind, personality, and even soul, will be yours.]

Nidra looked upon Turquoise, the option was tantalizing. “No, I can’t have too much fun with a construct of light, if you know what I mean. Plus, I want foals with T, and I can’t do that with a construct. You may be powerful, but you’re not a god.”

[Touché.]

Suddenly, a few yards away, a flash of violet-pink light appeared out of nowhere. This light took on the shape of the Star Sapphire insignia, growing in size until it was big enough to look like a gateway. Nidra looked upon the strange – and for some reason sickening – light with unease and anger.

From the portal appeared five ponies. Twilight spread her wings and hovered about, with Hot Head right beside her. Lucky and Amber flanked Annie, the Star Sapphire at the lead and ready to help her coltfriend.

“We’re in Canterlot?!” Hot Head exclaimed.

“The tether was supposed to bring us to Turquoise, why would it bring us here and not to Ponyville?!” Twilight asked.

Annie brought up her ring. “Ring, did you make a mistake? Was I not thinking clearly enough?”

[No Annie, this the correct location of your love. Romantic Love: Distance ten yards. Warning: High levels of Avarice light detected!]

Annie looked ahead of them, she wore a flabbergasted expression when she spied the giant hill of random stuff piled up high in the middle of the courtyard. Orange Night Guard constructs circled above them, like vultures about to dive bomb for their carrion meat. One of them broke away and dived straight for them.

Twilight summoned her magical energy into her horn. She then fired a concentrated mana blast right at the construct. The construct was struck with the beam, hitting dead center in its chest. But the construct did not fade, not even a crack appeared. Twilight suddenly felt her magic being drained away, as if the beam was acting like a straw and the construct was syphoning it from her.

“I…I…can’t stop it! It’s taking my magic!”

[Quickly Annie, attack it!]

Annie wasted no time, she aimed her ring skywards and fired a beam of violet-pink light at the orange thestral construct. The construct was pierced straight through, causing it to wail in pain and shatter apart like fragile glass. Twilight descended to the ground on all four hooves, wobbling a bit from the drain on her magic.

“I don’t understand…I thought light constructs were vulnerable to magic attacks?”

[Out of the seven lights of the Emotional Spectrum, the orange light of Avarice is the exception. It consumes everything in its path, even magic is not immune to its hunger.]

“But then why did it shatter when Annie attacked it?” Lucky asked.

[Only two lights of the Spectrum are immune to the orange light, the blue light of Hope, and the violet light of Love. Our power can’t be absorbed due to the contrasting nature of Love and Avarice, and therefore, constructs made of violet light can destroy constructs of orange light.]

“Good to know. Are you okay to continue Princess?” Annie asked.

Twilight nodded.

“Then let’s go!”

Annie summoned forth her crystal tidal wave and surfed it towards the Horde. Lucky and Amber galloped, their armored hooves clanking against the stone of the castle grounds, and Twilight and Hot Head flew above them, keeping up with their companions. The five ponies made it to the edge of the Horde, where they were greeted by more Night Guard constructs.

Annie slashed the air in front of her and released a wide arc of violet-pink light. The crescent wave struck the line of constructs and shattered them in one strike, allowing them to continue forward. But their progress was halted the moment a giant, fiery beam of orange light shot down from the sky and cut a line into the ground before the five.

They looked up and gasped at the sight. Twilight was having the strangest case of déjà vu right now, the mare above them, clad in the uniform of an Orange Lantern looked almost like Nightmare Moon. Except, this Nightmare looked even more demonic and sinister than its predecessor.

“Nightmare Moon?!” Twilight blurted out.

“Yes and no, I guess I am a Nightmare now, but it isn’t ‘Moon’.”

Annie’s eyes went wide upon recognizing the voice. “Nidra?!!”

Nidra chuckled and clapped her hooves together. “Very good Anthea, you figured it out, someone get the tramp a kewpie doll!”

“Hey!” Amber growled. “What did you call her?!”

Nidra zoomed down and landed with a powerful “BOOM” that shook the ground beneath their hooves. She then gave Amber a scathing glare as she bared her fanged teeth. “Zip it! You’re no better than she is you whorse! If anything you’re a whole hay of a lot worse! But then again, I shouldn’t expect anything less! A mare raised by an easy mare like you is bound to pick up on such habits.”

“What the buck did you just call Amber and Annie?!” Hot Head shouted.

“Oh please, defending the honor of two tramps isn’t worth dying over; unless, of course, their giving the two of you some on the side, then I could see a reason.” Nidra goaded.

Lucky’s horn shined violently and Hot Head’s bladed feathers rattled in agitation. The Troublemakers were about to charge, but before they did, two large feathered wings made of violet-pink light spread out in front of them. At that same time, a wave of light-green mana washed over the three, calming their rage. The wings had appeared from Annie’s sides, and her horn was aglow as she used her special talent to stop the anger before it reached a peak.

She then turned to Nidra and frowned. “Nidra why are you saying these things?! Why are you wearing a ring?! And where’s T?!”

Nidra chuckled. “He’s here, see.” Construct chains shot out from her ring and snaked their way into the Horde. Within a few seconds they retracted, pulling out Turquoise and bringing him before the group. “My prized possession, my stallion, and mine alone, and I won’t let you take him away from me Annie, none of you will!”

Annie shook her head, seeing her coltfriend tied up and muzzled like a wild animal, and hearing one of her friends, the mare she entrusted Turquoise’s happiness to, talk to her like this, it stung – no, it stabbed at her heart.

“Nidra…why are you doing all this?!”

Nidra narrowed her gaze as she slowly walked towards Annie, she stopped when she was but a foot away from her, continuing her menacing glare. “Why? Because I’m tire of it all, Anthea, I’m tired of seeing the one pony I could be happy with waste his time with a mare like you! I cared about T, I loved T! I always have! And every day, I have to watch as you and him flaunt that happiness right in my face! But I bit my tongue, bided my time, thinking that somehow, some way, you two would no longer be together – but no!”

Nidra flared her bat wings, and at the same time her orange aura raged like an inferno. Annie summoned forth her own aura, appearing like flower petals as it clashed against the orange light, creating sparks as they grinded against each other.

“I’m tired, and I’m through with it all! I won’t just stay in the shadows to wait and watch! I’ll shine, and I’ll take what I want with my own hooves! And nothing will stop me! And if you do…so help me Anthea…I will raze you and bury you deep in the earth!”

It took everything Annie had not to cry from hearing these harsh words. But she had to be strong, this was the ring, it had to be, Nidra may be a bit uppity and act a bit snobbish from time to time, but she’s not a monster.

“I…Nidra…I…I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were suffering this much –”

“Of course you didn’t!” Nidra interrupted. “You’re not only blind in sight, but you’re blind to the feelings of those around you too!”

“NIDRA!” Twilight shouted in the Royal Canterlot voice. “That’s enough, for Faust’s sake, what would your mother say about this?!”

Nidra tapped a hoof against her chin in mock contemplation. “Hmm, don’t know, the last time I saw her I syphoned her magic and left her somewhere in the gardens. If she’s still conscious, why don’t you go and ask her.”

Twilight’s eyes widened with horror at hearing that. “You…You took your mother’s magic?!”

Nidra looked closer at Twilight, licking her lips hungrily. “Actually I’m still looking for more to add to my mother’s, why don’t you give me yours!”

The orange aura created a giant claw that shot towards Twilight, but Annie threw up a shield of violet-pink light that stopped the orange claw dead in its tracks. The claw tried to pierce through the barrier, but every time it made contact the claw made a hissing sound, as if the shield was burning the claw.

“Stop it Nidra!”

“I will have her magic! Actually, I’ll take your magic first!”

Nidra created a second claw, balled it into a fist and began pounding against the barrier. Annie had had enough, she created two giant arms that resembled minotaur arms and hands. She caught both fists in both hands, pushing back against Nidra’s construct as the two struggled to overpower the other.

“Princess, guys, get out of here and help everypony you can!” Annie ordered.

They wanted to stay, they wanted to help fight with Annie, but as it stood, all four of them were just a nuisance, at worst a liability. Reluctantly they broke away, Twilight shot off to find Luna, while the Troublemaker Trio hurried to help their fellow Royal Guards.

The two ring bearers were left alone, the only spectator was Turquoise. His draconic eyes the size of saucer plates as he was about to witness a battle between his fillyfriend and a mare he was too dense to notice her feelings.

“I don’t want to fight you Nidra!” Annie yelled.

“Well guess what, that’s what’s happening! Now we can see who truly deserves T once and for all! A little tramp, tease of a mare like you or a Princess who can give him everything he ever wanted!”

Their dueling powers created waves of force that kicked up the dust around them. Annie gritted her teeth as she took a step forward, pushing Nidra back. Nidra growled and took a firm step forward as well, putting them back at the same distance. The clashing powers built to critical levels and the energy was released all at once, blasting both mares away from each other.

Annie called forth the crystal wave to cushion her fall and to right herself. Nidra flared her wings and used her aura to stop herself in midair. The Orange Lantern created more thestral ponies, but these ones were demonic, like the legends of old when these ponies were viewed as monsters. Annie created two constructs, both minotaur warriors.

Both held up their large shields and took the brunt of the opposing constructs impact. Then she created a mini army of three-hundred minotaur, forming them up into their phalanx formation. The second line attacked, their spears jetting out from the small gaps in the shield wall and piercing the demon thestrals in the chest, head, and throat, shattering them within an instant.

Nidra growled in indignation and flooded Annie with a wave of demon thestrals. The construct minotaurs surrounded their creator, readying to defend her to the death. One construct thestral after another lashed out and attacked the line, but each were cut down by the sword of the construct minotaurs, or stabbed by their crystal spears. The alicorn thestral was getting agitated now, seeing her army of constructs unable to break through the line of violet light constructs.

Nidra channeled her magic and orange light into her horn and fired a powerful, column sized beam straight for them. The beam pierced through her own constructs and struck against the minotaur warriors, they held fast, keeping their shields up as they took the brunt of her attack. Even though the orange light had little effect on the constructs, the magical energy infused into the beam was starting to create cracks on their bodies.

Annie narrowed her gaze as she funneled her magic and violet light into her own horn. She used the combined powers and created a giant shield that bloomed like a rose and pushed back against the flaming energy blast of Nidra’s horn.

“You always have to be great at everything! Little-Miss-Perfect! No wonder Starburst and I hated you so much!” Nidra screamed.

Annie’s eyes went wide and her concentration faltered for a moment. The shield and beam exploded outward, blasting back even the Horde and making Turquoise slam against a large mound of gold bits. It cushioned his impact, but it still left a dull ache in his back; Luna and Twilight finally made it back, but kept a safe distance as they watched the battle unfold.

When the dust settled, Annie was still standing, but just a few feet away was Nidra, still eyeing her with spite. The unicorn mare looked to her friend incredulously. “That’s not true! You’re ring’s just messing with your mind, Nidra! The orange rings do that to ponies!”

“Oh please, even if that were true, what I said is still the truth! She hated you, and so do I!”

Annie shook her head, unable to process this. “But why, we’re friends, what did I do to make you guys hate me?!”

“For one thing, that, that stupid naïve sense of everything’s all hunky dory! Well it isn’t! You’re just Little-Miss-Perfect, always excelling at everything and gaining the pitiful looks of everypony around you! You stole Star’s mother away from her! Tell me, how well do you get along with Aunty Twilight, hmm?!”

“Well…I –!”

“How excited does she sound when she teaches you magic?! How much time do you spend with her?! How much does she wish you were her daughter instead of Starburst?!”

Annie’s mind flashed back to that moment when Twilight accidentally called her Starburst instead of her real name. She thought it might’ve been just a guilty conscious, but maybe there was more to it. But Annie never considered herself Princess Twilight’s surrogate daughter, although, with as close as the two of them had been getting lately, and how much of a connection she felt with Twilight. Maybe…Maybe she had been drawing Princess Twilight’s attention away from Starburst.

“I never meant to…I just wanted to be a good student to the Princess…!”

“Yeah, that, that oblivious nature of yours! It’s because of that that Starburst never said a thing about it! She’s a better mare than you or me, keeping that hurt inside and never saying a thing! If you weren’t around, maybe she could’ve have had a better relationship with her mother!” Nidra accused.

The orange light created a construct of Starburst, appearing right before her and giving her a glaring, intimidating stare.

“And there’s me…my magic isn’t powerful, and yet yours is potent as Tartarus! And when I find the one pony I believed I could be happy with, you snatch him up from me! If you weren’t around, he could be with me!!”

A construct of Turquoise and Nidra appeared next to Starburst. The Nidra construct leaned against the Turquoise construct, nuzzling him tenderly while the other looked down at her with a loving gaze.

“Your existence only brings me and Starburst pain and sadness, and I’m sick of it!” Nidra roared.

Annie’s eyes watered under the withering gazes of the constructs. The guilt was gripping her heart, making a lump form in her throat as her resolve was eroded away. Suddenly her uniform disappeared and the ring lost its shine. Nidra seized this opportunity and thrust out her ring hoof, shooting a beam of orange light that surrounded Annie’s right foreleg. The unicorn mare let out a pained cry as she felt the ring ripped away from her hoof.

The ring was flung into the distance, its energy could not be absorbed so it was of no use to her. Nidra used the beam to completely wrap Annie up in a cocoon of orange light, leaving all but her head exposed. She brought the unicorn mare close to her, only inches away from her face and continued to glare at her.

“You can’t see me anymore can you, probably just blurry blotches of color, right?!”

Annie didn’t admit it, but she was right, without the added power of the ring her vision had returned back to its normal state. But even in this state, she could still make out those glowing eyes.

“You have to pay for it all! And I have the perfect punishment and prison for you!”

Nidra’s horn began to glow as the orange energy flowed out and wrapped itself around Annie’s horn. The unicorn mare’s eyes bulged out of her skull the moment she felt the intrusive power begin to coil itself around her magic. She tried to resist it, but the power was too overwhelming. Nidra syphoned the magic, taking in more and more. She had no idea how potent Annie’s magic was, but that was only the icing on the cake.

“Nidra stop it! Please! I-I’m begging you! STOP!!!”

With each passing second, Annie’s world started to darken, her anxiety and fear of the dark was growing and making her heart pound in her chest. And then, everything went pitch black. Annie panted and huffed, her breath quickening as her fear arose.

“N-Nidra I-I can’t see! I can’t see!” Annie cried.

“Good. Now I will make sure you never mess with anypony ever again.” With the added power of Anthea, Luna, and her own magic, Nidra opened up a portal beneath the totally blind unicorn mare. “I’m going to drop you into a pocket dimension. A total sensory deprivation dimension, no sound, smell, or anything to touch, you’ll have air, but nothing else. An endless expanse of nothingness, of complete darkness, even if you regained your magic, you’d still be wrapped in darkness!”

“NO NIDRA PLEASE DON’T! I’M SORRY, I’M SO SORRY!” Annie cried.

“NIDRA STOP!!!” Luna shouted.

“ANNIE!!!” Turquoise and Twilight yelled.

“Goodbye…”

With that last word, the only sound she would hear, Nidra released the cocoon and let Annie drop into the abyss. Closing the portal and leaving the unicorn mare to writhe in her worst nightmare.

Heart of a Fighter

Heart of a Fighter

Darkness…pure darkness surrounded her. Anthea screamed into it the inky abyss, but no sound would echo in the void. She desperately tried to grope at something, anything to give her a sense of up or down. But there was nothing. Not only was she in the dark, but she was floating in empty space, and she had no idea if she was close to the ground or hundreds of feet up.

There was no smell, no sound, and even if her magic managed to regenerate itself, Annie doubted she’d be able to see anything at all. She was trapped here…trapped in a place that nopony could reach her, trapped with not a soul around to help her. The only sound, probably the only thing keeping her frail sanity together was the sound of her voice within her mind, but even then all she could do was cry out.

Somepony, anypony, please help me!!! I don’t want to be here anymore! I’m sorry! I’m sorry for what I’ve done! I didn’t know I did all those things to you! Nidra, I knew you liked T, but didn’t know it was hurting you seeing us together! Star, I didn’t know that I was stealing your mother away from you! I would never do that! You’re my friends, and I…! I…!

Annie began to cry, her tears floating in the void as water droplets. Because this was the problem, the fact that she was oblivious to the pain she was unknowingly causing to her dearest friends. She knew Star and Princess Twilight didn’t get along too well, but she had always thought that was about their personalities and dissimilar interests, and the fact that Starburst wanted to become a Royal Guard. She didn’t know that she was driving a wedge between them, giving the Princess the daughter she always wanted.

And Nidra, well, Annie knew Nidra cared about Turquoise. More than cared, she loved him, and Annie knew it. She didn’t want to say anything, but she could tell that the times they were all three together, Nidra would try and flirt with Turquoise even when she was right there beside him.

Turquoise was often too dense to pick up on her signals, that, and he was focused on Annie as his fillyfriend and didn’t notice other mares’ looks of attraction. Or she assumed he was getting those, since, well, Annie couldn’t see and all, so she wouldn’t know if other mares were looking at Turquoise like that.

Asking her to look after T if something happened to me…I meant every word…I didn’t know if I’d make it back home at the time, so I did what I thought would be best for him! Let’s face it…Nidra is the better mare for him. I’m selfish…T’s half dragon, and dragons have long lifespans.

Mr. Spike, Claire, and T will be around long after I’m dead of old age, the only thing I’ll bring T in the end is sadness. He’ll have to watch as I grow old and die in front of him, leaving him behind or worse, he’ll take his own life because he doesn’t want to live without me!

Nidra’s better…she’s half alicorn, she’ll live the same amount of time as T, they’ll be together forever! Maybe I did snatch him away from her…Maybe I did take away her one chance to be with somepony she could be happy with…

Annie began to curl into a fetal position, her quiet sobs still producing droplets of water around her. Sorrow and despair started to seep into her heart, the harsh words that Nidra spoke were true. She did nothing but ruin the lives of three ponies, driving Nidra to don the orange ring of Avarice, making Starburst hate her, and trapping Turquoise in a relationship where he would have to watch her die as time left him untouched.

This was a fitting punishment for her, she believed. At this point, she wanted the darkness to just hurry up and swallow her. If there was some beast or demonic entity within this realm, then she wanted it to hurry up and end her life already.

But just then, something appeared. Annie couldn’t see it, but far off in the void a flash of violet light went off. It was like a shooting star, there one moment, and gone the next. The pink unicorn continued to float through the air, but following her, getting ever closer, was the Star Sapphire ring. It glowed faintly in the darkness, like a lone candle in an empty room. Suddenly the light of the ring shined brighter and brighter, growing in intensity.

Annie stirred, at first her heart was frozen with fear, feeling the warmth of something just before her. But soon that fear ebbed away, she recognized this warmth, it was all too familiar to her. The light grew stronger and stronger as it burst forth and created a spherical barrier around her, roughly the size of the Crystal Palace’s rotunda. Annie suddenly found her hooves touching solid ground, but it was in actuality star sapphire crystals.

The energy of the ring started to wrap around itself, taking on a form. Four legs appeared, with large wings on either side. The body continued to form until it looked exactly like Starburst. The light construct looked down at Annie, it then walked towards her and sat next to her. It draped its large wing over her back, making her flinch from the contact. But Annie used her hooves to feel the appendage, the broad wing, connected to a small frame. Her milky blue eyes went wide with realization as to the identity of the construct.

“S-STARBURST?!”

“Hey Annie,” the construct greeted.

Annie didn’t care if it was really her or a just a construct, she quickly hugged the petite mare, making the construct’s eyes widen with surprise and a bit of embarrassment as she sobbed and cried into her chest.

“Hey, hey, what’s wrong?!”

“I’m sorry Star, I’m so sorry!”

“For what?”

“For…For stealing your mom away from you!” Annie confessed.

The construct blinked, it then frowned. “What are you talking about, you didn’t steal –?”

“Yes I did!” Annie interrupted. “I stole her attention away from you! If I hadn’t, maybe she would’ve been more supportive of you?! If I hadn’t ever met her, you would still be here in Equestria with them! And maybe….maybe you wouldn’t hate me anymore…!” Annie couldn’t keep going as she cried some more.

The Starburst construct sighed heavily. “How did you find out about how I felt?”

“Nidra…” Annie sniffled. “She told me everything, and about how she felt about me…”

“I swear, that mare.” The Starburst construct began running her hoof through Annie’s mane soothingly as she spoke. “I won’t lie Annie, I felt like that for a while. And I did think that she might’ve been secretly wishing that you were her daughter instead of me.”

“I never meant that to happen Star, really!”

“Shh, I know, and that’s part of the reason why I hated myself for feeling that way. I know you weren’t intentionally making my mom like you more, you were just trying to be a good student to her, and learn all you could despite your disability. As much as it annoyed and irked me, I couldn’t help but admire you for excelling as you did. In a way…we’re the same.”

Annie looked up to Star – as best she could considering she was blind – with astonished expression. “The same?”

“Everypony told me that I wouldn’t be able to join the Royal Guard because I’m small and because I’m a Princess, and I don’t doubt ponies thought you wouldn’t be able to learn much from my Mom since you couldn’t see.”

Annie nodded her affirmation of that, remembering hearing remarks about how High Princess Twilight was wasting her time trying to teach a blind unicorn mare magic.

“So, did I secretly harbor a bit of jealousy towards you? Yes. But ‘hate you’? I don’t think I could Annie. Be annoyed, be angry at, but never hate.” The Star construct confessed.

Annie rose up a little, when she did, the Starburst construct wiped away her tears with her left wing with amazing dexterity. “Nidra hates me though…and I don’t blame her.”

“Nidra’s mind is clouded with Avarice, the ring’s got her warped at the moment so she’s lost her filter. But yeah, she said how she feels. But going so far as to say you stole him from her is different. Nidra’s my best friend, and I understand how she feels, but even I know she can’t stay hung up on this forever! She needs to accept that you and T are together!”

Annie felt a stab at her heart. “I don’t think I deserve to be with Turquoise.”

Star blinked. “Are you kidding me!? Everytime I see you two together it so sweet it feels like I’m going to develop diabetes just watching!”

Annie giggled, her first real bit of laughter since being in this void. “I know…but I’m not doing him any favors by making him love me. I’ll die eventually Star.”

“We all die Annie, part of the Circle of Life. We’re born, we live our lives, and we die.”

“Except for dragons and natural born alicorns.”

The Starburst construct rubbed the back of her head. “Oh, yeah, forgot about that.”

“Nidra’s the better mare for T, at least she can give him a future and be with him forever. All I can give him is one lifetime, and that’s it. I have nothing else to offer him…” Annie lowered her head as sadness began to overtake her again. Just then the Starburst construct “thwaped!” her upside the head with her large wing. “Ow! What was that for?!”

“Do you even listen to yourself? When did you make Turquoise love you? When wasn’t it enough to spend a lifetime with the pony you love? And what more does he want from you?

In the few times that I’ve got to talk with T, all he could think about was asking you out back when we were fillies and colts. He’s practically my cousin, so I know what I’m saying. He’s always loved you, you never ‘made him love you’!”

The Starburst construct then got in Annie’s face, making Annie gulp.

“I know it’ll be sad for T when you’re gone. But don’t you think my Uncle Spike knew that same thing when he married Aunt Rarity?!”

“I…!”

“Uncle Spike knows full well that Aunt Rarity will die of old age, and he’ll still be around along with Claire and Turquoise. He knew that, and despite that, he married her, because he loved her. Just like Aunt Luna married Uncle Nova, she knew and he knew he would die and Luna would keep on living.

They know this, so they try to make the best of it, and fill the time they have with us with as many memories as they can! It’ll hurt, loss hurts everypony, but that’s when love reaches out and finds a way to sooth the pain. If Nidra’s that pony, then T will make that choice, who he chooses to love is T’s decision, and he loves YOU!”

Annie never looked at it that way before, Star’s words were true, he did make the decision to be her coltfriend, she was the one who accepted his feelings and in turn he accepted her’s. Their life together would be short, but it would be no less fulfilling and meaningful.

“I told you that you lacked resolve. That if you weren’t willing to fight then you had no business wearing the ring.”

Suddenly, Annie’s mind flashed back to the words of Prince Steel. “You wield love…never let its light be extinguished within you…fight for what and who you love…in that, you can become a great warrior……….”

“So, are you willing to fight for T?! For the pony you love and to save a friend?!”

Annie’s eyes narrowed as she grinned. “I am! Thank you, Star.”

“You know, if things happened differently on the day you met my Mom, she could’ve been the one to adopt you and we would’ve become sisters.”

Annie chuckled at that. “The serious and mature little sister and the older, blind, but energetic older sister, sounds about right.” She then moved forward and hugged the construct. “I would’ve liked that. But I love my Momma Fluttershy, and I want to see her again.”

“I know you do. Now get the buck out of here and knock some sense into that mare for me since I’m not there.” The Starburst construct parted from Annie as her body dissolved into particles of light. “Fight for your love, Star Sapphire…”

The construct burst apart and left Annie standing in the light bubble alone. But she wasn’t alone, not really. Annie raised her right hoof and the ring flew to her, taking its rightful place once again.

“Hello Ring, I missed you.”

[As did I Annie.]

“Thanks for the pep talk, I needed it.”

[Error. What do you mean?]

“Earlier, you created a construct of Starburst and had her talk to me. I didn’t know you could do that without me.”

[I am unable to create constructs without a bearer, although, my data shows a gap between the time of my removal and my return to your person.]

Annie didn’t understand, if the ring wasn’t controlling the construct then who was? But that would be a question for another day. “Ring, what’s your current power level?”

[Current power levels are at 40%. Recommending a recharge.]

“Let’s do it.” Annie pointed the ring in front of her, a hole in space opened up and the violet lantern appeared before her. She felt around the lantern before she found Starburst’s ribbon was still tied to the handlebar, a reminder of what she still needed to do when this was over, and of what she had to do now. “Thank you Star, I’ve found my resolve.”

Annie placed her ring in the open port, the lantern immediately activated and shined forth with the violet light of Love. The sphere shined like a star in the darkness, returning every sense that the void took away, smell, touch, some of her sight, and even sound. Her new conviction, her newfound strength, all it coalesced into words, words for an oath held deep in her heart.

“From the warm embrace of Celestia’s light,

To the cool breeze of Luna’s night!

I bring many wonders from my ring of light,

My love gives me strength...from my sapphire light!!!”

The violet light of Love shined within the dark realm, filling it with its warm glow. The insignia of the Star Sapphire’s appeared, shimmering with a brilliance like it never had before. Annie’s body was donned in the uniform, her sapphire crystal on her chest pulsed with the same power as her ring, her eyes even took on the color of her ring.

[Power levels at 100%.]

Annie raised her left hoof to look at it, but frowned in disappointment that her sight was only brought back to what it originally was. “My magic was syphoned, but with you, I at least I can see colors again.”

[Trust in the star sapphire and in myself Annie, we will be your eyes.]

Annie closed her eyes, creating a construct sash to wrap around her head and keep her eyes shut. The crystal near her heart shined even brighter than before. Annie’s world became violet light, when she raised her hoof up, it looked as if it was made of the star sapphire crystal. She looked herself over to make sure it wasn’t a trick, but this was real, the ring and crystal were working in tandem to bring the world around her into sight, well, as much as an endless void could show anyway.

“Alright, let’s get back!”

[Releasing Sapphire Tether.]

Nidra felt something inside her, maybe it was guilt or maybe it was that annoying hunger pang in her stomach. Either way, it didn’t matter. Annie was gone, doomed to dwell in a prison that was straight out of her worst nightmares. Turquoise was crying, but she understood, she did just banish his fillyfriend to another dimension.

But he’d get over it, Nidra would see to it that he did. Turquoise was hers, and she would take care of her possessions, very good care indeed. Nidra sauntered over to her captured love, laying on the ground as she tucked her legs under herself and nuzzled his stallion’s cheek soothingly.

“There, there, T, it’s for the best,” said Nidra.

“How can you say that?! She was your friend too! I know you may be jealous of her, but you didn’t have to do that to her! She’ll go insane in there! Die of fear!” Turquoise cried.

Nidra raised her right hoof and gently stroked the back of the dracony’s head. “Oh T, it’s the fate of all those who try and take what’s mine. You’re mine, now and forever, and I’ll never let you go. We’re eternal, we’ll live longer than her or any of our so-called ‘friends’.

Why bother caring about them! They’ll be dead within fifty to eighty years, and by that time we’ll look closer to young adults than they will! Why spend your life with a mare who will die when you can be with me?! Somepony who can stay with you!”

Turquoise jerked away from Nidra’s touch as he growled and trembled. The chains started to show signs of breakage, startling the Nightmare. “Because I chose her! I want to be with Annie! I don’t care how long she has, if it’s for a hundred years or even just one hundred minutes! I! LOVE! HER!!!”

Suddenly the chains shattered with great force, sending bits of the construct flying about and dispersing into particles of light. Nidra sprang to her hooves at the sight of her captured love no longer bound.

At that moment a beam of purple light shot forth from Nidra’s left, slamming into her side and pushing the alicorn thestral all the way towards the ledge and through the stone guardrail as she went over. Turquoise looked to the beam’s origin and saw that it came from Lucky Star’s crystal blade horn, but he wasn’t alone.

Amber and Hot Head were fast on his heels, skidding to a stop alongside the dracony stallion. “What the hay happened?! We came back to help, where’s Annie?!” Lucky asked.

Turquoise gaze turned downcast as a solemn look fell on upon his face. “She…She’s gone…”

The faceplates of their armors retracted, revealing their varying degrees of shock and horror. Amber’s was the most heartbreaking, her eyes were wide as tears flowed down in an endless stream. “No…No you’re lying T, she can’t be! Not Annie! NOO!!!”

Hot Head rushed forward and thrust a hoof into the dracony’s chest. “You were supposed to protect her! You were supposed to keep her safe you asshole! How could you let her die like that?!”

“Nidra had me wrapped in chains made of that orange light! I just now broke free! I don’t know how, but I did! And anyway, if we hurry we might be able to save her! She was thrown into some dimension thing with magic, Aunt Twilight might be able to pull her out!”

“What kind of place did she send her too anyway?! Oh Faust, don’t tell me it’s Tartarus?!” Lucky asked in dread.

“It might as well be…she said it was something like a…Sensory Deprivation Dimension.”

Amber was the first to react to that. “‘SENSORY DEPRIVATION’?!!! She’s already blind, if she’s put in a place like that she’ll lose her mind! A place like that deafens all five senses! For Annie it’s like being dead! How could she do that to her?!”

“It was easy, I just took her magic and dropped her in!”

Nidra’s orange aura flared up from over the ledge, she shot up like a comet, appearing in the sky and slamming down onto the earth with resounding force. She gave a menacing, yet malevolent grin at the four ponies before her.

“YOU WHAT?! YOU BITCH!!!”

Amber’s faceplate reformed and she charged for Nidra, kicking up a gust of wind when she did so. Her battle cry was so fierce it even made Nidra flinch. The earth mare kicked off the ground and jumped into the air, she then descended down, cocking back her right hoof. The armor around that hoof glowed with a fierce light, channeling her Earth Pony magic into pure strength and doubling that power. When Amber was in range she thrust out her hoof.

Nidra created an orange shield right in front of her, just in time for Amber’s armored hoof to smash against the barrier. But her attack was still going, the energy Amber built up propelled her forward like a rocket. Nidra gritted her teeth as she found out that this wasn’t going to be that easy of a mare to shake off.

“You put Annie in a place like that! Took away her magic, and left her completely blind and scared out of her mind! How dare you! HOW DARE YOU!!!!AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!”

Suddenly, the armor shifted, taking on a crystal appearance. Amber’s right hoof changed shape, transforming into a diamond drill bit. The drill spun around as yellow mana energy whirled around it. The strengthened and empowered attack started to cause cracks to appear in Nidra’s shield, surprising the Nightmare.

Nidra used her magic and light to create a burst wave the pushed the both of them away from each other. She then summoned forth demonic thestral constructs and sicced them on Amber. Amber skidded to a halt and dug her left hoof into the stone ground to slow herself down. The constructs were almost upon her, but Amber was a mare on a mission.

She wouldn’t forgive Nidra for what she had done to Annie, her surrogate little sister whom she practically raised from a foal! Demonic thestrals appeared around her, swarming her like a hive of angry bees. Her armor glowed yet again as the crystalline armor shifted and glowed with her mana.

When the thestral constructs attacked so did Amber. Her armor erupted with several diamond like spears that shot out in every direction, turning her into a crystal porcupine. The constructs were pierced in every which way possible and shattered like fragile glass.

“I don’t get it! She’s using magic, I should be absorbing that!” Nidra cursed.

[It’s not just magic she’s using! Her fury stems from maternal and sororal love, in a strange way she’s wielding the light of Love through her magic! It’s sickening!]

Amber wasn’t the only one ticked off at the moment. Hot Head soared towards Nidra, his bladed wings sheened in the light as he sped towards her. The Nightmare summoned forth a giant orange cobra, it hissed and bared its fangs at the lone pegasus stallion.

But Hot Head was hopped up on the same fury that drove Amber, and his armor responded. The blade panels that made up his feathers started to glow with an angry, orangey-red color. Within a few seconds the panels ignited into red hot flames. The cobra construct lunged for Hot Head, ready to swallow him whole.

The pegasus stallion barrel rolled out of the way, but not before piercing the construct’s side with his flaming wing. Hot Head continued on until he had sliced the construct in half, leaving behind a flaming gash in his wake. The construct shattered just like the others as Hot Head continued on his course towards Nidra. He slowed for a moment and drew back his wings, and with one mighty flap his wings released flaming blades that rained down on Nidra.

Nidra wasn’t dumb enough to stand by at let those attacks hit her. Using her magic to teleport away at the last second, the numerous fire blades struck the ground and exploded into a fiery crater. Nidra reappeared in the air, glaring in annoyance and hate at how she was pushed back this far.

But Nidra didn’t have much time to contemplate that as she sensed a buildup of magical energy. The alicorn thestral looked down at the ground and saw Lucky Star. His magical aura swirled around his body like an angry maelstrom, the reinforced glass visor eyes shined bright, along with his crystal blade horn.

At that moment the energy coalesced into a giant blade of magical energy, and swung it down with a speed that belied its size. Nidra quickly created a shield construct to block the blade, but the power pushed her back until she had no choice but to fly off to avoid it. But the energy repurposed itself at Lucky’s command, breaking apart into spheres of energy that surrounded her in every direction.

Nidra teleported away, readying herself to attack again, but when she reappeared she was surrounded by more spheres of magical energy. She teleported again, and again, and every time she did the number of spheres doubled each time until it looked like she was surrounded by a swarm of fireflies. How…How in the hay is he able to pinpoint my location so accurately?!

“Each time a unicorn teleports they leave an energy trail behind, showing where they were. Consequently, when a unicorn reappears in a different location, magical energy shows up. It acts like a beacon to help the unicorn appear in that exact location.

Problem is, the mana distorts the air and natural mana floating about, making them oscillate at random intervals and makes it hard for another unicorn to find where they reappear.”

Lucky’s crystal blade horn glowed with greater intensity.

“But in reality, there is a way. It requires a lot of mental mathematical calculations and incantations that quite frankly would take too long to explain, but the simplified version is: a unicorn who can accurately do all that can find where any unicorn will reappear! Alicorns like High Princess Twilight can do this and so can I!”

The orbs of magical energy shot at Nidra from every direction possible, Nidra teleported yet again. But the moment she reappeared the magical meteors were in hot pursuit. Nidra was a pretty agile and swift flier, and now with the added power of the ring and stolen magic, she was even faster. Lucky’s horn flashed and suddenly half of the glowing spheres disappeared. Nidra smirked, believing that he was losing his power from using it so much, but she was wrong.

Lucky used his magic to teleport his spheres way ahead of her. By the time Nidra noticed the spheres it was too late. The mana spheres struck her from all sides, exploding like fireworks. Lucky gathered more and more mana into his horn, and with a mighty cry, he unleashed the pent up power into a single column sized blast that washed over the explosions that were still going, and ignited an even bigger one that thundered through the sky.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to take her down. Nidra panted and growled within the dust cloud. On the ground Nidra spotted the Troublemaker Trio; Lucky with his glowing eyes and horn, Amber with her crystal armor and yellow aura, and Hot Head with his flaming wings. All of them stared her down, ready to face her to the death, all to make her pay for what she did to their friend and member of their family.

Nidra’s body trembled with anger and fury, “Don’t you dare think that you’re any match for me!!! I am the most powerful, I am power, and I am absolute!!! If you keep me from what is MINE you are my enemies!!!”

The Orange Lantern descended to the ground with a thunderous “BOOM!” and disappeared underneath the earth. Amber, Hot Head, Lucky, and Turquoise all looked about with worry at the odd action, but soon the ground began to rumble and shake.

In a matter of seconds a massive construct erupted from the earth below, a grotesque creature that looked like something out of the pages of “Diana’s Inferno”. It had three heads with slobbering mouths, many tentacles that also had smaller mouths, and no eyes. On top of it was Nidra, guiding the beast as it lashed out at the Trio.

Amber and Lucky hurried away from a giant tentacle that nearly crushed them, but it was all a setup. When they stopped the ground under their hooves shattered, two mouths opened up and slammed onto Lucky and Amber, catching them in their teeth as they rose up.

If it weren’t for their armor they were sure that the force of the constructs teeth mashing would’ve crushed their internal organs, at worst it would’ve bit them in half. Hot Head was flying in, his flaming wings about to slice the tentacle mouths open.

“HOT HEAD LOOK OUT!!!” Turquoise shouted.

The armored pegasus stallion glanced over his shoulder and watched as a giant mouth opened up and bit down on the stallion, pinning his wings. Nidra had the tentacle mouths bring all three to her, watching as they squirmed and writhed in their traps.

She cracked a toothed grin as she felt their energy flow into the construct, and into her. The armor was doing a good job of keeping their power from being fully syphoned, but soon she would have that armor, and their magic.

“You think any of you are better than me?! HA! I can feel it, I can see it clearly deep inside all three of you! AVARICE!” Nidra pointed to Amber. “Like this whorse of a mare, you want love, you crave love from somepony other than those whom you pretend to love!

You know nothing! Anthea told me, she told me about how you were too old to stay in the orphanage and that you were going to live in Canterlot! She also told me how sad you were that you were going to leave these two all alone – PATHETIC!!!”

Amber growled. “What do you know of love?! I did it so that they wouldn’t be alone, because I didn’t want to break up our family!”

“‘Family’?! Quit saying you did it for them! You did it for yourself! The truth is you don’t want to be alone, so you selfishly took them away from families who could’ve provided them with more than you could offer, and kept them for yourself! I’m surprised you haven’t screwed them yet with how much you flirt and tease other stallions!”

Nidra turned to Hot Head and smirked, making Hot Head nearly growl in anger at her.

“And you are just as bad! You chased the tail of Whirlwind, because she was nice to you, and you followed her like a lost puppy dog when she already had a coltfriend!

The light of Avarice reveals it all to me, how you wanted to outclass and overshadow Prism Bolt, wanting to show how superior you were to him in hopes that she’d leave him and be with you instead! Faust, how stupid can you be?!”

“I’m not like that you bitch! I…I…!”

“And you,” Nidra now put her gaze on Lucky and grinned with wicked mirth, “you, Lucky, loved Anthea, and I’m not talking about sisterly or friend kind of love either!”

Lucky’s eyes went wide in his helmet at hearing that. “I…I used to! I don’t anymore, she’s like a sister to me now!”

“Don’t try and act so saintly, you’re just like me. You secretly wished for T and Anthea to break up so that you could catch her on the rebound and have her all to yourself!

Don’t deny it, because I’d do the same thing!” Nidra then looked to each of them in turn. “And you have the gall to fight me as if you know what love is! I’ll turn you into the monsters that you are deep, deep down in your souls! I will make you MY Vermillion Guard! MY Corps! Begin Identity Theft!”

[Alright, finally! Commencing Identity Theft, consuming subjects!]

Suddenly the draining effect hastened, making the Trio cry out in pain. The tentacle mouths started to slowly make their way up their bodies, beginning the painful process of transforming the three of them into Orange Lantern Avarice Constructs. Turquoise flew up towards Nidra, landing on the beast and standing across from Nidra with a serious expression on her face.

“Nidra that’s enough! Stop all of it!” The dracony stallion lowered his head as he made his decision on how to end the madness. “Nidra…if you stop this, I…I promise to be yours! I’ll be your coltfriend until Equestria blows up and Tartarus freezes over! So please, stop this!!!”

The consuming stopped suddenly as Nidra took in those words. Tears began to stream from her eyes as a happy smile spread across her face. “Oh T…you have no idea how much that means to me…No idea how long I’ve wanted you to say something like to me. But…” Nidra moved forward and placed her hoof on his cheek, he flinched for a moment but just let her do it. “I know you can’t truly give me your heart, because I know it still belongs to Anthea. And so…”

Suddenly a mouth formed beneath Turquoise and wrapped around him, leaving his head visible. “Nidra what are you –?!”

“I can’t have your heart, I’ll accept that. But…I’m not going to stop. I meant it, I’ll turn this entire mountain into my personal kingdom! And I’ll still need Royal Guards, and these three will do for a start! Resume!”

[FEAST!]

The Troublemakers Trio cried out in pain again as the Identity Theft induction continued. Turquoise could only watch helplessly, despite his dragon strength, against the power of the rings, he was nothing. Annie…I’m sorry…

*VWOOOM*

*VWOOOM*

Turquoise felt something, something in his heart.

*VWOOOM*

*VWOOOM*

This feeling was familiar, warming, caring, and loving even.

*VWOOOM*

*VWOOOM*

*VWOOOM*

*VWOOOM*

The dracony stallion looked down and saw that something like a violet star was blinking near his heart. Nidra noticed it and looked at it curiously.

*VWOOOM*

*VWOOOM*

*VWOOOM*

*VWOOOM*

*VWOOOM*

*VWOOOM*

*VWOOOM*

*VWOOOM*

That’s when it hit him. “ANNIE!”

Suddenly the insignia of the Star Sapphires shined forth with intense violet-pink light. The power was enough to force Nidra into the air, and rip apart the grotesque construct. At that moment Amber, Hot Head, and Lucky were released, spared the induction, but their magic was drained enough to make them feel weak. But before they fell to the ground something appeared out of the insignia and created a giant platform made of star sapphire crystal.

The four ponies all stared with teary eyes as they saw who it was. Standing firm at the center of the platform, donned in her Star Sapphire uniform, with a construct sash wrapped around her eyes, was Annie. “Are you guys alright?” she asked.

“Annie…you’re back! Oh thank Faust!” Amber was about to lunge for a hug, but the strength in her body left her, making her catch herself on her front hooves. “Guess I’m not a hundred percent.”

Annie walked towards Amber and brought her head into a half hug. “Don’t be sad anymore guys, I’m here now, and Amber, all of you, thank you for still keeping me in your hearts.”

Hot Head sniffled but grinned all the same. Lucky smiled, but his tears of sadness turned into tears of joy. Annie turned around and looked to Turquoise, the dracony stallion lumbered over to his fillyfriend and embraced her tightly. Annie returned the hug, thankful to be back in the forelegs of her coltfriend again after being in that void.

“I’m back, T.”

“I love you, Annie.”

“I love you, too.”

“HOW IN THE BLUE TARTARUS DID YOU ESCAPE?!! I TOOK YOUR MAGIC AND REMOVED YOUR RING!!!” Nidra shouted.

Turquoise broke the hug and turned around, flaring his wings and baring his fangs. He almost lost Annie once, he wasn’t about to lose her again. But Annie stepped in front of him, looking up directly at Nidra.

“There isn’t any place that love cannot reach, the feelings connecting our hearts can never be severed, and it is those links that brought me back here. You can take away my magic, Nidra.

You can even take off this ring and throw me into a pit of darkness, but you’ll never be able to take away this love that I feel for Turquoise, nor the love I feel for my friends and loved ones! And…the love I feel for you.”

Amber, Turquoise, Lucky, and Hot Head all jaw dropped when she heard that last line, even Nidra seemed taken aback by that confession. “You love me?! Now I know you’ve gone insane in there! ‘You love me’, don’t try and act all saintly just because they’re around! Tell the truth, you hate me don’t you?!”

Annie shook her head. “You’ve done a lot of damn stupid things, Nidra. I’ve endured your flirting with T, because I knew deep down you are a good pony. I can’t hate my friends, because I love them all, and yes that includes YOU! And in all honesty, you’re right.”

“About what?!” Nidra demanded.

“About T being better off with you.”

“Annie!” Turquoise shouted.

“It’s always been in the back of my head. What would happen to T when I died? He’ll live so long after I’ve grown old and died, who will help him when he’s so down, who can show him the same love that I do, and who could I entrust his happiness to? And each time, the answer was you, Nidra. That day, the day I left with Twilight to go to the Gates of Volkan, I meant every word I said to you that day!

And it’s no less true now than it was then! But until that day, until my time is done, I will continue to love Turquoise, and be with him for as long as I am able. It’s something I’m willing to fight for, but at the same time, I’m also willing to fight to save you!”

Nidra couldn’t believe what she was hearing, and neither could any of them. Despite everything that has happened, the young mare refused to give up on Nidra, and even still saw her as the best mare to take care of her coltfriend in the future.

“You…You make me sick!” Nidra’s body flared with orange light. “You come here and spout that crap to me! And you think I’ll just accept that?! It’s too late, for all of it! I’ve made my decision, and everything shall be mine! And I’ll kill you to make sure that nopony else will take anything from me!”

“If that’s true then why didn’t you kill me when you had the chance?!”

Nidra froze.

“That moment when you had my magic drained and my ring cast off, you could’ve killed me right then and there, and it would’ve barely taken you a second. Instead, you threw me down a dark pit!”

“I…I wanted you to suffer! Death would’ve been too easy for you, so I put you somewhere that would be your own personal Tartarus!” Nidra argued.

“All that trouble, but you knew, somehow deep down you knew I might be able to free myself, or that somepony would eventually do it! If you truly believed everything you’re saying then you would’ve killed me, but I’m still standing!”

“A MISTAKE I’LL CORRECT!!!”

Nidra thrust out with her ring, firing a column-sized beam of orange light straight at them. Annie galloped towards the edge of the platform and jumped off, making everypony scream out to her in fright.

But at that moment her body was enveloped in the violet-pink aura of her ring, she was now flying towards the attack. When Annie made it to the beam the vermillion ray was split down the middle, forcing both halves to shoot out into the sky and further into space. When Nidra cancelled the beam her eyes widened.

Annie was floating in midair, carrying a crystal construct spear. The spear tip was in the shape of an arrowhead, but the ends twisted into an ornate pattern. On the flat of the blade was the insignia of the Star Sapphires, the shaft had intricate vine patterns, and at the butt of the spear a long sash flapped in the cross breeze of the deflected attack. Annie assumed a fighting stance, twirling the spear in her hooves before, having it rest against right side, held in one hoof, while she kept the other up, ready to fight.

“You can’t win this fight Anthea! My ring is much more powerful than yours is!” Nidra shouted.

“Maybe, but you’re forgetting one important thing! Avarice may take it all, but Love conquers all!” Annie proclaimed.

Nidra shrieked in anger as her body erupted with orange light, looking like flames as it lapped off her body. She then summoned forth a flock of demonic thestral constructs and sent them after her. The constructs hissed and growled as they made their way towards her, but Annie stood her ground, well airspace, you get the idea.

Through the crystal sapphire and violet ring she could see the constructs coming for her. They appeared as orange against the backdrop of violet crystal structures and objects as well as the sky. And even the moon appeared orange.

Annie grabbed hold of the spear and attacked, slicing one construct down the middle and shattering it into pieces. Another one swooped in from behind her, but Annie just thrust backwards and hit the construct dead center in its face with the butt of the spear.

Annie twirled the spear around and made a few of the constructs back off for a moment, she used the momentum and slashed in a wide arc, cutting down several of them in a single swing. A construct tried to tackle her, but Annie ascended higher into the sky. Her fear of heights was still there, but she wasn’t about to let her fears rule her or make the decisions in her fighting style.

The Star Sapphire began twirling the spear around herself, faster and faster the construct spun around her, creating a gust of wind. Suddenly petals of violet-pink light appeared around Annie, transforming into a tornado.

The constructs backed away from the tornado, not sure of what was happening, and admittedly, neither did Nidra. The petals multiplied by the second until Annie was completely lost within the vortex, but even while inside it, her all seeing light gave her clear sight. She saw where all the constructs were, and was ready to unleash her attack.

“SCATTER!!!” Annie cried.

The vortex widened and in a matter seconds and the petals shot forth. The graceful leaves slashed through each and every one of the constructs, tearing them apart and slicing them with such precision that it was mind-boggling. When it was over, particles of vermillion light were scattered about, the remnants of the fallen orange constructs.

“You may have a lot of power, Nidra, but you have no skill! Compared to when I fought Starburst, this is almost fun.”

Nidra’s eyes shined with orange light, her mane and tail became like bellowing flames, her wings grew bigger and more terrifying, even her teeth, which only sported vampony like fangs, were now becoming more akin to razor sharp teeth, changing her into a Nightmare-Avarice pony. Her ring shined brighter as the vermillion light roared around her, transforming into the gluttonous construct monster from before.

Annie had the petals and light reform into a new construct. The petals acted as building blocks as they assembled into a giant monster, it looked like a dragon, but had no wings.

Its back had large spines made of crystals that grew out towards the middle of its back, but tapered off along its tail and head. Its medium length arms rippled with strong muscles and sharp claws, its strong legs thundered as they stomped the ground. The monster’s eyes shined white and roared to challenge the beast before it.

The orange beast and violet monster clashed, Annie’s monster construct threw a punch against one of the three eyeless heads of the orange beast, and caught another head with an uppercut.

Nidra’s beast regained its stance and lashed out with its mouth tentacles, the violet monster dodged two of them, but a third caught his right arm, while a fourth caught him on his left thigh. The violet monster roared in pain from the contrasting Avarice energy, but its gaze narrowed with fury.

The violet monster opened its mouth and bit down on the one tentacle that had clamped onto his arm, it’s dagger like teeth ripped through the construct’s surface and with a snap of its jaws tore the tentacle off. The violet monster’s spines started to glow with violet-pink energy, it then roared and fired a beam of pure Love light directly at the tentacle.

The beam burned through it in a matter of seconds, snapping off and freeing the violet monster. The orange beast hissed from its damaged limbs, but held its ground. The three heads of the orange beast opened and built up vermillion energy, at the same time, the violet monster’s spines glowed with intense violet light, and its maw dripped with power. Upon the commands of their creators, the creations unleashed their attacks.

The violet monster opened its mouth and fired a blazing beam of violet light, and the orange beast’s mouths fired three beams that combined into a single beam that flew out to meet its opposite. The two beams struck in the middle and grinded against each other for a few moments, but then the beams skewed off.

The orange beast’s beam hit Annie’s construct on its right side, burning part of it away as it continued to attack. The violet monster’s ray hit the left side of the orange beast, shredding it to pieces.

The two constructs exploded in a shower of violet and orange particles, leaving their creators to float in the air as they squared off. Nidra was looking particularly miffed, and in her Nightmare-Avarice state, that was saying something. Annie panted a bit, trying to get her breathing under control as she awaited Nidra’s next move.

“I’m going to finish this, here and now!” Nidra announced.

Her horn began to gather mana, it shimmered with the green glow of Anthea’s magic, the navy blue of Luna’s, her own powder blue magic, and lastly the orange light of the ring of Avarice. The four combined powers swirled together, becoming a sphere of energy that grew with each passing second.

Annie could see the power building up, and it worried her. “Without my magic I can’t infuse any into the light attacks! It’ll cut through the violet light if I do!”

[You have all the power you need, Annie. Your heart – your love – will grant you strength.]

The pink unicorn mare felt a warmth grow in her heart, and that warmth fed into the star sapphire crystal on her chest. Annie knew what she had to do, she was going to free

Nidra, and knock her back to her senses. She crossed her forelegs across her chest, forming an X as she assumed a ready stance.

The violet ring shined like a newborn star, wrapping her in an aura of the violet light of Love, taking the appearance of flower petals cascading off her body. Nidra’s aura grew in intensity, becoming a raging inferno that lit up the sky along with Annie’s aura. The ponies down below could only watch on, hope and pray for Annie’s victory.

Nidra cried out viciously as she unleashed the power of her attack. The beam roared out like an unholy monster, blanketing the sky in vermillion light as it washed over Annie and her aura. She braced against the attack, continuing to build up her own energy. All the while her friends and coltfriend watched with wide, yet determined eyes as they all cheered on their loved one.

“ANNIE!” Amber cried.

“ANNIE!” Hot Head shouted.

“ANNIE!” Lucky yelled.

“ANNIE!” Turquoise roared.

The sash around Annie’s eyes disappeared as she opened her eyes, glowing with the power of her violet light of Love. She uncrossed her forelegs and fired the beam, it cut through the orange energy, but only managed to push the orange beam back about halfway.

Nidra poured more power into the attack, not willing to let Annie win this tug of war. The unicorn mare’s brow beaded with sweat as she felt herself losing ground by the second, she could feel the love of her friends and coltfriend, but she needed just a nudge, that’s all she needed.

“Don’t lose, Annie…”

STAR?!

Suddenly giant wings and the image of pegasus mare appeared behind Annie’s back, and with a powerful battle cry she unleashed all the power she had. The insignia of the Star Sapphires appeared in front of the beam, passing through the center and amplifying it to ridiculous proportions.

The violet-pink light smothered the orange light, growing closer and closer to Nidra with each passing nanosecond. She couldn’t teleport, she couldn’t defend, and she definitely couldn’t overpower the beam, all she could do was float there and brace.

The beam completely washed over Nidra like a tidal wave, the orange inferno disappearing completely, her Nightmare-Avarice form began to crack like an eggshell. The cracks spider webbed all the way up and down her body, the cracks themselves glowing with violet light.

Before Nidra could even cry out her form shattered apart and exploded magnificently in the sky. Everypony in Canterlot shut their eyes as the light of Love shined enough to be seen from Ponyville.

When the light dimmed, the construct was gone, and Annie’s eyes returned to their normal milky blue appearance. She huffed and panted, feeling the draining effect of using the star sapphire on her uniform.

Annie looked to and fro, but could not find Nidra in the air, she used her senses, allowing the violet light to find Nidra for her. Her gaze eventually turned earthward, finding the body of her friend lying in a flowerbed. Annie slowly descended down to the ground approaching Nidra cautiously.

Upon landing, Annie noticed that Nidra was no longer in her Nightmare-Avarice form, she was her again, still donned in the Orange Lantern uniform, but it was regular Nidra. Now, she hoped, the real Nidra was the one who would greet her.

The alicorn thestral began to stir, moaning and groaning as she held her head, feeling as if she had just gotten struck with a ten-ton war-hammer. But the moment she saw Annie was the moment everything came flooding back to her, making her eyes widen as she averted her gaze in shame.

“Nidra…?”

“Don’t look at me! Get away from me!” Nidra shouted.

“It’s okay, it’ll be alright,” said Annie with comfort in her voice.

“It’ll never be alright! After everything I’ve done! After what I’ve become! Just…Just stay away from me! You, T, Mom, everypony!”

Annie reached out with her hoof to try and comfort the young mare, but it was quickly swatted away as Nidra turned around, revealing her teary eyed, self-loathing expression. When she realized what she had done, Nidra’s orange aura wrapped around her.

“Don’t look for me! Don’t come near me! I’m a monster!” Nidra yelled.

She then took off into the sky, the moon losing its orange glow and changing into a full white moon. Turquoise flew over and landed next to Annie as he watched the orange light that was Nidra zoom into the night sky. “We need to go after her!” Turquoise proclaimed.

“Normally I’d agree…but right now…I’m really…really…tired…”

There was a dull thud sound that grabbed Turquoise’s attention, he looked to his left and saw that Annie had collapsed onto a flowerbed, her uniform dispelling at the same time. “ANNIE!”

[Power levels at 5%. Entering Power Save mode to conserve ring energy. Bearer life is not in danger.]

Turquoise sighed in relief, after everything that had happened he should probably be weary of the rings, but right now, after everything, he believed in this ring. It protected Annie, and she was still alive.

To Move Forward

Starburst’s day started off weird. First she had a strange dream about talking to Annie, and for some reason she was surrounded by violet light. A little further into the dream and she was suddenly behind Annie, saying something encouraging and feeling the strength of that mare increase exponentially, but that’s where the dream ended, and Starburst found herself waking up on the side of a mountain.

The pegasus mare looked to her yellow ring and saw violet sparks flying off of it. She shook her hoof and inspected the ring again, but when she did the ring released its usual surge of yellow energy.

Guess I was imagining it…

And yet she felt something in her heart, relief? Joy? Whatever it was it was like a heavy weight was lifted from deep inside her, and it somehow was connected to Annie. But unfortunately, Star didn’t have time to contemplate this feeling, because there was a rather annoying whistling sound getting closer and closer. Star looked up and saw the familiar flaming fireballs of mortar fire heading straight for her.

The Fear Lantern summoned a spherical barrier, allowing each of the shells to fall onto the area with explosive force, destroying most of the rock face. When the dust cleared, Starburst waved her hoof in front of her, creating a gust that pushed away the smoke to allow her a clear line of sight of what was before her.

Twelve dozen Empire warships littered the sky, near the ground was another force. Griffons were flying at a thousand feet, making the air thud with their wingbeats. On the ground even more arrived, the earth trembling with each armored claw and paw that dropped.

Starburst chuckled at the sight, she remembered now. She was busy herding back a battalion of griffon soldiers from a small, Saddle Arabian village. It was a simple attack run, one of which she had done many a time, but what she didn’t see coming was the ambush. It was if they were waiting for her, all of them. The warships wasted no time in opening fire on her, showering the Fear Lantern with mortar shells and slamming her into the side of the nearby rock formation.

She lost consciousness for a bit, and that’s when she had the dream. Star shrugged. “Oh well…least it was a nice dream.”

Starburst took off and soared towards the griffon ships, the ships hurriedly opened fire on her, sending flaming ordinance raining down on her. Starburst stopped in midair and formed a large shield that acted as an umbrella, protecting her against the numerous thudding explosions.

This is nothing, don’t think that this’ll keep you from –!

Just then another explosion erupted from below her, something far stronger than the others. Star looked up and saw a crack appear on her shield. At that moment another one hit and it made her stop, a third one hit, and then a fourth and a fifth. Starburst dispelled her shield and flew up higher above the shelling to see what was hitting her.

Her eyes caught sight of a blue-green flaming mortar shell that was flying right at her. Starburst created a futuristic cannon construct and fired a beam at it. The beam stopped it but the ordinance hadn’t exploded. It just pushed against the beam, and after a few seconds exploded into a shower of blue-green flames.

“Ring, what was that?!”

[Scans show that ordinance was laced with trace amounts of mana energy.]

“Oh great, now they have magic mortar shells! Fine then, let’s see ‘em deal with this!”

Starburst created two large airships on either side of her, she then ordered the ships to open fire on the Griffonian warships. Rapid energy blasts and yellow construct rockets flew out of the ships and into the armada ahead of her. Multiple explosions could be seen igniting across the sky. One by one the enemy ships were set falling down in a flaming heap onto the harsh and unforgiving earth below, getting into the troops that they were meant to help.

Just then she saw two ships among the rest that appeared with different colors. Both had an array of cannons that looked different from the ones mounted on the other warships. These cannons had oscillating rings that spun around and around, towards the mouth of the cannon were two long prongs that acted as rails, creating sparks of the same blue-green energy that laced the mortar shells.

Star looked at them curiously, but wasn’t about to find out what they could do. She redirected her ships to aim for the two odd vessels and fired a volley of rockets at them. Two other Griffonian warships quickly flew to intercept the attacks, these two seemed different as well, boasting large panels that hummed with power.

Suddenly the panels ignited with the same blue-green energy and burst out around the ships. The energy expanded until it joined with the other, creating a semi-circular shield in front of the ships. Star’s construct rockets struck the shield with resounding force, but the barrier didn’t show signs of buckling under the attack.

“Are you kidding me?! They have magic shields too?!”

[Enemy weaponry has evolved, recommend retreating to better evaluate the enemy’s new abilities.]

“Partner, what’s beyond this point?” Star asked.

[A village. Life signs indicate a populace of approximately 5,000. ]

“Right, we can’t let them cross this way, otherwise they’ll just mow down that village and every living pony in it! We draw a line in the sand here! Give me current power levels!”

[Power levels currently at 75%.]

Star looked towards the new warships and glared. I can’t let those things make it to the battlefield, who knows what they can do!

“RAAAAAAAAAAAGGHHHH!!!!”

Starburst let out a fierce battle cry and sped off into the sky. The Magi-Cannon warships powered up their weapons, the rails releasing electrical mana energy as they crackled and buzzed to life, each one glowed with pent up power, ready to release it onto the Fear Lantern. The Shield-Mount warships dropped the barrier and parted for the Magi-Cannon ships.

The two Magic-Cannon warships fired one shot after another in small bursts. Starburst had her construct warships appear in front of her. The two constructs took the brunt of the blast, shattering them in a giant explosion, but Starburst flew through the smoke like a whizzing arrow, dead set on destroying the shield and cannon mounted warships.

Star cocked back her right hoof, concentrating the yellow light of fear. She then thrust that same hoof forward, creating a giant claw that balled itself into a fist and sailed directly towards the ships. The first Shield-Mount warship raised its barrier and blocked the punch with a thunderous “BOOM!” The Magi-Cannon mount fired a volley at the construct, after about three shots the claw was destroyed and turned into particles of yellow light.

Starburst growled in indignation at these two sets of ships that were working in tandem with each other. Suddenly a flaming mortar shell sped by her, making the pegasus mare fly backwards to avoid a direct hit. Without her knowing, she had found herself surrounded by the other warships, and each one was ready to fire.

The Fear Lantern spun in place, creating tornado of yellow light that roared in all directions. The warships fired their weapons at the tornado while the Magic-Cannons readied for another barrage. Deep inside, Starburst was getting ready herself, she was going to tear those ships a new one, and she was going to do it in style.

When the Magi-Cannon warships were ready they fired ten rounds into the tornado along with the remaining warships. All of them hit the tornado, exploding in every direction as the tornado shattered apart. The griffons believed they had taken down the Fear Lantern, but two glowing yellow eyes proved them wrong.

Suddenly a great roar bellowed forth, pushing the dust cloud away and revealing Starburst’s latest construct. The monster had muscular arms and chest. Its lower half was covered in thicker fur and had hooves for feet. Its tail coiled and flicked back and forth, upon closer inspection, the tail had a snake’s head at the end, hissing and baring its fangs. The constructs head was similar to that of a ram, judging from its curved horns and long muzzle, but had a thick mane that looked akin to a lion’s, along with razor sharp teeth.

The construct’s eyes shined and gleamed in the gloomy weather, brighter than the rest of its body. It then entered an attack stance, thrusting its open right hand into the air above its head. Yellow particles of light shimmered and gathered to its hand with each passing second. The beast clenched its fist and a sword appeared. It was a long, single edged weapon. A chunk of it was missing near the tip, making it look like there was a crescent in the blade itself.

The monster construct roared a second time and sped off with great haste towards the warships. The Magi-Cannon warships fired their magical ordinance at the giant monster, but to their surprise the beast moved with unnatural swiftness and speed, dodging the attacks with nimble and acrobatic skill. The Shield-Mount warships created their semicircular barriers to keep the gleaming eyed monster at bay.

The monster construct raised its sword and grabbed it with both hands. It had to time this just right, moving closer and closer. When the barrier completed itself, the monster saw the chink in the armor. Yellow light rushed towards the blade, making it shoot up and expand to gigantic proportions.

The super dreadnaught blade was brought down, slamming onto the barrier. The force of the strike was so strong it sent a shockwave rumbling through the air, forcing the other warships back and even threw some of the griffons on their rears that were on the ground.

The monster roared out its defiance once more as it showed a simple barrier would not stop its mighty will. Soon the blade cut into the barrier, the monster continued to drag downward, slicing through the barrier as if it were a stale loaf of bread. With one great push the blade broke through the barrier, severing the connection and bringing the rest of it down.

The gleaming eyed construct took off for the bridge of the first Shield-Mount warship, it stabbed the hull with its, now normal sized, blade, anchoring itself there. The beast glared into the clear glass of the ship, seeing the terrified and horror stricken faces of each griffon in there. Its body glowed brighter, feeling the fear that these griffons had and making itself stronger with it.

The monster cocked back its left fist and slammed it into the bridge, thrusting its entire arm straight through as glass was broken and metal was bent and busted. With its claws the monster ripped backwards, tearing out a good portion of the ship’s innards. It then vaulted upwards, using its snake tail to pull the blade out and throw it up high above. When the monster appeared on top of the ship it held out its right hand and grabbed the sword as it fell back down.

The gleaming eyed construct then flipped the sword around till the blade faced downwards. It grabbed it with both hands and roared out again. The blade shot down all the way until it pierced the bottom of the ship. The monster ran with great speed down the bow of the ship to the rear, dragging the blade along with it. When it reached the end the blade returned to normal and the monster jumped off and into the air once again.

The first Shield-Mount warship was split in half, falling down to the ground in two halves. The power source for the ships must’ve been nicked with the attack, because before the two halves hit the ground they exploded in midair in a shower of blue-green fire. The gleaming eyed monster turned its attention to the second Shield-Mount warship. It summoned a second sword into its left hand, flipping it into a reversed position. It then slammed both swords together, making them join at the pommels and creating a dual-edged sword.

The beast roared once again as it spun in the air and released the dual-edged weapon. The sword became a buzz saw, whirring through the air as it sped off towards the second ship. The whirling blade struck the bow of the ship and doubled in size, slicing through it at a horizontal angle. The blade continued onward until it had cut all the way through the ship and returned to the gleaming eyed construct, catching it in its right hand and separating it back into two swords.

The second ship blew up just as spectacularly as the first, and now all that was left was last two Magi-Cannon warships. But before the construct could make its move, ten shots were fired, all of them exploded around the construct, sending it flying straight down to the ground with resounding force.

The construct groaned, but it didn’t have time to deal with regaining its bearings. Grappling hooks were shot out from every direction, it looked about and saw that griffon soldiers were trying to hold down the beast; how foolish a mistake that was.

With a powerful roar the beast curled in on itself and dragged the flying griffons down to the ground. It then jumped up and out of the crater, landing on the ground and crushing a few griffons in the process. The monster looked upon the droves of griffon soldiers, each one had scary looks on their faces, but that was only the surface. The gleaming eyes of this construct could see past that and to the fear behind it.

Its roar was so powerful that it created a concussive wave that slammed into each griffon. The construct dashed forward, swiping its claws in every direction, it didn’t matter which way it struck the blow always threw up a pile of shattered griffon bodies. A squadron of griffons came up from behind it, prepared to hit it with spears in a sneak attack. They neglected to remember that it had eyes in the back of its head, or rather, on its tail.

The snake tail shot up and lashed out at each one like the angry viper it was, snatching one griffon after the other out of the air. The monster construct spun around and swiped its muscular arm through the air, bashing a few griffons, sending them falling like flies into the awaiting claws of their comrades down below. The fear was strong, allowing the construct to go into a complete frenzy and litter the battlefield with blood, torn armor, and broken swords and spears.

Just then the beast looked up, seeing the cannons prepare for a second attack. It dug its hooves into the ground and opened its mouth, collecting yellow energy. The Magi-Cannon warships fired their volley, and at the same time the gleaming eyed construct fired its beam.

The two attacks sped through the air, the beam cut down five of the glowing blue-green fireballs, but the not the remaining five. The last of the magical shells struck the construct, but it didn’t end there.

The other warships unleashed their hellfire onto the area. Some of the griffon soldiers were caught in the middle of the attack, but at this point, they were more concerned with destroying the Fear Lantern than with how many of them they would lose.

The remaining griffon soldiers all surrounded the perimeter of the crater, smoke bellowed from it along with flames. Nothing could’ve survived that. But their fears weren’t put to rest as a yellow claw shot out of the fire and raked against the dirt and rock, the gleaming eyed monster pulled itself out of the crater and went down on one knee. Soon its form cracked and within a few seconds dispersed into particles of golden light.

What was left standing in its place was an out of breath Starburst, her armor shimmering and wavering. It wasn’t long before that too dispersed. The ring’s glow was faded, and Starburst knew what this meant.

[Power levels at 10%. Now entering power save mode.]

“Lovely,” groaned Star.

The griffons all seemed to lose their fear, now seeing the unarmored pegasus mare. She was tired, vulnerable, and her power was no more. Murderous grins formed on their faces, and Star had no doubt that they’d do more than kill her, she’d be lucky if they did. But Starburst wasn’t one to go down without a fight. She saw a sword that was still intact from the attack, she quickly grabbed it and held it tight in the crook of her right hoof.

“If you think I’m going to let you do whatever you want with me then you’re dead wrong! You want revenge, then come and get it! But I hope you’re ready to die, because if I’m going down, then I’m taking as many of you as I can with me!”

Warships above her, a swarm of griffons hovering in the air, and an army’s worth of griffons surrounding her on the ground, she smirked, figuring that this was as far as she could go. Sorry Mom…Dad…Nighty…guess I’m not coming home…ever. Sorry…Del…

Just as Starburst was about to let loose her battle cry, a beam of orange energy cut through the sky and burned a groove in the form of a protective ring around her. The beam disintegrated the griffons that were caught in the blast and made the rest back up.

Star looked to the sky and watched as fiery beam shot out once more, piercing through the warships in a giant circle. Two giant cobra constructs appeared, both made of orange light. The constructs wrapped around the Magi-Cannon warships. With one twist the ships were crushed and both blew up.

The soldiers looked down to Starburst, upon which the orange-yellow mare shook her head. “Hey, don’t look at me!”

Suddenly an orange meteor descended down to the ground and in front of Starburst. The pegasus mare took a few steps back as the orange light hit the ground with enough force to push back the griffons, Star stabbed the sword into the ground and held onto it tight to keep from being blown away. When the wave ended Star looked upon the orange sphere.

The sphere disappeared and revealed the pony responsible for the chaos. At first, Star thought it was a thestral, spotting the bat wings on its back. But when the thestral tilted its head just so and Star caught a glimpse of a horn, like a unicorn. She studied the thestral’s form, the mane color, those ears, the only one it could be couldn’t be her, could it?

“Nidra…?”

The alicorn thestral turned around, her form was that of her normal stature, her body and face no longer warped by the combination of the Nightmare and Avarice corruption. She looked upon the pegasus mare with teary eyes, and without warning, she rushed towards her and hugged the petite mare fiercely. Nidra sobbed into the shoulder of her friend, catching Starburst off guard. She wasn’t sure how she should respond, considering that they were in the middle of a battlefield and the enemy was disoriented from her arrival.

In the end, Starburst patted Nidra’s back, noting the familiar pulse of energy that her orange armor gave off. The second ring?! Nidra had the second ring!

“Star…I…I bucked up…! I bucked up so bad!” Nidra cried.

“Oh…Okay, just calm down Nidra, it’s alright.”

“No it’s not! I hurt everypony! My Mother, T, Annie’s friends, and Annie, I was a monster!”

Starburst never heard her friend speak with such sorrow and utter regret before. It was almost heartbreaking. She glanced to her right and saw the hoof that bared the ring, noticing the color and insignia upon it.

One of the seven colors of the Emotional Spectrum, the orange light of Avarice. It only comes to those who are greedy and think only of themselves…Oh Nidra…what did you do, what did you want so badly that you attracted the attention of such a ring?

“Nidra it’s alright, I’m here, but we can’t do this right now. The enemy’s all around us, if we stay here too long then they’ll kill us,” said Star.

Nidra separated herself from Starburst, looking upon her with red, puffy, and teary eyes. “Okay…but, why aren’t you in your Fear Lantern getup?”

“I ran out of power, these guys ambushed me and – NIDRA LOOK OUT!”

One of the griffon soldiers hurled his lance straight for them. The lance got only within a few feet before a barrier made of hard orange light shot up from behind Nidra, breaking the lance when it impacted. A dark shadow befell the alicorn thestral, surprising Starburst. She then turned around and faced the remaining griffon soldiers.

“You tried to kill MY friend?! Tried to hurt her?! I won’t let you hurt her, she’s MINE! MY FRIEND! And I won’t let any of you lay a claw on her!!!” Nidra proclaimed.

The orange ring glowed bright with Avarice light, she then thrust that hoof deep into the ground and glared at the griffons with wicked eyes.

“Commence consumption!”

[Identity Theft: Activated!]

The ground shook and rattled violently. Suddenly fissures appeared throughout the ground, emanating from around Star and Nidra. The only patch of ground that didn’t have cracks in it was where the two of them stood. The fissures began to glow with an eerie vermillion light, making the cracks widen even more. Some of the smarter griffons jumped up and flapped their wings, but it was too late.

The ground erupted with giant tentacle mouths, hundreds of these tentacles appeared below the griffons and swallowed them whole in one bite. The griffons that took to the sky were quickly chased down and snapped into the jaws of the disturbing construct. One by one Star watched as each of the griffons were consumed within the giant maws of the construct. Even though she had sliced, diced, smashed, and blew away many griffons by now, the act she was seeing before her unsettled her a bit.

The tentacles retracted back into the ground below. The glow still remained as the next stage in the process began. Soon something else emerged from the ground, columns of orange light shot up and angled downward till they landed in a circle around Starburst and Nidra.

The lights reformed and took the shape of the griffons that were killed. The difference in these was that they looked a little more warped and demonic, with sharper teeth, and longer claws. Upon their chests was the insignia of the Orange Lantern. The constructs all bowed down to the princesses, and Nidra grinned.

“Nidra…what…what is this?” Star asked in shock and awe.

“My ring gives me the ability to consume somepony and turn them into an independent construct, with their personalities and mental capacity intact. Essentially, they can move about and fight without me giving them orders, but in the end they obey me. Isn’t that right, boys?”

~ Yes, Princess. ~The Avarice constructs spoke as one.

“Nidra, not that I’m complaining, but…how did you find me? And, why did you come to me?” Star asked.

Nidra rubbed her left foreleg, turning her gaze downcast in shame. “I’ve messed up back home, Star. I tried to…to make T mine, and I…I threw Annie into a dimension that had no sound, smell, touch, or light. I even took her magic, and my Mother’s magic to bolster my own. Annie defeated me and, I guess, did something to me that cleared my head a little…I exiled myself Star.”

The pegasus mare looked around her, the constructs were still bowing, the warships were destroyed, and the battlefield was silent. Releasing a sigh, Star sat herself on her haunches and looked to her best friend.

“You exiled yourself by searching for me?”

“You’re the only pony who ever understood me…and put up with me. You were my first friend, and I…I never let that go. Please, Star, let me stay with you! Let me fight with you! I can’t go back…not after what I did…” Nidra began crying again. “At least this way I can do something with this ring…but also…I really missed you, you’re my friend Star! Please, let me fight with you! I promise I’ll do whatever you say, whatever you need done just tell me and me and my constructs we’ll do it!”

Starburst pondered this for a moment, Nidra’s ability to create an independent, and yet, totally loyal army of constructs would come in handy. Not to mention that two ring wielders would keep the frontline better protected from the griffon attacks, the best-case scenario, the two of them could even push the Empire back.

But then again, from what Star’s ring told her, the orange ring could warp the mind of its bearer. Nidra may be under control now, but there was no telling when she could become Avarice possessed again. And in that case, she could become an even bigger threat to Equestria – scratch that. She could be a threat to Equus as a whole. Still…she came to me, because she trusts me and cares about me. She’s my friend, and now my comrade. So long as she’s by my side, I can hopefully keep her Avarice in check. Hopefully…

Starburst got up and stared at Nidra with a serious gaze. “Alright, we’ll fight together. But you have to do what I say. I know your ring’s powerful, but unless you know how to use it properly then you’re only a danger to yourself and those we’re supposed to protect. Is that okay?”

Nidra’s eyes widened as a genuine smile spread across her face. “Of course it is! I’ll do whatever you say! Thank you, Star!”

Starburst smiled and patted the mare on the back. “Okay, just let me recharge my ring, and we can get moving. I wanna know where those four warships came from.”

Nidra stood aside and let her call forth her lantern. She spotted the bandanna that was tied to it, a kind of stabbing pain struck her heart when she saw that. Del’s bandanna…she has it?

“Looks like someone else wants what’s yours.”

Shut up, I won’t listen to you anymore, not after what I did! Star’s my friend, MY FRIEND! Not my possession!

“That’s fine, friend for now. She’s our friend, a good friend. And we won’t let anypony take her away from us.”

The orange ring flared with orange light for a brief moment before going back to normal. “Yes, not a griffon, not a warship, and definitely…not another pony.”

Canterlot…

Annie groaned in her sleep, but suddenly she awoke with a start and cried out, “NIDRA!!!”

“It’s okay Annie, it’s over!” Turquoise reassured.

The dracony stallion placed his large clawed-hoof on the young mare’s chest. Annie looked to her right and saw her coltfriend sitting at her bedside, her breathing slowed as she took in her surroundings. The ornate ceiling design, the flowing drapes, and not to mention the plush, soft bed she was lying on. That’s when Annie realized something else.

“I…I can see?!” Annie exclaimed.

“You can?! Oh thank Celestia, hold on here a minute, Aunt Twilight wanted me to get her when you woke up!”

Annie watched as Turquoise scrambled out of the room and went to go find the Princess of Magic. Annie ran a hoof through her mane, feeling it flow over her shoulders and around her right hoof. Noticing that the braid that held it together was undone. She spotted the violet ring, still fastened to her right hoof and smiled in content.

“Ring are you okay?”

[All my functions are running normally, Annie. I am glad to say you are unharmed as well.]

“I don’t understand, how am I able to see again? I thought Nidra took away my magic,” said Annie.

“Perhaps I can shed some light on that.”

Annie looked up and saw Twilight entering the room, with Turquoise right behind her. The two ponies walked towards her, with Turquoise sitting on the right side of Annie’s bed, while Twilight sat next to him.

“Nidra drained most of your magic, but your magic is stronger than I thought so she didn’t get all of it. I was able to rekindle your magic with a bit of my own. Apparently it was enough to regenerate your reserves.”

Annie placed her hoof over her heart. “What about High Princess Luna? Nidra drained her magic too.”

“Luna’s stronger alicorn magic, like my own, is sealed away inside her. When Nidra drained her of her magic, it was only the magic that was on the surface. Luna’s deeper magic was untouched due to the seals in place, so when Luna’s magic was all gone, the remaining amount that was behind the seals leaked out in order to replenish her reserves.”

“Oh…” Annie looked towards the window and saw that it was still night outside. “Is that why it’s still dark? She hasn’t fully recovered yet?”

“No, it’s actually night time. You’ve been asleep for almost thirty-six hours now.”

Annie’s eyes widened. “‘Thirty-six hours’?! Where’s Nidra? Is everypony okay?!”

Turquoise decided to take over. “Amber, Lucky, and Hot Head are alright. A little banged up, but alright. The city’s fine too, not a lot ponies were hurt, a lot stuff was broken though. And Nidra…she’s gone, she flew off.”

Annie looked down at her bed sheets, she raised her left hoof and hit the mattress. “I can’t believe it…first Starburst…and now Nidra! Both times I couldn’t stop either of them!”

Turquoise placed his clawed-hoof over her right. “It’s not your fault, Annie.”

The unicorn mare sighed heavily. “I know…still doesn’t mean it hurts less…How is Princess Luna doing?”

Twilight’s gaze was downcast. “As well as you can expect…Prince Nova’s with her now. But…I’ll be there for her, in a weird way we’re both part of this craziness.”

“Okay, tell her that I know that Nidra may’ve said some things, and I know she said certain things to me. But just let her know that deep down, I can still feel love in her heart. During our battle, when I used my last attack, amidst the Avarice, I saw some of the light of Love in her heart. She still cares about her, and it’s the same with you and Star.”

Twilight had to swallow down a sob that wanted to escape, she had to be strong for Annie. “I’m so sorry, Annie. I never meant to treat you differently, I just wanted to see you excel and become the best you can be. I never knew it was making Starburst jealous of you, or making her resent me for it…”

Annie shook her head. “It’s alright, Princess. Truthfully, I was blind in more ways than one. I always try to help my friends when I can, to listen to them, to give them a kind word and pick them up when they’re down. But I’m not like Candy, she has a better sense of this than I do. That’s going to change from now on.” Annie looked to Twilight with determined eyes. “Princess Twilight, there’s something I need to ask you.”

Two Days Later, Ponyville…

Del was busy working, striking the trees and making the apples fall to the awaiting baskets below. The multiple dull thuds of the falling fruit stopped he took the first basket, hoisting it and putting it onto the cart. He wiped his brow of the sweat and made a motion to grab something at his neck, he stopped when he realized that it wasn’t there. Del looked down at his bare neck.

It was still odd not feeling his bandanna around his broad neck, the very bandanna his Aunt Apple Bloom fashioned for him out of his favorite blanket when he was too old to keep it. At times he had wondered if it was the right thing to do, of course that thought didn’t last long. He did do the right thing, Starburst was too stubborn and too dedicated to protecting others, there was no way a simple giving of a bandanna – even if it was his – would bring her back.

At the very least she’ll have something to remind her of home, he thought.

Del got another basket onto his back and was moving towards the cart, too lost in his thoughts that he didn’t notice the small divot in the ground. His hoof caught in it and sent him tumbling forward. But before he hit the ground a large hand made of violet-pink light shot out and stopped his fall, while another beam streaked over his head and encased the apples and basket in a protective field.

Del stared wide-eyed at the shimmering appendage, at first he thought it was Starburst’s creation, but then he remembered her light was yellow, not violet. The giant hand stood him up on all four hooves, the other beam made the fallen apples that were caught in the field return inside the basket, where it was gently placed onto the cart. When the beams retracted, Del followed them and his jaw dropped when he looked up.

Annie was flying down from the sky, suited in her Star Sapphire uniform. The pink unicorn mare smiled warmly upon her friend as she made the descent to the earth. Her hooves lightly made contact with the dirt, and once all four were firmly set, the uniform disappeared.

“Hi Del,” greeted Annie.

“Annie, yer back!” Del exclaimed. “When did you – Ah mean – we never heard –?!”

“I actually got back a couple of days ago…Do you mind if we walk and talk? You were heading back to the apple cellar right?”

Del shook his head. “Uh, yeah, sure, that’s alright with me.”

The earth pony stallion hitched himself to the cart and waited for Annie to come up alongside him. Once he saw her on his left he started walking, both the unicorn and earth pony leisurely made their way down the dirt path, through the orchard. All the while, Annie regaled Del of her exploits.

The joining of the Minotaur and Equestrian forces, and meeting the valiant and brave Prince Steel, and learning how to fight with a spear thanks to him. How the Avalon was shot down and nearly crash landed, but was saved by Annie’s power. Annie also told him of the battle with the Diamond Dog Dire Tribe, and their cruel and cunning leader, Anubis. How the minotaur three-hundred and their brave Prince battled the dogs fiercely and with no fear in their hearts.

Of course her tail turned darker, recounting how Anubis gained the power of dark magic and battled Twilight, her friends, Royal Guards, and herself. Annie had to compose herself when she told Del how Prince Steel sacrificed himself to save Twilight, but she didn’t leave out his epic punch that sent the jackal flying.

Del could hardly believe all that he was hearing, if he hadn’t seen Starburst’s power and the power of Annie’s ring, the stallion would’ve thought she was either making this up or telling him about a movie she saw. But it all happened, much to his dismay.

When Annie spoke of how Starburst saved them all and dispensed with the Diamond Dogs and Anubis, he sighed in relief. Every day he worried that she was either dead or captured by the griffons, but hearing that she was alive and actively keeping the enemy from getting closer and gaining ground was more than a little uplifting. But his elation fell a bit when Annie spoke of her battle with Star, and how she pretty much dominated her through the battle, despite her best efforts.

Annie shifted gears and told him about the incident in Canterlot, about what happened to Nidra. “So that crazy orange light coming from Canterlot, that was Nidra?!”

“Uh-huh. Star told me that two rings appeared, one was mine, the violet ring of the light of Love. The other was the orange ring of the light of Avarice, and that one appeared to Nidra. It turned Nidra into some greed possessed monster, and she wanted to make T her own, even stole her mother’s magic and mine as well.”

Del had to take a minute to let that sink in. The few times he met Nidra, she creeped him out. He wasn’t a fan of bats, so meeting an alicorn thestral, a pony with big bat wings, was more than a little intimidating. And, despite what Turquoise would notice, Del did see some sort of attraction towards the dracony whenever Nidra was around. But he never thought her crush would lead her to going to those kinds of extremes.

“Don’t blame Nidra, I won’t say she was justified, but she made some good points – both her and Starburst. My flaws…and my lack of sight, well, intuition I guess.”

“Now what does that mean?” Del asked, cocking an eyebrow.

“I never knew that Starburst was jealous of me.”

“Jealous?! Star?!”

Annie nodded. “She was jealous of me, for making Princess Twilight pay more attention to me than her, and Nidra, for not noticing how much it hurt her to see me and T together.”

Del stopped walking and placed a hoof on the young mare’s shoulder. “Now hold on, Annie. Ya didn’t take anypony’s attention, Star…she…her and Aunt Twilight haven’t always seen eye to eye, but it certainly wasn’t ‘cause of you. Nidra…well she…”

Annie placed her left hoof over Del’s hoof. “I know, but it’s still my fault for not seeing it, not seeing that maybe I should’ve tried and pushed Star and her mom into doing something together, and being closer. As for Nidra…I knew she liked T, but I didn’t know how much it hurt her. But don’t think for one second that I regret falling for Turquoise. I told Nidra, I made her promise to take care of T when I’m gone.”

“‘Gone’? Gone how exactly?”

“Dead…in the ground.” Annie clarified. She noticed the shocked expression and smiled at him. “I know I may not live as long as Turquoise, eventually I’ll be an old mare and – hopefully – die of old age. T will be alone, and most of us will be gone, but Nidra will still be there. I still believe that she’s in there, the real Nidra. The Nidra that’s kinder and more loving than she cares to show.”

The two of them continued their walk, staying silent for most of it, just enjoying the rustling of the leaves and the nice breeze, coated with the sweet scent of apples. Del and Annie arrived at the main house of Sweet Apple Acres, getting close the cellar.

“So, what’ll ya do now?” Del asked.

“I’m going to continue being Princess Twilight’s student, and learn all I can. And…I also decided that I’m going to defend Equestria.”

Del nearly made the apple cart catapult over his head from the sudden stop. “Ya mean yer goin’ out to do what Star’s doin’?!”

Annie waved her right hoof dismissively. “Oh no, no, no, not like that. I realized that I can’t just accept this ring and not do something with the power I was given. I was chosen to protect those I love, and to defend love itself. I’m not a warrior like Starburst, and honestly, I can’t blatantly go out and attack others. But that doesn’t mean I won’t fight to defend the innocent. Star will be Equestria’s sword, and I will be its shield. That’s what I’ve decided.”

Del couldn’t believe what he was hearing, and the fact that it came from Annie was even more surprising. Annie spoke with such confidence, strength, and conviction, that he knew she would not be swayed in this.

“So, have ya told yer Ma yet?” Del asked.

Annie winced. “Uh…not quite yet…OH, before I forget, I have to give you something!”

“What is it?”

“A gift from Star.”

Del was about to inquire further, but Annie pointed her ring out towards a vacant spot and shot a beam. The beam punched through space, opening a dimensional hole. Within the hole, a violet lantern floated out of it and landed on the ground before her. Annie used her telekinetic magic to unravel the pink ribbon tied around it. She levitated it towards Del, who brought up a hoof and gently grasped it. He then looked to Annie, wondering if this was indeed what he thought it was.

“Annie…is this…?”

“It’s her ribbon, Del. She wanted me to tell you that she’ll come back for that, and to bring back your bandanna. And you know Star never lets down her friends…or her coltfriend.”

Del chuckled. “No, she doesn’t.”

Anthea didn’t know what the future held, for herself or her friends. There were still too many unanswered questions. Why did the rings appear? And why were they targeting her friends? Was there something else, a greater purpose that none of them could see? Would there be even more rings coming to their world? Annie didn’t know the answers, and that’s what scared her. The future was unknown and still clouded, much like her vision was not too long ago.

But they had to move forward, whatever surprises or hardships the future held in store for them, she was sure that they would face it together, and see the light of a bright future. For the night is always darkest before dawn, and, she felt, the dawn would soon be upon them.

Epilogue

Deep in the cosmos, in the endless sea of stars, two lights streaked through the void.

One burned like fire, crimson in color and radiating a powerful rage that threatened to incinerate all in its path. Within this streak of light was an object, a ring. It bore an insignia, one of a circle with curved horns going up, and what could be construed as tusks pointing down.

The second was a wispy indigo streak that looked like smoke, unlike its counterpart, this light released a comforting feeling. But like the other, it too bore a ring. Its insignia was much different from the other, a circle at the center with one triangle above it pointing up, and a second triangle pointing down.

The two streaks of indigo and red continued throughout space, passing by numerous stars and planets, searching for certain individuals.

Their journey brought them to a new star system, one that had a green and blue planet that was the center of this galaxy, unlike the sun which seemed to revolve around the planet itself.

Suddenly the two streaks stopped, the rings within them glowing brighter as they hurled themselves towards this planet.

They flew with such speed that the planets they passed by turned into colorful blurs. They soon passed the sun, and after a few short minutes, the moon as well.

Closer and closer they approached, the blue planet becoming bigger with each passing second.

They were about to enter its atmosphere when, just like that, they stopped.

Both glowing rings remained motionless, maintaining a holding pattern within orbit of the planet.

[Rage detected. Error: Two signatures detected. Maintaining holding pattern until suitable Bearer is determined.]

[Compassion detected. Error: Compassion clouded. Maintaining holding pattern until Bearer is confirmed.]