Heart of Courage

The ancient, blackened airlock door slid upwards with a loud hiss, revealing a dark, dirty hallway very different from those onboard the Rainbow Dash. Fighting the urge to make a face of disgust, the unofficial battle mage of the Dash followed her captain onto the orbital dry dock over Erebus. At least I’m not bare-hooved, she thought, trying to make the situation seem better than it was. On each of her four hooves, Twilight wore tight fitting titanium shoes courtesy of Socket Wrench. They looked quite similar to the ceremonial shoes Princesses Celestia and Luna wore, except these had one extra benefit; Twilight could use them to defend herself if needed.

Grumbling to herself, she continued walking along the airlock passage caked with oil, grease, and dirt. Twilight absentmindedly readjusted the holster situated right behind her left shoulder while tuning into the conversation happening in front of her.

“Victoria, I just don’t trust these people.” James argued. “We need to be careful here. This place is dangerous.”

“James, give these people a chance. Life is much harder out here than back in UEN space.” Victoria Schaefer spoke adamantly about her position. “I’m sure they will come to surprise you.”

“The only surprise I’m expecting is to be stabbed in the back, either literally by some assassin, or figuratively when Deval steals my ship.”

“James Fletcher!” Victoria’s tone betrayed her anger and she glared threateningly at him.

“Okay, okay!” James had his hands up in mock surrender. “I was just kidding. I’ll give them a chance.”

“James, you should have learned by now. Never argue with a woman.” The group turned to see Isamu Zhang walking off the Rainbow Dash with Socket Wrench and Dmitri Bearclaw in tow.

Dmitri let out a loud hearty laugh. “Ha, ha! This because they crazy!”

The earth pony’s comment earned him glares from Socket, Victoria, and Twilight, as well as annoyed glances from Isamu and James. “Oh Dmitri, and you wonder why you’re single.” James whispered under his breath too quiet for him to hear but loud enough to incite a snicker from Twilight.

The group continued moving along the airlock tube to an identical rusty door at its other end. Before activating the control panel, James stopped and faced everyone. “Now remember, don’t call Twilight by her real name. Even though we are in the Outlier Systems, if someone is smart enough to put two and two together, we could end up in a dangerous situation. Unless we are on the ship, with only members of the crew onboard, we all need to call her Moondancer.”

Twilight lifted a hoof in confusion. “I’ve been wondering; why that name? It sounds so familiar for some reason, but I can’t remember why.”

“I don’t know,” James replied, “Alice picked it out for some reason. She said something about it fitting your appearance, or your cutie mark, or whatever. I still don’t understand. I would have picked something along the lines of Violet Star or Stargazer. Anyway, if anyone on this station or down in the city can see your cutie mark, then we have a different kind of problem.”

Humans and ponies both laughed at the last remark from the captain except for Twilight who glanced around curiously, trying to figure out what was so funny. After no one came forth with an answer, Twilight asked. “Why would that be a problem?”

This incited another round of laughs but Socket walked over and patted the lavender mare on her side. “It means you would be walking around naked, sweetheart.” Twilight’s face burned from embarrassment.

Without warning, the airlock door slid open on its own, making the three ponies and three humans instantly quiet down. Standing on the other side were two humans with assault rifles held against their chests. The one on the left scanned the group and locked eyes onto James. “Please come with us, Mister Aldridge would like to see you… all of you.”

“I can understand him wanting to meet Socket Wrench, my head mechanic, as well as Dmitri and I, but surely he doesn’t care to meet anyone else. That would be a waste of his time. The rest of my team should coordinate repair schedules with your dock workers.”

Twilight watched the soldier put two fingers on his right ear. Deval must be eavesdropping on us now. The soldier listened for a moment before his eyes flashed to her face. A cold wave of fear washed along her spine and down into her hooves. I don’t like this.

The human stood motionless for a second more before saying, “Yes sir, understood.” Then he returned his right hand to the handle of his assault rifle, keeping one extended finger alongside its trigger housing. “Mister Aldridge has given explicit orders. Please, if you all would come with me right now.”

James let out a sigh before nodding. “Come on everyone. Let’s get this over with.”

The group of humans and ponies followed one of Deval Aldridge’s mercenaries while the other walked closely behind them. They kept their rifles pointing down and towards the side but their body posture betrayed a severe distrust towards the UEN sailors. The UEN must not be too popular around here. Twilight walked with confidence but she did not stray far from James.

After ten minutes of walking, they reached a series of thick armored doors in the heart of the space station. Twilight mumbled aloud the words painted above the doorway; “Space Elevator.”

“How long is the trip to the surface?” James asked the mercenary in front of him.

“Twenty minutes,” the armor clad human stated, “It can move thousands of tons of cargo a day but for this trip, Mister Aldridge reserved the entire elevator just for us.”

“How kind of him.” Socket’s voice had a slight sarcastic inflection as the heavy air-tight door opened with a loud hydraulic whine.

As the six inch thick steel plate rose above eye level, Twilight could see a massive open area that made up the interior of the planet’s space elevator. Separated by steel beams, every wall had eight massive window panes, revealing the starry night sky that she enjoyed studying so much. Her library tree house would have fit inside the elevator several times over, and there still would be extra space. The curious unicorn would have been in awe at this marvel of engineering but she could sense some sort of magic spell at work, even if her eyes told her that the room was entirely empty. What is going on here?

Once the mercenary trailing the group entered the elevator, a loud metallic crash reverberated through the floor as the door closed and locked. The lead mercenary then turned around and faced James. “Sir, I’m going to have to relieve you and your crew of their weapons.”

James took a slight step backwards while crossing his arms in defiance. “I don’t think so.”

Twilight noticed the soldier grip his weapon tighter and his tone grew aggressive when he asked again. “Hand over your weapons, Captain. Don’t make this difficult.”

Before James could respond, a low raspy voice filled the elevator from an unseen source. “Stand down, Lieutenant. They are our guests and I’m sure they will remain civil. Am I correct, James?” Against the opposite window, the light distorted in a large sphere before revealing a lone human figure facing away with his hands clasped behind his back. Around him, a red magical aura faded out before he turned to face the group.

Deval Aldridge! Twilight’s panicked thoughts crowded her mind. He was there the whole time! His invisibility spell must have been what I felt earlier. The idea of someone like Deval having the magical ability to create a nearly perfect stealth field made her feel very vulnerable.

Next to her, James stood firm but Twilight could tell from his body language that he felt just as unnerved as she did. “Of course, Mister Aldridge, we don’t want any trouble. I just believe that it is our right to defend ourselves if necessary.”

“That, I agree with, Captain; and please, call me Deval.” The dark skinned human walked up to James and extended his hand. “Welcome to my planet.”

James only hesitated for a split second before he took the mercenary’s hand and shook it. “Thank you, Deval. How soon can we expect to be underway again?”

“Come; let us discuss this in my office on the surface.” As soon as he finished speaking, the elevator jerked once before plummeting in a rapid decent towards the planet below.

Twilight allowed her stomach to settle before she walked over to one of the windows and looked down. Below lay the night side of Erebus, sprinkled with innumerable specks of light that tended to congregate in one of ten concentric rings. From horizon to horizon, the rings that comprised the city wrapped around a single point. At the center of the megalopolis, the space elevator dropped quickly down to a massive building complex on the surface. This is my first mission. Don’t screw up, Twilight.

With a hiss, the air pressure inside the elevator equalized with that of the city outside. Twilight sniffed hesitantly through her nose, testing the unfamiliar atmosphere. Much to her surprise, it smelled similar to Manehattan in the dark of night. When the doors opened, she followed the rest of the group into the docking bay for the space elevator.

Twilight couldn’t take in the sights fast enough. As her eyes darted back and forth among the milling crowds, she counted a dozen different species in the first ten seconds. Some, she recognized from Equestrian history, while others she had never seen before. She also noticed a few humans here and there but they were few in number when compared to any other species.

They walked along a large metal catwalk that ran along the inside of the hollow capital building. Bright neon signs and lights flashed and pulsed, chasing the darkness away while vying for attention from possible customers. Street vendors competed with one another as they yelled out their wares towards any passerby. Twilight couldn’t catch more than a word from any particular shopkeeper even though she strained her ears trying.

It didn’t take long for Twilight to notice that everyone avoided their group. Like water rushing around a boulder, the teeming masses moved out of the way, only to reform behind them. She noticed that the closest creatures averted their eyes as soon as they noticed Deval Aldridge. They fear him, she thought. Something about the human made Twilight wonder. There must be a good reason to.

The lead mercenary made an abrupt turn and when the crowd in front of him dispersed, it revealed another elevator entrance. Flanked by two additional guards, they shot to attention when they saw Deval. Smaller than the space lift, this elevator still had more than enough room to fit the three ponies and six humans.

During the quiet ride to the top of the tower, Twilight looked out on the store fronts below. The capital building had several more levels just like the one they just left, each filled with thousands of creatures and beasts. “There are so many ponies.” Twilight muttered under her breath.

She thought she spoke quietly enough to avoid being overheard but from behind, she heard James say “It’s been a long time since you’ve been in a big city, Moondancer.”

Moondancer? Twilight thought with confusion. She started to turn and ask James why he called her Moondancer when a cold pang of terror shot through her body. I almost just blew my cover. Twilight steadied her breathing, trying to not show any signs that would alert Deval of the true nature of their situation. She could feel the collar of her uniform dampening with perspiration. Calm down, Twilight.

Much to her satisfaction, everyone else’s attention shifted when the elevator halted its ascent and the door slid open. Twilight followed next to James, scanning her eyes around what looked like Deval’s lobby. I hope nopony noticed my near slipup.

A female griffon sat behind a large and ornate wooden desk constructed from some type of tree that Twilight wasn’t familiar with. Even though the wood looked organic, it had a metallic sheen to it which led her to believe that it probably didn’t come from Harmony in the first place.

“Good evening, Mister Aldridge. You have seven important messages on your computer.”

“Thank you, Talon, my dear. I will be sure to look at them once I am finished meeting with my guests.” Deval said with a wave from his outstretched hand.

“Very well, sir.” The female griffon replied, bowing her head with deference.

Deval Aldridge led the group around his secretary’s desk and through a wide double door into a large open room. A video screen along the entirety of one wall showed Midnight City below. It could have been an actual window to the outside if Twilight hadn’t learned to pick up on the subtle differences between the real thing and a camera feed. She also assumed that a human as smart as Deval would not have a large structural weakness in his personal office.

In the center of the room, a large, beautiful, rectangular stone table had room for seven chairs; one at its head, and three along each side. With a dismissive wave, the two mercenary escorts saluted and briskly left the office, closing the doors behind them. “Sit, my friends!” Deval grinned as he took a seat at the head of the table.

James and Dmitri took the chairs closest to Aldridge, while Twilight Sparkle made sure to grab one of the chairs as far from him as she could. “Now, before we proceed with our business, I think some introductions are in order. You all know who I am, but I only know two of you, James, if you may.”

James Fletcher took a deep breath before starting. “You know Dmitri.”

Interrupting him, Deval laughed. “Ah yes. Dmitri Bearclaw. Born in Stalliongrad, attended the Academy with James, and second in command on the Rainbow Dash. We had some good times working together on Anubis, did we not?”

Dmitri snickered and hooted. “Yes we did, yes we….” He trailed off when he noticed the annoyed stares around the room.

“Continuing,” James said, “Isamu Zhang, my ….”

Again, Deval’s thick accented voice drowned out the UEN officer. “Weapons control officer. Born in Shanghay, and I believe he also attended the Academy with you and Dmitri. Expert at close quarters combat, he is also able to control and wield magic; an uncommon ability in humans.”

“Deval, if you know everyone then why am I giving you introductions? I think we get the point you are trying to make.”

“James, please!” Aldridge leaned back with both arms outstretched in a conceding manner, the smile never leaving his face. “Indulge me.”

“Fine; this is Victoria Schaefer.” James didn’t even bother continuing because sure enough, Deval stepped in.

“Medical specialist, born in Flankfurt and attended medical school at a young age. I also believe she went through a sniper training program but I assume she doesn’t get to use those skills very often.”

Victoria gave the outlier a steely glare. “That’s a side of me I don’t enjoy showing.”

Attempting to diffuse the situation, James gestured to the seat opposite of Twilight. “This is Socket Wrench.”

“She is head mechanic on the Dash.” Deval ignored the continuing stare from Victoria. “From Cloudsdale, she became an engineer while training as a reconnaissance officer. She joined your crew right before the battle over Pegasopolis where she distinguished herself from the rest of your mechanics.”

The moment Twilight dreaded finally came. “And lastly,” James dictated without any hesitation or anxiety, “my battle mage, Moondancer.”

Forcing herself to glance nonchalantly at Deval, she managed to keep her motions fluid even though fear wracked her body. Don’t screw up. Don’t screw up. She gave him a slight nod before returning to stare at the wall screen of Midnight City.

Deval watched her for a long, uncomfortable moment before speaking. “Moondancer? Clever, James. I had my suspicions, but I would have been uncertain if this was her until I saw the way she looked at the central market earlier.” Twilight’s stomach dropped. “Tell me, Twilight Sparkle, what is it like traveling so far into the future?”

It took less than a second before Deval Aldridge sat staring down the barrel of a hand cannon encased in a purple nimbus of light. A loud click sounded as its hammer locked back and a smaller click signaled its safety being disengaged. Not a moment later, the two wide double doors burst open as six heavily armored human mercenaries entered the room wielding a various assortment of shotguns, assault rifles, and submachine guns.

Before they could react, Twilight’s glare shot over at the new intruders. With her horn shining brightly, she proceeded to grab every soldier’s weapon with her magic, yank it from their clutches, and spin each gun around to point at its owner’s face.

Everyone in the room froze and Twilight took this time to assess the situation. James had his submachine gun trained on Deval, while Isamu and Victoria pointed their handguns at the mercenaries in front of the doorway. Socket Wrench stood on all fours, hunched over, wings extended and ready for flight, with a long black combat knife extending from a metal contraption on her foreleg. During all of this, Dmitri sat in his chair glancing around in amazement. “Holy shit!” he exclaimed, breaking the silence.

Twilight, still keeping her magical hold on her pistol and the six weapons she acquired through force, turned to glare at Deval who was still grinning. That is very unsettling, she thought before opening her mouth to speak. “No one has to get hurt. Please just let us go back to our ship and leave in peace.”

Deval Aldridge burst out laughing. His gaze had yet to leave the pistol in his face and the purple unicorn wielding it. “I am very impressed, James. You have been training her, haven’t you?” He then turned his head to face Rainbow Dash’s captain. “Please, let us all be civil about this. I merely wanted to witness her reaction when faced with some danger. I’m glad to see that Miss Sparkle can handle herself quite adequately. I meant it when I said no harm would come to you or any of your crew, Miss Sparkle included.”

Twilight looked over at James. He seemed to ponder Deval’s statement before clicking his submachine gun’s safety on and stowing it in its holster. “Stand down everyone.”

Twilight slowly released her hold on the mercenary weapons, allowing their original owners to retake possession. Then she safetied and rotated her pistol upwards while easing the hammer back to an uncocked position. Around the table, Isamu, Victoria, and Socket visibly relaxed and sat back into their chairs. Deval dismissed his bodyguards with a flick of his wrist and they shuffled out of the office, closing the doors behind them.

“How did you know?” Twilight softly spoke once the doors locked. “How could you possibly have known? This makes no sense.”

“She brings up a good point, Deval.” Isamu joined the conversation though his facial expression resembled someone in deep thought. “Twilight traveled thousands of years into our time period. This is information that, as far as I know, only existed in the upper echelons of Harmony’s government. Maybe even only Princess Celestia and Princess Luna knew about Twilight’s impending arrival.”

Along with the rest of Rainbow’s crew, Twilight Sparkle stared intently at Deval Aldridge. He slowly glanced around the table, never allowing his gaze to linger too long on each UEN citizen. “I have my ways,” the mysterious human responded in a controlled manner.

James rubbed his eyes with a sigh. “Deval, please; I need to know if Twilight’s life could be in danger.”

“You brought her onto this planet and you are asking me if she is in danger?” Deval Aldridge leaned back in his seat with a skeptical raise of an eyebrow and a slight smirk.

“Come on, Deval, there is a difference. You know that with her magical abilities, she is a valuable member of my crew. We are trying to get back home, but, if word were to spread of her situation, she could become a target for billions of sentients. With the Elements of Harmony in limbo, many might believe that controlling her is the key to harnessing their power. Twilight is a smart and powerful mare and she can look after herself, but it would be much safer if her identity was kept secret.”

With a slow conceding nod, Deval brought his hands to rest on his chest while collecting his thoughts. “I wanted to hear your reasoning behind your actions, brother. I do agree with you of course. If it makes you feel better, I am the only person on this planet who knows the truth behind your new battle mage and I plan to keep it that way.”

James stared at the table in front of him while thinking. “How can you be the only one in your organization who knows? Did you … retire the members of your intelligence agency who told you of Twilight?”

That question brought forth a series of chuckles from Deval. “No, not at all, James. I also did not discover the information about her arrival from espionage. Rather, I happen to hold a piece of history in my possession. I own a diary written by a pony who lived a long time ago and was actually quite close to you, Miss Sparkle. Her name was Rarity.”

Twilight’s throat seized shut and her vision narrowed to mere pinpoints. A diary written by Rarity! She opened her mouth, attempting to ask a million questions at once but all she managed was a feeble, “How?”

“I am quite fond of antiques; they are, perhaps I should say, a weakness of mine.” Deval Aldridge reached out and knocked a large fist against the stone table. “This petrified oak table may not look it, but it is several thousand years old; around five thousand to be exact.”

“No…” James remarked, denial thick on his tongue.

Deval Aldridge simply nodded. “Yes, brother. Believe me, because I speak the truth. This table sat in a Canterlot museum for millennia because it is a relic from the past. Also, the fact that the wielder of the Element of Generosity was its last owner surely helped in its preservation.”

James seemed to carefully choose his next words. “Deval, did you steal this table?”

“Not at all!” He refuted with indignation. “I may be a criminal in your eyes but I still have my standards. During the attack on Harmony by the Cygnul, several major museums across the planet were severely damaged in the initial bombardment. Most of them were rebuilt but at a cost. In order to raise funds some museums had to auction off their less important wares. This table was auctioned off because it had no other special significance except for being owned by Rarity; or so they thought.”

Deval Aldridge stood up and slid his chair back but waved James back down when he attempted to rise. “Let me show you something.” He began moving around the table, dragging his chair with him. “I had it carefully disassembled and brought in here where I spent my free time reassembling the pieces.” Deval reached the opposite end of the table and sat down. “While lifting and moving the different table sections, I found that this end section was slightly lighter than it counterpart. When I investigated, I found a secret compartment.” Deval lowered a hand to the edge of the table for a moment before an audible click broke the intense silence in the room. A small drawer popped out and Deval’s other hand pulled it open. “And what I found completely changed the way I viewed the world.”

Reaching into the drawer, Deval’s hand withdrew holding a small, sealed box constructed out of some transparent material. Twilight had refused to blink during the long conversation but her dry eyes had no trouble seeing what lay nestled within the box. A dark canvas-bound book; three faded diamond-shaped stencils on one side; the calligraphed signature that spelt out a single name. Rarity. Oh my Celestia! It’s really hers! Twilight’s already narrow vision continued to shrink as darkness overtook her peripherals. Before everything vanished into black, the last thing she saw was the name of her best friend, a pony she had last seen a few short months ago but who had also died millennia before.

Rarity stood in a suit of custom forged armor on the bow of Equestria’s flagship, the Alicorn. On either side of her stood the other Elements of Harmony, each adorned in their own unique protective outfits. A cold, smoky, northern wind ruffled the elegant mare’s coiffed mane and tickled her nostrils. Large blooming storm clouds filled the horizon in front of the airship.

“Excuse me ladies, the aerial fleet has returned from the latest raid on Moonclaw’s eastern flank. Latest reports determine that these attacks are slowing his advance towards Canterlot.” A voice behind the five mares caught their attention, revealing a unicorn stallion. “In addition, all refugees have been safely evacuated to the southern half of the country.”

“Thank you, Captain Knighthawk. Send a message to Princess Celestia that we will return to Canterlot as soon as the fleet regroups.” Rarity calmly addressed the guard pony who bowed before making his way to the airship’s bridge.

Returning her gaze to the dark storm clouds to the north, the white mare let out a heavy sigh. To her left, Fluttershy rubbed her nose against Rarity’s cheek. “It will be okay,” the yellow pegasus whispered.

On Rarity’s other side, Rainbow Dash laid a wing over her back. “We will all make it out of this alive.” She turned to see a small smirk on the cyan-coated mare’s face. “Don’t you worry, Princess Celestia will lead us to victory.” Rainbow’s tone may have been unwavering, but the pegasus couldn’t hide the anxiety in her eyes.

Rarity returned the smile before facing forward again. Part of her couldn’t help but wonder. If the Princesses could turn the tide, then why haven’t they done so yet? Her thoughts mirrored the cumulonimbus clouds that slowly trudged their way south.

Pulling out a small journal, Rarity sat back on her haunches while flipping it open to the last page. She had one final entry to write before she needed to start a new book. With practiced ease, the white unicorn slipped a pen out from the spine and wrote the date and time. She thought for a moment about what to write and debated whether to describe today’s events in detail like her other entries, but with the wulven so close, she didn’t want to dwell on the storm at the horizon. With a quick flick of the pen, she simply wrote down a single sentence. They are coming, and we can’t stop them.

Twilight Sparkle came to, still staring at the well-preserved journal held in Deval Aldridge’s hand. She must not have blanked out for long because it seemed like nopony noticed her lapse in reality, but her heavy breathing did alert Victoria who sat in the seat next to her. The lavender unicorn initially flinched when she felt a soft hand touch her back, but she relaxed when she realized who it belonged to.

Worry and concern filled in the blonde-maned human’s eyes while she reassuringly rubbed the pony’s back. Twilight took in several deep breaths to slow her heart rate before simply giving Victoria a wordless nod. With a last supportive squeeze, she removed her hand but still kept her eyes on the purple unicorn. Gazing around the table, Twilight tuned into James, Socket, Isamu, and Deval quarreling over the journal.

“I’m not calling you a liar, Deval.” James leaned forward against the table, pointing one finger at the mercenary. “But how could paper survive for so long?”

Isamu continued to stare at his hands in front of his face. “The diary should have disintegrated centuries ago.” Next to him, Socket Wrench nodded in agreement.

“I’m telling you! Rarity placed a powerful preservation charm on the journal! This here is the real deal.” Deval rebutted with a wave of his arm, gesturing to the clear case on the table.

James opened his mouth to argue when Twilight quietly chimed in, “It’s real.”

All conversation ceased as six pairs of eyes locked onto her face. “Are you sure? How do you know?” James gently asked.

Twilight let out a deep breath, glancing at the canvas journal once more. “I am one hundred percent sure that is Rarity’s journal. I … just know.” Victoria gave Twilight a reassuring touch before nodding at James.

Deval Aldridge rapped his left knuckles against the table before pointing one of his large fingers at Twilight. “I’ve read every single entry of your friend’s journal, Miss Sparkle. She wrote about your untimely death in great detail, but something about your run-in with this… Rift Apparatus rubbed me the wrong way. From the description of your accident, it sounded more like you were pulled into a space-time portal.”

The dark-skinned human placed both elbows on the table and rested his chin on his hands. “Your friends tried researching anything and everything they could find on that device, but the princesses gently forced them to stop.”

A lump formed in Twilight’s throat. “My friends continued looking for me? Why would Princess Celestia stop them?”

“Princess Celestia’s actions led me to believe that she must have known when and where you were traveling to. There would have been nothing your friends could have done and she needed them focused on Equestria’s current predicament at the time, the Wulven War.”

Twilight’s ears drooped and her gaze rested upon the small enchanted book. “They must have missed me so much.”

“They did, Twilight Sparkle.” Deval Aldridge let out a small sigh, surprising her.

He is a deeper person than he lets on. After a short moment of silence, Twilight stood taller in her seat. “Please, continue Mister Aldridge.”

“How many times must I say it?” The mercenary’s volume surprised the purple pony and made her flinch, but her apprehension vanished when she saw his humorous smile back in force. “Please, all of you can call me Deval! We are amongst friends.”

“My apologies, Deval,” Twilight smiled and waved a hoof for him to carry on.

With a respectful nod, Deval Aldridge clasped his fingers together before speaking. “When I pieced the truth of your fate together, I knew that you had not reappeared yet or my intelligence organization would have been able to find evidence of your return. A secret like that would have been impossible to hide. So, I just had my spies pay attention to any strange orders sent out from the UEN naval headquarters with the hope that you would return in my lifetime.”

Socket Wrench had been quiet for most of the conversation but she interjected before Deval could continue. “What if she didn’t return in your lifetime?”

“I plan on living for quite some time, Miss Socket Wrench, but eventually I will groom a worthy successor to run the solar system after I am no longer here. I was going to make arrangements to ensure that the Element of Magic would have an easier time reaching Harmony.”

“Deval, this is all great to hear and all,” James spoke with slow conviction, “but I just want to know the answer to one question. Why? Why do you care about Twilight’s fate?”

With those words, Deval’s characteristic smile vanished, replaced with a look of bitterness and disgust as he lifted an arm and fiddled with a device on his wrist. On the ceiling in the middle of the group, a holographic emitter flashed on and Aldridge immediately typed a few rapid commands into his personal computer. After a moment, he hit enter and in the center of the table, a three dimensional figure appeared. The being that now hovered in the air made Twilight gulp, as she had become quite familiar with them recently. “The cygnul.” The mare muttered just loud enough to be heard by everyone.

Deval Aldridge stabbed a finger at the ghostly cygnul rotating in the hologram. “I am sick and tired of these bastards pushing on our boundaries. On paper, they are only in open conflict with the UEN, but in reality, they are extending every one of their borders. I don’t know how much your naval intelligence knows, James; but cygnul raids have been steadily increasing over the past fifty years. There is never enough hard evidence to prove it, but I’m not an idiot. I know what their work looks like. It’s not just us outliers too. The griffons have been attacked just as much as we have.”

“Why can’t you join forces with us then? We could form an alliance!” James slammed a fist on the table in frustration.

“It’s not that easy, brother. No one trusts the UEN and it would take hard evidence to prove to the media that the cygnul are a real threat. You and I know the truth, but the public needs to be convinced or a full blown civil war could break out.”

James Fletcher stared at his fist for a second before continuing. “So you want to see if Twilight can reactivate the Elements of Harmony?”

“I ran the numbers based off historical combat data my organization has stolen from the UEN and the griffons.” At this remark, Deval held up a hand to stall Fletcher’s protest before he could start. “If we don’t find a new strategy or weapon, we have maybe a century or two at tops before the cygnul can overwhelm all of us. Your warpgate staved off the apocalypse and in my opinion, bought you a hundred years. Unfortunately, the cygnul can build and crew ships a lot faster than the rest of us can.”

With this revelation, a thick silence fell among the ponies and humans in the room save for an awkward cough from Dmitri who had been uncharacteristically quiet recently. Eventually, Twilight spoke up. “So the fate of all our species rests on me taking up the Element of Magic again?”

“Yes it is, Twilight Sparkle. Right now, it seems the Elements are our only hope.” Aldridge dipped his head towards her. “I just feel it be true.”

“But, what if I can’t figure out how to make them work? I only got the Elements to work last time with the help of my friends,” her voice trailed off, “and they’re … gone.”

Isamu Zhang met the frightened unicorn’s wandering gaze. “Twilight Sparkle, you are a smart pony and I know you will figure it out. You are still the Element of Magic. Do not ever doubt that. We will cross each hurdle, one at a time.”

“He is right, Twilight. You’re here now and there is nothing that can stop you.” Socket Wrench beamed her sunny smile at the lavender pony.

“So, the plan is to take Twilight to Harmony, wake up the Elements, and end the war.” Victoria examined the nails on her right hand before looking around the table. “But we can’t leave here until repairs are done. What should we do in the meantime?”

James leaned far back into his chair. “Well, I don’t know about everyone else, but after everything that just happened, I sure could use a drink.”

“Me too.” Dmitri Bearclaw, Socket Wrench and Isamu Zhang replied in unison resulting in a series of chuckles from the trio.

Twilight stared at her two forehooves resting on the table edge in front of her. First, it was just my country’s future at stake, but now it’s the entire galaxy’s. What have I gotten myself into? Turning her head to the left, she gave James a worn-out stare. “I could use a drink too.”

A loud clap from Deval caught everyone’s attention. “It is settled then! You all have been under too much pressure recently and it is time to unwind. You are all going to be my guests tonight at the most prestigious nightclub in the Outlier Systems, Elysium.”

At this, Dmitri leapt out of his seat, pumping a hoof in the air. “Woooo hoooo!”

Deval Aldridge stood and motioned the rest of the table to do the same. “Come, my friends. Let us party through the night.” He winked at the group and gestured to the view screen still displaying the city that would never sleep.