The Link Between the Worlds

"An… Alicorn?" stuttered Shining Armor. "Are you suggesting that Her Highness should walk into a portal and most likely never return?"

Flash mentally slapped himself. What a stupid idea. Only an idiot like me would think that something like that would work. The orange stallion glanced at the Princess of the Sun. She seemed to be at a loss for words. His eyes darted towards he castle.

Then again…

"Yes, that's what I'm suggesting." He tried to speak with as much confidence as possible. "If our soldiers are unable to get through, then that suggests that the barrier is immensely strong." His voice had a little more force about it now. "So, it can be concluded that to enter, you must be immensely strong in magic. And Her Highness is powerful enough to subconsciously guiding the sun across the sky all day."

Flash barely hid a smile. He almost sounded smart. But his captain thought otherwise, judging by his vigorously shaking head.

"I'm sorry, but it's too risky. What if Her H-" He never finished his sentence.

"Shining Armor, please! I'm right here, and I would prefer it if you called my by my name," reprimanded Celestia. His bones aching from her last outburst, he was all too happy to comply.

"What if Celestia's magic accidentally se-"

"I wasn't finished speaking yet."

"Of course, sorry Princess." The captain gave an apologetic duck of the head.

"What I was going to say was that I think young Mr. Sentry's plan is the best course of action that we have."

Both stallion's eyebrows lifted in surprise. "Celestia, we could-" An electric POP sounded behind him followed by another round of laughter. A look of resignation pass over the stallion's face. "Go on."

But by that time, his princess was almost to the wall.

"Okay, Soos, let's get you unzombie-ified."

"Brains," Soos called from his spot on the floor.

"Yeah, we heard ya, buddy," replied Dipper. He glanced at the book to see if he'd gotten the markings right. The cinnamon over there, the Japanese silk worms over there, the charcoal here. Everything seemed to be in order. The boy checked to make sure that his family was in position. Stan was on the fifth point of the star holding his candle, and Mabel was on the opposite side of the room, holding hers upside-down for no reason at all. Dipper shrugged. It should work. But it was going to let off a lot of energy if what the book said was true.

Celestia slowed as she reached the burnt ring of grass. How should I proceed? she wondered. I may not have thought this through. She thought for a few seconds. I don't run into it like those guards. That would most likely result in more harm than help. Her musings were interrupted by a well timed "Ow!" as another guard fell prey to peer pressure. Definitely not that. Maybe I should just touch it and see what happens from there. The white Alicorn breathed in and out, preparing herself, and fully aware that every second that she took meant less for her former student. She closed eyes, and reached out with her mind, locating the barrier. She slowly reached her hoof forward, and made contact. This is it.

Dipper closed the book, ready to begin the purification. "Everyone ready?" he asked. Stan and Mabel nodded. Dipper breathed in and out, preparing himself, and completely obvious of the chain of events that would follow. He started his chant. "Mortuum non relinquunt eum." The ritual began.

The touch left a burning sensation on her hoof, but Celestia had felt worse than this. She pushed against the barrier, one though repeating in her mind. Am I going to save her, or doom myself?

"Corruptio et derelinquam eum." Soos' body was lifted into the air by an unseen force. Normally, Dipper would have tried to take a picture to show Stan proof that magic existed, had he not just discovered that Stan had known all along. But Dipper's concentration was one of iron, not to be broken, not even by the blue ring that was appearing in the grass around the Mystery Shack.

Celestia pushed and pushed until finally, she was through. It felt like teleportation, being in one place and suddenly being in another. She shook her head to clear away the fog in her mind. She couldn't waste any more time. The blue ring that was forming around the castle told her that she wasn't going to be able to get back out if she tried to grab Twilight. She galloped through the doors, in a desperate search for the obviously distraught young Alicorn.

"Twilight! You need to see this! Please! It's urgent!"

Spike's claw was banging on Twilight's door with almost enough force to break the solid crystal. But still, Twilight couldn't hear him. Her intricate spell was almost complete. Soon the apple in front of her would have its picture featured on the front page of Canterlot Monthly. Just a couple more seconds and it would all be complete.

"Et derelinquam eum, infectio," The zombie essence was pouring out of Soos' body, filling the air around him. The glow of his eyes dimmed a little. The foul black fog of an essence tried to return to the host, but the shielding spell activated, forming a bubble of light around the handyman's body. The light hissed as it made contact with the blackness, but the shield held firm. The blue ring's energy was rapidly approaching the center of the shack, though, and it was nearing the portal.

Celestia galloped up the crystal stairs toward Twilight's room. She just needed to throw up a quick shield spell, and then they should be fine. She rounded the corner and saw Spike knocking on Twilight's door. She threw him out of the way with her hoof and he skidded down the hall. She levitated the door open just in time to seen her former apprentice complete her reality-warping spell.

"Fruadulenti et oculi." Dipper couldn't make much sense of this line. It's Latin translation made no sense. "The trickster and the eye"? What did that even mean? But the mysteries of the journal would have to be pondered later. The spell was complete. "Amina reditura!"

And at the same time, the blue light hit the portal.

"No!" screamed Celestia as she was swallowed by the explosion of blue.

"Yes, this will be fun." said a voice.

"Fun indeed." said another.