Nighttide Star

Chapters

Chapter 1 - Lost
Chapter 2 - When War Meets Peace
Chapter 4 - Celestial Counsel
Chapter 5 - A Dash of Blue
Chapter 6 - What Happens in Canterlot...
Chapter 7 - ...Stays in the Forest
Chapter 8 - Unity
Chapter 9 - Strength in Numbers
Chapter 10 - Separation
Chapter 11 - Echoes
Chapter 12 - The Hell Inside Her Head
Chapter 13 - The Sarcophagus, Pt. 1
Chapter 14 - The Sarcophagus, Pt. 2
Chapter 15 - Wake Up
Chapter 16 - Eventide
Epilogue - Home
Prologue - The Incident
Chapter 3 - Mares of the Night

Chapter 1 - Lost

Nighttide felt as if she was spinning through a dark void filled with the sound of raging fire. She couldn’t see anything, but the sound came from all around her, filling her head with the noise. Nothing tangible presented itself for her to gain a bearing on her location, but she did feel something inside her. It was faint at first, but the feeling quickly began to permeate her entire body.

The sounds were frightening her.

In an attempt to escape the darkness, she instinctively flailed her limbs in every direction, but it seemed hopeless. She could feel nothing around her. Fear grew fast – she didn’t understand what was going on, the only thing that was imperative was that she escape the darkness and figure out where she was. She attempted to access her internal computer system, but nothing lit on her retinal display. There was only darkness.

Without warning, her body suddenly collapsed on a gritty surface, followed by the loudest bang yet. It was still dark, but she could at least feel the ground beneath her frame. As the fear began to bleed away a few moments later, she briefly heard a familiar voice begin to speak, right before she fell unconscious.

__________

“… 1032. Distress beacon. LAB-1032. Distress beacon…”

As Nighttide slowly regained consciousness, her ears flicked at the sound of a synthetic female voice resonating through her suit. Once she was a little more awake, she silenced the distress beacon and switched it to a radio transmission.

Her head felt heavy, and the muscles in her neck struggled to work. Having to muster an unusual amount of effort, she rolled herself onto her stomach and tried to open her eyes – only for a bright light to hold her back. For the first time in years, she felt a pleasant sort of pain as she attempted to adjust to the brightness of the world around her. It had been some time since she saw the natural light of the sun and felt its warmth, and while she couldn’t tell where the light was coming from yet, it felt the same. It felt familiar.

After taking a minute to adjust to the light, Nighttide slowly stood up and began a diagnostics scan of her systems. The same voice from before droned, “DIRE LAB-1032. Reactor online. Sensors online. Weapons online… All systems nominal,” followed by a series of beeps.

Nighttide drew a breath of cool air and took to examining her surroundings. It wasn’t long before she realized she was no longer anywhere remotely near the facility where she began. The mare stood in a small grassy clearing, her mis-jump having left a charred crater in the ground where she woke. The terrain surrounding was filled with colorful flora of all different kinds, given life and vibrancy by a variety of fauna. A large mountain range sat visible in the distant horizon, silhouetted by a clear blue sky.

She blinked. For a full minute, Nighttide started straight up at the brilliant blue of the sky, before returning her attention to ground-level again.

After running a sensory sweep of her immediate surroundings, she decided to try exploring the area. But soon as she took a few steps forward, one of her hind-legs began to buckle, eliciting the sound of grinding metal within. She looked back with a groan.

Nighttide lay down on a patch of pristine grass a few hooves away from the crater and allowed her systems to do an evaluation. “LAB-1032 Diagnostics. Damage report: Rear-left gaskin, biceps femoris. Artificial tendons severed. Hydraulics unresponsive. Hydraulic leak detected. Fluid purged to recovery tanks. Superficial damage to left flank.” Nighttide looked back to see that the domes on her flank were in fact scuffed, and that she was overall filthy from her rough jump.

’This won’t do,’ Nighttide thought to herself. ’But I can’t repair the damage on-site.’ She looked around again, but saw nopony and no building in sight. Only the lushest of nature made up the land around her.

Then, something out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. At first, she thought the object was yellow, but upon turning her head, she saw a small white creature with long ears hopping toward her from some nearby bushes.

Nighttide unlocked two metal plates from each side of her barrel. She called out calmly to the animal, “White creature, identify yourself.”

The creature stopped part-way, taking a moment to fiddle with one of its ears before hopping toward her again.

Nighttide repositioned herself to face the creature, extending the plates out and away from her barrel to reveal two rotary cannons. She called out again – this time, with feeling. “White creature, identify yourself. Friend or foe?”

The animal continued to hop toward her, undaunted by the mare’s voice or appearance.

Just as the rotaries of Nighttide’s cannons began to spin to life, a timid voice sounded from the bushes behind the creature. “Angel, wait!”

The white creature stopped just in time for Nighttide to halt her weapons. She stood up to face the voice from the bushes. A second later, a yellow mare with a long pink mane scampered toward them. “Angel, you should know better than to keep running away like that!”

As the mare approached her and the creature, Nighttide examined the pony, noting no visible threats. Nevertheless, she kept her position fixed and her weapons trained as she called out to the mare. “Yellow pony, identify yourself.”

The mare picked up the white creature and looked up, her teal eyes meeting with Nighttide’s violet. With a nervous blink, she said, “Oh, uhm… hello. My name is Fluttershy.”

“Friend or foe?” Nighttide droned.

Fluttershy furrowed her brow, looking at the strange objects protruding from the stranger’s sides. When she realized she was staring, she quickly lowered her head and averted her gaze. “Um… well, friend, I guess?”

With a hiss of steam and hum of hydraulics, Nighttide retracted her weapons and introduced herself. “My name is Nighttide Star. I am a weapons-grade model of DIRE, ident LAB-1032. Would you be able to assist me in determining my location and a place to undergo repairs?”

Fluttershy looked up at the mare again, her expression shifting from apprehension to concern. “Repairs? Do you mean you’re hurt?”

Nighttide repositioned herself to show her scuffed flank. “I suffered some damage during an experiment.”

With noticeable hesitation, Fluttershy approached the unfamiliar pony. As she looked over the black scorch marks etched into the surface of her flank, she said, “Oh dear, this isn’t good at all. Does it hurt?”

“Weapons-grade models have selective nervous systems and an exterior alloy hull,” Nighttide flatly replied. “Only vitals sense pain to report a biological issue.”

Fluttershy looked at the mare with a confused expression, although her concern for the welfare of this new pony took precedence. “I’m not sure what that means, but I would be glad to help however I can.” She went to touch the damage on her flank, but Nighttide pulled back a little, unlocking her weapons again. “It’s okay. I’m not going to hurt you,” Fluttershy assured her with a soft smile. “May I?” Nighttide hesitantly nodded.

With a gentle motion, Fluttershy ran her hoof across the scuffs on Nighttide’s flank and found to her surprise not coat hair, but rather a cold, hard substance. As she looked over the three domes protruding from her flank, she murmured, “Oh my. What does this cutie mark mean?”

Nighttide tilted her head. “Cutie mark?”

Fluttershy turned her head toward Nighttide with wide eyes. She knew this was no ordinary pony. Taking a small gulp to calm her nerves, she said, “Nighttide Star, I think you should meet some of my friends. They may be able to help more than I can.”

“Understood.” Nighttide locked her weapons. “But first, can you tell me our location?”

“We’re just outside of Ponyville.” Nighttide tilted her head again. “…In the land of Equestria. Does that help?”

“Unfortunately, I have no records of such a land.”

Fluttershy blinked. “Okay. Um… let’s go meet some of my friends and see how we can help. Can you walk?” Nighttide nodded, but as she took a few steps forward, steaming red liquid began to gush out of her injured leg. Fluttershy gasped at the sight with a look of horror.

“Well, I can’t walk far I guess,” Nighttide calmly said at the sight of the leaking fluid. “May I ask for your assistance?”

Fluttershy stared a moment longer at the gushing fluid before looking up at the mare. With a single flap of her wings, she landed next to Nighttide and offered to help carry some of her weight. Nighttide had not noticed her wings before, and shocked by the sight, she asked, “You can fly?”

“Why, yes. I’m a pegasus.”

Nighttide examined Fluttershy’s one outstretched wing and noticed it was a natural part of her body. After staring blankly for a moment, she shook her head and said, “Apparently I’m going to have a lot of questions… in due time anyway,” she added as she watched the warm fluid trickle down her leg.

__________

Fluttershy helped Nighttide limp to the nearest road while Angel brought up the rear. They were a little closer to her cottage than they were to town, and Nighttide’s limp appeared to be worsening. “Nighttide, are you sure you can make it?”

“How much farther do we have to Ponyville?”

“We haven’t reached the farm yet, so it’s still a little way.”

Nighttide looked down at her leg. The red fluid was leaking out profusely, and most of it was being left to dissolve in the dirt and grass they had trodden.

Noticing the concern in Nighttide’s expression, Fluttershy perked her head up and smiled. “Tell you what. My home is not far from here. Why don’t I take you there and tend to your leg, then I can go get my friends and bring them back?”

Nighttide nodded, the fatigue from the mis-jump and balancing her weight on Fluttershy’s side beginning to take its toll. “Yes. That will be fine.”

The walk to Fluttershy’s cottage was a struggle, but they eventually made it. Upon opening the door, Nighttide saw a number of small, unfamiliar creatures scurry through the house. She thought about deploying her weapons at first, but Fluttershy remained calm, taking the lead inside the house with Angel in tow. She slowly followed suit, eyeing the various moving creatures carefully as she entered.

Fluttershy had Nighttide lay on the couch at the other end of the room as she retrieved a first-aid kit. Wrapping Nighttide’s injured leg in gauze as tight as she could, she managed to get the fluid to stop leaking. “Alright, that looks a little better,” she remarked with a nervous twinge as she closed the first-aid kit, silently wondering what the strange substance she had cleaned up was. It certainly wasn’t blood. Wanting to wait until she could gather her friends before asking any prying questions, she redirected her concern. “How do you feel?”

Nighttide looked indifferently at her. “As I said, I can only feel pain in vitals.”

“Oh, uhm… right. Well, is there anything I can do to make you comfortable?” Nighttide shook her head, but Fluttershy walked over to the corner of the room anyway and grabbed a quilt, placing it at the top of the couch. “Here, just in case you change your mind. Let me get you a glass of water as well.”

As Fluttershy trotted into the kitchen, Nighttide watched with quiet curiosity while her sensors did a sweep of the interior of the cottage. A few of the animals stared at the mare from afar as a low electrical hum emanated from her suit.

A minute later, Fluttershy returned with a glass and set it on the end table beside the couch. “I’m going to check in with one of my friends and see if she can help us out. It shouldn’t take long. Will you be alright waiting here?” Nighttide nodded. With that, Fluttershy told Angel to behave while she was away before setting off for Ponyville.

Left alone with the creatures in the house, Nighttide examined them from her spot on the couch. Most of them were now either hiding or resting. Even Angel was minding his own business elsewhere. After scanning the room and recording the information to her system, she realized that the land, the animals, even the furniture in Fluttershy’s cottage were completely different from those found in her homeland. And yet there were still some familiar things, such as their language, the fact that there were fellow ponies – even if some had wings apparently – and of course, the warmth of a sun overhead.

’The sun,’ she thought to herself. ’That was a brilliant sun out there. It was so warm… Was that even the same sun?’

A few minutes passed in silence before she grabbed the glass of water. She examined the liquid with a scanner, and after getting a green-light, took a few sips. It was clean and cold, devoid of any traces of chlorine or contaminants. Setting the glass back down, she looked over at the patchwork quilt resting atop the couch. She stared at the quilt for a moment, then grabbed the edge with her mouth and tossed it over her metal torso, lying down in the process. The quilt was soft and warm against the exposed coat of her neck, and something about its design radiated warmth and love. The quilt, along with everything else in the cottage, seemed to be infused with something pleasant. Nighttide couldn’t place her hoof on the feeling, but this too was familiar. Something about the air of the cottage was reminiscent of some place or thing she had once known in her life – or so she thought anyway. Not wanting to overthink things for once, she nuzzled against the cushions of the sofa and soaked in the comfort of the quilt.

Nighttide listened to the low murmur of strange creatures go about their business nearby. While the unfamiliarity of everything pressed against her, she didn’t feel as if she was in danger. Nothing in the air, nothing in the home felt threatening – and in a way, that fact alone was a bit unnerving. She wanted to know more about what was going on and where she was, but she knew she couldn’t go anywhere until she got repairs. Eventually, she embraced the peaceful silence of the cottage.

“There’s nothing for me to do until that pony returns,” Nighttide mumbled to herself. Activating her passive defenses which would alert her to any immediate danger, she decided to rest and wait for Fluttershy’s return.

’Not a bad way to spend an afternoon,’ she thought to herself before falling fast asleep.

__________

“… NIES. WARNING, INCOMING PONIES. WARNING—”

Nighttide bolted upright, her vision blurred from sleep but quickly fixed by her systems. Her infrared sensors flicked on through her retinal screen, and she could see the figure of two ponies heading toward the front door from outside. The silhouette of one was familiar.

Nighttide aborted the alert and shut down her sensors, attempting to shake off some of the sleep. Her internal clock showed that she had been asleep for a little over thirty minutes. Surprisingly – with the exception of the rude awakening – she felt fairly relaxed.

A moment later, Fluttershy opened the door, followed by a lavender pony with wings and— ’A horn?’ Nighttide focused her vision on the unfamiliar pony. ’What is the horn for?’ she wondered.

“So, um… Nighttide Star? This is my good friend, Twilight Sparkle.” Fluttershy walked the horned pony over to the couch. Nighttide sat a little more upright, causing the quilt to fall off her back into a small pile next to her.

“Hello Nighttide Star!” Twilight greeted the mare with an extended a hoof. “Nice to meet you.”

“Greetings, Twilight Sparkle,” Nighttide reached out with a metal forelimb and gently shook her hoof, causing Twilight’s eyes to grow a little wide at the sight. “If you prefer, you may call me Nighttide, as most ponies back home do.”

Off to the side, Fluttershy’s eyes widened. “I’m sorry, sh-should I have realized that earlier?”

Nighttide shook her head. “It wasn’t a pressing matter at the time.” Seeing that Fluttershy still appeared a little distressed, she nodded once and gave her a small smile. It seemed to do the trick.

“And you can just call me Twilight,” the other pony spoke, still eyeing her metalwork. “So uh, Nighttide, I hear you’re not from around here?”

“Apparently not,” Nighttide said with a shrug, casting a glance out the window behind her. “I didn’t recognize any landmarks on the way here, and little else seems familiar aside for some very basic things.”

Twilight furrowed her brow at the grey mare. “You mean, not even the landscape?”

“Correct,” Nighttide answered cordially. “I am a weapons-grade model of the Daedalus Institute of Research and Exploration. Built within me is a system that carries an extensive record of the geography, geology, and history of most of my homeland. Little of what I observed on my trek here has matched up to any records I have on-file.”

Twilight blinked a couple of times in visible confusion. “That's... definitely new to me. May I ask how you got here?”

“I’m afraid I don’t know.” Nighttide paused for a second to consider what information she should keep confidential before continuing. “We were running an experiment when an accident occurred. The next thing I knew, I woke up in a clearing not far from here.”

“I see.” Twilight quietly eyed Nighttide’s body once more. “And you said you were a ‘weapons-grade model’? What exactly does that mean?”

“I’m what’s known as a cyborg - a living pony that is made up partly of machinery, and in my case, built for the purpose of carrying out military operations ordered by my government. A war pony, if you will.” Twilight and Fluttershy’s expressions quickly turned apprehensive, though Nighttide continued. “Stored within me is a set of weaponry that can be used in battlefield or close-combat settings. I also have the ability to analyze surroundings using various natural senses, alongside electronic sensors built into my systems. A computer runs most of the functions, and my mind is hardwired to that computer.”

“Whoa, hang on a minute – this is a lot to take in.” Twilight turned back to face a saddlebag tied around her barrel. Suddenly, the horn atop Twilight’s head began to glow with a soft violet aura, creating a gentle hum as she directed the aura to open a pouch.

Nighttide blinked - hard. She watched with wide eyes as a notepad and quill levitated out of the pouch, now wrapped in same glow as Twilight’s horn. With a startled inflection, she said, “W-wait a sec. Twilight… are you...” Pointing, she said, “H-how are you able to do that?”

Twilight’s ears flicked toward the mare. “Do what?”

“Your paper and pen! They’re floating!”

Twilight looked at Nighttide with a raised eyebrow. “This is called magic.” She waited a moment to see if the statement clicked with the foreign mare, but she continued to stare at her silently, violet eyes filled with wonder. “Unicorns and alicorns can use magic for a lot of different things, like picking up objects.”

Nighttide tilted her head. “Unicorns and… alicorns. What’s the difference between the two?”

“Well, unicorns have only this horn,” she said as she suggested to her forehead with a hoof, “and the ability to use magic. Alicorns like myself also have wings, and a bit more magical prowess.” Furrowing her brow, Twilight said, “You’ve never heard of us before?”

“No. No, I... I’ve never even heard of ‘magic,’ let alone... unicorns?” Nighttide’s gaze drifted away as she recorded the information to her database. She wanted to ask more, but before she could, Twilight had her notepad and quill at the ready.

“Okay, let me get this straight. You’re a pony that has weapons, machinery, and a thing called a ‘computer’ inside of you, correct?” Nighttide nodded. “And you were ‘built’ to serve for a military?” She nodded again. “And you’ve never heard of magic?” A third time. “...I’ve never heard of such a thing in my life.” Twilight stepped closer, examining the mare’s body more closely. She noticed the scuff marks along her flank and the dressing wrapped around her leg, now slightly damp with red fluid. Her cutie mark didn’t look like a cutie mark at all, and like Fluttershy before, she noticed that it was a physical protrusion rather than flush.

Twilight drew a breath. Standing upright, she said, “Nighttide, I need to ask you one important question before we go any further.” She looked the mare squarely in the eyes. “Are you a threat to anypony?”

Nighttide pursed her lips slightly and considered her question for a moment before answering. “Technically, yes, I am. I’m capable of killing, after all.”

Twilight and Fluttershy’s ears folded back, their eyes widening at her statement.

“However,” she continued calmly, “that doesn’t mean I’m designed just to kill. I’m still a living, breathing pony. I make my own decisions, so ultimately, it is up to me to determine if someone, or something, is a threat. At no point will I hurt or kill arbitrarily, nor will I use my weaponry during times of peace.” Nighttide glanced around the room. “And apparently, you ponies live in some sort of eternal peace.”

Twilight let out a dry chuckle. “Yeah, Fluttershy’s home could make you think that. But I promise, our world is not perfect.” She tapped a hoof to her chin. “So just to be clear, you’re not going to hurt us or anypony else unless they’re considered a threat?”

“That is correct.”

Twilight squinted a little at the mare. “What exactly merits someone being a threat?”

“If someone or something jeopardizes the health of somepony registered in my system as important, or the progression of an assigned operation is at risk, which I currently do not have.”

Twilight pondered the point for a few seconds before speaking again. “Can I ask you to promise me one thing while you’re here, Nighttide?”

Nighttide tilted her head. “I’m not sure. What is it?”

“Can you promise me that you won’t do anything dangerous here? Our world may not be perfect, but at no point in recent history have we had to resort to killing to resolve an issue.”

Nighttide had already opened her mouth to respond with a scripted answer, but before she spoke, she paused. Looking up into the stranger’s eyes, she was surprised to see so clearly the earnestness behind the mare’s request. After considering the question a moment longer, she replied, “I should tell you no, and I admit that I can’t make that promise yet. However, if nopony presents themselves as a threat, I could make that promise – at least until I find my way back home.”

Twilight and Fluttershy exchanged glances. After giving each other a knowing nod, Twilight looked over. “Alright then,” she said with a relieved smile, “I think that will be acceptable for now.”

“How is your leg, Nighttide?” Fluttershy asked, stepping a little closer to the mare.

“I’ve lost almost all of my hydraulic fluid – the stuff that helps my legs move – and the wound itself is not actually fixed. Unlike biological parts, my limbs won’t heal themselves. They require repairs.”

“You mean, like a surgeon?” Twilight asked.

“In a sense. More so a mechanic, since there are mechanical parts broken inside of it.” Looking up at Twilight, she said, “Perhaps I should ask: is your culture familiar with robotic prosthetics?”

“Robotic? Can’t say I’ve heard of them, but we do use a type of prosthetics for broken limbs.”

Nighttide lifted one of her front legs. “The machine parts that make up my legs? Technically, they are considered robotic. I’m concerned that if I can’t find someone experienced in this field, I may not be able to get the necessary repairs for my leg.”

Twilight crouched down and examined her body more closely. With her permission, Twilight touched Nighttide’s injured leg and found that it, like the rest of her limbs, was made up of the same hard material as that surrounding her barrel.

She looked up at the mare. “You said you were a pony, Nighttide, but… I’ve never seen anything like this. This is incredible.” She paused for a moment, then said, “Are you really a pony?”

Nighttide reared back slightly at the question, eyes wide. After a moment, her expression softened, and she lifted her head with a muffled sigh. “Feel of my face and mane.”

Twilight blinked at that. Taking a seat on the floor in front of her, she lifted her hooves and gently touched Nighttide’s muzzle and mane, all of which felt perfectly normal to her. She slid her hooves down the side of the mare’s neck, where she could feel muscles and tendons flexing gently beneath grey coat hair. She then touched the dark grey collar surrounding her neck, made of a slightly softer metallic substance than the rest of her body.

“I am a real pony,” Nighttide reassured her with a soft tone, watching as Twilight rubbed her collar with a hoof. “But most of my body is encased in alloy.”

Twilight leaned back to examine one of the mare’s outstretched forelegs. Lifting it in her hooves, Twilight felt the weight of the limb rest in her soles, which was on order of magnitude heavier than any of a natural pony’s. She manipulated the limb and watched as the forearm and cannon pivoted along the knee just as they should, and as effortlessly as any real limb. “These joints… they’re so intricate. Are these your real legs as well?”

Nighttide shifted her legs a little toward her stomach in a reflexive response. “No. Those, are not. I lost my legs when I was still a filly.”

“Prosthetics… Now I get it.” With a somber tone, Twilight looked up and said, “Nighttide, I’m… I’m so sorry. What—”

“In any case,” Nighttide cut her short, “do you have any ideas for repairs?”

Twilight blinked. She decided not to press the point. Standing back up, she said, “Give me some time to do some research and see if I can find somepony who can help. In the meantime, I need to contact Princess Celestia and inform her of your presence. She will probably want to know more about you.”

Nighttide tilted her head. “Princess Celestia?”

“Yes, her and Princess Luna are sister rulers of Equestria.”

Nighttide raised an eyebrow. She understood the significance of reporting to higher-ups, but she wondered what sort of affiliation Twilight would have with royalty.

Before she could ask, Twilight turned away. “Fluttershy, I’m going to head back to Ponyville and have Spike send a message to the Princess. Can you round up the others and bring them here? I’ll be back as soon as I get the letter sent.”

“Sure thing,” Fluttershy said from beside the couch.

Twilight looked over her shoulder at Nighttide and gave a little smile. “It’s been nice meeting you, Nighttide. I’ll be back in about an hour or so.”

As Twilight walked out the door, Fluttershy grabbed the quilt from next to Nighttide. “Were you able to get some rest while I was gone?”

Nighttide nodded. “Yes. Thank you.” She smiled a little while the pegasus fluffed the quilt before laying it back across the top of the couch. With just a bit of hesitation, she said, “You know, it’s been awhile since I’ve been anywhere new.”

“Really?” Fluttershy asked as she took a seat next to the couch. “Do you not get out much where you’re from?”

“No. Not at all.” Nighttide looked over at an errant piece of furniture next to her.

A moment passed before Fluttershy spoke again. “What’s it like where you’re from?”

Nighttide eyed the various fixtures in the cottage before answering. “It’s dim. Nothing like your home here.”

Fluttershy hung her head slightly with a frown, her long pink mane traipsing over one of her eyes. “Do you not have fun where you live?”

“Some ponies do. I mean, I don’t have anything against fun. It’s just…” Nighttide drew a silent breath. “I’ve been cooped up in one place for a long time, serving commands from older ponies. While they’re not so bad, they’re always busy with something related to the Labyrinth project. Never anything fun.” Nighttide blinked a couple times, realizing just how relaxed she was talking to Fluttershy.

“Sounds like you don’t get a lot of attention,” the pegasus murmured nearby.

“Actually, I do. I’m the main figure of the Labyrinth project, or LAB.” Nighttide took a moment to collect her thoughts before continuing. “Well… First off I guess, DIRE is a corporation that’s contracted by our government. I guess I’ll explain that more when Twilight returns. Let’s just say for now that being a part of DIRE, especially being one of their pet projects, means I don’t get to spend a lot of time outside.” She expelled a short breath and lay across the sofa. “In fact, for the past two years, I’ve been stuck at the Ridley facility. I’m cooped up mostly with ponies older than myself, and the ponies that are my age are usually either afraid of me, or jealous that I’m the ‘number one’ project pony.”

“What does ‘project pony’ mean, exactly?” Fluttershy asked, leaning forward a little with perked ears. Nighttide dared a glance over and was surprised to see how interested the mare seemed to be in her story.

Clearing her throat a little, she then continued. “It means what I was telling you and Twilight earlier: I’m a war pony, but not just any war pony. I’m the pony that is supposed to herald in a new age of military technology – a walking, talking, breathing machine of special use.” She rested her head on a foreleg and sighed. “And DIRE would have me act like a machine as well if they could help it.” Closing her eyes, she said, “It’s hard to draw a line between being a pony and being a machine when you’re expected to behave and speak in a manner that fits certain guidelines all the time. The only time I can even kind of be myself is around the Colonel, and even then, I feel like I have to stick with protocol speech just so I don’t slip up later and get punished.”

“Punished?” Fluttershy asked.

“Yeah. Old school drill-type stuff. Do this many push-ups, do that many laps around a track. And yet, I’m part machine. All they’re doing is wasting my time, not wearing me out.” Nighttide let loose a groan and looked over at a rather confused Fluttershy. “I’m sorry if this is boring or confusing.”

“I’ll admit that I don’t understand a lot about where you come from, but it doesn’t sound so pleasant.” Fluttershy squinted in thought for a moment, then smiled. “Maybe you can make some friends while you’re here!”

Nighttide cocked her head aside, raising an eyebrow. “But this isn’t my home.”

“No, it’s not,” Fluttershy said with tender sincerity in her voice. “But there are lots of good ponies around here who like to have fun, and I’m proud to call some of them my best friends.” Fluttershy’s eyes suddenly widened in shock. “Oh gosh, our friends!” She hopped off her chair and trotted to the door. “I’m so sorry Nighttide, but I forgot Twilight wanted me to get the others. We’ll talk more later – I-I’ll be back as soon as I can!” She opened the door, but before disappearing, she looked back and asked one more time, “Is there anything I can do for you before I leave?”

Nighttide shook her head, “No, but… thank you. I’ll see you when you get back.”

With a smile, Fluttershy quietly closed the door and headed off to gather the others.

’Friends, huh?’ Nighttide thought to herself. ’Seems about right. Make some friends here, then lose them a few days later. That would be the same as usual, I have a feeling.’

Chapter 2 - When War Meets Peace

Still stuck on the sofa unable to move, Nighttide laid her head back over her foreleg. There wasn't much to do but wait and entertain herself best she could. Occasionally, a small animal would pass by on the floor or in the air, and she would watch with intense curiosity while her systems scanned the little things. Some creatures appeared bright and cheery, while others were slow and lethargic. Some were even colorful, while others looked dull by comparison. But all of the creatures seemed to be equally happy and healthy, and that was something Nighttide hadn't seen in many years.

After a while, Twilight returned and let herself in. “Fluttershy still rounding up the others?”

Nighttide lifted her head. “It would seem so.”

“Then I'll take this opportunity to talk with you about something important.” Twilight unfastened her saddlebag and placed it next to the door before trotting over to sit next to Nighttide. “I contacted Princess Celestia. Thankfully, she was able to reply before I left. She would like to meet you tomorrow around mid-day if possible. Considering your injury, she's decided to make a trip out here to meet you. She would meet with you sooner, but she's currently tending to some legal matters in Canterlot.”

“Canterlot?”

“It's the capital of Equestria, where the Princesses live.” She grinned and added, “It's also where I'm originally from!”

“I see,” Nighttide said as she furrowed her brow, her gaze drifting in thought. “This Princess of yours. What exactly will she want to know of me?” She looked at Twilight. “Some info is classified - I can't share it even if I wanted to.”

“She will probably want to know where you're from, what it's like, things like that. But most of all, she'll want to get to know you.” Twilight gave a reassuring smile. “I can't say for sure what questions she may ask, but I promise it will be a pleasant experience.”

Nighttide scrunched her muzzle. “She doesn't sound very aristocratic. Does she do this with every new pony that shows up?”

Twilight giggled. “No, but we seem to have a knack for attracting ponies and creatures from foreign lands, and she does like meeting them.”

Just as Nighttide nodded, the front door opened to reveal Fluttershy, followed by an entourage of colorful ponies. “Sorry it took me so long, Twilight. Nighttide and I were chatting for a bit after you left.”

“It's alright; we were just chatting as well.” Twilight glanced at Nighttide with a grin before standing up to greet her friends.

Nighttide slowly sat up on her haunches to watch the new visitors pile into the house. There was an orange pony with an oddly-shaped hat and three apples on her flank, a white unicorn with an elegant mane and blue gems on her flank, a light blue pegasus with a colorful mane and a lightning bolt on her flank, and—

“So, this must be the new guy in town,” the blue pegasus shouted from above the group.

“Twilight, should you do the introductions?” Fluttershy asked.

“Sure!” Taking a spot between the mares, she said, “Nighttide, these are our friends. This is Rainbow Dash.” Twilight suggested to the blue pegasus who flew down between them.

“Glad to meet ya, Nighttide!” As the two shook hooves, Rainbow Dash gawked at the mare’s hair. “Whoa, cool mane!”

Nighttide stared blankly at Rainbow Dash's bright, prismatic mane. “Uh… cool mane yourself.”

“This here is Applejack,” Twilight said, suggesting to the orange pony.

“Howdy, partner! Welcome to Equestria!” Applejack walked up and gave Nighttide a firm hoofshake.

“This is Rarity.” Twilight suggested toward the white unicorn.

The unicorn eyed Nighttide up and down for a couple seconds before stepping closer. A faint glint formed in her eyes as they reflected the sheen of Nighttide's body. “Greetings, Nighttide. You simply must tell me who your fashion designer is – I adore your color scheme!”

Nighttide cocked her head aside. “Actually, this is just—”

“Hey, wait a sec,” Twilight interrupted. “Where's Pinkie Pie?”

“Well,” Applejack said, “she was the last one we needed to pick up, and sure 'nuff, soon as we found her and told her there was a new pony in town—”

“Let me guess: she gasped and took off running, right?”

“Eeyup.”

Twilight sighed and threw a hoof to her forehead. “That Pinkie…” Walking back up to the couch, she said, “Sorry Nighttide, but you're going to have to wait to meet Pinkie Pie. Every time she hears a new pony's in town, she has to throw them a party.”

“A party?”

“Yes.”

Nighttide squinted at her. “…For every new pony?”

Twilight nodded sternly. “That's right.”

Nighttide looked away for a second, confusion glazing over her face. “But how can you…” She tilted her head ever so slightly, causing a few of the others to giggle.

“Don't worry,” Twilight reassured her, “it'll all make sense once you meet her.”

“Since when does Pinkie ever make sense, Twi?” Rainbow commented from above.

__________

Once everyone had given their greetings, the group took to mingling with one another while Fluttershy stepped away to prepare some refreshments. After taking a moment to speak with her friends, Twilight sat back next to Nighttide. “Alright, so I guess the first order of business is finding a way to fix your leg. Obviously I haven't had much time to do research, but while I was back at the library, I grabbed a couple of books on spells that have to do with manipulating objects in a confined space.” She cleared her throat and eyed the saddlebag over on the other side of the house. “It's fairly advanced magic. I'm not sure if it will come in much use, but since your legs are made up of machinery, I may be able to use them. Can you tell me if anything is physically missing from your leg?”

“Aside from hydraulic fluid, no,” Nighttide answered. “The damage is moderate, but everything's still there.”

“Alright then, I think I have an idea. If you can provide me with an idea of how your leg works and where everything needs to be, I may be able to use my magic to put everything back together. Minus the fluid you were talking about.”

“Which is a problem. Without the fluid, I can't operate my legs.”

“Do you know where we could find some?”

“It's a petrol product, made from other materials. Do you ponies have machinery or equipment that requires lubrication under pressure?”

“I'm sure we probably do, but I'm not personally familiar with things like that.” Twilight tapped a hoof to her chin. “There is someone we know who is pretty skilled at mixing stuff together, though. At the very least, she may be able to help guide us in the right direction.”

“Who is this pony?”

“Zecora. Well, technically, she's not a pony. She's a zebra.” Nighttide's ears perked up. Assuming she had never heard of them before, Twilight continued. “Zebras are a distant relative to our kind, and Zecora lives in the Everfree Forest.”

The thought of a unique race related to ponies sparked Nighttide's curiosity. She had never heard of such a thing in her homeland. Losing sight of the matter at hoof, she pointedly asked, “Can you describe this 'zebra' to me?”

“Uh, sure.” Squinting in thought, Twilight said, “They have stripes… their manes are usually thicker than ours… and they're originally from a land far from here.” She shrugged. “Honestly, Zecora is the only zebra I know. Everything else I know about them is either from books or straight from her.”

Nighttide nodded, trying to picture this 'zebra' in her mind. Her systems were already doing a search for related information to see if anything matched up in her knowledgebase. Nothing.

“Anyway,” Twilight said, “there's still a bit of daylight left. I can go check with her and see if she can help out. We have a plan to fix your leg, now we just need to get that fluid.” Twilight stood up and turned to the door, looking back with a smile. “How's that sound?”

“Sounds like a plan,” Nighttide said, a little surprised by how much this stranger was going out of her way to help out. Before Twilight walked outside, she said, “Could you perhaps see if Zecora would stop by as well?”

There was a hint of curiosity in her voice, almost like that of a school foal learning something new for the first time – and Twilight was quick to pick up on it. Stifling a giggle, she said, “I'll be sure to ask if she would come pay us a visit.”

“Thanks for that.” Nighttide smiled a little as she waved the pony off.

Soon after Twilight was out the door, Rainbow Dash flew over next to Nighttide. “Hey, where'd Twilight go?”

“To a zebra named Zecora's house.”

“Seriously? Why's she going to the Everfree Forest just to visit her?”

“Apparently, Zecora may be able to help repair my leg.”

Rainbow took a closer look at the mare's injured leg, noticing the sheen of its alloy surface. She gave it a knock with the back of her hoof, and quickly recoiled in pain. “Ouch— hey, what gives! You're hard as a rock!”

Nighttide smirked. “Alloy. And I am not. This is just my suit and legs. They're made of metal.”

Rainbow tilted her head each way as she continued to examine the shiny surface. “It looks so… heavy.”

Nighttide snorted. “Yes, it is a little heavy. But it doesn't slow me down.”

Rainbow was clearly not convinced. “I dunno. How can you even run in this thing?”

“Well, I have to. My legs are artificial.”

Rainbow Dash blinked at her. “So, these aren't your real legs?”

“Nope.”

“Can…” Rainbow bit her lip for a second, then said, “Can I ask what happened?”

Nighttide idly glanced around the room. “How about another time?”

“Fair enough.” Shifting her gaze back to the mare’s legs, she said, “Well, lemme ask you this. You said you can run in these. But just how fast can you run?”

“My last test clocked me in at around 50kph.”

“Sooo… how fast is that?”

Nighttide furrowed her brow at the mare, confused as to the line of questioning. “Faster than most land creatures in our world. Even faster than some of the birds we have.”

“On the ground?!”

“Yeah. In case you haven't noticed, I'm not a 'pegasus', as you ponies call it.” Nighttide leaned her head to the side to look at the pegasus’ collapsed wings.

Noticing where Nighttide was staring, Rainbow Dash spread her wings with a smug grin and stepped forward. “Tell you what. Once you're feeling better, how 'bout you and I go for a race? I'm the fastest in the air, but…” She paused for a moment and looked around, lowering her voice to a whisper. “Even I have a challenge keeping up with ponies like Applejack on the ground.” She glanced back at the orange pony across the room to make sure she couldn’t hear. “And I'm always up for a good challenge. If you say you're fast, then prove it!”

Nighttide reared her head back from the mare slightly, taken aback by the sudden proposal. Nevertheless, she liked Rainbow’s spirit. Hesitant as she was, there was a part of her that did indeed want to get to know her better. After mulling it over for a moment, she relaxed and said, “If I'm still around when I'm back up to speed, you and I can go for a race.”

“Awright! This is gonna be so awesome!” Rainbow kicked off the ground and did a mid-air flip, then flew over to tell Applejack the news. Nighttide stared blankly for a moment before a smirk instinctively made its away across her muzzle. Something about the idea was just... fun, she thought.

“So, Nighttide,” Rarity called out as she walked over from the two. “Where did you say you were from again?”

“I didn't, actually… That's strange. Twilight never asked.” Nighttide pondered the point before continuing. “Anyway, my homeland is a place called Roanne. Have any of you ponies heard of it?”

“I can't say that we have, no.”

“That's what I figured. It's part of a large continent, which is otherwise surrounded by water and islands.”

“That sounds like an interesting place. What's it like?”

Nighttide's ears folded slightly as she glanced away. “Dreary.”

Rarity tilted her head. “Come again?”

“It's hard to explain since it's what I've lived with almost my whole life, but…” She narrowed her eyes. “It's dim. And wet. Unlike your land.”

Rarity pursed her lips at that. Behind the mare, Applejack trotted up to join the conversation. “So, Nighttide, whatcha' do for a livin’?”

“A lot of nothing,” Nighttide muttered. Sitting a little more upright, she continued. “Technically, I play an important role for the government. Like I was telling Fluttershy and Twilight earlier…” She cleared her throat and looked away in preparation for a negative reaction. “I'm a war pony.”

“A… a-what now, dear?” Rarity asked, leaning closer.

“A war pony. Cyborg, specifically. I'm part-machine, part-pony.” Nighttide took the next minute to fill the two in on what she had told Twilight earlier while Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash set out some refreshments.

“So,” Applejack said after a bit, “you’re tellin' me that when the government gives a holler, you go out and do their biddin’?”

“More or less,” Nighttide said with a shrug.

“My goodness, dear,” Rarity remarked, “that sounds like a dreadful job.”

“Honestly, I haven't even started my job yet. I'm just… a project.” The more Nighttide thought about it, the more it brought her spirits down. ‘Come to think of it,’ she realized, ‘this is the first time in awhile that I’ve felt this comfortable around others.’ Fluttershy seemed to have been the perfect gateway to communing with these other ponies, and she didn't want her home life to disrupt any of that.

“It all sounds a might bit dangerous,” Applejack admitted. “But if Fluttershy and Twilight trust ya, then I trust ya as well.”

“The same goes for me as well,” Rarity chimed in.

Nighttide breathed a chuckle and smiled at the two. “Thanks for that. It's nice for once to meet some ponies who aren't completely turned off by all of this.”

“Well, we'd sure like to be your friends as well, given that's alright with you?” Applejack gave her an honest smile and Rarity nodded in agreement.

Nighttide’s smile suddenly faltered. “That's… mmm. Thank you. It's just…”

“It's just what, dear?” Rarity asked.

A knot formed in Nighttide’s throat. She gulped through the sensation and said, “Give me some time, everypony. This is all very new and unfamiliar to me. Plus, I don't know how long I'll be in the area. This all kind of happened by accident, anyway.” She wanted to say more, as she simply couldn't understand why these ponies were being both so friendly and so trusting, but anxiety was quickly creeping in. After all, she was in a foreign land with foreign ponies - with foreign appendages to boot - and as comfortable as she had become in Fluttershy's cottage, the unfamiliarity of everything was still distressing to her.

Applejack spotted the nervousness forming in her expression. “Don't worry, Nighttide. Fluttershy gave us the rough version of what happened on the way here — er, at least as much as she knew.”

“Right. Well…” Nighttide glanced away as she ran a hoof through the back of her mane. “It's a lot of technobabble. Honestly, I'm not really sure what happened myself. All I know is I was in one place, and the next thing I knew, I was here. I have no clue how far I am from home; it's a little alarming I've never heard of this place, and you all haven't heard of mine.”

“Well,” Rarity said, “that does sound like something Twilight could help out with.”

Nighttide nodded. “She's convened a meeting for me with your Princess Celestia tomorrow. I'll probably end up giving her most of the details then.” She looked over at her injured leg. “Right now, I'd just like to be back on my hooves again.”

Applejack chuckled. “Can't say I blame ya.” She glanced over at Rarity for a second, then said, “Well, we're not gonna push ya into anything you're not alright with. If you want to be friends, that's great. Just do whatever feels right to ya.”

“Agreed,” Rarity added. “We don't want to make you uncomfortable during your stay.”

Nighttide returned both mares a weak smile. “Thank you. You're both very kind.”

Having finished setting out the refreshments, Fluttershy approached the group. “Would anyone like some tea and cupcakes? I have some left from Pinkie's last batch.”

Everyone chimed in their approvals, and Nighttide gave an earnest nod. Unable to move from her spot on the sofa, Fluttershy brought over a cup of tea and a saucer with a cupcake on it. Nighttide scanned the cupcake, identifying many of the same materials used in fresh-baked goods back home.

Fluttershy noticed her staring at the cupcake. “Is there something wrong?”

“No,” Nighttide said with a wave of her free hoof. “It's just, with everything being so different here, I have to make sure whatever I intake isn't harmful. It seems as far as food and water are concerned, you ponies have the same things we do. At least they're made of the same ingredients.” Nighttide took a bite out of the cupcake, and her eyes widened with a gleam. “On second thought, these aren't the same. These are amazing. What in the world…?”

Fluttershy smiled. “Oh, those are Pinkie's own cupcakes. She puts a lot of love into making each batch.”

Nighttide sat upright with her cupcake in one hoof and tea in the other. “I must meet this Pinkie Pie.”

“Well, how about you meet her RIGHT NOW,” a shrill voice sounded from outside the cottage.

Suddenly, the front door burst open with a whirlwind of confetti and streamers. Beneath the cloud of party favors waltzed a bright pink pony with a huge curly mane and balloons on her flank, pushing a cannon through the door’s opening.

Nighttide scrambled upright on the sofa and unlocked all of her weapons to prepare for a full assault, right as Fluttershy spoke up. “Pinkie, what are you doing here?”

“That's what I should be asking all of YOU,” Pinkie shouted with a scowl. “Why didn't anypony tell me you guys would be here?”

Seeing this was the Pinkie Pie mentioned before, Nighttide quietly locked all of her weapons and sank a little into the cushions, hoping nopony noticed.

“Well,” Applejack said, “if you hadn't run off like ya did, we could've told you where we were goin’”

“But guys, the party?! You know how this works!”

“Why ‘ont we ‘ust haff it hurr?” Rainbow Dash suggested above through a cupcake-filled mouth.

“Hey, yeah! Let's do that! Glad I brought my cannon!”

__________

Within minutes, the cottage was filled with balloons and even more refreshments that seemed to appear from thin air as Pinkie Pie bounced around setting things up.

Nighttide was visibly entertained. When she let slip that she had never seen balloons like theirs before, Pinkie collected most of the ones she had placed around the room and hoofed them to her. When she went to sniff one, it popped in her face, causing her to nearly cartwheel off the couch.

“WHOA! Wha… what happened!” Nighttide scrunched her nose as a piece of the popped balloon gently fell on top of her muzzle. Everypony in the room burst into a fit of laughter.

“Well, whatcha think?” Pinkie Pie asked after the giggles died down. She was clearly eager to make the mare happy.

She appeared to be doing a good job too, as Nighttide looked around at all the balloons she was holding with wide eyes and a dreamy expression. “They're so small. And there's so many colors! It's like... I dunno, Rainbow Dash if she were made out of elastic and helium?”

Rainbow Dash's ears perked up from the other side of the room. “Um, should I take offense to that?”

Nighttide sat straight up and frantically waved a hoof. “No no, sorry! I was just analyzing the compounds that make up these party favors! I didn't mean to off—”

Rainbow Dash laughed at the panicking mare. “I'm just teasin' ya, Nighttide. Relax! Have fun!” Nighttide nodded and grinned nervously as the pegasus walked off, who was now mumbling something about there being another egghead in Equestria. Off in a corner, Fluttershy had a smile of her own. She was quite happy to see her guest in high spirits.

Several minutes passed as everypony enjoyed their refreshments and got to know Nighttide a little better. Pinkie was eventually caught up to speed as much as everypony else, asking at one point, “So does this mean you can shoot confetti whenever you want too?” Nighttide also better explained to everyone how her suit worked and a little bit about where she was from, wanting to save the important details for her meet with Princess Celestia. As much as she was enjoying herself, being stuck on the sofa with nothing to do but eat, talk, and stare at balloons was exhausting. Before long, she was craving another nap. But before she could get too comfortable, Twilight returned with a most unusual looking creature following behind her.

Nighttide leaned forward on the edge of her cushions to get a better look when her breath caught in her throat, violet eyes wide and lost in the presence of the rugged pony-like creature now striding into the cottage. Staggered stripes of dark grey ran over lighter grey coat along her legs and across her back. A thick crop of mane ran down in a straight line from the tip of her forehead down the back of her neck, which appeared to be far coarser than typical pony mane. The creature wore several gold rings around her neck and one of her legs, and the mark on her flank looked resembled something like a sun.

Twilight spotted Nighttide's quite visible rapture while walking her friend inside, so wasting no time, she introduced the two. “Nighttide, this is my friend Zecora. Zecora, Nighttide.”

Zecora cantered up to sofa and extended a hoof to the mare. “Hello there, friend! Welcome to our wonderful land!”

Nighttide blinked, ears forward and perked, as she sat mesmerized by the zebra’s exotic accent. While her systems silently scanned the equine’s figure, she caught a whiff of a myriad of unknown and intoxicating scents wafting off the zebra's coat. Several seconds passed before she realized she hadn’t returned the greeting. “I-it’s nice to meet you, Zecora,” she stammered, stumbling to extend a hoof.

Zecora shook her hoof with confidence and a warm smile. “Some simple help I heard you need, for your wounded leg does bleed?”

Nighttide cocked her head slightly. “Um, yes. Do you think you could make some hydraulic fluid if you take a sample of it home? I have a list of the basic materials needed, but I'm not sure if you will be able to find them readily here in Equestria.”

Zecora looked over the mare's injured leg. As she kneeled down to examine the limb, she said, “Lend me home a sample to take, and I will see what I can make.”

Nighttide loosened the gauze around her leg just enough so that Zecora could get some of the fluid in a flask. As she was filling the flask, Twilight stepped in and spoke up. “Zecora, Princess Celestia is coming down tomorrow afternoon to meet with Nighttide. I would have preferred for us to travel to Canterlot ourselves, but considering Nighttide's condition, the Princess is choosing to fly down here instead. Do you think there's any way you can get the fluid before then?”

“I will do what I can do,” Zecora replied flatly to Twilight. Turning to Nighttide, she added, “And I will do my best for you!”

“Uh huh,” Nighttide muttered with a lost look. When Zecora shot her another smile, it took her every ounce of effort to keep from blushing.

Once the flask was filled, Nighttide gave Zecora her thanks, and the zebra took off for home. After talking with the others for a few minutes, Twilight walked over to her saddlebag and pulled out a couple of small tomes, carrying them over to the couch. “So, those are the books?” Nighttide asked.

“Yes. In these, I may be able to learn a spell that will fix the damaged parts of your leg. Do you have a way to detail the parts I'll be working with?”

“Sure do.” With a twitch, Nighttide switched on a holographic projector built into her back. Within seconds, a green-speckled image of her leg's basic schematics began floating over the mare's back.

Everypony in the room looked over at Nighttide in awe. “My goodness,” Rarity said. “What in Equestria is that?”

“A hologram,” Nighttide answered. “It's a device that displays an artificial image without need for a solid surface.”

Twilight's jaw dropped at the sight. In all the magic she had witnessed over the years, the fact that such a thing could exist with no magic was astonishing to her. “Nighttide, what…? How…? I don't even know where to begin.” Blinking at the steadily brightening image, she said, “How does something like that work?”

“It's a bit complicated.” Nighttide glanced back at the hologram with a tired smirk. “For now, let's just say it works. The sooner I'm on my hooves, the sooner I'll feel up to answering everypony's questions – and asking some of my own. Right now, I'm just ready to get off this couch.”

Twilight nodded with a sigh. After laying the books across the floor and flipping to specific pages, she took to studying Nighttide’s hologram.

As the minutes rolled by, the other ponies began to head home, each bidding their adieus to Nighttide in passing. “Don't forget about that race,” Rainbow Dash called back as she was walking out the door.

“Got it,” Nighttide replied with a smile and a wave.

Pinkie was the last one to leave, having stayed behind to help clean the party mess and bid Nighttide a very loud – and very musical – welcome to Equestria. Eventually, it was just her, Twilight, and Fluttershy.

Twilight continued to study the books and hologram in silence while Fluttershy brought in a couple blankets. Since it was the beginning of spring, she made sure to keep plenty of warm things on-hoof for the chilly nights. “Here Twilight, in case you get cold.”

“Thanks, Fluttershy.” Twilight lay down on the floor with the books so she could read more comfortably while Fluttershy sat on the chair beside Nighttide, enjoying a cup of warm tea only after everypony else had been served.

By this point, Nighttide was pretty drowsy, but wanting to stay awake for Twilight, she tried to keep some conversation flowing. “Fluttershy, may I ask what you do for a living?”

“Well, for the most part, I take care of the creatures that live around here. I just love to care for all my forest friends.”

Nighttide gave a single nod. “What about you, Twilight?”

Twilight let out a nervous giggle and glanced at Fluttershy. “Um… well, technically, I'm a princess.”

Nighttide sat back with a confused look. “Then why is it necessary for me to meet with Princess Celestia?”

“Even though I'm a princess, I'm not the ruler of all Equestria, like Celestia and Luna. My sister-in-law, Cadance, she's a princess as well and rules over the Crystal Empire.”

“So, does that make you the ruler of Ponyville?”

Twilight dabbed at the floor with a hoof. “Not exactly. I'm still trying to figure out what being a 'princess' really means for me.”

Picking up on Twilight's discomfort, Nighttide nodded and let the subject drop. Even though she didn't know these ponies very well, she was careful to not prod too far for fear of hurting their feelings – or alienating herself from the group.

A few more minutes passed before Twilight sat up, looking a little more enthusiastic. “Alright, I think I'm ready to give this a shot.”

At the same time, a knock came from the front door. Fluttershy opened it to find Zecora standing with two small pots hanging over each side of her back. “What you need now I have brought; it will help you, or it will not.”

“Thank you so much, Zecora,” Twilight said. “You're just in time. I'm about to attempt to fix Nighttide's leg right now.” Zecora dropped off the two pots of murky liquid and bid the group a good night, as she still had things left to do at home.

Fluttershy and Nighttide watched from their seats while Twilight closed her books. She then walked over to Nighttide’s injured leg and lit her horn, squinting right where the damage was located. After a moment, Nighttide detected movement inside her leg. The intensity of Twilight's magic increased as she focused her attention on the spell and the damage within the leg. In a moment, she was all but completely hunkered down to the ground and seemed to be struggling to get things just right, as magic began to spark off the tip of her horn.

The scene lasted for two long and arduous minutes, and nearing the end, both Fluttershy and Nighttide began to visibly worry about Twilight. Just as Nighttide was about to move, Twilight barked through gritted teeth, “No! Stay still! I'm… almost there…”

A few seconds later, Twilight's horn went dark, and the alicorn fell to the floor with a huff. Rolling onto her back panting, she looked up at Nighttide. “There! Try… that now.”

Using the little bit of fluid contained in her backup reservoir, Nighttide instructed her systems to refill the leg. After a moment, she felt some movement in her joints. Soon, she was able to move each part again, from top to bottom, with no issue.

Astounded at this literal work of magic, Nighttide said, “I think it worked! My systems are showing green for this leg!”

A little dazed and confused, Twilight spat up, “Huh… green. I guess that's good?”

“Yup. It means everything is as it should be. Fluttershy, can you bring me the fluid Zecora brought?”

Opening a square cover near her flank, Nighttide instructed Fluttershy to carefully pour the fluid into an orifice within until her systems checked twenty percent capacity. She cycled the fluid and analyzed its molecular makeup. While it wasn't exactly hydraulic fluid, it did have the necessary properties to serve the purpose. Fluttershy then poured the rest of the fluid, using both pots until Nighttide's system registered a comfortable eighty percent.

As Twilight regained her strength, so did Nighttide. Soon, the mare was on all four hooves again and moving around with relative ease. “How wonderful, Twilight,” Fluttershy quietly cheered, “she's able to walk again!”

“Uuuggghhh,” Twilight groaned from the floor. “Can I go home now?”

Nighttide giggled as she and Fluttershy helped her impromptu mechanic back to her hooves. “Thank you again, Twilight. I've never had anyone personally go out of their way just for me – not in a long time, at least.”

Breathing a sigh, Twilight wiped her brow and said, “Well, I'm just glad I was able to help. Now, are you planning to stay the night here, or do you still need a place?”

Nighttide looked over at Fluttershy. “Oh, yes, of course,” Fluttershy said. “Would you like to stay here, Nighttide?”

“Sure. I don't know of anywhere else to go. Plus,” Nighttide added, “you ponies have been a lot of help. And I still need to find a way home. If it's not too much of a burden, I would like to continue to ask for your help while I try to figure out how I got here in the first place.”

“Of course,” Twilight said, “that's not a problem at all. We've got plenty to discuss tomorrow anyway, so that'll help us figure out how to help you.” She glanced over at Fluttershy with a tired smile briefly before saying, “On an unrelated note, what did you think of our friends?”

Nighttide gave a soft chuckle. “They seem like a very warm bunch of ponies. It was... really nice, actually. I enjoyed myself quite a bit tonight.”

“That's great to hear! I was hoping you might be able to make some friends during your stay here.”

Nighttide nearly choked at the sudden mention of friendship again. Collecting herself, she said, “Yes, well. Thank you for that. I already talked with Applejack and Rarity about this earlier, but… as far as friends go, I'm going to have to take it a little slow. I don't have the greatest track record with friends.”

“What do you mean?” Fluttershy asked.

“Let's save it for another time,” Nighttide said, stretching her neck before yawning. “I don't know about you two, but I'm exhausted.”

Twilight gave Nighttide a playful smirk. “Yeah, I'm sure you're exhausted after resting on Fluttershy's couch all day.”

Nighttide returned the smirk. “Well, try warping through space and time to a different world, then see how you feel afterward.”

Twilight blinked at that. Nighttide suddenly realized she hadn’t explained the experiment that led her here, but before she could say anything, Twilight gave her a strange sort of knowing look. “I’d be careful what you say if I were you,” she said as she walked out the door. “Who's to say I don't know?” With a smile and a flick of her tail, Twilight was on her way home.

“Uh…” Nighttide turned to Fluttershy and pointed at the front door. “Does she…?” Before Fluttershy could say something, Nighttide sighed and hung her head. “Actually, nevermind. Between wings and magic, I think everything can wait 'til tomorrow.”

__________

After feeding the animals inside the house, Fluttershy led Nighttide to an upstairs bedroom. “Will this be alright for the night?”

Nighttide looked around the pleasantly decorated room, largely adorned with bird homes and plant life. The open ceiling above exposed the wooden framework that held together the apex of the roof. The furnishing and construction of the modestly sized bedroom gave it a natural atmosphere unlike any that Nighttide could ever remember experiencing back home. She turned to the pegasus with a tired smile. “More than alright. Thank you for your hospitality, Fluttershy.”

“Oh, it's no problem at all,” Fluttershy said, turning back for the hall. “If you need anything, I'll be downstairs on the couch.”

Nighttide's expression broke. “Whoa, wait a sec. This isn't a guest bedroom? Please, don't let me—”

“Oh no, it's fine,” Fluttershy insisted. “You've had a very long day. I want you to get the best sleep possible. You deserve it.” She gave a small, sweet smile before walking back downstairs.

Wondering if she should argue the point or not, Nighttide turned and gazed at the comfortable looking bed – a far cry from the sofa she had been resting on for most of the day. Fatigue won the battle in her mind, and she decided to accept her gracious host's offer.

Enjoying the ability to move about freely, Nighttide explored the small, cozy room, noticing the big butterfly-patterned comforter that lay across the bed. She walked up to one of the windows and looked outside at the clear night sky, daylight long since having settled. She crossed her forelegs on the window sill and stared out at the starry canopy. 'Been a long time since I've seen this as well,' Nighttide thought to herself. 'My namesake. The time between dusk and dawn.'

“As much as I want to see the sun,” she murmured aloud, “it's just nice to not see any rain for once.”

Chapter 4 - Celestial Counsel

’Warm. Cozy. Perfect.’

Nighttide let loose a long yawn as the light of the morning sun shone over her closed eyes. She nuzzled against her pillow and pulled the covers further up her barrel, the warmth of which seeped pleasantly through her alloy suit. Not a voice or command or anything of any sort begged her to rise, which almost felt as foreign as the world around her. As she adjusted to the light streaming through the windows, she could hear a few birds chirping merrily outside. She also smelled something very yummy wafting from downstairs.

“Oh yeah. I could get used to this,” she said to herself as she slid out of bed. After stretching her mechanical limbs, Nighttide walked downstairs to find Fluttershy feeding her animals in the living area.

The pegasus looked up from a bag of feed she was pouring into a bowl. “Oh, good morning Nighttide. Did you sleep well?”

Looking a bit worse for wear, her mane and tail strewn all over the place, Nighttide said, “Yup. Totally the best sleep ever.”

Fluttershy smiled, a little bit of sleep still evident in the haziness of her eyes. “That’s wonderful. If you’d like, you can use the upstairs bathroom to tidy up some.”

Feeling more than a little grody, Nighttide smirked at the offer. “Sounds good. But, uh… do I smell something cooking?”

“Oh, yes! I decided I would make us some breakfast. Do pancakes sound good to you?”

Her mouth immediately watering, Nighttide replied, “Please tell me butter is a thing here, too.”

Fluttershy giggled. “Yes, of course.”

Nighttide scampered in place. “That sounds amazing! Thank you so much! I’ll get cleaned up right now!” And with that, she scurried back up the stairs.

__________

A few minutes later, Nighttide trotted into the dining room, sporting her layered mane and a shiny suit. “Thanks for letting me freshen up some. Definitely feel a lot better.”

“You’re very welcome. You can have a seat there if you’d like.” Fluttershy suggested a seat across from the table she sat at, where pancakes and juice were laid out in a most quaint fashion.

“Oh Fluttershy, this looks absolutely amazing,” Nighttide said as she took her seat. “You did all of this yourself?”

“Yes! It’s not often that I get to cook for a guest.” Fluttershy gave her guest a warm smile as she offered her some pancakes.

The two enjoyed a quiet meal together, Nighttide devouring all but half of the stack available to her. The creatures around them also partook in breakfast time, and the birds outside continued to serenade them in the background.

Nighttide could barely contain herself. Everything about this place, everything that had happened so far – it was so out of context from what she was used to, and yet it had been one of the most pleasant experiences she could recall. She always liked trying new things as a filly, but having been kept at the Ridley facility for so long, she had all but forgotten what it was like to be swept up in something so utterly new and unknown.

But then she remembered her vow to herself last night. Her guard having been brought down in such a quick fashion, she promised to be more cautious throughout the day. At the same time, she also remembered the words of the Princess.

“Oh, that’s right,” Nighttide blurted out with a little food in her mouth. “Last night, I ran into Princess Luna.”

“You did?” Fluttershy asked, her eyes widening.

“Yep. Said she wanted to meet with me while she had a chance… which I guess means I won’t see her today with Princess Celestia.”

“Perhaps not,” Fluttershy noted. “Speaking of, I have to run into town to take care of some errands, and I’m sure Twilight will need to meet with you soon. Would you like to join me?”

“Sure.” Nighttide downed some juice and graciously thanked Fluttershy for the meal.

After a bit, Nighttide and Fluttershy embarked for Ponyville, the pegasus sporting a small saddlebag that allowed the use of her wings. As they walked together, Nighttide continued to glance over at Fluttershy, eyeing her collapsed wings. Fluttershy noticed a couple of her glances and eventually asked, “Is there something wrong?”

“I just can’t get over the wings,” Nighttide said with breathy fascination. “I mean, we have stuff that allows us to fly in my homeland, but we’ve never heard of a pony who was born with wings.”

Fluttershy blushed as she returned her attention forward. “Well, how do your ponies fly?”

“Using machines. We use machines to do a lot of things we can’t do otherwise, like fly.”

“What do these ‘machines’ look like?”

Nighttide hummed in thought for a moment. “Well, there are all kinds of flying machines. Some are large and round, and use helium to float – not unlike Pinkie’s balloons. Some are small and streamlined; those use a principle based very much off of how your wings work, using lift and drag to raise and lower altitude with wind and propulsion.”

“What an interesting world you come from.”

Nighttide shrugged. “Maybe to someone who’s not used to it all. Kinda like how this place is fascinating to me!”

Passing the farm on the left, Nighttide noticed some cattle grazing on the grass outside. ‘Now here is one creature we do have back home,’ she thought. Her analysis from last night recorded much of the same information, but she still wondered to herself if there might be some differences. Just as they were passing by, she swore she saw one of them wink at her. “Uh, Flutter—”

“Hey, Fluttershy!” Applejack rounded the bend near Ponyville toward the two, towing a wooden wagon behind her.

“Oh, hi Applejack,” Fluttershy greeted. “What are you doing out here?”

“‘Bout to go check on the east orchard.” She turned to Nighttide and tipped her hat. “How’s everything goin’?”

“Pretty good,” Nighttide said with a smile. “We’re heading to Ponyville so I can meet with Twilight.”

“Gotcha. Well, hope I catcha’ round then!” Applejack continued on her way as Fluttershy and Nighttide entered town.

‘Huh! Well, this is a completely different scene from last night,’ Nighttide thought to herself. The town was bustling with ponies here and there, windows were swung open, wonderful smells of all sort filled the air, and there was an overall sense of happiness and well-being all around.

“Whoa… it’s like a fairy-tale land,” Nighttide remarked to Fluttershy. Just as they turned left, they ran into Rarity crossing the street.

“Well hello there Fluttershy, Nighttide,” Rarity gave a cordial greeting.

“Hello yourself,” Nighttide replied, feeling a bit more relaxed thanks to the pleasant surroundings. “What’s up?”

“Oh, well, I’m just gathering some materials for my latest fashion line,” Rarity said with a glance to her saddlebags. Clearing her throat, she looked back and said, “Nighttide, dear. Please tell me you will be in town long enough for me to try out some designs on you.” She gave the mare a slightly pleading look, which Nighttide was not at all expecting. “It would be an absolute delight if I could design something to match your unique… er, ensemble? I suppose you would call it?”

Running a hoof through the back of her mane, Nighttide said, “Uh… well, to be honest, I really have no idea what’s going to happen next, especially after I meet with Princess Celestia.”

“Well, if it so happens you will have an extended stay here in Ponyville, do be sure to stop by my shop and let me give a few ideas a try! Free of charge!” Her eyes sparkled with desire, and Nighttide couldn’t help but giggle a little at the pony’s enthusiasm.

“Alright, so long as you promise nothing too fancy,” she said with a slight smirk.

“Of course not, my dear! Why on earth would I ever do such a thing?” The unicorn was clearly miffed, sporting a tense smile that failed to hide her disappointment. Nevertheless, she quickly recovered and said, “Well, best be on my way! You two have a good day, now!”

“See you later, Rarity,” Fluttershy called back. After a few minutes, they rounded a corner toward a large tree. As the two trotted forward, Fluttershy looked over at Nighttide with a smile. “This is where Twilight lives.”

“Oh!… In a tree?” Nighttide said casually, not wanting to let on just how far she had been out last night.

“Yes. This is also the Golden Oak Library.”

Nighttide arched an eyebrow. ‘To think that a pony would live in a library!’

Fluttershy went ahead of Nighttide and knocked on the door. After a moment, a small purple and green creature with scales opened the door. “Hey Fluttershy,” the creature called up to her, fatigue still clear in its tone. “What’re you doing up so early?”

“Hi, Spike. I’ve brought a new friend with me today. She’s here to meet with Twilight!”

Spike rubbed his eyes before muttering, “Oh yeah, isn’t her name Nightlight or somethin’?”

Nighttide stifled a giggle, then peeked around from behind Fluttershy to get a better look.

“Whoa…” Spike’s slit pupils grew wide at the sight of the strange mare. “Is that her?”

“Yes,” Fluttershy said as she turned to face the mare in question. “Nighttide, this is Spike, Twilight’s assistant.”

The little creature walked up to Nighttide and extended a claw to shake. “Nice to meet you, Nighttide!”

“G-greetings, Spike,” she said, extending her hoof to shake his claw. “And, um… wh-what exactly are you? If uh, that’s not... an offensive thing to ask,” she said nervously, taking a step back and averting her gaze.

“I’m a dragon!” Spike said, thrusting his arms against his sides with a proud grin. “Well, a baby dragon, but still a dragon!”

“A dragon?” Nighttide glanced curiously at Fluttershy. Before she could respond, Twilight appeared in the doorway.

“Hey you two!” Twilight said with a bright smile. “I’m glad you girls are here! I was just about to come get Nighttide.” She invited the two inside and offered them some refreshments, which they gratefully declined. As they were seated, Nighttide continued to watch the ‘dragon’ Spike as he walked around the library, picking up books to put back on the shelves.

When Twilight stepped away to grab herself some coffee, Nighttide redirected her attention to the rest of the room. It was magnificently crafted. Shelves carved through the trunk of the tree surrounded the circular living space, housing all sorts of books. A loft area sat visible just overhead acting as a second floor, and there was an opening on the far end of the room leading into a small kitchen. A couple windows had been built into the smooth walls of the tree’s trunk, allowing plenty of natural light inside.

“This is some sort of setup,” Nighttide remarked with an airy tone as she continued to examine her surroundings.

“Thanks,” Twilight replied as she stepped back into the room from the kitchen, floating a mug close to her muzzle. “This is the Golden Oak Library. Spike and I live here as well.”

“That’s what Fluttershy told me. But, may I ask why, exactly, you two live in a library?”

“Heh, well,” Twilight started as she placed her mug on an end table, “it wasn’t meant to be our permanent home at first. Princess Celestia originally sent me to Ponyville to organize the Summer Sun Celebration, but she gave me another assignment while here: to learn the magic of friendship.”

Nighttide blinked. “That’s a rather abstract assignment.”

“I thought so as well, but it turned out to be the greatest assignment ever,” Twilight said as she shot a smile to Fluttershy, who returned it in earnest. “I told the Princess that I wanted more time to study, and she told me that Spike and I could move here instead!”

“You said you were originally from Canterlot?”

“That’s correct.”

“So, what affiliation do you have with Princess Celestia?”

“Well…” Twilight considered how to answer her question as she organized a stack of books beside her desk. “First off, I’ve not always been a princess. When I was still a filly, my parents tried to enroll me in Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, but when I took the entrance exam, I nearly failed it. If it hadn’t been for Rainbow Dash’s Sonic Rainboom, I probably would have.”

“Sonic Rainboom?” Nighttide’s eyes widened with curiosity.

“Yep, one of Rainbow Dash’s famous techniques!” Twilight glanced over at the mare and giggled. Spotting the mare’s interest, she grabbed a chair and proceeded to fill in Nighttide on some of the history of her life in Ponyville, and the affiliation her friends have with each other. After a while, Fluttershy told the two she was going to continue on with her errands, leaving Nighttide with Twilight and Spike.

Once Twilight had filled her in on various facts and events, Nighttide said, “Again, like I was telling Fluttershy earlier, this place is like a fairy-tale – literally, like a place right out of a book.”

“Well, I hope it’s a good place at least?” Twilight asked with an uncertain tone.

Nighttide nodded as she looked around the library once again. “I don’t know what to say. We have stories about places kind of like this in my homeland, usually in things we call ‘nursery rhymes,’ but no place like this actually exists.”

“Which reminds me, we need to figure out what exactly happened to you. Can you fill me in on some of the details?”

“Right.” Nighttide told her the basics of what had taken place, wanting to save the finer details for her visit with Princess Celestia. She also did her best to explain the terminology and acronyms she was using. Twilight was equal parts curious and concerned at Nighttide’s story, and she pressed the importance of getting Princess Celestia involved.

“That’s another thing, actually,” Nighttide mentioned. “Last night, I went on a little walk… I woke up from a bad dream.” She averted her gaze as she continued. “While I was walking, I ran into your Princess Luna.”

Twilight blinked hard. “Princess Luna? Here? In Ponyville?!”

“N-not exactly,” Nighttide said, lifting her hoof. “I was just a little way down the road from Fluttershy’s when I ran into her. Or rather, she ran into me.” She chuckled a little. “I was kind of staring aimlessly at the night sky when she ran into me.”

Twilight furrowed her brow. “What was she doing out there?”

“She said she was looking for me, actually. Apparently, your Princess of the Night has a thing for dreams, and she was in mine.” Nighttide still wasn’t sure how to feel about this, but there was definitely a calming presence to Princess Luna that she couldn’t deny. “Princess Celestia forwarded the information you gave her, and she wanted to come out to meet me while she had some free time.”

Nighttide gave her a brief synopsis of their meet, including some of her personal history just to get it out of the way. Twilight was becoming more fascinated with Nighttide as she continued to reveal more about herself, but she was still concerned about the predicament she was in.

“Well, I guess that explains how you got here… more or less,” Twilight commented as she rubbed a hoof across her chin. “What it doesn’t explain is how far your home is from here. I’ve heard stranger things, but this is still a pretty complex situation.”

“Agreed. And considering your land doesn’t seem to have the same kind of technology, I’m really not sure how I’m supposed to get back home. My warp drive only does half the job. A device has to actually open the portal for me to travel through – all the warp drive does is digitize my body’s information.”

“I have to admit that I’ve never heard of such devices in my lifetime – at least not ones that weren’t tied to magic of some sort.”

“And without the technology, I see no means of opening a stable portal that will let me return home.”

Twilight pursed her lips in thought a moment. “Say we were to find a way to open a portal. From the way you’ve explained it, it sounds like someone on the other end has to be ready to ‘receive’ you. Is that correct?”

“Yes,” Nighttide said with a nod, “a junction center or pylon has to be calibrated and waiting for a transmission. What I do know is that emergency protocols mandated that my starting point in Complex 051 be ready to receive transmissions on all bands from all angles in the event of an accident such as this one. Technically, if I try to return home, I should be able to jump back there. At least up to a certain point - they won’t keep the bands open for me forever.”

“Then it’s just a matter of figuring out a way to open this portal.” Twilight breathed a sigh as she mulled over the information.

The situation seemed all but impossible to Nighttide. While she had half of the necessary equipment and the knowledge of how to open a portal, without a device to actually open it, there seemed to be no way home. The two sat in silence for some time, trying to think of an idea.

Eventually, Twilight spoke up. “We’re just going to have to wait until we speak with the Princess. At this point, I don’t know of any books or spells that have to do with travel like the kind you’ve described. It would be one thing if it were magic-based, but considering this is something ‘technological,’ I’m not sure if we can use magic here. We also don’t know what sort of distance we’re looking at between your home and here. If we’ve never heard of Roanne and you’ve never heard of Equestria, let alone pegasi, unicorns, magic… then there is something very significant going on here. ” Twilight’s ears then suddenly shot up. “Wait a minute. Your... hologram, you called it?” Stepping up, she said, “Is there a way you could show me a map or a globe of your home?”

Nighttide subsequently perked up at the statement. “Of course! Duh, I can do that! Can’t believe I didn’t think to do that yesterday,” she said as she stood up and opened the compartment in her back.

After a moment of the hologram warming up, one separate two-dimensional image of a map and a three-dimensional image of a globe glowed green above Nighttide.

And it didn’t take but a few seconds for Twilight to become visibly alarmed. “Nighttide...” She stepped closer to the image and scrutinized it thoroughly, narrowing her eyes at all the fine details. “I... this isn’t...” Blinking, she drew a breath and stepped back, then met Nighttide’s gaze. “This is a different planet.”

Nighttide stared blankly at the alicorn for a moment, eyes slowly widening. “You... you’re sure?” She turned her head to the side as far as she could to gesture to the image above her. “You’re absolutely sure?”

Twilight nodded seriously. “100% certain.”

For a moment, Nighttide’s gaze drifted to the floor. The image remained humming aglow over her. “I... guess I shouldn’t be surprised, but...” Shutting the image off, she said, “When you put it into so many words, it’s... just...”

Twilight watched as Nighttide’s expression swayed between terror and confusion. After a few seconds, she stepped a little in front of Nighttide and tried to meet her gaze. “Hey. I know this is scary. It is, empirically. But...” She paused a moment to consider how to continue, then said, “Well, even I have to keep some things confidential, but I can say that far crazier things have happened in my own life, and here in Equestria just in general.” When she noticed Nighttide dare her a glance, she added, “I know I’m a stranger, but I’m a stranger who wants to help. I’ll do whatever I can to help you get home.” She gave her a gentle smile. “I promise.”

Nighttide studied her expression for a moment before her focus drifted again to the floor. This was a lot to take in, and yet, it was nothing beyond the bounds of reason from what she had already encountered in just the past twenty-four hours. For all she knew, perhaps this was all a crazy dream - a byproduct of warp-drive use. Or maybe, just maybe, this actually was all real. Whatever the case, unless she suddenly woke up to the cold grey walls of Ridley at some point, she would have to put in work to ever see home again.

And there was no denying that wherever ‘here’ was, it wasn’t so bad.

In time, Nighttide lifted her head and drew a couple deep breaths. She then met Twilight’s worried gaze and proffered a dry chuckle. “So, uh... that Princess of yours we’re seeing today. Think she can help?”

Twilight breathed a sigh of relief. “Well, that’s my hope. At least that she may have some answers for us. I’m fairly studied on matters pertaining to magic, but I would never claim to be an expert in many other subjects. She may be able to give us some insight, or at least offer some support.”

“Well, that’s fine by me, I guess. I’m basically at you and your ponies’ mercy at this point anyway.” Although the situation was still worrying, Nighttide smiled instinctively at the thought of being able to stay in Equestria for a while. It was a strange sensation, the thought of being impossibly removed from home, and yet to find yourself somewhere that feels more like what a home is supposed to be.

“It’s still a few hours ‘til we’re supposed to meet with the Princess,” Twilight continued. “Now that you’re feeling better, would you mind if I contact her and see if we can meet her in Canterlot instead? I’d prefer to not have her travel unnecessarily.”

Nighttide shrugged. “Sure, go for it.”

“Hey Spike, didja’ get that?”

“‘…can we visit there instead?’ Got it.” Spike dotted the note he was already writing, and with a puff of green fire, the note vaporized and travelled out a nearby window.

Nighttide blinked at the sight. “Magic, I assume?”

“Yup,” Twilight said.

“Figured.”

__________

Nighttide and Twilight chatted in the library for a while to waste some time. Twilight told her more about Equestria and some of its history, and Nighttide did the same in return for Roanne. The two were equally fascinated with each other’s lands, and the more they talked, the more absorbed they grew, helping to alleviate some of Nighttide’s anxiety.

“So,” Nighttide asked with a smirk at one point, “you ponies have these magical tattoos stamped to your butt that represent your destiny?”

Twilight giggled with a blush. “Well, we call them ‘cutie marks’, but… yes, more or less.”

“Wow, what a crazy world you live in,” Nighttide said with a chuckle.

“Hah, I can say the same about yours!” As the two began to wind down from their main conversation, Twilight brought up another subject. “Hey, Nighttide. Last night, when Fluttershy and I asked you about the whole ‘friendship’ thing…”

Nighttide had been leaning back in the sofa for the last few minutes, comfortable and enjoying the conversation they had been having. But at the sound of this, she sat upright and furrowed her brow. “Right, about that… So, I mentioned yesterday that I’ve been stuck in one place for a couple years now. ‘Friends,’ if you can call them that - more like brief acquaintances - come and go about as quickly as commands do. With assignments and reassignments, some of us are relocated, while others move up this sort of ‘ladder’ of importance. Because of that, some ponies get jealous, while others just become afraid.”

Twilight tilted her head a little. “Have you ever had a friend of your own?”

“I have, sure. But… not like the kinds you have. It’s more or less been fillies and colts with similar interests – and similar frustrations. A lot of us don’t like being cooped up in one place all the time.”

“Who would?” Twilight rubbed her temples as she pictured what life must have been like for Nighttide. “I could never imagine being stuck here in the library, even if it does have books.”

“Exactly! So like, DIRE has its benefits – and technically, I owe them my life – but I wanted to be able to explore the world when I was younger. And, yeah, maybe I couldn’t have made a career out of just that, but I at least wanted to spread my wings somehow.” Nighttide looked down at her bare sides and thought of the pegasi and alicorns she had met. “Figuratively speaking, of course.”

Twilight chuckled. “Of course.”

“I can’t tell you how neat it’s been to have this experience, Twilight. I’m well aware of the responsibilities I have at home, and I’m not saying that I don’t want to go home. But…” She paused.

“Yes?” Twilight leaned forward a little.

“…I certainly wouldn’t mind getting to know you all a little better.”

Twilight smiled. “I think everyone feels the same way about you, Nighttide.”

Nighttide returned the smile. “Maybe it’s my turn to learn something about friendship.”

Twilight grinned with perked ears. “You know, that doesn’t sound like such a bad idea.” Off in a corner, Spike pointed his claw down his throat and rolled his eyes. Catching him out of her periphery, Twilight used her magic to toss a pillow at him, forcing him to scamper into the kitchen. Nighttide giggled at the scene.

“Well, whatever happens next, I’m glad to have met you, Twilight. And Fluttershy. And everypony else.”

“And we’re glad to have met you as well.” Twilight walked over to the sofa and gave Nighttide a light hug. Not quite sure how to react, she tensed up for a second, then let her body relax as she slid into her embrace.

‘I really could get used to this after all,’ Nighttide thought gleefully to herself.

__________

Not long afterward, Twilight – with Spike on her back – led Nighttide to the train station where they would depart for Canterlot.

“Hey! A machine!” Nighttide trotted in place on the platform with a grin as she watched a train approach from the distance.

“Uhm, yes,” Twilight remarked as Spike slid off her back onto the ground. “This is what we call a train.”

“So. Cool. Haha!” Nighttide burst with excitement as the train pulled into the station, plumes of smoke pouring out its top stack as steam churned out near the wheels. The whole contraption was a bit noisy, and it reminded Nighttide a little of home. “Y’know…” Nighttide looked back at Twilight. “As much as I don’t like a lot of stuff back home, it’s kind of cool to see something actually make some noise around here.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow and looked at Spike. They shared a shrug.

As the train finished pulling into the station, passengers began to disembark and fill the platform. Nighttide watched as the passing ponies carried their luggage in all manner of ways – some on their backs, some with magic, and others with more familiar devices such as rolling luggage. Nighttide was also curious to see the different types of cutie marks there were in this world. She craned her neck to and fro, trying to get a good look at each one and record the information. A couple ponies noticed her odd appearance and wild glances, trying to steer as far away as possible.

“Well, this is our ride,” Twilight called out to Nighttide. “Better get a good seat while we can!”

“Uh-huh,” Nighttide mumbled as she watched a most fascinating cutie mark walk by – a baby pony with a bow and arrow. ’What in the world is—’

“C’mon, you,” Twilight giggled as she nudged Nighttide in passing to follow her to their car. A few minutes passed as passengers vacated and refilled the car. Not wanting to cause a scene, Twilight asked Nighttide to at least be a little more careful when examining cutie marks.

Nighttide scrunched her muzzle. “You know, for a race of ponies that have these permanent images emblazoned on your flanks, you guys seem a bit touchy about them.”

Twilight laughed. “No, not exactly. We just don’t often meet someone who’s never seen a cutie mark before. So we don’t get a lot of wild eyes checking us out.”

“Guess that makes sense,” Nighttide said as she eyed one last cutie mark sitting down across from their set of seats: a ladder and hose. ‘Firefighter, perhaps?’

After a while, the train departed the station, and they were on their way to Canterlot. Nighttide watched out the window at the passing landscape, letting her system passively record the details. She was entranced by the landscape – the vivid colors of passing trees, fresh with the new life of spring, contrasted beautifully with the blue of the sky and the deep greys of distance mountains, highlighted every so often by a river or two. As she looked up at a few distant puffs of clouds, she noticed a thick group clustered together not so far from where they were. She used her optical sensors to zoom in on the unusually dense cloud.

Suddenly — “TWILIGHT LOOK, A THING IN THE SKY!” Nighttide frantically pointed out the window to what appeared to be a flying fortress of… ‘Clouds?!’

Startled at her outburst, Twilight looked out the window to see what she was pointing at. She could barely contain herself. “Y-yes, Nighttide,” she stammered with a quivering voice. Spike was already in tears with laughter. “Th… that would be Cloudsdale.” She did her best to keep from laughing too.

“A flying city?” Nighttide asked with as much enthusiasm as a filly discovering something for the first time.

“A floating city, yes. That’s where Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy are from.”

Nighttide spun around. “So you mean to tell me pegasi come from a floating city in the sky?”

“Well, not all pegasi. Many live there, yes, but some live on the ground as well – like Fluttershy.”

“Huh!” As Nighttide went back to staring at the sight, her systems did all they could to examine the city from a distance, determining height, width, possible population, good places to build weapons, etcetera.

As the train continued onward to Canterlot, a porter brought them some drinks. Nighttide found herself a little more famished than she thought and asked Twilight if they would have a chance to eat after meeting with Princess Celestia.

“Of course! There’s a lot of good places in Canterlot. If you want, I can give you a quick tour of the city?”

“Is it a city in the sky?” Nighttide asked with ever so much hope.

“No,” Twilight said flatly. Spike was still broken up over Nighttide’s fascination. “But it is built near the side of a cliff.”

“That’s cool too,” she said as she took a drink of water.

In time, the train pulled into Canterlot Station, and Twilight, Spike, and Nighttide walked onto the platform. “This is definitely a change,” Nighttide remarked with surprise. From humble cottages to extravagant venues, Canterlot exhibited far more regalia than did Ponyville. “I can see why the Princesses would live here.”

The three walked down the street toward the castle in relative silence. Nighttide continued recording information and glancing at every other pony. She simply couldn’t figure out some ponies’ cutie marks, while others seemed to make perfect sense. Not wanting to embarrass Twilight, she returned her attention forward and noticed the looming castle overhead. “So this is where the Princesses live?”

“Yup, this is the royal castle!” Twilight picked up Spike and walked ahead a little toward some guards blocking the entrance. She informed them of their plans and brought Nighttide to the front as a guest. The guards allowed them inside after looking over Nighttide’s frame.

“Do your guards have the ability to scan things to a system as well?” Nighttide asked as she followed behind Twilight.

“What do you mean?” Twilight glanced back.

“They were looking awfully hard at my flank.”

“Oh,” Twilight said as she turned forward again. “Remember, you don’t exactly have a cutie mark. While you do have those domes on your flank, they’re unlike anything anypony here has probably seen before.” Twilight blinked. “Now that I think about it, what are those—”

“Hah,” Nighttide shouted to the front. “See? It’s not that strange to stare at a pony’s flank after all!”

Twilight rolled her eyes while Spike stifled a giggle. Before long, they entered the main hall and found Princess Celestia waiting for them. “Princess Celestia,” Twilight called out gleefully as she sat Spike on the ground and galloped toward her.

“Twilight Sparkle, how are you!” Princess Celestia leaned down to nuzzle Twilight as she ran up toward her.

“Princess, this is the new pony I was telling you about in my letter: Nighttide Star.” Twilight turned around to suggest toward the grey mare.

Nighttide stepped up and blinked - hard. Standing before her was an elegantly fashioned alicorn, as Twilight had educated her on only hours earlier, who all but dwarfed her and Twilight in terms of height. While her size could have easily been intimidating, her appearance was warm and inviting. Her mane and tail flowed in a similar fashion to Princess Luna’s, but were colored far more brightly.

Nighttide gave a bow. “Your highness, thank you for this counsel,” she spoke with a sudden elegant flair. “It is an honor and privilege to meet with you this day.”

Princess Celestia smiled and raised a hoof. “No need for formalities, my little pony. It’s a pleasure to meet you as well.” Twilight stepped aside as the Princess leaned down toward Nighttide to meet her gaze. “I hear that you’re new to the land of Equestria?”

“Yes ma’am,” Nighttide said as she stood upright. “I’m from a land called Roanne and am affiliated with a corporation that is contracted by its government - the Daedalus Institute for Research and Exploration, or DIRE.”

“Twilight shared some of the details in her letter, but I would love to hear more about you from yourself.”

For the umpteenth time, Nighttide sat down to explain the basics of her land and a little about her personal history. After that was out of the way, Princess Celestia inquired about her predicament. “I was just talking with Twilight about that earlier,” Nighttide said. “It’s a bit complicated, and I haven’t even filled her in completely yet. The best that I can explain it is we were performing an experiment on faster-than-light travel using digital transmissions. I was stationed in Complex 051 at DIRE’s Ridley facility, where they opened the portal for me to travel through. In that same instance, my warp drive broke my body down to transmit to the other end of the portal at Pylon Two’s station, where I was supposed to rematerialize. All I know from there is I woke up in a small clearing just outside of Ponyville.”

The Princess showed clear concern in her expression. “If I understand correctly, this ‘warp drive’ you speak of is still functioning?”

“That’s correct.”

“So what you need is for someone, or something, to open a portal for you to travel through.”

“Right, which is the problem I’m now facing.”

Princess Celestia looked over at Twilight. “I assume your studies have revealed no helpful information?”

“Not yet. All I was able to do was learn a spell to help fix her leg last night; that’s about it. All this stuff about ‘warps’ and ‘jumps’ is still new to me.”

“I see,” the Princess replied calmly. “Nighttide Star—”

“Y-you can just call me Nighttide, ma’am,” she said softly beneath the alicorn’s presence.

The Princess smiled down at her. “Nighttide. While I am not certain how we can help at this moment, I believe that in time, with the help of others, we can work together to find a solution.”

Nighttide’s ears drooped a little at the statement, but Twilight nodded and hummed in approval from the corner. “I’m still studying all the books I can to try to figure out a way to help. Now that we have a better idea of what’s going on, I think I know how to narrow my research.”

Nighttide glanced over. ‘Was that why Twilight was up so late last night?’ she wondered.

“Princess,” Twilight continued, “may I make use of the library in your old castle again?”

“Of course, Twilight. Feel free to use it as often as you’d like!”

Twilight smiled like a little filly. Running a fetlock through the back of her mane, Nighttide looked up at the Princess and said, “Uhm… Princess? Can I ask a question?”

“Why, of course!”

Nighttide looked away briefly and stammered, “This isn’t anything related to me, but... do you… really raise the sun? All by yourself?”

Princess Celestia smiled and nodded. “That is part of my duty.”

“Wow,” Nighttide breathed. “It seems like that should be impossible, but... with everything I’ve seen so far, I could believe it.” Nighttide marveled at the thought as she looked over at the light pouring in through a nearby stained glass window. “By the way, this is a very beautiful castle you have.” She examined the murals of the glass more closely and noticed a familiar set of silhouettes. “Twilight… Is that you and your friends?” She looked up at a group of ponies who appeared to be using magic on a familiar looking alicorn.

Twilight trotted over. “Yes, it is. That’s when my friends and I used the Elements of Harmony to turn Nightmare Moon back into Princess Luna.”

‘Twilight was involved in that? And…’ “The Elements of Harmony?” Nighttide asked.

Twilight gave her a basic breakdown of the Elements’ use and their history. Increasingly fascinated by the various applications of magic, Nighttide then thought of something a little concerning. She turned back to Princess Celestia. “I should let you know that much of the information I gather here – the things I see and hear in this land – are being recorded to a database within me that can be freely shared and accessed by my government. More than likely, it will carry over in the event I make it back home. Will that be acceptable?”

Princess Celestia looked at Twilight to gauge her expression, which appeared to be neutral, then looked back at Nighttide. “I want you to do what feels right to you. It would seem you have an honest heart with much loyalty to your home, not unlike some ponies we know.” She winked at Twilight. “But you also seem to be a bit troubled by the differences between your home and this land.”

“I would be lying if I didn’t say my home feels like pure evil in comparison to yours,” Nighttide replied with more than just an ounce of worry in her voice.

Princess Celestia’s expression softened. “Well, for now, you have our trust – and I believe you have the trust of a few other ponies as well.” She stood upright to look squarely at Twilight. “I apologize Twilight that I couldn’t be of more help, but while you are no longer my formal student, I would like to ask that you do all you can to aid Nighttide on her quest home.”

“You can count on me,” Twilight cheerily replied.

The Princess smiled and looked down at Nighttide one last time. “I should inform you that Equestria is not a perfect land either. There are still many places filled with dangers and mysteries undiscovered. I would ask that you be careful as you embark on your journey.”

Nighttide looked up into the eyes of the Princess. That a royal figure could have so much care and compassion for one of her ponies, let alone an unwitting visitor, warmed her heart in a very profound way. She could tell the Princess was truly concerned for her well-being. “Y-yes ma’am, and thank you. I will be sure to take care of myself throughout the course of events.”

“That’s what I was hoping to hear,” the Princess closed. “Twilight, please update me if any important events arise. I will let you know if I find any information that may be of help.”

“Will do,” Twilight called back as she placed Spike on her back. Nighttide gave the Princess another bow, and the two made their way back to foyer.

__________

With the royal visit finished, the three exited back onto the main street. As Twilight gave her a quick tour of the city, Nighttide’s stomach began to growl, echoing through the suit. She glanced over at Twilight with a guilty expression.

Twilight smirked back. “Don’t worry, we’re going to take care of that now. How do you feel about muffins?”

Nighttide let out a relieved sigh. “Oh good, those are here too.”

The two walked into a coffee shop at the corner of an intersection not far from the train station. Twilight bought each of them muffins and asked for them to go. “I don’t want us to miss the train back home, so we’ll just grab these to go and eat them on the train.” She tipped the clerk a couple bits and handed the bags off to Spike as they walked back outside.

Sure enough, the train had already pulled up to the platform, ready to disembark. The three loaded up into one of the cars, and the moment Nighttide sat down, she began devouring her muffin. As Twilight and Spike took a seat across from her, Twilight looked at Nighttide curiously. “Come to think of it, what do ponies eat in your homeland?”

Paying no mind to manners, Nighttide responded with a half-full mouth. “Stuff ‘n junk.” Twilight glared at Nighttide, waiting for a real response. “Oh, uhm,” Nighttide gulped her food. “Well, obviously we have the staple food, hay, although it’s collected by machines called tractors and processed by factories called mills, which can also turn it into grain and flour. Then of course, we have some of your food items, like muffins, cupcakes, and other sweet things.”

“You keep mentioning these ‘machines’ from time to time. We have a few things like them here as well, but some of yours sound unique. What exactly are they?”

Nighttide scrunched her muzzle in thought. “Well, we have a bunch of different kinds. Some machines do rudimentary work, like collecting hay and processing it, along with making other food items. Some do construction work, like laying brick and mortar, rebar, things like that. There’s even machines that let us fly – I was telling Fluttershy about those just this morning.”

“Machines that fly? You mean, like balloons?”

“Some, yes, but far bigger than the kind Pinkie brought over. They’re very large – some almost the size of a small town.” Nighttide then explained some more of the flying machines they had as she did with Fluttershy, then caught a glimpse of Cloudsdale again outside the window.

“Now I have a question for you.” Turning to Twilight, she asked, “The wings you pegasi and alicorns have. Do they ever get tired?”

“Well, they’re not ‘machines’ like what you’ve described. They’re a natural part of our bodies and use muscles, just like other parts do.”

Nighttide quickly glanced around the car, then lowered her head and whispered, “I know this may sound a little weird, but… would you mind spreading your wings out, even just a little, so I can scan them?”

Twilight reared her head back slightly in surprise. Looking beside her, it was clear Spike’s fondness of Nighttide’s curiosity had been successfully diverted to the food in front of him, so with a quick glance over at the neighboring seats and not seeing any occupants, Twilight hung her head and averted her gaze as she spread her wings against the back of the seat. She listened as Nighttide’s suit quietly whirred and clicked from within. After a few seconds, Nighttide nodded for her to collapse them again.

Twilight’s curiosity now began to blend a little with unease. “Nighttide, you do a lot of this ‘scanning’ stuff. How exactly do you record information?”

“Well,” she said before swallowing the last bit of her food, “I have a bunch of sensors built into me. Some are behind my eyes, some are all around my suit. They can read things like infrared signals – the concentration of heat in a body of space – x-rays, which allow me to see through some materials like hollow walls or an equine’s coat—”

“Coat?” Twilight spat. “You mean you can see inside ponies?”

“Well, only certain parts, like bones and cartilage. But it’s useful to see if someone is carrying a solid object like metal. Since I’m military-spec, I have to be ready for the unexpected, so having this ability allows me to see if someone is carrying a weapon inside, let’s say, a jacket or saddlebag.”

“Hospitals have equipment like that, but I’ve never heard of a pony being able to do it all by themselves…” Twilight’s fascination continued to grow. “So, are these sensors just used for military reasons then?”

“That’s what they were designed for.” Nighttide smirked. “But I love learning about new things, and they don’t put a restraint on the stuff I scan, so I like to research ‘on-the-go.’ Not a lot of new stuff to research in the Ridley facility, though.” Nighttide looked a little disgruntled as she returned her gaze out the window.

Twilight enjoyed being in the company of somepony who shared her enthusiasm for learning. But there was something that seemed to pull at Nighttide’s nerves each time she explained an element of her personal history. Twilight cleared her throat and made an attempt to prod her. “You know, whenever you mention something about home, you sometimes look like you’re upset. Is there anything that…” She struggled to formulate an appropriate question for a few moments.

Nighttide continued to look out the window when she responded. “I owe DIRE my life, like I mentioned. And yet… I feel as if they owe me a life as well.”

Twilight tilted her head slightly. “How’s that?”

“You know how I said I’ve been stuck at Ridley for the past couple years?” Twilight nodded. “That’s what I mean. For two whole years, I’ve been stuck in a two-kilometer-by-two-kilometer section of the city.” Nighttide hoofed at the cushion of her seat. “I’ve read a lot about the world out there, and I have even more knowledge tucked away in my systems that I haven’t read yet. But it means little when the only opportunity I’ll have for the foreseeable future to see the world is through military operations.”

Nighttide went silent for a few seconds, allowing Twilight time to interject. “How often is your world in a state of war?”

“Depends on what country you’re talking about. Right now, Roanne is the big wig. It controls over eighty percent of the habitable regions of our continent and is looking to bring the rest, as well as all the outlying island countries, under its umbrella. And we’ve been off-and-on again at war for the past hundred moons.”

“What are your wars like, if I may ask?”

“Some early ones were pretty boring, just political issues. They would throw a title on a series of disputes between other countries or internal factions and call it ‘such and such war.’ But more of the recent ones have been bloody. Take for example the one that started when the Ferin Sha was lost, the Kidesh War. The Kidesh Union figured they had done in Roanne, but just because they sank a portion of our industry didn’t mean our whole infrastructure was brought down. For the first few years I was in DIRE, Roanne unleashed an onslaught against the Kidesh Union’s invading force on the ‘new’ west coast that had formed along our continent.” Nighttide paused. “They say a lot of the skirmishes took place on the overturned portion of the Ferin Sha, not far from where I was born. Thousands were killed on both sides.”

Twilight’s ears fell flat, grimacing at the thought. “Such horrible things to go through.”

Nighttide shrugged. “These days, it’s not like how it used to be, where ponies would stand blindly behind their countries back, supporting them in whatever endeavors the government chose. Now, we have a lot of internal turmoil – ponies saying we need to stop trying to monopolize the globe, and others who want to divide the democracy up into sections specific to territories. They see something wrong with the system, most of all the killing that’s taking place. The problem is, while you get a lot of voices shouting and ponies rallying support through the media, there’s not a lot of positive affect to the government. Things pretty much stay the same, no matter how loud anypony’s voice gets.”

Twilight pondered all the nuances of the government issues Nighttide described, wondering if Equestria had ever gone through such division. “It’s fascinating to think about a land not being ruled by a single government, like Equestria – and to think that wanting to unite everyone together would be such a… deadly process.” She shivered at the thought.

“Some ponies have good intentions,” Nighttide said, “but seek to accomplish them through questionable – or just flat-out bad – means. But, that’s kind of a ‘big duh’ statement where I come from. Everyone gets what’s going on, and everyone wants to do this or that to change things for the better. But there’s simply too much chaos and confusion. The unity that Roanne supposedly wants to accomplish is thwarted by the very things which they’re trying to unite: ponies. Both the ponies in the government, and the ones who live under it.”

Nighttide contemplated her next statement. With a resolute sigh, she said, “We’re flawed beings, Twilight. No matter how badly we try to seek peace and happiness with everypony, we always hurt each other in the end.”

After finishing his food, Spike decided to take a nap next to Twilight. Twilight wrapped a wing around his back and pulled him close as she looked out the window. “Well, even though our land isn’t perfect, I must admit, this gives me a new perspective on Equestria.” She paused to contemplate what life would be like in a war against other ponies. “We’re really lucky to have the Princesses around.”

Nighttide nodded. “Your ponies seem to lack one fundamental flaw that my ponies have: malice.”

Twilight looked at Nighttide with a stern expression and shook her head. “That’s not true. Even us Equestrians sometimes wish to hurt one-another. The difference is how far we carry out our malice, and how soon we quell it.”

Nighttide thought about her statement for a moment before replying. “Some of the ponies from my land think we would be better off if we didn’t have all the weapons we do to hurt each other. But somehow, I could picture us still fighting each other even if left with just our hooves… As much as people like to preach about ‘love,’ it seems to be all words and no solutions.”

Twilight wanted to say more, but couldn’t think of the right words. They continued the rest of the trip in relative silence as Spike snoozed away.

Just before reaching the Ponyville station, Nighttide smiled down at Spike. “A baby dragon, huh? For such a tiny thing, he seems pretty smart – taking your letters and all.”

“Spike’s the best assistant I could ever ask for,” Twilight said as she gently pet Spike’s back with her wing.

“He seems so innocent.”

“Well, you’ll just have to see him when he’s out playing, or has a mirror put in front of him. Just make sure to never give him a bucket full of gems.” Twilight let out a soft chuckle.

Uncertain of what she meant, Nighttide continued anyway. “You know, it’s crazy to see such... I dunno, purity? in real life. To me at least.” She broke off for a second. “I-I mean, I get it, Equestria’s not perfect and everything - I know what you and Princess Celestia said. I just mean…” She looked down at Spike again. “It feels alien.” Furrowing her brow, she added, “Yet it feels like the way things should be.”

Twilight smiled softly, a little surprised. “Well, I promise you that he’s not always as cute as this.” Spike let out a soft groan as he nuzzled into Twilight’s side.

“Chyea,” Nighttide chuckled, “I hear mothers say that about their kids, too.” Nighttide’s gaze drifted as she said, “Still. It’s just neat to see in person. I can’t think of the last time I saw anyone so content.”

Twilight’s ears drooped. “What a sad way to think of it,” she mused aloud.

And with that, the train slowed to a halt. As passengers began departing, Twilight nudged Spike back to waking and placed him on her back. Nighttide followed behind Twilight as she thought over the conversation they had just had.

‘What am I going to do with myself if I ever get home?’ She wondered.

Chapter 5 - A Dash of Blue

Twilight, Spike, and Nighttide were making their way through town when they ran into Rainbow Dash placing a cloud overhead. “Hey guys,” she rasped from above. “Wassup?”

“Hey Rainbow,” Twilight said as Spike waved.

Nighttide looked up curiously at the pegasus. “Yo Rainbow,” she called up, “whatcha’ doin’ up there?”

“Oh, hey Nighttide! Looks like you’re back on your hooves again. Still up for that race?”

Twilight tilted her head. “A race?”

“Yeah,” Nighttide said, “Rainbow challenged me to a race when I was still cooped up on Fluttershy’s sofa.” When Twilight continued to stare at her, she shrugged and said, “I dunno, you know her better than I do.”

Twilight stood in thought for only a moment before nodding and shrugging. “You’re right, actually,” she said with a roll of her eyes before looking up at Rainbow, who gave her a sheepish grin.

As far as Nighttide was concerned, it was a bright, sunny afternoon with just a couple clouds overhead, and she felt a little more at ease after her visit with the Princess. Looking up at the pegasus, she said, “You know what, yeah, I guess so! When would you be available?”

“Give me about an hour to finish setting up today’s weather and I should be ready,” Rainbow Dash shouted down as she realigned the cloud.

“…Set up the weather?” Nighttide tilted her head toward Twilight.

“Yep, Rainbow Dash works for the weather committee here in Ponyville.”

Nighttide blinked. “You mean, you ponies can control the weather?”

“Of course!” Rainbow shouted back. “How else would it work?”

Nighttide looked in the general direction of the forest. “But, just the other night, I saw clouds moving on their own over the woods?”

“You mean the Everfree Forest?” Twilight asked. “Yeah, they tend to do that…”

“S-so creepy,” Rainbow commented with a visible shiver.

“Wow, if you guys think that’s weird, you should come visit my home. Rains all day and night.” Nighttide studied the few clouds being moved overhead by other pegasi.

“Seriously? All the time? That’s no fun,” Rainbow said as she flew away to grab another cloud.

“So, Twilight.” Nighttide looked over at her. “Do all pegasi control the weather?”

“Just the ones that work for the weather committee. They have a schedule of when it will be sunny, raining, or snowing, depending on the season.”

“If I find a way home, tell them to come visit my land. I’d love to be able to see the sky again,” Nighttide said with a dry chuckle.

As Rainbow Dash flew back nearby, Nighttide looked up and asked, “Hey uh, where do you want to meet for the race? I’m not exactly familiar with the area.”

Rainbow Dash looked around the horizon for a good place, then spotted just the one. “Hey Twilight, you know where the Running of the Leaves usually starts, right?”

“Of course, Whitetail Woods!” Smirking, she added, “I won fifth place once, remember?”

Rainbow Dash looked away with a frown. “Don’t remind me. Anyway, could you take Nighttide over there in about an hour?”

“Yeah, I should be able to.”

“Sweet.” Rainbow Dash crossed her arms and looked down at Nighttide with a confident smirk. “Then you and I can see who’s really the fastest on land.”

Nighttide stood fully upright and returned the expression in earnest. “Think you got what it takes?”

“Oh I won’t let you down, trust me,” Rainbow Dash said with a grin as she flew away to gather more clouds.

__________

Before long, it was time for the race. Twilight dropped Spike off at the library and walked Nighttide to the outer edge of Whitetail Woods, explaining the Running of the Leaves on the way.

“So you guys even have to herald in the different seasons?” Nighttide’s curiosity appeared it would be sticking around for a while.

“That’s right,” Twilight remarked with a pep in her step.

“But I’m assuming you still have the same seasons, right? Spring, summer, fall, winter?”

“Correct, and there’s a different way us ponies contribute to bring in each season.”

“Fascinating,” Nighttide remarked as they approached a wide section of dirt path. Rainbow Dash could be seeing flying toward them in the distance.

“Well, this is where you’ll begin.” Twilight stopped and looked over at Nighttide. “I guess I’ll see you back at the library when you’re finished?”

“Yeah, I’ll stop by so we can figure out what the next step is, then I’ll probably check in with Fluttershy to figure out tonight’s arrangements.”

“Sounds good. See you after a bit!” With that, Twilight trotted back to Ponyville as Rainbow Dash slowed her approach to land.

“Alright, crazy mane,” Rainbow called out as she touched ground. “This race is simple. All you have to do is follow the path through the trees until the next clearing,” she said, pointing down the long straightaway. “There’s a good bit of trail before then, so be sure to keep up the pace.”

“Got it.” Nighttide programmed her system for optimal speed and began prodding at the ground, testing its firmness beneath her weight. “So, you mostly race in the air, I take it?”

“The fastest in the sky!” Rainbow said with a flare of her wings. She was clearly confident in her skills, and her confidence seemed to have a solid foundation. She didn’t look like she was just boasting.

“I’ll take your word for it,” Nighttide said as she hunched a little toward the ground. “Now, let’s do this.”

Rainbow began hoofing at the ground and took a racer’s stance beside her. “So, Nighttide, you want to start us off?”

“Sure thing. Ready?”

The two crouched low to the ground.

“Get set…”

Just then, Nighttide’s back opened to reveal a starter’s pistol, firing a loud shot in the air.

Startled, Rainbow Dash jumped as Nighttide took off down the trail. “WHOA-wha… hey, no fair!” Shaking off the shock, she bucked against the ground and took off for Nighttide.

Nighttide plowed down the trail at a brisk pace, her legs effortlessly pushing her weight forward. The wind pushed her mane back in a ridiculous fashion as she kicked up the dirt of the trail, enjoying the feel of the cool air against her muzzle. Rainbow was soon nearing her tail when Nighttide looked around her flank. Seeing the pegasus was picking up the pace, Nighttide pushed her legs to their full gate and left Rainbow in the dust.

Coughing in her wake, Rainbow looked forward with squinted eyes. “Not bad. Let’s see just how much you’ve got in that gallop of yours.” And like a bullet, she took off down the trail, barely seeming to touch the ground, although her wings remained flush against her side.

Once again, Nighttide spotted the cerulean pegasus gaining on her. This time, she decided to maintain pace and let Rainbow catch back up.

Once she edged near the grey mare’s side, Rainbow looked over at Nighttide with a strained grin. “Hey, you’re not so bad!”

“Same goes for you,” Nighttide remarked with seemingly little fatigue. Rainbow blinked.

The two stayed neck-and-neck for several seconds. There was still no clearing in sight, so Nighttide shouted over, “Hey Rainbow, how much farther to the finish?”

“We’ve still got a way,” she shouted over. “What, starting to get tired?” The pegasus hoped the mare was faking her cool demeanor.

Nighttide shot back a devilish grin. “Can a tired pony do this?” Turning off her failsafes, Nighttide pounced forward and slammed her forelegs into the ground, before planting her hindlegs into softer dirt and shooting down the trail, the grass surrounding the trail whipping forward in her wake.

Rainbow couldn’t believe it. Not even Applejack could ever hope to keep up with this mare! Her lungs heaving, she maintained her pace. “C’mon, Rainbow… just like last time… show ‘em a little Dash.” With a pounce of her own, the pegasus began galloping down the trail at breakneck speeds. Few ponies could ever hope to reach this kind of speed, but she was determined to outshine the foreign pony.

After a moment, Nighttide looked back and saw that even at her absolute fastest, Rainbow Dash was slowly beginning to catch up. “No way,” Nighttide muttered to the wind. “No normal pony can run this fast… at least not for very long.”

Nighttide galloped as fast as she could – there was no more speed she could gain. If Rainbow really did catch up with her, depending on how much further it was to the finish, she could get the better of her. But would her stamina hold out that long?

Rainbow left her own wake of grass and dirt behind her, her mane flowing wildly in the wind. She pushed as hard as she could to catch up with Nighttide, observing the slowly closing gap. Her lungs heaved with each gallop, pushing out the roaring sound that only comes when a pony pushes themselves to the limit. Choosing not to speak, she kept her focused locked straight ahead and put all of her focus into her gait. She had never run like this before – not even in the Running of the Leaves. She was going to prove herself, and all Equestria in her mind, proud at the end of this.

Rainbow finally pulled alongside Nighttide. Her speed began to slow ever so slightly, making her only nose just a little beyond Nighttide before she matched her speed. It wasn’t long before they could see a clearing up ahead. Nighttide was really curious to see how this would turn out. Keeping up the pace, the two plowed forward toward the sun shining down on the ground ahead of them. But before long, Rainbow began to visibly lose steam.

The pegasus shook her head side to side as she lost momentum, then pointed her muzzle at an angle toward the ground, as if to make herself more aerodynamic. She panted hard against the cool spring air, but timed her breathing perfectly with her pace.

‘Now here is a true athlete if ever I saw one,’ Nighttide thought to herself. Once again, they were neck and neck, and thinking she would probably win this one, Nighttide saw Rainbow close her eyes and reach her whole body for the air in front of her. Then…

They were in the sunlight. Nighttide could tell, Rainbow Dash had won.

As Nighttide gradually slowed her pace, Rainbow stretched her wings out and proceeded to glide up in the air. She did a small circle around, then shouted down, “Looks like a tie.”

“Nope,” Nighttide shouted up as she came to a halt. “You won by a whisker.”

“I did?!” Rainbow glided a loop around Nighttide and landed on the ground in front of her. “Please tell me you’re not kidding.”

“I’m serious,” Nighttide nodded. “You won right at the last second as you pulled forward.”

Her eyes wide and gleaming, Rainbow managed a backflip and shouted, “Awright! Yeah! I did it!”

Nighttide trotted forward and lifted a hoof. “Congrats, Rainbow Mane. You’re one heck of a runner.”

“Same to you,” Rainbow replied as she bumped hooves with the mare, taking a moment to catch her breath. “It’s… heh… just a shame that… I can’t race you in the air, too.”

‘… Hmm,’ Nighttide excitedly thought to herself. After a few seconds, while trying her best to keep her cool on the outside, she arched an eyebrow at Rainbow and stepped aside, shooting her a sly grin. “Who said anything about that?”

Two small slits opened near the top of either side of Nighttide’s barrel. With a muted hiss, two silver fixed wings began to extend outward, adjustable ailerons swinging up and down at the rear. Another set of doors slid down just beneath her wings to reveal two small turbine engines, whirring to life.

Rainbow’s jaw dropped as she watched Nighttide begin to gallop forward. Swinging her head upright to brush her mane out of her eyes, Nighttide’s engines roared awake, and with a kick to the ground, she was airborne.

Nighttide took off at a sharp angle upward as she brought the engines to a full burn, eventually banking right and flying a casual loop above Rainbow. The cerulean pegasus continued to watch in awe from the ground for a few seconds, then spread her own wings and joined Nighttide overhead.

As Rainbow met up alongside her, Nighttide looked over at the pegasus. With the same confidence as her new companion evident in her expression, she said, “This is where the fun really begins.”

And with a clap of Nighttide’s afterburners, the two took off toward the horizon, leaving a vapor trail of steam and rainbows behind them.

__________

“So, Twilight, how do you feel Nighttide is adjusting?” Rarity took a sip of tea as Twilight pondered her question. The two sat across from each other in the main room of Carousel Boutique.

“Well, she certainly seems happy here,” Twilight said with a little trepidation. “And considering everything she’s told me about life back at home, I could understand why.”

“Was it really that bad?” Rarity asked as she placed her tea on a nearby end table.

“‘Bad’ might not even be the word for it. More like horrible.” Rarity tilted her head as she continued. “You know how we go on quests from time to time to vanquish evil, right?” Rarity nodded. “In Nighttide’s homeland, they have wars. All the time.”

“You mean a ‘war,’ as in ponies fighting other ponies?”

“Exactly.”

“Nighttide mentioned something about that last night, but I had no idea…”

Another smaller unicorn came down the stairs behind Rarity. “Oh, hello Sweetie Belle!” Twilight called out.

“Hi, Twilight!” Sweetie Belle walked up beside Rarity. “Hey sis, can I borrow some of your emeralds to work on a school project?”

“So long as you promise not to reorganize everything again.” Rarity smiled down at her little sister and considered very hard whether or not she should help Sweetie Belle herself, but gave her the benefit of the doubt.

“I promise,” Sweetie Belle said with a quick nod and grin. As she approached the stairs again, she called back. “Apple Bloom and Scootaloo said they might come over this evening, too.”

“Alright, thanks for letting me know!” Rarity called back as Sweetie Belle walked upstairs. Once she was sure the filly was out of earshot, she let out a heavy sigh, looking back to Twilight. “I’m just so glad that Sweetie Belle has never had to experience anything like Nighttide has.”

“I’m glad none of us have,” Twilight said as she grabbed her own cup of tea.

Just then, Rarity caught a glimpse of a dull rainbow drifting lazily in the air outside the window. “Twilight, look!” Twilight turned toward the window to see the rainbow just fading out of view.

Setting her tea down, Twilight got up to step outside, Rarity close behind. As she opened the door, they could hear an unusual sound overhead as they caught a glimpse of a silver and blue streak in the horizon.

“… Twilight, isn’t that—”

“No way!”

As they banked around a small group of clouds, Rainbow Dash and Nighttide sped over Ponyville, a spiraling stream of dew and colors trailing behind them.

“B-but she doesn’t have wings!?” Twilight remarked in shock, wide eyes staring at the two mares overhead.

“Well apparently, she does.” Rarity looked up at the spectacular sight, and within seconds, Rainbow and Nighttide were out of sight, the roar of Nighttide’s engines fading in the distance.

Twilight returned her focus back to Rarity. “Nighttide seems like a nice pony, but it worries me when surprises like this come up. Especially knowing her history.”

Rarity contemplated her statement before responding. “I wouldn’t worry so much, Twilight. For all that she’s been through, if she can have fun with somepony like Rainbow, I think that’s a good sign.”

Twilight looked up at the vanishing trail of rainbows. “Yeah. You’re probably right.” With a sigh, she followed Rarity back inside to continue chatting.

__________

Twilight spent most of the rest of the evening at Rarity’s, visiting with Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom as well. As the sun began to set, Twilight headed back to the library.

“I hope I haven’t kept Nighttide waiting,” she muttered to nopony particular. But as she trotted through town, she noticed a small, rather thick cloud overhead, with a familiar rainbow tail hanging off the edge.

Twilight giggled as she watched her sleepy friend loom comfortably overhead. “Hey, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight shouted. “Have you seen Nighttide recently?” Twilight could see her tail flick, but no response.

Just then, Nighttide poked her head over the side and looked down. With a yawn, she said, “Hey Twilight… wassup?”

Twilight blinked several times at the sight. “H-hello, Nighttide. I was just looking for you.”

Rainbow popped her head over the edge beside Nighttide. “Yeah, she’s been here napping with me. We’ve had a long day, right Nighttide?”

“Yeah,” Nighttide responded lethargically. “Lots of fun.” She gave a weak smile. “Oh, by the way, Twilight,” she called down with a little more spark, “did you know ponies could sleep on clouds?”

Twilight furrowed her brow. “Pegasi, yes. Yes I did. But—”

Nighttide jumped over the side and used some rather loud leg-mounted thrusters to come to a safe landing. Twilight watched the curious devices retract back inside her legs and proceeded to ask her something, but Nighttide spoke first.

“Before you saying anything, I want to apologize for not telling you about my wings.” She suggested to the protrusions in her side and let her wings peek out just a little bit. “That’s how I got up there with Rainbow.”

Twilight stared at the appendages for a moment, then said, “Why didn’t you tell me about them earlier?”

“To be honest? These things are supposed to be a secret.” She closed the opening for her wings and turned to face Twilight. “Technically I’m a prototype, the first model to introduce them to the Labyrinth lineup. But Rainbow and I were having so much fun that… well, I dunno,” she said, looking away and rubbing the back of her disheveled mane. “I wanted to show her what else I could do.”

Twilight blinked in surprise. After a moment, she sighed and gave a weak smile, but then said, “I’m glad to hear you had fun, but won’t that get you in trouble back home?”

“Probably,” Nighttide said as she hoofed at the ground. “But I’ve been having such a good time here in Equestria.” She looked up at Rainbow who had proceeded to continue napping. “I guess I got carried away.”

“I can understand wanting to show off a little to your friends. I’ve done it before myself, but you should never risk hurting yourself or others for your own benefit, even if it’s simply a matter of breaking a rule.”

“Well, this isn’t going to hurt anyone but the Colonel’s pride,” Nighttide remarked with a frustrated tone. “As far as all the dangerous stuff goes, I’m not going to reveal anything to anyone, unless it’s an emergency.” Twilight cocked an eyebrow. “And, as I said before, I would promise not to use anything dangerous if I found that Equestria was a safe place.” She glanced around the town surrounding them. “It’s definitely a safe place.”

Twilight giggled. “I’m glad to hear that.” She proceeded to lead Nighttide back to the library. “I can’t stop you from revealing confidential information, but I would suggest you be more careful next time you decide you want to show off.”

“It’s funny you say that. Just last night, after meeting with Princess Luna, I promised myself I’d be more careful as the day went on.” Nighttide giggled. “Guess that didn’t work out so well.”

Twilight shook her head and smirked. “Well, I’m glad you’ve become comfortable with us so quickly, but are you sure that’s alright?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, when I first came to Ponyville, it took me a while before I fully trusted those around me. It seems like you’re coming to trust us pretty fast – maybe even faster than I did with my own friends.”

They were approaching the library when Nighttide stopped Twilight with a raised hoof. “Let me put it this way. I’ve had friends in the past, but they’ve never stuck around for very long. It’s not that I have a trust issue, it’s that I’ve never known what it’s like to be in good company. Like, actually good company. Believe me when I say that trusting you and your friends is not an insignificant thing. It’s very significant. That I can trust you all so quickly, and want to continue getting to know you all, is saying a lot.” She paused for a moment and looked away. “I won’t deny that I’m afraid of what might happen tomorrow. What if you guys don’t like me anymore? What if I do something wrong? And, I mean… I’ll probably return home at some point. So of course, I won’t be able to keep you girls as friends forever.”

Twilight perked up with an arched eyebrow, craning her head toward the mare. “Did I hear you just call us ‘friends?’”

Nighttide stumbled back a few steps and stammered, “Uhm… w-well, that’s kind of—”

Twilight giggled. “Don’t worry, Nighttide. There’s a whole ‘nother day ahead of us, and I don’t see anything changing between now and then – not unless my studies come up with something tonight. If you really want to get to know us better and become friends, we would love that. I would love that.”

Twilight gave the mare a smile before turning for the library door. Nighttide regained her composure and followed behind her. “Thanks, Twilight,” she replied softly.

__________

As Spike served some snacks, Twilight and Nighttide sat to talk about how to handle things next. “Nighttide, can you tell me a little more about ‘portals’ – I think is what you called them?”

“Right.” Nighttide took a daffodil sandwich Spike offered and set it on an end table. “Portals are actually a natural phenomenon, in a sense - they just don’t occur naturally. It’s complicated, but suffice it to say they interact with another dimension which doesn’t interfere with this plane of existence. Think of it like this: You know how the sun’s rays light the ground, but we can’t actually see the rays? Same with sound – we can’t see sound, but it’s there nevertheless, and we can hear it?” Twilight nodded. “The ‘fourth dimension’ as it’s informally called – lame, I know – is an invisible plain of existence that is completely incapable of being sensed by natural senses. But it can be detected using a certain method that a supercomputer discovered a few years ago.”

“So then, the portal is digital,” Twilight surmised with an uncertain tone.

“Not quite. While the supercomputer figured out a way for us to access it, since the portal deals with a natural phenomenon, all that’s really necessary is to apply the right forces in the right space in order for a tangible object, like myself, to access it in our dimension.”

Twilight used her magic to grab a notepad and quill and began taking notes. “Please, continue.”

“I have the basic information available on how to access the dimension, but not the means. To open a portal, one has to manipulate space in such a way as to merge the realm of our dimension and its together in one spot. Think of it as a geometry equation, if that makes sense.”

“Wow… what an interesting concept,” Twilight remarked as she scribbled down her notes, still marveling at how such things could be performed without magic. “Now, what about the pylons you mentioned earlier?”

“Alright, so, let’s say you get a portal opened. How are you going to travel through it? Early tests found that solid objects like ourselves don’t cope well in the fourth dimension. They tend to… well…” Nighttide made an explosion sound with her mouth and threw her hooves in the air. Twilight’s eyes widened slightly. “Thankfully, we just threw random objects in there, like a keyboard and a sock, to see what would happen. Anyway, over time, we found that a portal could be opened in one location and another – the planes of space could be merged in such a way as to create a ‘direct line of sight,’ if you will, and send a radio transmission through the portal.”

“And what’s a radio transmission, by your definitions?”

“It’s a kind of electromagnetic radiation, or ‘light’ in laypony terms, that isn’t visible to the naked eye.” Twilight nodded and suggested with a hoof for her to continue. “This is where my warp drive comes in. The warp drive deconstructs my molecular structure into a form of digital info transmitted through a radio frequency. Since radio frequencies are not solid, through this method, a pony can travel through the fourth dimension from one portal to another. However, a direct line of sight must be maintained at all times, otherwise the transmission could break up and be lost to the ether.” Nighttide paused as she reflected on the previous day’s events. “Which is what I think happened in my case.”

“So, does the warp drive have to be engaged right as the portal is opened?”

“The sooner, the better,” Nighttide said as she watched Spike grab a comic book from the floor. “Portals are rather unstable; we’ve yet to find a way to keep them open for prolonged periods of time. So the method we use is to open the portal and engage the warp drive at pretty much the same time, allowing me to travel through the portals as quickly as possible. The advantage to this method of travel, versus just being broken down into a radio transmission and sent through the air, is that a pony or object can travel at faster-than-light speeds. Plus, the likelihood of a successful transmission being picked up is increased ten-fold… even if it didn’t work out for me.” Nighttide gave a half-hearted chuckle.

Twilight finished writing her notes and pondered over them a moment. “Nighttide, would you be able to give me some more details on how portals are opened?”

“I can give you everything in a printout if you want it.”

“Printout?”

Nighttide opened a small cover along her side. A piece of white paper with a smiley pony came out, and she showed it to Twilight.

Twilight giggled and said, “I swear, Nighttide, you’re some other kind of pony.”

“Speak for yourself,” Nighttide commented as she reached over for her sandwich and took a bite. “So, y’want me to print out the rest?” Twilight nodded.

Over the next few minutes as Nighttide printed off the materials, Twilight collected some books on spells pertaining to teleportation. “I don’t know if magic can help or not, but it certainly wouldn’t hurt taking a look. I was up a good bit last night trying to find out if we had any information on biomechanics. All I could find was some basic material on pony anatomy, but nothing like the kind you’ve described.”

‘So she was up because of me.’ Nighttide felt a little guilty and, after waiting a few seconds, spoke up again. “Twilight, I’m sorry if I’ve been any trouble to you. I don’t mean to waste yours or anyone’s time like this.”

“Not at all.” Twilight grabbed a dustier book off the shelf with her magic and brushed it off. “Honestly, I love these sorts of things. So many ponies and creatures have come through Equestria recently that things like this are more like an adventure for us. Not to undermine the severity of your situation, of course,” Twilight quickly added as an afterthought.

“No worries,” Nighttide reassured her with a smirk. “This has been more like a vacation than an accident for me.”

Twilight smiled a moment before a thought occurred to her. “Hey, you’re planning to stay the night again at Fluttershy’s, right?”

“Oh crap, I forgot!” Nighttide paused her printing and stood up from the couch. “We didn’t even talk about it. Should I go check in with her now?”

“If I know Fluttershy, she’ll keep her room ready for you just in case. But you should probably head back her way once you’re finished.”

“Agreed.” Nighttide sat back down to finish printing while Twilight laid out the book on her reading desk.

“If you could meet me sometime tomorrow morning, we can travel out to the Princesses old castle and check out the library there.”

“So the Princesses used to live somewhere else?”

“Yup.” Twilight flipped through the book to the page of contents. “I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow.”

After finishing her sandwich and sorting the papers, Nighttide wished Twilight and Spike a good night, then set off for Fluttershy’s. “Do you remember the way back?” Twilight called from the doorway outside.

“Yep! Computer, remember?” Nighttide smiled and waved goodbye to the two.

It was now night, and the streets were lined with the shadows of window frames as yellow lights poured out of a few buildings. There were still some ponies walking around, talking with friends or making purchases. She saw a couple businesses had already closed shop for the day, and some ponies were sweeping the stoops of their homes.

“This is too quaint,” Nighttide muttered under her breath. As she looked behind her at a couple of fillies playing with a ball, she ran slam into a street-post and fell down.

“Ouch! Wha— ugh… really?” She rubbed her forehead as she looked up to see a blue stallion standing nearby.

“Goodness, are you alright?” The stallion walked over to her and offered a hoof to help her up.

“Eeyeah…” Nighttide stumbled to her hooves on her own and brushed herself off. “Just pretend you didn’t see that.”

The stallion looked at her forehead and whinged. “Ouch. That’s going to leave a bruise.”

“Yeah, no kidding.” Nighttide brushed her bangs out of the way and touched her forehead, which she could already tell was going to swell overnight.

“Here,” the stallion said as he reached into a saddlebag and pulled out a small patch. “This has some healing ointment on it. Put it on your forehead and keep it there for a while, then take it off before bed. That should help reduce the swelling.”

Nighttide took the patch and looked around at the stallion’s flank to find a familiar symbol: a red cross. “So, a doctor, I take it?”

“No, just a scribe,” the stallion coolly remarked. “I’m still in school, but I hope to eventually become a physician’s assistant.”

“Gotcha.” Nighttide placed the patch on her forehead and grinned. “Name’s Nighttide. Nice to meet you.” She extended a hoof.

“Nice to meet you too,” the stallion said as he shook her hoof. “My name is Sterling Lazuli.”

“Well, thank you for your generosity, Mr. Lazuli. Perhaps I will see you again sometime.”

“Perhaps so.” The two smiled, and with that, Nighttide was back on her way to Fluttershy’s.

“Ugh, what a way to meet a pony,” she mumbled to herself as she crossed the bridge leading out of Ponyville. A few minutes later, she walked up the hill to Fluttershy’s cottage when she noticed Angel sitting on the bedroom window sill again. “’Sup, Angel,” Nighttide shouted up. The white creature gave her a dirty look and scampered back inside. ‘Did I just see that right?’

After knocking, Fluttershy opened the door for Nighttide. “Good evening, Nighttide. Will you be staying the night again?”

“If that’s alright with you.” Nighttide didn’t want to be too forward, so she waited until she was invited inside.

“Of course! You’re welcome to stay as long as you like.” Fluttershy suggested she come in with a hoof.

Nighttide went upstairs to freshen up from the day’s adventures and checked in afterward with Fluttershy downstairs. “If it’s alright with you, I think I’ll probably head on to bed.”

“Go right ahead, I still have a few things left to do before I turn in,” Fluttershy called up as she was feeding one of her birds.

Nighttide trotted into the bedroom to find the bed made up perfectly once again. ‘What a sweet pony,’ she thought to herself as she nuzzled a corner of the plush comforter. Nighttide then walked over to the window to see the stars again, but noticed there were a few clouds in the way this time. “I should’ve asked if they were planning for rain,” she muttered as she thought of Rainbow Dash. Sighing under her breath, she hoped that the rain may wait as long as possible.

Just as she pulled up the sheets to get into bed, Fluttershy peeked inside. “Should I expect you for breakfast tomorrow?”

“Only if you feel up to it,” Nighttide replied as she slipped under the sheets.

“Of course. It’s so much fun having a house guest over!” The mare appeared to be telling the whole-hearted truth, as her smile radiated a warmth that Nighttide could still not get over.

Nighttide smiled in return and asked, “Who was the last pony to visit? Other than the ones I’ve met?”

“Well, I have another friend. His name is Discord.”

Nighttide’s ears twitched. “Discord? That doesn’t sound like a friendly name.”

“Oh, he’s not so bad. Perhaps you’ll get to meet him one day!”

“Perhaps.” Nighttide didn’t like the idea of someone named Discord, but she didn’t want to insult Fluttershy, so she returned one last smile and watched her walk out of sight.

Letting out a soft yawn, Nighttide stretched her legs in bed and nuzzled against the soft pillow, shutting down her primary systems. ‘Man, what a day,’ she thought to herself. ‘Maybe I’m no closer to getting home, but this sure is turning out to be a pretty fun detour.’ In a few minutes, Nighttide was asleep.

__________

Fluttershy still had to feed the chickens and pigs outside, and not wanting to disturb Nighttide anymore than necessary, she sneaked outside and did her best to tend to the job quietly. She found the task a little more difficult than she imagined, having to also collect some runaway chicks along the way. The whole process took her about an hour before she finished. Cleaning up the kitchen and living area some, Fluttershy eventually made her way upstairs to freshen up. Just before she went back downstairs, she carefully poked her head into her bedroom to make sure Nighttide was okay.

Fluttershy froze in place the moment she caught sight of Nighttide.

In the time Fluttershy had been busy, Nighttide had managed to kick the covers off her barrel. She held onto one of the pillows with her forelegs, cradling it against her chest with her head tucked above it. It appeared she was sleeping peacefully now, but it looked as if she had fought to fall asleep. And her expression…

“She looks so sad,” Fluttershy whispered under her breath.

Wishing she could do something more, Fluttershy closed the door quietly, not wanting any creature to disturb her in the middle of the night. As she walked back downstairs, she thought about the times when she used to be more afraid, and wondered if there was something that scared Nighttide. Putting the thought to rest until the morning, she hunkered down on the sofa and threw a quilt over her. Soon enough, she too was fast asleep.

Chapter 6 - What Happens in Canterlot...

“Ugh… wha—OW…”

Nighttide woke up to a dull headache as dawn began to break outside. As she rubbed her forehead, she scratched the edge of the patch Sterling Lazuli had given her last night.

“Crap.” Nighttide wormed her way out of bed and meandered into the bathroom to see what damage had been done. Soon as she stepped up to the mirror, she pulled the patch off to find that while her forehead was bruised, the swelling was not so bad. However, she failed to follow Sterling's advice to take it off before going to bed, and wondered what effect it might have.

“Idiot… I really have to be more careful,” Nighttide grumbled to herself as she examined the patch now lying in the sink. Her scan revealed an unknown substance, so she couldn't tell whether it was made up of any dangerous compounds. A quick diagnostics of her system revealed no issues, so she figured it was fine – for now at least.

Frustrated at her once-again abrupt awakening, Nighttide walked back into Fluttershy's bedroom to watch the sunrise out the window. It was a beautiful sight as the bright yellow of the sun illuminated the many vibrant colors of Equestria's landscape, but she could already see more pegasi in the distance placing clouds above Ponyville and surrounding areas. Nighttide sighed a little under her breath, expecting rain would be in the forecast soon.

Her headache apparently here to stay for a bit, Nighttide quietly walked out to the balcony floor of the living room to see if Fluttershy was asleep, which indeed she was. Nighttide smiled at the pegasus, her creatures following her lead in tranquil slumber.

Nighttide couldn't bring herself to wake her gracious host, so she walked back into the bedroom in hopes that she might catch a little more shut-eye. About a half hour was spent rolling around in bed, trying to fall back asleep – but to no avail. Her headache now pulsed and her frustration was mounting. Thankfully, she heard a stirring downstairs.

Nighttide went back out to see Fluttershy stretching as she picked herself up off the couch, a few creatures stirring at the sound of her waking. “Good morning, Fluttershy,” Nighttide called down with a loud whisper.

The pegasus let out a short yawn as she stretched her wings and legs. “Ah, good morning, Nighttide. Did you sleep well?”

“Yeah, but I have a splitting headache.” Nighttide walked down the stairs and added, “That's what I get for running into a street sign.”

Fluttershy looked up in as much shock as she could for a sleepy pony. “Oh goodness, what happened?”

“Just being careless.” Nighttide brushed her mane out of the way to show her the bruise. Fluttershy asked if she could do anything to help, to which Nighttide replied very firmly, “Food.” With a giggle, Fluttershy went into the kitchen to see what she could work up.

“Actually,” Nighttide called from the living room, “could you give me something small? I think Twilight wants us to leave as soon as possible.”

“Oh? Where are you two going?”

“I believe it's called ‘The Castle of the Two Sisters?’” she said as she poked her head into the kitchen. “It's the Princesses old castle.”

“Oh! Yes, we've been there a couple times now.” Fluttershy thought for a moment as she grabbed an apple from a basket for Nighttide. “You haven't been to the Everfree Forest yet, have you?”

“No,” Nighttide replied as Fluttershy hoofed her the apple. “What's it like?”

“Well, the plants grow on their own, and there are all sorts of dangerous creatures out there. Just be careful on your way.”

“Sure.” Nighttide couldn't figure out why plants growing on their own was a big deal, but not wanting to keep Twilight waiting, she ate her apple and bade Fluttershy a good rest of the day as she headed out for Ponyville.

“Hmm… Fluttershy has a point,” Nighttide spoke to herself on the way. “I've been way too careless these past couple days. I better be careful.” As Nighttide reached Ponyville, she noticed only a few ponies in the streets, figuring it was still too early for most businesses to be open. But on her way to the library, she ran into a creature who apparently had no understanding of the meaning ‘early.’

“HEY, Nighttide!” called a shrill but familiar voice from a street corner.

“The heck? Oh… hello, Pinkie Pie. Good morning.” Nighttide shifted her jaw a little, trying to pop her ears from the sudden outburst.

“Good morning yourself! Whatcha' up to?” Pinkie Pie bounced alongside Nighttide as she continued forward.

“I'm headed to meet with Twilight. Her and I are going to the Princesses old castle.”

“Ooohh, an adventure? That sounds like fun!”

Nighttide smiled and silently agreed. “But I keep hearing bad mojo about this ‘Everfree’ place. Do you know anything about it?”

“Well, I know there's a place where you can make a bunch of you's, and there's a flower that makes your tongue go bluuggghhh, and Zecora lives there!”

‘This pony must have coffee for blood,’ Nighttide thought to herself. “Alright then… well, guess this is my stop.” They were just approaching the library when Nighttide spotted Twilight on a balcony overhead, watching the sunrise.

“Hey, Nighttide!” Twilight called down. “Oh, and good morning Pinkie Pie!”

“Goooood morning! Going on an adventure today?”

Twilight nodded as she went inside to let the pair in. “What are you doing up this early anyway, Pinkie?” Twilight asked as she opened the door.

“Well, Mr. and Mrs. Cake realized they were almost out of flour, so I figured I'd go pick some up for them!”

“Very good,” Twilight commented as she offered them inside.

“Well, better take care of business,” Pinkie called back as she immediately began bouncing off into the distance.

“Twilight,” Nighttide started as she walked inside, “I'm assuming that's how Pinkie Pie always is?”

“Pretty much.” Twilight asked Spike to grab her things as she led Nighttide over to a book lying open on her reading table. “I want to show you something I found last night. But first, have a seat at the desk.”

As Nighttide took a seat, Twilight explained some of the basic nuances of magic, trying to get Nighttide as familiarized as reasonable in a few minutes' span. Afterward, she suggested to the book on the desk. “In here, I found a reference to an ancient spell created by Star Swirl the Bearded that may help us out. I already know a spell that allows a pony to teleport from one place to another. However, this one allows a pony not only to teleport, but to literally bend space so a pony can travel without the need of teleportation.” Twilight paused for a second as she rubbed the back of her neck. “It's a very strange spell, and I don't quite understand why he would have even created it…”

“It does sound a little similar to a portal, though,” Nighttide commented with some enthusiasm. “I'm just not sure if it actually has anything to do with the fourth dimension.”

“Nor do I. Thus, it wouldn't hurt to do some more research and find out. That's why we're going to the Princesses old castle!” Spike brought in a saddlebag with a notepad and quill inside, and Twilight magically fastened it around her. “Spike, can you take care of things for me here today?”

“Of course!” Spike was excited about being able to spend a day to himself so he could catch up on some of his comic books.

“Thanks. Just be sure you don't get too caught up in those comics, alright?”

“O-oh yeah, of course! I'd never do that again.” Spike glared over at a corner of the room, a pile of thin, colorful books begging for his attention.

__________

Twilight and Nighttide embarked on their journey to the old castle. Along the way, Twilight filled her in on some more of the history between Celestia and Luna.

“What a sad story,” Nighttide said as they neared the edge of the Everfree Forest. “To think Princess Luna could have ever hurt that much. And Princess Celestia, being able to banish her sister?” Nighttide shook her head. “I guess you ponies don't always have it so well off after all.”

“I told you we weren't perfect.” Twilight stopped at the line of trees forming around them and turned to Nighttide. “Alright, I should warn you to keep your guard up. The forest isn't nearly as bad as some ponies make it out to be, but it can be dangerous. Just watch out for any blue flowers and large snake-like creatures that look like chickens. Don't stare into its eyes.”

“Uh… got it.” And with that, the two walked into the forest.

As the canopy overhead thickened, the daylight was all but completely drowned out. Nighttide noticed that the forest was indeed very wild – especially compared to what she had seen elsewhere in Equestria. She didn't like the eerie silence that penetrated the air either. After being around Ponyville for the past couple days, a place like this seemed even more foreign, and quite uninviting.

Twilight noticed Nighttide looking around with a little apprehension. “Anything on your mind?”

“Nah. Just scanning a few things along the way. This forest reminds me a little of what I've read about jungles from my land. But, of course, I've only read about them. I've never actually been in one.” Nighttide continued to glance around every so often as the two pushed forward.

Sure enough, the pair passed by a grove of blue flowers that glimmered in the dim light of the forest. Nighttide also noticed the path beginning to deteriorate as Twilight took the lead. Not too fond of being surrounded by such dense foliage, she switched to night-vision to better see through the thicket. Just as she did so, she saw a few eyes glaring at them from all different directions. None of them seemed to move. They remained still, unblinking, ever watching their movement.

After several minutes of hiking through the broken trail, the two entered a clearing, and in the distance, they could see a ruined structure being taken over by the forest.

Twilight came to a halt and looked over the ancient castle. “There it is.”

“Wow… it looks as old as it is.” Nighttide shut off her night-vision and stepped beside Twilight. “Did Nightmare Moon really do all that damage?”

Twilight nodded somberly. “I saw it take place myself through a flashback not long ago. But that'll have to be a story for another time.”

As Twilight adjusted the straps to her saddlebag, Nighttide tried to picture the Princess of the Night as the evil being depicted in the stained glass window back in Canterlot. It just wasn't coming to her. It seemed impossible that such a gentle pony could have caused so much havoc. Sharing a similar namesake as her own, Nighttide had more than a little compassion for the princess.

Once Twilight was set, the two continued on toward the castle. As they stepped up to the flight of steps leading to the front entrance, Nighttide's proximity sensors alerted her to movement in the forest behind them. She turned around to see what it was, but couldn't see anything.

Twilight looked back to see Nighttide standing in a prone position, looking back at the forest. “Something wrong?”

“…Guess not.” Nighttide reluctantly turned around and headed onward with Twilight.

__________

The two walked inside and found themselves in a large hall, filled with debris and grass growing through the stone floor. A pair of tattered banners hung from the ceiling at the other end, depicting the Princesses positions of day and night.

Nighttide marveled at both the design and the damage to the dilapidated structure. That ponies could have ever built such a thing without advanced technology – and that an alicorn could have destroyed it with only her magic – left her craving to learn more about their history.

Twilight led Nighttide to a long, narrow corridor with walls of shelves filled end to end with ancient hardcover books. As Nighttide scanned the collection, she noticed many of the books had been ruined by the weather, thanks to the destroyed ceiling overhead. But Twilight seemed to know where she was headed as she walked up to a specific section of shelves.

“Let me see here…” Twilight looked at the wall of books in front of her. “If I remember right… yes, here it is.” Using her magic, she pulled out a book that had a faded blue swirl pattern on the front cover. She then cleared off a cluttered desk nearby and sat the book down, brushing off some of the grime with a hoof. “This is a detailed account of some of Star Swirl's more unusual spells. If I'm right, I should be able to find the spell we were reading about in the library.”

Just as Nighttide walked over to Twilight's side, her sensors alerted her once again to movement nearby. She turned her attention to the hall from which they came, switching between both infrared and x-ray visions. Again, she saw nothing.

“Hey, Twilight,” Nighttide spoke quietly as she continued watching the hall. “I don't suppose anyone still lives in this castle, do they?”

“Of course not. This castle's been abandoned for centuries.”

Nighttide couldn't figure it out. Even in this strange land, her sensors had yet to fail her. That she had sensed movement for a second time left her concerned. “Something's not right here.”

“What do you mean?” Twilight asked as she skimmed through the book.

Nighttide stepped toward the hall a little. “My sensors picked up movement in the forest as we were walking in, and they just picked up movement now.”

Twilight redirected her attention to the mare. “Did you see something?”

“No. They detected movement in the brush and the hall, but not anything that would have caused the movement.”

A little concerned, but not wanting to be diverted from her study, Twilight trotted up beside Nighttide and glanced around the hall. “Well, I don't see anything moving.”

Nighttide walked a little further down the corridor to get a better look. Once again, she detected movement – a couple small stones on the floor shifted around just a few hooves away.

“There,” Nighttide called back. “Something definitely moved.”

Twilight trotted ahead of Nighttide to look in the hall, but still saw nothing out of the ordinary. “Are you sure it isn't just a spider or something?”

“Moving stones? Doubt it, unless you have spiders as big as Spike.” Nighttide shivered at the thought. “Ugh, why do you guys have to have spiders. Of all the creatures I could do without…”

Twilight let out a soft giggle as she returned to her book. Nighttide continued to watch the hall for a moment, still unconvinced that everything was okay. But after a couple minutes of no movement, she returned to Twilight's side.

The two studied the book at-length together for the better part of an hour. As the day progressed, the sun overhead lit the corridor a little better. A few calls of wild animals could be heard in the distant air, and every so often, Nighttide’s ears would twitch with the sounds, silently recording them to her system.

After a while, Twilight spoke up. “From what I read on your document about portals last night, this does sound pretty similar.”

“I agree,” Nighttide said with a nod. “But how would a pony go about using this?”

“With a lot of hope and even more magic.” Twilight gave a weak smirk as she read off the last few lines. “This is by far one of the most advanced spells I have ever read, and in typical practice, it would require the help of other magical ponies as well. With the kind of power being described here… I'd say you'd at least need the prowess of an alicorn, if not several unicorns.”

Considering the power of Nightmare Moon evident around them, Nighttide knew this was a lot of magic. “But do you think it could work?”

“I don't know. It doesn't seem too risky at least. It would just take a lot of focus.”

As Twilight jotted down some notes while reading, Nighttide took the time to walk around the castle and examine the décor. She didn't want to wander off too far, as she was still a little on end about the movement she detected earlier. But then, she found something that piqued her interest.

“Aha! War ponies do exist here!” Nighttide galloped up to a statue of a unicorn stallion clad in armor. It held an archaic weapon of some sort – a spear-like instrument that appeared to be blunted at the end.

“Fascinating,” Nighttide whispered as she looked over the statue with a small grin. “Looks like a lot more fun than a gun fight.” But much as she was intrigued by the ancient weaponry, she wondered if this world had also been plagued by war in some distant past. The thought of ponies such as the ones she had met being engaged in a deadly fight made her heart sink.

Then, her sensors detected the faintest blip of a pony's silhouette in the direction of the castle library. It was not familiar.

“Dammit, I knew there was someone here!” Nighttide shouted as she ran back out into the hall.

Just as she rounded the corner into the foyer, Nighttide heard Twilight's scream echo off the stone walls. Busting down the hall at a fierce gallop, Nighttide took a sharp turn and headed toward the opening for the library. Right as she was about to turn in, she ran into an invisible object and was sent flying onto her back. Looking up from the ground, she could see a distorted pattern in the air that was slowly disappearing. Her sensors detected a round, floating mass that seemed to be all but completely see-through. They also detected a faint glimmer of a familiar silhouette inside: Twilight.

Nighttide stood up and activated all her sensors to scan the object, unlocking her rotary cannons in the process. “Unidentified object, identify yourself,” she called out frantically. The object was becoming less defined and began heading down the hall, away from Nighttide.

“Hey! I said identify yourself, you stupid thing!” Nighttide followed the flying object out into the foyer as it approached the main entrance. Just before she lost sight of the object, Nighttide launched a tracking device from her back, which flew past her head and straight forward, hitting the floating mass. It appeared to stick, as once the object was completely invisible, her short-range telemetry began receiving a moving signal.

Nighttide wasn't sure what the object was or if it knew that something had now attached to it, but she didn't want to let on too much. Allowing the object to gain some distance, Nighttide pretended she had lost it, looking around aimlessly outside the castle.

‘I can't let it get too far, especially if it has Twilight,’ Nighttide thought to herself. Once telemetry reported that the object had flown into the forest, she began galloping after it as fast as she could.

Panic began to sink in as she raced after the object. ‘Who in this world would want to kidnap someone like Twilight Sparkle?’ As she entered the forest through the trail, she cut left into a thick portion of the woods, doing her best to keep up with the tracking device.

“Nopony will get away with this,” Nighttide spoke under her breath as she raced through the forest. “I will not lose a friend this way.”

Chapter 7 - ...Stays in the Forest

Nighttide cut through the brush as fast as she could. Thickets of briars and vines fought to slow her down, but she refused to let the object that had taken Twilight get away. While her suit protected her from most damage, she was having a hard time keeping her mane from tangling in the briars. ‘The tragedy of looking awesome,’ she thought to herself amusingly as she tried to keep herself calm.

After minutes of chasing the tracking signal, Nighttide noticed the forest begin to thin. Her sonar worked overtime to fine-tune the sound waves bouncing off the trees ahead. Sure enough, it appeared there was a clearing just ahead.

In a moment, Nighttide found herself standing at the edge of a small crater, perhaps the same circumference as the castle which she had just left.

“What in the world is this?” Nighttide muttered to herself as she observed the strangely empty space. The crater was overgrown with grass and small shrubs, but no trees grew in its place. It appeared the area had been impacted by some large object in a distant past.

But something was wrong. The tracking signal had approached the center of the crater and then suddenly disappeared. Nighttide looked around the edge of the expanse to see if there was a safe way down. It was remarkable, the way the forest seemed to avoid encroaching on the crater. As such, there were no vines or ledges of any sort to make use of, so she figured she may have to fly once again.

But Nighttide noticed something else strange. Her sonar seemed to rebound from the space in front of her, as if there were a large mass filling the empty space. Sitting next to the edge of the crater, she slowly reached a hoof out to the air directly in front of her and—

“WHOA!” Nighttide wrenched her hoof back when she noticed the tip of it began to vanish. She examined her hoof, which appeared to be fine, and tried again. The further she reached out, the more her hoof disappeared. It was as if there was a cloaking device of some sort covering the air around the crater.

‘This doesn't make sense though,’ Nighttide thought. ‘My sonar is picking up a solid object. Why can my hoof go through it?’

Seeing no other alternative, Nighttide closed her eyes and slowly stuck her head forward into the empty space. She felt a strange cold surround her muzzle for a second. Then, when she opened her eyes—

“Huh. It is a cloak, after all.” Nighttide looked down at an object that resembled an airship resting at the base of the crater. Within the cloak stood a thicket of trees surrounding the structure, appearing to grow from the ground below and through the cloak. Nighttide's sensors were also able to pick up the tracking signal once again, which emanated from the ship below.

Nighttide pulled her head back and thought for a moment on how to proceed next. She was in a foreign land – an even more foreign forest – and had managed to lose a princess of Equestria. She felt compelled to continue on her own, afraid of what might happen at any moment. But something told her this was not her place, that she first needed to inform the others of what was going on.

“You're getting too soft, Nighttide,” she spoke to herself as she turned toward Ponyville. “This would never have happened if you had stayed by her side.” Unsure of which would be the better choice, Nighttide decided to throw logic to the side for once and go on her gut instinct: tell a friend.

__________

Nighttide managed to find her way back to the main trail after only a few minutes. Just as she reached the clearing toward Ponyville, she saw Fluttershy tending to a group of small animals just off the path. Panting, she cried out, “Fluttershy! We have an emergency!”

The animals around Fluttershy scurried away as Nighttide came galloping toward her. “Nighttide, what's wrong? What happened?”

Nighttide skidded to a halt in the dirt and took a moment to catch her breath. “Fluttershy… Twilight was kidnapped. Or stolen. Or something – I don't know. She was taken by some invisible floating thing from the old castle!”

Fluttershy's expression immediately turned to panic. “What? Twilight? Wh-what should we do?”

“That's why I'm here. I think I know where she is, but I wanted to let someone know what happened.”

“Come on, we should tell the others.” As Fluttershy turned toward Ponyville, Nighttide's sensors detected a large disruption in the forest and turned back. Fluttershy stopped when she noticed Nighttide wasn't beside her. “Nighttide! What is it?”

Just then, a swarm of dirt and debris rose over a portion of the forest in the distance. Nighttide zoomed in on the area to see the airship-like craft rise in the air and bank away from Ponyville.

Nighttide shouted back, “We don't have time. We have to go after her now.”

Fluttershy squinted into the distance, trying to figure out what the thing was. She looked back at Nighttide with a horrified expression. “B-but the others—”

“Fluttershy, that thing is taking your princess – your friend – away from us, right now! We've gotta go!”

Galloping ahead, Nighttide deployed her wings and engines. Before she took off, she opened her back and shot a warning flare into the air, hoping that somepony may notice it and see the object in the distance. Fluttershy watched dumbfounded for a few seconds as Nighttide took to the air and looped around her.

“Nighttide,” Fluttershy shouted from the ground, “I thought you couldn't fly!”

“Doesn't matter! Let’s go!”

Fluttershy spread her wings and leapt off the ground, doing her best to catch up with Nighttide as she sped forward toward the craft in the distance. When Nighttide noticed Fluttershy was quickly falling behind, she did another lap back.

“Alright, too slow, not okay – you're coming with me.” With that, Nighttide flew above Fluttershy and grabbed her by the barrel, engaging her afterburners.

Fluttershy had never flown this fast in all her life. She did her best to squint forward, her eyes tearing up from the wind as her mane was whipped back. An image of Rainbow Dash quickly passed through Fluttershy's mind as they approached the vessel, eliciting the tiniest of smiles on the mare before her expression switched back to panic.

Suddenly, the object disappeared, appearing to leave no trace of its existence, minus the crater below that was now clearly filled with trees. “Heh, like that's gonna work this time,” Nighttide shouted to the wind as she continued flying toward its last location. Switching from sonar to radar, Nighttide's sensors quickly picked up the object, which was now veering off toward a mountain range in the distance.

“Fluttershy,” Nighttide shouted down, “do you know anything about aerial defense?”

“A-aerial—wha—“ Fluttershy stammered as she did her best to keep from suffocating from the force of the air traveling around her.

“Forget it, just hang on!”

Her radar told her that at any moment now, they would be entering the cloak field and into who knows what kind of danger. She held Fluttershy as tight to her sternum as she could as she slowed her velocity just enough to prepare for a potential landing.

In a few seconds, they were surrounded by the same cold sensation Nighttide experienced back at the crater, and then they saw a dark blue airship with what appeared to be giant pegasi wings protruding from each side, flapping slowly in the wind.

“That's the strangest thing I've seen here yet!” Nighttide eyed the strange craft curiously while Fluttershy looked on with confusion. Nighttide then gave her a light squeeze. “Alright lil' filly, when I say go, spread your wings as far as you can!”

Nighttide changed her approach angle toward a flat surface near the back of the airship – what appeared to be a deck. She could feel Fluttershy beginning to squirm in her grasp. She looked down and gave her a comforting smile in an attempt to reassure her. “You can do this, Fluttershy. I believe in you. Now, get ready!”

With a sudden jerk, Nighttide reversed her engines and deployed her leg thrusters, then shouted, “GO,” and released Fluttershy to the air beneath her. The pegasus spread her wings as instructed and was carried by the wind just enough to allow her to safely land on the deck. Nighttide then did a quick loop around the aircraft, gauging its different sections before gliding back toward the deck. But just as she went to touch down, the craft swung a hard right.

“Oomph!” Nighttide rolled violently across the deck, her left wing collapsing in on itself as she fell into a crumpled heap at the other end of the deck.

Fluttershy crawled toward her as fast as she could, keeping her wings tightly pressed against her sides so she wouldn't be blown off the deck by the wind. “Nighttide!” she called out to the grey mass that now lied in a heap at the end of the deck. The only thing that kept Nighttide in place was a small railing which, if the ship turned just so, could allow her to fall right off.

“Ungh…” Nighttide did her best to roll back onto her stomach. Her left wing hung limply out of her side, its engine spitting smoke. She retracted her other wing and engine before squinting back at the damage.

Fluttershy crawled up beside her and shouted, “Are you alright?”

“Looks like I won't be flying for a while,” Nighttide calmly remarked. With a loud snap, sparks shot out of the opening for her left wing, which then fell and slid off the deck into the forest below. She retracted the engine to examine later and worked to stand against the wind.

Nighttide observed what appeared to be the observation deck of a crudely built airship, using a means of propulsion that seemed completely absurd to her: feathered wings, which moved in a very natural manner.

“Come on, Fluttershy. Let's find a way inside this thing.” Nighttide started to slink forward, then noticed Fluttershy locked in place behind her. “Fluttershy,” Nighttide called back, “let's go!”

The little pegasus shook in place, seemingly glued to the deck now and unable to move.

‘Ugh, why couldn't I have run into Rainbow Dash or something,’ Nighttide thought begrudgingly to herself. She carefully made her way back to Fluttershy's side and asked what was wrong.

“I-I… I can't…” Fluttershy had become much braver over the years, but she had never been through a harrowing experience quite like this one – and never before with a pony she had only just recently met.

Nighttide squinted across the deck to what appeared to be a door at the other end. “Fluttershy, listen. Somewhere inside this thing is Twilight. I'm sorry it had to be you, but you are the one I brought along for this. We need to rescue her.” She paused for a moment and furrowed her brow. “I know this isn't the first time you've had to do something scary! I’ve heard some of the stories from Twilight! So what's wrong?”

Indeed, this was not Fluttershy's first time facing adversity for the sake of a friend. A little shell-shocked from the sudden flight lesson, she tried to regain her composure and kneel on her legs. “Wh-what should we do next?” she managed to stammer with a look of seriousness.

“That's my little pony,” Nighttide spoke in as reassuring a manner as she could against the wind. “Follow me.”

The two made their way to the door at the other end, Nighttide choosing to crawl at the same pace as Fluttershy. As they approached the door, Nighttide reached for the handle, but was pushed back when it suddenly swung open.

In the doorway stood a familiar blue unicorn stallion.

“S-Sterling Lazuli?!” Nighttide called over the rushing wind.

“I thought I heard something up here,” Sterling shouted back. He looked down at the two ponies who were staring at him in shock. “Either you can stay out here and try to survive the elements, or you can come inside.”

Nighttide peered across the side of the deck and saw they were now increasing altitude and heading toward the top of a snow-capped mountain. She then nodded to Fluttershy and began to crawl ahead inside, with Fluttershy right behind her.

__________

As Fluttershy and Nighttide were led down a narrow hall, Sterling Lazuli spoke again. “I'm sorry ponies, but this was one adventure you were not supposed to partake in.”

Before either could respond, Sterling cast a spell on both of them that restrained their movement to directly forward. They could neither shift their weight side-to-side nor turn their heads, and Nighttide could do nothing to unlock any of her weapons.

“Sterling!” Nighttide shouted, “What's the meaning of this?!”

“I'm afraid it's not Sterling, actually.”

“No, it's not,” shouted a mare’s voice defiantly from down the hall.

In a few seconds, they walked into a large, hangar-like room that housed a bunch of crates and a single cage affixed to one of the corners of the room.

“You know, one cage in an alternate universe was enough for me. I'd really prefer not to have to go through this again.”

Twilight spoke from within the cage, appearing to be more disgruntled than afraid. Nighttide and Fluttershy spotted her from the overhead walkway they were now being led down. “Twilight!” the two called down to her simultaneously.

“Hey, girls…” Twilight's ears folded back as she saw her would-be heroes being led down a flight of stairs in her direction.

“Well, Twilight,” the stallion spoke, “why don't you introduce me to your friends here?”

Twilight groaned. “Girls. This here is Riptide, formerly of the Royal Guard.”

Nighttide would have turned to look at the stallion, but then the cage door opened, and the two were nudged inside by the magic surrounding them.

“And you two might be?” Riptide asked as he closed the door behind the three ponies.

“M-my… my name is Fluttershy.”

“Nighttide Star, of the Daedalus Institute of Research and Exploration. You are in direct violation of Roanne code 179—”

“Uhm, Nighttide?” Twilight put a hoof on her shoulder. “That won't be necessary.”

Her and Nighttide looked on at their captor pacing outside of the cage as Fluttershy watched from behind the two. “Alright, there's a couple things I want to know,” Riptide began. “First off, Nighttide, you're obviously no ordinary pony. I noticed you had been by the Princess' side here for the past couple of days, and after I saw you flying with Rainbow Dash over Ponyville, I grew curious. The patch was supposed to examine your magical abilities, but it proved useless in the end. Admittedly, it was a fluke that I ran into you last night, but it was an opportunity I couldn't pass up.”

“Here, Ripoff,” Nighttide barked back, “let me save you the pain of living out a trope. Just answer this one important question: What's going on here?”

Riptide cleared his throat and sat down in front of the cage, an expression more of seriousness than of malevolence. “As Twilight mentioned, I used to be a member of the Royal Guard – for several years, in fact. During my service, I studied many spells that could help me become a better member of the guard. As you can see,” Riptide suggested to his flank at a cutie mark of river rapids, “I'm not actually a medical specialist. My true talent lies in water-based magic.”

As Twilight watched with a knowing expression, Nighttide tilted her head. “Water magic?”

“Correct. My position in the Royal Guard was such that in the event of a crisis based within or around a large body of water, I would be able to provide both offensive and defensive services. I'm one of very few unicorns whose talent is with water-related magic.”

“You should tell them the important part, though,” Twilight remarked with a loathsome tone.

“Of course,” Riptide continued. “As I furthered my studies, I started to develop a theory. While not directly related to water-based magic, I got many of the basic principles from how aquatics work.” Riptide paused for a second. “Over the years, I have been developing something I call ‘negative magic.’”

“Negative magic?” Fluttershy timidly asked from behind her friends.

“It is neither dark magic nor the kind of magic typically used. It stands alone. Where ours and dark magic ‘create,’ negative magic ‘eliminates.’ Even infamous creatures like Discord use their magic to create or manipulate something out of a substance that already exists, be it in our plane of existence or another. Negative magic, on the other hand, does the opposite. It removes without the need to replace. It can isolate, encapsulate, and destroy.”

“Well, that sounds evil and junk,” Nighttide remarked with thick sarcasm.

“Magic is what you will it to be. Creative or negative magic can be used for either good or bad, but there is a specific difference worth mentioning with negative magic.”

“Go on,” Twilight implored.

“The use of pure negative magic will absolutely erase the existence of whatever it is used on. Space, an object… even a pony.”

Fluttershy cowered further back as Nighttide and Twilight stood side-by-side, listening to Riptide explain this magic.

“Ugh,” Nighttide groaned, “so much for avoiding the trope. I still don't get what's going on here. What's your motive?”

“I can help you there,” Twilight spoke up. “Riptide here explained that he’s also been observing the Princesses alicorn magic for the last couple of years – at least as much as he could from a distance. But when he heard that a pony living in Ponyville had become an alicorn, things changed. After my coronation, Riptide decided watching over me might be a more convenient solution. He then slacked off so much on his duties that the Royal Guard let him go. Since then, he's been living in the Everfree Forest by night, Ponyville by day.”

“Motive?” Nighttide whined. “What's the motive? Anypony?”

“To become the next most famous magician in history,” Twilight answered resolutely.

Nighttide couldn't believe her ears. “Wha… but… just how PG can you ponies get?! Seriously, you guys are really able to become power-hungry?”

Riptide scoffed as he glared at Twilight through the bars. “Princess Twilight, of all the ponies in Equestria, you should be the last one to so grossly simplify a point. It's not a hunger for power.”

“Then what is it?” Twilight asked with a cocked eyebrow.

Riptide sighed as he looked over his captors. “Equestria is a beautiful, peaceful land – that much, we can probably all agree on. And that is thanks in no small part to both the Princesses in Canterlot, the cooperation of billions of ponies over the centuries, and of course, the Elements of Harmony. But in the context of Equestria as a whole, there is a problem with our tactics when it comes to facing some of the more complex issues in life.”

Twilight's ears flicked forward.

“Thousands of years ago, long before the unity of earth ponies, unicorns, and pegasi, ponies of all sorts fought wars with other ponies – and other creatures – in order to conquer the large majority of the land that now makes up Equestria. Through the unity of these ponies and the establishment of Equestria, peace was eventually won. But had it not been for those wars many years ago, this land may well have never existed.”

Twilight's curiosity once again got the better of her. “I've read a lot about the history of Equestria, and I know a little about what you're describing. But we don't have a very detailed account of those times… do we?”

“Only if you know where to look.” Riptide looked away with a solemn expression. “You know how dark magic is forbidden?”

“Of course,” Twilight said with a nod.

“The same goes for Equestria's most ancient history. I discovered the works in a secret corridor within the Castle of the Two Sisters.”

Twilight blinked. “A secret passage? With works of history?”

“With detailed accounts by the ponies of those times.” Riptide made clear the severity of what he was saying by his deliberate tone. “They are very fragile collections of scrolls and tablets. Our Princesses locked up a small treasure trove of these hoof-written works by the stallions and mares of those days, works that detail a most gruesome prelude to the eventual clash, and unity, of the three pony races. Those ponies used lethal tactics in order to conquer this land. Blood was shed, suffering was felt on all sides. Through those means, Equestria eventually became what it is today.”

Twilight became a little nauseous at the thought of Equestria having been built over the spilt blood of ponies. She never thought such a thing could have been possible, even knowing most of Equestria's darker history. ‘And why would the Princesses want the information to be locked away?’

She couldn't believe what she was hearing. “I'm sorry, Riptide. That's a very well put-together story you have there, but it's pretty hard to believe. And how would you have run across this secret corridor anyway?”

“I read comics when I was a colt once,” he replied casually. “You pull on enough things hanging from the wall, something's bound to happen. Where do you think they got the inspiration for the stories?”

“Alright,” Nighttide finally spoke again, “now that the history lesson is finished… MOTIVE?”

“To develop a form of magic that can be used in the event of a major crisis that jeopardizes the lives of those living in Equestria,” Riptide answered flatly.

All three ponies looked at him with utter confusion.

“Y-you mean, you're trying to help Equestria?” Fluttershy asked as she stood a little closer to Twilight's side.

“Yes. The reason you are all locked up is because I'm afraid the Princesses in Canterlot would look down on my studies very critically.” Riptide stood up and gave the ponies an empathetic look. “This is not a grab at collateral. I need to learn more about Twilight's alicorn magic in order to finish my work, but walking up to a Princess and asking for her help to develop what could potentially be the world's most dangerous form of magic wasn't exactly a viable option. Hence why I had to kidnap her – I won't even sugarcoat it.”

“And you really think I'd cooperate now?” Twilight shouted at the stallion.

“I presume not,” Riptide said. “And it's unfortunate that you two showed up as well,” he added, suggesting to Fluttershy and Nighttide. “But there is something I want to know now that I've explained my story.” He walked up to the cage to face Nighttide. “What are you?”

Nighttide didn't even need to feign confusion. She knew exactly what he meant. But that didn't mean she was going to reveal anything. “I don't come from a world where we believe in ‘if you tell, I'll tell.’ Just because you explained your story doesn't mean I'm going to open up.”

Riptide looked her over slowly. “One thing is for sure: you're not a magical pony. You neither have a horn nor wings to speak of, and my patch didn't pick up any earth pony magic either.”

“So you were trying to see if I had magic by using that patch?”

“Correct. It's a spell created by one of Star Swirl the Bearded's lesser-known students.” He frowned for a moment. “It's incredible that such a resource as the Castle of the Two Sisters has been so recklessly abandoned…”

“Much as I'd like to sympathize with you,” Twilight said, “I'm afraid we're at an impasse. I don't believe any of us are going to cooperate with anything you have to suggest.”

“And I expected as much. Had it not been for your friends showing up, I wouldn't have had to lock you up the way I did.”

“So what?” Twilight shouted. “You were still using your magic to restrain me!”

Riptide scowled at Twilight. “I just kidnapped a princess of Equestria – an alicorn with incredible magical capacity. Did you really think I'd let you just walk around my ship as you please?” He shook his head, then relaxed his tone. “Here's how this will work, everypony. Until I am finished analyzing Twilight's magic, you are all going to have to stay locked in here. My ultimate intent is to complete the development of negative magic and stabilize it for regular use. Right now, it's still a bit tricky for a unicorn to wield – even the slightest error in its use could be cataclysmic. Once it’s complete, I will surrender to the Royal Guard, but only on the condition that the Princesses review the research I have completed and promise to store it in their files – even if it's locked away from everypony else.”

Twilight still couldn't understand his intent. “Why are you so desperate to create this negative magic, Riptide?”

“Equestria is ruled with peace. But it may not always be able to be defended as peacefully. While we have the Royal Guard, it may not be sufficient to use in the event of an uprising by a collective group of ponies or other creatures.” He glanced over at the crates behind him. “It's been millennia since any formal war was fought on our ground, and this magic could prove to be the ultimate solution in the event of an otherwise insolvable crisis.”

“How do you propose this magic be used in the event of such a crisis?” Nighttide asked.

“In whatever manner the Princesses deem fit. Unfortunately, there is only one truly effective means which I have hypothesized.” Riptide visibly grimaced at the thought, but spoke to the group of ponies in earnest. “To use it as a weapon to erase the opposition.”

That was it. Both Fluttershy and Twilight became sick to their stomach at the thought. But Nighttide was not as moved. Having grown up with war as the hot topic in her society, she confronted Riptide with one honest question. “So you would have the peaceful ponies of Equestria protect their ground by killing?”

Riptide looked Nighttide squarely in the eyes. With all the honesty in the world, he replied, “Yes.”

Nighttide understood exactly what the stallion meant. In her world, war was a necessary tool to use when other groups and nations threatened their well-being. But there was one thing which she had learned during her very short stay in Equestria.

“Riptide,” Nighttide started. “I believe I understand the concept of war better than either of these ponies standing here with me. And yet, I think you've missed one critical point in your venture: I'm afraid these ponies would never use such a tactic as mass murder for the sake of their own well-being.” She glanced at the two mares before continuing. “I don't know the history of Equestria like Twilight does, or all the various nuances of its government, but I do know the hearts of a hoofful of its ponies. Heck, even the ponies I don't know all seem to radiate a sense of warmth unlike any I’ve ever felt. To think these ponies would ever stand against another with death in their hearts?” Nighttide shook her head. “I don't see that happening.”

Riptide let out a snort. “Better to be prepared than not.” And with that, he used his magic to lead Twilight out of the cage.

“Twilight!” Both Nighttide and Fluttershy shouted as they tried to pull her back. It was useless though, as the magic Riptide cast prevented them from following Twilight out of the cage.

As Fluttershy and Nighttide watched Twilight being led upstairs, Nighttide noticed something odd about her expression. She didn't seem to be resisting anymore. She almost seemed to be accepting of what was taking place. ‘Surely Twilight doesn't think this is now a good idea?’

Fluttershy walked over to Nighttide and asked, “Is there any way we can help her?”

“Give it a little time,” Nighttide whispered as she sat and watched Twilight and Riptide walk out of sight. “I've got all sorts of ideas to bust this joint.”

Chapter 8 - Unity

The scene that just took place in front of them seemed surreal to Nighttide. In a way, she found it comical to be bound up by some villain with good intentions. It was yet another situation right out of a story book.

But regardless of the absurdity of the situation which she and Fluttershy had walked into, or that their captor was a water-wielding magician, the fact remained: this was all real. And Twilight could really be in trouble.

Nighttide sighed as she sat down and lost herself in thought for a moment. It was one thing to contemplate the ridiculousness of everything that was taking place, and quite another to try to see the seriousness in it. She wasn't sure how things would play out next, but whatever happened, she would do her best to help the mare that had devoted so much of her time to make her feel welcome in an unfamiliar land.

“Nighttide?” A frail voice sounded from her side. “Are you alright?”

Nighttide turned to Fluttershy – yet another pony that had gone out of her way to make her unintended visit to Equestria an experience she would never forget. “Yes,” she finally managed to reply. “Sorry. Was just thinking…”

Obviously, being trapped in a cell was hard to ignore, but Fluttershy was curious what was holding back Nighttide. “What are you thinking about?”

“Just… hmm.” Nighttide shook her head with a smile. “It's been a crazy couple of days. Guess it's all finally starting to sink in.”

She stood back up. Coming back to her senses, she began to examine the cage around them. “Well, this shouldn't be too hard,” she said as she examined the bolt latch to one of the two doors. “Fluttershy, can you look away for a sec?”

“Sure,” the pegasus turned around obediently to face the door through which they came. “I'm guessing it's ‘classified?’”

“Nah, just bright.” Nighttide opened a flap in her chest, and out stuck a small rod with a beveled edge. She walked up carefully to the bolt and touched the rod to the metal, which immediately began to shoot sparks. “Kind of crude, but it'll work,” Nighttide remarked over the sound of the electrical fizzle.

Within seconds, the bolt was cut away, and the door swung open for them. Nighttide turned around, ready to coax Fluttershy into their next move. But to her surprise, she found the pegasus had already turned around and walked up to where she was.

“Shall we go find Twilight now?” Fluttershy asked, neither confident nor afraid – just ready.

With a smile, Nighttide nodded as she led the way up the stairs Riptide had taken Twilight.

__________

Nighttide's sensors seemed to be all but useless within the airship. Considering the reflective magic which cloaked the outside of the ship, she figured it must be permeating through the walls. But why a pony would want to line even the interior with such a magic seemed to make no sense. Unless…

Nighttide tilted her head back. “Hey Fluttershy, I know you don't know this Riptide guy, but have you ever seen him around town before?”

“Not that I know of.” She took a moment to think as she walked behind the mare. “Well, I do remember seeing a blue stallion talking with somepony on my way through town after dropping you off at the library. I think he had a red cutie mark though?”

Nighttide sighed again. “Seems like this guy's really been keeping tabs on Twilight. I wonder if he knows anything about me and just isn't letting on.” She thought more about it, but then said, “Nah. I've scanned stuff around you guys and talked about it before, but I've never actually said anything to anypony else. I dunno… it's just weird.” Her statement out of context, Fluttershy followed on in silence, a little more nervous now than before and preferring to keep as quiet as possible.

After a while, Nighttide's sensors finally detected some anomalous activity in a nearby room. “C'mon, something's down here.” Slowing her approach, she motioned for Fluttershy to keep her hoofsteps as quiet as possible. As the two sneaked forward, Nighttide stuck her head around the corner into the adjacent room.

‘Huh. What a careless guy,’ Nighttide thought to herself. In the room was Twilight and Riptide, with no visible defenses of any sort around them. Twilight sat on a circular pedestal as a nearby device cast a dark blue shade of magic over her body. She didn’t know what the magic was doing, but it didn't seem to be hurting Twilight. Regardless, she noticed her expression once again. Twilight stared down at the floor in front of her, her ears folded back against her head. ‘Why is she so down rather than trying to fight back?’

Nighttide motioned for Fluttershy to step back, which she did so gladly, proceeding to hunker down and cover her eyes. Nighttide then revealed another small opening just above her chest and proceeded to step quietly within the line-of-sight of Riptide.

Out of the opening shot a small, nearly invisible something that hit Riptide squarely in the neck. He flinched, rubbing at his neck as if a flea had bit him. Then, after a few seconds, he realized something was wrong. Only managing to stumble a couple hooves behind him, he then fell to the floor, out cold. Nighttide called back to Fluttershy and walked into the room.

“Your Highness, your mare in shining armor is here to save the day!” Nighttide bowed in a most exaggerated fashion as she shot a huge grin at Twilight.

“You guys! You got out! But…” Twilight looked over at Riptide, then back at Nighttide with a concerned expression. “I thought you said you wouldn't—”

“And I didn't,” Nighttide interjected as she held up a hoof. “Sleep agent. Won't do him a bit of harm… so long as you guys have the same blood as us.” She hoofed at her mane as she realized her lack of discretion.

“Thanks, you two. Um, could you…?” Twilight nodded in the direction of the device that was still casting magic around her. Nighttide examined the device and shifted it a little from its position, which seemed to be all that was necessary – instantly, the magic stopped with an audible pop, and Twilight was free to move again.

As Twilight stepped off the pedestal, Nighttide scanned the device. Given her scant knowledge of magic, all her scanning revealed was crude metals and a little bit of unknown ore-based substances.

“Well, I guess this is the part where we get the hay out of here?” Twilight suggested to the two, trying to feign a spark in her voice. But Nighttide wasn't buying.

“Twilight? Maybe I'm just jumping to conclusions here, but something seemed off after Riptide gave his little speech. Is there something up?”

Twilight didn't want to lie to Nighttide or Fluttershy, but she had no interest in touching on the subject just yet. “Let's get out of here first, then we can talk.”

“Hey, wait a sec,” Nighttide stopped Twilight once more. “If this guy is serious about developing a magic capable of mass destruction, shouldn't we do something about him and this ship?”

“The way I see it, this thing is headed somewhere important. I don't know where or for what, but I'd rather find out what its destination is than destroy everything here – or hurt Riptide.” The three looked back at the stallion lying on the ground. “Are you sure he's gonna be fine?”

Nighttide shrugged. “Pretty sure… Well, this isn't my native land, so if this is the strategy you have in mind, that's fine. But wouldn't it be better for us to ride the ship and see where it goes?”

“We need to contact the Princesses so that they can alert the Royal Guard, just in case this escalates in any way.”

“Fair enough,” Nighttide said with a nod. “Lead the way, m'lady.”

The three walked out into the hall and found their way back to the deck. As they opened the door, the wind threatened to suck them into the freezing air. All three ponies hunkered against the floor and proceeded to crawl out, one by one.

“Hey,” Nighttide shouted from the back of the line, “who's flying this thing anyway?”

“It's some sort of preset magic, I think,” Twilight shouted back. “It's been flying on its own ever since Riptide captured me.”

“Oh yeah,” Nighttide remembered something important. “Ain't got no wings no more, Princess. Think you could lend one?”

Not filled in on the back-story, Twilight looked at her with a little confusion, but then nodded to Fluttershy to crawl back with her to either side of Nighttide. The two grabbed hold of her barrel, and as she examined the horizon, Twilight shouted, “On three, spread your wings, Fluttershy! All the way!”

“Yeah, I'm good at this!” she shouted back. Nighttide’s ensuing chuckle was masked by the sound of the wind whipping around them.

With a “one, two, three!” the pegasus and alicorn spread their wings to their full span and were lifted high off the deck, hoisting Nighttide along with them. Even with all her unsprung weight, Nighttide didn't seem to inhibit their ever increasing altitude.

“Twilight, how high are we anyway!?” Nighttide shouted up.

As the three looked down beneath them, they realized that they were thousands of hooves above the ground – so high that the air was beginning to thin. The ship they were traveling in had apparently been working tirelessly to reach the top peak of a mountain range nearby, surrounded by a canopy of snow-filled clouds. “I think that's the Appaloosan mountains below us!” Twilight shouted. “How long has this thing been flying?”

“For about an hour,” Nighttide shouted from below.

With Fluttershy's lack of strength and Twilight's lack of wing dexterity, the two drifted lazily in the air as they slowly began to lose altitude. A clearing in the clouds off in the horizon directed them toward Ponyville, now an almost unidentifiable plot of land in the distance. It would be a few minutes before they could even consider where to land. Twilight just hoped that their wings could hold out for that long, as Nighttide's weight now began to reveal itself.

With little to say or think about other than their current predicament, the motley crew of airborne mares glided forward. As the ground grew closer, they saw a colorful blur begin to head their way. “Twilight! Fluttershy!” A raspy voice shouted from the distance.

“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight shouted with as much volume as she could under her current strain.

As Rainbow Dash closed in, she noticed the two carrying Nighttide below them. “What in Equestria are you guys doing up here?!”

“Oh, you know, enjoying the view,” Nighttide remarked to the cerulean pegasus. “Care to lend a hoof?”

Rainbow Dash tilted her head. “Can't you fly?”

“Of course,” Nighttide nodded dramatically, “I just prefer being carried… Seriously, one of my wings is broken. Help?”

Rainbow Dash positioned herself beneath Nighttide and let some of her weight rest on her back. “Dang, you really are heavy,” she shouted to the pony overhead.

“Well excuse me for being as thick as your skull.”

“It's no prob— HEY!”

Now a group of four, the Y-shaped ensemble eventually made their landing in a clearing just outside of Sweet Apple Acres. As three of the ponies relished contact with the ground, Rainbow Dash continued hovering overhead.

“So, again, what the hay were you guys doing way up there? I saw this weird burst of light a while back, then a few minutes later, you guys were falling from the sky!”

“It's a long story,” Twilight replied. “We should round up the others first, and I need to send a letter off to the Princess immediately. Let's all meet at the library. Rainbow Dash, can you gather the others?”

“Uh, sure.” Noticing the urgency in Twilight's tone, she decided not to ask any further questions. With a solid flap of her wings, Rainbow Dash sped off to gather their friends as the other three galloped toward Ponyville, thankful to be earth-bound once again.

__________

“Spike! Spike, where are you?!” Twilight frantically called around the library as her, Fluttershy, and Nighttide stormed inside.

“Whoa, calm down Twilight, I'm right here,” the baby dragon called up from the balcony floor, a scattered pile of comic books all around him.

“Spike, get ready to send a letter to the Princess. It's an emergency.”

Without another word, Spike bolted down the stairs to grab a blank scroll and quill from a desk. Fluttershy took a seat while Nighttide began to pace slowly around the room, reviewing on her retinal display some of the material she had scanned earlier. “Ready,” Spike called from the desk.

Twilight cleared her throat before beginning. “Princess Celestia. Today, while Nighttide and I were visiting the old castle, I was kidnapped by a stallion named Riptide – a former member of the Royal Guard. During my capture, I learned that he is developing what he called ‘negative magic’ that is capable of widespread damage… and possibly death.” Twilight hesitated only for a moment as Spike stared straight at the scroll, ready to continue. “Riptide explained that he is working on this magic to present to you and your sister as a means of defense in the event of a crisis, but considering his actions today, I believe that he may be a danger to Equestria. His last known location was above a mountain range beyond the Everfree Forest. Please respond ASAP with instructions on how to proceed.”

“Hey Twilight,” Nighttide said, “let her know that I placed a tracking device on his ship a while back. If we can get to the area again, I should be able to locate it pretty quick.”

“Get that, Spike?”

“Got it.” One puff of Spike's green fire, and the message was on its way. Twilight took a seat of her own near Fluttershy, while Nighttide continued pacing.

“What's up, Nighttide?” Twilight asked as she sat down to calm her nerves.

“Nothing, actually. I'm reviewing the material I scanned from that thing that was casting magic on you, but there's really nothing of importance that I can see. Metals, plants, crude construction… there's nothing of significance here.”

Twilight tilted her head. “Hey, is there any way you could use that ‘hologram’ to show us what you're looking at?”

Nighttide's head perked up. “Yeah, actually!” She opened the door on her back, and the hologram projector hummed to life. “Maybe you can figure some of this stuff out.” She walked up to where Twilight sat so she wouldn't have to stand again, her exhaustion from the flight down now evident in her labored breathing. Fluttershy watched curiously from aside as the hologram gained definition.

As Nighttide kneeled to a comfortable position, Twilight asked, “Can you pull up an image of the device Riptide was using on me just before we escaped?”

“Sure thing.” Nighttide switched to a spectral image as it appeared in real life. The actual image displayed to one side, while finer details displayed on the other, such as size, density, and identified substances.

“Can you focus on the top part of the device?” Twilight asked. “There's a pattern of some sort on it.”

Nighttide digitally zoomed in on the top portion and enhanced the image. Twilight was amazed for a moment at the amount of clarity Nighttide was able to capture. And then, she noticed something significant.

“That pattern…” She squinted at the image as she leaned forward. “I think I've seen it in a reference guide for Star Swirl somewhere.”

Suddenly, the front door burst open again, and in came the rest of the crew. “Twilight, what's going on?” shouted Applejack as she ran inside below Rainbow Dash, with Rarity and Pinkie Pie in close pursuit.

“Oh, thank goodness you girls are here,” Twilight sighed as she motioned for Nighttide to turn off the display. “It's a long story, so have a seat.”

Twilight filled everyone in on what had taken place since the morning, most of them responding with shocked expressions or, in the case of Pinkie Pie, confusion. “So you're telling us there's this pony who likes water that kidnapped you from the castle and made you float in the air and took you on his flying ship to use you to make bad magic?”

Everyone blinked at Pinkie Pie. “Y-yes, actually. All of that,” Twilight answered.

“Then what are we waiting for? Let's GO GET 'EM!” As Pinkie proceeded to spring back outside, Applejack caught her by the tail.

“Nuffin doin',” Applejack retorted with a mouth full of pink fluff. “Gi' bach in hurr.” With a fling of her head, she tossed Pinkie back into the room, whose returned a frown.

“Girls, this is serious,” Twilight reaffirmed to everyone. “If what Riptide said is true, then we could all be in danger.”

“Hold on, dear,” Rarity interjected, “I'm confused about one little point. You said that Riptide was trying to make this magic to help Equestria, not hurt us.”

“I know that, but what I'm concerned most about is the magic itself, not necessarily his intentions. If he finishes his work, if the knowledge of this magic falls into anypony's hooves, who knows what kind of damage could be done in the future?”

A murmur of agreement sounded between everypony as Nighttide and Fluttershy watched quietly from the corner.

“Well then, what do you propose we do?” Applejack asked.

“I'll tell ya what we do,” Rainbow Dash shouted from above. “We go find that airship thing and kick it out of the sky! Teach that Riptide who's boss!”

“I just sent a letter off to Princess Celestia,” Twilight added, “so let's try to wait until she replies back.”

With perfect timing, Spike belched up a sealed scroll and began to unfurl it. Clearing his throat, he read the message aloud. “Twilight, thank you for informing me about this incident. I have forwarded the information to the Royal Guard, and they are deploying pegasi to the area around the Appaloosan mountains. I will let you know as soon as I hear back from them. While I cannot suggest you use the Elements of Harmony any further, I would recommend that you work together with your friends, as well as Nighttide, to develop a solution.”

“Hey, wait a sec,” Nighttide interrupted. “What's this about the Elements?”

“Well, there's one thing we left out when visiting with the Princess,” Twilight said. “We had to return the Elements back to the Tree of Harmony when Discord's plunderseeds began to grow and spread vines all across Equestria.”

Nighttide gave a stern look at Fluttershy. “Your Discord, I take it?” Fluttershy gave a weak smile and nodded with a blush.

Spike continued reading off the message. “I will speak with Luna to see how we should proceed next, and until we locate Riptide, your brother Shining Armor will be re-stationed here in Canterlot. I have sent a message to Princess Cadance asking her to send him this way now, and for her to be on the lookout for Riptide anywhere near the Crystal Empire.” Spike then rolled the message back up and placed it on a nearby table.

Everypony looked at each other for a moment in silence, not sure of what to say or do next. After a moment, it was Nighttide who decided to make the first move.

“Okay, so, we've got a unicorn on the loose who is developing a dangerous form of magic. A few of us can fly, a few can't…” She turned to Twilight. “Didn't you mention something about a balloon of some sort as means of transportation?”

“Yes,” she said with a nod. “In fact, we have a hot air balloon that we use for select events here in Ponyville.”

“Perfect.” Nighttide hesitated for a moment. “I know I'm not formally a part of the group here, but… is it alright if I make a suggestion?” Everyone nodded in response, a few of them casting small smiles. “Alright then. Here's my, uh… professional opinion.

“In Roanne, the first order of business in a crisis like this would be reconnaissance – to scout out and locate the enemy, which as Princess Celestia mentioned, the Royal Guard is now attempting to do. While that's fine, there's no reason we can't pitch in as well. But we need to come up with a plan, and I think I may have a few strategies that could help out here – especially given you ponies don't have the Elements to use anymore.”

Twilight smirked as she watched her new friend take the lead, allowing her a chance to observe for once.

“As I understand it, you ponies don't use telecommunications here. Spike, are you able to send and receive letters from the Princess wherever you are in Equestria?” He nodded. “Then this is my suggestion: All of us who can't fly should take the hot-air balloon, provided it can carry our weight.” Nighttide glanced at Twilight, who gave an affirming nod. “We’ll take Spike with us as messenger for the Princess. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy can fly ahead of the balloon and scout out the mountain range along with the Royal Guard.” Nighttide gave a firm but sweet look to Fluttershy, who did her best to put on a face of confidence. “In the event that anypony locates Riptide, one pony or another will meet with the other group and inform them. Twilight will fly with us in the balloon and act as our messenger, so she can stay near Spike in case she needs to correspond with the Princess.

“In the event we do locate Riptide, and provided it’s accessible, we'll set a course for the ship or its target destination and proceed with caution. We don't know what kind of magic he may use in self-defense, but he seemed very serious about completing this ‘negative magic’ stuff. The sleep agent I used on him will only last about two hours. However, the goal will be his capture, not to bring any harm to him. And…” Nighttide inhaled. “That's it. What do you girls think?”

Everypony looked at each other for a moment, mulling it over. After a moment, they all agreed unanimously to give it a shot.

“There's just one thing I'm concerned about,” Nighttide closed off, “and it's ironic, given Riptide's intentions: we need to be ready to defend ourselves in the event that Riptide acts out in a violent manner. If he decides to use this magic he's developing, then we could all be in serious danger.” Nighttide paused to gauge everyone's expression. “I need to know you girls are ready to defend yourselves if it comes down to it.”

“What do you mean by ‘defend,’ exactly?” Twilight asked.

Nighttide sighed. “I honestly can't say. This magic he's talking about, I don't have any idea how it works or if there's even anything we could do against it. And, for all intents and purposes, I don't have a clue how magic works period. You ponies here are the experts. In any case, what I guess I'm trying to say is… if any one or the other of us is put in danger, we need to be ready to protect ourselves, no matter what.”

While her inflection may have not suggested the mortal point Nighttide was trying to convey, everypony let out an understanding sigh, and Twilight spoke for the group. “Don't worry, Nighttide. This isn't the first time we've had to do something dangerous.”

“Yeah, I know.” Nighttide hoofed at the ground a little, worried she had taken her lead too far. “I just don't want anything bad to happen. And, for those ponies who didn't know already…” Nighttide revealed her in-tact right wing and engine, to Applejack and Pinkie Pie's surprise. “I was actually able to fly up until just a few hours ago. So, if something happens out there, I'm not going to be able to come to anypony's rescue.”

Still a little surprised at the sight, Applejack collected herself and spoke up. “Now Nighttide, I hope you're not thinkin' you're responsible for any of this? The way you're talkin', it's almost like you're tryin' to make up for somethin'.”

“No, everypony, it's just…” Nighttide drew a breath and looked off to the side. “If this was even just a few days ago, I probably would’ve charged head-first into a situation like this with guns blazing – barely a thought given to the welfare of anypony. It’s the way I’ve been trained. I follow DIRE's rules and regulations to a fault, and even though I’m still a pony with emotions of my own, they’ve been made to be the last priority. To fulfill the duties assigned to me, to act according to protocol. That's how I've been raised for so many years. And those protocols don’t highlight any importance on the welfare of ponies other than our own.”

Nighttide looked up to see that everypony was listening intently. As she looked at each mare individually, she continued. “There's some of you I still don't know well… Applejack. Rarity. Pinkie Pie. And there are a couple of you that I've gotten to know a little better recently, like you, Rainbow Dash. Fluttershy, of course. And,” she said with a slight smile, “your newest princess of Equestria, Twilight Sparkle. There's still a lot I have to learn in life – there's so much I want to accomplish that I haven't thought about in years. But in just the short amount of time I've got to know you all, I've been reminded of what it means to think for yourself, to feel for yourself, and how to respond to those feelings without completely losing yourself. I don't know what it is about you girls, but you've made me feel so welcome, so loved. Like I'm important because I'm a pony, and not a project. And, for what it's worth,” Nighttide stammered on, “i-it's been a great experience… I don't know really where I'm going with all of this,” she said, hoofing at the back of her mane, “but suffice it to say, if it hadn't been for you all, I could have become something much worse. I was meant to kill. But I want to mean so much more than that.”

Nighttide then looked out a nearby window with a stern expression. “And I want to handle this crisis the way you ponies would. I believe in your ways. There has to be a way we can solve this without anypony getting hurt.”

Each of the ponies in the room gathered around Nighttide, some of them a little teary-eyed, while others wore warm smiles. Twilight was the first to speak. “Nighttide, I think I can speak for us all when I say that we consider you to be our friend. Yes, some of us haven't got to know you real well yet.” Twilight looked over at Applejack and Rarity, both of whom sported eager grins. “But that doesn't really matter right now. As far as we’re concerned, inasmuch as we know you and all that we've got to share already, we proudly consider you a friend – and a very welcome guest to Equestria.”

Nighttide cocked her head in each pony's direction, blinking a little frantically. As she tried to formulate a response, Applejack spoke again.

“Twilight's right, Nighttide. We'd sure love to get to know ya better, and hopefully in the next few days, we can do just that! But from where we stand right now, you're a friend in our eyes.” Pinkie Pie could be seen bouncing nearby with a nod and smile.

Finally, Nighttide found her voice. “It's still so funny to me, how you ponies can be so welcoming.” She looked back out the window at the overcast sky, having been created by the weather patrol earlier. “Well, whatever happens next, I guess I should say… even if it is still new to me… I consider you all to be my friends as well.”

The ponies let out a round of “Awh's” and surrounded Nighttide in a group hug, which all but locked her in place. Each of them nuzzled against her, and as the warmth and softness of each pony's embrace sank in, Nighttide couldn't help but smile the biggest smile. ‘So, this is friendship.’

“Alright, everypony,” Twilight broke in the middle of their hug. “Let's go take care of this.”

As the group let out a round of cheers and headed outside, Nighttide followed closely beside Twilight. She remembered again her expression from earlier, and since nopony else was paying attention at the moment— “Twilight. About earlier, on Riptide's ship. Can you tell me what that was all about?”

“What? You mean— oh…” Twilight's confident expression was almost completely erased at the realization of what she meant. “Um… let's just say I have a few questions I need to ask the Princesses later.”

Nighttide’s ears folded back. “You mean about Equestria's history, right?”

“Yeah.” Twilight still couldn't figure out why the Princesses would have kept such information away from other pony's eyes. But, given all she had been through, she refused to let her trust in them be swayed that easily. With a weak smile, she looked over at Nighttide. “I'm sure it'll all be fine in the end. They always have a good reason for the choices they make.”

“I can easily see how you'd feel that way,” Nighttide replied. “But, speaking as an outsider without as much personal bias, I have to admit that's a significant decision on their part – to hide history – and one that certainly merits questioning.”

“I know,” Twilight affirmed, a little flustered. “That's why I'm going to speak with them about it.”

Nighttide nodded, and the two galloped ahead to catch up with the others.

Chapter 9 - Strength in Numbers

DIRE LAB-1032 Scan Report, File 1792:

- Air temp: 99°C

- Air density: 0.9486 kg/m³

- Current lift: 723.5 kg

“What a crazy looking contraption.” Nighttide walked around the mighty purple balloon of Ponyville, scanning its various parts.

Twilight was going over her check-list nearby when she noticed her pacing around, staring up inside at the burner. “I thought you said you had balloons from your land?”

“We do, but… they don’t look anything like this. They’re enclosed setups and are way bigger than—”

“You mean blimps, right? You were describing something like them on the train back from Canterlot. We have those as well.”

Nighttide blinked back at her. “So I guess you guys do have more than I thought.”

Twilight gave her a cheeky smile. “I’m just gonna have to fill you in on all sorts of things, won’t I?”

“Guess so.” Nighttide watched Applejack and Rarity climb into the balloon’s basket. Pinkie Pie stood off to the side talking with Mr. and Mrs. Cake from Sugarcube Corner. They had been gracious enough to close shop early to help with releasing the balloon for flight. Rainbow Dash stood a short distance away, making dramatic gestures with her hooves and wings to a clearly nervous Fluttershy. Rainbow Dash had managed to call off work early, cashing in one of her many earned ‘hero’ days. Everyone wore saddlebags filled with first-aid kits and warm clothing, and Pinkie Pie made sure to pack a snack for everypony as well.

“I don’t believe we’ve packed this much stuff since we asked that dragon to leave,” Twilight thought aloud. “And you said your ponies would do this every time they set off on a mission?”

“Oh ho,” Nighttide scoffed, glaring at Twilight, “you have no idea the stuff they expect us to take along. During basic training, they have most ponies carry these weighted saddle-packs filled with sand, just so ponies become strong enough to carry the equipment they’d have to take in a real operation.”

Twilight furrowed her brow. “I know they put the Royal Guard through some rigorous training, too. Shining Armor’s told me stories kind of similar to that.” She then looked to the ground. “But I guess your ponies have to prepare for more, where you come from.”

“It is what it is.” Nighttide wrapped a metal foreleg gently around Twilight’s withers. “Thankfully, your ponies don’t. Not now at least. And if we have anything to say about it, we’ll make sure ol’ Riptide doesn’t change that.” Twilight returned a soft smile, though Nighttide could see she was still uneasy. “Hey, c’mon.. It does you no good to keep worrying about it.” She gave the alicorn a knowing look.

Twilight tilted her head away. “I’m sorry. It’s just… hearing about Equestria’s history? I’ve been through a lot these past years, and I’ve always considered Princess Celestia to be someone I could trust, no matter what.” Twilight paused for a moment as she looked in the direction of Canterlot. “And I still feel that way. For all I know, Riptide really could have just been making it up.”

“Maybe.” Nighttide wasn’t going to push the point any further. “We’ll figure it all out in the end. Just keep your head up until then, alright Princess?”

“Please,” Twilight said, lifting a hoof and turning away, “don’t call me that. Not right now at least.”

Nighttide nodded softly and stepped aside as Twilight trotted forward to gather the others together.

__________

“So, uh… where exactly are we headed?” Rainbow Dash flew in closer to the balloon as Fluttershy glided beside her. They were just beginning to fly over Sweet Apple Acres.

“To the Appaloosan mountains.” Twilight pointed in the direction of a few snow-capped mountains in the distance. “That’s the direction Riptide was last headed.”

“Gotcha. Ready, Fluttershy?”

The timid pegasus gave her a quick nod and a smile, about as ready as she would ever be.

“Alright then. I’m gonna fly on ahead of everypony. Fluttershy, when you get to the mountains, just… swoop around or something, look for clues. I’ll find you when you get there and see how you’re doing.” Rainbow Dash was in a particularly good mood, ready for an adventure that would make use of her flying skills. And thanks to her excitement, she was more than happy to cater to Fluttershy’s nervousness this time.

But, to everypony’s surprise, Fluttershy seemed to be relatively collected. “Alright, you go on ahead then. I’ll see you soon.”

“’Kay.” Rainbow Dash took off at full speed for the mountain range, contorting a few clouds as she passed alongside them.

As Fluttershy pushed slowly ahead, Pinkie Pie leaned over the side of the balloon’s basket. “Good luck, you two!” She waved the two pegasi off while Applejack and Rarity took in the view. Over in another corner, Twilight and Nighttide sat talking together.

“Ah, crap.” Nighttide had just remembered something important. “Twilight, you may want to tell your Princess that tracking signal I mentioned may not help after all.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well…” Nighttide glanced over the side of the basket. “When that ship has its cloak engaged, it seems to conceal the signal. My sensors literally bounced right off of it, so it acts as a kind of containment field as well.”

“You know, you never really did explain to me what you found out about the ship. And I still need to look again at that image of Riptide’s magic device.”

“Right.” Nighttide did her best to fill Twilight in on what she knew during the slow flight forward. Trying to keep it concise, she eventually got to the part where they escaped. “When we flew off the deck, did you notice how the ship vanished shortly after we were airborne?”

“Sorry, no. I was too busy carrying somepony.” Twilight smirked.

“Yeah, fair enough.” Nighttide grinned sheepishly. “Well, it did disappear, and more than likely because we passed through the cloak field. We were traveling so fast in the air, I couldn’t tell when or if we passed through it, but I noticed my report said the tracking signal was detected whenever we were on or near the ship, and that it was lost when we weren’t.”

Twilight sighed as she stood up to look over the basket’s rim. “Well, that’s okay. Hopefully the Royal Guard or Rainbow Dash can find something.”

“Or Fluttershy!” Nighttide chirped.

Twilight laughed. “Yes, or Fluttershy… I sure hope she’ll be alright out there.” The two sat together in silence for a moment, watching as they slowly inched closer to the mountain range in the horizon.

__________

About an hour had passed. They were now flying several hundred meters over the leading edge of a snowstorm and were probably still a few kilometers from contact with the mountains. Nighttide was sitting on the floor of the basket listening to Pinkie Pie tell the story of how she got her cutie mark, when suddenly, a blip appeared on her sensors.

Nighttide sat up and looked over at Twilight. “I think I found it.”

“You mean Riptide?”

Nighttide stood up and looked over the basket. “I’m trying to fine-tune the signal now… give me a second.”

Nighttide closed her eyes to get a better view of her retinal display, which showed a fairly defined blip tucked inside a crevice between two nearby mountain peaks. As she zoomed in on the image, she could see there was a flat section of land just big enough to land something the size of Riptide’s ship.

Nighttide looked over at Spike. “Contact the Princess. The tracking signal is between those two mountains in a small clearing.” She pointed over the side to a large peak directly in front of them and a smaller one beside it. Everyone stood up to see where she was suggesting.

“Um…” Spike looked up at Twilight. “What do you want me to say?”

“I’ll trust you with it, Spike. I need to fly ahead and let the others know.”

“Oh, uh, sure! I can do that!” Spike had only ever been able to write personal letters to the Princess in the past when he and the others had been assigned to report on lessons in friendship. Both nervous and excited to be tasked with writing an important letter like this on his own, he pulled out a scroll and quill as Twilight jumped over the side of the basket, spreading her wings to glide forward.

“Twilight!” Nighttide shouted down. “Radar’s picking up one fast and one slow moving contact just around that smaller peak in front of us. Betcha it’s Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy.”

“Got it!” Twilight awkwardly flapped her wings, trying to gain some speed and stability as she worked her way toward the mountain. Spike had just finished writing the letter to the Princess, and with a puff, the letter was on its way.

“Hey Pinkie.” Nighttide walked over to the corner where she was now standing with Applejack and Rarity. “Is there any way for us to steer this thing?”

“You bet!” Pinkie reached into her saddlebag and pulled out a small white tube, which she shook with her mouth until it opened up into a huge, brightly colored paper fan. The others looked at her, but only one was shocked at the sight.

“Seriously?” Nighttide blinked as Pinkie proceeded to start flapping the fan over the side of the basket. Indeed, it was changing their course, but not quite as fast as Nighttide wanted.

“Here, I’ve got a better idea.” Nighttide stepped over to one corner of the basket and asked the others to gather around her. “I’m gonna try using my working engine to propel us forward, but I’m gonna need you all to hang onto me so I don’t end up flying over the side.”

“Not a problem,” Applejack replied as she, Rarity, Pinkie, and Spike braced themselves in front of the mare. Nighttide released her right engine, and with a little sputter, the engine slowly came to life.

It was a good thing there were the four of them to hold her in place, for even at its lowest throttle, the little engine pushed the basket so far forward that it began to tilt upward. The four of them shuffled a little in place as they tried to hold their grip while Nighttide continued examining the tracking coordinates, making sure they were on the right path.

Once they had enough momentum, Nighttide disengaged her engine, and Pinkie Pie walked over to adjust the balloon’s burner. A few minutes later, they could see a colorful blur off in the distance flying toward them, a faint yellow dot trailing slowly behind.

“Hey guys!” Rainbow Dash clambered into the basket. “So, you found the bad guy?”

“Yeah, I think so,” Nighttide said. “But, where’s Twilight?”

“What d’ya mean?”

Nighttide suggested to the horizon where Fluttershy was laboring to make her way back to the balloon. There was no sign of Twilight.

“Oh yeah… heheh.” Rainbow nervously rubbed the back of her mane. “Well, she was a little slow, y’know? What with those new wings and everything? So I just decided—“

“To leave her behind?” Applejack interjected with a frown.

“Hey, I didn’t leave her behind! She flew past me to grab Fluttershy.”

Soon afterward, Fluttershy climbed into the basket with a frantic expression. “Girls, something strange just happened.”

Everyone turned to Fluttershy. “What’s wrong?” Rarity asked. “Where’s Twilight?”

“That’s just it. Right after Twilight found me, we saw this flash between those two mountains.” She pointed in the general direction of the tracking signal. “It was down in a clearing, just past the storm. We only saw it for a second – after that, all we could see was snow.”

“Alright, fine,” Rainbow replied impatiently, “but where’s Twilight?”

“She told me to fly back here while she checked it out. But when I looked back a few minutes later, I saw her flying toward the clouds below!”

Everyone looked over the side of the basket. After a few seconds of scanning around, Nighttide picked up a slow-moving blip on her radar. Just barely noticeable in the distance flew the alicorn, circling around the mountain toward the snowstorm.

“What’s she doing down there?” Nighttide shouted as she pointed down at the purple dot in the distance. “Doesn’t she know that’s a storm?”

“I dunno,” Applejack said as she spotted Twilight herself, “but if she keeps goin’ like that, she could get hurt!”

“Not if I have anything to say about it,” Rainbow confidently remarked as she dove off the side, racing toward Twilight.

Several seconds passed as they watched Rainbow Dash speed toward their friend, but before she could reach her, Twilight was enveloped in the clouds. Rainbow Dash skimmed above where she disappeared, trying to find a good approach angle. But then she slowed to a hover.

“Something’s wrong,” Rarity commented. “Pinkie, is there any way we can get down there?”

“Leave it to me!” Pinkie Pie jumped up and turned the balloon’s burner off completely, allowing them to descend a little faster.

Nighttide looked over at Spike as a peculiar thought crossed her mind. “Hey kid, you got anything back from the Princess?”

“Not yet.” Spike found it a little odd that Princess Celestia was taking so long to reply. In the past, she had almost always promptly responded to any letters meriting a reply. “Maybe she’s busy with something else.”

As the balloon continued to descend faster, Nighttide followed Twilight’s pattern with her radar. She was now buried within the storm, her path remaining fairly straight and steady, heading toward the tracking signal. It would have been one thing if Twilight just happened to be flying in its general direction, but for several minutes now, Nighttide noticed she had maintained her course, a near perfect straight line for the signal just a couple’ kilometers ahead of them.

Rainbow Dash flew back to the balloon, a look of panic on her face. “Guys, I lost her! What the hay is she doing anyway?!”

“I don’t know,” Nighttide said, “but something’s odd about the direction she’s headed.” She filled everyone in on what she had noticed.

As Rainbow Dash took a moment to preen her feathers in the basket, Spike thought of something else odd. “Hey guys.” He turned to both Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. “Did you run into any of the Royal Guard while you were out there?”

“No,” Rainbow Dash answered. “It was just us until Twilight showed up. How about you, Fluttershy?”

“Sorry, no. When I got to the mountains, I didn’t see anypony until you found me.”

Applejack sighed. “We never should’ve let Twilight go out there on her own.”

“Well, how else could we let Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy know to meet back here?” Pinkie suggested. The other ponies nodded in agreement, but it didn’t change the desperate nature of the situation.

With a flap of her wings, Rainbow Dash flew off the side of the basket again and turned to the others. “I don’t know about you ponies, but I’m not one to sit around and wait for something to happen. I’m going in after her!”

“Hang on a sec,” Nighttide shouted as she activated her hologram. On the display was a map of Twilight’s trajectory, as well as the location of the tracking signal. “With where we’re positioned right now, if you fly toward this blip here,” she pointed to the highest dot above her, “you’ll be flying the same path as Twilight. Right now, I can’t get a lock on her elevation, but she’s down there in the storm somewhere. Just fly in that direction.” She pointed off the side of the basket.

Fluttershy walked up and looked at where she was pointing as well, then turned to Rainbow Dash. Without so much as hesitation in her voice, she said, “I’m coming with you.”

Rainbow Dash blinked at her friend. “F-Fluttershy, I don’t think—“

“Listen, Rainbow Dash,” she interjected firmly. “Twilight is in trouble. This isn’t like when I was trying to help gather rainwater for Cloudsdale.” She looked Rainbow Dash straight in the eyes and repeated, “I’m coming with you.”

Rainbow Dash had rarely seen Fluttershy so serious. She took a few seconds to examine the hologram, then looked again at Fluttershy.

“Are you sure?”

Fluttershy smiled. “I’m positive.”

Rainbow Dash gave a short nod, and after a second, she went into a nosedive, Fluttershy following behind her. Nighttide was impressed at the sight, but the feeling passed silently as she continued to monitor Twilight’s trajectory.

The balloon continued its descent for several minutes, slowly closing in on the clouds below them. Pinkie Pie reignited the burner to slow their fall as Nighttide worked to figure out a good landing spot, but then—

“Hey, does anypony see that?” Applejack pointed down at a distant clearing where a bright blue flash was beginning to grow. Nighttide picked it up as a solid object, much like the cloak from earlier. But something was different. It almost looked like a shockwave.

Everypony watched on, figuring in time, the flash would dissipate. But it continued to grow, heading straight for them. Their eyes widened.

“Brace for impact!”

Nighttide and the others dove to the floor of the basket as the shockwave slammed into the balloon, knocking everypony into each other and sending Spike off the side. He grabbed onto one of the leading ropes as the basket whipped wildly in the wind. “Help! Somepony help me!”

Rarity spotted Spike struggling to hang onto the rope and used her magic to pull him back inside, tucking him between herself and the corner of the basket. Applejack and Pinkie Pie had been tossed to the other side and were now holding onto each other, while Nighttide struggled to stand to her hooves.

Their trajectory had been skewed. The balloon was now dropping at a violent rate toward the clouds below. Nighttide carefully looked up, trying not to lose her balance, and noticed the burner had been knocked onto its side. The flame still shooting out the end was now scorching the frame that held it in place.

Nighttide met eyes with the other ponies. They all realized their predicament. As the balloon increased velocity, everypony’s heart sank into their stomachs.

Pinkie Pie clutched desperately to Applejack. “What are we going to do?!”

Nighttide carefully worked her way over to the edge of the basket, the ever decreasing gravity trying to knock her off balance. Off to the side, Rarity grabbed hold of Spike and held him close to her chest.

Once Nighttide crawled to the edge, she looked down and said, “No… at this rate…”

Without so much as a word, Rarity closed her eyes and brought her horn to light, the familiar whistle of magic penetrating the rushing wind around them. Slowly, the balloon was wrapped in a soft blue aura.

“Rarity,” Applejack called from the far corner, a stunned look on her and Pinkie Pie’s faces as they held onto each other. “Can you…?”

Just as the balloon was about to dive into the clouds, everyone was wrapped in the same glow. But Nighttide noticed something strange about the magic.

“Celestia, please let this work—” Rarity spoke through gritted teeth as she held on as tight as she could to Spike.

Then, a large flash encompassed everypony. The balloon, and all its passengers, vanished.

__________

“… mm… hm…”

Rarity slowly regained consciousness. She could feel a soft, cold substance surrounding her body, the only source of warmth residing between her and her saddlebags. Her head felt like it was spinning, and the only thing she could hear was the sound of a violent wind whipping around her. She flicked her ears in either direction, trying to see if she could hear anything or anypony else. But there was only the wind.

She tried opening her eyes, but found her fake lashes had tangled themselves in a matted substance on her cheek. She wiped her eye with a hoof and pulled it back.

“… wha… what is…?”

Rarity’s hoof was covered in a sticky red liquid. She blinked for a moment, not sure what to think. Then, slowly, she brought it up to her nose to smell.

It was blood.

Chapter 10 - Separation

It took Rarity several seconds to process what was going on. After a moment, she struggled to stand to her hooves, but fell back into the frigid slush. Just holding her head up against the wind was almost impossible, and the thrashing snow made it difficult to see even a few hooves in front of her. Her eyes were painfully dry, and she could feel a pounding in her head.

“… Spike… wh-where… is…”

Rarity wobbled in place as she craned her neck from side to side, looking for the baby dragon. But there was only white and grey.

It didn't take long for the little bit of warmth left between her and the saddlebags to fade. Rarity reached into one of the pouches and pulled out a scarf, carefully wrapping it around her neck. She pulled it taut against her, much as her current strength would allow, and proceeded to stand again.

It simply wasn't going to happen. The wind pushed Rarity onto her haunches, so she decided to try crawling forward. For the little bit of visibility she had, all she saw was the white of snow covering the ground, and the dull grey of the air in front of her.

Rarity pointed her head down against the wind and crawled forward. With each step she took, she left a trail of crimson behind her, the blood of somepony coated over her front hoof. After inching ahead only a short distance, she looked up to see the faintest plume of green-tinted smoke billowing from a hole in the ground.

Rarity approached the hole slowly and peered down. There, covered in a light layer of snow, was a baby dragon lying on his side, a small trail of smoke pouring out his nostrils.

“Spike… Spike, wake up…”

Rarity lay down in the snow and pulled Spike toward her. She could feel him shaking in her hooves.

“… Wh… whoa.” Slowly, Spike opened his eyes to the grey world around him. “Where are…?”

“Spike.” Rarity tilted his head toward her. “Spike, are you alright?”

“Y-yeah,” the baby dragon stammered as he squinted against the wind, trying to look up into her eyes. “But… what happened?”

Rarity was just relieved to see he was alright. Her strength running low, she pulled him close to her chest, then collapsed on her side.

“Rarity!” Spike shouted as he struggled to push out of her grasp. He noticed the blood covering her hoof, which appeared to have come from wiping a large gash above her right eye.

Rarity was unconscious again. Spike looked at her and the world around them in disbelief. Eventually, the baby dragon broke free from Rarity's now limp forelegs and clambered on top of her to pull out the first-aid kit from her saddlebag. He dove back into the snow and wrenched the lid open, causing several bandages to fly in the wind.

“No no no! Wait!” Spike reached helplessly into the air, trying to catch them, but then threw the lid back close to keep anything else from flying out. As he peeked back inside, he pulled out some gauze and a couple of the remaining bandages, then proceeded to dress the gash above Rarity's eye.

“It's gonna be alright, Rarity… it's gonna be just fine…” The baby dragon shook, partly from the cold, partly from fear, as he tenderly treated her wound.

__________

“Damn… what the hell did that pony do?”

Nighttide crouched in a thick plot of fresh snow as she peered into the grey horizon. Not a pony could be seen, and her sensors were completely garbled. But as concerning as that was, there was something else that worried her more. Just before the crash, she had seen Rarity's horn glowing blue. She figured she was about to use a teleportation spell of some sort, but then something happened right before they were separated: her magic had turned black.

Nighttide stood to her full height, the weight of her suit keeping her planted securely in the loose ground. It appeared she was on a wooded embankment, the tattered remains of the balloon lying in a heap to one side. She trotted over to have a peek inside the overturned basket, only to find it empty – save the freshly splintered pine it managed to gather on its way down. With a sigh, she looked around. The slope above was too steep to climb, but she could work her way downhill. Hopefully in time, she would run into somepony else.

As she walked between the whistling pines, swaying beneath the relentless wind, Nighttide let her systems run a diagnostic sweep. It appeared the shockwave had elements of an electromagnetic pulse. While not strong enough to disable or erase her systems, it had been enough to fry some of the internal components of her sensors.

“Weapons, check. Reactor, check. Vitals are stable…” Nighttide mumbled to herself as she pushed forward against the wind, reviewing the diagnostic report. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she spotted an orange and pink lump half-buried in snow. “Applejack! Pinkie Pie! Is that you?”

“Yeah, we're over here!” Applejack shouted, waving her over. Pinkie Pie was huddled together with her underneath a brightly colored blanket, trying to stay warm as the snow piled around them. They both had wrapped scarves around their necks, and it appeared Applejack's hat was missing.

“Thank goodness you two are alright. You are alright, right?” Nighttide shouted against the wind.

“Yeah, we're fine. We were gonna look for the others, but then this storm…”

“I know what you mean.” Nighttide turned her muzzle toward the wind, peering off in the distance in hope that she could spot some other colors. Nothing. “Are you two able to stand?”

“Only if we stick together,” Applejack replied. “The wind's too strong!”

Pinkie Pie shifted onto her knees, her blanket almost flying away. She reached back and pulled it off the two, then tucked it inside her saddlebag. “C'mon, Applejack. We've got some friends to go save!”

“G-g-glad to see you're s-still in high spirits, P-Pinkie,” Applejack commented as she gave a visible shiver to the sudden loss of warmth. Nighttide noticed the wind was picking up, so she worked her way between the two mares and switched her systems to purge heat, allowing her suit to radiate warmth to share with the others.

The three marched silently into the grey of the storm. After a moment, Nighttide spoke up. “Hey, do either of you know what exactly happened?”

“We were wonderin' that ourselves.” Applejack held her head close to Nighttide's, trying to angle against the wind. “In case ya didn't know, Twilight's the only pony we've ever known who's been able to teleport. But I think that's what Rarity was tryin' to do back on the balloon. All's I remember is bein' surrounded in this bright light, but then it got real dark all the sudden. Next thing I knew, I was lyin' in the snow, and Pinkie Pie here was at my hooves.”

Nighttide could feel Pinkie shivering against her side. It appeared she was now the cold one. “Y-y-yep, that's wh-what I remember t-too. I also heard wh-what sounded like a sc-scream in the distance when I w-woke up.”

“You know which way it came?” Nighttide asked.

Pinkie shook her head. They continued forward in silence for several minutes, hoping that they would eventually run into their friends. Occasionally, the snow on the ground would level out for a bit, and they would look in either direction to figure out which way to go. It didn't really matter if they turned or continued straight – there was no starting point from which to reference. So they picked and chose random directions as they slowly inched their way through the storm.

Finally, they heard something. A faint whimper not too far from them.

“…Ya hear that?” Applejack shouted.

“Sure it's not just the wind?” Nighttide asked.

“Pretty sure it's somepony. Come on.”

The trio turned toward the sound and bolstered their sides against the wind. As they trudged through the snow, they spotted what looked like a yellow wing sticking out of a very tall mound of snow.

“Fluttershy?!” Applejack shouted into the freezing air, but no response. She turned to Nighttide and Pinkie. “It looks awful steep.”

“Agreed,” Nighttide said. “Let me see if I can make it up. My suit should help with traction. You two stay here and hunker down.”

Nighttide broke free from the group as Applejack grabbed hold of Pinkie Pie, bracing themselves as close to the ground as they comfortably could.

“Fluttershy!” Nighttide called out as she slowly made her way up the loose mound of snow. With every other step, she could feel a portion of the mound giving way underneath. She looked back to the other two and saw they were backing up slowly, the snow beginning to fall in layers in front of them. In time, Nighttide broke even with the top of the mound and found Fluttershy lying perfectly still on her side, her left wing sticking rigidly out of her side.

Nighttide trotted carefully forward and sat next to her. She tried to run an external vitals scan on her, but even those sensors appeared to be damaged. She carefully picked up Fluttershy's muzzle and stroked her pink mane, which was now a tangled mess.

“Fluttershy! Fluttershy, can you hear me?”

No response. Fluttershy’s head lay limp in her hooves with eyes closed; not even a flick of her ear signaled consciousness. Nighttide carefully checked the mare’s torso, being careful to not move it too much in case she had suffered any internal injuries. There didn't appear to be any major scrapes, but her wing stuck out at an odd angle. She didn't like how it jutted out without so much as giving into the force of the wind.

After a moment, Fluttershy began to mumble. Nighttide leaned down and nuzzled against her, trying to stroke her back to waking.

“… Tw… Twili…”

Fluttershy tilted her head up ever so slightly. As she opened her eyes, she met with Nighttide's.

“Fluttershy, it's Nighttide. Are you okay?”

Fluttershy tried to sit up a little, but recoiled in pain. “OW-AAH—Wha…” She looked over to her side and noticed her wing.

“Fluttershy, we've crash-landed somewhere in the mountains. Applejack and Pinkie Pie are just down this hill, but we haven't found the others yet.”

Fluttershy struggled to sit up as Nighttide wedged herself underneath her to act as a brace. Fluttershy's saddlebag had been ripped off at some point; only part of the strap remained looped around her.

“I… I think my wing's broken,” Fluttershy whimpered with a barely audible voice.

“Looks like it. The others still have their saddlebags, so they should have some first-aid kits on-hoof.”

Fluttershy swayed a little in place as she braced herself against Nighttide. Even though she wasn't an ace flyer, she knew enough about wings that first-aid would not be enough to fix the damage done. But then she thought of something. “Have you girls found Twilight?”

“No. We haven't ran into Rarity or Spike yet, either. And last we knew, you were following Rainbow Dash into the storm.” Nighttide paused as a gust of wind pushed against them. “Can you remember what happened?”

Fluttershy took a few seconds to process the question, then shook her head.

“Come on.” Nighttide helped Fluttershy to her hooves. “Let's meet up with the others downhill. Can you walk?”

Fluttershy took a couple of short steps forward, but stumbled into Nighttide. The two almost toppled over, but Nighttide held her ground.

“Slow.” Nighttide said. “Let's go slow.”

“Alright,” Fluttershy murmured.

The two carefully made their way down the mound and back to their friends. Thankfully, the snow didn't slip too much on their way down. Considering temperature around them, Nighttide figured the snow could easily be compacting into a frozen solid.

The four mares gathered around each other as Applejack pulled a first-aid kit out of her saddlebag. Fluttershy instructed her to the best of her ability on how to wrap her wing in a makeshift cast using gauze and a splint. As Applejack wrapped the first layer of gauze around her wing, Fluttershy yelped in pain every so often. It felt as if a bone in her wing had been fractured, and what with the angle it shot out, probably in more places than one.

It took several minutes, but Applejack eventually finished the job, wrapping the wing in two thick layers. Fluttershy was now wide awake thanks to the pain, but her dizziness had not died down much. She brushed back her mane and felt a tender spot on her forehead.

“Fluttershy, let me see that.” Applejack shuffled closer toward her. “…Well, could've been worse.”

“What is it?” Fluttershy wearily asked.

Applejack gave her a reassuring smile. “Just a bruise, sugarcube. You'll be fine.”

As Applejack brushed out some of the snow that had packed into Fluttershy's mane, Pinkie Pie looked up at the group. She was on the verge of tears. She hated to see her friend hurt so badly, but she also knew there were other friends still missing somewhere in the grey unknown. It was simply too cold, and the situation too desperate, to let her emotions get the better of her now. They still had to find the rest of their friends. But…

“Pinkie Pie? Hey, what's up?” Nighttide shifted toward the pony ever so slightly.

“N-nothing, it's alright!” She gave a weak smile and turned to Fluttershy. “Now that you're all fixed up, we should go look for the others. Don't want to keep them waiting forever, right?” She let out a nervous chuckle.

Nighttide could see the tears in her eyes, but she had a valid point. “Right. Come on, girls.”

The four braced against each other and took a path into a lighter part of the storm. The ground was solid and level, but they were still careful with each step they took.

__________

Spike had finished dressing Rarity's wound and was now working on finding a way to keep them warm. He pulled out a dark blue silk blanket from Rarity's saddlebag and draped it over her, working quickly to tuck it underneath her on all sides. Tapering one end to her back side, the blanket lifted off her body a little with the wind.

“Alright, that should do it.” Spike climbed inside the blanket and tapered it at the other end, sealing it off from the wind. There was little space for him to work with, but very carefully, he breathed a few small flumes of fire into the still air of the blanket, warming the space around them.

Rarity lie perfectly still against the snow, her muzzle partially wrapped in her scarf thanks to Spike. The silk blanket lay over her as the lump of a baby dragon wiggled ever so slightly underneath it, trying his best to keep them warm.

The storm was slowly beginning to die down. While the wind continued to blow against them, snow had stopped falling, and the grey sky began to brighten. After a few minutes, the sun broke through a small part in the horizon, shining into Rarity's eyes. In time, she began to stir.

“Mm… wha…” She peeked through her eyelids at the white world around her as she slowly recalled what had happened. “…S-Spike? Spike!”

Rarity threw herself onto her stomach, tossing Spike and the blanket off her side. “OUCH! Hey, what'd you do that for?!” Spike stuck his head out from underneath the blanket as he held onto the corners, making it look like he was wearing a silk cape.

Rarity looked back at him and stifled a laugh. “Oh, Spike, I'm so glad you're alright!”

“And I'm glad you're alright, too!” Spike walked over with the blanket and looked up at her. “How's your head feel?”

“Huh…” Rarity reached to her forehead with her blood-stained hoof and felt the gauze placed over the gash. “Wh-oh my. What happened?”

“Looks like you hit your head on something. I got out your first-aid kit and tried to patch it up best I could.”

As Rarity looked down at her would-be hero, her eyes began to tear up. But before they could escape, the biting wind dried them away. “Oh, thank you, Spike.” She scooped him up into her hooves and gave him the biggest hug ever, making the baby dragon blush. “But I don't suppose you have any idea where we are?”

“Why don't you ask them?”

Rarity looked over her shoulder in the direction Spike was now pointing. In the distance, a group of familiar colors slowly made their way toward them.

“Guys! Hey guys, we're over here!” Spike shouted.

“Spike! Rarity! Oh, thank goodness.” Fluttershy trotted forward a little faster than the rest, awkwardly hefting the cast of her wing. “Are you two alright?”

“A little worse for wear,” Rarity said as she rubbed her forehead, “but otherwise, we're just fine. I see you weren't so lucky yourself?”

“Oh, this?” Fluttershy looked back to her wing, doing her best to keep the pain from showing in her expression. “It's okay. I'm just glad you two are alright.”

“Hey, you guys!” Pinkie Pie bounded forward with Applejack. The group exchanged relieved greetings as Nighttide slowly made her way up to the group.

“Hey you two," Nighttide called out. "I'm guessing neither of you have seen Twilight or Rainbow Dash yet?”

“I'm afraid I haven't,” Rarity replied. “How about you, Spike?”

“I haven't seen a thing except for all this snow.”

Although the wind still fought against them, the clouds overhead began to thin, and soon, forward visibility increased. It appeared as if they were standing between two large mountains on a snowy slope. Several hooves uphill from their position, the ground appeared to taper off into a clearing.

“I don't know exactly where we are,” Nighttide said, “but I wouldn't be surprised if that isn't where the tracking signal was coming from.”

The group looked up the hill against the wind as a bright orange glow began to break through the horizon. Applejack glanced around at the others and sighed. “Well, I guess it's as good of a place to start as any.”

With a mutual nod, everyone slowly trekked their way up toward the break in the storm.

Chapter 11 - Echoes

“Hey… phew…” Applejack panted against the icy air gnawing at her lungs. “Is that it, Nighttide?”

“It is.” Nighttide walked up beside her as she and the others knelt down to rest for a moment. Just a few hooves ahead of them sat Riptide’s airship, glowing in the evening sunlight. The deck and wings were already covered in snow, meaning he must have arrived not long after Nighttide and the others escaped.

Rarity had been carrying Spike on her back during the trek uphill, but as she lay down to rest, he hopped off her back and ran up to Nighttide with a worried expression.

Nighttide looked down at the baby dragon. “What’s up, Spike?”

“What do you think happened to Twilight? It’s not like her to do something dangerous like this.”

Nighttide looked over at Applejack. The mare shrugged, no more informed than anypony else was of the situation. “I’m sorry. I’m really not sure.”

“Hey, don’t forget about Rainbow Dash,” Pinkie Pie suddenly barked from the back of the group with a tone of frustration.

“Well of course we wouldn’t, Pinkie,” Rarity replied calmly as she attempted to work out some of the knots in her mane. “That should go without saying.”

“I don’t know… Seems kind of hard for me to tell. All we’ve been doing is wandering around, and we haven’t even talked about going to look for them!”

“Didn’t we, though?” Applejack intervened. “Wasn’t it you who said we needed to look for the rest of our friends earlier?”

“Yeah, I did, but none of you seem to be worried that Rainbow Dash is still missing!”

“Of course we’re worried,” Fluttershy added. “Why would you think we weren’t?”

“I just told you,” Pinkie Pie continued, “We haven’t talked about going to look for her!”

Applejack stood back to her hooves and faced the pink mare. “Pinkie, why are you making such a fuss over this? Of course we’re looking for her – we’re looking for both our friends! What do you think we’re doing out here in the middle of nowhere?”

Spike and Nighttide watched the group go back and forth. Spike was becoming more nervous as the tension rose, and Nighttide couldn’t figure out if Pinkie Pie was trying to start a fight, or was simply shell-shocked from the experience.

Hesitantly, Nighttide stepped toward Pinkie and cleared her throat. Pinkie shot her back a sharp glare, which took her a little off guard. Nevertheless, she slowly sat down in front of the pink mare and drew a deep, frosty breath. “Alright, Pinkie. What should ‘go without saying,’ as Rarity implied, is the fact that we’re out here in the freezing cold of a mountain, and two of our friends are lost somewhere out here. Yes, we are in fact actively searching for them. Please don’t think just because we haven’t been talking about it this whole time that it isn’t important. We just trudged through a snowstorm, and we have no idea where to go or what to do next, so we’re taking things one step at a time and working with what we have. Hence why we’re here – and thankfully, near Riptide’s ship.” She looked back over her shoulder at the bizarre contraption. “And I wouldn’t be surprised if he has something to do with all this.”

Spike walked back over to Rarity as Pinkie Pie walked up to Nighttide. “Alright then, Ms. Shiny Pants. What would you suggest we do then?”

“Take a break.” Nighttide looked over the crowd of ponies now lying in the snow. All of them were visibly exhausted to the bone. “If we’re going to search for Twilight and Rainbow, then we need to regain our strength.”

“And waste even more time when they could be in danger?!” Pinkie was growing more frustrated, and yet it was hard for Nighttide not to smirk at her incredibly poofy mane and tail, the product of the snowstorm they had journeyed through.

“Listen, Pinkie. If we don’t do this right, then we’ll never get anywhere. We’ll either keel over from exhaustion, or we could get into trouble ourselves.” Nighttide braved up enough to let out a small smile. “Besides, aren’t you supposed to be, like, the Element of Laughter or something?”

“Um, duh,” Pinkie Pie groaned. “What else would I be?”

Nighttide had a thought. She looked back at Riptide’s ship. Nothing seemed to stir either in or around it. “Tell you what. Since I’ve got these fancy legs and stuff, I can go on ahead and peek around the ship, see if anything’s going down, while you all rest up.”

“Excuse me, Nighttide,” Applejack interrupted. “No offense, but I hope you don’t think you’re the leader of this brigade just ‘cause Twilight’s missing.”

Nighttide’s ears folded back at the sound of her question. Stepping back, she said, “N-no… not at all. I’m sorry if I’ve come across that way.” She paused for a moment to look away from the group before continuing a little more firmly. “All I’m suggesting is that I make use of the resources I have while you guys rest for a moment. I don’t get exhausted as quick because these legs are mechanical, so the effort I put into walking or running doesn’t wear me out nearly as much. I promise, I’m not trying to play the hero here. But…” She turned to Pinkie Pie. “I do understand the severity of the situation. And I honestly believe this would be a good way to go about things.”

Nighttide could have picked any number of other words to say in that moment, but they seemed to serve the situation well, as Pinkie Pie turned back to the group. “Okie-dokie-lokie,” Pinkie slowly recited as she walked by her. “But you better not do any crazy stunts. Those are left to me. Got it?”

Nighttide smiled again. “But of course. Think you can lift everypony’s spirits while I’m away?”

Pinkie Pie returned the smile. “You can count on me.”

Nighttide nodded. Nopony else raised an argument, so with everything said and done, Nighttide turned toward the ship and galloped against the frigid air.

__________

Nighttide made her way up to the deck of Riptide’s ship via a crudely built staircase that had been cast off the side. When she opened the door leading into the cabin, she noticed the lights that had lit the halls and rooms before were off, and no light from outside could find its way in. Nighttide activated her night vision and continued slowly down the corridors.

There were only a few rooms connected to the halls, and each of them had a table set up in a corner. But there was no furniture or items of any sort otherwise. Once she found her way into the large room where her and the others were originally held, she noticed the crates stacked along the far wall were now open and empty. She walked down the flight of stairs and inspected them. Her sensors still on the fritz, she couldn’t scan for any materials, but she did notice an odd blue dust coated inside one of the crates. As she picked up the crate to look around, she found a hardcover book sitting underneath it.

Nighttide sat down and held the book in front of her. It was brown, had a thick binding, but only seemed to hold a few pages between the covers. The covers were held together by a strap with a swirly symbol drawn near the buckle. She tried to unlatch it, but it wouldn’t budge, nor was there any other visible way of opening it.

“Must be more magic stuff,” Nighttide muttered to herself. She then opened a metal pouch in her suit to carry the book back with her.

Her search revealed nothing else of any significance, which left her concerned. ‘Where would Riptide have run off to in the middle of a mountain range?’ But the answer came to her far quicker than she expected when she stepped back out onto the deck and peered across the clearing below.

“A cave,” Nighttide whispered as she spotted a large hole in the side of the bigger mountain, only now visible thanks to the storm passing. There were no tracks leading into the cave, but had there ever been, they were probably covered up by the snow left from the storm.

Nighttide galloped back down to the group. The others were warming themselves under a series of blankets, and thankfully, Pinkie Pie had packed enough food in her saddlebags to feed the whole group. Everyone was chowing down on an assortment of muffins and cupcakes while Pinkie told a funny story to Spike, although the others were listening intently as well.

“Guys,” Nighttide interrupted, “the ship’s empty, but I think I know where to look next.” The others looked over as she pointed off in the distance toward the cave.

Just as Applejack was about to speak, Pinkie Pie caught a glimpse of something flying toward them from the direction of the storm. “Rainbow Dash?!”

The cerulean pegasus glided toward them, her mane disheveled and streaked with ice. As she neared the ground, her wings fell limp, and she crash-landed into the snow before them.

“Rainbow Dash!” Everyone shouted and ran toward the colorful heap. Rainbow Dash slowly lifted her head and gave a small smile, then let it fall flat back in the snow.

Fluttershy was the first to reach her. “Oh my gosh! Are you alright?”

“Mmfine,” came a muffled voice. Although she was a bit worse for wear, the others could tell she was alright. Her wings were a mess, and Rarity surmised her mane would probably need a day at the spa, but there didn’t appear to be any visible injuries.

After a few seconds, Rainbow Dash rolled onto her back and looked up at everypony, muttering off each of their names. “Fluttershy… Applejack… Rarity… Pinkie Pie…” She blinked. “And no Twilight.”

“Sorry, Rainbow.” Nighttide walked up to her side and looked down. “We only barely managed to find each other.”

“Find… each other?” She furrowed her brow. “What happened?”

Nighttide’s head snapped up. She looked over at Rarity. “Now that I think about it, what exactly did happen?”

Rarity hung her head as she looked around at the others with a somber expression. “Right… about that.”

As it turned out, Rarity had in fact tried to teleport the others. Twilight had all but forced her to learn how to use the spell at one point in the past. While she was never successful at the few times they tried it together, when the balloon began to free-fall, Rarity decided to give it one last shot.

“I’m sorry, everyone,” Rarity finished off. “I-I know it was a really long shot, but… I was so scared of what would happen, so I…”

Applejack walked over to her with a warm smile and wrapped a foreleg around her. “It’s okay, Rarity. If you hadn’t done what ya did, we might’ve not made it at all. The way that balloon was falling?” She shuddered at the thought. “I think you did the right thing. Thanks.” Everyone else pitched in their thanks as Rarity returned a meager smile, still keeping her head low.

“Which makes me wonder,” Nighttide said. “Right before we were all separated, I noticed your magic turned from blue to black. Is that normal with teleportation?”

“It did?” Rarity blinked and tilted her head. “I’ve never heard of that happening before…”

“Ya think it’s because of that flash we saw?” Applejack suggested.

“Oh yeah, that flash!” Rainbow Dash chimed in. “You guys saw it too?”

“That’s what busted up the balloon,” Nighttide said.

“And I think that’s what knocked me out of the sky,” Fluttershy added.

Rainbow Dash finally processed the fact that Fluttershy had gauze wrapped around one of her wings and shot up to attention. “Whoa, Fluttershy, what happened to you?!”

“Well, I followed you into the storm, but I lost you pretty soon after that. Then I saw this bright flash, and a gust of wind pushed me back. I couldn’t tell where I was going anymore, so I kind of… ran into the side of a mountain.” She rubbed her forehead as the memories finally made their way back. “I guess I fell to the ground after that.”

Rainbow Dash sat on her haunches as she worked out some of the snow in her mane. “Well, it didn’t knock me out of the sky, but it sure did mess with my flight path. Soon as that… whatever, ran into me, I didn’t know which way I was going anymore. I’m just glad I finally ran into you guys.”

Without warning, Pinkie Pie dove on top of Rainbow Dash and gave her a huge hug. Apparently, she had been waiting for the right opportunity. “And we’re glad to have you back!”

“Y-yeah, thanks for that.” Rainbow Dash squirmed her way out of the hug and shook her head vigorously to clear out some of the snow, causing her mane to turn into a rainbow poof. Everyone snickered a little at the sight. She looked around at the group with a confused expression. “What? What is it?”

“Oh, Rainbow.” Rarity walked over to her with a smile, then tried to flatten her friend’s mane as best as she could. “It really is good to have you back.”

“Well,” Nighttide spoke up, “warm greetings and poofy manes aside, we should probably start looking for Twilight. Unless you need to rest some, Rainbow?”

“Nah, I’m good.” She motioned for Rarity to stop touching her mane. “No snowstorm’s gonna keep me down!” She shot a confident grin to everyone, which made Pinkie Pie especially glow.

“Alright then. Who’s ready to go spelunking!” Nighttide shouted with much enthusiasm. Perhaps a little too much, as everypony looked at her uncertainly. “Um… who’s ready to go explore a cave?” This time, everypony cheered.

Pinkie Pie gave Rainbow Dash one of her muffins in passing, and after everyone finished gathering up their blankets, the group headed toward the cave.

__________

“Wow.” Nighttide looked around with wide eyes. “I’ve never been inside one of these before.”

They were now entering into the smooth opening of the mountain. The cave had steel grey walls and a ceiling taller than the Golden Oak Library. Thanks to the cold weather traipsing inside, the stalactites overhead were long and dramatic, like finely honed spears crafted from thousands of years of collected moisture. Nighttide had only ever read about caves in her geology files. Although Twilight was still missing, Nighttide couldn’t help but soak in the moment a little.

As they walked through the slowly narrowing cave, Rarity took the lead and lit the way for them using her magic. But Nighttide was a little concerned. She walked up beside Rarity and lowered her head a little. She didn’t want to say anything around the others just in case she was sensitive about the subject. “I’m still not very familiar with how magic works,” Nighttide whispered over to her, “but after what happened on the balloon, do you think it’s safe to do that?”

Rarity glanced at her. “I think this should at least be fine. It’s a simple illumination spell.” She then smiled. “But if you see something strange, just let me know.”

“Of course.” Nighttide walked alongside Rarity as the rest followed silently. The further they entered the cave, the warmer it became. While Nighttide couldn’t scan the cavern’s walls, her oxygen sensors did pick up a small amount of hydrogen sulfide and methane. She looked back at the rest of the group. “Do you ponies have any volcanoes here in Equestria?”

“Not anywhere nearby,” Applejack answered. “Dragons migrate to them once every several years down south, though. Why do you ask?”

“I haven’t been around one myself, but if my sensors are right, the air in here has elements of volcanic activity.” She looked around at the smooth grey of the cave’s walls that glistened every so often with the reflection of Rarity’s light.

“I’ve never heard of a volcano in the Appaloosan mountains,” Applejack added. “I have some kinfolk that live near here, and they’ve never mentioned anythin’ like that.”

“Some volcanoes operate strictly underground, though. At least from what I’ve read… Let’s just be careful.” The rest nodded, except for Rainbow Dash, who just rolled her eyes. After a moment, they found a break in the wall. With no other direction to take, they entered inside the break.

Now they were walking down a very narrow corridor that wound in different directions. The ceiling hung much lower than before and was now as smooth as the walls, lined with a faint violet sheen. Fluttershy did her best to keep a brave front as Rainbow Dash walked alongside her. Pinkie Pie kept her spirits up by bouncing every so often at the pace of the group. Spike rode on Rarity’s back at the head of the group while Applejack brought up the rear. They kept this pattern for some time, silently pushing forward, hoping that they would eventually run upon something of interest. But before long, somepony grew frustrated.

“Ugh,” Rainbow Dash groaned, “do you guys really think we’re gonna find Twilight in here?”

“Well, where else would ya suggest we look?” Applejack asked.

“I’m just saying, she could still be outside somewhere! Maybe I should go back and do another fly around now that the storm’s passed.”

Rainbow was just about to turn around when Nighttide spoke up. “I’m not so sure. Given Twilight’s weird behavior and the fact that she was headed straight for Riptide’s ship, something tells me this is where we need to look.”

“I agree with Nighttide,” Rarity added. “Though at the same time, Rainbow Dash does have a point. There’s no guarantee she’s in here either.”

Nighttide nodded as she looked back to Rainbow Dash. “Well, I’m not the leader here. What do you want to do?”

Rainbow Dash peered off to the side with a scowl. “I don’t know. Just… all this walking’s about to drive me nuts, and I can’t fly in here because it’s too cramp!”

“Whoever said rescuing a friend was supposed to be fun?” Nighttide asked her, half-seriously and half-sarcastically. Admittedly, some of the stories she had heard from Twilight actually sounded pretty fun.

“Well,” Pinkie Pie retorted, “whoever said it wasn’t supposed to be fun?”

“Point taken,” Nighttide said. A few seconds later, everyone heard a muffled noise coming from in front of them.

The group picked up the pace, and soon, they found themselves inside a large cavern. Sure enough, there was a faint sound of running water coming from nearby. Rarity and Nighttide hastened ahead as the unicorn’s horn grew brighter. Once they were a few hooves ahead, they spotted a shallow river running through the center of the cavern. Clear and calm, the river barely made a trickle sound against the smooth rock which it traveled. The rest of the group walked up to the water and peered down.

Rarity gasped at the sight. “Sweet Celestia!”

Embedded in the bottom and surrounding the river were crystals the color of azure and amethyst. The riverbed sparkled in a most brilliant fashion with Rarity’s light, and the glassy surface of the running water only added to its radiance. Everyone looked down in awe.

Spike hopped off Rarity’s back to examine the riverbed. “So… so many gems. I’ve never seen any like these before! They’re… beautiful.” A small bit of drool began to form at the edge of his mouth.

As the others marveled at the sight, Nighttide glanced around the cavern. Across the river, she thought she saw a rock shift ever so slightly, but she couldn’t hear any movement. As she continued looking ahead, she saw it again.

“Guys.” Nighttide nodded forward as the others looked across the river.

In the darkest part of the cavern’s corner stood the faint silhouette of a pony, only barely illuminated by Rarity’s light. Everyone’s stance turned rigid as Fluttershy let out a soft gasp.

Nighttide carefully stepped into the edge of the river and called out. “Pony in the shadows, identify yourself.”

The silhouette remained still.

“Identify yourself, pony,” Nighttide called out again after a moment. As she went to switch over to her night vision, her systems malfunctioned, and her retinal display completely shut off, leaving her with only her natural eyesight. “Dammit, not now,” she grumbled under her breath as she tapped a wet hoof to her head.

Then, slowly, the silhouette shifted toward them. Nighttide tried to unlock her weapons, but to no avail. Everyone behind her took a step back as she remained standing partly in the water, facing toward the pony in the shadows. She tried calling out one more time. “Unidentified pony, please identify yourself, or I will be forced to take defensive action.” Nighttide knew she was grasping at straws at this point, but she was willing to try anything to prevent a crisis.

Just as she opened her mouth to shout back at the others to run, the pony stepped up to the riverbed, and Rarity’s light revealed…

“Twilight?”

Everyone let out a relieved sigh as they approached the riverbank, though Nighttide remained rigid. She leaned her head forward and squinted at Twilight. Something was off.

“For pony’s sake, Twilight,” Applejack shouted across the river, “What’re you doin’ in here?”

There was no response.

Everyone grew silent again. They noticed something odd about her eyes. They were sunken, dulled, staring only in their general direction rather than anypony in particular.

The river was just shallow enough to walk through, so Nighttide made to approach her. Just as she took a step forward, Twilight’s wings flared, and her horn burned dark blue. It was the most unusual thing Nighttide had seen yet; the blue of her horn seemed to radiate like a blackened light, drowning out Rarity’s white light with its intensity and shrouding the room in darkness. Suddenly, Twilight thrust her head forward and aimed her horn at Rarity, who was now standing beside her.

“TWILIGHT, NO!”

Nighttide bucked against the riverbed and dove in front of Rarity as Twilight’s magic came straight toward them. As she dove, Nighttide caught a glimpse of the other ponies racing across the river toward the alicorn.

Then, the magic hit her square in the chest, and a strange chill surrounded her body. She collapsed in front of Rarity, unconscious.

__________

A low hum of different noises filled the air. Familiar sounds of yesteryear. Cars traveling on the interstate. The clank of a cross-bridge closing over the bay-way. A distant whistle which she could only barely remember hearing a few times in her life.

“…The freighter.”

Nighttide lifted her head up slowly as she opened her eyes to a night sky overhead, just barely dotted with stars. As she sat up to her haunches, she peered out over the orange glow of a city skyline. It appeared she was sitting on the edge of a small mountain, looking down at a large city built near the edge of an ocean.

Something felt off, or so Nighttide thought, but she couldn’t place her hoof on what it was. After a second of staring out at the city, she felt an itch on her side and turned to bite it, but when she did, she stopped short and stared at her flank.

“Hm… I need a bath.”

Nighttide bit into the dull grey coat hairs of her flank to get rid of the itch, then noticed her hooves were unusually dirty. The coat around them was caked in mud, and it appeared she had a cut on one of her knees. At least her mane was still clean, as it was still too short to reach even her withers.

The little filly looked back over the skyline and took a deep breath. She still felt as if she was forgetting something, but whatever it was must have not been important, otherwise she figured she would have remembered it by now. As she stood to her hooves, Nighttide looked around and spotted the trail which she had hiked to climb up the mountain. She groaned a little under her breath, then mumbled, “Guess I should go before I get in trouble.”

The filly trotted down the trail back toward the city. The scenes around her on the walk down were too dark for her to make out, but they felt familiar. She had been here before, at least a couple of times. The feeling made her smile, and she skipped a little on her way down the mountain.

Next thing she knew, she was walking down a sidewalk that passed by one of her friend’s houses. She stopped and looked at the squat duplex, sitting sandwiched between other similarly built homes. Nighttide tapped a hoof to her head and whispered, “What was her name again?” She noticed the living room window was dark, but the upstairs bedrooms were lit. Now she was worried that she had already stayed out too late, so she galloped down the sidewalk and took a right into her subdivision.

Four houses down the block, she turned into her yard and trotted up the stoop, then slowly opened the door. The entranceway was dark, even though there was a lamp lit overhead. She couldn’t make out any of the things around her, but as she took a few steps forward, a grey mare walked down the stairs in front of her.

Her eyes were violet, and she had a jet black mane that shimmered in the overhead light. But as Nighttide looked at her, she could tell something was different. There was a strange symbol on her flank, what looked like a purple star with smaller white ones around it. They seemed to glisten a little in the light.

Nighttide heard the mare speak, though the words were muffled at first. “…I told you to be back by eight!”

“I know. I’m sorry.” Nighttide shifted a little in place. “It’s not like I knew what time it was!”

The mare tilted her head slightly and gave the filly a stern look. She noticed the mud on her hooves. “You walked to the Ferin Sha, didn’t you?”

Nighttide’s ears flicked back. “W-well, I’m a big pony, after all!” She raised her head and puffed out her chest. “I just wanted to go by myself for once.”

“For once?” The mare sighed and let a smile break through her serious expression as she lowered her head until it was level with the filly’s. “My little explorer. What ever am I going to do with you?” She picked her up and placed her on her back as she carefully walked up the stairs to the bathroom.

Nighttide caught faint glimpses of being in a bathtub and rolling around in a sea of bubbles. A couple of times, she could hear herself laughing as the mare scrubbed her coat vigorously, working out the mud that she collected on her adventure. But before long, she found herself tucked into bed, the mare sitting at her side with a warm smile. Then came the sound of the front door.

“Daddy!” Nighttide shouted instinctively, causing the mare to lean back a little and rub her nearest ear.

The mare walked to the door and called out into the hall. “Hey sweetie, come help me tuck her in.”

Nighttide heard heavy hoof-steps walk up the stairs, then a dark silhouette made its way into the room. She couldn’t make out any distinguishing features, but she felt perfectly comfortable around him.

Then, there was darkness, and the low hum of the city around them.

__________

“… tide… Nighttide! Please, wake up!”

“Wh… wha…” Nighttide slowly opened her eyes to find Fluttershy crouched over her. Fluttershy’s mane dripped cold water onto her ear, which caused her to jerk away.

“Whoa!” Nighttide span onto her stomach and looked around. Her eyes were still hazy, but she could tell she was lying on the embankment of the cave’s river, and everypony was circled around her. Including Twilight.

Nighttide stumbled to her hooves, almost losing her balance as she tried to adjust to her height. It was a strange feeling, as if she had suddenly grown, but the feeling lasted only for a moment as she looked up at the alicorn.

“Nighttide.” Twilight slowly approached her and wrapped her hooves gently around her neck. “You’re alright.”

Nighttide breathed hard and fast, confused by both some dream she just had and the current situation. But as she felt Twilight’s warmth surround her, she closed her eyes and rested her head on her shoulder. “Looks like you’re alright, too.”

As Twilight pulled out of the embrace, the others gathered around them with relieved expressions. Nighttide then asked, “So what just happened?”

“Twilight hit you with some sort of spell,” Rarity answered. “You were out for a couple of minutes.”

“A couple… Wait. Then what happened to Twilight?”

Twilight ruffled her wings as she looked across the river from where they originally found her. “I’m not so sure myself…”

Applejack walked up to the two and addressed Nighttide. “After Twilight shot that weird spell at ya, we raced over to stop her. But Rainbow Dash ran into the back of us tryin’ to get there first and caused us to fall on top of her.” Applejack shot a glare at Rainbow Dash, whose smug expression didn’t seem to fit the story. Applejack rolled her eyes. “Of course, it was probably for the best.”

Twilight shook her head, seeming to still be a little out of wits herself, then looked over at Nighttide. “I remember seeing that flash on the ground when I was flying with Fluttershy, but then the next thing I knew, everypony except you and Rarity were lying on top of me.”

Nighttide blinked as she finally readjusted to her height again. “Do you know what spell you cast?”

“No. I have no clue.” Twilight gave Nighttide a curious look. “Do you feel different in any way? Does anything hurt?”

“Um, not really,” Nighttide said as Twilight began pacing around her. “As far as I know, it just put me to sleep.”

Twilight wasn’t convinced, but there was little else she could do to figure out what happened. “Okay, but if you notice anything out of the ordinary, let us know, alright?”

“Sure thing.” Nighttide sat on her haunches as she mulled over the situation. For a second, she thought she felt an itch on her flank and went to bite it, then caught herself in the act. She stopped and stared blankly at the metal alloy of her suit.

Twilight noticed the mare zoning out. “You sure you’re alright?”

She didn’t respond at first. Twilight then put a hoof on her shoulder, and she perked back up. “Y-yeah,” she stammered. “Just trying to figure out what’s going on… sorry, I’m fine. Promise.” Nighttide smiled to try to reassure her.

For the moment, it appeared to work. “Okay. Just let me know.”

__________

Everypony took a moment to dry themselves off from their race across the river. Although the cavern was warmer than outside, it was still much too cold to be walking around wet. Twilight was a little too shaken to risk using her magic to dry herself off, so she pulled out one of her fluffier blankets from her saddlebag and, with a cringe, proceeded to wipe down her coat. As she was drying herself off, Spike filled her in on everything that happened since she disappeared. When he mentioned the lack of a reply back from the Princess, Twilight’s stomach churned.

“Princess Celestia… She never takes that long to write back.” Twilight’s eyes narrowed as she tried to figure out what could be the issue.

“Do you think we should head back to Ponyville?” Spike asked.

Twilight looked around at the others. “I don’t know, Spike. What I do know is something, or someone, led me here for a reason.” She paused for a moment as she tried to remember something, anything, from after she saw the flash. But nothing came to mind. “I’d rather keep going and see what’s in here than turn back now. If Riptide flew to this remote place, then he must have a good reason for it.”

Off in another corner, Rainbow Dash tended to Fluttershy’s wing. She still had her own saddlebag and had packed it with a first-aid kit designed specifically for pegasi, with equipment better suited to splinting a wing. As she ripped off the now soggy gauze around the injured wing, Fluttershy let out a shrill yelp that echoed through the cavern.

“Ugh, for Pete’s sake,” Rainbow Dash said as she hurriedly pulled off the last strip. “You don’t want to lose a wing, do you?”

“N-n-no, of course n-not – I’m sorry,” Fluttershy whimpered as her body shivered from the pain, her eyes now welling with tears.

As brash as Rainbow Dash was, she hated to see one of her friends hurt. When she noticed Fluttershy’s tears, she sighed and placed a hoof on one of hers. “I’m sorry. I know how bad a broken wing feels… I’ll be a little more careful, alright?”

Fluttershy nodded and returned a smile as she wiped away the tears trying to escape. “Th-thanks. And… I’ll try to be a little tougher.” She did her best to force a confident smirk onto her muzzle as her eyes met with Rainbow Dash’s.

“That’s the spirit,” Rainbow Dash said as she started redressing Fluttershy’s wing.

Next to the river embankment, Applejack was fussing about losing her hat. Rarity did her best to brush some of the knots out of her friend’s mane, but Applejack kept shifting in place as she continued to complain. “Well, surely you have some more at home?” Rarity asked.

“Yeah, but that one was special! Big Mac gave it to me for my birthday a few years ago. And now…” Applejack hung her head as she thought about losing her brother’s gift.

Rarity set down her brush and placed a hoof on Applejack’s shoulder. “I’m so sorry, Applejack. Really, I feel like this whole thing is my fault. If I hadn’t tried to—”

“Now don’t you start that again,” Applejack cut her off. “You know that if you hadn’t, we all could’ve been seriously hurt.”

Rarity went silent for a few seconds before speaking again. “I had no idea that hat was special.” Applejack turned her head away, trying to hide her emotions. Then, Rarity thought of an idea. “I know I can’t replace your brother’s gift, but how about when all of this is over, I make you another hat, just the way you want it?”

Applejack let out a snort and turned back toward Rarity. “I dunno. I need a work hat, not somethin’ fancy.”

“Nothing frilly,” Rarity said, raising a hoof. “I’ll make you a hat just the way you want it. A true Stetson if ever there were one!” She smiled at Applejack. “What do you say… partner?” She attempted to mimic her accent with the last word, which made Applejack chuckle a little.

“Well, I say that’d be swell.” Applejack smiled and pulled her friend into a hug. “Thanks, Rarity.”

Finally, there was Pinkie Pie and Nighttide. Pinkie heard Nighttide’s belly grumble a moment ago, so she offered her a muffin. Nighttide looked the muffin over and sighed. “You ponies sure love your muffins, huh?”

“Oh! You don’t like muffins?” Pinkie asked.

“No, it’s not that, it’s just—”

Before she could finish, Pinkie pulled out a cupcake. She held it in front of Nighttide and gave her a big grin, which seemed to squeak comically with its formation. But Nighttide still wasn’t enthused. “Um… I don’t suppose you have anything that’s… not so sweet?” Nighttide felt guilty for asking. She knew these were the things Pinkie Pie was especially good at making. While she didn’t want to hurt her feelings, all the fruits and pastries had finally gotten to her.

“Hmm… let me see here.” Pinkie dug through her saddlebag and pulled out a paper bag. After rummaging through it for a second, she pulled out a delicious looking sandwich, much to Nighttide’s surprise.

“How the—” Nighttide peered over Pinkie’s side, trying to look into her saddlebag. “Did you pack a whole deli with you?”

“Of course not, silly! That’d have taken a lot longer to pack. And I would’ve had to carry more bags! Or maybe I would have just put everything in the balloon. Or maybe I would have had the balloon carry the food while we hiked to the mountains! Or—”

“I get it, I get it.” Nighttide stopped her with a hoof. “You got this down to a science, apparently.” She winked at Pinkie and thanked her for the sandwich.

Once everyone was dried and rested up a little, Twilight walked up to the others. “Alright, everypony. We still haven’t heard from Princess Celestia yet. Either we can head back to Ponyville and figure out what to do from there, or we can keep searching through the caves.”

“Search for what, exactly?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Riptide. It’s very likely that he used some sort of magic to lure me in here and make me cast that spell. We’re already here, and this was what we originally came out to do anyway.” Twilight looked around at the group. “But I don’t want to do anything that anypony isn’t comfortable with. So, what do you girls say?”

Rarity stepped forward. “Is there any reason you could think of why the Princess wouldn’t have replied by now?”

Twilight sighed. “None that I’m aware. It also bothers me that nopony has seen the Royal Guard. Knowing them, they would search every square inch of the Appaloosan mountains. We should’ve at least seen them once while we were flying, unless we somehow beat them here.”

“Then don’t you think it would be prudent to return home? Especially after what happened to you?”

Twilight looked across the cavern’s river. The cave continued on through another narrow corridor on the other side. “Normally, I would say yes. In fact, all logic dictates that we should go home and find out if anything’s happened to the Princess. But…”

Nighttide walked over to Twilight’s side and looked across the river. “But you’re worried if we don’t act now, something worse could happen later.”

“Exactly,” Twilight said with a nod. Turning to the others, she said, “But this is a decision we all need to make. If anyone here is not okay with continuing on, then speak up now.”

Everyone looked at each other. After a moment, most of them nodded, although Rainbow Dash just shrugged with a groan.

“Okay then. If everypony’s ready, then let’s keep going.”

__________

Once again, Rarity led the pack, illuminating the path ahead of them. This time though, both Twilight and Nighttide walked at either side of her flank as the rest followed closely behind.

As they walked through the next corridor, Nighttide could feel a thumping inside her suit. She opened a pocket and found the book she grabbed from earlier. “Ugh, this is what I get for having a computer memory… Yo Twilight, check this out.”

Twilight left Rarity’s side and walked over to her. Nighttide suggested to the book inside her pocket, which Twilight carefully pulled out with her magic. She was still nervous to use any spells, but Rarity seemed to have fared well thus far, so she took the risk for a moment.

“I found this in Riptide’s ship,” Nighttide said. “It’s got the same pattern as that one book you were reading in the old castle library.”

“You’re right.” Twilight flipped the book to and fro in front of her with her magic. She tried to unfasten the buckle, but she too was unable to move the latch. Then, she had a thought.

“Hang on, everypony.” Twilight motioned for the group to stop as she set the book down on a crevice of the wall beside them. She examined the pattern of the book more closely, then sighed. “I don’t know if it’s safe to do this, but let me try using one of Star Swirl’s spells.”

Twilight closed her eyes as her horn began to spark a little at the tip. Just as she went to cast the spell, click went the latch, and the book flipped itself open onto the rock surface with an echo.

Everypony gathered around. “What’s this?” Rarity asked as she walked over to better illuminate the book.

“It looks like a journal,” Twilight answered. As she skimmed over the lines written on the first page, she cleared her throat and began to read aloud. “To whom it may concern. If you are reading this journal, then it is by no accident. Only those with knowledge or experience in Star Swirl’s magic will be able to open this book and read its contents. This entry was written in case of an emergency.”

“An emergency?” Applejack said. Twilight shrugged and continued to read the entry silently to herself.

It took her several minutes to get through the single journal entry. Riptide listed everything off from his history with the Royal Guard, his research and development of negative magic, and details about a mystery student of Star Swirl’s. Rainbow Dash used the moment’s reprieve to take a short nap in the corner, but the others had done their best to read along with Twilight.

“Twilight,” Rarity spoke up after a while. “I don’t understand a lot of this, but… do you think this has anything to do with what happened to you?”

Twilight wasn’t sure herself. As much attention to detail as Riptide had given to his journal entry, there didn’t appear to be anything specific worth highlighting. “I’m not sure. Honestly, this doesn’t make sense to me either. What exactly would he consider an emergency? And who was he expecting to read this journal?”

Nighttide stepped away for a moment to think things over. Since her systems were still out, she couldn’t review the information with her computer. But after a moment, she thought of something interesting. “Wait a sec. Didn’t he mention something about having a dream?”

Twilight flipped through the thin pages of the book and found the line. “Yes. Well, sort of. It was about a year ago. He says here, ‘Things were going well enough until one day, when one of my devices malfunctioned. I was inside the ship, writing some figures down from a recent experiment, when suddenly everything went dark. At first, I thought the manalights went out, but next thing I knew, I was lying on the floor staring out into the hallway of the ship. It felt as if I had a strange dream of some sort, but I couldn’t recall any of the details.’” Twilight looked over at Nighttide. “Why, what’s up?”

Nighttide closed her eyes and tried to force the memory of her dream to consciousness. It was no use. Nevertheless, she knew she had dreamt something while she was passed out earlier. “I’m not sure what to make of this, but there might be something to that ‘dream’ business. After you hit me with that strange spell, I had a vivid dream of some sort… I just can’t remember what it was about.” Nighttide rubbed her hoof on her forehead, still trying to conjure an image of the dream.

Twilight slammed the book close with her magic and walked up to Nighttide with a frown. “Didn’t I say to tell me if anything strange happened to you earlier?”

Nighttide backed away at the sound of Twilight’s authoritative tone. “Y-yes, you did! Jeez, sorry, mom! It was just a dream, I didn’t think it was that big of a deal!”

“Yeah, well, try telling that to Princess Luna.” Twilight groaned and rubbed between her eyes. “Do you remember anything about it? Anything at all?”

“Like I said, no. The only thing I know is when I think about it, I feel… nostalgic. It’s hard to explain.” Nighttide shrugged, only adding to Twilight’s frustration.

“I would try using a memory spell on you, but considering how both mine and Rarity’s magic have been acting up, I don’t want to take the risk.”

Nighttide nodded as she regained her composure. “Well, do whatever you feel is best.” She turned back in the direction the group was originally heading. “Should we keep going?”

Twilight had Spike hold the book for a moment as she walked up beside Nighttide. “Yes. We still need to figure out what’s going on – and the sooner, the better.”

Rainbow Dash perked up as she heard the group reorganizing themselves. “Oh, good, is she done?” She looked up at Applejack, who raised an eyebrow at her.

“Have a nice nap?”

“Eh heh.” Rainbow Dash gave her a cheeky smile as she stood to her hooves. “Did I miss anything important?”

“Honestly, I didn’t understand any of it either.”

“Great! Then let’s get going.” Rainbow Dash galloped ahead of the others to catch up with Rarity. By this point, she was more than ready to get this whole adventure over with, now that she was forcibly grounded by the cave. Applejack just shook her head at the sight while Pinkie Pie giggled nearby.

As everyone set off down the dark corridor, Spike wobbled in place where he was last left, still holding the extra-large journal over his head. “Um, guys? A little help here?”

Author's Note

For those curious what else was written in Riptide's journal:

__________

… My name is Riptide, previously of the Royal Guard of Equestria. For many years, I served with the second defensive line of Canterlot and was tasked with using my skills in aquatic magic.

During my service as a Royal Guard, I had quietly struggled with the passive attitude given toward Equestria's defense. While the Royal Guard itself is consistent of more than enough members to adequately defend our land, our lack of weaponry and resources have made our position one mostly of appearances rather than practicality. It was my belief, after studying at-length the known history of Equestria and evaluating our defensive structure, that in the event we were to encounter a large-scale invasion of any sort, we could suffer heavy casualties and potentially lose claim of our land. In light of this evaluation, I decided to do some research on developing a new form of magic that could be used for large-scale defensive purposes.

For the past few years, I have been working on something I call “negative magic.” At the time of this writing, development has taken place for the past six years, although my initial research began two years before that. In the beginning, I was interested in creating a form of magic that would be able to isolate a plane of space from the rest. As a rough example, consider a pony is threatening your life, and the only option you have is to surrender or defend yourself, as any means of escape is cordoned off. Instead of having to fight, per se, this magic could be used to trap the aggressor in a magical field that resists both physical and magical intrusion from the outside and the inside. Neither pony would be able to come into contact with the other, but the pony casting the magic would be able to keep the aggressor isolated until they could seek further help. The magic would also be self-sustaining; once cast; it would last for a designated amount of time without the need for continual spell-casting.

This was only the initial concept, which was heavily invested in aquatics. The alpha spells I developed made use of atmospheric vapor. By casting a tight shell of water around the circumference of a space, whatever was contained within the shell would be prevented from interacting with the outside, although the displacement of the water molecules would still allow enough travel for oxygen to transfer, preventing anyone trapped inside from suffocating. And since magic tends to reflect off water's molecular structure, any attempt on their part to penetrate through the shell using magic would only put them at risk of harming themselves. As well, physical protrusion would be next to impossible on either end without making use of a sharp object that was dense enough to withstand the force needed to break through the shell.

The alpha spells were functional, and there was limited success with making the spells self-sustaining. While water molecules have a propensity to reflect magic, they also have the ability to contain magic for a limited amount of time. Casting a spell in free-flowing water, such as in a river, would do very little in the way of penetrating the surface or becoming absorbed by the water's molecules. However, when casting a spell that organizes the trace water vapor naturally found in air, the magic becomes temporarily infused in the molecules, and that fusion networks throughout the molecular structure as the shell is created.

One day, while looking up research material in the Canterlot Library, I happened upon an intriguing bit of information. One book I read through contained references to Star Swirl the Bearded's travels through the caverns of Maretania, which cited a natural phenomenon that was not far removed from the magic I was attempting to develop. At the time, Star Swirl was working on a spell that is still to-date unknown, and what progress that had ever been made on it was completely absent from all the works I looked through. What piqued my interest was the fact that unbeknownst to most, Star Swirl had traveled through Maretania with an unnamed pony. At first, I thought it might have been Clover the Clever, but the lack of reference to him or his work got me curious. And being a member of the Royal Guard, I was familiar with another library, located at the Castle of the Two Sisters.

For a few nights out of a summer about six years ago, I would travel to Ponyville on rec-leave to trek through the Everfree Forest out to the old castle. At the time, the location had long since been abandoned, and it didn't appear there had been any visitors for some time. After digging through the abandoned castle's library, I found a section in a detailed reference guide for Star Swirl's early research that mentioned his travels through Maretania. A piece of historical information referenced a stallion by the name of Spinel the Steadfast, who Star Swirl was mentoring at the same time as Clover the Clever, though there was little mention aside from his name. I continued searching through the library, but found little in the way of further details.

I had grown increasingly curious with the subtle mentions of this mysterious student of Star Swirl's, so on a whim, I decided to search through the rest of the castle. Much of the structure had decayed from weather or was overgrown with vegetation, but some of the underground corridors were still fairly intact. I didn't initially think it would do any good, but as I walked through the corridors, I tried pulling on various objects hanging from the wall – an old trick I had seen used in comic books from my foalhood. To my surprise, one of the protrusions triggered a wall to rise.

Beyond the wall was a small room, surprisingly free of any signs of decay. The walls were lined with crudely built stone shelves, and lying on them were an assortment of historical works dating back before the Pre-Classical era, far before the unity of the three pony races. Stored amongst the relics was one book that stood out from the rest – a book with a pattern strangely similar to Star Swirl's, and yet not quite the same. Upon opening the book, I found the author's signature at the beginning: Spinel the Steadfast.

Spinel's work detailed rough drafts of spells which were based on the phenomenon he and Star Swirl had observed in the caverns of Maretania – one that echoed very strongly the properties of the magic I was already developing. While the details of the phenomenon were rough and vague even in Spinel's work, there were short journal entries scattered throughout the work which revealed a likely reason as to why his name and records had been virtually erased from known history.

As Spinel developed his initial spells, Star Swirl warned him that his work could potentially lead to creating a magic that nopony, let alone any creature, could properly wield. It made sense why his name and records would have been missing from the Canterlot Library, but upon reflection, I was surprised that even a thousand years ago, references were still largely missing in the Castle of the Two Sister's library.

I was now more interested than ever. Why would the Princesses have chose to have these spells, as well as the historical works of pre-Equestria, be locked away in a secret room? Having known Princess Celestia for some time myself, I assumed it was to prevent leaking potentially dangerous information to others. But it didn't make sense to me why after the E.U.P. was organized, such a project in magic would have not been further pursued, or why the historical facts of pre-Equestria would be worth keeping hidden from others.

Against my better judgement, I took Spinel's work with me to Canterlot and began covertly working on the spells which he had been developing. The conceptual nature of Spinel's magic shared a lot in common with the principles which I was trying to establish by using magic to condense water vapor. Spinel's spells, in theory, were capable of isolating a body of space from another, without any trace elements leaking through. That said, there were both advantages and disadvantages to this magic. While the magic guaranteed total segregation from all other space, if it were used on a living creature, the space in which they were trapped would eventually run out of oxygen. As well, even when the shell was formed at its thinnest density, any material which made contact with the shell was literally erased from existence. That means if the magic were cast as a sphere partly through the air and partly through the ground, the portion of the ground with which it made contact would vanish, along with the air above it. When the magic was extinguished, the sudden absence of air would cause a shockwave that varied in intensity dependent on the amount of air exhausted. As well, the ground would shift however much was erased.

Once again, against my conscience, I decided to try to incorporate the principles of my water-based spells along with Spinel's theories to create something unique that I eventually titled 'negative magic'. This magic held onto the same core principles as those used in the alpha spells I first developed with aquatics, but would guarantee a shell that was completely impenetrable. Where a water vapor shell could theoretically be penetrated with a solid enough object or strongly focused magic, negative magic would have no such vulnerabilities. Once cast, any other form of magic cast toward it from inside or outside would vanish, rather than being reflected. The same would go for any solid object which attempted intrusion.

But as I continued my research, I learned just how much energy was necessary to properly harness this magic. With all the practice and skills I had learned during my service with the Royal Guard, I was still not prepared enough. Eventually, I had to turn my attention to those magical ponies with greater capabilities than my own: Alicorns.

Initially, I considered consulting Princess Celestia on her alicorn features, but considering the nature of the material I was working on – and what I had discovered in the old castle – I decided the best course of action would be to observe from a distance. Over the course of a few weeks, I attempted to study the magic she used to raise and lower the sun. But since my position kept me more often at the castle gates than inside, there was little observation to be had. Upon Princess Luna's eventual return, I tried to do the same with her, but with no greater success.

I knew better than to continue wasting my time trying to find a way to study the Princesses magic, so eventually, I asked my supervisor to rework my schedule so that I could begin visiting the Everfree Forest regularly. A few weeks later, the schedule was set, and once every few days, I would go out to the forest and experiment with the magic. Eventually, I got a feel for how the basic principles worked, but using the magic with my own power proved to be too volatile. Thankfully, Spinel had drawn diagrams for a few experimental devices which he had been developing to harness the magic. Over the course of that year, I worked on building a few examples of those devices, fine-tuning his original concepts and creating more stable products.

The further I delved into my research, the more I realized I needed a more private place to work. For yet another year, I spent time building an aircraft to carry and conceal the devices which I was building. The aircraft would allow me to freely move the devices around without having to take them with me one at a time, as well as to do isolated experimentation within. But I still had to figure out a way to travel without being seen. I reworked some of my original water-based spells and developed a means of casting a cloak around the ship.

Things were going well enough until one day, when one of the devices I had built malfunctioned. I was inside the ship, writing some figures down from a recent experiment, when suddenly the device sitting closest to me on a workdesk illuminated violently, followed by everything going dark. I must have passed out, as the next thing I knew, I was lying on the floor staring out into the hallway of the ship. It felt as if I had a strange dream of some sort, but I couldn't recall any of the details. But that didn't matter nearly as much as what I saw when I stepped out onto the deck of the ship.

The magic had created a deep crater in the forest. But the strangest thing of all was how it had kept all the foliage in place. Not one tree or shrub seemed to be out of place, although the ground had clearly been dug out by nearly thirty meters. Soon afterward, I properly disposed of the device, leaving me with only six remaining, and recorded the information, although I had little to record in terms of exact figures. I had no idea why the device behaved such as it did.

The more time I spent at the ship in the forest, the more I began to slack off on my duties as a Royal Guard. Eventually, I heard about the coronation of a unicorn turned alicorn by the name of Twilight Sparkle. Aside from Princess Cadance, the phenomenon itself was highly unusual, and once I learned this new alicorn was living in Ponyville, I decided to make arrangements to begin covert observation from a distance. Unfortunately, that meant my time and service with the Royal Guard were even further strained. It didn't take long for my superiors to notice, but I continued with my behavior, throwing caution to the wind. I was set on finishing this magic so that I could present it to the Princesses, in hopes that they might implement it into the Royal Guard's final line of defensive tactics. It was a long-shot, and I will admit that by this point, my intentions had been heavily skewed, given what I had discovered in the hidden room of the old castle. But I had committed to finishing the research just for research's sake, though there was still a glimmer of hope in my heart that if I could develop negative magic to be a safe and effective means of defense, and if it was segregated enough from Spinel's original work, that it could prove useful for the unicorns of the Royal Guard. However, before I could complete my research, I was unceremoniously relieved of duty, and I quietly made my way out to the forest to live in the airship.

As of this writing, I have formally begun my observation of Twilight Sparkle. It is my hope that in time, I can make use of her magical prowess in finalizing negative magic. However, to do so will likely mean that I will have to take drastic action, as I don't see a Princess of Equestria voluntarily cooperating with an ex-member of the Royal Guard to develop potentially the world's most dangerous magic. The only advantage of not being a member of the Royal Guard anymore is that there are fewer eyes watching me. One disadvantage could have been that I couldn't get as close to the Princess, but thankfully, Twilight Sparkle still retains her position in Ponyville as if she were no more significant than any of the other citizens.

In t~~he event of a crisis, one backup plan I have is to assimilate the ma~~

In the event of a crisis, please make use of the information provided above.
- Riptide

Chapter 12 - The Hell Inside Her Head

“Bum bum bum ba-da-da bum bum bum bum—”

Pinkie marched along at the back of the group, humming a tune to go along with the pace. It was cute for perhaps a few seconds, but a couple of ponies quickly grew tired of it.

“Piiiinkie,” Rainbow Dash groaned loudly from ahead, “will you please stop doing that?”

Pinkie raised an eyebrow as she paused to reply. “Got any requests?”

“I have one,” Applejack said from aside. “It’s called ‘Hush Lil’ Filly,’ and it goes like this!” Applejack went silent as she walked on.

Pinkie waited a moment for a response, but when it didn’t come, she barked back, “Hey, you did that on purpose!” Rainbow Dash and Applejack snickered under their breath as they continued ahead. Fluttershy could be seen off to the side shaking her head.

But at the head of the group, the air hung a little heavier. Spike was now riding on Twilight’s back, who walked between Rarity and Nighttide. Nighttide had put the journal back in her suit, which was once again thumping softly against the metal inside. It wouldn’t have bothered her so much if the binding wasn’t so big, but with each step she took, she could feel its weight travel.

Rarity leaned in toward Twilight as they continued forward. “I’m really worried about this, Twilight. What if the same thing happens to you again?” She blinked. “Or to me, for that matter? Goodness, isn’t it enough that I’ve put up with being wet and dirty for hours now?”

Twilight sighed. “I’m worried as well, Rarity. But I just don’t see what good running would do at this point. Say we go back to Ponyville. Then what?”

“Try contacting the Princess again?” Nighttide suggested. “I understand how you feel, Twilight, but I’m also with Rarity. This went from weird, to comical, to downright dangerous in just a few hours’ time.”

Twilight cocked an eye at the grey mare. “Please, do enlighten me as to the part that was comical in all this.”

Nighttide shook her head and smiled. “If only you knew just how fairy-tale your land really was to a pony like me.”

Twilight returned an offended look, which Rarity noticed. “Now Twilight, don’t get too upset at the dear. Remember that comic book we were pulled into recently?”

Nighttide’s ears perked up. “Pulled into?”

“As in, we were sucked into the world of the comic book, yes,” Twilight answered, casting a glare at the baby dragon on her back.

Spike blushed. “H-hey, it’s not like I knew that would happen!”

Nighttide’s eyes grew wide. “Wait, you guys can really do that here?” Her voice became airy. “Screw virtual reality, I’m gonna stay here forever.”

Twilight shook her head and smirked as the others giggled. But as quickly as the brevity arrived, it was lost, as the whistling sound of magic began to echo through the corridor ahead of them.

“Come on, girls,” Twilight shouted back to the rest. “Sounds like we’re headed in the right direction.”

__________

About a minute after they first heard the whistling, the group found themselves galloping into a modestly sized cavern. And standing in the middle was a familiar pony.

“Is that…?” Twilight could see a blue stallion standing with his back toward them. Six objects placed in various corners of the room cast a dark blue magic toward the ceiling, and the group noticed a set of strange symbols glowing white overhead.

Twilight sat Spike down behind her before walking ahead. “Riptide. What are you doing here?”

The stallion continued to face away, looking upward at the ceiling. “I’m sorry, Princess Twilight.”

“Huh?” Twilight murmured as Nighttide walked up beside her. The two moved to take another step forward.

“Don’t come any closer!” Riptide barked back. “It’s too dangerous!”

Twilight recoiled a hoof. “Wh-what do you mean?”

She could see him shake his head ever so slightly while still looking overhead. “This was a mistake after all.”

The two mares sat down behind Riptide. After a moment, Twilight spoke again. “Riptide, we found your journal. Can you tell us what’s going on here?”

The stallion sighed. “I’m glad of that much… I’m assuming the magic has already affected you?”

Twilight tilted her head. “Y-yes. As well as one of my friend’s. Was that not you?”

“I’m afraid not.” Riptide’s horn began to glow a baby blue. Twilight and Nighttide motioned to gallop ahead to stop him, but then he spoke again. “The magic being cast in here is not in my control. I set up these devices around the room in hopes of absorbing the magic myself, but… the numbers were right. I simply am not capable of handling it myself.”

“And why should we believe anything you have to say?” Rainbow Dash shouted as she hovered beside Twilight. “You kidnapped our friends!”

“Hold on, Rainbow.” Twilight put a hoof up to stop her. “Riptide, why are you so insistent on pursuing this magic?”

“It’s no longer that, Princess.” He paused for a moment. “Do you remember when I had you captive, the device that appeared to be casting magic on you?”

“Of course.”

“It was supposed to be analyzing your magical capabilities. As it turns out, it was doing more than just that… it was also absorbing yours.” Riptide sounded strangely apologetic.

Twilight didn’t understand the inflection in his voice. “Was that not your intent?”

“No. It was not. I have used these devices in the past both to control negative magic, as well as to record information for my research. I’ve never had a problem with gathering figures from my observations, but I had no idea that the devices were also absorbing the magic of those things it interacted with. Namely myself, and you.”

“I don’t understand,” Nighttide interjected. “What exactly does that mean?”

“If you all read the journal, then you know that I became obsessed with my research. I was more than aware of that fact, but I persisted anyway. A fatal trait of my character, I’m afraid…” Turning his head slightly in their direction, he continued, “The reason I captured you, Twilight, was in hopes of finding a way to control the magic safely. While the devices I built are able to harness the magic well enough – as you read, one of them malfunctioned some time ago. I knew then that I required the magical prowess of someone stronger than myself - it was no longer just the ideal method. But when I woke up and found you had all escaped from my ship, I went with a backup plan.”

“These ponies really need to learn to cut to the chase,” Nighttide muttered to herself. “Let’s try this question, then. Do you know what happened to Twilight?”

“I actually had no idea anything happened, but I had a hunch.” He paused for a second as he adjusted his stance. “What you are witnessing here is negative magic… or whatever this really is, coming together in its natural habitat to coalesce and choose a worthy host.”

Twilight's ears folded back, eyes widening. “W-worthy host?”

“There’s not enough time for me to explain here in full. The simplest way I can put it is, this magic is sentient. It is only barely magic. It’s more like a life-form all of its own.” Riptide leaned his head further back in their direction to meet their gaze. “And I’m afraid Star Swirl knew this himself.”

“How so?” Nighttide said.

The stallion frowned, hanging his head slightly as he redirected his attention forward. “Star Swirl learned early on during his student’s endeavors that this was a deadly, uncontrollable form of magic that nopony should ever learn to use, let alone even know of its existence. I learned that much after years of re-reading Spinel’s work that I found along with Equestria’s ancient history. The basis of the magic you see here was actually a phenomenon they discovered in the caverns of Maretania, as you read in my journal. But I think I’m beginning to understand now why the Princesses had this information locked away…

“For years, I’ve tried incorporating principles of my own into my research and development of what I called ‘negative magic’, a derivative of what you see here, hoping that I could find a way to tame the darkness that lurked within.” He paused for a moment. “This magic is everything that I described it as on my ship, and so much more... but in the worst way possible.”

Just then, the symbols above began to glow brighter, making some nearby rocks cast harsh shadows against the ground. “Everypony, stand back!” Riptide shouted. As his horn began to glow more intensely, he lifted his head and sighed. “All my research… I knew better than this. I always knew better. Perhaps now I can begin to set things straight once again.”

Riptide shot a bright blue beam toward the center of the ceiling. The devices around the room burned an intensely deep blue and began to hover over the surfaces they rested on as the darker blue magic above turned black. Riptide slowly began to hover in place as everypony watched in shock.

“Riptide, stop!” Twilight shouted, spreading her wings to take flight.

“HEY, what are you doing!” Nighttide galloped forward and grabbed her tail with her mouth as everyone else ran to help her.

Suddenly, Riptide’s body was shrouded in a dark aura. He shouted from what sounded like pain as the darkness enveloped his barrel, then his legs, neck, and finally his head. Twilight fought desperately to get out of everypony’s grasp, but before she could, the dark aura around Riptide expanded. Soon, the entire room was covered in pitch black.

And then, there was silence.

__________

Twilight was engulfed in darkness for some time. She wasn’t sure for how long exactly, but it felt like days. Maybe months. Or perhaps it was seconds? The feeling was incoherent and frustrating, and she didn’t like the uncertainty that came with it.

But then, very slowly, a sound began to break the silence. It was a constant sound – at first a low whine, then a slow chopping noise. She thought it sounded like hoof-steps for a moment, but that wasn’t quite it. It was something strangely similar. She wasn’t sure if she had heard it before herself, but something about the sound was familiar.

As she slowly opened her eyes, colors and shapes began to align themselves into view. Before long, she found herself inside a strange flying machine. The sound that she was hearing wasn’t of hoof-steps at all. In fact, it was—

“A helicopter.” The words came out of her mouth almost as if they had been planted there.

Twilight sat in the passenger compartment of a large helicopter, preparing for take-off somewhere in the middle of a city. It was early morning, and she remembered that she had only just managed to get her daughter off to school before being called in to an emergency meeting at work. The moment she arrived, a military official told her to follow him.

Twilight looked down at herself and noticed she was wearing a black uniform with a full moon emblazoned on the flank. There were three other ponies in the passenger compartment as well, and two more she could just make out in the cockpit.

Somepony shouted a name to her. She couldn’t catch what it was, but she knew they were addressing her. “Yes, what is it, Colonel?” she responded instinctively.

“I’m sorry to have to drag you out like this, but we’ve received intel of a planned attack on the Ferin Sha.”

Twilight’s ears twitched at the word. She had heard that name before somewhere. She blinked for a second before shaking her head. ‘Of course I’ve heard of it,’ she thought to herself, ‘why wouldn’t I have?’

“What are the details?” she shouted back over the sound of the propellers to the Colonel, a black stallion who wore a dark grey uniform similar to her own.

“We’re not sure yet, but at approximately 0300 hours, DIRE spec-ops encountered what we originally believed to be a guerrilla team planting high-grade explosives near the Ferin Sha.”

Twilight furrowed her brow. “Just how high a grade are we talking about?”

The Colonel looked her in the eyes. “Thermonuclear.”

Twilight sat back in her hard vinyl seat and took a moment to let the information set in. “You said ‘originally believed to be guerrilla.’ What exactly does that imply?”

“There is a possibility they are working either with or directly under the authority of the Kidesh Union. Our interrogators managed to get one pony from the group to share some vital info pertaining to how they obtained the explosives. If our intel is correct, there could be other splinter groups setting up similar devices elsewhere right now.”

Twilight looked out the compartment down at her hometown of Hiigara. The wind of the propellers above streaked a single tear across her cheek as her eyes watered from the fumes of the exhaust. She turned back to the Colonel. “What’s our next move?”

“That’s where you come in. Since you’re the director of advanced weapons R&D, we could use your help in tying up some loose ends, particularly with how to safely disarm the bombs if it become necessary.” The Colonel paused for a moment to swipe aside his bangs, which Twilight noticed amusingly were just a touch longer than what was supposed to be military grooming guidelines. “It’s been a few years since we dealt with a nuclear threat, and you guys are the specialists. The more minds and hooves we have working the case, the quicker we can take action.”

Twilight sighed. There was no denying the gravity of the situation. “Understood.” Her position at AW-R&D had been one plagued mostly with office work over recent years. But with tensions rising against the Kidesh Union, she knew that a day could come when the military would eventually pull her away from the malaise of her desk, and back into the fray. She was torn by the thought - once upon a time, the idea of doing something tangible again would have been appealing. But she had someone - technically two someones - with whom she now preferred to spend her time at home.

The helicopter flew over a bay near the city and out over a stretch of woods. Slowly, the sounds and images began to fade, and her memory sped through darker, fleeting images of ponies and paperwork. Eventually, she found herself standing on a concrete sidewalk in front of a suburban rowhouse.

“Home.” Twilight heaved a sigh as she fiddled in her saddlebag for her keys. The nearest amber streetlamp was too far and the evening light too dark for her to see into the pouches, so she stepped up to the threshold of her house under the stoop light and tried again. Once she found them, she unlocked the door and walked inside, turning on an overhead light. Again, her memory faded, and dark images of a kitchen and a television quickly passed by. Eventually, she found herself putting towels up in the hallway closet upstairs.

Then she heard the front door open.

A small filly with a black and green mane walked through the entryway. Twilight’s heart warmed at the sight of her. She didn’t want to let on she had been gone most of the evening herself, so instead, she did what any good parent would: she put on her best poker face.

As she walked downstairs, she spoke an inaudible word, then continued in a stern voice. “…I told you to be back by eight!”

“I know. I’m sorry.” The filly shifted a little in place. “It’s not like I knew what time it was!”

Twilight tilted her head slightly and gave the filly a stern look. She noticed the mud around her hooves. “You walked to the Ferin Sha, didn’t you?”

The filly’s ears flicked back. “W-well, I’m a big pony, after all!” She raised her head and puffed out her chest, trying to look serious. “I just wanted to go by myself for once.”

“For once?” Twilight sighed and let a smile break through her serious expression as she lowered her head until it was level with the filly’s. “My little explorer. What ever am I going to do with you?” She picked the filly up and placed her on her back as she carefully walked up the stairs to the bathroom.

Twilight was just relieved that she hadn’t run into anything or anyone dangerous while at the Ferin Sha, especially given the news. She let the thought wisp by as she placed the filly into the bathtub, filled with a sea of bubbles. The filly laughed as Twilight scrubbed her coat vigorously, working out the mud that she collected on her adventure.

But before long, Twilight found herself tucking the filly into bed. The day finally coming to a close, she sat down and took a deep breath as she looked down at her foal with a warm smile. Then came the sound of the front door again.

“Daddy!” the filly shouted, causing Twilight to lean back and rub her nearest ear.

Twilight instinctively walked to the door and called out into the hall. “Hey sweetie, come help me tuck her in.”

She could hear heavy hoof-steps walk up the stairs, then a dark silhouette made its way into the room. Twilight couldn’t make out any distinguishing features, but she felt perfectly comfortable around him.

Then, there was darkness, and the low hum of the city around them.

__________

Twilight tossed in her sleep. Slowly, she woke up and reached a hoof over to the other side of the bed and felt her husband sleeping like a log, as usual. She was about to sit up to get some water when suddenly, a familiar voice in her head whispered.

“Go back to sleep…”

Twilight blinked her heavy eyes in the dark of the bedroom. She shook her head a little, then came the voice again.

“Go back to sleep…”

“Go back… to sleep…” Twilight mumbled to herself. She laid her head back down on the pillow and shuffled herself under the covers some more. As she closed her eyes, a cold sensation ran over her. It didn’t make her shiver, but it did frighten her. And yet, she was too tired to do anything about it.

As Twilight drifted back to sleep, a myriad of familiar dreams passed through her mind. They were of colorful ponies in a peaceful land. Her friends from home. She saw their smiling faces and felt the warmth of their embrace. The images blurred their way through, never stopping long enough for Twilight to remember their names.

“But they are my friends,” Twilight whispered to herself.

“Yes, they are,” came the familiar voice from behind her.

Twilight was too drowsy to flinch. Instead, she lazily turned her head around, but saw nopony there. Only darkness.

“My friends,” she whispered again as the sound of something rumbling built in the air.

Twilight hesitated. As the sound increased in volume, strange images of her friends appeared. Slowly, the names started coming back to her. She could see Rainbow Dash wrestling with somepony – or was it a pony? Then she saw Fluttershy holding Rainbow in her hooves. Darker images passed of Rarity closing her shop and of Applejack and Big Mac leaving Ponyville. There was Pinkie Pie, who had taken over Sugarcube Corner after the Cakes moved away. Twilight thought it odd how the party pony’s mane had been flat for so long. She couldn’t get her imagination to make her smile appear, even though she knew it belonged there. Then, the images turned to strange objects built across Ponyville.

“No,” Twilight muttered. “This isn’t right… none of this is right.”

“Is it not?” the voice asked.

“No… this is…” Twilight caught a glimpse of the same city she flew over just hours ago. But the memory itself didn’t belong with her either. Somehow, she could tell it was not her own.

Then, the sound around her caught her attention. It was deep and loud, filling the air. She focused her attention on the sound, and suddenly, her memories all connected at once.

Her eyes shot open. There, directly in front of her, was the filly she had just tucked into bed, a light pole lying on top of her legs. The earth around them shook, and the horizon glowed a bright orange as smoke billowed up into the sky from all around.

Twilight rushed over to the filly. As she collected both her own memories and those she had just experienced, she hesitated for a moment, then stammered, “N-Nighttide?”

The filly didn’t move. She lay there on the pavement, still and silent, only gasping every few seconds. Twilight examined the filly’s legs. They were without a doubt broken, and each one stuck up beyond the other side of the pole at a disgusting angle.

Suddenly, Twilight felt the earth beneath her shift. The entire land upon which she stood seemed to tilt at an angle. She tried to use her magic to pull the filly free, but her magic wasn’t responding. She then reached around the pole and tried to use her wings to lift it, but it simply was too heavy. There was no moving the pole off of her.

Twilight then heard another familiar sound nearby. She looked up to see a small helicopter making a hasty landing in the street in front of them. Four ponies jumped out the sides before the aircraft even touched the ground, racing toward the filly.

“You two, check the house,” called one black stallion galloping toward them. Twilight looked over at the rows of houses he suggested. Almost all of them had already collapsed in on themselves, including the one she had just been inside.

The black stallion and a brown mare beside him ran up to the filly. The two examined the light pole for a second, then nodded to each other. Both ponies aligned their rear legs with the crux of the pole, and with a shout from the stallion, the two bucked it into the street, freeing the filly from its weight.

“Let’s grab a gurney, Colonel,” the brown mare suggested.

“No, Nephilim – we don’t have time. Here,” he said as he hoisted the filly onto Nephilim’s back. The filly’s legs dangled over her sides in a gruesome manner, but Twilight saw no blood. She shuddered at the sight before realizing she had been blankly staring at the scene this whole time.

“Colonel!” Twilight shouted as she ran toward them. But they didn’t respond. “Colonel, wait!” Twilight galloped in front of them and motioned for them to stop, but they continued forward, as if they couldn’t see or hear her at all. She stepped aside with a confused expression as the two ponies headed toward the helicopter.

“Total loss,” came a shout from one of the other ponies examining the house.

“Then let’s get the hell out of here,” the Colonel shouted back. As the ponies piled into the helicopter, Twilight raced forward to try to join them, but it took off before she could jump inside.

As the helicopter gained altitude, Twilight could feel the same cold sensation from earlier surround her again. This time, she panicked, looking all around for the source. But all she could see was the shifting landscape, crumbling buildings, and what appeared to be columns of fire lighting up the horizon for miles on end.

“What!?” Twilight shrieked into the air. “What am I doing here! What is all this?!”

Somepony placed a hard, cold hoof on her withers and whispered with a familiar voice into her ear.

“This is the hell inside my head.”

__________

“NIGHTTIDE!”

Twilight bolted upright. All of her Ponyville friends stood around her with terrified expressions. She scrambled to her hooves and looked around. Just beyond her friends lay Riptide on the floor in the middle of the cavern. The ceiling was now completely dark, and Rarity’s light was the only thing illuminating the space around them.

But there was one pony missing.

“Twi, are you alright?” one of her friends asked, but she didn’t even take the time to figure out who it was.

“Nighttide!” Twilight grabbed hold of Applejack’s shoulders and shook her in place, shouting into her face. “Where’s Nighttide? Where is she?!”

“Whoa, Twilight, calm down! She’s right over—”

A deep, thick, gurgling sound came from just beyond the group. Everypony stepped back and looked.

Nighttide stood rigid with her head hung low and eyes closed a short distance away from them. The domes on her flank flashed red as an alarm sounded from somewhere within. The dark aura from before surrounded her entire body like an amorphous gel, shifting from shadow to physical form around her suit and forehead. The mare let loose a low snarl as various parts of her suit slowly began to open, the aura shooting out of them in thick globs that worked their way toward her legs.

A synthetic male voice echoed loudly from Nighttide’s suit. “Warning. Final security level breach. The Sarcophagus has been opened.”

Everyone watched in horror. Everyone, that is, except Twilight, who dared a step forward. “N-Nighttide? Nighttide, what—”

“Go back to sleep,” the mare snarled under her breath as streams of electricity began to travel across her body. Suddenly, her right-most wing and engine deployed, quickly being wrapped in the aura. Out of her left side, the remaining broken piece of her wing stuck out with a harsh sound of metal cracking as the aura wrapped around its base. In a matter of seconds, it began to manifest itself into a discernable shape.

“Her wings…” Rainbow Dash stepped up as she marveled at the sight.

The aura began to take another form on Nighttide’s forehead. Twilight blinked. “There’s no way. This… this can’t…”

With a large, black flash, the room filled with darkness again, and everyone was knocked off their hooves by a shockwave. Once Rarity’s light began to penetrate the darkness again, they could see Nighttide standing with her head held high, looking toward the ceiling.

Applejack clambered to her hooves and leaned in toward Twilight as she watched Nighttide in utter disbelief. “Twilight, is… is she an—”

“Alicorn?!” Twilight couldn’t believe her eyes. Nighttide’s wing had been fully repaired, and both were now twice as big. They protruded from her sides at an upward angle and flapped once just as pegasus wings would, although with it came the grating sound of metal grinding against itself. But strangest of all, she now had a perfectly honed horn.

Whatever deliberation there was to be had would have to wait, as just then, Nighttide’s horn began to glow dark blue. The cave started to shake violently, and Twilight could see the ground underneath Riptide glowing orange. Twilight threw caution to the wind and immediately teleported herself beside Riptide. She grabbed hold of him tightly, then teleported back to where she was before – and just in time. Right where Riptide had been lying, the ground burst open as a thick plume of white hot magma shot straight up, shredding through the rock overhead as if it were paper. Everyone screamed as they ran for the corridor they had come through, except Nighttide.

“Nighttide, please!” Twilight shouted over the raging lava. “We have to get out of here!”

It was no use. Nighttide’s eyes were wide open and glowing a most vibrant hue of violet, drowning out the reflection of the lava, but she seemed to be completely oblivious of what was taking place around her. She continued to stare with an empty gaze straight up at the spire of magma as her horn glowed. She was too close for Twilight to safely teleport to her side, so she attempted to use her telekinesis from a distance to move her. But the second she tried, the shadow cast by Nighttide's body ripped itself from the ground and stood as a physical entity before the mare's closest side, causing sparks of magic to dance off its surface.

Twilight's jaw dropped at the sight. Just as she motioned to run for her, Rarity caught her by the shoulder. “Twilight, we have to get out of here!”

“But Nighttide! We can’t just—”

Before she could further argue the point, Nighttide’s leg thrusters deployed, lifting her slowly off the ground. Her left engine deployed, now fully repaired, as both engines roared to life at a volume equal to that of the spewing lava. With a single flap of her new wings, the shadow returned to its natural position, and the mare took off spiraling up around the flume of lava, beyond the cave’s ceiling.

“NIGHTTIDE, STOP!” Twilight screamed at the top of her lungs, but to no avail. The mare had already vanished beyond the cave’s ceiling.

Everyone stared for a moment at where she disappeared before Applejack shouted, “There’s nothin’ we can do! C’mon, somepony help me with Riptide!”

Twilight and Rainbow Dash hoisted Riptide onto Applejack’s back, letting his legs sprawl out on either side of her barrel. Without further ado, Twilight grabbed Spike with her magic and set him on her back, and the group raced off through the cave.

Everypony galloped as fast as they could through the narrow corridors. Rainbow Dash ran at the head of the group. At one point, she noticed the path ahead of them was beginning to brighten, and the air from behind was quickly growing warm. She looked over her shoulder, and to her horror, she could see a column of fire quickly gaining on them.

Fluttershy was at the back of the group, barely able to keep up with the rest. The fire began licking at her tail. She tried to run faster, but the pain in her wing did everything it could to slow her down.

“Fluttershy!” Rainbow Dash flared her wings and took off just enough to reach the ceiling. Everypony raced ahead underneath before she landed next to Fluttershy, regaining the pace with her hooves.

“Fluttershy, you’ve gotta run faster!” She looked over at her friend as she galloped alongside her. Fluttershy’s face was twisted in panic and pain. Rainbow could tell she wouldn’t hold out for much longer at this rate.

“Rai… Rainb…” Fluttershy tried to speak, but she was too winded to even get a single word out. Her pace began to slow ever so slightly.

“Oh no you don’t!” Rainbow Dash flared her wings once more, and coming to a hover over Fluttershy, she wrapped her forelegs around her barrel and flapped her wings as hard as she could. Fluttershy screamed in agony as Rainbow Dash’s legs rubbed against the base of her injured wing, but Rainbow knew that if she didn’t speed things along, there would be little left of either of them to scream.

The group came upon the river and jumped over the entire body of water. Rainbow Dash flew her friend just above its surface and let Fluttershy’s hooves touch down on the other side. Thankfully, she kept up the pace, seeming to gallop now more on instinct than anything.

The fire filled all the space behind them. Slowly, ferociously, it gained on everyone. Rainbow Dash now lagged far behind the group as she pulled her friend in tow. She wasn’t sure if they would make it out safely, but she was going to give it everything she had. With every atom of strength left in her wings, Rainbow Dash plowed forward through the air in front of them.

“Hang on, Fluttershy!” The two closed their eyes as they dove into the glistening white that lay just ahead of them.

Chapter 13 - The Sarcophagus, Pt. 1

The group dove into the snow just as the cave behind them exploded with a deafening roar, casting a column of fire across everypony’s back. Sheets of snow barreled down from the mountain above, covering the opening of the cave and slamming down in sheets all around them. Once she felt the heat pass and the noise die down, Twilight carefully stood to her hooves and looked around.

“Thank goodness.” As Spike hopped off her back completely unscathed, Twilight looked to the back of the group. Rainbow Dash had just made it out with Fluttershy. The two lay half-buried in the snow, Fluttershy whimpering loudly beside Rainbow with her injured wing bent in the air. Rarity was already on her hooves, staring slack-jawed at the freshly charred cave. Pinkie Pie seemed to be fine for the most part, taking time to work out some of the soot from her tail. Off a short distance from the rest of the group was Applejack, carefully laying an unconscious Riptide in the snow beside her.

Although it was now the middle of the night, the land and snow around them glistened a vibrant amber. As everypony looked up to see where the light came from, several gasped at what they saw.

“That pony went and made herself a volcano!” Applejack blinked in disbelief at the top of the mountain they were just inside. The cap was lightly spewing bright magma into the night air. Thankfully, they were far enough to avoid the fallout. But what of Nighttide?

Twilight galloped over to the rest of the group. “Rainbow Dash, we need to find Nighttide. Can you still fly?”

Rainbow Dash looked up incredulously at her as she helped a shaking Fluttershy to her hooves. “Um, yeah. In case you didn’t see that awesomeness back there, I—”

Twilight cut her off by flying into the air. She looked down at the cerulean pegasus with desperate eyes. “Well, what’re you waiting for? Come on!”

Applejack galloped over and shouted, “Twi, wait a sec! Shouldn’t we figure out what just—”

“There’s no time for that!” Twilight made a hairpin turn overhead and prepared to speed off for the mountain, when Spike shouted with a trembling voice from below.

“Twilight, wait! Please… don’t go!”

Twilight froze mid-air. The voice of her baby dragon instantly struck at the deepest part of her heart. In all the tumult of everything that had taken place, she forgot who had been through one of the most harrowing adventures in his life over the past several hours. She hovered in place for a moment, the gears in her head turning faster than ever she could remember. But somepony else helped her make the decision to return to earth.

“Twilight Sparkle,” the thundering regal voice of an alicorn shouted from above.

Twilight spun to find Princess Luna flying in on a chained carriage led by two Night Guards with webbed wings. As the carriage descended upon the crowd of ponies below, Luna leapt off and glided toward the group. Twilight immediately flew back down.

Luna looked up and flared her wings as she made her landing. “Twilight, is everyone alright?”

“We’re fine, Princess. It’s Nighttide.” Twilight dropped her hooves into the packed snow and looked up at the glowing mountain. Just above the spewing lava were about a dozen other Night Guards patrolling the air. “What are you all doing out here?”

“The Royal Guard were dispatched after we received your letter concerning Riptide. When we didn’t hear word from you or the scouts by nightfall, my sister asked me to lead a search team of my own. It wasn’t until the mountain erupted that we knew where to look.”

Twilight looked back down to Luna. “We tried sending Celestia a letter earlier today when Nighttide found the tracking signal, but we never got a reply. Do you know what happened?”

Luna gazed intently at Twilight, her brow furrowed. “I’m afraid I do not know. How long ago was it sent?”

Twilight looked up at the night sky. The moon was already half-way across the mountain range. “Hours. Several hours ago.”

Princess Luna remained silent for a moment, glancing once over at the still body of Riptide lying in the snow. “Explain what has transpired here.”

“Right…” Twilight did her best to fill Princess Luna in as quickly as she could on everything that took place since Spike sent the most recent letter to Celestia. Just as she finished explaining what happened after they found Riptide in the cave, shouts could be heard coming from above the burning mountain. Everyone turned to look.

Several hooves above the spewing lava, the dark figure of a grey mare glimmered in the moonlight, surrounded by the Night Guard. One of the Guards could be heard shouting, “In the name of Equestria and her royal majesty, we command you to surrender!”

There was a faint blue spark at the tip of the mare’s horn, followed immediately by a distorted wave of dark colors that slammed into the Night Guards, knocking them back mid-air.

A brief pause passed both overhead and on the ground. After a moment, Princess Luna stoically walked past Twilight and the others over to Riptide. She leaned down and pressed her horn against the side of his. The two horns began to glow a soft blue as Luna closed her eyes.

Everyone watched for several seconds in silence. After a while, Twilight slowly approached the alicorn. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, Luna lifted her head and turned her attention skyward.

Overhead, the Night Guard had regained their composure and began heading over the mountain in pursuit of the now fleeing mare. After considering them for a moment, Luna turned to face the group. “Everypony, pay close attention, for what I am about to tell you is of great importance.”

The few ponies who had been kneeling in the snow now stood to their hooves and slowly approached the Princess of the Night. Twilight sat down on her haunches front and center, pulling close with a wing the baby dragon who had ran up to her side.

Princess Luna breathed a heavy sigh and looked up at the looming moon before speaking. “My little ponies… I’m afraid Riptide has stumbled upon something that was supposed to have been banished many moons ago. An evil not far removed from the same that turned me into Nightmare Moon.”

Twilight’s ears twitched at that, but then she thought of something she simply couldn’t wait to bring up later. “Princess Luna, forgive me, but… when we were in the cave, we noticed Nighttide had grown both a horn and wings. Does that means she’s—”

“An alicorn?” Luna’s nostrils flared, exhaling with a tone of disgust. “Far from it. What you witnessed was a mockery of earth pony, unicorn, and pegasi magic, the likes of which outshine even Discord’s own abilities.”

Twilight gave a forlorn glance to the burning mountain, then gulped. As she returned her attention forward, she said, “Princess, from what we understand, Riptide found several works of history in yours and Celestia’s old castle. He said they included research of a student of Star Swirl’s by the name of Spinel, as well as ancient history of pre-Equestria. They were sealed away in a hidden corridor.” She took a deep breath and finished. “Princess, did you and your sister… hide those works?”

Princess Luna blinked. She took a moment to gauge Twilight’s expression. The recently-transformed alicorn looked up at her with violet eyes, filled with both the passion of an aspiring princess, and the fear of uncertainty.

Luna closed her eyes and exhaled calmly. When she opened them a moment later, she said with a steady tone, “Verily, Twilight. You are correct.”

There was a murmur of surprise between some of the group. Twilight remained fixed in her plot of snow, gazing into the sapphire eyes of the Princess.

She continued. “It is true that my sister and I locked away works of both Spinel the Steadfast as well as ancient Equestrian history. Which, in all fairness, is not Equestrian history at all.”

Twilight nodded apprehensively. “Before Equestria was formed, the three pony races lived separately in the regions farther north, right?”

Princess Luna nodded. “But even before then, ponies lived all across the different regions of known land. The historical works which Riptide found were written by ponies from much farther back, long before my sister and I became involved. They, along with many other kinds of creatures, lived in the land between the mountains and swamps that surround most of southern Equestria.”

Luna hung her head grimly before continuing. “Theirs was a most troubling era, one which, for all we know, may have been the very reason the windigos came into existence. During that time, ponies of all different races lived together – not so much in harmony as in civil cooperation. The magic of the three races at that time was still primitive, and the differences between each were not as clearly defined as they are now. But what made their unity different from ours today was the nature of their hearts: They were conquerors. Not companions.”

The group mulled over the information as she continued. “The ponies conquered much of the land, killing many other species in the process. A term we once used millennia ago for the act was genocide.“ Twilight tilted her head. “It was defined as ‘the process of exterminating a culture, species, or race.’”

Each pony lurched forward a little in their spots. Fluttershy herself had to fight back the bile rising in her throat as she fought against her imagination. But the group was pulled back to the present as somewhere over the mountain, everypony heard a distant rumble – what sounded like Nighttide’s engines roaring louder.

Princess Luna stood up. “To make this brief, before the ponies eventually migrated north, a certain event took place in the caverns of Maretania.” She paused for a moment as she stood over Twilight, looking into her violet eyes with an apologetic expression. “The reason their history was locked away with Spinel’s research is because of what happened there.”

Unfortunately, there was no time to further explain. The sound of a distant explosion caught the group’s attention permanently. Rainbow Dash trotted over beside Twilight with a worried look. “Sorry, Princesses, but the history lesson’s gotta wait. We’ve got a bogeymare to catch.”

Princess Luna nodded, keeping her attention on Twilight. “I will explain further at a later point.” She then glanced over at the cerulean pegasus. “Rainbow Dash, will you join us in searching for your friend?”

The loyal pegasus nodded and gave the two a salute. But Twilight was still clearly confused. “Princess, wh–what exactly are we supposed to do? I still don’t even know half of what’s going on!”

“Follow my lead, and I will instruct you both on the way.” Luna turned to the rest of the group. “My entourage here will escort the rest of you to safety.”

Lifting a hoof hesitantly, Applejack stepped to the front of the group and spoke. “’Scuse me, Princess? I’m sorry if this is a might bit forward, but… I don’t think any of us here are ready to give up on Nighttide.” She glanced back at the rest of the group, who all gave a nod of approval. “I’m not sure how we can help, or even what’s going on. But we’re not ready to tuck tail an’ turn back either. Is there some way we can pitch in?”

“I agree.” Fluttershy made her way forward on shaky legs, the cast of her wing now protruding slightly from her side. “I don’t know what’s happening either, but back in the cave, right before Nighttide…” The pegasus drew a deep breath to calm her nerves before continuing. “…flew away, I think I felt something. I don’t know what it was, but it felt like she was… afraid?”

The group looked at Fluttershy with surprise. Twilight stepped forward and addressed her. “I think I had a dream about Nighttide’s past that last time I blacked out. Did you see something too?”

Now everypony turned to Twilight. She hadn’t mentioned this during her explanation to the Princess, so between hers and Fluttershy’s statement, everypony was now even more confused. Fluttershy replied, “No… no, I didn’t see anything. But I know I felt something.” She turned back to Princess Luna. “I’m sorry. A-anyway… is there some way we can help?”

Princess Luna gave her and the group a sad smile. “It is comforting to know that Nighttide has been graced with the company of such good friends. In time, she will need that friendship. But first…” She redirected her attention to Twilight and Rainbow Dash. “We need to bring her back down to earth.”

With a flap of her wings, Princess Luna brought herself to a hover over the snow and turned to her escort. “Guards, see that these ponies are kept safe. If anything unusual happens with the mountain or the mare, escort these ponies immediately back to Canterlot. Have the stallion restrained upon waking.” The two guards saluted the mare and walked over to the group with the carriage in tow.

As Luna glanced down at the group, Twilight felt Spike tug at her wing. The baby dragon looked up into her eyes with a pleading expression and said, “I know you have to do this, Twilight… but—”

Twilight scooped the dragon up into her hooves and gave him a much needed hug. “It’s okay, Spike. I’ll take care of myself. Promise me you’ll do the same?”

Spike tried to stifle a sniffle on her shoulder, but failed. With a wavering voice, he answered, “Y-yeah, I can handle things here. Just… please, be safe.”

As Twilight sat him back down in the snow, the two shared a knowing look – a silent promise exchanged that they would be reunited when all was said and done.

Close by, Rainbow Dash took to the air and joined alongside Princess Luna, looking back down at the pair as they bade their silent adieus. “You ready to go, Twi’?”

With one last pat on Spike’s head, Twilight turned and gulped, steeling the nerves that were trying desperately to fray within her. “Yeah. I’m ready.” Flying up to Luna’s other side, the three flew off toward the southern end of the mountain, banking against the heated airstream now trailing down the side of the rocky surface.

__________

As the three flew against the turbulent air, Princess Luna explained more about what was happening. “Nighttide Star has likely been possessed by the dark aura Riptide was attempting to control. It is a nameless evil – far from what we define as ‘magic.’ From what we understand, it seeks to control anypony who interacts with it.”

“I wonder if that’s what happened to me when I blacked out the first time,” Twilight said. “But I don’t remember anything between meeting up with Fluttershy and waking up in the cave.” Turning to the Princess, she asked, “What exactly happened in Maretania, anyway?”

“It is a long and sad story, Twilight,” Luna said with a mournful tone. “Several generations before Star Swirl and Spinel explored the caves of Maretania, a certain event was written to have taken place there.”

Rainbow Dash tilted her head curiously as the three picked up lift under their wings from a warm draft. “Did it have something to do with that ‘jean cider’ thing you mentioned?”

Princess Luna nodded hesitantly. “Genocide, yes. This evil is a mockery of the three ponies’ magic – and we believe with good reason.”

Her eyes narrowed as she recalled the details. “One of the ancient tablets we discovered long ago in an abandoned village near Maretania described a small group of the three equine races who banded together to form an alliance. Their intent, as it was written, was like most others of the time: to conquer the land around them. But their methods were far more political than others of the era. Talks of peace and unity were common, and camaraderie was present. For a time, the alliance was said to have gained notoriety. Some of the attention was good. Most of it was not.

“One day, ponies and creatures from other tribes met to discuss the matter. They worried that the alliance could pose a threat to the lands they claimed. While none wished to work with the others, it was unanimously agreed that something needed to be done. Not long afterward, the different tribes set out to fight the alliance. As the war carried on for several days, the alliance retreated to the caverns of Maretania. Thousands of equines banded together in the confines of the cave to put up a last defense. While it proved protection for some time, once the tribes made their way inside, it was hopeless.”

Princess Luna paused as she stared into the horizon. “One side fought with passionate hatred, the other out of desperate fear. In turn, the magic of their spirits coalesced. With the exception of a few witnesses who were written to have escaped, everypony in that cave died within a fortnight. It was a bloodbath.” She turned her head toward Twilight. “And Star Swirl believed that is how this evil was born.”

Twilight nodded against the wind, trying to take in the information in as empirical a manner as possible, even as her body demanded an emotional response. With a shaky voice, she said, “Are you sure it wasn’t just a legend someone made for fun?”

Luna shook her head. “We considered it for a time. However, Spinel aided in validating the probability of the story.”

Twilight’s ears folded back. “How so?”

“Spinel bore direct witness to the dark aura when it possessed him over a thousand years ago during an expedition he and Star Swirl made to Maretania. Star Swirl managed to save his student using magic of his own, but soon after Spinel recovered, the stallion became obsessed in researching the phenomenon.”

Another closer explosion could be heard just beyond the mountain. Princess Luna turned to each pony. “The finer details will have to wait until later. For now, what you both need to know is this fight will require each of your strengths to pull Nighttide back to waking. And to do so will require you entering her dreams.”

Rainbow Dash glanced over at the Princess with a raised eyebrow. “Her dreams? Is she, like, sleeping or something?”

“You could say as much. From what Star Swirl surmised, when Spinel was possessed by the dark aura, he was lost in a dream realm of his own making. Star Swirl believed that the intent was for the heart of the possessed to become lost in their dreams so that the aura could eventually take control of both their mind and body.”

Twilight blinked. “Riptide mentioned something about a dream in his journal. There was an accident where one of his devices knocked him out, and he wrote about having had a dream. Even Nighttide mentioned having one when I hit her with that spell in the cave!” Her voice became chipper for a moment as things seemed to finally click together, until she remembered her own dream. “But it still doesn’t make sense. Neither one of them could remember any of the details, even though I remember bits and pieces of the one I had. And yet, I don’t remember anything between finding Fluttershy and waking up in the cave. Plus, Riptide mentioned the magic was ‘coalescing in its natural habitat.’ But this isn’t Maretania.” She shook her head and groaned as she added, “And why would it want to possess somepony anyway?”

Trying her best to organize her thoughts in the moment, she turned to Luna and asked, “Princess, do you know what’s going on?”

“I’m afraid I do not. While we have faced this evil more than once, we still do not fully understand how it works. All that we know is it involves the dreams of those it possesses.”

Twilight narrowed her eyes. “Wait. You mean, there was more than one possession?”

The Princess was silent for a moment, then nodded and quickly said, “Long ago.”

Twilight sighed. “Princess, I… I just don’t understand any of this. And to be perfectly honest, I still don’t understand why you or Celestia would have hidden those works.”

Luna merely turned her eyes toward Twilight. With a cool voice, she said, “Would it not befit you more to save further inquiry for my sister?”

Twilight bit her lip, returning her attention forward. “Perhaps so.”

After a moment, Princess Luna added, “For now, let us focus on the matter at hoof. At this moment, our duty is to rescue your friend.”

Twilight smirked weakly. “And that’s where you come in, I assume?”

“Correct. First, we need to capture Nighttide, at which point I will send you both into her dreams. The Night Guard and I will attempt to bring her back down to earth, where we will restrain her until the aura can be exorcised. If the situation permits, I will try to send your friends with you as well.” She looked between both mares with a serious expression. “But the fight will ultimately be up to you. You must find Nighttide within the realm of her dreams, and help her find her way to waking.”

“How exactly do we go about that?” Rainbow Dash asked from aside.

“Seek her out. Follow her wherever she may lead you. The answer will become apparent as you go along.”

Twilight grumbled and looked across the darkening landscape beyond them. “So, we’re flying blind, then?”

Princess Luna skirted closer to Twilight and placed a hoof on her shoulder. “Do not be afraid, Twilight. I understand you are confused—”

“And frustrated.”

Luna smirked. “Undoubtedly. But the answers to your questions will come in time.”

Twilight looked away into the night horizon. After a moment, she asked, “Do you think Nighttide will be okay?”

Luna nodded sternly. “This is a fight for friendship. Not blood.”

“Yeah Twi’,” Rainbow Dash added from aside with a hoof-pump. “We’ve fought bigger, badder things than this! We’ll do this together, and we’ll get our friend back.”

Twilight smiled over at her friend. “Thanks, Rainbow. I’m glad one of us is sure of something, at least.”

Just then, the group rounded the mountain and saw a bright flash of orange suddenly fill the air directly in front of them. The three ponies split apart and scrambled around a dense fireball that roared between them. As the flames died down, they saw two Night Guards speed off toward a grey mare who left behind a vapor trail of violet and green.

“NIGHTTIDE STAR,” Princess Luna shouted with her Royal Canterlot voice, causing both Twilight and Rainbow Dash to stumble mid-air. “WE BESEECH YOU TO LAND IMMEDIATELY.”

This was a ruse on Luna’s part. While she hoped to perhaps draw out some of Nighttide’s heart by calling her name, she intended more to direct the attention of the evil now possessing her – which worked in full. The grey mare looked over her shoulder and spotted the Princess of the Night. Her eyes narrowed, and a thin smile spread across her muzzle.

Nighttide’s engines roared louder than before, speeding the mare away as she banked right to divert Princess Luna away from Twilight and Rainbow Dash. The two paired up with each other and sped off toward the Princess as a swarm of Night Guard flanked them on all sides.

Before long, Nighttide was being tailed by well over twenty airborne ponies. The mare banked casually left and right, always keeping the ponies several meters behind her. Eventually, Twilight and Rainbow Dash caught up with Princess Luna, at which point Rainbow doubled up her efforts and flew beyond them.

“Nighttide, snap out of it!” Rainbow Dash shouted as loud as she could as she closed the gap between her and Nighttide, trying but failing to get her attention. Nighttide kept her focus forward, showing no change in speed or course. But just as Rainbow Dash pulled alongside her, Nighttide banked in front of the pegasus and engaged her afterburners.

Rainbow flared her wings and pulled herself into a steep climb, barely avoiding having her mane and muzzle burned by the exhaust. “That little… ugh.” She sped off again, now fighting harder than before to keep up with Nighttide as the two began leaving the others far behind. A shout could be heard in the distance beckoning her back, but Rainbow continued to push forward, determined not to let Nighttide get away.

Nighttide flared her heavy metal wings and threw her body into a sharp pitch upward, her engines glowing intensely in the night air as Rainbow Dash did all she could to match the mare’s sudden ascent. Rainbow spiraled around the colorful vapor trail, trying to find a good approach angle. Then, Nighttide abruptly cut off her engines and threw her barrel sideways to face Rainbow head long.

Rainbow’s eyes widened. On pure instinct, she fanned her wings out and down, pushing herself against the thin air above her back. Nighttide flew straight past at incredible speed toward the ground, barely missing the pegasus.

Rainbow Dash took a moment to catch her breath as she flipped mid-air and watched the mare’s engines roar back to life. “That pony tried to tackle me!” Panting against the dry, frigid air, she fell into her own free-fall, slamming her wings against her sides and using her body to cut through the air in front of her like a bullet.

Several thousand hooves below, Twilight, Princess Luna, and a small army of Night Guards fanned out across the air beneath them, creating a virtual canopy in expectation that Nighttide would try to break away again.

Instead, the mare headed straight for the center of the group, closing the distance by hundreds of hooves per second. As the group watched her descent, the Night Guard closed in toward Princess Luna, who hovered at the epicenter, waiting patiently for the mare to come closer.

Twilight flew up to Luna’s side and looked overhead. “Princess, shouldn’t we—”

Suddenly, Princess Luna’s horn burned an intense blue, surrounding the two in a cool aura. A second later, Rainbow Dash broke off from behind Nighttide and headed straight for the two.

Nighttide pitched up and flew out beyond the group, shattering the sound barrier above their heads. Just as Rainbow Dash banked to follow her, Princess Luna shouted, “Rainbow! Flank us, left side!”

Rainbow braked mid-air and fell into place next to the Princess. As the three flew forward, Luna cast the same blue aura around the pegasus. Twilight’s wings ached with the struggle to keep up the speed they were building, but the aura Princess Luna cast seemed to help nudge her along. With even more Night Guards now flanking each side, the small army headed in a V-formation after Nighttide, who was now slowing down ahead of them.

As they approached Nighttide, the Night Guard broke off formation and spread out in all directions, creating a sphere around the mare. Twilight and Rainbow Dash followed Princess Luna through the center of the sphere where Nighttide had now stopped, hovering mid-air with leg thrusters and the grating sound of metal wings flapping in the cold night air.

Princess Luna flared her wings and suggested for the two ponies beside her to keep a leg’s distance behind her flank. Just ahead of them, Nighttide looked on silently, only the smallest, thinnest smile breaking her otherwise neutral expression.

With a flash of Luna’s magic, a barrier spread around the sphere of Night Guards surrounding them, their webbed wings now glinting with hues of amethyst and azure. Another flash cast a nearly invisible bridge, only tangible thanks to the reflection of the moon overhead and Luna’s barrier. The bridge spanned underneath her hooves, stretching forward and back beneath Twilight, Rainbow, and Nighttide.

The Princess gently landed on the bridge, eliciting the ting of hooves against glass. The two ponies behind her did the same, resting their wings against their sides as they stood behind the Princess. Nighttide landed on the bridge ahead with a heavier thud, ever watching the Princess of the Night.

“I had almost forgotten how flagrant your malevolence was,” Princess Luna started as she slowly walked forward. “That you would choose a pony so innocent as one who is not even born of our land? It truly befits your nature.”

Nighttide remained still and silent, her smile imperceptibly fading to a flat line to match the rest of her expression.

Princess Luna’s eyes narrowed as she walked to within a few hooves of Nighttide, standing firm and upright to face the mare. She waited patiently for the possessed mare to speak. Several seconds of painful silence passed, only broken by the faint humming of magic surrounding them.

Finally, Nighttide’s mouth broke open, and out of it came a horrendous miscellany of gnarled voices that were anything but her own. “Tantum e tenebris receptum constabit.”

Princess Luna smirked as her eyes narrowed even further. “I believe that is my line.”

Suddenly, two sets of rotary cannons deployed from Nighttide’s barrel, humming threateningly to life. Twilight and Rainbow Dash instinctively crouched against the glass bridge beneath them as they looked up at Luna, expecting her to do the same.

But the Princess of the Night remained stoic. She continued with the same inflection as before. “You would use the magic of another mare’s land?”

Another smile broke through Nighttide’s cold expression.

With that, Princess Luna used her magic to throw both ponies behind her off the side of the bridge, just as Nighttide fired her cannons.

A torrent of ammunition filled the air as Princess Luna took off at an incredible speed. Nighttide’s leg thrusters pushed her off the bridge as her metal wings swung violently with the same grating noise as before. The mare struggled to keep her aim, her rotary cannons straining with the hiss of hydraulics as they flung a volley of bullets haphazardly in every direction the Princess swung. The Night Guard remained ever vigilant, bringing the bullets to a safe halt as they slammed into their sparkling barrier.

Twilight and Rainbow Dash hunkered beneath the bridge, flying together in a panicked hover. “What the hay is the Princess doing?” Rainbow asked as a storm of bullets rained down around them.

“I don’t know,” Twilight said, “but we have to trust her.” A few stray rounds landed on the bridge above them, causing shrill tinks of metal on glass. The two noticed briefly that Luna’s magic still held around them.

Luna was now working to put Nighttide into a defensive position. As the Princess cast concentrated beams of magic around the mare, Nighttide awkwardly dodged the beams, doing her best to land a clean blow on the Princess – to no avail.

After several seconds of the two struggling to inflict damage, the Princess broke off her pursuit and looped under the bridge, spreading her wings in front of Twilight and Rainbow Dash. With another flash, Luna collapsed the bridge into multiple flat sheets that slammed together with shrill clanks of glass on glass. As the bridge collapsed and compressed itself into a tangible shape, the three were encased within a clear magical cube.

Nighttide dove and looped around to face the three, firing a volley of high-caliber rounds at the shield. Twilight and Rainbow threw their hooves over their eyes in anticipation of impact, but instead, the bullets bounced off the barrier around them, cracking the glassy surface in countless spots.

Princess Luna huddled closer to the two mares and whispered loudly, “Ready yourselves. Stay close.”

Nighttide fired her afterburners and plowed through the air toward them. Princess Luna watched, waiting for the mare to break off her approach at any moment.

But to her surprise, she did not.

The mare slammed into the barrier skull-first, shattering the front-most wall with a deafening crash that caused the others to dissipate into a glittery powder.

Nighttide threw herself on top of Princess Luna, pinning one of Twilight’s wings between the two as they began to free-fall. The Night Guard broke off their formation and dove after the falling mares, the remnants of the shield they were holding now dissolving into the dark of the night.

As they plummeted toward the ground, Nighttide’s horn began to glow dark blue, then black, angling it toward Luna’s own. Luna reared her head back, trying to avoid contact with the mare’s magic. Twilight screamed beside them, frantically trying to unpin her wing from the two with her hooves as she hung upside down. They were falling fast toward a swamp below them, now far from the mountains. As she looked around in panic, she spotted Rainbow Dash not far from them, falling unconsciously toward the ground. Luna’s aura appeared to have dissipated from around her.

Twilight heaved one sharp breath, then closed her eyes. Just as her horn began to glow, she heard a flopping noise in front of her. She looked back out and saw two Night Guards hoisting Rainbow into their hooves. As she looked down in the direction of where the sky now was, she noticed the rest of the Guard diving headlong toward their falling mass.

Twilight glanced over at Princess Luna and noticed her horn glowing an intense blue, matching and soon overpowering the darkness emitting from Nighttide’s own. Twilight could feel her body tingling all over as Night Guards pulled alongside the three of them at every angle.

“No! Stay back,” Princess Luna shouted to her subordinates. For a moment, the Guards seemed confused, but they followed her command and flared their wings to brake.

Suddenly, the grey and blue mares locked horns with each other, glowing vibrant hues of blue highlighted by streams of pitch-black. Twilight felt their mass’ descent slowing ever so slightly, but when she looked up toward the ground they were quickly approaching, she knew they wouldn’t slow in time. She closed her eyes, listening to the wind separate around them as she struggled to resign herself to their fate, waiting for the impact.

An impact that never came.

__________

DIRE LAB-1032 - Error report (no./date debug)

sys_err: nocall index access/run: (2:\Database\Historical\Personal\twilight_sparkle.vis)
-file_rep:
“
init
access_all
dump_to_cache
end
“
-
sys_err: nocall index access/run: (2:\Database\Location\Equestria\Mammalogy\alicorn.dtl)
-file_rep:
“
init
access_all
skimto=3
analyse
end
“

sys_err: nocall index access/run: (2:\Database\Location\Equestria\Geography\ponyville.dtl)
-file_rep:
“
init
access_spec=’residents’
dump_to_cache
end
“

sys_err: self-protection policy breach: (1:\Runtime-Policy\Error-Report\0003.rep)
-cause_rep:
“
phys_init
neural_consc_init
WARNING - Self-Protection Policy BREACH; END ACTION
ignore_warn=y
ALERT - Self-Protection Policy BREACH; FORCE END ACTION
main_control_set=conscious// command not allowed
force_consc_rule// enter authorization code
>> mhwwhtgrx23tcwg6gply972wv

Authorization Confirmed! Welcome, Ms. Nighttide Star.

engage_ncn_cnnct
ATTN - Are you sure?
>> y
“

Ext. neural conscious network detected.
Attempting connection… please wait.
/ | \ —
Connection established.
Sarcophagus engaged.

Prepare for descent.

__________

Twilight felt herself wrapped in warmth, her head nuzzled into something soft and plush. Very slowly, she opened her eyes and saw that she was in the bedroom of the Golden Oak Library. Dawn was just breaking outside as an orange glow shone through the window, casting the frame’s shadow at a hard angle onto her bed.

“Wow… the Princess is off to an early start…”

Twilight sat up in bed. The warmth of the comforter escaped her quickly as it fell off her barrel, revealing the chill of the bedroom. She breathed a low, shivery groan and slid off the bed, popping her neck once before making her way to the kitchen.

On the way down the stairs, she happened upon a photo of her and Spike hanging on the wall. “Seven years,” she muttered as she studied the image. Spike was nearly three times the size of Twilight, but he held her close with one of his wings. Twilight could be seen laughing in his embrace. ‘It’s been a long time since Spike made breakfast,’ she thought to herself. Once Spike had hit adult age, she had to let the behemoth dragon go. Not only could he no longer fit inside the library, but his natural appetite had grown beyond that which Twilight could ever hope to sate on her own. She raised a hoof to touch the side of the frame and sighed. “I’m just glad he got out before the Corps took over.”

Turning away from the photo, Twilight made her way into the kitchen and to the refrigerator, pulling out an apple. She hadn’t been one to sit down for a large breakfast in several years, and given her duties as a Princess, she rarely had the time anyway. She was just glad to have the opportunity to take some vacation time off in Ponyville, where she grew up with her friends.

Twilight sat down at the table and nibbled on her apple. It wasn’t nearly as fresh or appetizing as back when Applejack and Big Mac used to work the orchards. Since Sweet Apple Acres was taken over by the Equestrian government, apples were harvested on a loose schedule. You never quite knew the quality of product you would receive when going to the market.

But that mattered little to her. Twilight smiled as she thought of the looks on Applejack and Big Mac’s faces as they were about to head off for basic training. She could still remember their parting words as clear as if it were yesterday...

“…At least this way, Apple Bloom won’t have to worry about her future,” Applejack had said with a spark in her voice at the Ponyville train station, just as they were about to depart.

“Perhaps, but won’t she worry about her big sister?” Twilight had argued.

“Nah, that overgrown filly has too much fun teachin’ those kids crafts at school to be worryin’ about somethin’ as silly as this.”

Twilight knew better than to buy into her argument, but it wouldn’t have mattered what she said. Her and Big Mac were set on enlisting in the Corps. With the latest threat to Equestria, every able pony was needed to protect the home-front, regardless of age. And much as she had been devoted to the farm, Applejack had learned over the years the importance of protecting your kin – both by blood, and by friendship.

“Well,” Twilight had turned to Big Mac, “promise to take care of your sister here for me?”

“Eeyup!” Big Mac gave her a firm nod and a big smile, cool as always…

...Twilight let the memory trail off as she returned her attention to the apple in front of her. She exhaled slowly and rested her muzzle on the table. With a nearly inaudible whisper, she said, “Why did those two have to get themselves killed…”

After a few seconds, she sat up and, with two large bites, finished the apple off and made her way outside. But the moment she stepped out the door, her eyes and ears warned her of something terrible overhead.

“Oh no… no no NO!” Twilight stared up in horror. A blanket of dark brown dots speckled the sky, coarse feathers reflecting in the dawn’s sunlight.

It was the Griffon Armada.

Warning sirens began to blare across Ponyville as residents took to their stations. Anti-air batteries had been hurriedly built over the last few months across the countryside as Equestria prepared itself for the chance that the Griffon Kingdom would eventually launch a full-scale attack. That day had apparently come.

Twilight galloped across town toward the barracks setup on the other side, speaking to herself, “What happened to Shining Armor’s shield? I thought he was supposed to be stationed here yesterday!”

Once Twilight reached the barracks, she heard some of the anti-air batteries begin to fire. She made her way through one of the green tents and bumped into a few nervous-looking pegasi as she searched for the command table.

A familiar voice sounded from a far corner of the tent. “…repeat, this is General Shining Armor, reporting from Ponyville Air Defense. We are under attack. Requesting permission to launch the first battalion.”

“Shining!” Twilight rushed to the corner to find her brother and two white pegasi with blue manes standing at either side of him.

Shining Armor looked up at his sister with a bewildered expression. “Twily? I thought you were in Canterlot!”

“Vacation. Looks like that’s over, though.” Twilight motioned for one of the guards to move out of the way as she walked up to the table, looking over the documents scattered across its surface. “What’s happening? What about your shield?”

Shining Armor shook his head. “I only just got here. Too little, too late.”

Twilight caught her breath and asked, “What’s our status, then?”

“Right.” Shining Armor moved some unimportant papers to the side and suggested to the ones left in front of them. “From what we gathered this morning, the Griffon Armada was stationed just outside the Hayseed Swamps. Baltimare Air Defense reported to let us know a few hours ago, but we figured their strategy would be to attack Fillydelphia, not to swath through the heart of Equestria.” He pulled another piece of paper toward them. “If the numbers are right, this says the invading army could be consistent of nearly ten thousand griffons.”

Twilight furrowed her brow as she looked at the paper. “Ten thousand? So… are we thinking this is it?”

“It has to be.” Shining Armor stood upright and looked at his sister. “This is their attempt to reach Canterlot.”

Twilight used her magic to pull over a blank scroll and a quill. She wrote a message to Celestia and teleported it directly to her. “What are you telling her?” Shining Armor asked.

“That it’s time to retreat. If either her or Princess Luna are caught in the middle of an invasion, there’s no telling what could happen.” Suddenly, Twilight’s head buzzed as she thought about the Princesses in Canterlot. Something didn’t feel quite right, and the environment around her seemed to flicker for a brief moment.

“Twily? You alright?” Shining Armor placed a hoof on her shoulder as the sound of his voice and a nearby anti-air battery brought her back.

“Y-yes. Sorry. Invading griffons in the middle of a vacation is not what I call a good time.” She gave him a weak smile.

Her brother returned the grin as the device he was speaking into before crackled to sound. “Ponyville Air Defense, this is Royal Guard HQ. Permission granted.”

Twilight turned to head out the door as her brother called over a subordinate and shouted some commands. Once Twilight was back outside, she noticed the griffons continued high overhead in the direction of Canterlot. A few seconds later, uniformed pegasi from tents all around began to take off, winding their way into the flak-covered sky as the anti-air batteries wound to a halt.

Again, Twilight’s head buzzed. This time, she felt as if she would lose her balance. Kneeling down on the cleared dirt in front of her, she tried to regain her composure. Once the buzzing dulled, she took off low into the air to check on somepony she had been silently worried about the whole time.

Fluttershy had been sick to her stomach for the past few years with all the war stuff. These days, she spent most of her time in her cottage, away from both town and the woodland creatures she once took pride in caring for. Many critters still lived in the cottage with her, but long since had her spirit run dry, and her home simply did not carry the love and warmth it once had. Over the years, it had grown cold. Especially after Rainbow Dash enlisted.

Twilight landed in front of her cottage and took a moment to look over the place. The foliage around her house had grown thick, having been allowed to run rampant in some areas. While most of the house still stood as a reminder of Fluttershy’s past spirit, the fence around it leaned toward the ground, and the mailbox was full of postage as of yet untended. The scene was bittersweet.

She knocked on the door. “Fluttershy, it’s Twilight.” She waited for a response as she glanced overhead, a scene of hundreds of pegasi wrestling with griffons mid-air. Their cries were barely audible from this distance. She turned back to the door and knocked again. “Fluttershy, if you don’t open up, I’m coming—”

Just then, the yellow pegasus opened the door. Her pink mane hung long and limp to her side, disheveled in most areas. Deep lines creased the recesses beneath her eyes. Sadly, this was not just a sign of lack of sleep on her part. For several years, Fluttershy had been letting herself go, and the stress of war only aided in the aging process.

“Hey, Twilight… Come insi—” Fluttershy’s voice broke off as she peered into the sky at the fight overhead. Her eyes widened as she stared past Twilight’s shoulder.

“Fluttershy.” Twilight pushed her friend inside the cottage and used her magic to slam the door close behind her. “They’re here. We need to get you to the shelter, just in case they decide to invade Ponyville as well.”

Fluttershy looked around her cottage at the motley group of creatures still living with her. “I’m sorry, Twilight,” she said with a flat tone, “but I have to take care of the animals here.”

Twilight stared the pony down and took a dramatically large step toward her, causing Fluttershy to sit on her haunches. “Right. ’Take care of the animals,’ you say? Last I heard, you had all but abandoned the ones in the woods around here.” She took another step forward. “And what about your little farm? I don’t see any pigs or chickens anymore. So what happened to them? Just stop caring?”

“Stop it,” Fluttershy retorted. “Do not go down that road. You know very well why I don’t—”

“I know very well that you’re a coward!” As Twilight spoke, her voice grew in volume and ferocity. “To think, all those years Rainbow Dash used to poke fun at you, she was actually right most of the time! I mean, look at you! You’re nothing compared to who you used to be. And you’d still try to use the excuse, ‘Oh, I have to take care of my furry little friends’ to stay put in this cottage?!” Twilight didn’t want to be mean to her friend, but she hoped that with enough jabs, she would get the pony to lash back – anything to shift her sterile position enough to convince her to seek shelter.

But it wasn’t working. “Twilight,” Fluttershy began in the same flat tone as before, “you are a good friend. But this isn’t going to work. It didn’t work when Rainbow Dash tried either.” Upon saying her name, a visible shiver ran down Fluttershy’s back.

Twilight didn’t know how to proceed next. She walked over to the front window and looked outside. The fight overhead was growing closer to the ground. She wondered if the Air Defense would start up the anti-air batteries again. ‘No, surely not with the battalion still overhead…’ But she worried still.

“Fluttershy...” She looked back at the pegasus over her shoulder and sighed. “I can’t force you to do anything you don’t want to – not even as a Princess of Equestria. But I beg of you… for Rainbow Dash’s sake.” She walked over and placed a hoof on Fluttershy’s shoulder, who remained rigid. “Please, come with me, and let’s get you somewhere—”

Her statement was interrupted by a loud crash overhead as a section of the cottage’s ceiling collapsed. Dirt and debris scattered all around as critters scrambled to escape.

“What the—?” Twilight pushed Fluttershy behind her and took a defensive stance, ready to use her magic. As the dust settled, the two could see a familiar pegasus wrestling with a large male griffon on top of her.

“Rainbow Dash!”

Twilight and Fluttershy ran toward the fight and dove on top of the griffon. As he tried to fight them off, Twilight cast a restraining magic over him and pinned him to the floor.

“You filthy piece of horse manure,” Rainbow Dash shouted as she jumped to her hooves and lunged toward the griffon. She stopped short when she realized Twilight and Fluttershy were standing over him.

Rainbow Dash was shocked at the sight, but her anger overwhelmed any greeting she was about to give. She looked down at the restrained griffon, struggling his best to break free of the magic. She then turned to Twilight.

“Let him go,” Rainbow Dash said with a frightening tone.

“Wh… What?”

“I said, let him go.”

Twilight didn’t like the look in her eyes. Her breathing was labored, most likely from the brawl she just had, but there was a tone of malevolence in her voice unlike any Twilight had ever heard from the pegasus before. “…Why do you want me to let him go?”

“To finish this.” Rainbow Dash pulled out a knife from her saddle-pack with her mouth and glared at the griffon.

Fluttershy’s eyes grew wide as she said “You’re going to…”

“LEH HIM GO,” Rainbow Dash shouted through her teeth as she stood over the griffon, knife ready to impale.

Fluttershy was petrified. She stood rigid beside Twilight watching the scene unfold, eyes unblinking.

But Twilight knew Rainbow Dash had a point. She couldn’t stay here and keep the griffon pinned down forever. Although, perhaps she could tie him up somehow.

“Rainbow Dash,” Twilight shouted with a regal tone. “I order you to conceal your weapon. We will take care of this together. Find me something with which to restrain this griffon.”

In all the years they had known each other, Twilight never once used her regal voice on Rainbow Dash. Thankfully, it was just what the pegasus needed to hear. Rainbow Dash stared at Twilight for a few seconds, then let the knife drop out of her mouth as she burst into a fit of laughter.

“Baaahahaha! Ohmigosh! Twi, did… did you seriously just do that?! Hahaha!—” The pegasus fell to the floor, clutching at her sides as she continued to laugh. Twilight wasn’t sure what she was on about, but she was glad at least to see her friend had let her anger falter.

Rainbow Dash eventually reached into her saddle-pack and pulled out a bind used for wings. She walked over to the griffon as Twilight released her magic to let her do her work. But just as Twilight stepped back, the griffon suddenly pulled something from underneath its wing.

Twilight shrieked. “WAIT, STOP—”

It was too late. The griffon withdrew a small dagger with his beak and overtook Rainbow, stabbing her deep in the side of her neck.

Rainbow Dash stood upright as the griffon straddled her back, holding tightly onto the dagger. Her whole body went morbidly rigid as her eyes darted toward her friends. Then, she collapsed to the ground, the griffon with her, as blood began to pour across the floor of Fluttershy’s cottage.

“RAINBOW DASH!” Fluttershy’s blood-curdling wail echoed off the walls as she ran over to her best friend. Running on sheer instinct, she spun herself around once within range of the griffon and bucked him square in the head, knocking him out and slamming him into the far wall with a sickening crunch.

Fluttershy picked Rainbow Dash up in her hooves as the blood came out in a steady stream from the wound. The blood ran down the handle of the dagger and across her forelegs, staining her yellow coat in crimson.

Rainbow Dash shuttered, trying to look up at Fluttershy. What looked like a small smile broke the rigid expression on her face for a moment. Then, seconds later, her head fell limp, as did the rest of her body.

Twilight rushed over to the griffon and used her magic to restrain its wings with the binding Rainbow Dash dropped, then ripped off a strap from a nearby curtain to tie his talons together. Once she finished, she turned around to see Fluttershy staring blankly down at their friend. As she walked up to them, she could tell. The sight went against everything Twilight ever thought could happen in her life, but there she was.

Rainbow Dash was dead.

“R-Rainbow Da…” Fluttershy stammered with a broken voice.

Twilight didn’t hesitate. She used her magic to seal the wound around the dagger and slowly pulled it out, letting her magic coagulate the wound once the steel blade was free of her flesh. But even once she finished, she knew it was too late. There was nothing she could do to revive their friend of so many years – no more now than she could have for their other friends in the past.

Fluttershy continued to hold Rainbow Dash in her hooves after Twilight finished healing the wound. Her body heaved with each shuddering breath. She wasn’t crying. She didn’t know when or if she would cry. Her entire existence was locked in that moment as she looked down at the pegasus, the prismatic mane of her best friend since childhood draped lifelessly across her blood-stained fetlocks.

Twilight opened her mouth to say something when she heard a loud explosion from outside. She rushed to the door and looked outside to see a plume of smoke rising from the direction of Ponyville’s barracks.

“Shiny,” Twilight whispered under her breath with wide eyes. A column of griffons descended toward the smoke, and there seemed to be a never-ending trail of reinforcements pouring in from the distance.

The sirens continued to blare in the distance as the fighting increased overhead. Twilight turned her head back inside at Fluttershy. She wanted to say more, to do more for her friend. But these days, her role as a Princess took precedence. Especially during this time of war.

Fluttershy’s eyes were just beginning to well with tears. Twilight swallowed, and with an unsteady voice, said, “I’m sorry. I’ll be back as soon as I can. I’ll send a recruit for the griffon.”

She didn’t wait for a reply. Immediately, she galloped outside and spread her wings, flying as fast as she could toward the barracks. A few seconds into her flight, the anti-air guns began to fire again. She dove back to the ground, barely securing her landing, before looking overhead.

“I knew this was going to happen,” Twilight grumbled as she galloped ahead, taking the road through Ponyville to reach the barracks. She pushed herself to run as fast as she could, tilting her head down against the wind.

As she galloped down the cobblestone path, she closed her eyes, trying to shake free the thought of Rainbow Dash and the buzzing that was starting again in her head. She had responsibilities to care for, and if the smoke was coming from where she thought it was, her brother could be in trouble as well. She needed to focus her attention on the situation rather than her emotions, but she struggled to keep from falling apart right there in the street. Everything about the war, about her friends, her family – all that had happened in the past few minutes and the past few years weighed against her heart. But something about the whole situation seemed completely absurd to her. How had any of this happened in the first place?

For a moment, there was only the wail of sirens and the clop of hooves to keep her company. She kept her eyes closed for a while as she continued galloping forward, imagining the town’s landscape in front of her. The buzzing in her head increased as the sounds around her grew louder still. But slowly, she began to remember something important.

“No… this isn’t right…” Something else was on the tip of her tongue, traipsing through her mind beyond the sounds around her. An image of Rainbow Dash in Fluttershy’s embrace flickered by, and a sharp pain shot through her heart. “Of course… that’s how I would really feel if…”

Slowly, other darker images passed through her mind. The sounds around her began to dull as she focused her attention on the images. She saw her brother Shining Armor for a second – he was standing in the barracks, but then he was somewhere else. ‘The Crystal Empire? Yes,’ Twilight thought, ‘that’s right. He should be leaving for Canterlot, because…’

“… because…” She racked her mind, fighting desperately to remember what it was that was trying to make its way into her conscious.

Eventually, the sounds around her grew into indeterminable noise that she barely noticed in the background. The only noise that remained clear was those of her hoof-steps, ever beating against the cobblestone beneath her. She continued focusing her attention. The memory was almost there. She could feel it making its way in. Then…

“… That’s right. Shining was headed to Canterlot because of Riptide!”

Her eyes shot open, and her body froze mid-gallop. She looked around at the anti-air batteries and the barracks smoldering in the distance. She thought about her friends, her brother, and the war itself. “These things. They don’t belong here!”

“No, they do not,” spoke a soothing, broken voice from behind.

__________

The voice startled Twilight – she did a double-take and found herself skidding to a stop on a hard asphalt road. She spun around to find Princess Luna standing a few hooves from her in the street, surrounded by familiar looking houses.

Twilight blinked as she readjusted to the darker environment. Just as before, the memories in her mind clicked together at once, and she realized where she was.

“This is Hiigara… Nighttide’s home.”

Princess Luna nodded weakly. “Correct.”

Twilight trotted up to the Princess and immediately noticed something was wrong. Her wings were crumpled against her sides. Plumes of feathers visibly stuck out of her left-most wing beyond the rim, and the coat hair along her flank looked to be freshly stained with grass and mud. A few wet scratches streaked down the side of her muzzle, which carried her signature soft smile.

“What… happened?” Twilight’s head swam at the sight of the injured Luna as she continued to organize the memories now flooding into her mind.

“We landed.” Princess Luna gave her a coy smirk and sat on her haunches, swaying once as she settled herself in place.

“That’s right. We were falling with…” Twilight broke off and looked at the houses built alongside the street. “We’re in Nighttide’s dream world now, right?”

“Yes, and no.” Princess Luna took a deep, labored breath. “What you see here is the culmination of both her memories, and the memories of someone once dear to her.”

“Someone once dear?” Twilight thought for a moment, and as she looked down at the asphalt beneath her, she realized the coat of her legs was grey. She spun her head around to her back and realized the rest of her body was as well, and that her mane and tail were now jet black.

“Twilight. Can you remember what is supposed to happen here?”

Stunned by the strange appearance of her own body, something seemed to spark in Twilight’s mind at the sound of Luna’s words. “Y-yes, I think so. It’s…” She looked up at the horizon and saw the morning sun just beginning to break through. The sky was clear. The air was cool and crisp. She thought for a moment, and then it clicked.

“Today, I will be called into a meeting at work.” Twilight strained to put the pieces together in the right order. Her mind fought against itself as it begged to know how she could even know these things in the first place, but she persisted – the momentum was too great to stop now. “A black stallion will tell me about an attempted attack on the Ferin Sha. I’ll do a bunch of paperwork, and eventually, I’ll go home. Then…” The memories continued to flow into her conscious, but the next image gave her a strange sensation in her heart. She paused.

Princess Luna placed a hoof under her chin and lifted it up, locking eyes with the fellow alicorn. “What happens next?”

Twilight couldn’t understand the memory, the feelings, why she was experiencing any of this. But the words were right there on her tongue.

“My daughter came home… and I was happy.”

Tears started to form around the lower rim of her eyes as other memories flooded into her mind, memories of many times spent with a grey foal with a black and green mane. She closed her eyes and tried to shake off the memories. “Princess, what… what is all this? What am I supposed to do here?” The tears escaped her eyelids. Slowly, she began to sob.

After a moment, she realized the feeling of a hoof under her chin was missing, and the air was moving around her. When she opened her eyes again, all the feelings she experienced washed away, replaced with the sound of rushing wind and the warmth of a sun overhead. As colors and shapes pieced themselves together in rapid succession, Twilight found herself behind the wheel of a car. She looked over to her side and found a grey filly sitting in the passenger seat.

“You’re lucky, squirt,” Twilight said instinctively. “Dad would kill us if he knew I was toting you around like this.”

The filly squirmed in her spot in the front seat, trying to pull the seatbelt away from her neck. “Ugh, maybe it would’ve been better in the back seat after all.”

Twilight smirked. “Really? After all that whining?” She returned her focus back to the road ahead. “You would find something else to complain about.”

The filly scoffed as she looked out the side of the car. They were riding in a red convertible with the top down, driving along the side of a cliff overlooking the city. Twilight had made it a regular thing for her and her daughter to visit the Ferin Sha Overlook once every weekend, since she rarely had time to spend with her during the week. And today was a special day.

“So,” Twilight continued, “have you told dad what you want for your birthday?”

“No.” The filly tapped her hoof on the edge of the door panel. “You know he won’t like it.”

“Ah, I don’t think it’ll be that bad. I mean, you’re old enough for one now. I was skateboarding when I was your age!”

“Yeah, but dad wasn’t your dad,” the filly said with a deflated voice.

“Well, dad’ll just have to answer to me then, ‘cause…” Twilight let her voice trail off.

The filly looked over at her with a puzzled expression. “’Cause what?”

They were now pulling into the parking lot of the overlook. Twilight found an empty spot, and without saying anything further, she popped the trunk and looked over at her daughter with a sly grin.

The filly blinked, clearly confused. She jumped out of the car and raced to the trunk. As Twilight pulled the lid open, the filly’s eyes grew wide.

“M-Mom? You didn’t…”

Twilight beamed. “I sure did.”

The filly slid a long, plain looking cardboard box out of the trunk and let it fall to the ground. She hurriedly opened one end and practically ripped the box in half. There, in a mess of packing peanuts and tape, lay a brand new skateboard, already assembled and ready for use.

“Ohmigosh! Mom! You… you really—”

“Yup.” Twilight booped the filly on the nose. “It’s all yours.”

The next few moments were followed by a series of squeaks and squeals from the filly and lots of hugs. Twilight insisted she show her what she had already learned from her friends, and the filly promptly hopped onto the skateboard and took to gliding around the parking lot.

“Nothing too crazy, now,” Twilight shouted from beside the car. “And watch out for other vehicles!” She had rarely been one to be too restraining of her daughter. The filly had always been a smart cookie in her eyes, and in the world they lived, she wanted her to be able to have as much fun as possible.

The filly used three of her legs to balance on the board as she used a forth to propel herself forward. Once she had enough momentum, she carefully balanced herself on her hind legs and attempted to do an ollie. The kick was good, but she missed the landing, sending the board flying behind her as she fell muzzle-first into the asphalt.

“Nighttide!” Twilight shouted as she ran toward the filly.

Suddenly, it felt as if the weight of a thousand chains wrapped themselves around her barrel, pulling her back into a dark void. Before she knew it, everything in front of her and all the sounds around her were gone.

__________

Once more, Twilight was surrounded in darkness. But this time, a sound perpetuated in the air, constant and clear. All of her memories recognized this sound as familiar.

It was the beeping of a heart monitor.

After a few seconds, Twilight could hear a variety of voices around her.

“… is stable, right?”

“Yes, sir. 110 over 80. Stable at 52 beats per minute.”

“Any internal injuries?”

“We don’t know yet. I’m sorry, Colonel, but I need to ask you to step aside.”

Twilight could feel her eyes trying to open. As she attempted to move her head, she felt as if she was being restrained, but then it slowly began to move on its own.

“She’s coming to!”

“Stop. Before you take her in…”

As her eyes opened, Twilight saw the muzzle of a black stallion staring down at her with a stern expression.

“Nighttide. Can you hear me?”

‘Nighttide?’ Twilight thought to herself. The sensations around her were strange. She was neither in control of her body nor her memories. She felt as if she was separated from everything that was taking place, and yet she was one with it at the same time. Her voice tried to sound, but a sharp pain shot through her torso and all throughout her legs. Instead, she ended up screaming.

“Colonel, please let us do our job!”

Twilight felt her body moving downward – or perhaps it was forward. Her head moved on its own to the side as she started to cry uncontrollably. As she watched helplessly from the hard surface she lay on, she noticed several white-wash halls pass by, filled with dozens of nurses scrambling around. Ponies of all sorts lie on stationary gurneys, all with different kinds of visible injuries. Her head began to buzz as the sound of crying, shouting, and screaming came from all around her, as well as herself.

The images and sounds mixed together into an indeterminable mess. Before long, silence reigned again, and she found herself lying on her side looking straight at a green curtain. After a moment, a brown mare sat down in front of her with a weary expression. She, too, was familiar.

“Hey there, Nighttide.” The mare smiled weakly down at her. “How’re you feeling?”

It only now registered with Twilight that she must have been re-experiencing Nighttide’s memories. She relaxed a little in her stasis as her body and voice acted on their own. “… mom… where’s mom?”

The mare struggled to hold her smile as her eyes darted away. “Everything’s going to be just fine, Nighttide.”

Her body tried to shift upright, but then she realized something odd. There was no feeling in her legs. She struggled to pull the blanket off her side with her mouth, and as she peered inside, she noticed her entire torso was wrapped in bandages – flat across where her legs were supposed to be.

Immediately, she began to freak out.

“What?! Where… wh-where are… mom! Mom!!”

She screamed as loud as she could. The brown mare jumped to her hooves to press a nearby button, and in a matter of seconds, three nurses stormed into the room. Twilight, or perhaps Nighttide, tried everything she could to move, but there were no legs with which to move herself. Instead, her torso wriggled pathetically in place as she continued to scream for her mom.

“Five milligrams diazepam!”

Two nurses came up to either side of her and flipped her onto her back, forcing open her mouth as another shoved a tablet down her throat.

“I’m sorry, darling, we’re all out of shots…”

Twilight could feel Nighttide’s body struggling to swallow the sharp, dry substance down her throat. As soon as it fell past her windpipe, she began screaming again.

The nurses all stood by her side as the brown mare attempted to stroke her mane. But in doing so, Nighttide’s head flung away and slammed into the railing of the bed. The pain of the impact rang through her ears, but before long, a numbness began to travel through her body. She could feel Nighttide’s mind slowing down, even though Twilight was still perfectly aware of what was taking place.

After a while, the black stallion from earlier walked up and sat down within eyeshot. Twilight then heard the brown mare’s voice speak behind her. “Colonel, I don’t think—”

The stallion cut her off. “Nephilim, this is my duty. The sooner it’s out of the way, the better.” He lowered his head until it was even with Nighttide’s. Twilight recognized him from both Nighttide’s memories and those she experienced in the cave.

“I’m sorry, child. But there was an attack on our city.”

Twilight felt Nighttide trying to process the information. Her head swam as it worked against the medication. After a moment, she began to speak with a broken voice. “Wh-where’s my mom?”

The Colonel shook his head. “She didn’t make it.” With a resolute tone, he said, “Your parents were killed in the attack.”

While the information clicked with Nighttide, her mind and body were now too slow for her to respond the way she wanted. Her eyes widened for only a moment, and slowly, the sights and sounds around her faded.

But a sensation followed her – a most miserable, lonely sensation that swallowed both Nighttide as she fell asleep, and Twilight as she was separated from her body.

__________

Twilight’s heart bore the burden of the filly’s remorse. It took every fiber of her being to keep from losing herself in the ire of misery. But then, a gentle warmth surrounded her once again. She could just make out the twinkling of stars against a blue canopy beginning to take form.

Princess Luna’s voice spoke in a calm tone from the air around her. “We are not there yet, Twilight. Will you be able to hold out?”

“I don’t…” Twilight drew a few deep, calming breaths, then continued. “…I don’t know. This is all so new to me.” She took a moment to soak in the warmth now wrapping her body. It helped to calm her heavy heart, and after a minute, she spoke again. “I think I will.”

Princess Luna continued in her soft voice. “Know this, Twilight. I can only lead you where she would have us go. In the end, it will be up to you to shine the light in her heart.”

“Shine the light…” Twilight’s voice trailed off as once again, shapes and sounds began to take form. Just before the next memory clicked together, a terrifying thought passed through her.

“Rainbow… wait, where’s Rainbow Dash!”

Chapter 14 - The Sarcophagus, Pt. 2

“Nngh…”

Rainbow Dash stirred, eyes fluttering against closed lids. Her head throbbed with a dull ache, made worse by a set of strange noises surrounding her. But after a moment, the noises became more discernible. Gruff voices spoke from nearby.

“… cess, we need… ack to Canter…”

“It wi… day soon.”

“Nay,” came a louder, more prominent voice. “In time.”

Rainbow heard another noise, something like hooves galloping through mud. A series of familiar voices sounded from behind her.

“Princess! Are y’all alright?”

“Good heavens, Princess, what happened here?”

“Oh my gosh, you guys! Is everything…?”

There was a hush, followed soon after by a timid, frightened voice. “…Rainbow Dash?”

That was enough to wake the pegasus.

With a groan, Rainbow Dash slowly rolled onto her stomach, trying to make her way to her hooves. There was a collective gasp from all around her. As she kneeled on the ground, she looked up and squinted to see who it was.

A bright orange slit of an eye stared back.

“Daah!” Rainbow jumped back, only to fall into the forelegs of another pony. She jerked her head around and found Fluttershy looking back in just as much shock as her.

“Rainbow Dash! Are you alright?”

The cerulean pegasus turned her attention back forward. Several of her friends were gathered around her, along with a couple of Night Guards – staring back at her with orange eyes.

“Ugh,” she groaned as she stood back to her hooves. “You guys ever, like, think about working Nightmare Night full-time?”

“Rainbow Dash,” Applejack called out as she galloped over to her side. “What in Celestia’s mane happened to y’all here?”

“Uh, you’re asking the wrong pony.” Rubbing the side of her head with a hoof, she shouted to one of the guards, “Hey, what is going on? And how long was I out?”

As one of the guards opened his mouth to reply, he was interrupted by a regal voice from nearby. “I believe I can answer your question.”

Rainbow Dash turned to find Princess Luna lying in a patch of tall, wet grass, flanked on either side by a mare. Twilight lay against her visible side, appearing to rest peacefully. On the other end, Nighttide was sprawled out in a shallow plot of swamp mud, her mane and tail matted with debris while her metal wings lay flat against the ground. As for Luna—

“Whoa, Princess!” Rainbow Dash motioned for Applejack to step back as she approached Luna. “Wha… are you okay?”

The Princess’ flowing mane and tail glowed an ethereal blue, the stars within glistening with even more intensity than usual. But despite her cosmic appearance, the rest of her body lay disheveled and bruised. Her left wing was compressed by Twilight’s body leaning against her side, but on the other end, Rainbow could tell her right wing was either injured or broken, as the joints and plumes stuck out at odd angles along her side. Her dark blue coat was covered in grass and mud in various areas. And yet, her sapphire eyes pierced through the night with as much life as ever, staring right back at the pegasus.

She smiled. “It is good to see you well, Rainbow Dash.”

Rainbow blinked. “Heh. Wish I could say the same of you, Princess.”

__________

“Okay… calm down. We just… need to press forward for now, right? So… let’s objectively review the material here.”

Twilight was stuck somewhere in a dark world between dreams. Ever since her last conversation with Princess Luna, the darkness had only receded in bits and pieces. While shapes and sounds still tried to take form, the progression had slowed to a crawl, leaving Twilight with what she hoped to be enough time to gather her own thoughts before they were forcibly pushed out by someone else’s again.

“Alright,” she muttered to herself in the dark ether, her voice neither echoing nor ceasing in its travel. “The last dream was of Nighttide in a hospital. And before that, I had a dream about her mother, as her mother…” She tilted her head. “But how is that even possible?”

Twilight took a moment to breathe, focusing on the instinctive rhythm as she carefully organized her thoughts.

“Okay. The first thing I dreamt of was a war… in Equestria…” She squinted into the blurred horizon as she tried to recall the details. “Something to do with the Griffons. And Rainbow Dash was…” She grimaced at the memory of her friend collapsing in a besieged cottage. “…No. It wasn’t real. None of that ever happened. We were falling together when the Night Guard picked her up. So why…?”

She blinked, then sighed in defeat. “Yeah, this is definitely not making any sense—”

Suddenly, the world around her began to shake violently. Shapes, colors, and sounds flooded her senses as she was pulled from her train of thought.

“UGH,” she growled against the turmoil. “A little objective sensibility wouldn’t hurt right about now!”

And the darkness was filled once more with light.

__________

Everypony gathered around Princess Luna as she shuffled herself to a more comfortable position. She took a moment to nuzzle the top of Twilight’s mane before turning her attention back to everyone else.

Rainbow Dash stepped ahead of the crowd, glancing between the two mares surrounding the Princess. With a shaky voice, she asked, “A-are they alright?”

“Yes,” Luna replied with a calming grace. “They are currently in the dream realm as we speak.”

Running a dirty hoof through the back of her mane, Rainbow said, “Sorry I didn’t get to go along. But, like, what happened, exactly?” She pointed to Nighttide as she said, “Last thing I remember was crazy-mane over there going kamikaze on us.”

As if on cue, a low snarl emanated from Nighttide’s mouth.

Princess Luna glanced aside at the mare best that she could from her position, then returned her attention to Rainbow with a tired gaze. “I’m afraid the aura has done quite a number on your friend here. But to answer your question: Nighttide crashed into my barrier, effectively kicking us out of the sky. It appeared you were knocked unconscious in the process.”

Rainbow winced as she rubbed a hoof to her temple. “So that’s why it feels like I’ve got lightning for brains right now. How long was I out?”

The Princess looked up at the moon, now resting close to one side of the thick border of trees looming around them. “A couple of hours.”

“Huh.” Looking over at her friends, she asked, “And when did you guys get here?”

Rarity trotted up alongside the rest, gesturing with a hoof to a nearby guard. “These gentlecolts here escorted us at the request of the Princess. We only just got here.”

Rainbow nodded idly as she looked over the Night Guard standing behind her friends. Two of the guards unbuckled themselves from Luna’s carriage, upon which rested the stirring figure of a blue stallion.

“Princess Luna,” one of the guards spoke as he approached the alicorn. “I apologize in advance, but I must insist that we make arrangements for your return to Canterlot. Your sister will awake within the next few hours.”

The Princess let out an audible sigh, laced with both frustration and concern. “I understand. I’m just… not sure how best to approach this matter.” She leaned her head back to glance once more at Nighttide. “Given our current circumstances, I cannot be separated from either Nighttide or Princess Twilight. I must stay close if I am to maintain their connection.”

“We could transport you with the two back to Canterlot in your carriage,” another guard suggested.

“But therein lies another issue,” she said as she turned to the guard. “The potential threat of Nighttide to the capital. If she were to separate from Twilight’s conscious with the aura still intact, I cannot predict what may happen.” She furrowed her brow and added, “I doubt it would be in the best interest of Equestria to return with this mare in tow.”

Fluttershy trotted up to the Princess. “Is Nighttide really that much of a threat?”

“You should’ve seen her back there,” Rainbow commented from aside, hovering a little off the ground to make emphasis with her hooves. “She was like something right out of a nightmare! I didn’t even know she could do half the things she did.”

“Well then, I reckon we’ll have to set here a spell,” Applejack said as she sat down between the two.

“I’m afraid that is out of the question,” another guard spoke. “The Princess must return to Canterlot if she is to lower the moon on time.”

“Wait,” Rarity said. “You mean, she can’t just do it from anywhere in Equestria?”

Princess Luna was now becoming visibly irritated, though she continued to keep her tone steady. “I’m afraid not. At the very least, I cannot from this low ground while using my magic to connect two ponies’ dreams together.”

Rainbow groaned. “Then what’re we supposed to do?”

“Nngh…” The stallion aboard Luna’s carriage stumbled slowly to his hooves. “I believe… I may have a solution.”

Everypony turned their attention to the stallion as two guards flew up beside him. “Halt!” one of the guards shouted. “You are under arrest by order of the Princess. Do not speak until—”

“Hold thy tongue a moment,” Princess Luna interjected over the guard. As she shifted her position enough to face Riptide, she said, “And what solution might you suggest, Riptide?”

“Whoa whoa whoa, hang on a sec,” Rainbow interrupted as the guards gawked at the Princess. “Isn’t this the guy that started this whole mess? Why would you want to listen to him?”

“I understand your concern, Rainbow Dash, but I believe it would be in our best interest to—”

“Seriously?!” She waved her hooves wildly in the air as she hovered in front of her. “It’s because of him that Twi and Nighttide got jacked up in the first place!”

The Princess gave her a dull look. “Well then, might you have any other suggestions to share with us?”

“Well… I-I mean…” Rainbow’s hover faltered for a moment as she crossed her forelegs. “…No, but I still don’t like the idea.”

Princess Luna nodded. “I cannot say I find it pleasing either. But…” She turned back to Riptide. “I understand that your motives were not all they would seem on the surface.”

The two guards hovering beside Riptide looked between each other, then back at Luna. By her nod, they released the stallion, though they continued to hover close.

“Right then.” Riptide carefully stood in the carriage, rubbing the side of his head with a hoof. “Unless my imagination is prophetic, you paid a visit to my dreams?”

“A few hours ago, yes,” Luna said with a nod. “I’m already apprised of your involvement in full.”

Riptide blinked. “In… full?”

“Yes.” She tilted her head. “I would believe a scientist such as yourself would understand the breadth and power of alicorn magic by now, given your years of covert research and observation.”

Riptide gulped. “R-right. Um…” He cleared his throat as he sat to his haunches. “I can’t say I’m up to speed with everything that’s happened, but from what I understand, the grey mare has been possessed by the negative magic. Correct?”

Princess Luna nodded once, silently.

“And you need safe travel to Canterlot – something that will keep the magic in check?”

“Ugh, seriously dude,” Rainbow grumbled as she hovered toward the carriage, “if you’ve got a point to make, then hurry up and get to it.”

“No, I think I do.” He nodded absently. “I’m just trying to cover all my bases.” A moment passed as Riptide sat silent in thought. “I can’t promise it will be completely effective, but I believe my airship would be capable of transporting all of you back safely, while keeping the negative magic in check.”

As some of the guards and mares chimed in mixed protests, Princess Luna spoke over them. “And why would you believe this to be the case?”

“My ship was designed from day-one to act as a containment vessel of sorts for the negative magic that now resides in Nighttide. The walls are infused with a static positive magical force – the same aquatic-based spells I was developing years ago – that counteracts the negative magic while simultaneously allowing it to fuse with the rest of the ship—”

“Can we get on with this, already?” Rainbow shouted.

Clearing his throat again, Riptide continued. “While there was one incident previously where the negative magic broke past the barriers, those barriers have since been improved. Marginally, at least.” Taking a moment to breathe, he said, “I believe my ship carries the best probability of transporting you and the others safely to Canterlot.”

“But what would you suggest we do with the grey mare once arriving?” one of the guards asked snidely.

“That, I cannot determine,” he said, shaking his head. “It would be at this point that the Royal Guard and the Princesses would have to take over.”

As everypony grumbled their distaste of the idea, Princess Luna eventually said, “Alright then. I see little other option, aside from handing over my responsibility to my sister.” She leaned her head to the side to look past Applejack and the others. “Prithee, where is Twilight’s assistant, Spike?”

“Oh, right.” Rarity trotted back to a blue silk bundle she dropped off on a dry patch of grass near the carriage. “Spike…” She nuzzled the side of the bundle gently. “Spike, darling. Wake up.”

“Mmh… huh?” The baby dragon stuck his head out from an opening in the blanket and rubbed one of his eyes with the back of a claw. “Wha… where are we?”

Rarity kneeled down and stroked a hoof across the dragon’s scales. “Well, I’m not quite sure myself, but we’re with the Princess and the others now.”

Spike blinked in the dark of the moon up at Rarity. “Is Twilight okay?”

She smiled. “Yes, darling, everyone’s just fine. Here.” She unfurled the blanket from around him and stood back up. “Come, the Princess wants to speak with you.”

As Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie watched from aside, Rarity escorted Spike up to the Princess and— “Twilight?” Spike blinked at the sleeping form of the mare before rushing over to her side. He looked up with desperate eyes at the alicorn she rested on. “Princess Luna, is she alright?”

The Princess smiled softly at the dragon. “Verily, Spike; she is but asleep at the moment.”

Spike nodded apprehensively as he watched over the slow rise and fall of Twilight’s barrel. After a moment, he looked up and said, “So, you needed me for something?”

“From what I understand, you attempted to send a letter to my sister some hours before. Is this correct?”

Spike nodded. “Yeah, I did, but we never got anything back.”

Luna furrowed her brow for a moment, before looking up to Riptide. “Could you think of any reason why draconic magic might have been prevented from returning to Canterlot?”

Riptide stroked a hoof across his chin. “Hmm… well…” He looked at the mares gathered between them. “Didn’t Twilight confirm the magic had some sort of effect before you showed up in the cave?”

Rarity turned back to the stallion. “As a matter of fact, yes.” Gesturing with a hoof over to Fluttershy, she said, “Twilight had just left Fluttershy here when she went to investigate a flash they saw coming from the mountain.”

“That’s right,” Fluttershy added. “And when I got back to the balloon, she flew into a snowstorm below us.”

“We saw another flash moments later,” Rarity continued. “Only this time, it grew in size until it collided with our balloon.” She hung her head a little as she said, “It was then that I tried to teleport us all to safety, but…” She squinted in thought. “From what Nighttide said later, my magic turned from blue to black right before we disappeared.”

“Stranger still,” Applejack said, “when we finally found Twilight in the cave, it was like she was under a spell of some sort. Like she wasn’t herself.” She turned to look at Nighttide’s restless form and added, “Twilight shot some sort of magical somethin’-er-nother at Rarity, but Nighttide jumped in front of her just in time to stop it.”

“Then we read through that journal you wrote,” Pinkie Pie added with a bounce.

“And I took a nap,” Rainbow Dash said as she hovered complacently above the entire group.

Everyone looked up at her.

“Hey,” she shouted, “I don’t see the point in a recap of everything! Shouldn’t we be, like, getting the hay out of here or something?”

“Hold on just a moment.” Rarity stepped back to face Riptide. “I’m confused about one little detail. If your ship was designed to contain this ‘negative magic,’ then what were you doing in that cave in the first place?”

Riptide looked off in the distance toward the mountain looming over the swamp. “I was attempting to absorb the magic myself. For years, I had researched the means for unicorns to use this magic themselves, but it had always proven too strong, too volatile for use outside of the devices I built. Nevertheless, I made a desperate attempt in hopes that I could act as a living demonstration of its potential… before the Royal Guard would eventually find me.” Hanging his head, he said, “I knew when Twilight escaped that it would only be a matter of time.” He then glanced hesitantly back at Rarity. “In any case, I realized immediately that it was a mistake. Negative magic – or, whatever it really is – was originally discovered in the caverns of Maretainia—”

“And the aura works best when manifested in a cavernous area,” Princess Luna finished on his behalf.

Riptide looked over at the Princess with a guilt-riddled expression. “It would seem for all my research, there may have well been a valid reason you and your sister locked away this knowledge.”

Luna stared calmly back. “Indeed.”

__________

As the blinding light transitioned to blurred shapes and colors, the voice of an older stallion sounded from somewhere in front of Twilight.

“… war ended in 1918. Since then, the government has renewed its contract each decade with the Daedalus Institute of—”

A bell rang from somewhere overhead. Gradually, the shapes took form. Twilight made out a dimly lit classroom filled with adolescent ponies. An older, light brown stallion with glasses stood in front of a chalkboard at the front of the class.

“Alright class,” the stallion spoke above the bell as ponies bolted up from their seats. “Don’t forget to upload your submissions for this week’s test. They’re due by tonight.”

Twilight carefully walked between the desks, looking around for somepony familiar. Finally, she spotted her – a mare with a long black and green mane. She rushed forward against the tumult, trying to catch up with her. But as she bumped into tables and ponies, she realized that while she could feel them, nothing around her seemed to yield to her touch. Suddenly, a pony from behind galloped straight into her, sending her careening head-over-hoof into the far wall.

“OW!” Twilight’s head crashed into a window sill as she came to a stop. But nobody noticed her. “Ugh… dream physics,” she groaned to herself as she shook her head, making her way back to her hooves.

Twilight rushed outside the classroom through the throng of ponies and found Nighttide walking through a pair of double doors at the end of the hall. Her appearance differed from when she first met her at Fluttershy’s; her legs were made of complex looking machinery, although she had no alloy around her barrel.

As she caught up with the mare, Twilight noticed two other ponies walking on either side of her, talking amicably. They appeared to be in a large urban district of sorts, the two-story school building which they had just exited flanked at all sides by towering skyscrapers. The sky overhead radiated a dull orange as rain came down in thin sheets. Twilight could smell the stench of hot asphalt steaming from the moisture, mixed with the dull odor of car exhaust. Her nose scrunched at the scents – it was the first time she had smelled anything like them.

Twilight eventually slowed her pace once she was within earshot of the ponies and listened. “…I swear, you’d think they’d let up on all the history stuff these days,” one mare beside Nighttide said.

“Like they care,” a stallion on her other side replied. “It’s not like there’s more pressing matters at hoof or anything.” The stallion paused for a moment as he leaned toward Nighttide. “How’re you holding up through it?”

“Eh.” Nighttide shrugged as she continued to walk with them. “It’s whatever.”

The mare on her other side looked as if she was going to say something, then glanced off to the side instead. The stallion spoke again. “Surely you must feel something about it?”

“I told you before, it’s not a big deal anymore,” Nighttide barked. “We’ll cover 1999 next month and be done with it.” She rubbed the spot between her eyes and sighed. “Look, let’s just get this test over with and call it a day, alright? The Colonel wants me to report in for Labyrinth duty tonight.”

“Wow, a test and work on your sixteenth birthday,” the mare commented. “Do they even know?”

“Oh yeah. ‘Happy birthday’ this year equals a body suit. Woo.” Nighttide maintained her flat expression.

The stallion gave her a nudge with his shoulder and smiled at her. “Don’t forget, next week, you and I are gonna check out the new park they opened on the mountain. They say you can get a great view of the city from there!”

Twilight’s head buzzed a little as she followed the three forward. She walked ahead so she could better see their expressions. To her surprise, she saw Nighttide break a weak smile as she looked over at the stallion.

“Thanks, loser.” Nighttide nudged the stallion back gently. Twilight thought she could see a hesitance in her eyes, but before she could give it any serious thought, she blindly trotted into something hard.

“Ouch! Wha…?” Twilight looked up and saw she had run into a light pole. She shook her head at the irony and quickly regained her composure.

As she continued following the group, she realized the landscape around her was changing again. She began to feel drowsy as dark images passed by her. After a moment, she was alert again, standing with Nighttide and the Colonel in a small, dimly fluorescent-lit room.

The two were sitting at a table across from each other. A large, red digital clock on the far wall read 18:13 hours. The room was scantily furnished with only a couple of file cabinets, another table built into one of the steel grey walls, and a window above it that looked out onto a brightly lit city skyline. It was still raining.

The Colonel spoke first. “Nighttide. I need to talk to you about something important.”

Nighttide seemed completely uninterested, propping her head on her hooves while looking past his shoulder and out the window. “What’s up?”

The Colonel adjusted his uniform a little as he went to speak. “I’m afraid a new policy is being implemented into the Labyrinth project.”

“Oh, what, like more exercises or something? Please,” she scoffed, gesturing lazily with a hoof, “that doesn’t bother me, you know that.”

“Nighttide…” The Colonel shifted a little in his seat. “I don’t care if you address me informally, you know that. But I still think it would be better if—”

“Look, Rubedo.” Nighttide looked at him with the same flat expression. “If they wanted to start a fuss because I don’t dish out sir’s and ma’am’s every second of the day, they would’ve already. All they’re gonna do is put me on the track at school.”

“Not anymore,” the Colonel said with an unnerving quickness.

Nighttide tilted her head. “What do you mean?”

The Colonel got up from his seat and walked over to the window. “Nighttide… the government wants to reorganize DIRE’s military projects. Namely ours.”

She narrowed her eyes at the Colonel’s back. “Which means… what, exactly?”

The Colonel sighed, although Twilight could barely hear it. “The Labyrinth project is being converted into an internal affair.” He turned toward Nighttide with a somber expression. “Which means you won’t be going back to your school.”

Nighttide blinked as she processed the information. “Wh-why? What’s wrong with—”

“They’re reigning in the ponies within the project and establishing an on-site school system.” He paused for a second. “For the next two years, you will be stationed here, exclusively, at Ridley.”

“Right, like I already am.” Nighttide shrugged. “So why are they pulling me out of school?”

“Nighttide…” The Colonel walked hesitantly back over to the table and looked her in the eyes. “They’re shutting the doors. You’re going to be here at Ridley for the next two years… and nowhere else.”

Now it was beginning to click. “You… you mean, stuck here, the entire time.”

The Colonel nodded once. “Correct.”

Nighttide’s focus drifted briefly to the table, eyes wide in disbelief. “But that’s stupid! Why the hell would they want to lock us all up here? What’re they trying to do?”

“Labyrinth has officially been rebranded as a funnel project, as you know they’ve been trying to do for the past several months. Those ponies who’re already in their adolescence will be assigned to sub-projects geared toward prepping each for military service—”

“Wait,” Nighttide said, bolting up from her seat. “Military service… as in, they’re going to force us into the military? This isn’t a proving ground project anymore?”

“Listen, Nighttide. This has been building up for some time – you and everyone else here knew that. It’s simply how the system works—”

“Horseshit,” Nighttide barked back. “They have no more right to force us into… i-into slavery, than anyone else!”

The Colonel drew a deep breath. “I’m sorry. Speaking off the record, I understand your frustration—”

“Like hell you do,” Nighttide screamed at the stallion.

“Yes, I actually do,” The Colonel shouted back as he suddenly stepped toward Nighttide, causing her to rear her head back. “Do you really think I’m happy about this? Honestly?” His breathing was now heavy, audible. “I took you in under my supervision because I knew that a day like this would come – a day when the government would choose to use its citizens rather than employ them.” He relaxed his composure. “It’s better to make the best of a bad situation than to leave things to chance.”

Nighttide was still visibly furious, but his words seemed to move her somewhat. With a shaky tone, she spoke again. “Rubedo, surely you can say something to them?”

“My rank doesn’t give me that sort of influence. Hell, I don’t know if anypony here has a high enough rank for that.” He furrowed his brow, clearing his throat. “But I have to speak on behalf of the military as well. And,” he turned back to Nighttide, “speaking as your ranking officer, I’m here to inform you that for the next two years—”

Nighttide flinched as she turned away, folding her ears flat against her skull.

He paused for a moment, then finished. “…For the next two years, you will be here at DIRE Ridley, working under Labyrinth’s direct supervision.”

Nighttide began to shiver. She struggled for a few seconds to form her next statement, then said, “When does this take effect?”

“This Monday.”

Nighttide swung her head back around. “B-but I have plans with a friend!”

“I’m sorry, Nighttide.” The Colonel made for the door. “You will report for Labyrinth duty in Complex 051 at 0700 hours this Monday.” He opened the door and looked back with a stern expression, teetering on the edge of breaking. “I expect to see you there on time.”

As the Colonel walked out, he closed the door behind him with a firm thud. Twilight was now the only one left in the room with Nighttide, although she probably had no idea she was there. Nighttide remained standing in the same spot, shaking more now than before. She carefully sat down on the floor where she was and looked down.

Twilight slowly walked up beside her and naturally went to wrap a hoof around her, but just before she did, Nighttide screamed—

“God fucking DAMMIT,” she screamed as she slammed her metal hooves on the hard laminate floor beneath her, causing the harsh sound to reverberate through the room and shake the filing cabinets. She opened her mouth to say something as tears formed around the rim of her violet eyes. But then, her shaking stopped, and her mouth clenched shut. Even her tears seemed to hesitate. Slowly, her head began to droop.

Twilight hung her head to look into her eyes. All that she could see were how sad and lost they appeared to be.

Nighttide sat in silence for several moments, only shifting her weight with each breath she took. After a while, she closed her eyes and laid across the floor. Twilight laid down beside her as well, watching the mare to see what she would do or say next.

But nothing happened. The two lay quietly beside each other, one oblivious to the other, for nearly an hour. Twilight watched her slowly fall asleep. Although it seemed to make no difference, she scooted closer and draped a wing around Nighttide.

Just before she fell asleep herself, Twilight heard the mare mutter something under her breath.

“… mom… I miss you… I miss you so much…”

Twilight gently nuzzled the side of her cheek and whispered, “It’s okay, Nighttide. I’m right here with you.”

Unbeknownst to either, Princess Luna stood outside the door looking in. She tilted her head curiously as her horn began to glow.

__________

With the help of the Night Guard and Rainbow Dash, Princess Luna and the two sleeping mares were carefully loaded into the carriage. The rest packed themselves in as comfortable as possible as the guards flew them back to the mountaintop at a brisk pace.

The moon was nearly resting on the horizon by the time they made it back to the frigid plateau of the mountain. As every able pony disembarked the carriage, Luna called out to one of her guards. “See to it that Riptide is given the freedom necessary to pilot his ship. But if you perceive any issues, evacuate everypony else. I will personally see to Twilight and Nighttide’s safety.” The guard looked as if he wanted to protest her order, but followed through anyway.

As the guard escorted Riptide to the ship, Rainbow Dash flew up beside Luna. “Need any help, Princess?”

“Yes.” She motioned with a hoof for another nearby guard as she stood up, flexing her one good wing. “If you two could carry Nighttide, I will take care of Twilight myself.”

“But Princess,” the guard argued, “what about your injured wing? You cannot fly in your condition!”

The Princess merely returned a smirk. “Oh ye of such little faith.” With a spark of blue magic from her horn, her bad wing stretched out to its peak with a series of audible pops, eliciting a faint grimace from the Princess. Tears welling in her eyes, she released the magical aura and flexed the various twisted tendons in her wing. Maintaining her smirk, she added, “Remind me sometime to educate you on my battle history, young guard.”

Rainbow and the guard gawked at her for a moment before hoisting Nighttide into the air. With a strain in her voice, Rainbow asked, “Y-you sure you’ve got her, Princess?”

Luna was already cradling Twilight in her hooves. “Verily. Now, onward! Make haste!” With visible effort, Princess Luna forced herself and her cargo into a wobbly hover. After a few seconds, she stabled out and headed with the others off toward the ship.

Riptide had already opened the rear cargo bay of his ship for everypony to enter, a large ramp now leading from the interior to the snow-covered ground. The Princess and her entourage were the last to enter as Riptide sealed the bay with his magic.

“Princess,” Riptide spoke as he finished sealing the door. “Nighttide would do best to be stored in the smallest room on the second floor, down that hall.” He pointed across the hanger toward the same hall Nighttide had explored earlier. “It’ll be the first room on the right.”

Without a word, the Princess continued up toward the hall with Twilight as Rainbow Dash and the guard followed after her with Nighttide. Once they neared the narrow corridor, Rainbow helped load Nighttide onto the back of the guard while Luna magically hoisted Twilight onto her back.

The group walked down the corridor, now fully illuminated by manalights above, and turned into the first room on the right. The room was barren, save the single table Nighttide noticed hours before.

“So, how’re we supposed to do this?” Rainbow asked as she helped keep Nighttide balanced on the guard’s back. “Do we just unload everypony in here?”

“For now.” Princess Luna carefully wrapped Twilight in her magic, straining for a moment as she slid her off her back onto the table. “If you could, set Nighttide down next to her.”

The guard cantered over to the side of the table, allowing Rainbow to hoist Nighttide off his back. “Phew. Okay, that should do it.” Wiping her brow with a foreleg, she glanced between the guard and the Princess. “So, now what?”

Just then, Riptide, escorted closely by two guards, walked within the opening of the room. “Everypony settled in?”

Rainbow glared over at the stallion. “More or less.”

“Princess,” one of the guards flanking his side began, “we’re about to depart for Canterlot. Do you have any requests before we leave?”

Standing up to her full height for the first time in hours, the Princess looked over Riptide silently. After a moment, she said, “Obviously, I cannot begin to appropriately dispense against all that has happened here in the past few hours, let alone the years you spent dabbling in this forbidden practice.” She took a couple steps toward the stallion, lifting her head well above his own to peer down the brim of her muzzle. “But it is my hope that as a former Royal Guard, you will perform your duties here as expected.”

Riptide looked the Princess in the eyes. “There will be much to discuss later, I’m sure… and legalities to handle.” He glanced over at one of the guards with a tired smile. “It’s okay, though. This is a mess I created, one which is squarely out of my hooves now. I’m only interested in helping to resolve this however I can.”

The Princess stared at him for a moment, considering his words carefully, before nodding toward the guards. “Escort him to wherever he wishes. Ensure our safe return to Canterlot.”

With a salute, the two guards escorted Riptide back down the hall, just as Rarity and the others trotted up. “Is everything alright in here, Princess?”

Luna walked over next to Twilight and Nighttide. Sitting to her haunches, she looked back at their friends. “I believe so.”

“Well, that’s good to hear.” As Rarity and the rest sat down together, she said, “Is there any way we can help?”

“Yeah,” Rainbow said, yawning in the process. “So… like, is there any way we can jump into their dreams now, too?”

“I’m afraid not, my little ponies,” the Princess answered. “The event horizon has already passed.” She looked over the two sleeping mares on the table with an exhausted expression. “Now, it is up to Twilight to see things through.”

__________

Somewhere within the darkness surrounding Twilight, a sound could be heard. Ears twitching on their own, she attempted to turn her head. Once again, she felt restrained, her body out of her control.

There was a chill to the air around her – a stale, bitter chill, unlike any Twilight had felt before. But once more, the sensation came to her as something familiar.

Something terribly, horrifyingly familiar.

“… nngh… nnh…” Her body strained on its own against a very real set of restraints strapped around her barrel. Her muzzle lay flat on its side against a cold, hard surface. She tried to move her legs, but a strange thought crossed her mind.

‘The synaptic sensors… They’re not responding.’

If Twilight could have blinked at the thought, she would have. It was bizarre, how both her mind and body were once more out of her control, and yet she was still able to observe as herself, both separate and at one with the pony she presumed to manifest.

‘Nighttide…?’

And with that thought, a bright light flickered to life overhead.

Out of her periphery, a set of mechanical armatures approached her exposed side. Her eyes strained to look in their direction, but her body felt sluggish, as if any thoughts – Twilight’s or Nighttide’s – had little effect on what she could do.

A silhouette of a pony made its way into her direct line of sight. The pony stood just outside the light, and all she could make out was the outline of a white lab coat.

“Nighttide Star,” a stallion’s voice spoke from the pony. “Can you hear me?”

With an unusual amount of effort, she muttered, “Y-yes, I can.”

“We’re about to begin the procedure. Can you feel anything below the collar bone?”

She thought for a moment. As she strained to move her body against the restraints around her barrel, she noticed that she in fact couldn’t feel anything below the ruffled coat hairs of her neck. She muttered back, “No… I don’t think so.”

The stallion nodded to someone behind her. “Let us know if you feel anything.”

With that, the stallion walked out of sight. Nighttide struggled to move her head in his direction, stammering, “W-wait… this isn’t… like before. What…?”

“Please, darling,” a mare’s voice spoke soothingly from behind her, “try not to speak anymore than necessary. You need to keep your energy to let us know if anything goes wrong.”

“Goes… wrong?” She tried to look back at the voice, but could barely lift her snout off the cold metal surface she lay upon. “But… they put me… under…”

“Shh,” the mare whispered in her ear. “Be still. It’ll be over soon.”

Nighttide tried to form a reply, but found her energy quickly draining. She could hardly open her mouth to so much as utter a sound. Allowing herself to relax for a moment, she tried once again to turn her eyes toward the armatures looming over her figure. Slowly, carefully, she followed the rim of the table beneath her, the outline of her prosthetics lying straight out, a white blanket draped partially over her barrel, and…

That was when Twilight, affixed to the mare’s sight, took in something truly terrifying.

With a hushed whirr, one of the armatures lowered itself carefully to an exposed part of her grey stomach. From the end of the machine protruded a small cutting wheel spinning impossibly fast, the soft, innocent sound it elicited a mockery to the threat it posed.

Twilight could feel what little bit of Nighttide’s muscles left in control tense up at the sight. With a slow blink, she watched as the wheel cut carefully into the coat of her barrel, working its way from above the joint of her front leg to the top of her back.

The two consciousness’ watched as the various armatures worked slowly and carefully to cut away at the grey coat. In time, a square section of her side had been sliced through, leaving no trace of visible blood whatsoever.

That is, until another arm lowered to remove the section of cutaway flesh.

Nighttide whimpered audibly as she watched an entire chunk of her barrel hoist up and away from her body, leaving a blurred section of sickly reds and purples exposed in its wake. Turning her eyes away, she tried to close them shut, but found the action nigh on impossible. Warm tears began to well on instinct as a chill ran through her body.

“Easy, dear,” the mare’s voice cooed from behind her. “Do you feel any pain?”

Nighttide struggled to use her voice.

“Just answer yes or no,” the mare spoke again.

Taking a moment just to breathe, Nighttide eventually murmured, “N… no!”

“That’s a good girl.” The mare stroked a hoof through her thick mane. Nighttide would have flinched away from the touch, had she the ability to do so.

As Twilight watched helplessly from the mare’s perspective, she realized that Nighttide had no idea why they would have had her awake for the surgery, let alone why it was necessary to cut so far into her body. Last she was informed, the suit she was being given used surface-mounted sensors to interact with her body’s nervous system, like some others her age used within Labyrinth. A minor surgery at best, they would have put her under for the procedure, just as they had done when installing her most recent set of prosthetics.

Nighttide lay helpless, her mind struggling to fight against whatever was taking place as her fatigued body begged for mental surrender.

Over the course of what felt like hours, the mechanical armatures worked diligently against the outline of her barrel, barely visible in Nighttide’s periphery. Various shapes of red and purple were hoisted away from her body, replaced by objects of silver and grey. Though her body was numb against the process, in time, she could feel herself losing consciousness.

A dull beep emanated somewhere beyond the table.

“Alright,” the stallion from before spoke nearby, “let’s finish up. Blood pressure’s getting low.”

“Right,” the mare’s voice responded.

Suddenly, the armatures paused. Nighttide thought briefly to look in their direction, but decided against it. Focusing instead on her periphery, she noticed a larger armature hoisting down a smooth, curved sheet of alloy. It was then that she noticed a faint glimmer of green glowing somewhere from her flank.

“Reactor tests show green,” another stallion spoke from behind. “Installing starboard hull now.” As the armature lowered the curved piece of metal onto her side, she could faintly feel a series of clicks and shutters against her frame.

The mare from before spoke as she walked into her line of sight. “Alright, we’re done with the worst part. Now we can put you under for the last bit.”

Nighttide struggled to squint at the mare. Her face was familiar. “Is… wh-wha…”

“Shh, it’s okay,” the mare cooed again as she reached a hoof out under the glow of the overhead light.

Blinking once, Nighttide stared straight up at the mare. “… Ne… philim?”

The mare didn’t respond, merely stroking her long black bangs out of the way. Looking up at someone behind her, she said, “Administer the anesthetic, then we’ll work on her port side and neural implants.”

“Right,” a stallion replied from behind.

Before Nighttide could argue, she noticed her eyes were suddenly becoming very heavy. Once more, she attempted to close them shut.

This time, she succeeded.

__________

“…Hmm.”

Princess Luna sat next to the table with her back against the wall, her head hung low in concentration. For a moment, her mane’s glow flickered in the dim light of the room. Then, she blinked, squinting at the two sleeping mares.

Twilight fidgeted in her sleep. With a whimper, she slowly stretched herself out and nuzzled against the cold metal frame of Nighttide’s body.

Luna tilted her head curiously at that.

Off to her side, everypony else was taking the time to rest, sprawled out across the cold floor next to the Princess. As the ship’s hull shuddered once, Applejack lifted her head and looked over at the table.

“Mmh… hey, uh… Princess.” She rubbed her eyes slowly, then gestured toward the table with a hoof. “Is that okay?”

With a soft grunt, Twilight lifted her wing nearest Nighttide and draped it over her suit, cuddling in closer to the mare.

Luna continued to watch carefully. Eventually, she muttered, “I believe so.”

Applejack shifted to a more comfortable position, now leaning against a sleeping Pinkie. After a moment, she said, “So, can you see what they’re dreaming ‘bout right now?”

“I can only see bits and pieces at a time. It helps when I have all my focus available, but this is a unique situation, to have two ponies’ dream worlds merged into one.”

Applejack nodded hesitantly. “So… are they doing alright?”

The Princess took a moment to reply as she watched Twilight and Nighttide’s bodies rising and falling with their own breaths. “They’re just fine. Although…”

Applejack lifted her head. “Although what, yer majesty?”

The Princess glared at the sleeping figure of Nighttide for a second, then looked back at Applejack. “Although, I will be glad when it is finished.” She smiled feebly as she added, “Keeping two ponies’ dreams connected takes more concentration than I remembered.”

Applejack smiled in return. “Well, s’long as y’all are alright.” She then rested her head against her outstretched forelegs and closed her eyes.

“Mmm,” the Princess hummed as she returned her attention to Twilight. She watched for a moment in silence, before eventually closing her own eyes.

__________

“… Twilight…”

Darkness, once again.

“… Twilight Sparkle…”

A familiar voice in the distance.

Then, the darkness gently parted into a sea of sapphire blue, glistening with starlight. Twilight lay with eyes closed atop the surface of the calm sea, the coat hairs along her cheeks matted with tears.

Some distance ahead of her, the outline of Princess Luna shimmered above the blue expanse. She walked with a calming grace toward Twilight as gentle ripples spread infinitely across the sea with each hoof-step.

Then, she paused.

Beside Twilight was Nighttide’s resting form, just as she was in the real world. Both mares lie side-by-side, with Twilight’s one wing outstretched over Nighttide’s metal suit.

The Princess watched for a moment as Twilight stirred, nuzzling her head against the exposed portion of Nighttide’s neck. Carefully, the Princess walked forward, just as Twilight’s muzzle began to move.

“I’m here,” Twilight whispered next to Nighttide’s ear. “Everything’s… gonna be just fine.”

As the Princess closed the gap, she paused again and looked over Twilight. Her coat was a dulled shade of lavender, bordering the same grey as Nighttide’s own. As well, her mane glistened softly in the glow of the sea, but it reflected a darker tone than her natural violet.

A still moment passed before Princess Luna kneeled down beside Twilight. Carefully nuzzling the sleeping alicorn, Luna kept one eye fixed on Nighttide.

With a strained exhale, Twilight stirred. “P-Princess Luna…?”

“Yes, Twilight,” the Princess whispered. “Hast thou made any progress?”

“Progress…” Twilight furrowed her brow. “That’s right. Nighttide was…”

Another moment passed, broken only by the gentle murmur of the sea surrounding them.

“… Princess.” Twilight raised her head and slowly opened her bloodshot eyes. “I honestly don’t know what I’m supposed to do here. All I’ve done so far is watch Nighttide’s past replay before us. And…” She hung her head, watching idly as waves lapped against her fetlocks. “It’s horrible. It’s so horrible, Princess. I don’t even know what half the things I’ve witnessed were, but I just know… it’s awful.”

The Princess gently tilted Twilight’s head toward her own with a hoof. “Twilight. Somewhere in this world, there is a place in which she seeks the comfort of a loved one. It is there that you must shine the light into her heart.”

“Shine the…” Twilight tilted her head curiously at the alicorn. “I still don’t understand that. What exactly do you mean by ‘shine the light?’”

“The light of friendship, of course.”

Wiping a hoof across her eyes, Twilight giggled breathily. “Is it really always that simple?”

The Princess smiled, touching a hoof to Twilight’s tear-stained cheek. “This mare has a deeply troubled past, one that has been plagued with nightmare events and, from what I can tell, a lack of communion.”

“So… what she needs is… to know someone is there for her?”

“Verily,” the Princess said with a nod. “You have done well to make it this far, and Nighttide has been gracious enough to share with you her past.”

Twilight squinted in thought. “So, this isn’t… whatever that aura thing is?”

“Not exactly. While it is true that the aura has trapped Nighttide in her dream realm, it does not yet have control over her thoughts – merely her body, which I am keeping restrained through our link.”

“I see.” Twilight sighed as she rested her head on her outstretched hooves. “I still have so many questions… I really just wish I understood more about what’s going on.” Smiling tiredly, she added, “But at this rate, I guess I’m just along for the ride.”

The Princess nodded and smiled as she stood back up. “It is my hope that with the next dream, you may be able to make some form of conscious connection with her. I will do my best on my end of things to see the opportunity presents itself.”

“Right. Um…” Standing wearily to her own hooves, Twilight said, “I do have one question though.”

“Yes?”

“Why exactly did I have a dream about Equestria being at war?” She smirked a little as she added, “And with Griffons, of all things?”

Princess Luna furrowed her brow in thought. “There is certainly something unique about the way in which Nighttide interacts with your own dream realm. All I can say for certain now is there is more to the mare than we currently understand – magic that is not part of our world.”

“You mean technology, right?”

The Princess raised an eyebrow.

Twilight merely chuckled at that. “Oh, nevermind. Maybe Nighttide can explain herself once she wakes up.”

Giggling softly, Luna said, “Perhaps so. For now, I wish you well, Twilight.”

“Thanks.” With that, Twilight rested her weary body back on the sea beneath her, draping her wing back over Nighttide.

As Princess Luna began to gradually merge with the darkness once again, she looked upon Twilight with a warm smile before glancing at Nighttide.

Nighttide’s violet eyes were open, staring right back.

Chapter 15 - Wake Up

Beneath the pale moonlight shimmering through thin white curtains, Princess Celestia stirred in her bed.

The Princess had waited several hours beyond dusk for a response from either Twilight or her sister before retiring to her quarters. Although she was concerned for their well-being, between her sister, Twilight, and her friends, she believed the matter would be dealt with sufficiently. Besides, she had figured earlier, she would need her rest if she was to handle legalities pertaining to Riptide the next day.

Still, the Princess had felt ill at ease since the moment Twilight wrote her of Riptide's actions. And with the presence of a mare from a foreign land, the two events coinciding together had left her, as well as her sister, more than a little concerned. She could only hope that Riptide's affairs did not pertain to what they thought they might.

“… mmh.” Rubbing her eyes with a bare hoof, Celestia squinted at the window. The silhouette of the moon sat close to the horizon. Just as she made her way to her hooves, a knock came from the door. With a sigh, she used her magic to open the doors, expecting one of her orderlies to be ready with her morning coffee.

Instead, Shining Armor stood in the doorway, flanked by two elite pegasus guards. Celestia blinked.

“Your majesty,” Shining began as he and the two guards stepped inside, “pegasi have spotted an unknown airship heading this way from the south. We've already deployed a scout group to intercept and identify its origin and intent.”

“An… an airship?” Celestia blinked herself to waking as she stepped into her royal slippers. “But aircraft are not allowed in Canterlot airspa—“

Suddenly, a flash of green smoke appeared in front of Celestia. On instinct, she used her magic to grab and unfurl the scroll that appeared from it.

Shining Armor stepped ahead of the other two guards. “Is that Twilight?”

As Celestia read through the scroll, her eyes narrowed. She shook her head slowly. “No. It's my sister.”

The three guards exchanged glances.

A minute passed in silence as Celestia read through the scroll once more. With an audible exhale, she levitated the scroll to a nearby table and looked up at Shining. “Prepare our best Guards to escort the airship to the lower levels of Canterlot,” she said with a strange, knowing tone. “We have an emergency.”

Blinking a couple of times at the order, Shining then stood to attention and saluted the Princess, darting back through the hall with the two pegasi in close tow.

As the guards disappeared around a bend in the hall, Princess Celestia drew a calming breath. Wandering over to the window, she parted the curtains and looked up at the moon for a moment, then to the cold north that lay beneath it.

__________

Squinting against the rush of morning air, an elder Night Guard crouched against the deck of Riptide's ship, watching as the outline of Canterlot grew closer beneath the moon.

Beside him crouched Riptide, flanked by another, younger Night Guard. Riptide's horn glowed a dull blue, the only luminance to be seen for miles on end, save Luna's moon and the stars above.

“Well,” the elder guard spoke above the wind, his gruff voice resonating clearly, “from what the Princess said, the Royal Guard should have received word by now.”

“Notwithstanding the effects of the negative magic,” Riptide commented as he finished adjusting the ship’s course, his horn returning dark. “We can't be sure the drake's magic made it through until the Princess receives a reply.”

“That's Princess Luna to you, daylighter,” the younger guard spat back.

Riptide glanced over with narrowed eyes at the guard. “Surely we're beyond the whole daytime-nighttime feud by now. If you deign to call me anything, call me traitor. That is what I am, after all.”

“Save the guilt trip for Her Majesty's judgment,” the elder guard said. “And be thankful you are under Celestia’s jurisdiction, and not her sister's.”

“Really?” Riptide cocked his head toward him. “I wouldn't imagine Princess Luna to be merciless.”

“To her royal subjects, no.” The guard peered over him with a knowing look. “To those who would threaten her royal subjects, perhaps.”

“Hmph.” Riptide hung his head at those words, though a sad smile crept through his lips. “Well, at any rate, I’m glad to know she’s capable of handling the situation in its current state.” Looking out toward the Canterlot horizon, he said, “My mistake was in not trusting the judgment of the Princesses – of beings who have walked this world for millennia, who would know far better than anypony else how the world works.” He furrowed his brow. “Who’d know how best to protect their land.”

“And what would you know of our Princess, daylighter—“

“Hush, grunt,” the elder guard barked. “Save that tongue of yours for the pups you’ll inevitably breed.”

Scowling at the old guard, the younger stallion slunk off to another side of the deck, putting the two out of earshot. Soon after, another guard opened the cabin door behind them and whistled to the group.

The elder guard waved in return before looking back toward Canterlot. “Seems the drake's magic made it.”

Riptide exhaled in relief. “Excellent. When the Royal Guard occupy the ship, I'll relieve control of this vessel.” Smirking, he said, “Going to have to teach the rookies how to do it on the fly, though.”

“Mmm.” Flexing his webbed wings against the wind, the elder guard looked up toward the moon. “It is neither my place nor my duty to know what is transpiring here. But I do have to ask, if merely to sate an old stallion’s curiosity…” He collapsed his wings gently against his side, turning to face Riptide. “What exactly would make a Royal Guard want to turn traitor? Especially during these peaceful times?”

Riptide gave the guard a tired smile. “To better help protect and serve his country.”

The guard scrunched his muzzle. “You would jest with one of your captors?”

Riptide shook his head. “If there’s any one thing I would never joke about, it’s my intent behind this whole mess.”

“So you believed your intent was benevolent?”

“I believed it was necessary.” Looking off the opposite end of the deck, he said, “I’ve long since disagreed with the manner in which the Princesses and the senate handle national security. For all intents and purposes, the E.U.P. is little more than a decorative coat of arms that hangs on the wall of Equestria. Even with the return of someone as infamous in military history as the Princess of the Night, there’s been little in the way of progress toward renovating the Guard.”

The elder guard stared at him for a moment, before looking up at the moon. “I assume you are aware of what happened to the Night Guard after Nightmare Moon’s banishment?”

Riptide tilted his head. Squinting at the guard, he said, “Well, yes. We understood your natural magic was restrained by Princess Celestia herself after the Longest Night, correct?”

The guard closed his eyes with a single nod. “Our magic was directly linked with her younger sister's. One could not banish Nightmare Moon without banishing Princess Luna and the Night Guard as well.” He looked back to Riptide. “But do you know how we were banished?”

Riptide raised a hoof to his chin. “That… I’m afraid not, no.” Looking down in thought, he said, “When Princess Luna was brought back to power, the Night Guard’s transition back to active duty was kept separate from affairs with the Royal Guard.”

“Precisely.” The guard narrowed his eyes. “Because the transition needed to be kept silent.”

Riptide looked up again. “Why would that be necessary?”

With a long exhale, the guard stood up straighter, looking down over his muzzle at Riptide. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, he clenched it shut again. With a tired sort of smile, he slowly pivoted toward the Canterlot horizon.

“Let’s just say, we’re all a bit older than we look.”

Riptide squinted at that. Turning his attention to the horizon as well, they noticed a canopy of dark figures descending upon the ship.

The guard sighed. “Looks like they’re here.”

__________

“Thank you again, Spike,” Princess Luna said as she stood up, stretching her wings to their full length next to the sleeping figures of Nighttide and Twilight. “T’were it not for your help, I would not have been able to contact my sister post-haste.”

“Not a problem,” Spike said as he walked over to check on Twilight, standing on the tips of his claws to get a better look over the table edge.

“Pardon me if this is out of line, Princess,” Applejack said as she stood next to the rest of their sleeping friends. “But can’t you and Celestia contact each other with your magic er somethin’?”

“Within a limited range, yes.” Luna suggested to her dimly glowing horn with a hoof. “And when we are not preoccupied with casting other spells.”

Applejack nodded as she stifled a yawn with a hoof. “Mmph… gotcha. Well…” She glanced back at the pile of snoozing ponies on the floor. “Guess we oughta wake them up soon?”

“In a moment.” Princess Luna walked up beside Applejack and looked over her friends with a soft smile. “I figure it best for everypony to rest while they can. I do not know for certain what lies ahead of us upon our return to Canterlot.”

Applejack shrugged. “Yeah, guess you’re right.”

Suddenly, Pinkie’s tail puffed out, beginning to swish back and forth before taking on a twitching motion. The two mares watched as her tail whacked Rainbow Dash upside the muzzle, who lay behind the pink pony.

“Wh-wha?” Opening her eyes and springing upright, Rainbow raised a hoof to her muzzle. “What’s going on?”

Both Applejack and Princess Luna lifted a hoof in surprise as they watched Pinkie Pie begin to roll against Fluttershy in her sleep.

“OW!” Fluttershy woke with a startle as Pinkie grazed her injured wing. Jumping to her hooves with a wince, she stared down with bleary eyes at Pinkie’s gyrations.

Rainbow Dash walked up beside Pinkie as she looked up at Applejack with a worried frown. “Yep,” Applejack said as she returned the expression. “Pinkie sense.”

Princess Luna tilted her head at the mare. “Pinkie sense?”

Pinkie rolled over the remaining length of the floor into Rarity’s barrel. For a moment, Rarity merely flopped over onto her side, but once Pinkie began flailing her hooves at her, Rarity woke to defending herself.

“G-good gracious, what in the world!” Rarity held her hooves in front of her face as Pinkie kicked listlessly at her.

Finally, Rainbow Dash and Applejack knelt down beside Pinkie and began shaking her. “Wake up, ya crazy mare!” Applejack shouted. “You’re near ‘bout to beat up everypony in your sleep!”

“G-g-g-g-GAAH!!!!” Pinkie Pie sprung into the air with a jolt before landing, softly, on all four hooves. A visible shiver shot down her entire body from the tip of her mane to the back of her tail. “Whoooaaa baby! This is a big one!”

Everypony awake in the room stepped back from Pinkie. “What exactly does this one mean?” Rarity asked as she sat down to check her mane.

Pinkie took a moment to collect herself as she sat down as well. “I don’t know, but…” She looked over with a furrowed brow at Twilight. “I don’t think it’s anything good.”

Everypony in the room directed their attention to the sleeping alicorn, whose wing began to twitch around Nighttide.

__________

Twilight fell into the darkness once more, her mind and heart resolute on her mission. Somehow, someway, she would reach Nighttide. She would bring her to waking. The magic of friendship would find a way once more.

That was her belief. Much as logic and reason begged her to attend to the questions rising from the dreamscape, she knew her purpose here was much simpler than any of that. There was somepony who needed her. There was somepony who needed to know she would be there for her. Always. Without fail.

‘After all,’ she mused to herself, ‘I already failed her once.’

A tightness formed in her chest. She shook her head in the dark, wrestling with a strange sensation that seemed to emanate from within and without.

Something was off again.

“Does it really matter, though?”

That was a fair point, she surmised.

“Nothing seen, nothing heard.”

That is, at least, for the thumping of a heart in her ears.

“…are you sure that’s the case?”

She blinked in the dark.

Slowly, carefully, Twilight focused her attention on the voice of someone else.

“As far as beta tests are concerned, yes,” a female voice spoke. “The Sarcophagus should have full containment.”

“Has it been tested on any current models, though?” a stallion asked.

“No. Ten thirty-two will be the first live run.”

Twilight felt her hoof bend, followed by a click. A muffled sound reverberated softly beneath her collar.

“…Alright. It’s your call, I suppose,” the stallion continued. “You do understand where our concerns are, though—”

“Of course, you needn’t explain,” the mare answered. “Ten thirty-two will act as both the beta test and a living execution. The software will report back critical runtime information via secure channels.”

The sound of typing followed for a moment.

“Okay, we should be set,” another stallion said. “Have the memory parameters been set?”

“Yes, everything’s already in the command prompt. Her memories will be filtered or contained based on the list of preset criteria.”

“Alright then. You may proceed.”

A beep sounded overhead.

“Authorization ident: Nephilim. Vessel: LAB-1032, Nighttide Star. Containment engaging.”

Something suddenly pulled taut inside her head, and the voice that followed was far more clear in perception.

“Warning. Neural conscious network contaminated. Sarcophagus containment in three… two… one…”

__________

Just as everypony crowded around the table Twilight and Nighttide were sleeping on, Princess Luna collapsed to her knees.

“Ungh!” She reached a hoof to her horn, which now flickered various hues of blue.

“Princess!” Applejack shouted as she motioned for everyone to give her space. “Princess, what’s wrong?”

Clenching her eyes shut, Princess Luna tried to steady her magic. The flickering began to calm for a few seconds.

Then, a dark aura seeped out from the tip of her horn.

“AAAAHH!!” Princess Luna screamed with the might of her Royal Canterlot voice as she collapsed to her side, clutching her forehead with her hooves.

__________

Outside on the balcony of the ship, the elder and younger guards suddenly collapsed to the deck.

“N-no… it can’t be…!“ the elder guard managed to stammer before curling his legs tight against his body, clenching his jaw shut with a visible shiver.

Riptide immediately galloped over to the guard. “Sir, what’s wrong? What’s happening?”

The Guard’s jaw twitched for a moment as if he might attempt to speak, but it remained shut. Opening a single, tear-filled eye, the guard looked toward the northern horizon.

Riptide followed his line of sight, just before it was covered by the canopy of pegasi descending upon them.

“Unidentified airship,” a Royal Guard overhead shouted down, “you are in restricted Equestrian airspace! State your intended course and identify your—“

“Hey,” Riptide shouted up, “hurry up and get down here! We’ve got a Princess on-board and two injured Night Guards!”

The pegasi overhead exchanged a quick glance between each other, before diving toward the deck.

__________

As Princess Celestia walked onto her balcony, a ripple of arcane magic shot through the air. She pivoted to look south in the direction from which the airship was supposed to arrive.

For a moment, she stood silent, eyes narrowed as she quietly read the sensation of the magic that carried through the cool night air.

With a nod, she gave one forlorn glance back to her palace, before spreading her wings and taking flight.

__________

Once the Royal Guard boarded the top deck of the airship, Riptide voluntarily turned himself into custody and informed them of what just happened. The guard he had approached, a young pegasus probably no more than a few months out of hoof-camp, had taken a few moments to process what the stallion said.

“So, uh… you’re saying that you’re the bad guy here?” the pegasus asked with a blank stare.

“Yes, cadet,” Riptide said. “I’m a criminal aboard this ship, and these were the two guards watching over me.” He suggested to the Night Guard currently writhing on their sides.

The young pegasus looked between the Night Guard and Riptide with a furrowed brow. “So, um… was this your doing or—”

“No, I just told you! They suddenly…” Riptide face-hoofed. “Look, this ship is currently under my control, but somepony else needs to take over if I’m to be placed into custody. Do you have a unicorn escort with you?”

“We’re just a scout group, dude,” the pegasus replied with a shrug. “Can’t help ya there.”

With a flat expression, Riptide redirected his attention back to the two Night Guards. Several pegasi were attempting to calm the stallions down, but they continued to writhe violently.

“So,” he said, eyeing the pegasus beside him, “are you just going to let me walk around freely, or what?”

The pegasus shrugged again. “I dunno, you said you were flying this thing, so I guess.”

With a humored sigh, Riptide walked past the stallion and over to the group. Just as he opened his mouth to say something, the doors to the cabin behind them slammed open.

Everypony turned their attention to the doors as a grey streak barreled straight toward them.

On pure instinct, Riptide threw himself against the deck, allowing the grey figure to shoot past and slam into the group of pegasi. Several Royal Guards were sent skidding across the deck with a sickening crash – some rolled straight over the edge, others slammed into the railings along the sides.

Riptide rolled over and spun his head in the direction of the mayhem. Standing over the elder Night Guard was Nighttide, her rotary cannons deployed and quickly spinning to life.

Bucking against the deck, Riptide leapt forward and tackled the unsuspecting mare, knocking her onto her left side. Both rotary cannons unleashed their payload with a deafening sound, one into the wooden deck and the other blindly into the air.

Suddenly, a dark mist shot out of the hydraulics holding the cannons in place, bringing them to a screeching halt. Riptide scrambled upright and looked down to find Nighttide staring back at him with glowing violet eyes.

Pushing her leftmost cannon against the deck, Nighttide threw the stallion off her barrel. Spinning around to face Riptide, the rotaries once more span to life.

“Oh no you don’t!”

Nighttide spun her head around just in time to be tackled headlong by a Royal Guard.

The two ponies tumbled past Riptide, armor and alloy thrashing against the wooden deck. Blinking, Riptide watched as the rest of the Royal Guard sped after the two.

Nighttide flipped once, twice, three times before she caught herself on her hooves, skidding to a stop before she fell off the edge of the deck. The pegasus who tackled her rolled to a stop in front of her, still and unconscious. Lifting a single metal hoof, she nudged the stallion behind her, sending the pony rolling off the deck.

Two guards immediately took to the air and dove around Nighttide, leaving her to face several more who were now surrounding her.

Riptide galloped ahead with the group, racing toward Nighttide as her rotary cannons began to spin. Using his telekinesis, he began to cast a spell in hopes of restraining the mare.

Before it could reach her, a blue figure slammed into Nighttide’s side.

With a thud of flesh against metal, somepony knocked Nighttide off the edge of the deck, sending themselves and the mare out of sight.

Riptide and the Royal Guard approached the edge cautiously. As they craned their necks to peer down, two pegasi came into sight, lifting an unconscious stallion to the deck. The group parted to allow them to drop off the stallion, just as a shout sounded from somewhere beneath the ship.

“Damnit, what in Tartarus is going on,” Riptide muttered to himself. Unable to see anything for several seconds, his ears flicked back toward the sound of galloping. Looking over his shoulder, he watched as Applejack galloped out of the cabin, followed closely by Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie. “Hey,” he shouted as he waved a hoof, “over here! What’s going on?”

Applejack and the others ran up to the stallion. “Don’t know! Princess Luna jus’ started hollerin’ all the sudden, right before that dang metal mare flew out of the room! ‘Bout near burned us all alive with those glowing things, too!”

As Riptide opened his mouth to say something more, a grey streak shot upward out of his periphery.

Riptide and Applejack looked past the deck to see Nighttide flying straight up, billowing a violet and green vapor trail that was being parted by a steadily gaining blue alicorn.

“Princess Luna!” Applejack shouted, grabbing the Royal Guard’s attention to the mares above them.

“CEASE AND DESIST AT ONCE,” Princess Luna shouted with her Royal Canterlot voice, though it was clearly strangled by an unusual amount of effort. Her body radiated amethyst hues as her mane and tail sparked with the flow of powerful magic.

Overhead, Nighttide’s barrel seeped black smoke, quickly working its way beyond her mane and tail. Once her entire body was covered, the smoke quickly spread across the night sky above, leaving nothing of the mare.

“Oh no, that won’t work this time,” Luna muttered through gritted teeth. Glancing down at the airship below, she shouted, “Night Guard!”

Across the group of ponies gathered on the deck, the two Night Guards awoke to the sound of their Princess high above. With glowing white irises, the two spread their webbed wings and took to the skies, followed soon by a drove of several more pouring from the ship’s cabin.

The Night Guard spread themselves far and wide across the sky above the airship. With a flick of her horn, Princess Luna cast the same spell as before, causing the webbed wings of the Guard to glisten with the aura of their Princess’ magic.

Riptide and the others watched as the black smoke above stretched far and thin, but was ultimately contained in what became the sphere of Night Guard surrounding it.

Princess Luna panted mid-air as she strained to maintain her magical hold on everything and everyone. Her eyes searched the smoke billowing around her, ultimately landing on a thicker portion than the rest.

With a strained grunt, she shot a beam of white light toward the smoke, latching onto it like a grappling hook. Screwing her eyes shut, a second stream of light traipsed out of her horn, flowing lazily toward the ship beneath her.

“What in tarnation?” Applejack and the rest watched the stream of light slowly break through the shield above them, before snaking into the cabin of the ship.

__________

It took several minutes, but Princess Celestia finally caught up to the second squadron Shining Armor had deployed. Off in the distance, she could see a dimly glowing sphere, glistening beneath the moonlight. The sight immediately brought about a sense of nostalgia to her that was anything but pleasant.

With a flap of her wings, she positioned herself over the pegasi beneath her. “Royal Guard,” she called out. “Continue to follow your squadron's captain. I'm going on ahead.”

“Princess!” one of the pegasi at the forefront of the formation called out to Celestia above. “We weren't expecting you out here!”

“Neither was I,” the Princess said as she kept her focus forward. “Head straight for the airship. Do not bring any harm to anypony unless I or my sister otherwise command. Assess the situation, bring the vessel under our control, and deliver it to Canterlot Underground.”

The captain below squinted at the sphere that glowed above a blue speck in the horizon. His lips curled into a frown. “Should we not ascertain Princess Luna’s status before—”

“No,” Celestia hastily interjected. “This is not an issue with my sister. I promise.”

The captain looked up with a furrowed brow, but eventually shrugged. “Understood. We will proceed to the airship.”

With a nod, Celestia gave her wings another beat, flying ahead of the Guard with speed and grace.

It didn’t take long for her to close in on her sister’s sphere, given that it was slowly heading northward along with the airship. Casting a glance down at the strange vessel, she spotted most of the familiar colors of Twilight’s friends standing on the top deck. For now, that would have to suffice. Redirecting her attention, she brought herself to a hover in front of the sphere.

Celestia blinked. The Night Guard’s webbed wings glistened with the hues of her sister’s magic, just as they had done that fateful night millennia ago.

She drew a deep breath, calming a shiver that tried to travel down her spine. Squinting through the haze of magic, she spotted her sister struggling to maintain her connection with the dark aura.

Calling on her magic, her horn began to glow with the radiance of the sun as she bathed her sister’s cool aura in a warm light.

Within the sphere, Princess Luna cracked an eye open. “S-sister? Is that you?”

“Yes,” Celestia called out from her side of the sphere. “Was Twilight able to wake her?”

“Nngh… I… I’m afraid not,” Luna stammered as she shut her eyes again. “Th-there’s… something different… about this pony. And the aura… it’s—”

“Do we need to seal it?” Celestia interrupted.

Luna clenched her teeth as she attempted to peer out at her sister again. “I… I don’t want her to suffer… not like—“

“I know you don’t, sister. I don’t either, any more than I did that day.”

Swallowing the lump in her throat, Luna lifted her head with a shudder, examining the beam of light that was now latched onto a fixed point of the smoke. At the end of the beam, the smoke writhed in place, expanding and contracting in a violent manner.

“Is Twilight safe?” Celestia called out again. “Why are there two connections?”

“The dream realm,” Luna muttered. “Sh… she was locked in Nighttide’s for a moment.”

“But she is safe now?”

“Y-yes. I’m sending her back now.” Luna gasped as a pulse travelled down the length of the beam back toward her. Shutting her eyes again, she sputtered, “Sister, I don’t want to—“

“We do this now, Luna,” Celestia shouted with a furrowed brow. “I will not lose you like this. Not now. Not ever again.”

Luna shook in place. A single tear managed to escape her eyelids as she called upon one more spell.

__________

Spike held onto one of Twilight’s hooves, stroking the coat hairs in as slow a fashion as he could. The calming motion served more to his benefit than hers, he figured, though he wasn’t about to let her out of sight. Not considering the chaos that was now taking place.

Twilight continued to remain asleep, her one wing that had been draped over Nighttide now lying limp across the table. Fluttershy managed to hobble over to the table on shaky legs, having chose to remain behind due to her injured wing. Neither of them knew what was going on – why Luna had suddenly screamed, why Nighttide just as suddenly woke up.

Reaching an unsteady hoof toward one of Twilight’s, Fluttershy’s ears flicked to the side. She turned her head toward the hall just in time to see a stream of light snaking into the room with the faint sound of whistling magic.

“Wh-wh-wh-what is… th-th-that!” Fluttershy eventually managed to stammer just as the light began to creep around Spike.

“Guaaah!” Spike recoiled from the light, trying to bat it away from Twilight. “Get out of here! Don’t touch her!”

To his and Fluttershy’s horror, Spike’s claws passed through the condensed light without it so much as flinching. As it began to arch toward Twilight’s horn, the beam suddenly pulsed a shade of blue.

Diving point-first into her horn, the light flickered with brilliance for a split second, then disappeared. Twilight’s eyes flew open with a scream as she jolted upright, knocking Spike off the table she was lying on.

“Twilight!” Fluttershy shouted in surprise as she backed away from the alicorn, who stood fully upright on the table with her wings flared.

“Nighttide!” Twilight shouted as she looked between the two. “Where is she? Where’s the Princess?!”

“Th-th-they all went outside,” Spike stammered from the floor as he stared up in disbelief. “Nighttide suddenly took off while you were sleeping, and then—”

Bucking off the table, Twilight dove into the hallway, spun right, and galloped the full length onto the deck outside.

Running out into the darker atmosphere, it took a few seconds for Twilight to adjust her sight. After a moment, she looked across the deck to see some of her friends standing at the edge, staring straight up. Twilight followed their line of sight, just as Princess Luna’s aura burst into glowing white shards.

As quick as the shield shattered, a solid Nighttide sped through the Night Guard, steel-grey feathers glistening in the moonlight as she barreled toward the north horizon at breakneck speeds.

“Tia!” Princess Luna shouted as she hovered unsteadily in place. “It is now or never!”

“On it,” Celestia shouted back, diving into formation beside her sister. As the two pursued the mare together, their horns and manes began to glow with ethereal power.

On the deck of the ship, everypony watched as the night sky radiated with brilliant hues of blues and violets. As the Princesses magic coalesced, the light transitioned to warmer hues as it became nearly as bright as the sun, causing some to raise their hooves against the light.

“Now, sister!”

Suddenly, the light above condensed into a single sphere around the Princesses, and with a final pulse, a thick, spiraling beam of blinding white light shot forward from the two – straight after Nighttide.

Twilight watched as the beam visibly broke the sound barrier, casting a shockwave across the air above them. Within a second, the wave struck the ship, knocking everypony off-balance.

Steadying herself against the cabin wall, Twilight watched as the beam impacted Nighttide from behind, engulfing her in all the brilliance of the sun.

Then, as quick as the light came, it faded. Squinting into the darkness, she barely made out the figure of a single grey dot free-falling to the land below.

“No… Nighttide! NO!”

Twilight galloped as hard and fast as she could across the deck, spreading her wings as she, and a cerulean pegasus, dove off the back end of the ship.

Chapter 16 - Eventide

… ister… ust glad you’re alright. If…

Of course… ore concerned about…

… say she should… fine. She’s al…

I worry though… is not like the rest…

“Mm… ngh…”

Sister, look!

Is she awakening, nurse?

…Her heart-rate is increasing. I believe so.

Good. That’s… good.

Would you like me to step outside, Princess?

Yes. We shouldn’t be long. Is there anything we should know in advance?

No, Your Highness. We’ve done all we can at this point. The rest is a mystery to us.

I see. Thank you for your efforts.

Verily, our thanks are extended to the rest of the staff as well.

Y-you’re both too kind, Princesses. I’ll be right outside the door if you need anything.

Alright. Thank you again, nurse.

Oh, and prithee, could you inform the rest that we will be along soon?

Yes, Your Majesty.

…

Nighttide?

…

Nighttide Star?

…

Luna, I don’t think—

Give her some time, sister. We do not yet know how the effects will manifest in a foreign pony, let alone one of her nature.

Right. Perhaps one of the others can—

Princesses! Is Nighttide awake?

Not yet, Twilight, but she should be anytime—

“Tw… Twi… light…?”

__________

Twilight walked past Princess Celestia and Luna up to the foot of a hospital bed, peering down at the stirring form of Nighttide. The midday light shone through a nearby window onto a light green sheet covering the mare’s metal suit, leaving only her head exposed as she shifted against a white pillow.

Trotting around to the side of the bed, Twilight lifted a hoof and gently stroked it through Nighttide’s mane, splayed out in thick locks of black and green over the cotton sheets.

“Nighttide,” Twilight whispered as she lowered her head beside the mare's. “It’s me, Twilight. I’m right here.”

With a shuddering exhale, Nighttide slowly rolled her head over to face Twilight. For a minute, she lay there, breathing slowly as her visible eye shifted beneath its closed lid.

Twilight frowned. She glanced back at the Princesses for a moment, then back to Nighttide. She leaned her head closer.

“Nighttide,” she whispered again. “It’s time to wake up.”

“… mmh… I know,” Nighttide muttered softly. “I’m working on it.”

Twilight and the Princesses smiled at that.

Drawing a deep breath, Nighttide slowly opened her eyes. Lifting her head slightly, she looked up at Twilight with a smirk. “Hey there,” she whispered with a strain.

Twilight exhaled in relief. “Hey yourself.” Running a hoof through the mare’s bangs, she said, “How do you feel?”

“Like I fell from such great heights.” She grunted as she nuzzled into her pillow. “And if I remember right, that really did happen.”

“Yes, well… that was no dream, at least.”

“Yeah.” Nighttide breathed a chuckle. “I’m actually kind of glad about that.”

As Twilight furrowed her brow at the mare, Princess Celestia walked up beside her. She touched a hoof to Twilight’s withers, grabbing her attention. “May I have a word with your friend here for a moment?”

“Oh, yes, sorry – go right ahead.” Twilight backed away from the bed, allowing Celestia room to kneel down beside Nighttide.

Instead, Celestia continued to look at Twilight, as if she were expecting something.

Twilight tilted her head for a moment, before her ears drooped upon realization. “Oh, you… you want me to step out for a bit?”

“If you don’t mind,” Princess Celestia spoke softly.

“Right. Right, no, of course not – sorry.” Twilight gave the Princess a forced smile in return and walked toward the door, passing Luna on the way. As she stepped into the threshold, she looked back to Nighttide.

Nighttide peered past the foot of the bed. She gave her a smile and a wink.

Twilight nodded with a weak smile, then closed the door behind her.

Sighing, Nighttide rested the full weight of her head into the pillow as Princess Celestia knelt down beside her, meeting her at eye-level.

“Good evening, my little pony,” Princess Celestia murmured softly, as if speaking to a child who had just woke from a long sleep.

“Evening, Princess.” Nighttide inhaled the cold hospital air. Exhaling against the fabric of her pillow, she soaked in the temporary warmth with a smile. “So… mm… what’s up?”

Princess Celestia closed her eyes with a sigh. She then looked to her sister with a nod, before returning her attention to Nighttide. “I’m afraid we have some good news and some bad news.”

“Uh oh.” Nighttide smirked weakly as she watched Princess Luna appear in her periphery. “Figured doctors were supposed to break bad news. Kind of ominous when two princesses gotta be the ones to deliver it.”

Princess Luna shook her head with a smile. “Verily, I must say, I have not known a pony in quite some time who can remain so amiable against great odds.”

Nighttide raised an eyebrow. “In case you didn’t know, Princess, I’m not exactly apprised of everything that’s happened in the last… whatever amount of time that’s passed. All I remember is waking up to find myself tumbling through the air, then a bunch of doctors pushing me through a hospital.”

“Yes, well,” Celestia said, “that's what we need to discuss with you.”

Nighttide eyed Princess Celestia. She could tell by her expression that whatever was about to be said next would indeed be serious. With a gulp, she said, “Go ahead.”

Princess Celestia smiled as comfortingly as she could, then began. “As you already know, you were exposed to a presence that Riptide named ‘negative magic.’ Unfortunately, that title was a bit misleading. What you were exposed to was a living being, one which took over your body after encountering Riptide in the Appaloosan mountains.”

“When the aura took over your being,” Princess Luna said, “we – that is, Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, and I – pursued you beyond the mountains and over the southern swamplands, where I was able to cast a spell to restrain you. At the time, both Twilight and Rainbow were supposed to dive into your dream world to retrieve you, but…” She looked back to her wing, where a couple of bruises still remained. “Suffice it to say, the aura fought back, and I was only able to send Twilight in the end.”

“Mmph, y-yeah,” Nighttide muttered as she adjusted herself to a more comfortable position. “Twilight told me as much after her and Rainbow grabbed me – right before I conked out again.” She glanced down at the side of her sheets. “Apparently, this aura thing fixed some of my suit as well.”

“So it would seem,” Princess Luna commented. “Though the aura chose a more natural approach for your wings while it reigned, it appears from what Twilight mentioned that your wings were returned to their original form once you awoke.”

“Chyea,” Nighttide scoffed with a smirk. “Kinda wanted to see what metal feathers looked like.”

“Unfortunately,” Princess Celestia said, “the aura feeds off the fears and memories of those it possesses. The greater the fears… or the greater amount of trauma present—”

“Yeah,” Nighttide interjected with a rasp, “I understand what you’re getting at. Just… what’s the main point here?”

The Princesses exchanged a look between each other. By Celestia’s nod, Luna spoke next. “While I was able to keep the aura restrained for some time, it eventually broke through your dreamscape and into your mind, where it was able to take over the whole.”

Nighttide tilted her head. “The whole… of what?”

“The whole of you,” Princess Luna said.

Nighttide squinted up at the alicorn, a look of worry working its way into her expression.

“Nighttide,” Princess Celestia spoke. “What we are about to tell you… it’s something that may very well change how you approach things from here on out.”

“How I approach what?”

Celestia hung her head. “How you approach life altogether.”

Nighttide’s eyes widened a little at those words.

“Nighttide…” Celestia looked down at the mare with a profound look of guilt. “We had to seal the aura within your heart.”

She blinked. “So… wh-what does that mean, exactly?”

“It could mean nothing at all,” Princess Luna stated as she touched a hoof to Celestia’s shoulder, looking down at Nighttide with a neutral expression. “The spell we cast was designed to permanently seal away such a power.” Furrowing her brow, she added, “Although by this method, it can still be manifested if the vessel of the aura deigns to do so.”

Nighttide narrowed her eyes at the alicorn. “Why would anypony want something like that to control them?”

“Unfortunately,” Princess Celestia said, “this is not the first time we have had to seal the aura within somepony before. There was another time, a student of my counsel from many moons ago, whose heart was possessed by the aura.”

Nighttide furrowed her brow. “You mean… his name was something like… Spinel, I think?”

“Yes, Spinel the Steadfast. A promising unicorn from a different time, he took it upon himself to study what was at the time considered a simple magical phenomenon, before anypony learned its true nature.”

“Well…” Nighttide swallowed a lump forming in her throat. “What happened to him?”

Princess Celestia closed her eyes. “He was the first pony, to our knowledge, to ever manifest the aura after it was sealed away.”

Nighttide gulped. “Not really a fan of cryptic messages, here.”

“This student of Star Swirl’s,” Princess Luna began, “he was heavily invested in his studies, just as his mentor was. But it was the aura which he took a special interest in, and it was by his hooves that the aura first possessed a living pony.”

“The first instance was an accident,” Princess Celestia continued, “something which Star Swirl bore witness to himself. Using his magic, Star Swirl was able to exorcise the aura through his dreams, but only for a time. Soon after, Spinel began returning to the cave in secret, attempting to research the phenomenon further. One day, he returned to our old castle’s library, fully possessed by the aura.”

“At the time,” Princess Luna said, “our castle was heavily fortified with defenses against hostile bordering lands. But this was the first time our Guard had confronted such a presence, and they were ill-equipped to handle the breadth of its power.”

“Alright, so a big fight ensued, and bad stuff went down,” Nighttide commented with an unsteady voice. “Much as I’m enjoying the story, you’re hanging me off the edge of a cliff here.” With a twitch of her exposed ear, she said, “What exactly does this mean for me?”

“The details you need to know,” Celestia said, “is that once we were alerted, my sister and I sealed the aura within Spinel’s heart. After much delving on Star Swirl’s part, he was able to return Spinel’s consciousness to the surface. When he awoke, he confessed to his mistake, stating he would never attempt to research the aura again.”

“Let me guess,” Nighttide said with a frown. “He did anyway?”

“He…” Princess Luna drew a breath. “He did so through a means we did not know at the time was possible.”

“By his own will and power,” Princess Celestia said, “he manifested the aura within his heart to the surface, allowing it once more to take control of his body.” She lowered her tone to a strikingly serious pitch. “We were not able to recover him the second time.”

Nighttide’s eyes widened at the statement. “S-so… is there, like… anything specifically I have to do to keep it from taking over again?”

“Nothing,” Celestia reassured her. “Nothing, in the most literal sense. The only thing you must not do is feed into the darker elements of your heart.”

“Eh heh…” Nighttide gave the alicorn a nervous smile. “That might make sense to you ponies here, but you’ll have to hash that out a bit more for me. Do I need to, like, keep from thinking about bad stuff, or…?”

“From what we understand, the one means which the aura can manifest itself again is through sheer willpower. If you call upon it specifically, or if you indulge in darker desires that might lie dormant in your heart now, they can weaken or break the seal.”

“And I’m assuming this is how Spinel manifested it himself,” Nighttide said with a raised eyebrow.

“Verily,” Princess Luna said. “As Star Swirl reported to us, it was by both his passion – or, perhaps lust – for research, and his desire to return the aura to the tangible world, that it was able to break free of its seal.”

Nighttide nodded once against her pillow. Scrunching her muzzle in thought, she said, “I have to ask, though: Why did you send Twilight out just to tell me this?” Looking over at Celestia, she said, “Isn’t she a princess as well?”

Princess Celestia nodded. “Yes. As of only a few weeks ago, Twilight Sparkle is in fact a Princess of Equestria.” Furrowing her brow, she said, “However, I don’t believe she is ready to take on the responsibility of this knowledge quite yet.”

Nighttide blinked. Out of her periphery, she noticed Luna give her sister a frown. “So, like… I don’t follow.”

“Twilight is unaware that we sealed away the aura within you,” Luna interjected with a quick, cold tone. “As far as she and the rest are concerned, we successfully managed to exorcise the evil from within you after Twilight was removed from your dreamscape.”

Both Nighttide and Celestia looked to Luna with a frown. “I… o-okay,” Nighttide stammered, “but why, exactly? Why shouldn’t she know? Or anyone else, for that matter?”

“Because, Nighttide,” Celestia said with a firm tone, “our newest Princess and her friends bear the weight of a significant set of responsibilities for Equestria. You may think of them as the guardians of this land, able to face challenges that even our own Guard cannot.”

“Ugh, okay, yeah, just… hang on a sec,” Nighttide said as she pulled a hoof out from under the sheets, touching it to her forehead. “I remember the bit about the Elements of Harmony. I also remember the part where they had to be sealed away. And yet you’re telling me that they still act as… I dunno, the superheroes of this world or something?”

“It's not that simple,” Celestia calmly retorted. “There is a matter pertaining to the Tree of Harmony which Twilight and her friends must focus on resolving. Until that matter is handled, I do not feel it is in their best interest to be burdened with the knowledge that one of their friends carries with them an ancient evil.”

Nighttide blinked once more, eyes darting between the two. She tried to formulate a response, but all she managed after several seconds was to move her mouth in silence.

Eventually, Luna stepped forward and spoke again. “Suffice it to say, we must ask that you keep this matter a secret.” Glaring at her sister a moment, she added, “And by that token, we must also discuss how to handle the matter of your return home—”

“That won’t be necessary,” Celestia suddenly interjected.

Luna narrowed her eyes.

Standing back to her full height, Celestia looked between the two. “You are free to return home, Nighttide, given we find the means for you to do so.” Drawing a breath, she looked to her sister. “For now, I believe we owe Nighttide some rest.”

Luna stared at her sister for a moment, before eventually nodding. She glanced down at Nighttide. “Do you have any further questions for us at this point?”

Nighttide sighed as she closed her eyes. Taking a few seconds just to breathe, she eventually said, “Yeah. Just one.”

Both Princesses raised an eyebrow.

Opening her eyes again, Nighttide looked up at the alicorns. “So… I accidentally jump to a foreign land with magical flying ponies and end up chasing a princess alicorn who was kidnapped by a unicorn scientist who was researching an evil aura that we found inside a mountain—” she paused to breathe, “—that possessed me and made me into the freakin’ bogeymare while I floated around in dream-land being chased by the princess who was kidnapped before and ended up falling from the sky and being saved by a purple and rainbow-maned pony who took me to a hospital in a city on a mountain.” She drew a deep, deep breath, then smiled warmly at the two. “Is that all correct?”

The Princesses stared down at the grey mare, wide-eyed and perfectly still. After a few seconds, Celestia’s lip began to quiver.

“…Baaaahahahahaha!” Celestia burst out into a fit of laughter as she fell to her haunches, leaving Luna to stand by her side with her own quivering lip.

“Y-y-yes,” Luna eventually sputtered as she fought desperately to keep from laughing. “Thou hast given an… accurate summation of the series of events thus far.”

Nighttide released the air in her lungs before smiling over at the laughing princess. “Good. Just making sure.”

__________

Outside in the hallway, Twilight tried to busy herself by reading a plaque on the wall, commemorating the thousandth anniversary of Canterlot Hospital. Reading the lines of the plaque for the umpteenth time, her ears flicked to the side. She turned to see Applejack cantering toward her.

“Hey, Twi,” Applejack said with a hushed voice, her blonde mane flowing freely without her hat. “How’s she doing?”

Twilight sighed as she glanced down the opposite end of the hall. “Fine, I guess. The Princesses are talking to her now.”

“Yeah? What about?”

Twilight shrugged. “Guess we’ll find out eventually.”

As Applejack looked down the hall with her, the rest of their friends cantered up from behind.

“Hey, everypony,” Pinkie Pie said as she bounced up between Twilight and Applejack. Looking between the two, she asked, “Why the long faces?”

“Hm? Oh, sorry.” Twilight smiled at the pink mare. “Everything’s fine, actually. I spoke with the nurse a bit ago. Nighttide should make a full recovery.”

Everypony let out a relieved sigh. “I’m so glad to hear that,” Rarity said as she stepped up. A clean white layer of gauze lay flat against the gash above her eye. “We were beginning to worry there after you and Rainbow disappeared.”

“Yeah,” Rainbow said, “it was kinda strange. When I saw her get hit by the Princess mega-beam thing, I just took off after her. Twi flew up beside me right when I grabbed her, so we started carrying her to Canterlot since it was closer than the ship. She passed out, like, a minute later, so Twi figured we should head for the hospital. But when the Princesses caught up with us, they were like, ‘Follow us,’ all spooky-like and stuff.”

“I wasn’t sure what we were doing, really,” Twilight continued on her behalf, “but we followed them the whole way back.”

“Which reminds me,” Fluttershy said, hefting her freshly splinted wing to a more comfortable position. “Where did you go after that? The Royal Guard had us stay on the ship while we flew back to Canterlot, but when one of them told us to meet you at the hospital, nopony knew where you were.”

“The Princesses made us go through some sort of weird place built under Canterlot,” Rainbow said, looking at Twilight. “What did they call it?”

“Magical Retention, from what Luna said,” Twilight answered. “It’s a facility the Royal Guard use when processing prisoners with lethal magical abilities.”

“Goodness, that doesn’t sound like a pleasant place at all,” Rarity said. “What happened there?”

“Well… I’m not really sure.” Twilight glanced back down the hall at a door on the far end. “The Princesses took her from us once we got there, then told us to go with the Guard to the hospital. By the time we got above-ground, Nighttide was already here in the military wing.”

“Yeah, what’s up with that, anyway?” Pinkie Pie asked. “She’s not, like, some super-secret agent spy thingy, is she? Cause if she is, that'd be soooo cool!”

“I don’t think so,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “If anything, it’s probably to keep her out of the public’s eye. I don’t think the Princesses want any non-military staff knowing about her… unique anatomy.”

“You mean those crazy spinny gun things she has in her sides?” Rainbow crackled.

Twilight sighed as she turned to the mare. “Yes, Rainbow – that and a bunch of other stuff. Don’t forget, it was you two who flew over Ponyville together. Those wings of hers were supposed to be a government secret from what she told me.”

“They were?” Rainbow grinned. “That’s so awesome! Hah!”

Twilight rolled her eyes, turning to the rest of her friends. “Anyway, it’ll probably be awhile before we can see her, so let’s just wait in the lobby and—”

“That won’t be necessary,” Celestia’s voice spoke from nearby.

Everypony turned to see Princess Celestia and Luna walking toward them. “You’re already finished?” Twilight asked.

Celestia nodded with a smile. “You and your friends can meet with her now.”

“Great!” Rainbow said as she trotted past the Princess. “C’mon guys.”

As Twilight’s friends began trotting down the hall, she said, “You girls go on ahead, I’ll be right there.”

Applejack looked back. “You sure, Twi?”

“Yeah, I just need to speak with the Princesses for a moment.” She smiled at Applejack before glancing at Celestia.

“Well, alright then. See ya in a bit.” With that, Applejack continued down the hall.

Allowing her expression to fall into a frown, Twilight looked between Celestia and Luna. “So, um… I don’t suppose I can ask what you needed to talk with her about?”

“Don't worry,” Celestia answered calmly. “We just wanted to check in with her personally, considering she is a guest to our land.”

Twilight nodded as she glanced for a moment at Luna, who watched her sister intently from aside. “Alright then. Well, I intended to save this for another time, but…”

Celestia furrowed her brow. “Is there something wrong, Twilight?”

Twilight hung her head as she tried to figure out how to word her next question. “It’s just…” With a sigh, she said, “Of all the dark magic that's stored in the restricted sections of the Canterlot Library, why were historical artifacts like the one Riptide found locked away in secret at the old castle?”

Celestia raised an eyebrow, though it was Luna who stepped up and spoke. “Were you not aware that the old castle library didn’t have a restricted section?”

Twilight tilted her head. “Well… no, actually.”

“That was how we used to store dangerous material when we lived there,” Celestia said, giving her a reassuring smile. “Back then, it was sometimes better to simply hide dangerous works rather than put it on display with a ‘restricted’ sign in front of it.”

“Verily,” Luna added, “we had many a foe once upon a time who would have jumped at the opportunity to use such works for their own dark desires.”

“Huh. That…” Twilight blinked. “That actually makes perfect sense.” Smirking a little, she said, “Why do we have a restricted section now?”

Celestia giggled softly. “These days, Equestria is a much more peaceful place than it once was. We don’t have to take the same measures to secure historical works as we did once.”

Twilight tapped a hoof to her chin. “You know, now that I think about it, why haven’t you sent anypony to recover the books from your old library?”

“Many of those works already had copies that were brought to Canterlot when it was first built.” Looking at her sister with a frown, she said, “At the time, I simply wasn’t prepared to return to the castle for anything extra.”

Luna’s ears folded back as she looked away. “And for that, sister, I truly am sorry.”

Celestia shook her head, touching a hoof to her sister’s shoulder. “I know. There’s no need for us to get into any of that.” Looking back to Twilight, she said, “But that was my reasoning at the time. As for now, well…” She shrugged with a playful smile. “I figured it’s come in better use being close to you and your friends.”

Twilight breathed a chuckle. “Heh, yeah, I guess you’re right.” Turning to the end of the hall, she said, “Well, I guess I'll meet with the others now.”

“Actually,” Luna said as she raised a hoof, “could I speak with you for a moment?”

Twilight looked back. She noticed Celestia was already walking away, though she glanced back for a moment and gave her a nod.

“S-sure,” Twilight said after a moment, turning to face Luna. “What's up?”

Princess Luna looked around, making sure nopony was within earshot. The hall free and clear of staff, she bent her head down to meet Twilight at eye level. “It would appear that Nighttide's memories faded upon our banishing the aura,” Luna said with a hushed voice. “I would like to ask that anything you may remember from her dreams, keep to yourself. You may speak with her in relation to the dreams, but do not disclose any details. My sister and I need to do some further evaluation before we determine how healthy she is to know those dreams herself.”

Twilight tilted her head, eyes narrowing. “W-wait a sec, you mean to say she doesn't remember any of her dreams?”

“Verily, not one. I gathered as much while processing her to the hospital.”

Twilight blinked. She considered asking what exactly they did in the underground facility, but before she could speak, the Princess stood upright.

“That is all I wished to ask,” Luna said as she turned for the other end of the hall. “You may visit with your friends now.”

For a moment, Twilight stood still, watching as Luna trotted away. Eventually, she turned to face Nighttide's door. With a sigh, she walked forward and entered inside.

__________

“So then,” Rainbow continued, motioning with her hooves as she hovered over everypony in the small hospital room, “you were all like, fwoosh, and BAM – Princess Luna’s shield exploded into a million pieces!”

Nighttide looked on with wide eyes as everypony shook their heads with varying degrees of smiles. Eventually, she began to grin as well.

“That… sounds… so awesome! Hah!” Nighttide chirped as she grabbed tighter to the end of the sheets. “I-I mean, not the part about you guys getting hurt, of course, but… did I really look that cool?”

“You sure did!” Rainbow said with a big grin. “Man, you should’ve seen it! That was one of the awesomest things ever!”

“Well,” Twilight said, pulling Rainbow down to the floor in a field of magic, “awesome’s definitely the right word for it, but I don’t think in this context.”

As Rainbow’s hooves met the floor, she scowled over at Twilight. “Hey, you’re the one into all the Daring Do stuff. You can’t tell me some of that wasn’t pretty cool.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Okay, so maybe it was a little… exciting.”

Rainbow grinned triumphantly as a nurse entered through the door. “Excuse me everypony, but visitation hours are almost over.”

Everyone pitched varying noises of dissent. Over the next few minutes, each pony gave their well-wishes to Nighttide before heading off. Once finished, Twilight walked to the door and looked back at the nurse, who was checking over a silent heart monitor attached to Nighttide. “Would it be alright if I had a couple minutes alone with Nighttide real quick?”

“Hm?” The nurse turned her head. “Oh, of course, Princess, though I do strongly recommend Nighttide get some rest soon.”

“Of course.” Giving the nurse a tired smile, she waited until she was out of the room and the door closed before walking up beside the bed.

Nighttide now sat upright, resting her back against a small stack of pillows. She returned the same tired expression to Twilight. “So, more princess talk?”

“What’s that?”

“Oh, heh, it’s nothing – just a bad joke.” Closing her eyes and stretching her neck, she said, “Don’t mind me if I fall asleep in the next few minutes. I’m about all out of juice here.”

“It’s fine, I won’t take long.” Sitting to her haunches, Twilight watched as Nighttide rubbed a spot on the back of her neck before looking over. “I talked with Princess Luna a bit. She said you might not remember any of the dreams you had?”

“Mmm,” Nighttide hummed with a lazy nod, “seems like. Last thing I remember before waking up to a nosedive was watching Riptide being surrounded by that black magic.”

“Hmm…” Twilight turned her attention to the late evening sun that shone through the curtained window. “But you still remember that dream you had before then?”

Nighttide scrunched her muzzle, leaning her head back against a pillow. “Mmm… you mean that one I had in the cave?”

“Next to the riverbed, yeah.”

“Yeah, I still remember. It was about…?” Nighttide opened her eyes and blinked. “It was…” She furrowed her brow. “Huh. I remember having it, but… no, I don’t remember the details.”

Twilight frowned a little. “I see. Same as before…”

Nighttide tilted her head toward her, rubbing a hoof against her temple. “Sorry. I understand this mess had to do with dreams and stuff, but…” She groaned as she rubbed harder and slower against her head. “The whole thing just gives me a headache thinking about it.”

“R-right, sorry,” Twilight quickly stammered. “I didn’t mean to—”

“You’re fine,” Nighttide interjected with a soft smile. “I still don’t understand a lot of what happened, or the magic involved… or anything empirical at all, for that matter.”

Twilight’s eyes widened slightly with a smirk.

“But,” Nighttide continued, resting her hoof on the sheets, “it is what it is. Or, so I guess at least. The Princesses didn’t say it was important for me to remember all the details, they just wanted me to know that—” she paused. Feigning the need to cough as quickly as she could, she added, “—that my body’s back to normal and I should make a full recover ‘n what-not.”

Twilight nodded. With a sigh, she slumped her shoulders as she rested her chin on the edge of the bed. Closing her eyes, she mumbled, “Well, I’m glad to hear that at least.”

“Yeah. Me too.” Nighttide looked over at the window. The amber hue of the evening sun made the green curtains glow. A thin part down the middle allowed in a tiny ray of unfiltered light, casting a pillar across the bed. She followed the light and the specks of dust that danced in its warmth to where it met Twilight’s mane, splayed out in a disheveled manner across her forehead. Hesitantly, she lifted a hoof, then carefully ran it through a particularly messy part of the alicorn’s mane.

Twilight opened her visible eye, looking up at Nighttide.

“Thank you,” Nighttide murmured.

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “For what?”

“For chasing after me.” She let her hoof travel down to Twilight’s shoulder. “Luna told me it was you who went into my dreams to save me.” Breathing a nervous chuckle, she said, “From what I understand, if it hadn’t been for you, things could’ve got a lot worse.”

“Mmm…” Twilight sat up, letting Nighttide’s hoof fall to the sheets before covering it with one of her own. “That’s what friends are for, you know.”

Nighttide smirked. “Do I know? Just for the record, I’ve never exactly been in such an… interesting situation, that merited somepony needing to save me.”

Twilight furrowed her brow. Her mind travelled for a moment back to the memory of the Colonel and Nephilim rescuing a filly Nighttide in the streets of Hiigara.

“Anyway,” Nighttide spoke again, breaking Twilight’s concentration. “I just wanted to say thanks, is all.” Her eyes softened with a smile. “You really are a wonderful pony.”

Blinking away the last remnants of the memory, Twilight returned the smile. Leaning forward, she wrapped her hooves around the mare’s neck, pulling herself against the warm metal alloy. “So are you,” she whispered back.

Nighttide blinked as she felt Twilight pull herself tighter against her chest. With a bit of hesitation, she gently wrapped her forelegs around the alicorn’s withers and returned the hug, being careful not to pull too tight. The two rested their muzzles on each other’s shoulders for a moment, tired eyes and smiling faces staring blankly beyond their forms.

After only a brief moment, Twilight pulled herself away and looked to the window, her smile fading imperceptibly.

“Well,” Nighttide said, sliding back beneath the sheets as she let her head fall to the lowest pillow. “Any idea where to go from here?”

Twilight hung her head a moment in thought before looking back to the window. She stood and walked over, parting the curtains more to peer outside.

The sky was lit by a brilliant sunset. Hues of yellow filled the canopy overhead, traipsing into shades of pink before bleeding into the horizon.

Twilight smiled. Looking back over her shoulder, she said, “I can think of one pony who knows the answer.”

Epilogue - Home

“Good morning, Nighttide Star. It is 7:30 AM. Today, you have zero events scheduled. Communications datalink is currently offline. We’re sorry, but your morning cup of coffee could not be—”

Nighttide shut off her system’s alarm with a flick of an ear. Yawning in the warm morning light, she stretched her limbs beneath soft satin sheets.

‘Awh yeah… this never gets old.’

Squinting through the light, the grey mare clambered out of her bed, eliciting the sound of padded hooves against wood.

Nighttide tossed her long, tangled mane across her withers as she made her way out of the room and into the hallway. She passed by another bedroom, whose door was currently shut. She propped an ear against the unfinished wood paneling for a second. Somewhere within, the sound of soft breathing could be heard.

With a smile, she cantered into a bathroom across from the door and looked herself over in the mirror. She grimaced at the sight.

“Nngh… well, she is always getting onto me for not getting it cut.”

She smirked as she grabbed a brush from the sink counter, giving her mane a few whacks before gently placing it back in its spot.

Today was her day to pitch in around the house, namely by cooking breakfast — something which she enjoyed doing when the sun greeted her upon waking. So instead of bothering with further hygiene, she made her way down the hall, out onto the indoor balcony, and down the stairs. She shook her head at the sleeping figure of a white creature with long ears snoozing peacefully in a corner of the living room before turning into the kitchen.

__________

“Mmh… well, good morning, little friends!”

Fluttershy smiled with tired eyes from her bed as three birds chirped merrily on the sill of an open window.

“Oh goodness, did I oversleep?” Tossing her blankets aside, she made her way to her hooves and walked over to a nearby bag of feed. She cupped a few seeds in the crux of her fetlock, spreading them across the window sill in an even line so that each bird could get its fill. “I’m so sorry, I’ll be out in a bit to put some more food in your homes, I promise!”

As the birds began to peck away at the feed, Fluttershy sniffed the air. Closing her eyes, she slowly pivoted to face the door. A smile crept its way onto her muzzle. After one longer, deeper sniff, she exhaled, “Oh, how I love this part of the week!”

With a bounce to her step, she made her way out into the hall, down the stairs, past Angel — who was taking the morning to sleep in — and into the kitchen.

A grey mare stood at the stove, flipping a skillet filled with batter as her alloy suit reflected hues of morning light from a nearby window.

“Good morning, Nighttide,” Fluttershy chirped as she walked up beside the mare. “Anything I can help you with?”

“Not a thing,” Nighttide said with a smile as she maintained her focus on the sizzling batter. “You have a seat, pancakes’ll be ready in a jiff.”

In weeks prior, Fluttershy had attempted to argue the matter, offering to help with even the simplest tasks – toasting bread, pouring juice – to lighten the load. She never wanted her guest to feel she had to work for her stay, especially not after all that happened. But eventually she learned that, to Nighttide, cooking breakfast was just another thing she had come to enjoy.

And besides, Nighttide was hardly a guest anymore in her eyes.

Taking a seat at her usual spot, Fluttershy took a couple pieces of freshly sliced apples and placed them on her plate. Taking a delicate bite out of one, she looked over the brim of her hoof and smiled at her roommate.

__________

“Aye, all set,” Nighttide called out a minute later as she flipped a flapjack onto a stack of several more beside her. Carrying the plate of pancakes carefully in her hoof, she smiled at Fluttershy and bowed, setting the stack down in the center of the table.

“Oh my, blueberry pancakes!” Fluttershy grinned with wide eyes. “Is this a special occasion?”

“Well, not formally, no,” Nighttide admitted with a chuckle as she took a seat across from her. “But I did realize a bit ago that tomorrow will be my two-month anniversary since arriving in Equestria.”

“Goodness, has it already been that long?” Fluttershy asked as she pulled two pancakes from the top of the stack.

“Sure has.” Nighttide pulled three for herself onto her plate. “Things were so hectic for the first few weeks that I didn’t even realize when the first month passed. I swear, it doesn’t feel like it’s already been that long.”

“I agree, it really doesn’t.” As Fluttershy poured a small amount of syrup on her pancakes, she said, “Has Princess Luna figured out when you’ll be ready to end the checkups?”

“Pretty soon, from what she said last week,” Nighttide said as Fluttershy hoofed her the bottle. “Much as I enjoy the train, I’m ready to stop making weekly trips to Canterlot. Doctors there say I’m fine in any case, and the Princess hasn’t seen any issues with my dreams.” She poured a thick glob of syrup onto her plate before setting the bottle down and pouring some juice from a pitcher for them.

For the next few minutes, the two enjoyed their meal in silence, serenaded on occasion by a passing bird or two. Once finished, they worked together to clean after themselves before beginning their daily routines. While Fluttershy busied herself with feeding the animals in the morning, Nighttide had another regiment that required a trip through Ponyville.

On clear mornings such as this one, she enjoyed being able to soak in the warm sunshine for all it was worth. It had become clear as spring settled in just how warm the sun could get at times, and while not always pleasant, the mornings proved themselves to be a more temperate joy.

Nighttide cantered down the dirt path leading into Ponyville past the cow farm, from which several white and brown cows watched with disdain from behind their fence. As she made her way over the cobblestone bridge, she caught sight of Rarity crossing the street. “Oy, Rarity,” Nighttide called out as she waved a metal hoof in the air.

Rarity’s closest ear pivoted toward her as she turned her head. “Oh, Nighttide, good morning!”

Nighttide galloped up to the unicorn with a grin. “So, guess what I decided Ima do this week? You’re so gonna so love me for this!”

“Oooh, let me guess.” Rarity ran a hoof across her chin. “You’re finally going to tame that disaster you call a mane?”

“Awh, come on,” Nighttide groaned as she flicked her mane with a hoof. “It isn’t that bad, is it?”

Rarity giggled as she used her magic to work out some of the knots from Nighttide’s mane. “Let’s just say I’m not one to normally use such basic terms to describe one’s coiffure. It takes a dire situation for me to merit using a word like that, and yours? Well…” With a smirk, her horn began to glow more intensely.

Nighttide pursed her lips and batted a hoof at the sparkling blue magic encasing her mane. “Ugh, seriously, everyone’s always with the magic.” Finally, Rarity released her grasp, having left her mane a little more presentable. “Anyway, I get it. So you said before you had a hairdresser to recommend?”

“Oh yes, of course.” Rarity nodded toward her boutique across the way. “Can you meet me later this afternoon? We can go together, if you’d like.”

“Sounds good to me,” Nighttide said, before squinting at the mare. “So long as you promise not to give them any ideas of your own.”

“Of course not,” Rarity retorted with a hurt look, “why would I ever do such a thing?”

“Because you’ve been nagging me for over a month to get my mane restyled?”

“Yes, well,” Rarity continued with a smile, “that’s more out of presenting necessity than any desire to—”

“I know, I know,” Nighttide said as she walked past the mare with a grin. “And actually, I’m just teasin’ this time. I’ve kept my mane this way for so long that I’m willing to entertain some ideas, if you have any of course—”

“Squee!” Rarity squee’d, “I have the most marvelous idea that I’ve been dying to suggest. What with your color scheme, I really think that—”

“Alright, hang on!” Nighttide chuckled as she raised a hoof. “We’ll discuss it later! Right now I’ve gotta head over to Sweet Apple Acres and meet up with Big Mac. Today’s my day to help out with the east orchard.”

“Oh, right, of course – don’t let me make you late,” Rarity said as she turned back for her boutique. “See you this afternoon!”

“Later,” Nighttide called back.

As Nighttide trotted down the main thoroughfares of Ponyville, she occasionally glanced between the different shops and ponies that were beginning to crowd around them. She had placed a few names to faces over time, such as Lyra, Bon Bon, Mayor Mare, and the like, though she continued to stick mostly to Twilight and her friends. While most ponies had accepted her presence, others were still obviously a bit hesitant given her unique appearance. Nighttide learned that aside from the Royal and Night Guards, few if any ponies could ever be seen walking around in armor – let alone a full body suit. If anything, she was thankful for the three domes on her flank that seemed to pass as something resembling a cutie mark for most. By Rarity’s recommendation, she had eventually developed the excuse, “Oh, these mean I’m good at finding emeralds!” She wondered for a time if Rarity hadn’t structured the definition to her benefit, given she was constantly asking for her help on mining expeditions.

Taking a left at a fork in the path, she spotted a few pegasi overhead clearing away some errant clouds. She could see Rainbow Dash in the distance working alongside a pale green pegasus to move away a heftier cloud. For a moment, she frowned, thinking back to a time shortly after the incident when the Princesses asked her not to use her equipment in public. ‘Ugh, I miss being able to fly. Never got to find out if I could make a storm or not.’

After passing through the outskirts of Ponyville, Nighttide picked up the pace. The borders of Sweet Apple Acres were just coming into view, the rolling hills and rows of trees making way for a clearing in the distance. She smiled as she spotted Applejack buckling herself to a wagon in the distance, and—

Beeeeeeeeeep.

Nighttide froze in place. Her ears flicked to the side as a synthetic female voice began to resonate from her suit.

“Received a telegram from Ridley 051. Transponder 00361-001, analog transmission.”

For a moment, Nighttide stood stock-still, hoof lifted mid-trot. Finally, with wide eyes, she spun around and galloped back into Ponyville, straight to the Golden Oak Library.

__________

Twilight had rushed down the stairs from her study only moments ago. She already tasked Spike with sending a letter to the Princess as they waited for the transmission to process. “How long does something like this usually take?” she asked from her spot on a sofa.

“Not this long,” Nighttide said as she paced in front of her. “Analog transmissions are usually just voice clips; they rarely have to go through any filtering. The fact it’s taking this long for my systems to process probably means it’s coming from a long distance, but... I-I don’t understand how they could even be getting through!” Rambling on, she said, “From what we’ve believed this whole time, the fourth dimension should be completely sealed off on our end – there’s no way for anything, not even an analog transmission, to carry this far without opening the—”

“Calm down, Nighttide.” Twilight reached a hoof out to Nighttide’s shoulder, causing her to pause and look her way. “Speculation isn’t going to help with anything right now – and that’s advice I know only too well is true. All we can do is wait until your system’s processed the information, correct?”

“Y-yeah,” Nighttide said with a hesitant nod. “I’m just… man. It’s been so long. How were they now able to—”

A series of harmonic beeps emanated from Nighttide’s suit. Both mare’s ears flicked toward the sound.

“Telegram processed. Ready for review.”

A few seconds passed as Nighttide looked down at the floor. Eventually, Twilight climbed off the sofa and sat in front of her. Looking up into her eyes, she said, “It’s time, Nighttide. Let’s see what they have to say.”

With a gulp, Nighttide nodded, and set the telegram to play aloud.

“… skkkrrt… sknnt… — peat, this is… — skrrrt — Tanis, DIRE Ridley facility, transmit over transponder zero zero three six one dash zero zero one, send slash receive bandwidth. Telegram for L A B ten thirty-two. We’ve received your distress signal and are attempting an analog transmission sweep across all programmed frequencies. If you receive this telegram, respond via transponder code, set ident code one zero three two—”

Nighttide cut the recording as she opened a compartment on her back. Both her and Twilight watched as a small array of metalwork began to rise from within, folding and expanding into a thin rod that nearly reached the ceiling of the library.

“This is the antenna we’re supposed to use when transmitting for long-distance reconnaissance missions,” Nighttide said as the top-most portion of the array locked in place. “It only works with analog transmissions, so all I should need to do is set the transponder code from before and flip on the mic.”

Twilight nodded in response, just as the sound of a dragon belching came from nearby. “Spike, is that Celestia?”

“Well, who else would it be,” Spike quipped as he walked over with a rolled parchment.

Twilight grinned sheepishly, lifting the scroll in her magic and unfurling it. Meanwhile, Nighttide programmed the transponder code in her system and set her suit’s mic to hot.

“Alright, Twilight,” Nighttide said, “I’m about to transmit. Are we… er…” She drew a deep breath. “Am I ready for this?”

Twilight glanced up from the parchment at her friend with a raised eyebrow. “I thought you would be excited to hear from home? Something wrong?”

“N-no. I mean, it’s just…” Nighttide groaned as she slumped in place. “I wasn’t even sure I’d ever hear from them again, y’know? I know you and I were supposed to look further into that spell of Star Swirl’s you were studying a couple months ago once my check-ins were done, but I’ve been here for so long already, and all the sudden they just… break through the barrier and send me a message?” She looked at Twilight with folded ears. “Cool as that is, I just wasn’t expecting it anymore, I guess.”

Twilight pursed her lips. Taking a moment to finish reading the scroll, she levitated it to her writing desk and looked at Nighttide. “I can understand why you’re nervous, but being able to contact home? That’s the one thing you’ve been hoping for all this time, the very thing we set out to do when we first met.”

“Chyea,” Nighttide scoffed, “when we first met. Not...” She paused, prodding gently at the floor.

For a moment, Twilight stared at the mare. Letting her eyes drift a moment to her writing desk, she said, “Do you not want to talk to them?”

A few seconds passed as Nighttide stood in place, mulling the question over. “No,” she eventually said, “it’s not that. I want to contact them. I’m just… a little taken off-guard, is all.”

“Mmm,” Twilight hummed with a nod, “that makes sense. In any case, Princess Celestia wrote back with well wishes and asked us to meet with her and Luna after we make contact.”

“That’s if we can. Ridley’s got a much more powerful transmitter than my own. We’ll have to see if we can break through the… whatever they did,” she said, gesturing to the air, “to send this transmission.”

Standing back to her full height, Nighttide cleared her throat, angling her head a little toward her chest. Static noise began to emanate softly from her suit as she spoke. “L A B ten thirty-two to Ridley zero five one… L A B ten thirty-two to Ridley zero five one, DIRE report.”

Several seconds of static passed.

“L A B ten thirty-two to Ridley zero five one, DIRE report, priority.”

Another few seconds. Then,

“Skrrrtt—skrt—dley oh five one, go.”

Nighttide’s muzzle froze open for a second. Then, speaking quickly, she said, “This is LAB-1032 to Ridley 051, DIRE report, priority. Confirm ident.”

“This is Ridley 051, responding LAB-1032.”

Twilight watched with awe as the voice of a stallion from somewhere across the ether came through loud and, for the most part, clear. She grinned at Nighttide, who returned a nervous smile.

Clearing her throat once more, Nighttide said, “LAB-1032, ident confirm Ridley 051. Priority alert. Patch Labyrinth admin Rubedo, Colonel.”

“Ridley 051, command received LAB-1032, patch Rubedo, Colonel. Confirm?”

“1032 confirms request, g’day.”

The sound of the transmission shifted back to a low white noise, interrupted occasionally by a ringing chime. After a moment, another, deeper voice crackled to life.

“Skrrrt—olonel Rubedo, patched through Ridley 051, transponder 00361-001, ident.”

Twilight and Nighttide both went wide-eyed at the familiar sound of the Colonel’s voice. With an audible gulp, Nighttide responded, “This is LAB-1032, responding Colonel Rubedo, patch Ridley 051.”

A beat.

“…Nighttide?”

“Yeah…” Nighttide exhaled. “Yeah, it’s me, Colonel.”

__________

For the next several minutes, Nighttide caught the Colonel up to speed with everything that had taken place leading up to the incident with Riptide. Not wanting to confide any further details until she had council with the Princesses, she switched the topic to what she considered to be a more pressing matter.

“Colonel,” Nighttide said as Twilight and Spike listened on from the sofa, “I’m assuming our transmission right now is clear-channel over-the-air, correct?”

“That’s correct,” the Colonel’s deep voice resonated from Nighttide’s suit.

“Then if what we’re assuming is true – that Equestria and our own land are on two separate planets – how are we carrying over this wavelength?”

“Although this is an OTA transmission, we’ve managed to open a stable portal. Using a transvector system, we were able to get a general fix on the coordinates through which you last traveled when we lost your packet data between pylons one and two.”

“Gotcha. That… makes some sense.” As Nighttide tapped a hoof to her chin, Spike looked up at Twilight with a confused expression. Twilight merely shrugged. “So, is this stable portal able to carry digital transmissions? I’m assuming not since we’re doing this analog nonsense.”

“That’s not quite accurate. We chose to transmit this way since distress beacons and telegram reception are done strictly analog. Over the past couple of weeks, we’ve done digital transmission testing with both living and nonliving material. Everything seems to check out with no data loss, just as before.”

“Yeeeaaahhh, about that,” Nighttide drawled with a smirk. “Try being the pony who’s transmitted through the great unknown and lands on a mysterious planet. Can’t say I wholly agree with those original test figures.”

On the other end, a gruff, muffled laugh could be heard. “Well, yes, we of course had to adjust for errors. In any case, Nighttide, I believe we can use your warp drive to return you home safely as soon as we get a lock on your digital transponder.”

“R-right,” Nighttide stammered before clearing her voice. “Listen, Colonel. I’m… a little tied up with some legal affairs on this end. I’ll need to seek council with the local royalty before we can plan a return jump.”

There was a pause. “Say again, Nighttide? Did I hear ‘royalty?’”

“Uh… yeah. Yes, you did.” Nighttide gulped.

“I see. You understand we will need to directly communicate with any legal officials in the area in order to produce a debrief, correct?”

“Yes, of course,” Nighttide quickly replied. “I need to travel out to the capital city of Canterlot before I can setup council, though. Shouldn’t take more than a couple hours.”

“Understood. We’ll keep this analog transponder send-receive-lock until you’re ready. And...” There was a pause, causing Nighttide to tilt her head. “...It’s good to hear from you, Nighttide.”

Nighttide’s eyes widened slightly. With a weak smile, she said, “Copy. LAB-1032, sign-off.”

“Ridley 051, sign-off clear.”

And with that, the transmission went silent. Nighttide began retracting her antenna as she let out a long exhale, casting a glance over at Twilight.

“Well,” Twilight said as she stood to her hooves, “I have to say, that was certainly an interesting way of communicating long-distance.”

“Yeah, I guess so.” Looking over at Spike, she added, “’Course, dragon mail seems a bit spiffier in my eyes.”

“Hey, glad somepony appreciates my talents,” Spike commented with a proud grin as he clambered off the sofa and headed toward a pile of comics.

Twilight smirked at Spike before returning her attention to Nighttide. “Well then, guess we’ve got some friends and a train to catch, huh?”

Nighttide nodded hesitantly. “Yeah… yeah, looks like it.”

As Nighttide watched Spike pick a book from the top of the stack, Twilight bit her lip. She glanced over once more at her writing desk. On the edge sat the scroll she just received, lying next to a sealed scroll bearing the Lunar crest.

__________

“Sister, I really don’t think this is a good idea,” Princess Luna said as she stood at one side of a set of tall doors in the castle’s foyer.

“Luna, we can’t exactly hold a pony against their will if they haven’t committed a crime,” Celestia said across from her as she watched the doors expectantly.

“Yes, I understand this, but the risk of sending somepony with the evil sealed within them to a land inherently devoid of magic is asking for trouble. I know it.” Luna took a step toward her sister with pleading eyes. “I feel it, sister. Can you not also sense the danger this situation presents?”

Celestia looked down at her sister, an expression split between understanding and frustration. “Of course I understand. Nevertheless, I see no justifiable way to keep Nighttide here in Equestria – not to mention the fact I don’t want to in the first place.”

Luna raised an eyebrow. “You do realize the dreams Nighttide had were of memories from her past and another pony’s past? Real memories that took place in her world?” Narrowing her eyes, she lowered her voice and said, “Ignoring for a moment the ethical implications of what I and Twilight witnessed, whatever that ‘Sarcophagus’ is that’s built into the mare subdued those memories upon sealing the evil.” She huffed. “That did not happen before.”

Celestia hung her head. “While I recognize there is something concerning about the technology, there’s nothing we can do until—”

Just then, the doors creaked open. The Princesses turned toward three Royal Guards standing at the threshold. “Your Majesties,” the center-most guard began, “Princess Twilight Sparkle and envoy are ready to meet.”

“Thank you,” Princess Celestia said. “Send word we’re on our way.”

The Guards nodded before turning back the way they came. Once out of earshot, Celestia turned to her sister and whispered, “I don’t want us to go into this if we’re not on the same page, but I simply don’t believe we should force Nighttide to stay because of a decision we had to make. She was the victim of circumstances that nopony could have prevented.”

“You mean nopony other than that ex-guard, Riptide,” Luna commented as she turned for the hall. “But… I agree with you. I neither want nor see a valid means to retain Nighttide, not to mention the political implications doing so could now have.” As she took a few steps past the doors, she looked back at her sister, her expression somber. “I only hope you know the risk she poses once she’s beyond our reach.”

Princess Celestia looked at her sister, her eyes both soft and resolute. “I do, sister. Only too well.”

Princess Luna returned a nod. “Then let us meet with Nighttide and friends.”

__________

Nighttide stood at the far end of a long, lavishly furnished room, expanding the last portion of her antenna. Twilight stood to one side of the mare while Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie were seated at a long table. Rarity, on the other side of Nighttide, brought her horn to a glow.

“Ugh, stop it, will ya?” Nighttide batted a hoof at her mane, once again wrapped in Rarity’s magic. “It’s not like I’m here for a dance or something.”

“Come now,” Rarity said, “surely you want to look your best for the Princesses?”

Nighttide returned a flat expression. “You know they just walked in, right?”

“Hm?” Rarity looked over Nighttide’s withers at the approaching Princesses. “Oh my stars, Princess Celestia! Princess Luna!” She scampered around Nighttide and gave a quick bow to the two alicorns before taking a seat at the table.

Celestia merely shook her head with a smile as she passed the unicorn. Luna took a seat at one end of the table while she continued up to Nighttide. “So, how does this work, my little pony?”

“Well,” Nighttide said, shifting her weight to make sure the antenna was fixed in place, “according to DIRE policies, I have to make contact first and confirm all the identification junk. Once that’s out of the way, you and Princess Luna will speak with Colonel Rubedo, an official of my nation’s government who acts on behalf of DIRE public and diplomatic relations.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow at that, though she remained standing silent next to the mare.

“Will that be acceptable?” Nighttide asked as she looked between Celestia and Luna.

“That will be fine,” Celestia said. She turned to her sister. “Is there anything you’d like to add before we begin?”

Princess Luna stared at Nighttide from her seat for a moment, her expression neutral. Nighttide returned the look stoically and gave her a silent, nearly imperceptible nod.

“I believe not,” Luna eventually concluded. “We may proceed when you are ready, Nighttide.”

“Got it.” Turning her attention forward, Nighttide switched her systems over to the analog transmission, allowing the static to sound through her suit. Celestia and Twilight took their seats at the table as everypony waited for the proceedings to begin.

In a moment, a mare picked up the transmission and patched Nighttide through to the Colonel. After confirming their identifications, Nighttide said, “Alright Colonel, I currently have here with me three officials of the Equestrian government.” Turning to face each one as she named them off, she said, “Princess Celestia, High Seat of Equestrian Rule. Princess Luna, Second Seat of Equestrian Rule. And Princess Twilight Sparkle, plus designated witnesses.”

A moment passed as the sound of typing echoed through her suit. “And what was the working title of Princess Twilight Sparkle?”

Nighttide bit her lip. Staring at the Princess in question, who returned an innocent smile, she muttered, “Uh… P-Princess of Friendship, sir.”

“…Say again, Nighttide?”

“You heard me right, Colonel. Princess of Friendship.”

A moment passed as Nighttide held her breath. “…Understood. May I speak to the first representative?”

Nighttide exhaled in relief as she carefully walked to where Princess Celestia sat, keeping her antenna mast steady. “Alright Colonel, I have here Princess Celestia. She will be the first speaking representative of this proceeding.”

“Understood,” Colonel Rubedo replied.

As Nighttide looked at her with a nervous grin, Princess Celestia gently cleared her throat. “Greetings, Colonel Rubedo,” she spoke in her direction. “My name is Princess Celestia.”

“Greetings, Princess. Roanne wishes you a warm welcome.”

Nighttide rolled her eyes.

“Thank you,” Celestia said as she smirked at Nighttide. “I understand we need to address a few points before Nighttide returns home?”

“Just some formalities, Princess.” A few seconds of typing. “Currently, we are acting under the assumption that your land and ours are located on separate planets. There will be time to discuss the implications of that, but as a result, we require the use of Nighttide’s warp drive in order to return her home.” Raising his voice slightly, he said, “Was there any indication of environmental contamination upon Nighttide’s arrival in your world?”

“None that we are aware of, Colonel,” Celestia said. “Though her appearance was certainly unexpected, we observed no signs of issues otherwise, and we had a science team inspect the area shortly after her arrival.” Smiling at the radio mare, she said, “We’ve also had an opportunity to evaluate Nighttide at one of our health facilities, with her permission. No contaminants were identified.”

“Understood.” More typing. “Does your world currently have access to communications technology that can transmit through means such as this one?”

Celestia looked across the table toward Twilight. “I believe we have someone else here who may be able to better answer that.”

Nighttide glanced over at the lavender alicorn. “Oh, right.” Trotting over to Twilight, she said, “Colonel, I’m about to have Princess Twilight Sparkle speak for a moment. She best understands the workings of technology and science out of the group here.”

“That’s fine,” the Colonel resonated.

Twilight ran a hoof through the back of her mane as she stared awkwardly up at Nighttide. Craning her neck forward a little, she said, “U-uhm… greetings, Colonel. My name is Twilight Sparkle.”

“Greetings, Princess Twilight Sparkle.”

“Oh, uh – y-you can just call me Twilight.”

Some typing. “Understood. Princess, did you hear the earlier inquiry?”

Twilight stifled a sigh. “Yes, Colonel. As a matter of fact, we do not currently use the same means of communication that you employ. However, Nighttide has already explained that given your government’s permission, we may procure a draft of how to build such a communication device.”

“Correct, Princess. And Nighttide?”

Nighttide raised an eyebrow at herself.

“You are hereby given permission protocol A3 to the Equestrian government, assuming they have access to electricity.”

“They do, Colonel – or at least a variant of it.” She glanced back at Princess Celestia. “The Princesses have already given me permission outlines for their technology as well. Although…”

“Although what, Nighttide?”

Nighttide gulped. “Although, I’m afraid we won’t be able to make use of a lot of it. There are some major biological differences between our ponies and theirs. They also make use of devices which employ an intangible substance called ‘mana,’ from what I understand.”

A few seconds of dull static passed. “…Does it meet credible threat standards?”

“Y-yes sir, it does.” Nighttide fixed her gaze on Celestia, who returned her a reassuring smile.

“…Understood,” the Colonel eventually spoke. “Do their permission outlines match requirements?”

“Yes sir, across the board,” Nighttide quickly replied, “standards A through Zed are met.”

“Understood. In that case…” The Colonel drew an audible breath. “May I speak to someone who handles border operations?”

Nighttide glanced around the various ponies seated at the table. After a second, Princess Luna said, “Perhaps I may be of help?”

Shrugging, Nighttide walked over to the Princess and said, “I have here Princess Luna who will be addressing border operations.”

“Greetings, Colonel Rubedo,” Princess Luna already began, “my name is Princess Luna, Second Seat of Equestrian Rule. I also act as General of the Night Guard and Equestrian Homeland Defense.”

“Greetings, Princess Luna,” the Colonel replied. “I was just curious, how does your nation handle diplomatic relations with governing entities?”

“In the past, our borders have always been open to communicating with foreign governments. It’s been some time since we spoke with an unfamiliar nationality ourselves, but the standards remain the same: our doors are open for political exchange, given that is what you are suggesting.”

“Precisely,” the Colonel said. “If we are able to safely return Nighttide Star to our homeland, then we may be able to send over an ambassador unit. This, of course, will be after we provide material on how to both open and close the portal, so your government will have equal control of border operations.”

“That will suffice,” Luna said. “It is our understanding that Nighttide can provide this information herself?”

“Yes,” Nighttide spoke on the Colonel’s behalf. “One of my original duties was to act as a Frontier Ambassador, or one of those ponies you send to faraway places before you send a bunch more. Something like that.”

“Nighttide,” the Colonel interjected, “please try to retain your professionalism while speaking.”

Princess Luna giggled as Nighttide cast a worried glance at herself. “Do not worry,” the Princess said. “As far as we are all concerned here, Nighttide is a friend to us. Certainly much more than a mere guest.”

Nighttide smiled at the Princess, matching a similar expression Fluttershy was giving the two from across the table.

“Well, I’m glad to hear that,” the Colonel eventually replied. “Alright then, Nighttide. We’re going to attempt to lock onto your digital transponder. Provided it works, we’ll update your systems to allow A3 classified material to print.”

“Understood, Colonel,” Nighttide said. “So… how long should that take?”

A moment of silence passed. Suddenly, a series of relays clicked from within Nighttide’s suit, followed by a strangely upbeat chime and a slot in her chest opening on its own.

“Oh, uh… well then!” Nighttide ran a hoof through her mane as a series of documents began to print. “Pretty fast.”

“Alright, looks like we’ve got a secure lock,” the Colonel spoke over the sound of printing. “Once documents have been exchanged, we’ll prepare for your jump back home.”

“Understood, Colonel,” Nighttide muttered as she worked to collect the papers falling out of her chest. Turning to Luna, she said, “Well, I guess you guys’ll need to round up some documents, huh?” Smiling nervously, she added, “Don’t worry if it takes a while, I’m sure DIRE will totes understand—”

Luna’s horn began to glow. A second later, a set of scrolls flashed into existence onto the table. “Can you carry these home with you?”

Nighttide glared at the small pile of scrolls. “Uh… y-yeah, I should have enough storage for it. Though if it’s alright, I should probably scan them to my system first.”

“Whatever your government determines necessary,” Luna said as she sat back in her seat.

While Nighttide scooped up the last bit of documents printing from her system, Twilight looked on with a frown. After a moment, she cleared her throat. “Excuse me, um, Nighttide? Colonel?”

Nighttide set the stack of papers in front of Luna as she looked at Twilight. “Hang on a sec, let me walk over there.”

Twilight watched as Nighttide waddled around the table, the tall antenna mast swaying slightly with her trot. She bit her lip to fight back a smirk.

“Okay Colonel,” Nighttide said, “I have Princess Twilight Sparkle back on the mic.”

“Understood.”

Twilight cleared her throat. “Colonel, I would like to make an informal request before Nighttide returns home.”

Nighttide tilted her head as the Colonel replied. “Oh? What is the request, Princess?”

“Well… as Princess Luna mentioned, we have all sort of become friends since Nighttide’s arrival.” Smiling anxiously, she said, “Would it be alright if she stay another night so we can give her a proper farewell?”

“I see no issue with that, now that we have a lock on Nighttide’s transponder. Although for documentation sake, I’d like to ask at least the nature of this ‘farewell’ you intend to provide.”

Twilight stifled a giggle. “A party, Colonel.” She glanced over at Pinkie Pie. “We want to throw her a party.”

Nighttide’s eyes grew wide. “Understood, Princess,” the Colonel replied. “We’ll make arrangements for Nighttide’s return tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Colonel,” Twilight said, smiling at her friend. Off in the corner, Pinkie Pie squee’d to herself as everypony else looked on with warm smiles.

“S-s-so yeah,” Nighttide eventually stammered with a grin, “I guess I’ll contact you tomorrow morning, Colonel?”

“0600 hours if you will, Nighttide.”

Nighttide groaned. “Seriously? That’s, like, before the Princess raises the sun. Why so early?”

A few seconds of silence passed. “…Did you just say ‘before the princess raises the sun?’“

Nighttide smirked. Waddling up beside the now-smug alicorn in question, she proudly said, “Yes sir. I most certainly did.”

__________

Once upon a time, Twilight might have been concerned that proposing a last-minute party to Pinkie and her friends would be met with hesitation. She was glad she had learned otherwise.

Over the course of the night, everypony celebrated at Twilight’s library. Pinkie Pie, in true-to-form fashion, managed to throw together a “Thanks For Visiting Ponyville and Going on a Big Adventure that Really Only Lasted Two Days but Was So Much Fun” party just for Nighttide. The metal mare had stared at the several-meter wide banner strewn across and beyond the library’s façade for several moments, before everypony finally managed to bring her inside.

The party lasted well into the night. Nighttide was able to enjoy a sample of Applejack’s cider – which Rainbow insisted was the highlight of the party – while Fluttershy made a quick trip home, bringing back Nighttide’s favorite quilt for her to take home. Nighttide thanked the pegasus countless times for the gift before Rarity finally managed to grab her attention. Stepping out for a second to make a late late-night request to her hairdresser, she managed to have Nighttide’s mane trimmed at the library to a more “reasonable” length.

For most of the night, Twilight stayed out of the way, preferring to help Pinkie with various party arrangements so Nighttide could interact with the others. As special as the night was in theory, she couldn’t help but feel Nighttide’s departure wasn’t worth celebrating. If anything, it was worth mourning.

Nevertheless, she did all she could to make sure the grey mare had a pleasant time during her last night in Equestria. As ordered, Nighttide contacted the colonel just before the sun rose. Fighting the minor effects of only an hour of sleep and a cider hangover, she and Fluttershy enjoyed one last, bittersweet breakfast together at the cottage before setting off for Ponyville to meet with the rest at the train station.

Instead of departing for Canterlot, they made a special trip to Appaloosa. According to Nighttide’s warp-drive instructions, when jumping from an uncontrolled setting, a space of no less than one-kilometer free of organic material should be used. Twilight could think of no better place than the stretches of desert that bordered the town.

As everypony disembarked the train, Twilight led the group into the desert on hoof. They didn’t have to trek far, given the land just beyond the station was mostly barren before terminating at the footholds of the mountains.

Nighttide instructed everypony to drop off their saddlebags before they trekked another kilometer into the desert. Once they were in place, everyone gathered together and looked around.

For a moment, nopony said a word, merely taking the moment to peer across the vast, barren land that stretched for miles on end, shadowed by a canopy of interspersed clouds overhead. The air was cool – an unusual occurrence for Appaloosa even during the spring – and not a sound could be heard, aside from a gentle breeze blowing far overhead.

That, and a pair of flapping wings.

“Soooo,” Rainbow Dash drawled from above the group, “are we, like, gonna get this show on the road?”

Nighttide raised an eyebrow at her as everyone shot the pegasus a frown. “What, you ready to get rid of me so quick?”

“Hardly,” Rainbow said as she crossed her forelegs mid-air. “I never got a chance to race you again after that first time. I was kinda looking forward to another match.”

Nighttide smiled. “Yeah. I kinda was too.”

Rainbow returned a smile of her own as she touched down, walking up to the mare. “Y’know,” she said with a cocked eyebrow, “there is this big, open area all around us. We could go for another round if you wanted.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Nighttide said with a smirk, “I’ll just tell my commanding officer that I gotta take a sec to kick a mare’s flank in a one-on-one race. That’ll totally fly.”

Everypony giggled as Rainbow rolled her eyes, looking off to the side. “Yeah, well, figured I’d suggest it, at least.”

“And for that, I’m thankful.” Nighttide stepped up to the mare and raised a hoof. “Stay cool, dude.”

Rainbow Dash grinned, bumping a hoof against the mare’s. “You too, crazy mane.”

As Rainbow turned back to her saddlebags, Rarity stepped up next. She examined Nighttide’s mane with squinted eyes.

“Nuh uh.” Nighttide threw a hoof over her head. “Ignore Rainbow. You’re not touching it this time.”

Rarity put a hoof to her muzzle to stifle a giggle. “Just making sure you look presentable. We wouldn’t want ponies from where you come to think we’re uncouth.”

“Oh, I think that’ll be the last of their concerns,” Nighttide mused aloud, swatting at a loose patch of bangs.

Rarity smiled as she closed the gap, wrapping her hooves around the mare in a gentle hug. “You be good for us, dear. I’ll miss you.”

Nighttide smiled behind the mare as she carefully returned the hug. “I’ll miss you too.” She looked up as Pinkie Pie bounced up to them. “And you as well, Pinkie.”

“Awwhh!” Pinkie Pie bounded forward, knocking Rarity out of the way as she wrapped her hooves around Nighttide in a tight embrace.

“P-Pinkie?!” Nighttide choked as she watched Rarity scuttle back to her hooves with a scowl. “I… might be metal, but… the neck…!”

“Oh, sorry about that!” Pinkie released her grasp upon the mare, allowing Nighttide a chance to catch her breath. “Just wanted you to know how much we’ll miss you!”

“Y-yeah,” Nighttide wheezed, “I gathered as much from the party last night.”

Pinkie furrowed her brow with a grin. “Were there enough balloons for ya?”

Nighttide tapped a hoof to her chin. An image of several hundred round, multicolored objects made of rubber and inflated with helium flooded her memory. “Um… yep. Definitely.” She could still feel the static cling in her mane.

“Great! Well, see ya later!” Spinning about, Pinkie made to bounce back to the pile of saddlebags.

“Whoa, hang on a sec,” Nighttide said as she reached a hoof out. “You… you do realize this could be the last time we see each other, right?”

Pinkie froze mid-bounce and looked over her shoulder with a knowing expression. “Silly, this isn’t how the story ends!”

Nighttide blinked. Following through her bounce, Pinkie made her way back, skirting alongside a dusty Rarity as Applejack stepped up next.

Shaking her head, Nighttide looked up at the Stetson resting on Applejack’s blonde mane. “Looks like Rarity did a mighty fine job there, partner.”

“Oh, don’t you start now,” Applejack said as she tipped the brim of her hat up. “Last thing I need is somepony mockin’ the way I talk in some other world.”

“I dunno, figure it might be kind of cool to spread the accent around,” Nighttide said as she gently gabbed a hoof into Applejack’s muscular chest. “I’d love to hear the Colonel speak like that. Make it easier to smile around him.”

Applejack raised an eyebrow, drawn in all the right ways to express her next statement. “I’m not sure if I should take that as a compliment or an insult.”

“The former.” Nighttide smiled. “It’s kind of hard to not smile around somepony as cool as you are.”

Applejack returned the smile in earnest. “Jus’ so ya know, I think Big Mac’s gonna miss havin’ ya ‘round the farm. You’ve been a mighty big help these past few weeks.” She furrowed her brow as she added, “I jus’ hope you don’t think any of that was necessary—”

“For the last time, I don’t,” Nighttide said, rolling her eyes. “I was more than happy to help out. It’s not like I enjoy sitting around doing nothing, so being able to help around the farm? That was the biggest favor you could do for me.”

Applejack shook her head, bringing the brim of her hat down over her eyes. “We’re sure gonna miss ya.”

“I’ll miss you too. And your brother as well. Let him know for me?”

As she turned for her saddlebags, Applejack gave a wink and said, “Ya darn tootin’.”

Nighttide smiled at the mare as a yellow pegasus with a pink mane squirmed quietly nearby. Turning her attention to the mare, she said, “Well, guess you’re next, huh?”

Fluttershy slumped her shoulders, playing with the end of her mane with a hoof. “Um… I-I suppose.”

Nighttide tilted her head. “You alright?”

“I…” Fluttershy gulped, hiding her eyes slightly behind her long bangs. “I’m just… I didn’t expect you to be leaving so soon, that’s all.”

With a sad smile, Nighttide walked over to the mare. She flicked open a storage compartment in her barrel and glanced back at a familiar patchwork quilt within.

Fluttershy lifted her head to look inside. “I hope it’s good enough?”

Nighttide raised an eyebrow, turning to the mare as she closed the compartment with a soft click. “Has anypony ever told you just how well you represent your element?”

For a moment, it appeared Fluttershy winced at the words. Then, slowly, a blush began to form as she smiled back. “Th-thank you, Nighttide.”

“Mm-mm.” Nighttide shook her head as she pulled the mare into a hug. “Thank you.”

Fluttershy returned the hug with both hooves and wings, closing her eyes as she rested her muzzle against her shoulder. “We’ll miss you.” Her ears perked up as she added, “And Angel will too.”

Nighttide scrunched her muzzle. “Why do I find that hard to believe?”

Fluttershy giggled as she pulled out of the embrace. “Oh trust me, I know my Angel bunny well.”

“I figured he’d just be glad to get that storage room back to himself.” Nighttide blinked as she added, “Oh, and thank you ever so much for turning it into a guest-room for me. Seriously.” She cleared her throat with a smirk. “Obvious cliché aside, that was, uh… really kind of you.”

“You’re ever so welcome,” Fluttershy said, smiling in return. With a wave, she turned for her saddlebags. Nighttide watched the yellow pegasus trot away for a moment, before turning to the last remaining pony in front of her.

Twilight stood with a hoof raised limply, staring at the grey mare.

Nighttide blinked as a cloud overhead shifted to reveal the warm spring sun. Her suit reflected the rays at various angles, forcing Twilight to walk directly in front of her just to not be blinded.

“Yeah, sorry about that,” Nighttide said as she glanced back at her barrel, having to shield her own eyes with a hoof. “Can’t say I’d be of much use for arid operations.”

Twilight sighed. “You know, Nighttide, given everything that’s happened… and the simple fact that you’re kind of bad at hiding your emotions—”

Nighttide cocked an eyebrow.

“—I know you must not be happy to go home.”

Nighttide’s ears folded back. Hanging her head, she said, “Well… yeah. I mean, I guess that’s kind of a ‘no duh’ thing at this point. But…” She drew a breath, returning to her full height. “Doesn’t mean I have a choice. DIRE built me for a purpose, and now that we’ve had contact again, you bet your nonexistent britches they’ll be all up my flank if I don’t go back.”

Twilight chuckled as she sat to her haunches. “I suppose so.” She glanced over to the snow-capped Appaloosan Mountains, letting her mind wander back to the memories they made there. “You know, even after all this time, there’s still so much I don’t know about what happened that day.”

“Hm?” Nighttide glanced back at the mountains. “Oh. Yeah, well… not everything can always be explained, I guess.” Stifling a laugh, she added, “I mean, you’re ponies with wings and magic. Heck, even the ones without wings or a horn apparently have magic of some sort, so how do you think I feel?”

Twilight nodded, her smile fading into a flat line. “Yeah… yeah, I understand that. Still, though…”

Nighttide tilted her head. “What is it?”

For a moment, Twilight continued to stare at the mountains. “Of all the adventures I’ve had these past couple of years, none of them have ever ended quite this… mm…”

“Anticlimactic?” Nighttide offered with a smirk.

Twilight giggled as she looked back to the mare. “W-well, not the word I probably would’ve used, but… something like that.”

Nighttide breathed a single, strained laugh. “Well, it’s all good. And besides,” she continued with a brighter tone, “I gave Princess Luna those documents on communication. For all we know, we might be able to keep talking even after I get back!”

Twilight’s eyes brightened. “Do you really think so?”

“It’s possible. Although…” Nighttide’s ears folded at the tips. “I never know what DIRE has planned from one day to the next.”

“Yeah.” Twilight furrowed her brow. “I know only too well.”

Nighttide raised an eyebrow. “You really must’ve seen a lot in those dreams, huh?”

“More than I care to admit.”

Squinting at the alicorn, Nighttide slowly stood up. “Just what exactly did you see, Twilight?”

Twilight blinked. Keeping herself as calm as she could, she met eyes with the mare and said, “A lot.” She gulped slowly and carefully. “But I really can’t remember much of it, either.”

Nighttide continued to stare for a moment. Eventually, she sat back down and said, “Well, Princess Luna told me you ponies have a pretty big belief system in dreams and stuff.” Shrugging, she added, “I’m not so fond of them myself. My version of a good night’s sleep is nothing. Just pure, dark, silent bliss.”

Twilight flinched at that. Managing as natural a smile she could, she said, “Well, in any case… I guess I need to let you go.” She clenched down on the inside of her lip as soon as the words rolled off her tongue.

Nighttide seemed to not notice. Glancing back at the green luminescence of her flank, she said, “Yeah, they’re already pinging my transponder, so the sooner I jump, the better.”

“R-right.” Standing up, Twilight wrapped her hooves around the mare for a hug. “You just be safe when you get back, alright? Make sure nopony hurts you. If you ever get into trouble, just try to get in touch with me, and always be sure to—”

“Whoa,” Nighttide muttered as she returned the hug, “hang on a sec, mom – I’m a big pony after all.” She pulled her head back. “I mean, this ain’t the cave all over again, y’know? Least I know what I’m—”

She paused. Blinking, she watched as tears began to well in Twilight’s violet eyes.

For a moment, something felt as if it clicked in her heart. Shaking her head clear of the sensation for a moment, she broke free of the embrace. “Twilight? Hey…” She lifted a hoof, ready to catch the tears that seemed ready to spill any moment.

Instead, Twilight closed her eyes, trapping the tears within and tilting her head away. “I-I’m fine, sorry. Just…” She breathed a chuckle. “I just get a little emotional with goodbyes, that’s all.”

Nighttide smirked. “Well, don’t you worry about that none, miss Princess.” Patting the mare on the shoulder with her lifted hoof, she said, “Since you’ve got government status, you’ll be able to make contact with my homeworld. And,” she drawled with a smile, angling her head to meet Twilight’s closed eyes, “I betcha they’ll let you contact me whenever you want because of that! I just realized it!”

Wiping a hoof quickly across her face, Twilight looked back with a weak smile. “Y-you really think so?”

“Uh huh,” Nighttide said with a nod. “You can totally kick some bureaucratic flank with your status and chat it up whenever you want.” Glancing at the mares in the distance with a shrug, she added, “I won’t swear by it, but I believe that’s what—”

Suddenly, Twilight latched onto Nighttide’s withers, pulling her into a tight hug as she nuzzled the side of the mare’s cheek.

Nighttide flinched. Returning the gesture gently, her ears twitched at the sound of a sniffle.

“Then we’ll be in touch soon,” Twilight whispered. “I promise.”

A strange shudder ran through what remained of Nighttide’s body within her suit, carrying with it a sense of nostalgia. “Y-yeah,” she stammered after a moment. “That sounds… wonderful.” Her lips curved into a faint smile.

Relinquishing the grey mare, Twilight stepped back and smiled. “Talk to you soon, then.”

Nighttide grinned wide and gave her a salute. “Yes ma’am. I’m looking forward to it.”

With a hushed sigh, Twilight turned to her saddlebags, hanging her head slightly as she fought to keep her emotions in check.

Nighttide watched from behind. As she dropped her hoof back to the dirt below, she frowned.

__________

Upon reaching her throng of friends, Twilight fastened her saddlebag across her barrel and pivoted to look back at Nighttide, who stood like a reflective dot against the horizon.

“Dang sun just had to come out now,” Applejack mumbled as she squinted across the desert, pulling her hat down to shade her eyes.

“Mmm,” Twilight hummed as she lifted a hoof above her brow. Squinting herself, she made out the shimmer of Nighttide’s body standing in the low, hazy heat radiating off the ground.

Across the dirt and sand, Nighttide fumbled with various programming in her mind. Although her systems were brought back to full functioning after the incident, she hadn’t made any real use of them for several weeks, letting her sensors passively analyze the world around her. At least she would have plenty of new information to complement the scrolls she was returning with, though the thought came across as more of a concern than a benefit.

‘Well, not that it matters at this rate,’ she mused with a sigh. Clearing her throat, she angled her head toward her chest. “LAB-1032, initiating jump pre-sequence.”

“Acknowledged, Nighttide,” resonated the voice of a stallion, sounding much clearer thanks to the digital transmission. “We’re ready to receive.”

Nighttide nodded silently as she stood still and upright. Within a moment, she could feel the tingling of the warp drive activating, causing her mane and tail to stand partly on end as her body was surrounded in pulsing orange. She closed her eyes as she soaked in the strange, familiar sensation.

“My little explorer,” a mare echoed in the dark, “what ever am I going to do with you?”

Nighttide gasped, eyes flinging open. The coat hairs along her neck stood on end.

She tilted her head toward a group of colors on the horizon.

As a cloud blocked the sun overhead, her eyes met with violet.

__________

Twilight blinked.

Suddenly, the horizon lit with a bright, blinding light, chased by the bizarre sound of an explosion expanding and retracting on itself, until all that was left was the silence of the desert.

Everypony shielded their eyes with their hooves at the last second. Once the light and sound receded, they squinted across the desert, their sight readjusting to the natural daylight.

Twilight was the first to step forward. Peering across the way, she made out a scorch mark left in the dry dirt.

“Oh my,” Fluttershy muttered as she blinked at the sight. “It’s just like when I first found her!”

Twilight’s closest ear pivoted toward the pegasus for a moment, but it returned forward as she began trotting ahead.

Arriving at the spot several paces ahead of the rest, she lifted a hoof above the charred dirt. The coat hairs on her fetlocks stood partially on end. She couldn’t tell if it was from the static left in the air, or the sinking feeling in her chest.

Once everypony else arrived, they gave a few uncertain looks to the burn mark. Fluttershy was quick to alleviate everyone’s fears as she reminded them again of when she found Nighttide. Twilight murmured a few comments of assent, reminding them how Nighttide explained at the party that this would probably happen. As everyone turned back toward Appaloosa a minute later, Twilight remained in place.

Applejack glanced back. “You comin’, Twi?”

“Yeah, in a moment.” She didn’t look back. “I just need to check something real quick.”

Applejack squinted at her, mulling the statement over for a moment. “Alright. Don’t be too long.”

“I won’t,” Twilight hastily replied.

Staring for a moment longer, Applejack then trotted off to catch up with their friends.

Once Applejack was on her way, Twilight touched a hoof carefully to the outer edge of the scour. She stared at the thin black line for a moment, before a wind began to blow over the mark. Then, with a flick of her horn, she pulled a scroll from her saddlebag.

Lifting the scroll in front of her, she examined the Lunar crest emblazoned on the seal, and a small note tied to it that read in fine calligraphy, “Open in event of Nighttide’s departure.” Breaking the seal, she unfurled the scroll.

The cloud overhead moved aside, allowing the sun to shine on the several-week-old parchment.

”Princess Twilight Sparkle,

Meet with me tomorrow night in the palace garden, when the moon greets the horizon.
- Princess Luna.”

Twilight furrowed her brow. Reading the lines silently to herself once more, she then tucked the scroll back in her saddlebag and looked in front of her. She lifted her hoof once more, examining the coat hairs of her fetlock gently falling into place as the static remnants of Nighttide faded with a breeze.

Author's Note

Man, you made it this far? Through all the messed up narration, distracting speaker tags, to-be verbs, and repetitive phrasing? I don't know who's the victor here – the writer who finished this thing, or the reader who actually plowed through it all. But hey, I gotta say: it really means a lot that you'd plod through the thick of it all to see this story through.

Suffice it to say I wrote this when I neither had a clue what I was doing when it came to writing, nor had any idea what I even was writing in the first place. I was fresh to MLP at the time with soooo much pent-up creative energy from my then-recent years with honors English in uni (we had plenty of writing assignments, but absolutely nothing of interest to me, and I had zero ability to draw any creative ideas that I did have), and now there was this new shiny thing into which I wanted to dump all that energy. Thus, there's quite a few things wrong :twilightblush: But dude, I enjoyed writing this story ever so much. I might have been lacking in the technique department, but I certainly had the passion when I dove into this thing.

All of that said, thanks for reading. Feel free to check out my thoughts on the story now that it's finished. There's also a bit of continuation here, here, and here (in that order) if you're interested.

Until next time, stay cool. Hope to see you on the other side.

Art by GloomyMark

Prologue - The Incident

“It's raining.”

A grey mare stood in a large vacant room, looking out through a glass-pane wall at the same scene she had witnessed for many years now: rain.

Her appearance reflected the mood outside. Her long black mane, streaked with highlights of green, hung in thick layers to one side, covering her left eye. Her exposed eye, a cool shade of violet, stared resolutely at the grey city outside, given definition by two small spots beneath its rim. Her body, covered in alloy a shade lighter than her muzzle, reflected the fluorescent lights overhead. Three glass domes lined each side of her flank, glowing with a ghostly green similar to that in her mane.

Her ears flicked at the sound of approaching hoofsteps. A brown mare entered the room from a nearby hall and walked up beside her, gazing at the weather outside. “You would think with all the technology we have, we could do something about this rain.”

The grey mare remained silent.

A moment passed before the brown mare spoke again. “Nighttide. It's time.”

The grey mare's ears flipped toward the window, as if to signify her indifference. “Understood,” she said, her voice flat. “I will meet you and the others at Complex 051.” The brown mare nodded in reply and began to walk away, but before she stepped into the hall, Nighttide tilted her head. “Nephilim?”

The brown mare looked back. “Yes, Nighttide?” A tinge of hope for a certain response was clear in her inflection.

Undaunted, Nighttide replied plainly, “Remember to recalibrate the coordinates to Pylon Five.”

“Oh. Of course,” Nephilim said with a nod and a smile. “Thanks for reminding me.” Turning back for the hall, she continued on her way, breathing a hushed sigh.

Nighttide returned her focus to the window. As she watched the rain fall on the world outside, she drew a deep, quiet breath, then exhaled slowly, fogging up a portion of the window in front of her. She fixed her attention for a moment on a distant mountain visible beyond the skyline.

With a huff, she turned her back on the scene and made her way down the hall.

__________

“We're all set this side of the moon,” spoke the deep voice of a stallion. “Everyone else good?”

A crew of roughly thirty ponies stood at the ready in a tall, fluorescent-lit room filled with computer consoles, staggered in ascending rows toward one end of the room. A large monitor made up the entirety of a two-story wall at one end with a small landing below it.

Off in one corner of the landing, standing behind a console of her own, a mare spoke up. “Crewleader. All shows green. We're ready when you are.”

A black stallion wearing a dark grey uniform with a full moon emblazoned on the flank stood at the forefront of the monitor. He looked over his shoulder at the Crewleader. “Alright, put the first pylon team on screen.”

After a flash of static, the monitor revealed another crew of ponies elsewhere with a tall red stallion standing at the forefront, wearing the same type of uniform. “Pylon One responding.”

“Is your team ready to begin the test?” the stallion asked, idly adjusting the collar of his outfit as he looked up at the monitor.

“Preliminary exercises show green across the board. All transmission coordinates are properly calibrated, and – yep. I think we're ready.”

“Alright. Prepare your team for the initial test run. And Crimson?” The red stallion at the other end of the monitor cocked his head slightly. “Be sure this waxes smoothly.” Crimson nodded with a smirk before the monitor went blank.

The black stallion turned from the monitor to look at his own team. After a long exhale, he cleared his throat to speak. “Okay. Everypony ready?” The team let out a round of excited cheers. “Alright then. Initiate stage one.”

With a flurry of keys pressed and commands exchanged, the team set off on their respective duties. The monitor lit up once again to reveal Nighttide standing in a whitewash room, staring straight ahead and away from the camera overhead. Several hydraulic armatures held the pony in place, far thicker in diameter than her own metal limbs. The displayed monitor held a heading labeled “Complex 051” lit in green text at the top-left, and a timestamp at the top-right revealing time progressed by the millisecond.

A monotone voice sounded from the monitor. “LAB-1032, Nighttide Star, reporting.”

“Hey kid,” the black stallion replied to the monitor. “How do you feel?”

Nighttide angled her head slightly toward the camera. “I'm ready to begin testing, Colonel Rubedo.”

The Colonel stood relaxed. “Stage One is already underway.”

“Understood.” Nighttide returned her focus to the wall ahead, her expression as flat as her words.

The light buzz of keyboards and beeps filled the room for a couple of minutes. Not one pony muttered so much as a word during the process, except for the Crewleader's occasional commands. Meanwhile, Colonel Rubedo took his place at the top-most row of consoles, though he continued to watch the screen on the wall from a distance.

After a moment, the Crewleader spoke again. “Stage one is complete. We're green-lit across the board. Shall we continue?”

The Colonel stood up and looked over the entirety of the team. “Continue to Stage Two. Release all safety locks and proceed.”

An array of red lights began flashing in Nighttide's room as an alarm sounded over the speakers. The armatures which held her in place slowly pulled away from her body. Once the final armature released its grasp, Nighttide took a low stance to the ground.

“LAB-1032, command received. Initiating jump pre-sequence.”

A faint purplish-orange glow began to emanate around Nighttide's body. In the command room, everyone worked hard at their consoles, focused on the smaller monitors in front of them. The air was tense as everyone pushed to get through the next and most dangerous phase as quickly as possible.

“Crewleader. Warp drive has initiated. Jump imminent.”

The glow around Nighttide's body grew brighter and more intense. Then, with a loud bang, a white flash enveloped her body before cutting the video feed from her room. A few seconds later, when the monitor went live again, there was nothing left of Nighttide.

The Colonel calmly called out to the Crewleader. “Her status?”

“She's being transmitted to the first pylon now.” A few seconds passed silently as everypony watched the overhead monitor of an empty room. Then, “First pylon successfully received transmission.”

Everyone exploded in cheers and gave each other hoof-bumps at the sound of the news, but the revelry quickly died down with the Colonel's next command. “Have Pylon One send her to the next junction.”

The Crewleader missed one pony's hoof mid-air when she doubled back at the Colonel's command. “Sir, shouldn't we let her rematerialize at the first pylon?”

“If the first pylon received her this quickly without error, I see no reason to waste time and energy on a rematerialization at the first junction.”

The Crewleader opened her mouth to argue the point, but soon clenched it shut again. Speaking into a nearby mic, she called out, “Pylon One, this is Crewleader at Command Station. Transmit LAB-1032 to Pylon Two.”

A few more seconds passed. The large monitor remained watching the empty room from which Nighttide vanished as everyone waited for the next pylon to report good news.

Suddenly, the command room went dark. When the lights and consoles lit back up a few seconds later, another alarm began to sound. The Colonel barked from his station. “Status report!”

“Crewleader. Pylon Two reports interference in the transmission. They are attempting to widen the receiving band, but they’ve experienced a malfunction. The transmission is destabilizing!”

“Dammit… Alright everypony, reinitiate all emergency protocols and procedures. Recover that mare!”

“Yes sir,” and with a whip of her tail, the Crewleader set off to her own console. Everyone else did their part as well, monitoring the transmission and waiting for any commands they may receive.

The overhead monitor flashed to a view of another station. “This is Pylon Two. We're experiencing technical difficulties and are requesting instructions on how to proceed.”

Colonel Rubedo walked back down to the monitor. “Follow emergency procedures as scripted. We're doing the same on our end.”

The Crewleader spoke up with a shaky voice. “Colonel, the transmission has already begun deteriorating. We're losing some of the data. We've also detected a slip-space rupture along the transmission line – I don't know if we can get her safely back!”

“Well, you don't know if you can't yet either, now do you?” the Colonel responded sternly before turning to face everyone else in the room. “Do everything you can, everypony. This isn't over yet. Not by a long shot.” Turning his back on the wall monitor, he began walking back up to his own console.

“Pylon Two will follow procedures as instructed, Colonel.” The monitor switched back to Nighttide's room, continuing to flash with red lights.

Seconds crawled by as each pony worked frantically to do all they could to recover the operation, and most of all, their prized project: The infamous Nighttide Star. But as quickly as the tumult began, it ended. “Crewleader. The transmission has completely deteriorated… We've lost Nighttide.”

Silence penetrated the command room as everypony stopped typing. Just short of his own seat, Colonel Rubedo stopped mid-trot, his eyes wide and lost. After a moment, and with visible hesitance, he sat down, then buried his face in his hooves. With a heavy breath, he whispered, “Nighttide…”

The crew backed away from their consoles, looking blankly at the monitor of an empty room. The alarms continued to sound in the background, but nopony stood up to shut them off. That wasn't important.

Nighttide was gone. And that was important.

Author's Note

Welcome to Nighttide Star.

You will find links throughout the story to videos that served as inspiration for sections of chapters; they will be placed noninvasively like this and are for entertainment purposes only - they are not required to understand the plot.

I hope you enjoy. :twilightsmile:

Chapter 3 - Mares of the Night

“… here… always. Promise…”

Nighttide’s ears flicked at the sound of a distant voice. She opened her heavy eyes to find a blurry figure of a tall grey mare trotting through a dark room. A pleasant warmth surrounded her barrel, threatening to pull her back to sleep. She struggled to blink herself to waking, to get a better look at her surroundings, but found the motion nigh of impossible. The voice spoke once more, a soft sort of thing, equally as soothing as the warmth. But the words still couldn’t quite reach her. The voice trailed through her mind like a familiar ghost.

Then she heard fire, and the even more familiar sound of cracking pavement.

Her eyes flung open. Looking down a street lined with brick rowhouses, she saw street lamps flicker beneath what appeared to be a night sky, although the smoky canopy that loomed overhead glowed a bright orange. She knew this scene. This was perfectly familiar to Nighttide.

What wasn't familiar was the pony walking at the other end of the street. This was new. Nighttide tried to gallop down the street, but her legs refused to move. Stuck in her spot on the asphalt, she watched the unfamiliar pony trot down the street, looking around curiously, until its eyes met with hers.

The pony had a dark mane – perhaps blue, though it was hard to tell for sure. Speckled throughout were sparkling points of bright white. It reminded her a little of the stars in the night sky. And on her flank, a crescent moon.

Her eyes narrowed at the symbol. She opened her mouth call out to the pony, but before she could utter so much as a word…

__________

“… ING… USION… WARNING. NEURAL CONSCIOUS NETWORK INTRUSION. WARN—”

Nighttide found herself rudely awakened by her defenses once again – only this time, the alert was important.

“Neural… conscious...” Nighttide mumbled in the cool night air of Fluttershy's bedroom. “Meaning, someone's hacking into me?”

She rubbed her eyes with cold metal hooves as she tried to wake up. She hadn't felt this way in a long time, but she was so cozy where she was that for once, she didn't want to just bolt right up and get things out of the way. Nevertheless, such an issue could be extremely dangerous.

After rubbing off some of the sleep, Nighttide disabled the alarm and reviewed the alert on her retinal screen.

DIRE LAB-1032. Status report:

- 01:44 - Intrusion to neural conscious network detected.

> Source unknown.

> Device unknown.

> No DIRE information leaked.

'Interesting,' Nighttide thought. 'Could just be a fluke? Though I've never had this alert go off in the past... Maybe it has to do with something in this foreign land.'

Nighttide did a quick sensor sweep of the room to determine if there was anything possibly capable of breaching her systems. Not only did she not find anything, she found nothing electrically powered whatsoever. 'Why didn't I notice this before?' Realizing that the past few hours had made her all but completely drop her guard, she decided she needed to be more cautious.

Nighttide eventually slid out of bed to look out the window again. “Still night,” she whispered, looking up at the moon overhead. She checked her internal clock again. 01:58.

'Seems like this place is in relative sync with my land's time… which makes no sense at all. Is this not the same world? There's no land like this of any sort in our time zone to my knowledge.'

She did another sensor sweep, this time of the immediate area outside the window, and found the same result: no threats, nothing electrical. She couldn't make out any distinguishable lights anywhere along the horizon, and with no clouds overhead, it was impossible for her to determine a city's location – if cities existed here at all.

Her curiosity quickly stirred her awake. Staring out at the luminous night sky, she considered taking a walk to explore the area. It had been years since she had been free to explore, and she was eager to take advantage of the opportunity. Thankfully, her hooves were padded, so if she had to sneak down the stairs, she was sure Fluttershy wouldn't hear. That is, if her floorboards didn't creak, and her animals didn't react to her presence.

'Better think of another idea,' she guessed. Examining the bedroom window, she found a simple brass latch. After unlocking it, she pushed the window out ever so slightly, checking for noise. Nothing. She slowly pushed the window open until the wooden frame hit its stop, happy to find she could fit through no problem. Directly beneath the window was a plant-covered ledge that would help soften her land. Given the right angle, she could slip off the ledge and into the grass just beyond the fence. How she would ever get back up was another question.

After careful consideration of the location of Fluttershy's sofa, she deemed her escape route to be the best option available. She wondered for a moment how she would explain herself if she failed to make it back up to her room before sunrise, but curiosity eventually got the better of her, and she decided to give it a shot anyway. A few seconds later, she was sliding out the window, onto the ledge below, and out beyond the fence.

With a heavy thud, Nighttide hit the ground barrel-first and rolled against the grass. Once she came to a stop, she glanced behind her. The second-floor window sat wide open, but nothing seemed to stir in the house. She watched for a few seconds to make sure no lights lit up, then turned for a dirt road.

__________

Walking down the moonlit path, Nighttide examined everything around her: the trees, the terrain, and eventually a barn with some rather large livestock. 'The farm Fluttershy mentioned, perhaps?' She took a moment to scan the building and the lazy-looking creatures resting within, then continued on her way.

After rounding a slight bend in the path, the outskirts of a village came into view. A few buildings scattered the streetside to the right before the thick of town, and she noticed that with the exception of a lack of foliage, the homes were built similarly to Fluttershy's – simple designs, constructed with what appeared to be a type of dried grass covering the roofs and wood for the structure.

“The designs are primitive, but the construction materials aren’t foreign,” she muttered to herself. She also noticed the odd shapes of some of the buildings. Not all of them were built with straight lines or perfectly upright. Some sat squat to the ground, some leaned to the side. The overall picture seemed haphazard, but Nighttide couldn't help but giggle a little under her breath at the funny appearance. They didn't appear to be built randomly. There was something charming about them. They had a lot more character than the buildings back home.

Crossing over a bridge into town, she noticed a large structure to her right – what appeared to be a gathering place. As she explored on left, the buildings stood a little taller and more uniform than the previous ones. Some had signs outside of them, suggesting places of business. Some did not, which she assumed were residences.

“What strange city zoning,” she muttered as she continued forward, looking around at the signs. “Residential and commercial mixed together?”

There was not a pony in sight, and after a moment, she realized that the most significant thing about the scene was the sheer lack of noise. Nothing stirred but the occasional breeze and, if she listened carefully, a loud snore. Not a single piece of equipment sounded anywhere nearby. In her homeland, the silence would probably come across as eerie. But here, Nighttide felt at peace. The air, the land, even this foreign town she trotted through in the dead of night, seemed to bear no malice of any sort.

Even so, she figured it best not to venture too far, so she stayed mostly on the outskirts of town and casually examined the sights. After several minutes, she happened upon a very strange building that was more like a large tree with windows and a door swathed through it. She stepped close to a makeshift stoop built into the base of the trunk. The door had a drawing of a lit candlestick, and near the door was a sign with an image of an open book.

“Familiar things again,” she said. “But… so old.” She noticed a light flickering from one of the windows near the door. On tense hooves, she snuck over to the window and peered inside. To her surprise, she saw a sleepy Twilight Sparkle hunched over a table, attempting to read a book by candlelight. It appeared fatigue was winning the battle.

Nighttide cocked her head to the side, wondering why in the world Twilight would be up at such a late hour – especially after exhausting herself so much earlier. She was immensely curious and thought about knocking on the door. But, considering a foreigner roaming the streets at night would probably be a bit unsettling, she decided to keep moving.

About an hour passed before she had explored the outskirts of town. Once finished, she saw no reason to go any further, though she wasn’t sure how she’d get back into Fluttershy’s room. With no other option in mind, she took the road back toward her cottage anyway.

As she walked across the bridge from earlier, she noticed a few stray clouds hanging over the forest across the creek. And yet, there were still no clouds above Ponyville. Spotting a clearing tucked between some trees near the creek, she decided to sit for a while and look up at the stars.

It took a moment for her to naturally adjust to the dark night sky, but once the tiny little dots overhead came into view, her eyes widened. Thousands of bright white stars filled the visible sky, far more brilliant than any lights she had ever seen. She could remember somepony telling her about this many years ago, but she had always thought it was an old mare's tale. That the sky could have thousands of stars? In all her years, either the lights of the city drowned out most of them, or the sky was completely blotted out by clouds… or smoke.

She breathed in the crisp, cool air, soaking in the moment as she gazed up at the sky. With enough concentration, she was just able to make out how the stars twinkled ever so slightly, a myriad of colors and hues gently breaking the cool violet of the sky.

She then turned her attention to the moon, which sat just above a snow-capped mountain in the horizon. It seemed to have a different surface than the moon of her home. She couldn't clearly make it out since it was a crescent moon, but she swore there was something unique about it. And, having no information on astronomy, she was unable to determine her location based off the stars.

“Who cares,” she murmured to herself. “This is incredible.”

Nighttide nestled her haunches further into the dew-covered grass and leaned back, her violet eyes reflecting the starry canopy overhead.

‘Yeah. Fluttershy’s can wait.’

__________

Nighttide had been blissfully watching the stars twinkle and shift overhead for several minutes before fatigue finally settled in. Just as she moved to stand up, her ears flicked at a sound. She glanced back at the creek behind her, which made little more than a trickling noise against the smooth rock embankment. Turning her head back forward, she heard the sound again – a hoof against dirt. She squinted toward the road.

The dark silhouette of a pony trotted down the dirt path, its mane and tail flowing in an unfelt breeze. Just as the pony was about to pass her, it turned its head in her direction.

Startled by how quickly the pony noticed her, Nighttide unlocked her rotary cannons and stood to her full height. As it approached her, she noticed a strange sort of glimmer to the pony’s mane and tail, almost as if it reflected the stars above.

Brushing the thought aside, she calmly called out, “Dark pony, identify yourself. Friend or foe?”

“A warm welcome to you, Nighttide Star,” spoke the soft voice of a mare. As the pony stepped up to the clearing, Nighttide noticed she looked very familiar to the one in her dream – a tall mare with a dark blue mane and tail that glistened with what appeared to be stars, flowing and glowing in a most unusual manner. Her flank bore the same crescent moon as both her dream and Equestria's night sky, and she wore a collar piece bearing the symbol as well.

Knowing her name and bearing a resemblance to a dream figure, Nighttide took a step back and fully extended her weapons. “Identify yourself. Friend, or foe?”

“I am a friend. My name is Princess Luna.” The mare approached her just enough to reveal a set of sapphire eyes and a friendly smile.

Nighttide examined the pony and noticed she bore a similar alicorn appearance as Twilight. Considering the power and scope of the magic she witnessed earlier, she considered the Princess a potential threat. And given she was meeting with her in the dead of night with no forewarning, the situation was more than a little unsettling.

Wishing to show respect nevertheless, Nighttide gave a small bow to the mare. “Greetings, Princess Luna. Given your ability to use magic, and since we are not familiar yet, I must remain alert. This means I may attempt to use deadly force if I deem you as a threat.”

“I understand, Nighttide Star.”

“And…” She looked up. “You can just call me Nighttide.”

Princess Luna returned another smile and sat within clear view of Nighttide, keeping her distance as a show of respect.

Standing upright, Nighttide said, “If I may ask, ma'am, why are you out here in the middle of the night? And more importantly, how did you find me?”

“I am the Princess of the Night. It is both my duty to guard the night, as well as to watch over the dreams of ponies.”

“So…” Nighttide's expression grew more serious. “I saw you in my dream after all, didn't I?”

The princess nodded once. “A dream of smoke and memories, it appeared.”

'This pony can invade dreams?!' Nighttide thought to herself. She took a more rigid stance as she addressed the Princess. “You know, where I come from, this would be considered an invasion of privacy at best – espionage at worst. Why would a pony, especially a princess, be interested in the dreams of a foreign pony?”

“It is not just your dreams that I observed, Nighttide. Dreams are an important part of every pony. They represent our desires, and they represent our fears. It is my duty to help guide those who may have lost their way in a dream, or to encourage a pony to face their meaning.”

Nighttide was intrigued by the idea. But, “As far as my culture is concerned, dreams are just silly nonsense. Your ponies would consider them to be of such significance?”

“Not everypony; many ponies still have yet to understand that there are sometimes important teachings to be learned from their dreams. That is where I come in.”

“Well…” Nighttide cocked her head to the side with a raised eyebrow. “In a world of magic and wings, I guess that's just about as believable as the next thing. It makes sense now why my systems alerted me to an intrusion.”

Princess Luna's expression softened, her ears folding a little at the ends. “I'm sorry if my appearance in your dream was disturbing.”

“It's odd. That's the word I'm going to use for it. But… probably no more odd than someone like myself suddenly showing up to your peaceful land.”

Princess Luna giggled under her breath. “Perhaps so.”

“So,” Nighttide said, taking a seat on the damp grass, “I think we both steered away from the initial questions. Why are you here?”

“My sister, Princess Celestia, forwarded the information that Twilight delivered. Since it is my duty to guard the night, I took it upon myself to meet with you while I had the opportunity.”

Nighttide tilted her head. “How did you find me?”

“After your dream, I thought you may embark on the dark of night yourself, as some ponies before you have. I understood you were staying at Fluttershy's cottage, so I examined the nearest route and found you here.”

“Logical,” Nighttide said with a shrug. “If not strange.” She paused and waited to see if Princess Luna had anything more to say. After a moment passed, Nighttide prompted her. “Well, what do you want to know?”

“What do you feel is important for me to know?”

'What a vague question,' Nighttide thought to herself. “Well, I can give you the same speech I would if I were meeting with delegates of another nation.” Nighttide pulled up a script on her retinal screen. “Alright, so…

“Ambassador slash delegate slash… yeah, sorry — my name is Nighttide Star, a female pony 18 moons of age, DIRE milispec, LAB-1032, representing the interests of Roanne. Please be informed that I am equipped with weaponry capable of lethal harm that may be used if either my health, the health of my state and its ponies, or the progression of my operation is jeopardized at any point. Roanne wishes you a warm welcome.

“It is the intent of our nation to spread peace and prosperity across the globe for the betterment of society and the individual pony. Our ultimate goal is to network together the various cultures and societies of the globe under one democracy. It is not our goal to abolish culture, but rather to unite ponies together through a government that thrives on the multiple cultures of our world, free of political conflict and strife such as our planet has suffered for millennia. We wish to speak…”

Nighttide scrunched her muzzle a moment, then switched off the script. “I don't feel as if the rest has any application here at the moment. That should give you a basic summary of my background, though.”

Princess Luna nodded softly, though she seemed to not be completely satisfied. Smiling a little, she said, “Thank you, Nighttide. But may I ask you a question in return?”

“Of course.”

“While this gives me an understanding of where you are from, it does not tell me who you are. Would you explain more of your personal nature to me?”

Nighttide blinked. “Y-yes, of course.” With a sigh, she said, “I have a feeling I'm going to be doing a lot more of this throughout the day.” Clearing her throat, she considered how to start. “I'm sorry. This is the first time somepony here in Equestria has just said 'Tell me about yourself' without having a prompt.”

Princess Luna gave a gentle smile. “Take your time, my little pony.”

Nighttide thought for a little longer, letting her gaze drift to the dewy grass around them. “Well… I was born to a family in the suburbs of Hiigara. It's located at the foot of a small mountain range called the Ferin Sha that borders the west coast of our continent. Or, it did… at one point,” Nighttide said, slumping a little.

After a pause, she continued, “A few years back, a group of ponies buried and set off a series of hobbled-together nuclear bombs along the eastern fault-line of the Ferin Sha. There was an earthquake, which is what they were hoping for, but it was so intense and so broad that it broke off an entire chunk of the continent. Part of it sank into the sea, and the other part heaved up a bunch of earth and lava.”

“Pray tell,” Princess Luna interjected, “what are these ‘nuclear weapons’ of which you speak?”

“They're what we call ‘weapons of mass destruction.’ They're a rather archaic form of military tech, but terrorists and would-be independent countries still like to make use of them every so often. They do more than just destroy land, though. They pollute the air… and they kill millions of ponies.”

“What a horrible sounding thing,” Princess Luna commented with genuine concern in her tone.

Nighttide averted her gaze slightly and rubbed a fetlock. “Sorry again, but… certain topics that feel like an everyday affair from my land feel… how should I say… foreign? maybe more so dangerous? to yours.”

Princess Luna considered her statement for a moment. “While it is true that we do not know of such ‘weapons’ as you describe, our land is neither perfect.”

“That's what your other princess told me.” Nighttide looked around at the pristine landscape surrounding them, wondering what imperfections they could possibly be suggesting.

“Please, do continue,” Princess Luna politely requested.

“Right… So, it was found out the attack was by a group of independent countries known as The Kidesh Union, looking to avoid becoming integrated into Roanne. It was a declaration of war against us on each of their parts, but they also hoped to deal a blow to our government at the same time. Back then, a lot of our industry was located south of the Ferin Sha, right along the end of the fault line… not far from where I was born.”

Nighttide cleared her throat again. “My parents were killed in the earthquake. They were inside the house, asleep, when it began. I woke up in time to run outside like I had been taught, so I expected to find them out there. But as soon as I was out the door, I turned around to see the house crumbling in on itself. And the ground was…”

Nighttide paused to breathe. This was not the first time she had relived this memory. “…I also lost my legs that night,” Sitting a little more upright, she continued. “While I was standing in the street, a light pole fell on top of me. I don't remember the pain as much as I remember just staring down the street, watching the horizon glow orange.” She hesitated for a second. “That's the last thing I remember before I woke up in a hospital.”

Nighttide retracted her weapons with a light hiss of hydraulics, seeing no need to keep them trained on a princess of Equestria. Something about the night air and Luna's presence were calming, even as she relived the distant memories. “I was still a little filly when my parents died, so my first years with DIRE were spent mostly bouncing around the makeshift foster care system they developed after the attack. It was supposed to help the nation handle the sudden influx of orphans, but the system they used was really outdated, so when I was a couple moons older, DIRE integrated me into a project called 'Labyrinth'. It was designed to raise foals in a group environment, with caretakers assigned to a group in order to keep something resembling parental figures around. There's about eight ponies to each group, which… well, makes for a pretty crazy 'family,' if you can call us that,” she said with a faint giggle. “I've been stationed in Tanis now for a few years, a city that's pretty far inland. It wasn't so bad the first couple years; we were free to come and go as we pleased. We even attended public school outside of the facility.”

Nighttide became visibly flustered at the next thought. “Back then, I had a lot of fun with fillies and colts my age. But then DIRE decided to lock down the Labyrinth project and make it an entirely 'internal' affair. Meaning we’re now kept on-site at all times, specifically at Ridley. At first, it was okay. We were still able to go outside and hang with other ponies – the facility itself is pretty large, and there are outdoor sections that we're free to roam. But after a while, things changed. Certain ponies were hoof-picked for projects. Jealousy became a thing. Other ponies even became afraid of each other when they found out what the projects were.” Hoofing at the ground, she looked down and said, “Like the one I’m in.”

Princess Luna approached her slowly. With a smile, she leaned her head down to look up into Nighttide's eyes. “I may not be familiar with your land, but I do understand what it is to be feared by your fellow ponies.”

Nighttide smirked. “Well, sure, you're a princess. Aren't you supposed to exude 'regal authority' or something?”

“Not always. I thought as much for some time, but then I learned otherwise.” Her expression turned from reassuring to serious. “But this is not the point which I am referring. Once upon a time, I was an enemy of Equestria.”

Nighttide lifted her head up to meet Princess Luna's eyes. “An... enemy?”

The princess nodded somberly. “For many years, our ponies embraced the day, but shunned the night. My sister seemed to always shine brighter than I did, and in time, I grew bitter toward her and the ponies over whom we ruled. My bitterness eventually transformed me into a creature known as Nightmare Moon.”

Nighttide tried to stifle a giggle, but failed. “Snnkt… Nightmare Moon? I'm sorry, but that's a pretty awesome name, if I may be honest.”

“But Nightmare Moon was not an 'awesome' pony, as you would imply," Princess Luna said, maintaining her serious tone. “After trying to force eternal night on the land of Equestria, my sister had to banish me for a thousand years.”

Nighttide blinked. “D-did you just say 'a thousand years?' As in, a thousand seasonal cycles?” Princess Luna nodded. “How old do you ponies get anyway?”

Princess Luna shook her head. “That is not the point either. After a thousand years passed, my return as Nightmare Moon came. Thankfully, a certain group of ponies helped transform my heart back to its former state, and Princess Celestia forgave me of my actions. However, that did not fix everything.” She turned her attention toward Ponyville, resting peacefully just beyond the creek. “On the first Nightmare Night after my return, a holiday that we celebrate here in Equestria, I made an appearance in this village to reintroduce myself to the citizens.” She visibly grimaced at the thought of the memory. “They shook and cowered before my presence, some even mistaking me for Nightmare Moon. But not everypony felt the same.” Her expression softened again. “Some ponies helped me to communicate better to my citizens. I even learned how to have fun with them. In time, I found my place in Equestria – and by my sister's side – once again.”

Nighttide pondered her story a moment, then frowned. “You know, Princess, if you were trying to tell that story to make me feel better… to be honest, there's really not a lot to relate with.”

Luna walked over to Nighttide's side. “Our stories may be different, but some of our experiences are similar. I too was feared by others because of my position. It was my responsibility to learn how to respond to that fear, and to learn how to communicate with others when this happened.” She smiled at Nighttide. “I was also thankful to have a few ponies help me along my journey.”

Nighttide thought back to the group of ponies she had met in the past few hours. Fluttershy, Twilight, the brash Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, and even the loud and boisterous Pinkie Pie. 'That pony had no idea how close she was to getting hurt,' Nighttide thought with a shiver.

“Yeah. I can see that,” she eventually remarked. “I just… I don't know. Where I come from, a lot of this is old hat. Everyone is looking to relate with each other – everypony wants to pretend they can understand and sympathize. Maybe it was a nice dream once upon a time, for everyone to get everyone's business, but now it just feels like... I dunno, inconsiderate? To hear someone say, ‘I understand,’ or, ‘I feel your pain,’ when you're hurting feels so degrading.” Nighttide looked up at Princess Luna. “But it's different when somepony takes the time to share their story because they're considering your feelings. It's empathy, not sympathy. While you haven't actually experienced what I have, you seem to at least have a sense of what I'm feeling. And,” Nighttide added as she looked away, “it doesn't feel like you're just out for attention either.”

Princess Luna smiled and allowed a moment of silence to pass. “Nighttide Star… your name is quite interesting. Does it not mean the time between dusk and dawn?”

Nighttide's ears perked up ever so slightly. “Yes, it does. Yet another similarity you ponies have with my world: your language. Except…” Nighttide considered how to make her next statement without sounding rude. “I heard you say 'pray tell' at one point. Where I come from, that's an ancient form of syntax that hasn’t been regularly practiced in over a millennium. Is it considered normal practice here?”

Princess Luna gave out a hearty laugh, not becoming of her regal appearance. “It is ancient here, too. Old habits.” She gestured with a hoof and added, “I apologize, for it is taking me some time to adjust to society after being gone a thousand years.”

Nighttide smirked. “Yeah, that's definitely something I cannot relate with.” The two shared a short laugh.

Once over her giggles, Princess Luna looked up at the stars above. “Prithee, what do you think of your name, if I may ask?”

Nighttide looked up to the stars shining above. “Not a whole lot. Where I come from, this,” she suggested with a hoof to the clear night sky, “is a rare instance. Ever since the earthquake, most of our continent has had some pretty miserable weather. If it's not raining, then all I can see is an orange glow with an occasional flicker. There’s just too many lights in our city to really see the stars well.”

Nighttide continued to examine the stars and the moon on the horizon. “Princess Luna. You said that your ponies ‘shunned’ the night. What exactly did you mean?”

“Many ponies slept through the night and played in the day. I understand now that my night is a time of peace and for dreaming, and that my sister's day is a time for waking and activity.”

'Such a simple way to put it,' Nighttide thought to herself. “But what a beautiful night yours is.”

Princess Luna smiled warmly at that. The two sat side-by-side in peaceful silence for a moment, watching the stars flicker above. The moon was slowly beginning to fall behind the mountain when she spoke again. “I should return to Canterlot soon, as the night must end in a few hours.”

Nighttide looked at Luna's flank and back at the moon. “Princess, can I ask you one more question?”

“Please.”

“The way that you talk about ‘your’ night and your ‘sister's’ day, do you two have something to do with the sun and moon?”

Princess Luna opened her mouth to speak, then briefly paused. Smirking, she looked over at Nighttide and said, “As the morning approaches, my sister raises the sun, while I lower the moon. Then as evening approaches, she will lower the sun for me to raise the moon.”

“…Using magic?”

“Correct,” Princess Luna said with a nod.

Nighttide looked up again at the expansive universe, trying to figure out how a simple pony could do such a significant act – let alone be held accountable for doing it each and every day. 'What a magic these alicorns possess,' she thought. 'Could I even stand up against one if I had to?'

Princess Luna stood up and turned toward the mountain. “Well, thank you for introducing yourself, Nighttide. I hope that we may meet again soon.”

Nighttide wondered why she wouldn't see her with her sister tomorrow, but before she could ask, the Princess took to the skies. She figured she must sleep during most of the day if she was responsible for guarding the night.

As Nighttide returned to the road toward Fluttershy's, she mused aloud, “I should've asked the Princess if she knew anything about how to get home. Didn't seem like she knew where, or what, home was though...” As the cottage came into view, she smirked and added, “Should've at least asked her to hoist me back up to the window.” This turned out to be unnecessary though, as she noticed a light shining from an open door and could hear a faint voice in the distance somewhere around the cottage.

Nighttide galloped to the cottage and heard Fluttershy behind the house calling for her. “Fluttershy! I'm over here!”

Fluttershy rounded the side of her cottage and galloped up to Nighttide. “Oh my gosh, Nighttide, I was so worried!”

“Sorry! I'm sorry,” Nighttide stammered out as she hung her head in guilt. “I woke up from a bad dream and decided to take a night walk. I didn't want to wake you, so I kind of… well…” She nodded up at the window.

Fluttershy gave her a concerned look, not unlike the one she first gave her soon after they met. “I woke up in the middle of the night to Angel hopping on the couch. When I got up to check on you, you were gone.”

Nighttide could see Angel watching them from the bedroom window, with what appeared to be a knowing grin on its face. Embarrassed, Nighttide hoofed at her mane and said, “I'm sorry, again. I promise, this isn't something I'd normally do.”

“I'm just glad you're alright,” Fluttershy said, relief now evident in her tone. “Is there anything I can do for you?”

“Yeah, actually,” Nighttide replied with a softness to her own voice. “Trust in me that I won't do something like this again, and show me the way back to bed.”

Fluttershy returned a tired smile as the two walked inside the house. Thoroughly worn from her little adventure, Nighttide took to her bed with newfound exhaustion. This time, her dreams would prove to be a little more peaceful, as the figure of a familiar alicorn passed through her imagination.