The Blizzard Chronicles

PROLOGUE

The moon overhead cast a brilliant, ghostly glow over the scene. A lonely traveller, an Earth Pony, strolled along a deserted dirt road. Around him, the plains stretched for miles out to either side, as far as the eye could see. Tall grass licked the edges of the road.

He may not have looked like it on the outside, but the traveller was very scared. Full moon tonight, he thought. Bad things can happen on a full moon. The cold didn’t help either. He shivered under the heavy packs he was carrying. He listened closely to the sounds of the night. He didn’t want anything sneaking up on him.

“Excuse me,” someone, or something, said behind him. The pony nearly jumped out of his skin. With a fearful yelp, he leapt several feet into the air, hooves flailing in a mass panic. He turned around to see what had spoken to him.

It was a Unicorn. This pony had an earthy black coloring that made him hard to see against the black sky. His mane and tail had a deep, powerful purple sheen to them, almost like the deep sea. The stranger’s eyes shone brilliant violet against the night background. His cutie mark was very curious. It seemed to be some sort of ancient design, a thing somepony would find carved into temple ruins. It was almost like the head of a trident, but something was off. The edges were more circular. Very strange, the traveller thought.

Just looking at this pony, something didn’t look right. The traveller dismissed this as nothing of importance.

“Sorry,” the traveller replied, sighing with relief. “I thought you were something else. May I help you?”

“Yes,” the stranger answered. His voice had a strange ring to it, almost like two sheets of ice scraping together. “I’m looking for a friend, and I was wondering if you might have seen him.”

“Well, okay,” the traveller said uncertainly. Odd question, he thought. “What’s their name?”

“Blizzard Blast,” said the stranger, smiling.

“No, I don’t think I know - ” The traveller paused. “Wait a minute. What’re you looking for a Blizzard for? Who are you?”

“THAT IS NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!” The stranger raged. “I have a score to settle. Now you are going to tell me where Blizzard Blast is.”

The traveller was intimidated by the figure. He began to stammer, “I’m sorry - I’ve only heard - just rumors - ”

“Rumors will do,” said the stranger, growling. “Now WHERE IS HE?” With this, a sharp purple light flashed from the stranger’s horn and grew to envelop him. The light solidified and became interlocking pieces of armor. Unfurling a pair of previously inconspicuous wings, he sprang into the air and shot a violent purple beam into the sky. The energy beam lit up the night sky and could undoubtedly be seen for miles.

The traveller was terrified. At first he couldn’t say anything - he simply couldn’t speak. After a moment, the pony looked down at the ground and managed to spit out, “Ponyville. He’s headed for Ponyville.”

“Perfect.” The stranger looked off into the distance for a short second. “I’m coming for you, Blizzard Blast.” He then looked back at the pony and promptly said, “Goodbye.”

A burst of violet and the Earth Pony was no more.

ONE

Knock, knock, knock.

It was the last thing Zecora expected to hear on her front door in the middle of the night in a thunderstorm.

“Who could it be at this time of night?” Zecora asked, going to answer the door. “Traveling in this weather must be a fright!” She answered the door.

A mysterious figure stood before her. He was dressed in a simple black cloak with a matching hood drawn over their face. From the looks of it, Zecora judged the stranger wasn’t doing too well. Their cloak was drenched and the figure under it was shivering loudly.

Zecora didn’t ask who the pony was. “Oh, come in, come in, you poor thing,” she said, gesturing inside. “Let me get you something to drink.”

“Thank you,” the pony said with a shiver, sauntering inside and closing the door after him. Zecora began to make a Fire Potion to make the stranger feel better. To break the silence that followed, he said, “Would you happen to know where Ponyville is? I’m headed there next.”

Not taking her eyes off of her work, she answered, “Close to your destination you are, for the way to Ponyville, it is not far. Just take the road out from here, and follow it until the forest clears.” Zecora finished the Fire Potion and gave it to the stranger.

“Thank you,” the stranger said gratefully as he sipped the potion, holding it with unicorn magic. Warmth began to spread through his body and his hooves began to thaw. His cloak began to dry, the water coming off as steam.

“My name’s Blizzard Blast.” As he said this, he used his magic to take off the hood hiding his face.

The stranger had an icy blue complexion. His deep blue mane, cut in the shape of ice crystals, glistened with fresh moisture. His eyes glinted with a brilliant seafoam green. The levitation magic he used was lime green.

“Really?” Zecora said, pausing for a minute. “One of the Blizzard family? Interesting. What here could you be doing?”

“I suppose you could call it a . . . a search.” Blizzard Blast obviously didn’t want to stick to the subject. He cleared his throat. “I’d probably better go.”

“You can’t possibly mean straightaway,” Zecora replied. “This weather and dark combined is one terrible fray. Why don’t you stay for the night? Then, tomorrow morning, you can travel in clear skies and light.”

“Well…” He thought it over. The conditions certainly weren’t preferable for travel; getting this far in it certainly wasn’t fun. “Alright. Thanks.”

“Great. You can take the attic upstairs.” She nodded toward a ladder in the corner of the tiny house. “Just take the ladder there.”

“Thanks again. ‘Night,” said Blizzard Blast as he climbed the ladder.

Zecora didn’t reply. Blizzard Blast judged she was too tired to compose a whole poem to say ‘goodnight’.

The next morning, Blizzard Blast left without a word.

He traveled alone along the forest road, still wearing his cloak. This time, though, he wore his hood back to show his face. He didn’t much like hiding himself from others when he wore the hood up.

The trail he traveled was beautiful. The trees around him provided morning shade, and the road smelled of fresh morning dew. Blizzard Blast felt the whole forest alive around him. Everything in it worked together as one larger being.

He also felt . . . something else, and it wasn’t the forest. It was . . . a hot breath on his back. He turned around slowly. There, three towering beasts stood before him. Twigs and pieces of wood held together by magic, glowing green eyes - what stood before Blizzard Blast was a pack of timberwolves.

Immediately, Blizzard Blast took action. A blue streak of light burst forth from the tip of his horn, and in an instant one of the timberwolves was frozen solid in a block of ice. Another one lunged at him, and he rolled to the side, dodging the attack. Another blur sprouted from his horn, this one luminous lime green, and circled around him in a ring of furious, green energy. The streak pulled out of its orbit and shot toward the second wolf, pounding into it with a tremendous force. The wolf sank to the ground, its melted remains floating in the liquid.

The last remaining wolf pounced in attack. Before it knew what hit it, twin shining blue swords appeared out of thin air above Blizzard Blast’s head, and he took control of them using levitation. They flashed toward the timberwolf, and an instant later it fell to the ground in a pile of branches and twigs.

Suddenly, he heard voices behind him.

“Did you see that?”

“Simply astounding!”

“That guy’s GOT to show us how he did that!”

Blizzard Blast whirled around. Standing before him were exactly the six ponies he had been looking for.

“I know you,” he said, admiration and excitement crawling into his voice. “The noble wielders of the Elements of Harmony: Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie.” Pinkie Pie bounced into the air at the sound of her name with a light boing.

As a violet figure approached him, he nodded into a respectful bow. “And the Princess of Friendship herself. Such an honor to finally meet you in person. My name’s Blizzard Blast.”

“A Blizzard?” Twilight gasped excitedly, her eyes twinkling. She dashed over to him and shook his hoof vigorously. “Oh, I’ve always wanted to learn Blizzard magic! Would you show me some of your spells? Please?”

Blizzard Blast laughed a little, his hoof now throbbing. “Listen, I’ve got a mission to go through with right now, but I can teach you a little bit when I get back.”

“Really?” she exclaimed, hugging him tightly. “Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!”

“What’s a blizzard?” Pinkie Pie asked, obviously confused. “The weather’s just fine.”

Twilight turned. “Blizzard is only about the biggest family name in all of Equestria! They’re warriors who come from the core of the arctic North and travel the globe fighting villains. It’s hard to find one staying in any one place for long.”

She again turned to Blizzard Blast. “In an arm’s race with the most evil villains in all Equestria, the Blizzards were forced into developing stunning displays of battle magic. This one we saw here was likely nothing in comparison to this Blizzard’s true capacity.”

“Well, thank you,” Blizzard Blast said, flattered. He then gave a puzzled frown. “What are you six doing here in the forest?”

“Well,” Twilight said, trying to figure out how much to tell him. “Pinkie Pie here is throwing a party together, and - ”

Pinkie Pie finished for her. “I need Zecora’s help. I’m going to prank somepony!” She began to bounce up and down in a blur. Rainbow Dash stuck out her hoof to stop Pinkie Pie from bouncing, but she only drilled a hole into the earth and kept bouncing.

Rainbow Dash laughed. “We’re going to put Poison Joke in the punch bowl!”

Blizzard Blast smiled, just thinking what kinds of things it would do. “Just make sure Fluttershy doesn’t take any by accident,” he replied, chuckling.

Applejack jumped in. “So, wha’ would you be doin’ round here? I mean, we ain’t got a villain here fer some time.”

“Just passing through, really,” Blizzard Blast said with a shrug. “I’ll go set up a tent for the next couple of nights, and then I can meet you guys when you’re done with Zecora.”

“Sounds like a plan,” said Twilight. “We’ll meet you back in Ponyville.” The two groups headed in their own separate directions.

Blizzard Blast, however, had other plans.

Blizzard Blast was meditating a couple of hundred yards beyond Ponyville. It was far enough that the noise wasn’t disturbing him. Breathing deeply through his nose, eyes closed, he concentrated. He concentrated on why he was here. Why he was really in Ponyville.

And a horrible scene played in his mind.

It was supposed to be just like any normal night. A stallion traveled through the thick forest sided by a filly. They were coming home from a very successful night. The filly had made stunning progress since their last practice together. The stallion complimented the tiny pony, who was grinning ear-to-ear. It seemed as though nothing could happen to dampen their spirits.

It seemed.

Out of the corner of his eye, the stallion saw movement. A dark, blue light was seeping into the ground. The stallion knew what was going to happen. He warned the filly and they both ran for the edge of the path.

Then there was chaos.

The stallion had only enough time to pick up the filly and throw him to safety.

Rocks were falling everywhere. The earth began to shift. Then it slid toward the edge of a cliff. There was nothing the stallion could do. The earth slab he was standing on threw him over the edge.

“Dad!” cried the filly. He ran to get a better view of what happened.

The stallion clung to the edge by one hoof. He looked down at the ground hundreds of feet below him, and then back up at his son.

“Listen, son. I don’t know if I will be able to make it out of this.”

“No! Come on Dad, we can work this out.” The filly tried to use levitation to lift his father to safety, but he hadn’t levitated anything as heavy before. His horn only sparked. The terrified filly sank to the ground, breathing heavily.

“Listen, son.” His dad looked again down at the ground.

“Please don’t go, Dad!” the filly was now in tears.

“I’ll be there for you.” The stallion’s last hold on the edge of the cliff gave way. He dropped toward the ground.

The filly turned away, still crying. Blizzard Blast dared not look back at the remains of his dead father.

That was two years ago, during the escape of Nightmare Moon following the Summer Sun Celebration.

Blizzard Blast flinched. His heart ached just thinking about that horrible memory. But everything was going to be okay now, he told himself, now that he was here in Ponyville. It had taken him a long time, but he finally found the killer of his father. And now, she was going to know what his father’s death felt like.

Nightmare Moon.

Blizzard Blast was here to make it right.

“Revenge.” Blizzard Blast breathed the word.

He heard a high-pitched voice off to his left. “Hey guys! I think I heard something! He’s over here guys!”

Blizzard Blast knew the voice belonged to Pinkie Pie. If the Mane 6 found him right now, they would know he had not planned to meet them in Ponyville like he said. He looked around and saw that he was cornered.

He grinned. Twilight wasn’t the only unicorn in Equestria who could teleport.

With a flash and a pop, he was inside of the tent he had set up before he went to go meditate. It was a green canvas pitch-tent supported by a couple of long, thin tree limbs Blizzard Blast had found on the ground. Blizzards like him were typically light packers. He quickly exited and went to meet the Mane 6.

“He’s not here!” Rainbow Dash complained. “Where the heck is that guy?”

“Beats me,” replied Pinkie Pie. “But I know I heard something.”

Walking to her, Twilight said reassuringly, “We don’t doubt that, Pinkie Pie.” She paused for a moment. “Although I would like to learn what it was.”

“What what was?” said a casual voice, turning the corner of a hill behind them. It was Blizzard Blast. He was bombarded by the Mane 6.

“Where were you?”

“We were looking EVERYWHERE to find you!”

“We were worried something might have happened - ”

“You still need to show us how you fought the timberwolves!”

“Okay, girls - ” Twilight tried to calm down her friends, but to no avail. Suddenly she yelled “ENOUGH!” All of them instantly froze where they were. She turned to Blizzard Blast, a look in her eyes pleading an explanation.

“Sorry,” he said, an awkward expression on his face. “I suppose it would have been better if we’d established a rendezvous point.”

Twilight was just annoyed now. “A what point?”

“So what about your party, Pinkie Pie?” Blizzard Blast clearly wanted to change the subject. “Did I miss it?”

Pinkie Pie brightened in an instant. “Of course not! We were waiting for you! Follow me everypony, it’s this way!” She dashed away in a puff of smoke so fast no one saw which way she went.

“Which way?” asked Fluttershy, thoroughly confused.

The cloud of dust settled to the ground and revealed Pinkie Pie standing there the whole time. She laughed. “I got you SOOO GOOOOD!” Turning, she added, “Seriously though, it’s this way!”

The group followed her toward town. Leaning toward Blizzard Blast, Rainbow Dash whispered in his ear, “Since when is Pinkie Pie serious?”

TWO

“Well, I suppose I could show you relative location,” Blizzard Blast thought out loud.

Everyone was at Pinkie Pie’s party. It was a full house this time, and still no one knew what exactly Pinkie Pie was trying to celebrate. Even so, no one complained. Apparently, an excuse to attend a party thrown by Pinkie Pie was what it was. Blizzard Blast and the Mane 6 were all hanging out near the end of the food table, where the punch bowl was. They wanted to be able to see any results that came of their surprise. Ever since they arrived, Twilight had been begging Blizzard Blast to show her just one spell.

Upon hearing this, her interest perked. “Relative location? I’ve never heard of that.”

“That can be expected.” Blizzard Blast shrugged. “There are many ancient arts of unicorn magic that were widely practiced thousands of years ago. As time passed, though, these arts were simply forgotten. Faded into history. Relative location is one of them.

“Relative location is a fun little trick you can use to expand your capabilities with basic levitation magic. Instead of focusing on an object’s absolute position, if you will, you would focus on its position relative to another object. For example - ” Blizzard Blast shut his eyes and his horn began to glow a gentle green. A faint aura appeared around a cupcake on the food table next to them and another around Blizzard Blast. His eyes opened again.

“I am using relative location right now to focus on this cupcake’s position relative to me. As you can see, nothing is happening to it right now, but when another force acts on it - like if you were to levitate it, for example - ”

Taking the cue, Twilight used her own magic to levitate the cupcake about a foot off of the table. In a likewise fashion, Blizzard Blast also began to hover off of the ground by about the same distance. In a small shock of surprise, Twilight gasped and dropped the cupcake. In complete synchronization, Blizzard Blast dropped back to the floor.

“Ah!” he called in surprise as he stumbled from the sudden fall. Recovering, he smiled. The auras around himself and the cupcake faded and vanished.

“See? Relative location, in essence, binds the two objects together. Whenever one of the objects moves in a certain direction, with a certain speed, for a certain distance, the other copies that movement because their position relative to each other stays the same. The other object will also move that same direction, that same speed, that same distance, everything.

“You wanna give it a try?”

“Now?” Twilight asked, clearly doubtful she could do it given no practice.

Blizzard Blast nodded. “Now.”

Twilight nodded uncertainly and concentrated. Her horn began to glow and an aura of a strong red-violet grew around another cupcake on the food table. Another began to surround herself.

“Good. Now, if I levitate the cupcake, you should begin to float like I did.” Blizzard Blast used his own magic and another aura surrounded the cupcake, this one gentle green. The cupcake began to float in the air, but Twilight did not.

Blizzard Blast let the cupcake fall. He shook his head. “I’m not surprised. Relative location may sound simple, but it’s not easy to learn. Even Star Swirl the Bearded spent a week of practice to get it right, and he was even the first to succeed in recovering the spell.

“Let’s try this one more time - I am interested to see how well you can do the second try. Now remember: you must open your mind, open them to the true possibilities of your magic, your true capabilities.”

Twilight nodded and closed her eyes, concentrating. Once more, a deep red-violet glow grew around the cupcake, and another around herself. Saying nothing, Blizzard Blast levitated the cupcake about a half-foot above the table. This time, Twilight also floated above the ground. Blizzard Blast smiled and set the cupcake down. Twilight also came back down to the ground.

She opened her eyes again, knowing she had done it.

“I am very impressed, Twilight. Nopony has ever successfully performed relative location in only two tries. You are truly talented. I think you can count this another spell mastered.”

The next action was sudden and unexpected. Twilight walked up to Blizzard Blast and hugged him. The action was brief, and she pulled away after only a second or two. “Thanks for the lesson,” she said cheerfully, before walking away to enjoy Pinkie Pie’s party.

Puzzled, Blizzard Blast just stood there for a moment, not knowing what to do now. Then Pinkie Pie caught his eye. She bounced into the room wearing a chef’s hat and carrying a plate of cookies. Blizzard Blast trotted to her as she placed the cookies at the food table.

“So, Pinkie Pie, what exactly are we celebrating?”

She paused for a moment. “Well, I don’t know if Blizzards always need an excuse to loosen up and have some fun . . .” She was cut off by something that sounded like an explosion at the end of the food table. They both knew what had happened: somepony had fallen for the Poison Joke punch.

The mare who had fallen for the prank began to vibrate. Floating into the air, she exploded to the size of a giant bubble. Then a powerful current of air expelled from her mouth, shooting her all across the room in every direction. After a moment, she ran out of air and hung in the air for a split second before dropping to the floor, as flat as a deflated balloon.

Pinkie Pie laughed and winked. “. . . but we Ponyville ponies sure don’t!”

Blizzard Blast couldn’t sleep that night.

This was normal by now. Ever since he had figured out the killer of his father was Nightmare Moon, the memory of his father’s death had haunted his dreams. It had costed him many sleepless nights, but he was used to it by now.

This time, though, was different.

Blizzard Blast had taken a liking to the Mane 6. In only the short day he spent in Ponyville, they had already filled his life with so many positive things. Tonight, these things battled the negative things that came of his father’s death. They battled for control over him. They fought relentlessly and the battle was starting to heat up too much for him to handle. Blizzard Blast was confused. He didn’t know what to do.

After nearly an hour had passed of him letting this battle go on, he finally made his decision. His father needed to be avenged. But if he stayed too long, his mission might put his new friends in danger.

Blizzard Blast needed to leave.

After deciding this, he immediately got up and out of his tent. Using his magic, he lifted his tent and folded everything into a small pack. Loading it on his back, he set off into the night.

Travelling through the forest once again, Blizzard Blast breathed in the fresh, crisp nighttime breeze. The surroundings carried the same happiness as it did when he followed the same path to Ponyville the morning before, but he didn’t feel it this time. The death of his father was still haunting him.

“I know what it’s like,” said a voice behind him.

The voice was misty and smooth, with a cascade to it like silk. It was filled with pain, with sadness - and at the same time, with understanding and compassion. It had a depth to it. Its tone was soothing and calming.

Blizzard Blast didn’t care. He knew who owned this voice and it only fed his anger.

Princess Luna. The very mare who had killed his father.

Blizzard Blast stopped dead in his tracks.

The voice continued, taking no notice. “I, too, have lost dear family. I’ve been left alone for a long time. I know how you feel.”

Every sentence just pushed Blizzard Blast farther and farther over the edge. At I know how you feel, he snapped. Leaping high into the air and hanging suspended there for a split second, he slammed into the ground with tremendous force. At the spot on the ground where he landed an ice crystal grew rapidly into a shock wave that sent Princess Luna careening backwards.

“THAT’S A LIE!” In an uncontrollable rage now, Blizzard Blast used magic to expel from his mouth a fierce storm of ice crystals. Just before this storm struck her, Princess Luna teleported just above the blast of cold energy. Seeing this, Blizzard Blast ceased and promptly a huge green beam shot from his horn.

“YOU DO NOT KNOW HOW I FEEL!” Blizzard Blast began firing charges of green liquid at a frightening rate from his horn. Princess Luna was forced to block, using clouds of nightly blue ink to intercept the blows.

Before she could react, Blizzard Blast had again changed tactics. Surging into the air directly at her, he drew a pair of sparkling blue swords out of the air. Edged with a furious green energy, he slashed them both at her shield. The explosion resulting hurled Princess Luna backwards, colliding painfully with a tree. In an instant, Blizzard Blast smashed into the ground and a blue beam rocketed from his horn, freezing her to the tree.

Sprouting from his horn, a ball of violent blue light grew and floated right in front of him.

“BUT NOW YOU WILL KNOW!”

With this, the blue ball shot toward Princess Luna. She shut her eyes tight, waiting for the end. Blizzard Blast stayed where he stood, eyes closed. He couldn’t believe he had done it. His father had finally been avenged. He made it right.

But he didn’t hear a point of impact. He only heard silence.

Blizzard Blast opened his eyes, only to find Princess Luna staring at a figure between them. This figure was holding Blizzard Blast’s projectile suspended with magic. He was a fairly built stallion, with a coat of navy blue and orange eyes. His mane and tail were fiery orange, creating a startling contrast in the figure.

Blizzard Blast was overcome with hope. He had thought this stallion was dead. “Dad?”

Shaking his head gently, a light began to grow from his core. It expanded until it was blinding. Both Luna and Blizzard Blast had to look away. When the light subsided, the stallion was no longer there. He was replaced by a tall figure of golden white, with a flowing mane of all the colors of the rainbow.

It was Princess Celestia.

“I understand your circumstances,” she began, “but that doesn’t give you an excuse to -”

Blizzard Blast couldn’t take it anymore. So many different emotions flooded into him, he couldn’t take it all at once. “Oh, what’ve I done?” He tried to bow, but his weak muscles wouldn’t let him. As soon as he tried, he just crumpled to the ground and bursted into tears.

Pop!

“Another letter?” asked Twilight. She was passing the time with Spike exploring the library in the abandoned Castle of the Two Sisters. “This better not be from Blizzard Blast.”

A week had passed since the accident. All of the Mane 6 had heard the news from Princess Celestia of what had happened. She told them about the fight between Blizzard Blast and Luna, how she interfered, and that both of them were shipped off to the Canterlot Hospital to heal. Twilight was enraged with Blizzard Blast, but she read the letter anyway.

Dear Twilight,

I can understand if you’re mad at me, but I have to ask you to accept my apology and to listen. I almost did a terrible thing that night, I know that. But I wasn’t fully in control of myself.

You need to understand. As Nightmare Moon, she has done something terrible to me. I wanted revenge, and I was willing to sacrifice anything to get it. I know that was stupid, okay? I know it was. But you need to listen. She killed my father.

My father meant everything to me.

I was wrong, Twilight. I let my anger get the best of me. I used to think revenge was my only answer. Thank you for helping me to realize that the opposite is true. Revenge is never the answer.

Please accept my apology, Twilight.

I’m sorry.

Best wishes,

Blizzard Blast

Twilight read the letter again and again with increasing disbelief. Scowling with disgust, she picked up the scroll and tossed it into the fireplace to burn. He’s faking it, she thought. He’s got the nerve to kill a princess, he’s got the nerve to lie to one too. She retrieved a blank scroll and began to write a reply.

DON’T APOLOGIZE TO ME! APOLOGIZE TO LUNA! AND BESIDES, YOU’RE NOT SORRY! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT PAIN YOU’VE CAUSED?! YOU GAVE PRINCESS LUNA FROSTBITE IN ONE HOOF AND YOU’RE ONLY SORRY YOU DIDN’T FINISH HER OFF COMPLETELY! SHE WILL HAVE TO GO UNDER INTENSE PHYSICAL THERAPY BEFORE SHE CAN EVEN USE MAGIC AGAIN!!!

… And so on and so forth, she ranted for a page or so, and decided it good enough. After furiously signing the scroll, she handed it to Spike to send. A short minute afterwards, she received a reply:

Dear Twilight,

I understand if you don’t believe me. You can stay mad if you want, I can understand that. But I must warn you: if you do, you will fall to the same anger that I almost did that night. If it makes you feel any better, I have included in this letter three more spell lessons -

Twilight immediately stopped reading and rolled up the letter. Setting it aside, she began writing yet another letter to chew him out. Halfway through her message, she paused and glanced at the scroll. She did want to learn some more Blizzard spells . . . perhaps just a quick look . . .

She shook her head. “Oh, Twilight, get a hold of yourself,” she muttered to herself. She finished her second letter to chew out Blizzard Blast, and had Spike send it. This time she got a reply almost immediately. Spike unrolled it.

Twilight turned to Spike. “We shouldn’t even read this one. He’s just going to keep bribing me.”

Spike, though, began to read. He gasped. “It’s from Celestia this time!”

“What?” She read it as well.

Dearest Twilight,

I’m very disappointed in what you’ve been writing to Blizzard Blast. I’ll have to ask you not to write him again.

-Princess Celestia

THREE

The night following the receipt of the letter, Twilight decided to go talk to Celestia about Blizzard Blast. She needed to set some things clear.

As she was just about to take flight, she noticed the train pulling up to the Ponyville station just down the road. I didn’t know the train runs at night, she thought. Should probably just go ahead and take the train then. Autumn was rolling in to Ponyville and the nights were rapidly getting chillier. It might be too cold to be flying for very far.

Twilight teleported the rest of the way to the station and found the ticket mare. “One ticket for Canterlot please.”

“Sure thing,” the ticket mare replied as she dug through the drawer for a Canterlot ticket. Attempting to make conversation, she said, “You know, I got one more pony riding to Canterlot too, and that’s it. You two have the whole train to yourselves.”

Odd, Twilight thought. “Who?”

“Dunno. Didn’t tell me.” The ticket mare found the slip of paper and passed it under the window. “There you go.”

“Thanks.”

The train ride was long and boring. Twilight was glad, nonetheless, that she had taken the train, because it had soon begun to rain. The rain was falling hard enough, in fact, that the constant patter on the train roof was so loud she could hardly hear herself think. She had searched the train countless times for the mystery passenger that the other mare mentioned, but she couldn’t find them. It seemed the mystery passenger was always where she wasn’t. Murphy’s law, she thought, I guess. She finally gave up and spent the rest of the ride gazing out the window, lost in thought.

Twilight decided to fly for the castle just as soon as she got off the train. When she exited, however, a shadowy figure got off as well, on the opposite end of the train.

“Hello?” she called. “Who’s there?”

The figure vanished.

Puzzled and more than a little uneasy, Twilight took flight and headed for the main castle. As soon as she got there, she went to the throne room and the guards let her in.

Princess Luna was missing. Probably still healing, Twilight thought with annoyance.

“Twilight?” Celestia asked. “What are you doing here?”

“I thought it would be good to talk with you about Blizzard Blast. In person.”

Celestia walked down from her throne. She paused. “I didn’t like what you’ve been writing to him.”

“He’s faking it!” Twilight pleaded. “I’m just worried this whole thing is a big trick so he could get into Canterlot and take out all of us! Not just Luna, you! me! Cadence! And then . . .” Her voice trailed off.

“He really has changed, Twilight. You haven’t seen his grief like I have. He really thought it was the right thing to do.”

Twilight huffed. “Hardly.”

Celestia paused again. “Remember the pony you were two years ago? All you ever cared about was books. You read of Nightmare Moon’s return, tried to tell everypony. No one believed you.”

“Yeah?” Twilight didn’t see where her mentor was going with this.

“So you tried to stop her return the only way you knew: with books. You thought it was the right thing, correct?”

“Well, yes . . .”

“But it wasn’t really the right thing to do. You were misled. You remember that?”

“What’s your point?”

“Blizzard Blast is going through the same thing right now. Just be patient with him. Cut him some slack. He’ll figure it out.”

Twilight sighed. “I still don’t know if I buy the story, but if it’s what you want . . .”

Celestia beamed. “You were always my best student, Twilight.”

Twilight smiled back. “I had a great teacher.”

There was a short moment of silence.

Emphasis on short. The silence was interrupted by a sharp CLANG! and rapid hoofsteps resounding through the halls outside. Two guards rushed into the throne room. Celestia turned to them.

“What’s happened?”

The guards panted for a moment, and regained their composure. “It’s Princess Luna. She’s . . . gone.”

“What?” Celestia exclaimed. “Impossible! Search the castle!”

Both guards left the hall.

Twilight scowled. “I knew something like this was going to happen! It’s Blizzard Blast, I tell you!”

“We don’t know that,” Celestia replied calmly.

“No, I know what I’m talking about! I saw somepony else getting off the train when I came here. I asked who they were and they vanished! It’s Blizzard Blast!”

“Do you hear yourself, Twilight?” Celestia asked. “Blizzard Blast is in the hospital. He can’t be in two places at once.” She paused. “I thought I taught you better than to jump to conclusions.”

Twilight fell silent for a moment.

She brightened. “Well, I’m heading back by train anyway. Whoever it was, I might just be able to catch them!” She spread her wings and flew out of the hall, leaving Celestia alone.

Celestia smiled again. “That’s my student.”

“Freeze!” Twilight yelled. The rain was still falling hard and strong. Its barrage on her back was unbearable, but she didn’t care. Stopping the mystery figure was all that occupied Twilight’s mind.

The mystery pony was just about to board the train. The figure turned slowly to see who had addressed it. Twilight slammed into the ground in front of it so hard it cracked the cement ground.

“Where’s Princess Luna?!” she demanded. The figure started to back away, but didn’t say anything. It looked to both sides for help, but it was alone.

“RELEASE HER!” Twilight demanded again.

Precisely at this moment, a horn blared loudly. The train was leaving! Checking over its shoulder for a split second, the figure ducked into the train with Twilight following close behind.

But not close enough.

The doors were timed exactly right to let the mystery character inside for refuge, then slam shut in Twilight’s face. The train made the hissing noise of a steam engine, then started to leave the station. Slowly it accelerated until it was gone completely. By the time she recovered, it was out of sight, gone with the wind.

Now getting back to Ponyville was the least of Twilight’s worries.

The next day was the luncheon at Fluttershy’s. She had spent the whole morning and some of the night before just cleaning and preparing for her friends’ arrival. Her critter friends kept pestering her that it was okay how it was, her friends wouldn’t care. Through all of this, Fluttershy was insistent her house look the very best.

Now the time had finally come.

But something, rather somepony, was missing.

“Anypony seen Rarity?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Aw!” Applejack facepalmed. “I was s’posed to invite ‘er and it totally slipped my mind!” She stood up to leave. “I c’n go get ‘er.”

“You’re not going alone?” Twilight also stood. “I’ll come with you.”

“In fact,” Fluttershy agreed, “let’s just all go.”

Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie confirmed their agreement.

A curious scene awaited the group as they crested the hill where Rarity’s street began.

Rarity’s house was surrounded. Judging by the uniforms, they seemed to be members of the Canterlot guard. Three or four chariots were parked around the house.

The group galloped down to the scene. They approached a stallion guard who was scribbling notes down on a small note pad. His back was partially to them. He had a white coat and wore a full set of golden armor, complete with the blue crest on his helmet.

Applejack went first. “So, what the hay’s been goin’ on?”

The stallion made no reply.

Rainbow Dash got right in front of him and stomped one hoof in the ground. “Mind telling us what happened here?”

If he knew they were there, he made no acknowledgement.

Twilight unfurled her wings. “Maybe they’ll only talk to me.” Her friends backed away to let her talk to the guard.

She cleared her throat. “So what’s happened?”

The stallion turned to her and bowed. “Princess Twilight.” Rising again, he removed his helmet and set it to the side. His eyes and mane were both deep blue, and he bore just a touch of resemblance to Shining Armor. “I would be Eagle Vision. We’re just doing some investigating. We have reason to believe that the culprit for Princess Luna’s disappearance is - ” He took a moment to shuffle through his notes - “Rarity.”

“How can that be?” Twilight asked him in shock.

“Well,” Eagle Vision began, drawing something from one of the chariots. He brought it so all five of the friends could see. “we found this on the train.”

It was a fake eyelash, labeled and sealed in a plastic bag.

After peering at it for a short moment, Applejack confirmed. “Yep, definitely Rarity’s.”

Eagle Vision went on, putting the evidence away back in the chariot. “We had some other investigators take a look at it, and they say it’s fresh. Can’t have fallen off before eleven o’clock last night.”

Twilight gasped. “That’s the same time as - ”

“ - As the train’s last departure from Canterlot that night,” he finished. “And we talked around with every guard that was on duty then - there was no other sign of anypony else coming or leaving. Irrefutable evidence - it’s Rarity.”

“Well - ” Rainbow Dash couldn’t argue. “ - well, then, what’s the sentence?”

Eagle Vision shrugged. “Crystal Caverns for life, most likely.”

All five of them fell deathly silent. The Crystal Caverns was the highest-security prison in Equestria.

It was built during a crime wave about a year ago when a team of Canterlot guards discovered the enormous cave systems that ran for miles below the castle. Need for a place to keep criminals was high during the wave, so Equestria built up the money to renovate the space into a top security prison. Most criminals put there were prisoners for life. It is said the warden is secretly a Blizzard, but nopony knows for sure - according to record, he’s never used Blizzard magic in his life.

Fluttershy came forward. “So, does that mean - ” she paused, choking back tears. “Does that mean we’ll never see Rarity again?”

Worry came into Eagle Vision’s eyes. He clearly saw how much these five cared about her. “Of course not. We have her inside - you can come see her right now if you want.”

Twilight sighed with relief. “Thank you so much. We won’t be long.”

Eagle Vision suddenly appeared guiltful. “. . . And . . . we’ll be transferring her to the Crystal Caverns tomorrow. It’ll just be here again at noon - I guess it’d be okay if you came to see her off . . .”

Twilight smiled a sad smile and nodded. She could tell he was trying his best for them. “Thanks again.”

It was later that same day. The weather had taken a drastic turn for the worse. It was once cloudless and perfectly sunny, but as the day had worn on, clouds began together and soon a nasty rainstorm had gathered. The rain, pattering on the window, had pasted a fallen leaf to the glass - another reminder that autumn was upon them.

Blizzard Blast was supposed to be writing. He was in a small study located in the Canterlot central castle. A scroll was spread out on a desk before him, and in the corner rested a small container of ink and a quill. The scroll was a third of the way written on - Blizzard Blast was in the middle of writing another lesson for Twilight. But he couldn’t focus. As soon as he’d heard that Princess Luna was kidnapped, and Rarity was to blame, he lost that ability. He had zoned out again - he was staring out the window at the clouds, lost in thought.

Knock knock knock. The sound reverberated through the tiny room.

The noise jerked Blizzard Blast back into the physical world and he was suddenly conscious of everything. He turned. “Yes?” It was probably just Celestia again.

Indeed it was. The door drifted open and Celestia glided silently and gracefully inside.

“Another letter from Twilight?”

Using her magic to materialize a bound scroll from the air, she replied, “Actually, yes. How’d you know?”

“Lucky guess?” Blizzard Blast accepted the letter and unrolled it. It had no salutation or signature. It only read four words:

I hope you’re happy.

Celestia frowned. “I told her to cut you some slack.”

“It’s alright if she’s mad at me,” Blizzard Blast said pleasantly. “I can understand that. That said, I still don’t like it, but that’s for her sake. Anger is a terrible emotion.”

Celestia said nothing.

After a moment, she cleared her throat. “Well, I should probably let you get to your work.” Heading for the door, she looked back and added, “Feel free to let one of us know if you need anything!”

Blizzard Blast chuckled. “I will. Thank you!” Celestia slipped out and the door shut.

As soon as the door shut, he rushed toward it and pressed his ear to its surface. He could still hear Celestia’s hoofsteps down the hall. The hoofsteps continued for a short moment, until they faded into silence.

Seeing this as his chance, Blizzard Blast concentrated. There was a flash and a pop, and he was down the hall a little ways from the study. He was standing in front of a door. The label to the side read EAGLE VISION. Taking a gulp and gathering his courage, he knocked on the door.

“Come in!” came an immediate response.

Eagle Vision was pacing the room. It was a bit bigger than Blizzard Blast’s study, with two walls lined with bookshelves and a modest chandelier lighting the room. Off to one side was an armor stand, which currently was occupying Eagle Vision’s full set of armor.

Eagle Vision hadn’t seen Blizzard Blast yet. Apparently, he thought he was somepony else. “It just doesn’t add up, Swordpoint. Why would somepony like Rarity be kidnapping a princess? Plus, I just don’t feel good separating her from her friends like that. I think there’s a little more to this case than meets the eye.”

Hearing no response, Eagle Vision looked up. He was clearly surprised to see that it wasn’t his friend Swordpoint. “Sorry. Thought you were somepony else. Can I help you?”

“Actually,” Blizzard Blast began, trying to fight off his fear. “I think I just might be able to help you. Rarity’s innocent, and I know who is really responsible.”

“Really?” Eagle Vision said with hope in his voice. “Who?”

Blizzard Blast gulped. He forced himself to form the words.

“It’s me.”

FOUR

The remaining five of the Mane 6 had all decided to meet an extra thirty minutes early. They had thought Eagle Vision was going to be there, getting done with some final documentations or something, and they’d have a little while longer to see their friend. After all, it was the last time they were ever going to see Rarity -  they had all agreed to make the most of it.

But nopony was there. Rarity’s house, when they arrived, seemed a ghost town. Twilight, at least, thought that this might happen, but she didn’t like it. The group waited in deathly silence for the arrival of Rarity and her escort. The idea of what was going to happen today to their friend hung in the air like a guillotine, sharp and deadly.

Noon had come and passed. Eagle Vision said it would be here at noon, Twilight thought. Doubt sprouted and grew in her heart. Did he just tell her that to throw them off? He didn’t think they were going to try to bust Rarity out - did he? She worried.

Her deep thoughts were interrupted by a gentle click! She and the other four of her friends all turned. That was the sound of the front door. Eagle Vision and Rarity both entered. Tears of joy filled Twilight’s eyes. He really hadn’t lied to them! He really did care!

Rarity quickened her pace at the sight of her friends and went to join them. She looked uncertain and a little scared. Her hair was a little bit out of shape - which told all of them a lot about how worried she had been for this moment.

Eagle Vision stopped and addressed the group of friends. He wore his golden armor and a smile on his face. “I have some happy news!”

Everyone in the Mane 6 looked at him perplexedly. What happy news?

“We’re letting Rarity off! She’s innocent!”

Five huge sighs of relief were let off at once. Rarity still looked confused though.

“I thought none of you believed me. I really hadn’t done it!”

Eagle Vision’s smile grew bigger. “I believed you. It was the guards in charge of the case that didn’t believe you. They have received some evidence pointing elsewhere, though, so they finally bought your story.”

Twilight came forward. “When? Who?”

“Last night. I have the real culprit outside. I already put the disabling spell on him, so he wouldn’t be making any trouble. He requested he have a word with you - alone - before I ship him off to Crystal Caverns, so I’ll be leaving and he can come in and talk with you for a second.”

Upon saying this, Eagle Vision exited. Outside, he could be heard saying, “I’ll give you five minutes.”

“That’ll be just fine. Thank you,” a voice replied.

This had better not be who I think it is, Twilight thought. Anger began to well inside her.

A stallion walked into the room. His bluegreen eyes melted smoothly into his bubbly blue complexion. His mane and tail were the color of the deep sea.

Indeed it was who Twilight thought it was. It was Blizzard Blast.

Twilight lost her nerve.

“YOU GOT SOMETHING TO SAY FOR YOURSELF PAL?!?!”

Blizzard Blast was clearly taken aback.

“YEAH THAT’S RIGHT! YOU RUINED EVERYTHING ALREADY TRYING TO KILL PRINCESS LUNA AND NOW YOU’RE TRYING TO THROW MY BEST FRIENDS IN PRISON!!! IT’S A GOOD THING THE OFFICIALS FOUND YOU OUT!”

“I . . . actually confessed. They wouldn’t have figured - ” Blizzard Blast began. Twilight never let him finish.

“A LIKELY STORY!!!” Veins were beginning to stand out in Twilight’s neck. “THEY DID FIND YOU OUT ON THEIR OWN AND YOU JUST WON’T ADMIT IT! THE MAGIC OF FRIENDSHIP WILL NEVER BE DEFEATED BY THE LIKES OF YOU, YOU - YOU - YOU . . . BLIZZARD!!!

“YOU KNOW WHAT? THAT’S IT! I’M GONNA GIVE YOU A PIECE OF MY MIND - AND I HOPE YOUR READY TO FIGHT ‘CAUSE I AM NOT GONNA TAKE IT EASY!!!”

Twilight’s horn began to glow with a bright light and hummed with a loud, low hum whose pitch was rising quickly.

Her friends intervened. She tried to lunge at Blizzard Blast, but her friends grabbed her and tried to pull her back away from him.

“Cool it down and let him talk!” Rainbow Dash told her. “Didn’t you hear Eagle Vision? He can’t use magic anyway!”

“Yeah,” Applejack agreed. “What he has to say must be really important if he wanted Eagle Vision to leave.”

Fluttershy tried as well. “I’m sure he could explain himself if we give him the chance.”

Twilight finally got a control of herself. She looked at all of her friends. She spoke in a calm and gentle tone this time. “If it’s what you want,” She said. Her horn was still glowing. “But I won’t wait forever.”

“Thank you,” Blizzard Blast told all of them. “Before I start, I just want to say, everything I am about to tell you is one hundred percent truth. I am going to level with all of you totally and completely. You might believe me, you might not - but you have my word: I swear on everything I believe in that during the next few minutes I am going to tell the entire truth.”

All six of them nodded for him to proceed. Where could he be going with this? Twilight wondered.

Blizzard Blast took a deep breath, then waited for a moment. “I’m innocent.”

Twilight’s horn immediately stopped glowing. “What?”

“Yeah,” Blizzard Blast said with a curt nod. “That’s what I thought.”

Twilight was the only one to reply. “I don’t believe it.”

“But if you think about it Twilight,” he continued, “The Canterlot Hospital, where I was staying that night, is completely separate the main castle by the Gardens, yes?”

She was silent.

“I’m sure you remember how hard it was raining?”

No reply.

“Did you see any mud tracks in the main castle that night?”

“Well, there are walkways in the Gardens that don’t have dirt.”

“Impossible,” Blizzard Blast replied. “It was raining much too hard for those to stay clean. At least a little mud would have washed up on them.”

“Well, then, what about Rarity?” Twilight asked.

“Of course she’s still innocent.”

Applejack cut in. “Well, why was she in Canterlot that night?”

Rarity began to have a drama attack. “Oh, I admit! I - ”

Blizzard Blast interrupted. “She was procrastinating some costume designs for some employer in Canterlot. Total coincidence - she was just meeting with her employer for an extension.”

“How did you know that?” Fluttershy asked.

Blizzard Blast turned to her with a creepy stare. “I HAVE POWERS.” This sent Fluttershy ducking behind one of Rarity’s dressing stands. He broke out laughing. “I’m sorry Fluttershy! I couldn’t resist!”

He suddenly stopped laughing and cleared his throat. “Seriously though, I only really knew a piece of the story.” He shrugged casually. “I just guessed the rest of it.”

Twilight came forward. “So why did you turn yourself in? If you’re innocent - ”

Blizzard Blast sighed. “To answer that question, I’ll need to first tell you all a story . . .”

And so he told the Mane 6 the story of his father’s death, two years ago.

The story had come to a close, leaving the room was silence. Blizzard Blast allowed the moment.

Then, he took a breath. It was slow and heavy, like an old man taking his last breath. “My mission used to be to avenge my father. I thought it was right. I thought that revenge was my only answer. All I wanted was Nigh - Princess Luna . . . dead.

“But my stay at the Canterlot Hospital has given me some time to think. I reflected first on how close I was with my father. Our relationship as father and son was deep and powerful. It was unbreakable. We would have died for each other.

“And this thought brought me to think about you six.” The only sound that could be heard was Blizzard Blast. His voice, in the silence, sounded crisp and clear. “Your relationships with one another are deeper even than mine to my father. It has a power. This power binds all of you together and makes you strong.

“That’s when I heard of the incident with Princess Luna’s kidnapping. I knew Eagle Vision was a part of the team for the case, so I asked and obtained the information that Rarity had been convicted. I became worried for all of you. The Elements of Harmony wouldn’t be the same minus one Element. I wanted to help somehow.

“No such relationship as yours can deserve to suffer such consequences, as mine with my father had. So, I made a decision that would change my life forever. I gave myself a new mission. My new mission is this: to protect such relationships from harm,” Blizzard Blast paused. The room was so silent his last words seemed deafening. “ . . . at any personal cost.”

Another moment of silence ensued. It continued for what seemed like hours, until they all heard Eagle Vision’s voice outside saying, “Alright Blizzard Blast! It’s time.”

The five of Twilight’s friends all left, making no sound. Twilight and Blizzard Blast were alone in the house. What happened next Blizzard Blast did not see coming.

Twilight hugged him. This time she let the moment extend. Her hooves felt warm around Blizzard Blast. He smiled.

She burst into tears. “Thank you so much!” After a short pause, she drew away. Her eyes were misty and tears were streaming down her face.

“You won’t have to stay in that place forever, Blizzard Blast,” Twilight told him. “We’re going to find Princess Luna and get you out of there.” She rested her hoof on his shoulder. “I promise.”

He nodded. “There’s . . . something else I learned during my stay at the hospital. I wanted to wait until everypony else was gone so that I could tell you. I’ll tell it to you now in the form of a riddle. That way, if you ever find yourself in need of something to do, you can try your hoof at solving it.”

He was interrupted by the voice of Eagle Vision outside. “Come on Blizzard Blast, we’re on a time schedule here!”

“Coming!” Turning to leave, Blizzard Blast finished his thought. “My riddle to you is this: feeling the cold, and . . . feeling cold . . . are two very different things.”

Twilight didn’t totally understand, but she smiled anyway. “Thank you.” They both exited.

Outside, Eagle Vision was waiting for them. He directed Blizzard Blast to a parked chariot nearby. Blizzard Blast complied with a perfect obedience. It was clear to even Eagle Vision, who had heard nothing of the past few minutes, that he had every intent to stay in prison for the rest of his life.

Twilight watched them flying away in the chariot. They shrank to a dot in the sky and eventually vanished.

She had promised him she would find Princess Luna.

If only she had a clue where to start.

It was evening in Ponyville. Twilight had retreated to the Castle of Friendship to write to Cadence. At least, she was supposed to. Right now, she was watching the sunset. Its beautiful orange glow illuminated the sky. She watched it until the sun finally dipped completely below the horizon, then headed back inside to finish her letter.

Dear Cadence,

I’m assuming Celestia told you about Princess Luna’s kidnapping a few nights ago. My friends and I are forming a search team to help find her. Would you happen to know something that might be of some help to us?

Thanks a million,

Twilight Sparkle

She received a reply only seconds after sending:

Twilight,

Thanks for the heads-up sis. I haven’t heard anything about it until you told me just now. Sorry to say so. It just might be possible the pony responsible has been screening the mail coming in to me. Given the circumstances, I’m sure Celestia would have informed me by now.

Only clue I had to what was going on was a mysterious piece of paper I found in my study the other night. It was clear somepony put it there on purpose. I sent it with this letter, so you could see if that could be some help to you. It’s certainly not doing anything here in the Crystal Empire.

Also, would you happen to have an extra slot on your search team? I would be delighted to join!

If you need anything else, you know where to find me!

Princess Cadence

Twilight read the letter a second time. Mysterious piece of paper? she thought. Sent with this letter? She looked around for wherever it may have fallen out. Then she saw a scrap of paper lying on the floor. Picking it up with her magic, she turned it over a few times. It was made of some sort of ancient parchment - about as hard as cardboard with the texture of sandpaper. She read what was written on it.

There was no signature.

Scrawled on it was only five words that sent chills down Twilight’s spine.

You’ll never see her again.

FIVE

Just as Twilight read this, a bright light flashed to life behind her. She turned around and squinted at it, thinking What the Underworld is this? Its white sheen was blinding - Twilight had to look away.

The light faded and disappeared. In its place stood a tall figure of serpentine form. Its several different features came from all kinds of animals. It seemed to be some sort of strange conglomeration of them all.

It was Discord.

“Huzzah, Twilight, so good to see you again!” he called with enthusiasm.

She chuckled. “Hi, Discord.” With a pause she added, “Do you need something?”

“Actually,” he began. With a snap of his fingers, a piece of crystal jutting out of the wall of the castle teleported to him. He continued, fiddling with it in his hand. “I heard you’re assembling a search team for Luna, so I just thought I’d stop on by, and ask if I could help.”

Twilight was surprised. “Well, sure.” She handed him the scrap of paper. “Do you have any idea what this could mean?”

Distracted, Discord popped the piece of crystal in his mouth. “Rock candy is simply divine!” Seeing the paper, he accepted and read it. He thought hard. “ ‘Never see her again’, hm? Interesting, interesting. Is this our only clue as to where Luna is?”

She sighed. “I’m afraid so.”

“May I ask where it came from?”

“Cadence just sent it to me. She’s in the Crystal Empire.”

“Ah.” He nodded and thought some more. “That’s it! Look at this Twilight. Watch what happens when you replace her with it.”

She looked at him quizzically. “Is something . . . supposed to happen?”

“Have I ever told you what a delicious castle you have?” He was clearly distracted again.

She pretended not to have heard him and repeated herself. “Is something supposed to happen?” she asked again.

“Yes.” He pointed to the paper. “Think, Twilight - a villain, the Crystal Empire, and the phrase you’ll never see it again. Where has all of this happened before?” The way he asked the question, it was clear he already knew the answer and wanted Twilight to figure it out on her own.

She thought for a moment. “You’re - you’re not saying Luna’s in the secret chamber King Sombra used to hide the Crystal Heart - are you?”

He shrugged. “First place I would try. This is our only clue, after all, and that’s just about the only place it points to. Certainly worth a look.” With another snap, the air next to him exploded with a sudden energy and a bluish portal appeared that swirled energetically and created a vacuum of wind that whipped at Twilight’s mane. “Shall I take us there?”

“Let’s get the rest of our team first.”

The portal disappeared. “Good idea.”

“Ya SHORE she’s in ‘ere?” Applejack asked for about the zillionth time. “Seems a bit far to be headed from Cant’rlot.”

“No,” Twilight admitted. She did have her doubts. “But it’s our only lead. It’s not like we have a choice.”

The eight members of Twilight’s search team - Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, herself, Pinkie Pie, Cadence, and Discord - were all gathered inside the central castle. They were trying to decide on their exact plan of action.

Twilight had had to explain to Spike a million times why he couldn’t come - it was simply too dangerous. The last time she let Spike come with her to find the Crystal Heart . . . well, she wasn’t about to let it happen to him again.

She stared wistfully at the carpet that disguised the secret stairway into King Sombra’s realm. “If only I could remember that spell . . .”

Fluttershy turned to Discord. “Could you teleport us in?”

An apologetic expression flashed across his face. “I’m sorry, Fluttershy, I couldn’t if I wanted to. Sombra’s type of magic isn’t exactly up my alley.”

Rainbow cut in. “You mean to say you don’t want to?” she asked with annoyance.

“Mmm, yes and no.” Discord tried to explain himself. “It’s just that us villains just aren’t supposed to interfere with each other’s plans. Even after we turn good - it’s a professional courtesy thing.”

She wasn’t so sure. “What about the time you went to stop Tirek? I’m pretty sure that counts as interference.”

He waved the question away. Literally - a white question mark appeared out of the air and with a wave of his hand, it flew outside and out of sight. “There are plenty of loopholes - especially for former villains like me. It just so happens a situation like this wouldn’t qualify.”

The whole time while they were talking, Twilight was in the background trying to focus. She wore a concentrated grimace and her eyes squinted tightly. Gradually her horn lit up and her eyes suddenly flew open with green flames flying from their edge. The carpet slowly melted away - almost as if someone had spilled acid on it - revealing the secret stairway the group was trying to get into.

The green fire faded away from Twilight’s eyes. “That’s it!” She turned to her team. “Okay, here’s the plan. Since five out of the eight of us can fly, I think we could save a lot of time if we all flew through the course. Rainbow Dash - ” Rainbow came forward - “I would say you, Cadence, and Discord are our strongest flyers. We’ll let the three of you take the last three of us who can’t fly. That way we can all keep up with each other.

“Anything somepony wants to say before we go?”

Pinkie Pie bounced. “I got something!”

“Yes?”

Suddenly Pinkie Pie was wearing a fake moustache.

“No.”

She blew upward and the moustache flew off and drifted to the floor. “Dang it!”

Twilight addressed the rest of the team. “Anything else? No? Alright, let’s go!”

Rainbow was the first one in. She tossed Rarity on her back and dive-bombed downward with a groundbreaking speed. Just before hitting the ground, she spread her wings to slam the brakes. After hovering inches above the ground for a split second, the two landed.

“Not so hard!” Rarity complained. “You’re going to kill somepony doing that!”

Rainbow made a face like Derpy and bumped her off.

The rest of the group soon followed and were all gathered at the bottom floor of the first section of stairway. Standing in front of them was the door that King Sombra had cursed thousands of years ago to open to their worst fears.

Applejack reached for the doorknob. “Well, what ‘er we waitin’ for?”

“No!” Twilight exclaimed. She had forgotten that she and Spike were the only two who knew that the door was cursed. Quickly she regained her composure. “ - I mean, maybe I should handle this.” Her eyes suddenly burst with verdant flames and her expression grew deathly serious. The door slowly and silently swung open.

But a strange sight awaited them.

The path in front of them was supposed to lead to the staircase headed upwards to the top of the castle - the secret chamber Sombra had used to hide the Crystal Heart. And it did. But the path was blocked by a huge formation of . . . something. The substance was clear with a strange purple tint. It was solid and jagged at the edges. And it covered the entire surface of the otherwise open doorway.

Cadence spoke. “Now what could that be?”

“Don’t know,” Twilight replied, almost to herself as she pressed her cheek to the object. She quickly pulled away. “It’s cold.”

Cadence glided to her side for a closer look. “Strange. You don’t think it’s some kind of ice - do you?”

“Not sure. Never seen purple ice before,” Twilight said as she tapped the formation with her hoof. Promptly it began to vibrate and it shook the ground.

“What the - ”

She never finished her statement. Rigidly parts of the object separated and became limbs. Arms and legs sprouted and stomped into the ground and the thing stepped through the door toward the group. As it stood to its full size the creature towered over them, its shadow casting a thick darkness all around them. Its empty eyes stared blankly forward and it raised its arms in attack.

“A . . . golem?” Cadence was bewildered. “But - Sombra never learned how to do golems!”

The beast didn’t seem to care. Balling its two enormous fists together it slammed into the ground in front of the team. The earth shook violently and chunks of the weird purple matter split off of its hands and scattered across the floor. Recovering, the golem roared a terrible roar with a voice like a rockslide.

Twilight panicked. “Ooooh Cerberus, LET’S GET OUT OF HERE!”

Suddenly a huge cage sprang to life around the beast. In an instant it was trapped. Stunned with surprise, it was suddenly enraged and it began to try tearing away at the bars. Nothing it did came to any avail.

“Wha - ” she began.

Discord came forward. “Let’s not forget I have powers over chaos, Twilight.” The cage floated off of the ground and drifted toward him. With a mischievous grin he said, “You seven go on - I’ll keep our little guest entertained . . .”

“I thought you said - ”

Before she could continue, Discord raised his bear paw, coining his thumb and pointer finger into a circle. He mouthed the word, loophole!

With a confused chuckle Twilight led the rest of the team through the door to the second half of the stairway - the half that continued upward to the very top of the castle. “This is it everypony. I think I might just be able to try that gravity reversal spell on all of us - I don’t want to make all of us fly if we don’t have to.” Concentrating, she began to levitate a few inches above the ground, a red-violet aura surrounding her. Abruptly she flipped upside down and slammed into the ceiling as if she were magnetized. It wasn’t until Twilight started to slide away that she realized she was alone.

She turned around to see the rest of the team. The distance between her and them was growing. “Wait, what?” They disappeared out of sight as she turned the corner. “Waaaiiiiitt!” She turned back around to face front, saddened at the thought of being separated from her friends.

“Worked on me,” cheerily said a voice behind her.

Twilight looked over her shoulder. Cadence was following close behind, her multicolored mane flapping in the wind. Twilight brightened. She wasn’t going to have to take on Sombra’s trap alone anymore!

Soon they reached the top of the staircase and she reversed the spell to turn gravity back to normal.

“You came!”

“Well what do you think?” Cadence replied. “Family sticks together!” Her eyes widened, still looking at Twilight. “Oh no.”

Instantly Twilight realized Cadence wasn’t looking at her, but behind. She turned around and backed up, gazing upon the object in disbelief.

There, in the center of the room, in all its glory, the moonlight from outside shining crisply off the smooth, glossy surface, was a mass of purple ice. Frozen inside was none other than Princess Luna.

The sight of it sent chills down their spines. Luna was frozen in a pose like she was leaping into battle and she wore a fearless expression. A beam of inky blue was shooting from her horn, also caught in the statue. Its general model arced forward and to the side of where the two stood.

Twilight carefully approached the statue and gingerly tapped her hoof to the base, as if it were a bomb that might go off. Nothing happened. “Well it’s not another golem - that’s for sure.”

Cadence thought hard. “This doesn’t make sense. What unicorn in the world could pull off this level of magic?” She too approached the figure. “You don’t think we could just smash Luna out - do you?”

Using her magic Twilight materialized a hammer and chisel from the air. Setting the chisel in place - at the base, so Luna wouldn’t get hurt on accident - she raised the hammer high into the air and smashed it down hard onto its head.

The substance hadn’t even taken a scratch.

In fact, if anything broke it was the chisel. It had bent from the force of the collision and even snapped in two.

Twilight picked up the smashed chisel and showed it to Cadence. “What the heck?! This is tempered steel!”

Cadence examined it and thought. “We got to do something.” She began to pace. “Perhaps . . . we could get Discord to help us at least get this to Canterlot.”

“ . . . I guess that’s something.” Twilight looked up at the frozen Princess Luna. “Not really an alternative.”

“Blizzard Blast is innocent!” Twilight pleaded. She was gathered with Celestia, Cadence, Eagle Vision, Blizzard Blast, and the mysterious warden of the Crystal Caverns in the courtyard just in front of the central castle. With Discord’s help, the frozen Luna had been returned to Canterlot (even he was unable to break her free of the purple ice), her guards had returned to their posts, and most general things in the castle were brought back to normal. The only thing that remained to be settled was the verdict of Blizzard Blast, who was previously thought guilty.

Celestia chuckled. “Am I the only one who finds it humorous how much your tables for him have turned?”

“But he is!”

Cadence came forward. “It’s true, Celestia, I can attest to this as well.”

Celestia held up a hoof in a signal to be silent. She still wore an amused grin. “I know he’s innocent.”

A confused look overcame Twilight. “What?”

Celestia continued. “And I know why he turned himself in. A truly noble purpose, if you ask me. However, I’m afraid . . .” she paused, turning to Blizzard Blast. “I’m afraid I will still have to pentalize you for lying to an official.”

He shrugged. “I can respect that.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow. “. . . Exile from Equestia?”

He was taken aback. “Seems a little harsh - but I’d sure take it over Crystal Caverns.”

“Not forever. Just a year.”

He shrugged again.

Celestia nodded and turned to Cadence and Eagle Vision. “I need you two to spread word: if Blizzard Blast is found anywhere in Equestria during the next year, he is to be turned in to authorities to be dealt with.”

She then addressed the warden. “. . . And I’ll need you to escort your nephew here to the Outlands.”

The warden nodded.

Twilight turned to Blizzard Blast. “That’s your uncle?”

He nodded. “Turns out those rumors saying the Crystal Cavern’s warden is a Blizzard are true. He’d be Blizzard Quake.”

Using his magic, Blizzard Quake zapped at the air and a blue portal appeared. It swirled and crackled with an energy and at its center was a picture of the Outlands, a barren desert region with air as still as death. “Any last words before we get going, nephew?”

“Actually, yes.” It was Blizzard Blast’s turn to hug Twilight. “I still need to thank you.”

“For what? I was only returning a favor.”

Pulling out of the hug, he said “Seek wisdom, Twilight.” He trotted to meet his uncle just before the portal. Blizzard Blast turned back one last time. “Equestria!” He gave an enthusiastic salute. “Until again we meet!”

He and his uncle leapt through the portal and vanished.

Three days had passed since then.

Having nothing else to do, Twilight decided to retreat to the library of the Castle of the Two Sisters to study. There was only one problem.

She couldn’t focus.

Ever since Blizzard Blast’s exile, she couldn’t seem to concentrate. Her mind would keep wandering to, she discovered, the Outlands. It was a very dangerous place, and she often found herself worrying about how Blizzard Blast was getting along. It didn’t seem fair that he would have to go to exile just to preserve her own friendship. She didn’t like it.

Absent-mindedly she picked up the book that was laying open in front of her and she noticed something very odd. It was something hiding in the corner, previously hidden by the book. Gazing at it she remembered what it was.

It was the scroll. The scroll that Blizzard Blast had given her a month ago, when he was still at the hospital. The one that had the three spell lessons.

Next to it was another bound scroll. She picked up this one and unrolled it to read.

Dear Twilight,

Very impressive that you found this. Celestia allowed me to write you one more time before I left. In this letter I put three additional spells I believe you could find useful -

Twilight stopped reading immediately and she felt a twinge of excitement. She recalled the last two words Blizzard Blast said to her.

Seek wisdom.

Seems there was more purpose in the message than met the eye.