Sombra. Chrysalis. Discord. Sirens. And now, Starlight Glimmer. Even herself!

It was becoming increasingly obvious to Twilight Sparkle that there was a greater threat to Equestria than she was even aware of. Ponies lived simple, happy lives, depending on each other, and their Princesses.

That was their weakness: Minds and hearts of ponies were too easily swayed. The magic of friendship had triumphed each time, even when all seemed lost. It was like a beacon, shining through whatever spell was cast on her and her friends. Not everypony was as fortunate as her, though. Her recent adventure proved that; if she and her friends hadn't be directed to that town, who knows how many more ponies would have become...equalized? Not to mention, Starlight Glimmer was still out there, with a magic that could do what she once thought was impossible: Take away a pony's destiny and replace it with another. Manipulation on the most base level.

Nor had Twilight forgotten her own misadventures. She still wasn't sure if it was the Elements of Harmony or her own, not fully explored, magical potential, but she had somehow changed her friends cutie marks...and made them forget their own talents. Even before that, she had used a spell to make all the ponies in her town lose their minds over an old doll. Twilight Sparkle was just as dangerous as Starlight Glimmer; in fact, perhaps more, as a Princess.

This was a matter that required immediate attention, but two things held her back. First, the simple knowledge of these arts could turn around and corrupt her (Or perhaps she would even find a form of control she couldn't break free of.). Secondly, she doubted the map was finished with her and her friends. She could not balance these two duties.

In that moment, Twilight Sparkle began to understand why Celestia took her on as a student, and why she was being directed to deal with these threats. She was a Princess. She had subjects who could be where she was not; as much as it pained her to delegate such an important task to ponies who may not even be prepared, she knew it was the only way.

For the next few weeks, she spent half her time travelling around Equestria, and the other half in her castle, going over her notes. She and her friends had fallen together by fate; she suspected that the Elements had linked them together before they knew each other, but she wasn't completely sure. Regardless, she wasn't prepared to take that chance with her undertaking, so she had a list of ideal ponies for her plan.

A hypnotist pony, to be sure. No one knew the ins and outs of a pony's mind like hypnotists. Understanding how a mind worked would be essential for healing it, and protecting it from harm. Finding one she could trust, both in skill and ethics, was difficult, but she finally singled out a talented, kind pony, and she had her first team member.

Next, she wanted a generalist unicorn. She admitted, even to herself, that she felt like this team of hers needed someone like herself, a pony with a wide array of magic and the will to seek out more. That was harder than the hypnotist; there were so many talented unicorns, picking one out was difficult. It wasn't until she realized she was looking in her own age group she was able to get some objectivity. Shortly after that, she found an older unicorn, and along with him, a ranger pegasus. This was of great benefit to Twilight, as she was able to cross off "Physical Defense" from her list.

The last bit was harder to quantify. She had hoped to find it in her generalist, but unfortunately, he didn't have that spark. What she was looking for was a pony with...that quality that she had discovered during Winter Wrap Up. Everypony had something to give to this team, but she wanted a pony who could take those pieces and help them work in concert. She had expected this kind of pony to have a lot of friends, so it was to her tremendous surprise that the two best matches she had were both loners. They were both quite distinct, one of them being a quiet, simple pony, and the other a drifter and (she found it odd such ponies existed) a mare-for-hire. Not of the more...intimate sort; this pony was a problem solver. To be safe, she brought both of them in.

Once she found her ponies, she had invited them to an old, abandoned guard post near Canterlot. This was the moment she had been waiting for. Standing a bit away from the gathered ponies, she was having one of the moments where she actually felt like a Princess. Collecting herself, Twilight Sparkle stepped into view.

"Welcome. I'm glad you all made it. The five of you have been brought here to form a very special…team. A team that will report directly to me, but have the authority to work all on your own.” she looked around at the gathered ponies, unable to keep the smile from her face. This was going to work, she was sure of it. "Welcome to Project Starburst. Spiral Dream, Greymane, Cloud Prism, Angel Grace, and Golden Luck, you represent some of the finest ponies in Equestria."

This was critical; she watched how the ponies before her reacted. Angel Grace, a pegasus one of her choices for the 'organizer role' , along with Spiral Dream, her hypnotist unicorn, seemed to react in the same way, lowering their heads slightly abashed. Golden Luck, another unicorn, and the second 'organizer', put on a look of passive disinterest. It was Cloud Prism, the pegasus ranger, that spoke up after a glance at Greymane, her generalist unicorn; clearly, they had a strong bond. That was good.

"Just what is this project Starburst? What have you gathered all of us here for?"

"I'm glad you asked." Twilight Sparkle said, noting that Angel Grace pulled out the files she had been sent. Following her example, the rest did as well. "You received this files with your invitations. Each of them details a threat to Equestria, more specifically, how ponies minds have been directly affected."

Golden Luck sat a bit more upright. "Wait a second, here. I think I see what is going on here. Ponies have been having their heads messed with, and you're aiming to put a stop to it."

That was one sharp Unicorn; it had been that intelligence that had drawn Twilight to Golden to begin with. Around her, the other ponies were looking at the files; Cloud Prism and Greymane start conversing with each other, and Spiral Dream looked...intensely nervous. Angel just kept her eyes on the files, lingering on a couple in particular. Twilight didn't bother to check which, she suspected the pegasus had her own reasons for examining those files.

"Correct. I'd study it in more detail myself, but...well, as you can see in the introduction to the 'Starlight Glimmer' file, I suspect I will have my own missions. Besides that, I feel this is best directed to a dedicated team, instead of one more pony."

"A single pony would be more vulnerable." Angel Grace spoke up, not looking from the files. "Here, with Discord, and here, with King Sombra, and here, with this other world, it was the bonds of friendship that made their defeat possible." her voice was very...matter of fact, as if she was making a statement on a theory instead of talking about actual events, actual ponies.

"The issue being, we're not friends." Golden Luck motioned around the room. "We don't even know each other. It's a great idea, but there is that little snag."

"Nor were Twilight Sparkle and the other elements, before the Restoration of the Elements of Harmony." Greymane chimed in. It was clear, hearing him speak, he had been considering this at length. Twilight was confident he would bring some stability to the group.

"That's correct. It was actually the journey that helped me to understand the true meaning of Friendship. Once you start working together, hopefully, you'll come to realize it as well. In fact, I have a mission for you now, if you're all in?" she looked around the room hopefully.

The ponies looked around at each other; it was Greymane who raised his hoof first, followed by Cloud Prism. Spiral Dream soon followed, though the expression on her face clearly showed her reservations. Angel Grace also raised a hoof, after a moments consideration, and Golden Luck shrugged.

Twilight smiled at them, lifting a folder much like the ones they already had from a nearby shelf. This one, however, was emblazoned with her cutie mark; it felt so wonderfully official. "Here's what I know. You're free to carry out the mission however you see fit. You report to me, but you have standing permission to disobey any orders I give, according to your best judgement. You're all here because I trust you." she levitated the folder to the table in between them. "This building will serve as your headquarters; inside of that folder are all-access, VIP passes to most forms of transport." Being a Princess did have its perks.

It didn't surprise her that it was Angel Grace who picked up the folder; the pegasus seemed to share her fondness for reports and paperwork. It's a shame she wasn't a unicorn, and therefore unable to use the Spell of Sending. Speaking of which, she picked up one of a set of two rings, giving it to Greyhoof. "This will allow you to send reports from the field to me. It's not as quick as using, say, a dragon, and it's limited to when we're both wearing rings. I'll put on my ring for fifteen minutes every twelve hours, starting from eight in the morning, Ponyville Time, tomorrow." With that out of the way, she nodded at her team.

"I'm going to return to Ponyville; I wish you all the best success in the coming days. If you need anything else...well, just look for the big castle." she laughed a bit, headed out the door. They'd do fine, she was sure of it.

Author's Note

Given all my Bad End Stories, I thought it was high time to launch my heroic one.
Only time will tell if this ever updates.