.hack// Pony Protocol

by Shaq-of-All-Trades

Rating: teen
Tags: Tragedy, Adventure, Princess Celestia, Crossover, Main 6, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Other, Spike, King Sombra
Length: 26473

A mass gaming craze hits Equestria, but there is more to it than meets the eye.

When a mass gaming craze hits Equestria, everypony rushes to get in on it. Apparently a new company known as C. C. Corp releases a game known simply as "The World". It gets a good reception, and soon is a thriving franchise. But after a while, The World became less peaceful, as more and more ponies began to take to "PK'ing". Though it is somewhat managed by the admins, it leads to a secondary action called "PKK'ing".

Twilight Sparkle, who was immune to the gaming fad longer than most due to her love of books. But when all her friends ask her to join, she can't refuse. As soon as she begins playing, she meets with two others, who will forever change how she plays the game.

Twilight becomes a famous PKK known simply as "The Terror of Friendship," and actively seeks weak players to protect. But when one of her friends falls into a coma, she turns all her attention to seeking out the perpetrator, a PK who apparently goes by "Tri-Edge". But after finding and taking on the player Twilight assumes is Tri-Edge, she is beaten, and returned to a level 1 player. What happened during Twilight's battle? Who is this mysterious player? Why are more and more ponies falling into comas?

A .hack// Crossover

Published 2012-12-17 06:30:01 UTC
Last updated 2013-01-08 01:55:49 UTC

The First Coma and the Tri-Edge

9 Months Later

Twilight was there when it happened. The day Fluttershy fell into a coma. The day she was PK'ed by somepony referred to as "Tri-Edge." The day everything fell apart so horribly, Twilight doubted they'd ever be right again. The memory hurt, and Twilight clenched her eyes shut. She wasn't going to cry. She'd already shed too many tears.

She opened her eyes and looked at the large building before her. The Grand Hullz Cathedral, a church relevant to the game's lore (which had intrigued her so much initially), seemed to look back at her, beckoning her to enter. It had been one month, but the event that occurred here still left fresh wounds on her heart. Fluttershy, kind, benevolent Fluttershy, struck down by some strange ability, and never waking up again. Fluttershy, who never fought any of the creatures and somehow managed to befriend them. No manner of magic nor medicine had been able to revive her, and not long after, more and more ponies had begun falling into these strange comas. Twilight had done all she could, but their team, 'The Elements of Harmony,' had fallen apart. Now, only one thing was on Twilight's mind...

Revenge.

She burst through the doors, the sound reverberating through the empty halls. An ivory pedestal, with the mark of Tri-Edge, was all that greeted her. She strode in, her hoof-steps echoing endlessly in through the shadows cast by the eternal twilight of this place. She looked about, scanning for anything, anything, that would give her a lead to the pony's whereabouts. But there was nothing here, nothing, nothing, never anything. Nothing that first day, nothing the day after, and probably nothing since she'd given up 'The World' for the month. She looked everywhere, but only found simulated dust and shattered hopes. "Oh Fluttershy... I'm so sorry. I just, I-" she said piteously, when an eerie blue glow was cast. Twilight's head shot up, and she turned to see an orb of azure fire bouncing behind her through the air.

Before she could react, Twilight was blasted away by a wall of flames, into the door of the cathedral. When she managed to get up, she saw a single pony standing before her. It turned and looked at her, and her vision began to turn red.

"You..." she said slowly, the memory coming back in full force. The empty look in the pony's eyes seemed to focus on her. It tilted its head, as if unsure what to make of her. Twilight's vision began to blur through tears and anger. This was the pony who had struck down Fluttershy. THIS was the pony responsible for the tear in her friendship. This was the pony who ruined everything!.

"I'll destroy you!" Twilight shouted, drawing her daggers and rushing forward. Time seemed to slow, as the pony drew two daggers which opened to reveal three blades each. Her temper flared at the site, and she struck out. Her blow was blocked with ease, and she struck out several more times, none being more successful. She leaped back, and put away the daggers, and drew her broadsword, the blades along it dancing. She rushed forward and struck, driving with all her might. Tri-edge simply stood there, not even phased. She pushed harder, and harder, when she was blasted backwards with a flaming strike. Her sword slipped from her grasp, and she noticed her health had dropped quite a bit. She looked at the pony as he calmly walked towards her.

"Wha-what are you?" she asked. The pony said nothing, only coming closer. 'This pony,' she thought darkly, mustering up her strength, 'This pony hurt Fluttershy!' Twilight drew out her final weapon, a dangerous looking scythe, and prepared to strike when her screen flashed and her weapon broke. "Huh?"

Before she could react, Tri-Edge placed a hoof to her face and blasted her with fire. She struggled to stay standing, her health nearly depleted. Tri-Edge held his hoof up, and light began to swirl around it. Twilight found that looking at it made her head spin. The lights slowly solidified, then formed what looked like a cannon. Several blades of light spun behind it, and it glowed darkly. Twilight felt a sense of dread, and tried to back away, but her controls didn't seem to work. An orb shot out, hitting her dead in the chest. Twilight screamed, her actual body ablaze with pain. her vision faded to black, and she passed out onto the floor, a strange warmth blanketing her...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Twilight awoke and noticed that she was still playing 'The World.' She took a moment to try remembering what happened, when she noticed her character. Something was wrong; something was horribly, horribly wrong. She was once more a level 1, and all her game addresses were gone. Her equipment, her spells, her abilities... Everything. Gone, like a fickle wind on an autumn day.

Twilight turned off the game, and went to lie down. Something had happened, and she wasn't sure what. She thought about looking for Spike, but he was probably still in Canterlot, attending to a request from Princess Luna. It seemed that Celestia was feeling under the weather lately, and Luna wanted Spike to help with her recovery. She would have left to do something with her friends, but nopony wanted to really talk much ever since what happened to Fluttershy. They didn't say, but she secretly figured they thought her responsible since she was the last one with her while she was conscious. A sing;e tear fell down Twilight's cheek.

"Don't worry... I'll figure something out," she told herself softly, before falling into a dreamless sleep.

A New Beginning

The next day, Twilight decided to try 'The World' again. She had spotted AJ earlier, but the orange pony had avoided her with unhidden disdain. Twilight felt her heart break a little more at it, and the freedom of 'The World,' as well as the need to find the pony known as Tri-Edge, called out to her despite her trying to resist it. As the game started up, she tried to determine what had happened. Her character had indeed been reduced to level 1, and all that she had gained was suddenly gone. It would be impossible to handle Tri-Edge as she was.

"This is so... so..." she screamed in frustration. A distance away in Canterlot, Spike shivered. Twilight finished letting out her anger, and felt a bit empty. There had to be a way for her to put the shattered pieces of her life back together. When her character appeared, she took a moment to look around the chamber in nostalgia. It had been a while since she had last seen this beginner area. Two ponies approached her, and she turned defensive. "What do you want?" she asked with barel contained annoyance. Memories of her first time in the game hit her hard like a stone to the flank. One of the ponies flinched, but the other simply grinned from behind her shades.

"Well, that's not too nice! Thought you'd be a bit nicer to the pony who played your bro's wedding... for free." Twilight's eyes widened slightly as recognition kicked in. It was Vinyl Scratch, aka DJ Pon-3. The unicorn's character had strange black armor that glowed at certain points like neon, and rings of the same nature. Her signature shades were fashioned like goggles, and her electric blue mane sizzled with sparks, her grin like a manic pony's. By comparison, her companion seemed much more sensible and elegant, wearing a simple white gown and a small hat. Her gray mane was orderly, and Twilight felt she'd get along with Rarity dazzlingly. "So you're finally playing, huh? Well, lucky for you,me and Octavia here love to help new players. Part of our guild's motto. We also take in new members of all varieties... Mostly since we only have three at the moment."

Octavia, the other pony, elbowed her in the side. "Vinyl, what did we say about discussing guild business?" Twilight held in a chuckle, but still kept her wits about her. Just because somepony knew her meant nothing. Twilight started walking to the Chaos Gate when Octavia called out to her. "Wait! Don't you need any assistance? We really are good at helping new players."

Twilight sighed. "I'm not a new player, ok? I'm the legendary PKK. haven't you two heard of me? 'Twilight, the Terror of Friendship?'" The two ponies looked at her and started laughing at the top of their lungs. Twilight gritted her teeth. "I wasn't joking."

Vinyl looked at the purple unicorn, and wiped at her eye. "You, the legendary PKK? Yeah, like I'd buy that. Besides, wasn't that pony's name 'TwiBright' or something? I mean, come on! You're a level 1 for pony's sake."

"You really shouldn't use other people's titles," said Octavia with a small smile, laughter still in her eyes. "That pony has some pretty strong enemies, and they wouldn't mind taking it out on you." Twilight rolled her eyes. She was on the verge of walking off, when the two ponies gave her their game addresses. "Come now, let us help you. What' the harm?"

"Fine, fine, where do you two want to go?" Twilight asked as she added them to her party. Vinyl had an impressed look on her face (as far as Twilight could tell; those goggles were really good at hiding expressions), and Octavia tilted her head. "What is it?"

"Just the first time I've seen a newb who knew how to add players to their party. Power to ya sister!" siad Vinyl with gusto. "Now, to go to different areas, we use the Chaos Gate behind you by-"

"By saying code words, yeah, yeah, I already know," Twilight said with no enthusiasm. "Now, where should we head? I kind of have things to do..." Vinyl pouted a little, then walked to the Chaos Gate. Twilight heard her say Delta Cascading Waterfall Pit, and they were suddenly in a dark cave. Waterfalls cascaded down on all sides, and the platform they stood on had only one direction. It was difficult to see in the darkness.

"So, this is a dungeon. Dungeons only have the mission, "Get the Treasure," so we won't have to fight all the monsters if you don't want to. However, we will need to get in a fight to teach you the basic combat controls." Vinyl started moving down the path, with Twilight directly behind her, and Octavia bringing up the rear. The trio did not have far to travel before they spotted a small mask-like monster floating. "Ready to throwdown Twi?" Vinyl asked. Twilight was already rushing past to start the battle. Vinyl and Octavia sighed, then moved to join her.

Twilight savagely attacked at the monster, ending the battle before either of the others had a chance to join in. "Well," Octavia said stunned, "I see she knows how to fight well enough. Maybe she isn't new?" Vinyl nodded her head, then thought of something.

"Hey Twi! Ever hear of a rengeki?" When Twilight shook her head, Vinyl smiled smugly. "See, Tavi? Totally a new player." She turned back to Twilight. "Well, in the next fight, watch the monster closely. If you hit it enough within a set time, it'll light up like a stage. Then, you use a skill and do extra damage. Even scores ya some bones XP."

Twilight looked away, hiding the shock on her face. She had never heard of rengeki's, and the fact that somepony like Vinyl was the one to tell her made her blood boil. "Let's just hurry up and finish." They delved deeper and deeper, before reaching the final chamber. Twilight slowly moved towards it, then paused. Events were playing out too similarly. She turned and looked at Vinyl and Octavia, who both had smiles on their faces. The sight disarmed her. They made their way into the chamber, and Twilight eyed the treasure chest warily. "Do either of you want this?"

"Why, that would be terribly unfair," said Octavia, "We came here to help you out, though, you proved you didn't really need us. The treasure is rightfully yours."

"Besides," Vinyl added in with a big grin, "Whatever's in there would suck for us. We're not as low in level as you, remember?" Octavia hit her on the head, and the pony simply smiled harder. Vinyl raised her goggles, looking at Twilight with a surprisingly cute expression. "But seriously, take it. If you really are that legend, then you'll need to get back to your old self. You're not exactly intimidating right now..." She pulled down her goggles and motioned at the chest. Twilight, who felt her heart waver at their heartfelt words, opened the chest and got new daggers. She equipped them and looked back.

"Thanks... sorry I've been kinda rude. Things have been tough lately." She was shocked when Vinyl leaped and hugged her.

"Aw, it ain't no thang! We've heard way worse. You'd be surprised how rude ponies can be, especially those ponies from Kestrel. They hate us like crazy." As soon as the words left her lips, a stamp rung through the chamber, frightening the three mares. A voice, laced with unhidden disdain, called out from the shadows.

"You're right we do. You ponies give us PK's an annoying time. You wonder why your guild has so few members; it's because you're weak, pathetic little nothings." A pony stepped from the shadows, with two others following close behind. "And if it isn't my favorite PKK, Twilight Sparkle. How have you been? We thought it was you, but we weren't sure since your level was so low. To think, one of the legendary 'Elements of Harmony' is now a low-level nothing. Revenge is going to be sweet indeed!"

Twilight took a step backwards as she recognized who it was. The one pony she had hoped to avoid as long as possible. The one who hated her more than any other. the pony who she had bested so many times, and who always sought revenge, without success. And now she was here, and Twilight was too weak to stand even an inkling of a chance.

"Trixie."

Uncertain Friendships, Uncertain Friends

Trixie smiled darkly. "Yes, Twilight Snarkle, it is I, The Great and Powerful Trixie! And I'm here to settle a little debt between us. Trixie is going to have fun taking you down a peg." The blue pony's character was similar to her, except instead of her usual magician get-up, she had spiky, slightly uncomfortable looking pieces of armor. She pulled out a curved blade that was also spiked, and Twilight had no problems imagining it cutting into her character. Vinyl and Octavia backed away slowly.

"Whoa... so you really weren't joking," said Vinyl hesitantly. "Sorry about the jokes... you don't think you can take them out, do you?" Twilight shook her head, never taking her eyes off of Trixie. The mare was halfway to the group, when Twilight heard a voice call out.

"Where are you?"

"What the- did either of you say anything?" Both the ponies shook their heads, and Trixie chuckled.

"Hearing things, are we? Maybe it is simply your own cowardice. Trixie always knew you were a coward at heart." Twilight gritted, when the voice spoke out once more.

"Where are you, little one?"

Inside her chest, Twilight could feel a bulge of energy. The feeling was like pure ecstasy, and she soon felt herself encouraging it. The power started to swell more and more when the Chaos Gate burst with light. Rarity stepped forward, and stood between Twilight and Trixie. "Miss Trixie, I believe you should leave. Now."

"And do you, Little Miss Marshmallow, think you can defeat The Great and Powerful Trixie?" the enraged blue pony demanded. Her glare could shatter glass, and Twilight continued to feed the power within herself. Rarity tilted her head, smirking at Trixie.

"As a matter of fact, I do believe that I could handle you quite easily; however, I do not like dealing with scum," Trixie growled at the statement, "Which is why I have informed Moon Tree of your intentions. I do believe your guild and theirs has a very interesting history, no? So if you don't wish to have several of their members pay you a visit now, I suggest you find another area to occupy. Immediately." Rarity calmly watched as Trixie backed off, and ran back into the dungeon. Snips and Snails, who had watched the entire exchange, galloped after their leader with haste. Rarity turned and looked at Vinyl and Octavia. "I'm dreadfully sorry you two, but may I speak to Twilight in peace? There is some rather sensitive business we must discuss. Need to know basis only I'm afraid. Don't worry though, I'll more than make up for it later."

Vinyl looked to Octavia, who gave a tentative shrug, then the two exited the area. Twilight and Rarity stood in awkward silence, both waiting for the other to begin. Twilight was the one to break the silence. "Thanks for the help Rarity... but I could have handled Trixie on my own." The power she had felt had already ebbed away, almost like a fading memory. She tried to feel for it, but Rarity spoke up.

"Twilight darling, I know things have been rather... strained as of late, but know it was not without reason. There is much you are not aware Twilight; 'The World' is not simply a game. It is much, much more. And this world needs our help Twilight... especially yours. If you could just come with me-" Rarity cut off when Twilight stamped her hoof to the ground. The sound echoed throughout the chamber, ringing in their ears.

"You think that after abandoning me, you can just walk in here and say 'Let's be friends again,' like nothing happened?!" Twilight's heart began to harden once more. "Look Rarity, it'll take a lot more than you getting rid of Trixie to mend our friendship. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm busy." Twilight stormed off, and Rarity pouted her lips. The white unicorn sighed, then turned to Twilight.

"Listen Twilight... I know you're feeling hurt, abandoned. I mistreated you; we all mistreated you. For that, I apologize. But things are happening, and sooner or later, you're going to have to forgive us, or at the least, you'll have to deal with us. There is a power within our characters, a dangerous power. I could see it in your eyes when I arrived and you were going to face off with Trixie. That power is not to be trifled with, for it is not like our magic; no, this power is even stronger than that, and can deal much harm to many ponies. Just think about what I've said Twilight. We'll see each other again soon, and hopefully, under better circumstances."

Twilight activated the Chaos Gate, and stood still. Her legs were trembling with concealed emotion. But she did nothing, said nothing, simply stood there and waited for it to pass. When she thought she was alright, she looked around. Neither Vinyl nor Octavia was around, so she figured they had gone to deal with other business. She checked and confirmed that they had both left her party, though Vinyl had left her a message saying "Let's rock out together some other time!" Twilight smiled at the pony's silliness. She was so distracted by the message that she didn't notice until it was too late that somepony was rushing towards her. She closed the message and was immediately bowled over and embraced tightly.

"TWILIGHT!!!" cried Spike, the purple dragon hugging her neck fiercely. She managed to get him off, and patted his head. "Twilight, I missed you so much! You didn't reply to any of the letters I sent, and I thought something was wrong. I just got a message from Rarity saying you'd be here and I could talk to you!"

Spike smiled up at Twilight, his silvery armor shining brightly. If Twilight remembered correctly, he was an Edge Punisher, a character that could use the heaviest armors and weapons. Though it looked natural on him, Twilight had a hard time imagining the real Spike in such heavy gear. She was glad to see him though. She needed a friend right now, and he was the only one she felt she could talk to.

"Oh Spike, I'm so glad to see you-" Spike pulled Twilight over to the Chaos Gate frantically. "Um, Spike? Heartfelt speech going on."

"Sorry, Twi, but I wanted to go on an adventure! I don't know when Celestia will need me again, though, to be honest, it seems all she does is sleep and play 'The World.' I never see her though, interestingly enough. Hey, add me to your party!" Twilight told Spike that all her game addresses were gone. "What?! That's nuts! What could've done that? Ah, it doesn't matter. I'll just resend it to you. Now, we're gonna head to this awesome area I found. It's got some of the best scenery in the game! It's at Delta Soaring Phoenix Feather."

Twilight sighed, then said the words. In a flash, they were at a field, but unlike one Twilight had seen before. This field was beside the ocean, with a large cannon in the background. A passage from the game's lore kindled in her mind:

'The Sentients had grown tired of the gods, tired of their interference in their lives. Banding together, the Griffon Tribe, the Pony Tribe, and the Dragon Tribe began work on their greatest weapon: the Celestial Cannon. The structure was as sickening as it was beautiful: a device designed purely to murder those said to be undying. On the day of its completion, the gods rebuke the Sentients, preaching that they had grown impudent and overzealous. They told that if the Sentients went through with their plan, then their world would fracture and be filled with unrest. But the Sentients would not give in. A terrible battle took place, and many fell. In the end, the Celestial Cannon fired, and the gods fell. On that day, the world split into pieces upon pieces, day and night being set in place, never changing. Many of the once peaceful beasts grew violent, and the Sentients realized the folly of their pride. They spent their time, harnessing the power which had filled their destructive creation, and used it to form the Chaos Gates, connecting the pieces of the world. Among the tribes, new leaders were born, gods from mortal flesh. From the Dragon Tribe rose Ancalagon the Black; from the Griffon Tribe rose Starcrest the Golden; and from the Pony Tribe rose the sisters Celestia of the Sun, and Luna of the Moon. These leaders did not take power, nor intervene as the old gods. Instead, they simply lived with their tribes, helped them progress, and in time, united them. And so, 'The World' began anew.'

Twilight shook her head from her reverie, only to see Spike gazing at her in awe. "Wow, Twilight. You can actually recite the lore from memory. That is so cool!" Twilight blushed. She hadn't realized she had been speaking aloud. She turned to look at the actual area. The large stone building in the distance showed that it was a 'Find the Treasure' mission. She looked to Spike.

"So, Spike, ready to get hunting? I need to get stronger if I'm going to help Fluttershy." Spike tilted his head and looked at her strangely. "What is it?"

"Nothing, nothing," Spike muttered, and headed off. Twilight trotted along behind him, and they started looking for monsters to fight. The pair found a few golems loafing about, and looked each other in the eye. "Piece of cake, right Twi?"

"Please, Spike, I could handle these in my sleep," Twilight joked. With incredible speed, the two of them defeated the golems, and were in search of more monsters. As they fought, Twilight felt all the tension she had been feeling begin to slip away. It felt as if the darkness in her heart was gradually fading. Spike finished off the last monster, a bat-like creature with a scroll, then the two heard the stone doors opening. "Time to get our reward, Spike." Twilight trotted to the building quickly, and Spike followed at a more restrained pace. He managed to get to the treasure room as Twilight was holding the treasure. She moved to him and gave him a hug, then started for the Chaos Gate when Spike heard a high-pitched noise, like a tuning fork.

"Hey Twilight, wait! I just heard something outside!" Spike raced to the sound, and Twilight had to gallop to keep up. When the two went outside, they moved to the back of the stone building, and saw a Tri-Edge symbol slashed into it. "What the-? This wasn't here before. Hey Twilight, do you know what this is? Um. Twi? What's wrong? Why do you look so upset?"

Twilight couldn't believe her eyes. Tri-edge had been right here. Probably only moments ago. And she had been simply running around with Spike, as if she didn't have a job to do. As if everything had went back to normal. She gritted her teeth, then pressed her hoof to the mark. As she mentally reprimanded herself, the symbol began glowing ominously. Spike backed up, and prepared to run away when the two of them were sucked in. Twilight opened her eyes and saw they were in a new area. It was a large cave, and the symbol was behind her in the wall. Spike held his head, complaining her was going to be sick.

"Where are we?" he asked when he had recovered. Twilight just shook her head, and moved forward. Spike followed, and gasped in awe at the sight before him. The cave they were in housed a small lake, and housed on a small island was a beautiful ebony white willow. It softly swayed, as if to a ghost wind. Twilight was just as awed, and didn't notice until Spike pointed it out that they weren't alone. "Hey, Twi, there's a pegasus over there! She looks kinda familiar..."

Indeed, a pegasus was flying lightly above the water, playing with a small crop of black bubbles. Twilight didn't focus on the bubbles, so much as the pegasi. The character indeed looked familiar. When the pegasus flew closer to the tree, the light coming from it revealed the rainbow mane and tail. "Rainbow Dash?! What's she doing here? And what is she holding?"

Rainbow Dash turned, and looked at the duo with empty eyes. She flew off, not acknowledging them in the slightest. Twilight rushed to see the mare, and Spike followed closely behind, when a roar tore through the chamber. A giant monster, similar in nature to a jellyfish, rose from the lake. It seemed to look at them despite having no eyes, and it sent two tentacles at them. Twilight and Spike drew their weapons, prepared to retaliate, when a voice called out.

"Don't let 'em touch you!"

Twilight, who was able to react faster than Spike, pushed them both out of the way of the tentacles. From behind, a mysterious character leaped forward in front of the creature. "Come on out, Magus!" The mare began glowing green, and Twilight watched as a strange, giant, puppet-like creature surrounded her. It looked somewhat like a dragon, with a long tail replacing its legs. It opened its arms, and a wall of energy appeared before it. It shot out an orb of energy which hit the jellyfish-monster, and then appeared to drain its essence away. Within seconds, the creature disappeared, as well as the puppet-like one surrounding the mare.

"Tha-Thank you," Twilight mumbled, then let out a gasp when the mare turned. "Applejack?! What in the hay are you doing here? What was that creature? What was that power you just used?" She got up and confronted her friend, while Spike still tried to recover. Applejack looked at Twilight with a light smile. Twilight's mood soured more. "Why are you smiling?! I thought you didn't like me anymore! I mean, you did just blow me off yesterday; or did you forget that?"

Applejack put her hoof on Twilight's shoulder. "I cans explain everything Twilight. You'll just have to trust me. Meet me outside; I have something to give you." Applejack walked off, leaving Twilight with more question than answers. She helped Spike, then they went back the way they came. Placing her hoof on the Tri-Edge symbol, they were once more teleported to the field, behind the stone building where the treasure had been. Applejack was there to meet them.

"Here you go, Twi," AJ said, handing (hoofing?) Twilight a key to a guild's @home. "That goes to the guild, Raven. Visit when you get back to Mac Anu, and everything that's happening will be explained, I promise." She teleported out, and Twilight stamped her hoof, kicking up a large patch of dirt.

"Why is everypony being so difficult?! Why can't they just answer my questions or talk to me like normal?!" Spike patted her flank, and she turned on him. He backed away slowly.

"Come on, Twi. You shouldn't stress out so much. Maybe you could just slow down, take things easy and enjoy the scenery-"

"Slow down? SLOW DOWN? How can I slow down Spike? Fluttershy is in a COMA, all my friends have abandoned me, and now three of them are acting bonkers! And then you, all nice and cozy in Canterlot, you have the nerve to ask me to slow down? When I'm probably the only one who can save Fluttershy?!" Twilight drew her daggers and turned to a stone pillar. She began hacking away at it in a rage. "And stop talking about the scenery! Its nothing but an invention by some ponies that they thought looked nice! It doesn't matter sat all. You just sound like Fluttershy!"

Twilight slowly calmed, then turned to Spike. "Go, Spike. I don't feel like seeing you right now." The little dragon, with tears in his eyes, ran away and teleported out of the area. Twilight, alone with her cloudy thoughts and broken heart, simply stared at the sky, wondering if the Sentients had felt as she did when they killed their gods. Did they feel as empty? Did they wish things could return to normal?

Did they wish the pain would just... disappear?

Of Secrets and Lost

Twilight, upon returning to Mac Anu, made her way to the guild area. She held up the key, and placed it in the door. There was only one @home per Root Town, but different keys allowed access to different @homes. The Raven guild's @home seemed rather sparse, and nopony was there to greet her. Twilight looked around, then decided to move deeper into the space. She walked up the stairs in the corner, then made her way towards the hall. Her mind wandered as she walked, her thoughts drifting eventually to what she had said to Spike. She had been too hard on him when all he was trying to do was make her feel better. She had no idea what had come over her. It was as if something inside her just wanted her anger, wanted her pain. A shadow seemed to pass through her thoughts, but before she could focus on it, an orb glowed before her.

"Huh?" she mumbled, before the silhouette of a character was outlined behind the orb. "Who are you?" The character turned, and looked at Twilight from behind tinted glasses. It took Twilight a moment to realize that the character wasn't a pony, nor a dragon or griffon.

"And here she is, rude and demanding; you're not in the position to make such requests from where I'm standing." The figure moved closer to the orb and placed her hoof it. She lightly touched the orb, and the room filled with glowing screens. A giant revolving snake which appeared to be eating its own tail (Ouroboros, if Twilight remembered correctly) stood behind the character who Twilight had come to recognize. There was only one Twilight knew who spoke in rhymes living in Equestria.

"Zecora?!" Twilight asked incredulously. "Why are you here? Where is AJ? She said she'd meet me here..." Twilight heard a sound to her right and left, and backed up to see Applejack and Rarity stepping from either side of Zecora's platform. Twilight bent low, cautious of their intentions. It felt like a trap, and she wasn't prepared to handle three on one. Zecora raised her hoof, and Aj and Rarity stopped. Twilight looked at her warily. "What's going on here?"

"Ah, I see you still have questions to ask; the answers I shall reveal, but accepting is no simple task," Zecora warned. She held up her hoof to the orb again, and suddenly a large screen appeared behind her. It showed a map of Equestria, then began to flash with dots. Twilight tilted her head in confusion. "On this map is a secret most sullen, for it shows those who have fallen. Though the scale has not yet become dire, for it to reach that point is not our desire." She moved her hoof, and suddenly images of different characters flashed on the screen. Twilight instantly recognized one of them.

"Fluttershy!" she cried out.

"Yes, your friend most dear is mentioned here. She, like others, has become a victim. And we somewhat know what has caused this symptom." Zecora spun the orb, and suddenly an image of Tri-Edge appeared. Twilight felt her anger well up like a volcano. "As you know, this character is suspicious; always at the scene of the crimes, we feel his intent is malicious."

"We believe he is either an aspect of or carrier of AIDA, an acronym for Artificially Infectious Discord Anomaly. It has been given this title because the aspects are wide and varied, and those who become infected either fall into comas or become mentally unstable." Rarity continued. "This player, "Tri-Edge," has been rather difficult to track; however, we have been putting in massive efforts. For you, Twilight. We believe he may be a key in waking Fluttershy, as well as the other Lost Ponies, from the coma they've been inflicted with."

Twilight lowered her head, then began to laugh. Her laughter grew and grew, growing more and more hysteric. AJ and rarity looked at each other with concern before she eventually stopped. "You all are idiots if you think that just watching him will do anything," Twilight looked Zecora in the eye. "I've faced him, and he was unlike anything I'd ever seen. We don't need eyes, and we don't need this tiny group. What we need, is power. The power to crush him, and make him tell us how to bring Fluttershy back!"

Applejack stepped forward. "Twi, don't go trying to harvest the crops before their time. You think we're just some guild looking after strange things? We've been designated by the company what made this game to contain and destroy AIDA. remember that power you saw me use to destroy the AIDA in that area?" Twilight nodded. Indeed, Applejack's power had impressed her. It even resembled what Tri-Edge had used on her. "Well," AJ continued, "What I did was summon mah Avatar. There are only a handful of players capable of it, and it is the only way to destroy AIDA. Twi, we want you to help us, because we're sure you have that power within ya. Haven't ya felt it calling out to ya? Rarity here says she saw ya nearly calling it out not too long ago."

Twilight thought back to when she had met Rarity during her encounter with Trixie. She had felt a strange power, and she had heard that strange voice calling out to her. Was that the power they were talking about? Of course, if Twilight did possess this power, then she'd no doubt be strong enough to defeat him. She'd be able to take out Tri-Edge and bring Fluttershy back. She knew that if Fluttershy just woke up, everything would be better.

"In your eyes I see the power, but be warned young Twilight, lest you it devour," Zecora said with no empathy. "To summon an Avatar brings great danger; for chaos to them is no stranger. Train you must, to bring it out, and in your heart there must be little doubt. Your trials will be harsh and cause you trouble; if you fail to control your power, it may become double. Now the choice to you we present: are you with us, or are you against?"

Twilight took no time to think. Here was her chance to not only have a better way to track Tri-Edge, but a way to get the power to defeat him. Twilight wanted the power. She needed the power. Power was everything here, as was proven time and time again. when she spoke, her voice echoed with desire.

"I'm in."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As Twilight made her way to the Chaos Gate from the Raven @home, she was blocked by Vinyl and Octavia. "Hey, hey, hey!" Vinyl said with gusto, "If it isn't my favorite legend! How've ya been since we last hung out? See you've gotten a lot stronger! Heck, you're stronger than me and Tavi here!" She put her arm/leg around Octavia's shoulders and pulled her close. Twilight rolled her eyes and tried to walk around, when Vinyl stood in her way again. "Hey, wait! We've actually got a favor to ask. Ya see, me and Tavi have to head to a few areas and get some things done, and our poor little guild shop will be left all alone. Since we don't really have anyone else to ask, we were wondering if you could help us out?" They both smiled cheesily at Twilight.

Twilight facehoofed herself. This was ridiculous. "Fine, I'll watch the shop. Just hurry up, please." The two mares smiled and hugged each other, then told her the prices of the items. When Twilight memorized them all, they ran off, leaving Twilight standing behind the small booth. "How do I get myself into these messes?" she wondered, annoyed. For a few hours, nothing spectacular happened. Then it occurred. Twilight blinked, then noticed that an item had disappeared, and money was left on the table. "That was... strange." The rest of the time simply flew by with a few more players making purchases, then Vinyl and Octavia reappeared.

"Thanks, Twi, you're a lifesaver!" Vinyl said when Twilight gave her the money she'd made. "Wanna hear something funny? Tavi said you might up and just leave!"

"Vinyl!" Octavia said shocked, "Why would you tell her that?" Twilight raised an eyebrow, and Octavia gave her a hesitant smile. "I meant nothing by it, honestly. We're just a rather small guild, and it's not very often ponies want to simply help us..."

"I get it," Twilight muttered, when her headset beeped. It seemed she was getting a message. Twilight saw it was from Applejack, and decided she might as well read it. It went as such:

'Dear Twi,

We have a lead on an area that's just brimming with AIDA. Zecora wants me, you, and Rarity to go check it out, and see if we can't get your Avatar summoned. The keywords are Delta Burning Tiger Cry. See ya real soon, Twi!

Sincerely,

Applejack

Twilight closed the email, then nodded to the two ponies, before trotting to the Chaos Gate. She took a moment to invite AJ and Rarity to her party, then spoke the words. They appeared in a dungeon (not a cave dungeon, but a house dungeon). Rarity took the lead, and AJ stood beside Twilight. They walked through the dungeon like this, both trying to start conversation, but Twilight didn't feel in the mood. It was as if they were trying to make things normal again, but it felt fake, restrained, as if they were forcing themselves to talk to her. She wasn't about to take their pity. Once Fluttershy woke up, then they could work on making amends.

They eventually got to the end of the dungeon. Twilight was going to call the two on not spotting anything, when a crop of black bubbles appeared. "AIDA!" cried out Rarity, backing up slightly. AJ nudged Twilight, and she stepped forward. Closing her eyes, she thought about drawing out the mysterious power she had felt that day she prepared to face Trixie. She focused and focused, and nearly thought she had it, but the power simply wouldn't emerge. She opened her eyes as the black bubbles began to surge towards her. Applejack leaped forward, summoning her own Avatar, and removing the AIDA. She wiped her brow and turned to face Twilight.

"Gee, I really thought you had it there for a second Twi," she said honestly. "I would've let ya keep trying, but we couldn't afford the risk. We need ya to stay uncorrupted. Who knows what could've happened?" Twilight ground her teeth slightly, more angry at herself than Applejack. She was the one who couldn't summon an Avatar after all. She was the weak one. She ran to the exit, abandoning AJ and Rarity, who called out to her.

Twilight stood in Mac Anu, preparing to leave for the day, when Vinyl and Octavia called to her. She looked at them with daggers shooting from her eyes. "What could you two possibly want now?!" Octavia hid behind Vinyl, who simply shrugged.

"Well, it's like this: we want you to be our new guild master. Neither of us really want the job, and you're more of a leader type really. Besides, it'll be fun! So what do ya say? Wanna be the new guild master of Canard?" Her and Octavia scooched close together, smiling as hard as they could. Twilight stared at them coldly for what felt like hours, then dropped her head in defeat.

"Fine, fine, I'll be your guild master." she acquiesced. Vinyl and Octavia leaped with joy, and began singing and spinning in circles. Twilight couched, and the two seemed to calm down. Octavia held out the guild key to Canard, and the two scampered off quickly. Twilight put away the key, then proceeded to log off. She had too much on her mind to keep playing, and it was getting late. She'd check back the next day and see if Zecora had anything else to help her draw out her Avatar.

Dark Awakening

Twilight had managed to find the NPC offering the Job Extension quest, and had just gotten to the dungeon, when she made a terrifying discovery.

This wasn't a normal dungeon.

No, this dungeon was a puzzle. Twilight loved puzzles, but this one was just ridiculous. There were platforms everywhere, and different warp points to reach. There was also no way to differentiate which warp points she needed, and since dungeons didn't have maps, no way for her to know which way to go in the first place. "You have got to be kidding me!" Twilight face-planted the ground in annoyance, when she got a flash mail from her brother.

'When you start off, there are but two choices: hold back or push forward. You think you have three, but you only have one choice here.

-Shining Armor'

Twilight read the message, then looked at the platform she was standing on. Aside from the Chaos Gate behind her, there were three warp points: one to the left, one to the right, and one directly in front of her. Figuring her brother's message was a clue, she went to the warp point directly in front of her. She touched it and appeared in a hallway. She walked along it and came upon two more warp points. One was positioned to her left, the other one past some monsters to her right. She prepared to rush the monsters when her brother sent her another message.

'Just because something is right, doesn't mean it is what you need; just because something isn't right, doesn't mean it isn't true.

-Shining Armor'

Twilight figured the clue meant that going to the guarded warp point wasn't what she needed, and the left path was the one she had to take. She shifted back, then walked over to it. So on and so forth, Twilight kept getting into different puzzles involving warps, and Shining Armor gave her cryptic clues revealing the correct warp. After what seemed to be ages, she made it to the last warp. It was at the end of a hallway, blocked by a room filled with energy beams. They blinked on and off in a confusing manner, and some even moved. Twilight couldn't make head nor tails of it. Another message from Shining Armor appeared.

'A Shadow need only fear the light; that which bears a false nature can cause it no harm. Where the light shines, darkness is burned away, yet it is also born. This is your final test Twilight. Grow strong and happy, sis.

-Shining Armor'

Twilight studied the beams. They all looked alike. Twilight stepped closer to a wall of beams she knew flickered on and off, then looked at the floor. Her shadow flickered with the light. An idea formed in her head. She moved to a steady wall which lead deeper into the room, and noticed that she couldn't see her shadow at all. "So, the ones that cast my shadow are real, and the ones that don't are fake," she hypothesized, then put her hoof to the light. She passed through without taking any damage. She walked through, and with a cool head, made her way through the maze of lights. She stood before the last warp point, and exhaled. She touched it, and was in front of the hall that lead to the Celestia/Luna statue.

She walked forward, and opened the chest, revealing a simple water potion. Though the item clearly wasn't obtainable any other way, the simplicity of it incited a bright spark of irritation in Twilight. She shook her mane, then walked over to the Chaos Gate. AS she left, Shining Armor looked in from the shadows. He smiled. "Way to go little sis." he whispered.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Twilight stood before the NPC that had given her the quest, and presented the item. After some congratulatory dialogue, Twilight's vision darkened. She looked around confused. Suddenly, she flew into the air, and began to glow red. Her body convulsed, and spasmed outward. The markings on her body disappeared, and her armor slowly grew to cover more of her form. Where once there was only leather straps across her shoulders, chest, and legs, now, bronze covered her stomach and formed an arch on her back. A sash ran down her back, and split to run by her tail. Her markings reappeared on her cheeks, though they were different from before.

"Looks like I got my Edge Punisher abilities back," Twilight said with a smile. She pulled out her new weapon, a broadsword that was nearly twice her size. It felt good. She made her way back to Lumina Cloth and met up with Spike and Vinyl. They whistled at her. "You two ready for this?"

"Since you're packing more heat, course I'm ready!" Vinyl whooped.

"I'm as ready as I'll ever be," Spike muttered. "Besides, since Matsu doesn't use his Edge Punisher skills anymore, we should be fine."

Twilight nodded, and the three waited to be teleported to the arena. Once they were, Matsu (who had apparently been teleported in first) walked up to Twilight. "Hello there, Terror of Friendship. I just want you to know that I can't stand you PKK's."

"And I can't stand upstarts who think weakening themselves makes them better," Twilight retorted. Matsu's eyes seemed to blaze a little brighter.

"There's that legendary attitude I've heard so much about. Well guess what? I've got a little wager for you," Twilight was beginning to get tired of all these annoyances. Bets here, meetings there. She needed to deal with Rainbow Dash. She might be the connection that Twilight needed.

"Well? What do you want?" Twilight demanded, receiving an evil smirk.

"I'm not going to hold back in our battle. If I win, then I'll give you the one thing I have from my past as a PK. It'll be more useful to you anyways. However, if I win, then you have to quit being a PKK."

Twilight simply smiled and nodded. They shook hooves, then went back to their respective sides. The announcer began his countdown, and the battle was on. Spike and Vinyl were immediately set on by the two Moon Tree members Matsu had recruited for his team, leaving Twilight alone to deal with Matsu. The stallion seemed to spark, and he drew out a long blade that licked the air with flames. Twilight shivered and drew her own blade. He hadn't been joking; he was going to go all out. He was even using his forbidden skills. He dragged his sword as he raced towards her, leaving a trail of flames in his wake. He leaped high, raising the sword above his head. Twilight brought her blade up in a block, ready to stop an overhead smash. But that wasn't what he had been intending.

Matsu stabbed the blade into the arena floor, flames erupting all around him. Twilight took the full brunt of the hit, unable to adjust her weapon in time. She flew into the wall and bounced off, miraculously landing on her feet. Matsu was before her before she could blink, and smashed her away to the side. She took both fire and physical damage. "Come on! Show me those legendary skills of yours!"

Twilight plunged her blade into the ground, then cast a healing spell. It wasn't very strong, but it gave her enough of a boost to switch weapons. "Glad I picked up that spell book," she muttered, "Turns out it really was a life saver." Matsu was making his move again, but this time Twilight was ready for him. He leaped into the air in an attempt to finish her quickly with another blast of fire, when she countered with her own aerial skill, Sparrow Counter. Matsu was knocked onto the ground and temporarily stunned. Twilight set in on him quickly, using her speed to her advantage. Matsu was taking serious damage, when he knocked Twilight backwards and stood perfectly still.

Spike and Vinyl were still working on their fights, though it seemed to be going in their favor. Twilight prepared to dash at Matsu when he swung his sword back. A fiery aura had consumed him. "Prepare for my ultimate attack!" he screamed. His aura flared, and engulfed his sword. He swung it and a large swath of flaming power coursed across the stage. Twilight gulped, and switched back to her broadsword. She'd only have one chance to survive an attack of this caliber.

Waiting until the last moment, Twilight slashed onto the ground, then swung upwards with as much force as she could muster. Dust and pieces of the ground flew into the air, and a small break in the flames appeared. Twilight leaped through it, switching weapons in the process. Matsu was still trying to recover from his last attack when Twilight struck, so he took the full brunt of her blows. He collapsed to his knees, and looked at her. Though his eyes still burned, he smiled, as if a burden had suddenly been lifted from him.

"I could feel you... holding back," he said.

"I can say the same," Twilight replied, a smile on her own face. The horn rang alerting the two that the match was over. Twilight held out her hoof to Matsu, and he pounded it with his. "It was a good fight. I can't say I've had that much fun for some time."

"Neither can I," Matsu admitted. "I have to admit, giving up being a PK was a bit hard at first. But seeing the smile on the faces of those players I help? It felt good. But there was always that part of me burning to fight some more. Now, I feel truly free. And since I'm a pony of my word, here's you gift: my Dragon Flame Blade. This bad boy was the reason I was once the Lord of Flames. Keep it, and get stronger." Twilight accepted the blade, and held it up. She felt grateful to the stallion, but before she could properly thank him, he was gone. Twilight felt herself being teleported, and was suddenly in the lobby with Vinyl and Spike. Twilight looked at the blade again, then gave it to Spike.

"Twi?! This is Matsu's blade! I can't accept this!" Spike looked at the weapon with awe, and Twilight knew he was just saying it so that she could use it. After all, it was the strongest weapon she had right now. But she had to make up for what she said to him. She motioned for him to take the sword again. "Are... are you sure?" She nodded, and the dragon took the sword. He held it, and gave it a test swing. "Wow! This is so cool! Thanks a lot Twilight!"

Vinyl patted Twilight on the back. "That was real sweet of ya, Twi. I knew it was the right thing to do, making you Canard's guild master. You 're a great leader!"

Twilight blushed, and they waited for their last match. It would be the match which qualified them for the tournament, which Twilight had to win for more than one reason. The match came quickly, and ended just as quickly. It was so quick in fact that Twilight was sure it couldn't be real. But then they were placed on the board for the next tournament, and their first match would be that day. It appeared they had to win three to battle Rainbow Dash. Twilight looked to Vinyl, who looked ecstatic at the thought of making it to the tournament, and Spike, who still couldn't help looking in awe at his new sword.

Twilight looked back at the board to see who they would face first, and her heart hit the floor. "You have GOT to be kidding me..." Vinyl and Spike rushed to see why she sounded so shocked, and their hearts sunk as well. Their first opponent was the ex-Emperor of the Demon Palace, Spitfire.

"Oh man," Spike said, "I heard she never has a team when she competes. She always fights alone, and dominates. I don't know if we can win this one gals."

"Man, don't go taking us out of the game before it starts. We've been going through opponents like a Derpy through muffins. If we can take out one of the top members of Moon Tree, and he was a legendary PK at that, then we can handle one ex-Emperor." Vinyl looked to Twilight. "You think we can win this, right?"

"I think that we can't get discouraged, not when we've come this far," said Twilight after a moment. She felt a strange tingle in her heart. "Besides, we have to reach Trixie at least to protect the guild." Vinyl smiled, and even Spike's mood seemed to lift. With hope in their hearts, the trio waited for their first tournament match.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Twilight fought to stand. Vinyl and Spike were both down, and Spitfire wasn't missing even half her health yet. The flame-maned mare yawned into her hoof. "You bunch of wimps didn't stand even a sliver of a chance. Why'd you even come here? To try and beat Rainbow Dash?" Twilight managed to get herself half standing. Spitfire snickered. "You know, I'm sure that she doesn't play fair. She has that weird trick where she just instantly gets rid of your health. I haven't heard if any other players doing that. One way or another, I'm going to beat that scum into the ground and reclaim my throne."

Twilight gritted her teeth. She was angry at Rainbow Dash, sure, but she was still her friend. She could think of several occasions where Rainbow Dash had been there for her, risking her own safety and happiness for her friends. Sure, she was a bit egotistical at times, but she was a great mare at heart.

"I can't imagine what kind of scum she must be in real life. I mean, what kind of pony cheats in the arena? It's like she's thinks she doesn't have to try like the rest of us to get strong. She's a lowdown, dirty, rotten, pathetic mare. I'm going to beat into her the value of a true player. Then, if she can get the title back fairly, I might consider her worthy to fly in my air space." Spitfire began laughing, and Twilight felt something inside her begin to pulse.

From the audience, Applejack and Rarity watched Twilight with curiosity. "Do ya think...?" AJ began. Rarity nodded her head, her face growing more and more dour.

"Yes, Applejack, I do believe so. It seems that Twilight has found her trigger. It's always been there, just below the surface, but I think she's been subconsciously repressing it. But Spitfire's insults about Rainbow Dash are beginning to release those emotions she's tried so hard to hide. She's about to unleash the darkness in her heart... darkness we had to help grow."

Applejack tilted her hat down. "Ah never did like what we had to do... but it's the only way to bring back Fluttershy and all them other players. Twilight is the bearer of that one, the phase who surfs this Cursed Wave. Still, I wish it could have happened some other way."

"So do I," Rarity murmured, adjusting her glasses, "so do I..."

Twilight stood glaring at Spitfire, who was still laughing at Rainbow Dash. The stirring in her heart was growing, but she couldn't quite grasp it. For a moment, she swore she could hear the voice again. She cocked her head, when Spitfire said something that crossed the final straw.

"You'll never be able to beat me or her; you're too weak."

Twilight's vision turned black, and her chest began to pound. Power began to surge through every fiber of her being. The voice rang clearly in her ear:

'Where are you?'

Symbols began to emerge, and formed a armor around her. The power was like ecstasy. Twilight needed more of it. She knew this was only a taste, and the words to feel the rest of the power filled her mind. There were no other thoughts aside from getting more of the power.

"I'm right here," she said, chuckling maniacally. "I'm right here! I'm right here, I'm right here, I'M RIGHT HERE!" Twilight sensed a presence behind her.

'I FOUND YOU.'

Large, clawed red hands closed around her. Twilight could feel the delicious raw energy filling her until she was overflowing. She felt as if she could do anything. She could have whatever she wanted. She was unstoppable; nopony could stand up to her, nopony could hurt her. Twilight had felt as if she was a god. Her vision cleared from the darkness, and she saw Spitfire standing there, slower, but with the laugh still on her lips. Twilight reached out her hand, and it was as if she were outside her body. She looked down at the large puppet-like creature. It was an Avatar. Her Avatar. Her ecstasy doubled. The Avatar mimicked her action of raising her arm, raising it's own. A staff formed in its hand. Twilight flicked her wrist, and the staff surged with energy. A long blade formed, turning it into a deadly scythe.

Still laughing, Twilight flew forward, and sliced through Spitfire with all her strength. Suddenly, everything returned to normal, and Twilight felt the power begin to slip away. She turned, and saw that Spitfire was on the ground. The crowd whooped and hollered their praise for her. She soaked it in, but secretly, she couldn't hear them. No, Twilight could only feel the echoes of the power she had summoned. She never could have imagined the power that an Avatar would present, but now that she had felt it, she knew nothing could stand in her way anymore. Anypony who got in her way would be crushed into nothingness. She couldn't restrain herself from laughing again.

"This is it... this is what I've been searching for. With this power... I will kill Tri-Edge!!!"

Tournament of Torment

Twilight was still working off the pleasure she felt when her and the others were teleported out. She was giggling when Spike came over and touched her shoulder. She flinched, and turned to him. It took her a moment to recognize him. "What, what do you want?!"

"Um... Twi? You feeling alright?" Spike asked worried. He didn't like the look in her eyes. It was as if she were possessed by something. Something that wasn't at all like the friendly pony he had known all his life. "You looked kinda angry out there, and now you're all giggly." Before she could say anything (which is probably for the best), Vinyl leaped in front of her.

"Yo, that was so sick!" Vinyl gushed. "Hey, when'd you learn that insta-kill skill? Never seen anything like that except from Rainbow Dash!" Twilight pushed the pony out of the way, causing her and Spike to land in a heap. She glared back at them.

"I've gotten more power. That's all that matters." She walked out of the arena, and was nearly to the Chaos Gate when Rarity stopped her. She turned to her with a dark smile. "Looks like you all were right. I got my Avatar. Now you just have to find Tri-Edge and-" The marshmallow pony put her hoof to Twilight's mouth, silencing her.

"Twilight, what you did was a serious problem. Yes, you managed to summon your Avatar. However, you need to gain control over it. If you think you can use it properly, then you are sorely mistaken." Twilight growled, but Rarity brushed it off. "Zecora gave us a location to help train you in summoning your Avatar. It seems there is an outbreak of AIDA there that we need to deal with."

"Get out of the way!" Twilight yelled at the top of her lungs, but it was too late. The swarm was moving too fast. There was no way she'd make it in time. They'd end up just like Fluttershy, and once again, she'd be the one responsible. She felt the darkness closing in around her, and she pushed herself to move faster, when a white blur appeared and knocked the two aside. The black swarm penetrated Rarity's form and blasted her into the wall. She fell into a heap. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Rarity started to get up, and Twilight felt relieved. But something was wrong. Her body wasn't moving right. "Twilight...." she whispered, "run away." She looked at Twilight, and her eyes were black. Suddenly, AIDA began pouring forth from her. Rarity let out a piercing scream of pain, and Twilight knew it wasn't just her character being affected. She remembered when she was attacked by Tri-Edge, how it had burned into her actual flesh. Now, her friend (for Rarity was still her friend, no matter how angry she was at her), and seeing her suffer was too much.

Twilight held her hoof out, reaching for her, when a pattern appeared around Rarity. It was a pink pattern, shaped like armor. It looked different, but Twilight knew what was happening. Rarity's Avatar was going to appear. It seemed the AIDA was forcing it out. The full extent of the warning hit Twilight. Rarity clearly had much better control of her Avatar, and now she was infected. The combination couldn't be good. Twilight turned to run, but she couldn't do it. This was Rarity, the same Rarity who had saved her, the Rarity she had known for so long, the Rarity who had become one of her closest friends, and despite being cold to her, still cared for her well being. The same Rarity, who was suffering right now before her eyes, and still wanted her to save herself. Twilight felt Skeith calling to her, and she answered. Her own armor pattern began to form.

"I am NOT letting you take any more of my friends!" Twilight raged. Skeith appeared, and Twilight watched as Rarity's Avatar took form. Twilight let out a gasp. Rarity's Avatar was at least twice as large as hers, and was a terrifying sight. It's legs were bound together, and formed a blade on the lower half. Her arms were bound by a ring of spikes, and large cracked pieces of armor hung from her head in a shape similar to her hair. A large intimidating spike went through her midsection. AIDA came from all along her form. Twilght/Skeith took a step back. This wasn't going to be easy.

She pulled out her scythe, then blocked with it as Rarity unleashed a large orb of energy at her. It broke through her block, and stunned her. Rarity moved back, and shot a group of needle-like energy beams from her back. Twilight managed to dodge them, but they circled back and hit her in her blind spot. Twilight gritted her teeth and fired a few blasts of her own. Rarity dodged them, then sent another orb at her. This time, rather than try and block, Twilight slashed at it. It was torn to pieces after the third hit. Twilight quickly retaliated by dashing forward and slashing at Rarity. The larger Avatar took the blows, and retreated.

Twilight took a moment to recuperate. It seemed Rarity's Avatar was strong, but the binding's only allowed it to use ranged attacks. It also seemed she was only able to dodge Twilight's slower energy blasts, but not her quick slashes. She'd have to pour on the heat from close range if she wanted to win. She prepared to launch another barrage of attacks, when the tip of the spike in the Avatar's midsection began to glow. An eye formed, and Twilight realized what would happen next. "Oh no..." she said fearfully, as a Data Drain sped out. The blast hit her hard, draining the air from her lungs. The pain was as she remembered, but this time, instead of causing her to black it, it simply kept burning. "No... not gonna lose... I'm not gonna lose like this!"

Focusing, Twilight broke free of the Data Drain, and struck at Rarity. Rarity used the large armor to defend herself, and Twilight struck it until it opened. Rarity appeared to be stunned, and Twilight took her chance. She unleashed all she had in a final decisive blow. She heard a breaking sound, then turned. Her body moved automatically, forming her own Data Drain. She fired, and it hit Rarity dead on. The rainbow ribbons of data sprang forth from her, and her Avatar disappeared. She fell slowly, and Twilight burst from her own Avatar and quickly ran to catch her.

Rarity landed in her hooves. Twilight shook her, tears beginning to form in her eyes. "No, no, no! You can't go like this! You can't!" Twilight kept shaking, her eyes beginning to burn, when the white unicorn opened her eyes. They were once again the magnificent sapphire blue she had always seen. Rarity smiled at her.

"My... that was unpleasant. I must look so unbecoming..." Twilight's jaw dropped, then she began to laugh uncontrollably. Soon, Rarity, joined in, and the two of them sat there, the trouble they'd just suffered through fading into the past.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next battle was against Trixie, Snips, and Snails. Twilight, Spike, and Vinyl were across from them, striking an awesome battle pose. The audience was in an uproar. "Why are we posing like this again?" Spike asked Vinyl. The electric-maned unicorn smiled fiercely.

"Duh! If we strike an awesome pose and get the crowd on our side, then the other team won't have the heart to fight!" She had not even a hint of sarcasm or regret in her voice. Twilight had to respect that, because she was feeling quite silly. It also seemed that Trixie was angrier than usual at their display.

"We should get ready to fight soon. The fight is going to start soon, and we should be ready. Don't forget what's at stake if we lose." Vinyl and Spike nodded, and soon they were all in battle positions. Not a moment after, the announcer counted down to the match start.

"Three.... Two.... One.... BEGIN!"

Suddenly, Snips and Snails were on Vinyl and Spike. Before Twilight could do anything, Trixie and her clashed blades. Twilight, using her broadsword, had the advantage of strength, and pushed Trixie back. She managed to get a few hits on the blue unicorn, before Trixie retaliated hard. As a Blade Brandier, she was faster than Twilight when using her Edge Punisher abilities. Twilight tried to block, but she was being hit too fast. She'd need to switch to her Twin Blade abilities if she wanted to keep up. She backed away, and attempted to switch, but Trixie was having none of it.

"Oh, you're not getting away that easily, Twilight Snarkle!" Trixie put on the pressure harder, and Twilight noticed her health was getting low. She had to heal, or there was no way she'd be able to win. She locked blades with Trixie again, and looked for Vinyl and Spike. They were both being pressed on by Snips and Snails, the colts showing amazingly high skill. Twilight pushed against Trixie, but she was too weak. Trixie managed to overpower her, driving her health even lower. Twilight decided she needed to use a skill, and attacked with Tiger Blitz. The attack only bought her a moment, but it was enough to switch to her Twin Blade skills. She held up her daggers, ready to counterstrike. Vinyl and Spike were suddenly at her sides, both breathing as heavily as her.

"These kids are no joke," Vinyl huffed. Somehow, her goggles had managed to slip down her face, revealing her magenta eyes. All the humor was gone from them. Twilight saw a passion burning in them she had never seen before. She turned and looked at Twilight.

"Wow, I've never seen this side of you." Twilight said amazed. Vinyl scoffed.

"That's because things haven't been this serious. You may not have wanted to be part of Canard that much, but it's all me and Vinyl have here. That guild is where all of our happy memories are from. Now, only me and Vinyl are left, and we're on the brink of collapse. So yeah, I'm not exactly a happy pony. I'm going to give it everything I've got to protect what I care about." Her words pulled at Twilight's heart. Vinyl was so much like she was... like she used to be. Now, Trixie was threatening to take it all away from her, and once again, ponies would suffer and Twilight would be responsible. Her anger built, and she could hear Skeith whispering in her ear. She gave in to the lull of the power, and felt the familiar rush of her body becoming cocooned in Skeith's. Once more they were one, and she lifted their scythe.

Trixe, Snips, and Snails were moving in the slow motion that all normal players moved in when AIDA or an Epitaph User activated. She felt revolted. Compared to her, they were insects. No, they were less than insects; they werenothing. The thoughts struck Twilight as rather strange, but she pushed the thought away. She was going to erase this problem. She held her scythe execution style (how she knew what execution style was like, she'd never be able to explain) and began to laugh. With a vicious stroke, she tore through them all. She released Skeith, and a dark sense of annoyance passed through her. The feeling was alien.

The trio teleported out, and Vinyl hugged Twilight. "Thank you so much... you don't know what it means to me and Octavia. You're a great guild master, Twi!" Twilight blushed and looked away. This pony was way too... something. It wasn't entirely bad, but it gave her weird chills sometimes. She left Vinyl to talk with Spike, when she received a message. She read it over, then exclaimed with much annoyance, "What?!" The others looked to her.

"What is it Twilight?" Spike asked. She simply brushed him off however, and made towards the exit. Spike ran after her. "Come on Twi, what's going on?"

"Nothing concerning you, Spike," Twilight said without looking back. "Let me know when our next match is." As she exited, she couldn't see the tear escaping her assistant's eye.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Twilight stood at the Chaos Gate beside Ditzy. "So you're sure you've found some more information on Tri-Edge?" Twilight asked. The golden-eyed mare nodded.

"Yes! While I was exploring many a likely area, I happened across a purely scenic area, like the Grand Hullz Cathedral, which bears a mark! I had no time to properly examine it however, because I was sure I heard voices. So I called you so that we could investigate together!" Twilight rolled her eyes. It seemed she was only called because Ditzy was too afraid to investigate on her own. Still, a lead was a lead, and she'd take any lead she had. The two travelled to Delta Hidden Forbidden Bulwark, and appeared on a cliff overlooking a deep canyon. The entire cliff was blocked off by a large wall, which appeared to reach the sky. Twilight spotted two characters further down, and she and Ditzy ducked behind some bushes. Twilight moved closer, while Ditzy said she'd hang back and defend their exit. "Better to not have us both get caught at the same time... I can be back-up!"

Twilight moved carefully, and reached the two players. She noticed the Tri-Edge mark on the wall. It was huge. Before she could dwell on it, she looked back to the two players and stifled a gasp.

"What is it you need of me here? These symbols I don't enjoy being near..." said Zecora. The zebra was sitting down facing the wall, but Twilight could tell it wasn't what was on her mind.

"I simply wanted to talk to an old acquaintance is all," said Celestia mysteriously. Twilight couldn't believe it. She'd been trying to find Celestia for some time now. The last time she had seen her teacher, she had been standing before the Grand Hullz Cathedral, telling Twilight that Tri-Edge had returned to the scene of the crime. She said she would help, but Twilight had been too impatient to wait and had rushed in. Since then, Celestia had been a ghost. It was strange though. Although Spike said she played the game, Twilight couldn't figure why she would in her condition. And why after all this time was she talking to Zecora?

"A talk with you is never simple, no; there is something in your mind that you wish me to know."

Celestia smirked, then turned to Zecora. "Always so to the point... I admire that. You should take some time to relax though. All kinds of things can happen to those who take things too seriously all the time. But I take it you know that already?" Zecora said nothing. Celestia turned her attention to the wall. "I wonder... what secrets lie behind this wall? The lore said it was built as a barrier to keep away something extraordinary and terrible. A secret which could change 'The World.'"

Zecora adjusted her glasses. "I believe there is no such creation; this wall is here simply as decoration." She looked to Celestia, her expression not revealing anything on her mind. Celestia turned to her, her smirk also hiding the secrets of her thoughts. The two watched each other for a moment, before Zecora sighed. "One day Celestia, I will find what you keep hidden-"

"Ah, but my knowledge is forbidden," Celestia finished, mocking Zecora. The zebra didn't rise to the bait however, and simply teleported out. Celestia looked down to her sealed limb, the smile fading slightly from her lips. "Yes, my knowledge is quite forbidden... but when the time is right, all will be revealed." She then, too, teleported out.

Twilight stepped out of the bushes, and put her hoof to the Tri-Edge symbol. Nothing happened. She sighed, and thought about what she had overheard. It was obvious that Zecora and Celestia had secrets, and she was sure she wasn't meant to hear that conversation just now. Twilight couldn't help but feel a spike of spite. She had been trying to find Celestia for some time now; if Zecora had kept an eye on her as closely as she had said, then surely she would've known how much Twilight wanted to speak to her mentor. Instead, she kept her away.

"This is not over, not by a long shot," Twilight promised. She went up the path and met Ditzy, informing her that there was nothing to find. The pony looked disappointed, but then perked up when Twilight thanked her for her diligence.

"Not a problem, ma'am!" Ditzy raised her hoof to her head. "Glad I could be of assistance in our ongoing investigation of that dastardly Tri-Edge! I'll stay on it like blueberries on a muffin!" She rubbed her belly. "Mmm... muffin."

Twilight rolled her eyes and made her way back to the arena just as Spike was making a message. She caught him off guard, making him spit out a burst of fire. It was adorable how he did it in the game the same as he did in real life. "Twi! I was just going to get you! Our next match is starting right now! If we win this, we get to challenge Rainbow Dash!"

"Well, let's not keep them waiting!" Twilight was brimming with energy. She couldn't figure out what kind of energy, but she was sure she was ready for anything. When they all were teleported to the arena, she realized the folly of this assessment. Everypony's jaw dropped. "You.... why are you all here?!"

The team they were facing, was Rarity, Applejack, and her brother, Shining Armor. Twilight watched as AJ stepped forward. "Hey Twi. We need to have a chat."

"Why are you here?" Twilight was having a hard time thinking straight. "We're after the same thing, and I'm actually doing something about it. So why are you interfering?"

AJ looked at Twilight with a sad look that only seemed to make her wrath grow stronger. "Listen sugarcube, we're fine with you dealing with Rainbow Dash. She's become a problem recently, but we haven't had the time to properly investigate. But that's not why we're here to talk about your problem. Ya can't just go around using yer Avatar all willy-nilly like. These things cause repercussions. An Epitaph User attacking normal players is almost as dangerous as AIDA attacking em. You need to learn that just cuz ya have power, doesn't mean you can use it whenever ya like. If you had used a Data Drain, then Trixie and them others would be just like Fluttershy."

Twilight couldn't recall the moment when her Skeith appeared. The mention of Fluttershy's name had caused such burning emotion in her that everything seemed to skip forward, and she was moving to attack Applejack. She wanted to shut her mouth once and for all. Applejack sighed, and her own Avatar appeared, blocking Twilight's attack. She hit Twilight with a barrage of energy from close range, Twi could barely feel it. Her anger had put her beyond pain.

She slashed at AJ more, each successful hit fueling her bloodlust. She began to laugh as she hit her. Applejack simply took the hits, no longer trying to resist. Twilight prepared to attack once more, when she felt all her anger disappear. She looked around. She was still in Avatar Space, but she could no longer feel Skeith's presence. All the bitterness she's been building was simply... gone. A sound made her turn, and she was met with a terrifying sight.

Skeith was decimating Applejack's Avatar. Bits and pieces of its form were falling off, and Skeith had stopped using his staff as a scythe. The energy blade was gone; now, it was simply beating AJ with the staff.

"Stop it."

Twilight's voice was a whisper as she watched in horror as AJ's Avatar's beautiful dragon-like form, with its long majestic tail and its leaf-like accents became beaten, battered, and torn. Skeith had stopped using the staff, and was now viciously attacking with claws. Data was flowing like blood now, and AJ was barely moving.

"Stop it!"

Twilight's voice still wouldn't carry. She could feel the anger, the hatred, the pure unadulterated lust for pain that came off of Skeith in waves. Skeith held AJ's head, and began to tear at her harder and harder. Twilight wanted to look away, but she couldn't turn away from the horror. Skeith threw Applejack into the edge of Avatar Space and watched it bounce off, then reached and grabbed her. As he pulled her back in, he formed his staff again and stabbed her through. Twilight felt as if she could feel the hit herself.

"STOP IT!!!"

Twilight's shouts wouldn't reach. AJ began to fall, no force keeping her afloat. Skeith held up his hand, and pointed it to the broken form. Twilight knew what was coming next. Just as she thought it, the familiar eye of energy appeared. It pointed at AJ, and the walls of light formed around it. They began to spin, and the energy was collected faster and faster.

"STOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPIT!!!!!!"

Twilight watched as Skeith shot a Data Drain at AJ, and it hit her dead on. The scream was like a wild thing's. Twilight realized it was coming from her. AJ turned to her, and Twilight could swear she could see the orange earth pony through her Avatar's deteriorating form. Words came to her from it.

"Twi, I hope you realize now the danger this power is we have. We're not fully in control of them, but they can take control of us. Now, don't you go thinking this as your fault. I knew this would happen; it had to, for you to learn. Grow stronger Twi, but never lose yourself in the darkness. Your Avatar is the most important of them all, but also the most dangerous. See ya soon, Twi....."

As her friend slowly disappeared, and Skeith let out a final roar of savagery, Twilight felt as if a piece of her had died. She looked at her fading Avatar with a hollow anger. Applejack had suffered all of that, so much pain, so much unbearable pain, just for her. Avatar Space collapsed back into the arena, and Twilight was on her knees staring at the ground. Tears fell from her eyes like a waterfall, and they refused to quit. Twilight felt a gentle hoof on her shoulder, and looked up. It was Shining Armor. He looked at his sister, and his expression hardened. He tilted his head backwards, indicating for her to look past him.

Twilight acknowledged it, and saw an amazing sight. Applejack was there, leaning against Rarity with a slightly dazed expression, but she was there. Twilight smiled. Applejack turned to her, and she smiled as well.

"We forfeit!" Shining Armor announced loudly. Spike and Vinyl looked at him in surprise, but Twilight was too tired to be surprised. She tilted left, then right, then blacked out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Twilight came to a few minutes later, with Vinyl and Spike propping her up. "We won..." she managed to mumble. Spike nodded, and Vinyl patted her shoulder. Twilight took a moment to take in her surroundings. She was still at the arena, but she saw their name underneath Rainbow Dash's, and the battle was listed for the next day.

"Twi, I think you should get some sleep," Spike suggested. "You've been playing pretty hard. Passing out earlier doesn't help either. If we want to stand a chance against Rainbow Dash, we'll need all of us at our best."

"Yeah! Even I'm clocking out early. Me and Tavi have plans, and I need all the rest I can get to make sure everything goes right." Vinyl waved her goodbyes, then signed off. Spike looked back to Twilight.

"I'm serious Twi... you're there alone. You need to take care of yourself. I'll see you tomorrow." Then he too signed off. Twilight was alone with her thoughts, when she thought she saw a familiar sight in the shadows. It looked like Pinkie Pie, but with straight hair. When Twilight tried to get a closer look, the image faded away. She shivered. It was creepy to think the pink pony had been watching her so silently. Twilight thought about it, then realized that Pinkie was her only friend she hadn't been able to account for for quite some time. Since Fluttershy fell into a coma come to think of it. Twilight rubbed her eyes. She really did need sleep. She logged off, then went to take a long sleep. She had a hard time however, for her dreams were filled with visions of darkness and claws, and friends fading from her forever...

Broken Rainbow, Heartbroken Spike

Twilight stood ready for the match while Vinyl and Spike soaked up attention. She didn't care for it; never had, never would. But she wouldn't den her friends their fun in the sun. They had helped her get here. They deserved it more than anypony else she could think of. The arena dimmed slightly, and Twilight knew that it was nearly time. She bumped Spike and Vinyl, and they all got ready together. The announcer began to speak.

'Welcome once more Ladies and Gentlecolts, to the Demon Palace Arena Title Match! In a surprising twist of events, it seems that this time's challenger is a group from the guild Canard! What a surprise! They managed to defeat Spitfire, so perhaps they stand a chance against the reigning champion... RAINBOW DASH!'

Rainbow Dash teleported in and waved her hoof to the crowd. The dreamlike expression on her face hadn't changed, and the small Fluttershy doll still rested on her shoulder. Twilight couldn't stand the sight of it for some reason. It felt wrong. Rainbow Dash turned her attention to Twilight, and her eyes seemed to focus slightly.

"Twilight," she drawled. "You've gotten a bit stronger. But... it won't matter. It still won't fill the void."

"I don't know what you're talking about Rainbow Dash, but I know you're not well. I think you may be infected by AIDA. I want to help you, but you have to work with me." Twilight tried getting through to Rainbow Dash, piercing that veil that seemed to cover her mind. But nothing she said seemed to have effect. The announcer began the countdown.

'Count with me, players! Three.... Two.... One.... BATTLE!'

Twilight took point, rushing in on Rainbow Dash with her twin daggers. She had determined early on that using raw power wouldn't help much, even if it was one opponent. Twilight still remembered the old days when she and Rainbow Dash fought together. Though her style had changed drastically, her strength had not. She easily fended off the assault, and even managed to fend off Vinyl and Spike's when they joined in. The three attempted to strike at once, but Rainbow Dash disappeared in a burst of flower petals.

"Too weak..." Rainbow Dash muttered, then struck down Vinyl. The crowd whooped, but Twilight and Spike panicked. Spike tried using a skill, but Rainbow Dash countered and struck him down as well. Only Twilight was left standing. "Tell me, Twilight... is this really as far as you've come? Do you really think you can do anything with your little power? Just run off, and leave me be."

Twilight wasn't going to simply leave this be. She'd lost Fluttershy to AIDA, nearly lost Rarity to AIDA, and had almost lost Applejack to herself. She wasn't going to allow any more of her friends to be put in danger, not when she had the power to protect them. Power began to surge around her, inside her. She felt Skeith calling her with the promise of unimaginable ability, but this time, she could feel its intent. It wanted her to unleash it, feed it enough to devastate all in its path. The armor began to from around her, and she called out to Skeith. This time though, she understood just how dangerous he was, and how to keep herself from becoming lost in the blind rage she was before.

"Come on, come on... I'm right here, I'm right here! SKEEEEEEEEEEITH!" The reaper-shaped puppet-like Avatar formed around her, and she could feel it bending to her will. It put in a bit of resistance, but Twilight imposed her will harder. Skeith acknowledged her will, and acquiesced. Twilight looked to Rainbow Dash, and saw a lavender energy armor form around her. She was summoning her own Avatar.

"Come out, come out, my darling pet... Macha~" Rainbow Dash let out a coo, and her Avatar began to form. Twilight watched as it grew and grew. It was almost three times as large as Skeith. Twilight noticed the body was strangely thin, and the entire lower half was a rainbow colored rose. It turned to Twilight, and did the most unexpected thing: it began to sing. Pulses of energy spread around it, and it drifted towards Twilight. She tried to run away, but she had reacted too late. A pulse touched her, and she became enthralled in the music. Rainbow Dash raised her Avatar's arm, and raked Twilight with long claws. She raised her other hand and did the same thing, and repeated this process twice more before punching Twilight away.

Twilight shook her head. That was a dangerous attack, and she was sure it wasn't the only one Rainbow Dash was capable of. She'd have to keep her wits about her if she was going to win. Rarity was being controlled, and wasn't at full strength; AJ hadn't been trying to actually fight her, only teach her the dangers of her Avatar. Rainbow Dash was the first Avatar she had to fight that was truly trying to stop her.

Rainbow Dash tilted her head, then held up her claws. She looked at them, and they began to glow with rainbow energy. She looked to Twilight, and behind the static porcelain-like face, she swore she could see dark intent. She wasn't about to get hit by those claws. She held her scythe and moved forward as Rainbow Dash did the same. Twilight was faster, and ducked under one of the deadly swipes, and slashed upwards. She caught Rainbow in the chest, making her draw back. Immediately, Twilight followed up with three energy blasts. The sudden chain attack caught Rainbow Dash unaware, and she took all three shots. Her head hung limply, stunned. Twilight moved in and unleashed a three-hit combo.

Rainbow Dash shook her head, and for the first time, she displayed anger. Her body grew rigid, and she slashed at the air repeatedly. Each slash sent a disc of energy zooming at Twilight. Though she could disperse a few of them, she was still hit repeatedly. The attacks hurt, and she had to pull herself together afterwards. She was nearly ready to go back on the offensive, when Rainbow Dash tilted upwards. The bottom of her Rose skirt showed, and a large eye opened. This was going to hurt.

Rainbow Dash launched a massive Data Drain at Twilight, and she had to bite her tongue to not scream. Though she was more used to the pain, it was still the worse pain she had ever experienced. She struggled to break free from it. After an eon of pain (which was closer to about ten seconds), she broke from the painful grip. Rainbow Dash was exhausted from the effort. Twilight moved in and sliced at her until she heard the sound of the shield break. She raised her arm, and from point blank range, she fired a Data Drain into Rainbow Dash's core.

"Wake up already!!!"

The data flew into Twilight, and Rainbow Dash's Avatar fell apart into a plume of petals. From the center, Rainbow Dash fell, the Fluttershy doll beside her. She reached out to it. "No... don't leave me again...." Her hoof nearly touched it, when it burst into a mass of black bubbles, and faded away. Rainbow Dash's eyes widened, tears falling from her, then she closed her eyes to everything, falling, falling, forever falling....

Twilight released Skeith, and watched as Rainbow Dash collapsed on the ground slowly. With both Avatars gone, Avatar Space dissipated around them like broken glass. She prepared to walk over and check on the cyan pegasi, when the announcer spoke!

'Amazing! The Canard team is victorious! The Emperor, Rainbow Dash simply collapsed after both her and the leader of the Canard team, Twilight Sparkle, used similar skills. The new Emperor is Twilight Sparkle of Canard!'

The crowd went wild, and Spike and Vinyl (who were revived at the end of the match) waved to the crowd. Twilight looked over to Rainbow Dash, but she had already been teleported out. Twilight waited to get teleported out herself, and when she did, she was confronted by a furious Scootaloo. "You monster! How could you do that to poor Rainbow Dash? She's the greatest pony ever! She should be the emperor, not somepony like you! You had to have cheated!" Twilight walked away from the infuriated filly, who huffed in anger. She looked around, but could see no signs of Rainbow Dash anywhere. She was about to leave when Vinyl and Spike bombarded her.

"Yo, Twi!" Vinyl was giddy with energy. "They're throwing this massive party to celebrate you being the new Emperor! We can invite anypony we want!" Twilight rolled her eyes and smiled.

"Ok, ok, I'll make sure not to miss it. When is it?"

"Right now!" Vinyl and Spike declared.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The coronation party took place on Hy Braisil, the Isle of Kings. It was a special area only accessible when an Emperor was being coronated. Twilight mingled some, but was rather uncomfortable. Though the other two Emperors had been too busy to show up, her brother was there going on about how proud he was that his little sister had become an Emperor like he had been, and how he considered her to be is star apprentice. She looked around some more, and saw Celestia whispering in Spike's ear. She started towards them, intent to ask Celestia some questions. Celestia turned to her, and smiled a knowing smile.

"Ah, Twilight. We were just talking about you..." Celestia turned to Spike, who's head was downturned. Twilight focused on Celestia however.

"Where have you been, Princess?" Twilight asked. "Why have you been hiding from everypony? Why are you even in 'The World?' You're still sick. Then there's all the information you've been holding back. Why can't you tell me? Don't you trust me?"

"Oh Twilight, I trust you more than you'll ever know... but I don't think the same can be said about young Spike here. Not anymore at least. You see, I've explained quite a bit to him. I'll let you catch up...." Celestia walked off, her contained leg clanking every time it hit the ground. Twilight watched her fade into the crowd, then looked to Spike.

"Spike, what did she talk to you about?" Twilight kept her tone calm and soothing. She was annoyed at Celestia, but not Spike. She didn't want any bad blood between them.

"She told me, Twilight. She told me everything. She told me what happened to Fluttershy, and why you've been acting crazy, and why you've been having mood swings. She told me about the Epitaph Users too." Spike finally turned his head up and looked at her. In his eyes, she could see pain, so much pain. Tears flowed from his eyes without end. "You hid things from me Twilight; you hid so much from me. I would have helped you willingly, but instead, you just used me! You used me like I was some tool! All the years we've been together, and it meant nothing. You'd rather help a new friend then stay faithful to an old one. I know I'm your assistant; I'm not very interesting or important. But I thought you were different Twi.... Did you ever really see me? Did you ever see the real me? Did you ever see past it all, the title, the scales, into the heart of one who loves you more than anyone else?"

Twilight tried to speak, but the words caught in her throat. Spike's expression turned hard, and he ran away, away from the pain, away from her. Twilight turned to try and catch him, to say something, to make his pain go away, but a crowd formed and blocked her. Smiling faces formed a wall from the sadness that she had caused. Another friend, her closest friend, lost because of her weakness. Twilight's eyes burned, and she unleashed all the sadness that had built within herself. The party didn't last much longer.

Twilight prepared to log off and cry herself to sleep, when she received an urgent message from Zecora. She deleted it. She didn't feel like dealing with them. She tried to log off again, when she received another message, again from Zecora. She deleted it, only to have another, and another, and another appear. Her pain began to turn into anger. It was them who pushed her into this, them who told her about this power. She looked over the message, her rage making it hard for her to read properly. When the words sank in, she galloped as fast as she could.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'Twilight Sparkle, we have information you will not like,
It pertains to young Spike.
At the Serpent of Lore we shall explain,
For what is occurring, his life may not remain.

-Zecora'

Broken

Twilight was breathing heavily as she looked upon Zecora, Rarity, and AJ in the Serpent of Lore. The zebra was looking deep into the orb, and it was some time before she looked to Twilight. "Are you ready to learn the reason you were summoned? If not, I know not the reason you come in."

"Enough silly riddles and tell me what happened to Spike!" Twilight was mentally, emotionally, and physically exhausted. If Zecora was only looking to play games, then she had no idea what she'd do. The zebra sighed, then pressed the orb. It glowed faintly, and a large screen activated behind her. Twilight looked to it, and saw Spike.

"Your dragon friend has disappeared form the game, though it seems his login status is the same." Zecora moved her hoof slightly, showing that Spike was indeed still logged into the game.

"But, if he's not in 'The World,' then where is he?" Twilight questioned. This time, Rarity answered.

"We were keeping an eye on him. When he left from the celebration, he traveled to the Morrigu Barrow Wall. There is a sign there that was inactive, and it seems that Spike somehow activated it. We believe that he was the catalyst needed to operate it, and that he has been teleported into a mirror server created by AIDA. We're not sure what is going on in this server, since it is beyond our administrative power." Rarity tilted her head to AJ, who continued on.

"Now, we reckon since the sign is activated, anypony can use it. Because it's an AIDA Server, me, you and Rarity are gonna be the ones to go an' investigate, an' bring back Spike. Hopefully nothing should go wrong, and we'll be back before ya know it."

"Alright, that sounds like a plan," Twilight turned to leave, then noticed that Rarity and Applejack were still standing where they had been. "What's the hold up ladies?"

"There is still information you must be told," Zecora said, her voice somber. Twilight didn't like this. "Your friend Flutershy was Epitaph User of old. Now, her Epitaph has gone to somepony new. Somepony who is quite close to you..."

Twilight's breath caught. Fluttershy was an Epitaph user who lost her Avatar? Her Avatar was with somepony else, sompeony close to her? She tried to figure who the player was, when it occurred to her that Zecora had told her this after explaining what happened to Spike. That could only mean....

"Spike... is an Epitaph User?" Her voice was a whisper, but Zecora obviously heard because she nodded her head. "How... how long have you known?"

"We have learned this very day, for it registered when young Spike ran away. His power is what opened the door... and we worry what it may be used for." Zecora turned off the Serpent of Lore, and Twilight watched as Rarity and AJ came over to try and comfort her. She shrugged off their kindness, and walked out. She was at the Chaos Gate before she realized she had forgotten to invite them to her party. She sent the invite, then waited for them to catch up.

"Don't worry sugarcube, everything will be alright," AJ said confidently. Twilight could barely hear the words. Her mind was focused on the hurt expression on Spike's face when he had told her he had found out about the secrets. His words stung her; she may have been more focused on helping Fluttershy, but she had never simply seen him as a tool. He was more than just her assistant, but she realized she had never really told him that. She never thought it in her heart, but apparently that was how he felt in his.

She hadn't noticed they were at the location until Rarity tapped her shoulder. Shaking away the cloud of gloom, Twilight determined she would make it up to Spike. He deserved the truth, all of it, and from her mouth. She wasn't going to leave things like this. The trio stood before the sign, and Twilight looked at her two friends. AJ nodded, and Rarity looked slightly ill, but nodded as well.

"Let's do this!" Twilight exclaimed as she punched the sign. It glowed a bright red, and they were sucked through. Unbeknownst to them, a pony stood by the chaos gate, her mane flowing despite the lack of air. She smiled lightly. Everything was going to plan, and Twilight was getting stronger. She just needed a few more pushes before she was ready. The pony looked at the wall.

"Prepare to suffer more and more, Twilight. From you suffering shall come the Wave to wash away this world. Grow stronger my student; grow strong enough to save her...."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Why... won't... you... OPEN?" Spike tugged at the locker harder. "Is it jammed or something? How can a locker jam in a game?" Spike tugged and tugged, then let go. He double checked the numbers, trying to verify that it was the one Celestia had told him about, when he heard hoofsteps. He turned to see Twilight, Rarity, and Applejack. "Why are you all here?!"

"We came to get you, Spike," Twilight said kindly. She took a step forward, but Spike shook his head.

"No! I need to do this alone! Celestia told me that if I could open this locker, then I could be like you guys. I could have power too. She said.... she said if I could open it, then you would see me, Twilight." Spike turned back to the lockers, and with renewed vigor, tried to open the one he'd been told about.

"Oh, Spikey-Wikey....." Rarity muttered. Applejack turned down her hat, and Twilight prepared to take another step forward when a strange noise appeared. It was like there was a sizzle... She looked around, when suddenly the whiteness of the empty space took on a blue tint. But not just any blue...

Twilight turned, and a blue orb of fire was bobbing towards her. Suddenly, her mind went blank. She could only focus on that orb. "You... you're here. You're here! YOU'RE HERE!" The orb burst, spreading a wall of flames. Rarity turned her head, shielding her eyes. AJ put down her hat. Twilight, however, stared into the heart of the flames, where she saw a dark form move. With a wave of its hoof, the flames were blown away.

"My goodness!" Rarity cried, turning back.

"Is that-" AJ didn't get to finish her question, as Twilight, who's voice was dripping with venom, replied.

"Tri-edge." The pony looked just as she remembered. Patchwork clothing, messy blue hair covered for the most part with a patchwork hat. The pony looked around lifelessly, until his eyes focused behind the group. The pony started moving forward, when Twilight stepped into its path. "Don't. You. Dare. Move. Towards. Spike." Each word was forced, her anger rising to unholy levels.

Tri-Edge looked at her without any spark of recognition, then drew his weapons. The twin blades opened, revealing three wicked looking blades. Twilight stood stock still, before drawing her own weapons. Behind her, she could hear AJ and Rarity doing the same.

"I'm going to beat you to the ground," Twilight swore, "and when I do, you're going to tell me how to bring them back! Fluttershy and all the other Lost Ones!" Twilight, Rarity, and Applejack rushed in, attacking from three directions. Tri-Edge blocked all three hits, then blasted them back. Applejack began shooting at him, and he blocked the bullets. While he was distracted, Twilight and Rarity rushed in to double team him. Rarity struck first, her attack blocked by Tr-Edge's second weapon. As soon as his weapon stopped the attack, Twilight leaped off of Rarity's shoulder's, switching to her broadsword and smashing down. It was a direct hit.

Tri-edge backed away, his guard down. Applejack hit him with a stun attack, and Rarity and Twilight moved in, chaining their attacks. Tri-Edge took the barrage, then flashed his head up. Rarity was blasted back in a sudden azure flame, and Twilight dodged to the side. "Rarity!" she called out, and saw her friend was down. She looked back at Tri-Edge, but he had moved in front of AJ. The normally brave pony tried to back away since she was best at range, but he struck her down with a flaming strike. She didn't get back up. "AJ!!!"

Tri-Edge looked back to her, and she felt a dark energy. His body split into three, and formed a triangle around her. AS she tried to comprehend what was going on, her body froze, and the screen went black. She felt as she was hit from three sides at once, the blades raking through her mind. She collapsed, the pain driving her to her knees. Tri-Edge looked at her, then began to once again walk towards Spike. The dragon had seen the battle, and was pressed against the lockers. The fear in his eyes brought Twilight new strength.

"I told you to LEAVE HIM ALONE!!!" She ran, faster than she ever had before, and slashed through Tri-Edge. The pony had an expression of disbelief. He falls down to his knees, and Twilight holds her sword by his head. "Tell me how to bring them back." Tri-Edge simply remained still, and Twilight grew annoyed. She raised her sword to strike him down, when the floor began to break apart. Bits and pieces of data began to float and move towards Tri-Edge. Twilight backed away, wary of this new skill. Tri-Edge continued absorbing pieces of the floor until a large hole had formed. Beneath the white appeared to be a space similar to Avatar Space. Tri-Edge began to glow, and as he did his body began to expand.

Rarity and AJ got up slowly, then they turned to the glowing form. Tri-Edge rose, higher and higher. His legs expanded, then tore apart. His body extended, and a large symbol formed behind him. His weapons merged with his forelegs, and too expanded. With burst, the light disappeared, showing the form underneath. Extended limbs connected to the body through flames, with large claws. The flaming symbol behind him was the one that had been on his hat. Twilight could feel the power radiating from this being.

"Rarity, AJ, get out of the way," Twilight said. She knew there was only one way that this thing would be beaten, and she was the pony who would do it. This was why she had gained power in the first place; she had done all that she had for this very moment. Her anger flared, and she could feel Skeith's excitement merging with her own. The armor formed its red pattern around her. "Come on, come on... I'm right here, I'm right here! SKEEEEEEEEEEITH!"

Twilight's Avatar appeared with a roar. Skeith stretched his claws, and Twilight turned to Tri-Edge. He was massive, larger than anything she had fought before. The power rolling off of it seemed to intensify. Twilight tried to think of something, anything to do.

"What are you?!" She asks. Tri-Edge simply looks down at her. "Are you a hacker? An Epitaph User? AIDA?! Just what the hay are you, and why are you doing this?" Tri-Edge continues to silently observe her. She raises Skeith's arm, and forms the staff. The energy blade forms, and she holds the scythe at the ready. Tri-Edge moves his arm, opening his claws. "If words won't get through to you, then it is time to end this, ONCE AND FOR ALL!"

Twilight and Tri-Edge dash forward simultaneously, each slashing away at the other. Despite his size, Tri-Edge moves on par with Twilight, easily stopping each of her blows. Twilight miscalculated one of her attacks, and Tri-Edge stabbed her through with one of his claws. Racing forward, they made it to the edge of Avatar Space, and Twilight was smashed into the wall. She heard a cracking, but couldn't focus because she could hardly breathe. Tri-Edge slowly removed the claw, then leaped back. He raised his hand, and began forming a large blue fireball. Twilight held her hand to her wound. Luckily, it was difficult for Avatars to actually be wounded. That didn't help the pain, however.

Twilight raised her hand and shot a volley of energy orbs. Tri-Edge took the attack, hardly phased, and continued building up his fireball. It was about her size now. Twilight tried to move forward, but she had yet recovered enough strength, when Tri-Edge sent down the massive data fire. There was no way she'd be able to block, so she forced herself to move. It seemed to home towards her, but only lightly. Her hoof got caught, and the flames seemed to blister her skin. She screamed, and felt renewed energy. She moved in towards Tri-Edge, who seemed to be recovering his strength from his last attack. As she got close, it raised it's hand. Too late, Twilight realized she had walked into a trap.

A hailstorm of small fireballs pelted her. Each hit sent her reeling, and she found there was nowhere to move, no chance to protect herself. Eventually the onslaught faded, and Twilight found she couldn't move. She drifted listlessly in Avatar Space, her body facing towards Tri-Edge. She saw him open his claws, and form a ring. A giant eye opened up. He was going to Data Drain her, and everything would be over. She resigned to her fate. "I tried... I tried so hard. But I wasn't strong enough. I couldn't save anypony."

Twilight watched as the Data Drain charged, and felt it hit her. Strangely enough, it didn't hurt. It felt as if she were being wrapped in a rather warm blanket. She was tired, oh so very tired. Her mind began to wander. What was the point in fighting anymore? She had never been particularly violent before the game came around; in fact, she was sure most ponies hadn't been. Maybe she should just take a break, and fall into a long dreamless sleep....

"Don't give up, sugarcube!" Twilight could swear she could hear Applejack calling to her.

"You can do it, darling!" That was Rarity. Why were they there? Was she still playing the game? Her head was so fuzzy.

"Twilight, you can do it!" Spike's voice. Twilight remembered, she had to speak with him. He was angry with her. She couldn't let her #1 assistant be angry and hurt.

'Stay true to yourself, Twilight.'

Twilight's eyes burst open, and she tore out of the Data Drain. That was Fluttershy. That was Fluttershy! Twilight remembered now, she remembered that she had to find a way to bring Fluttershy back, and all the other players who had fallen into a coma. She had to protect Spike and Rarity and AJ from Tri-Edge. Inside her, a flame burned brightly. Skeith began to glow a bright red, and Twilight held her scythe with deadly skill. She wouldn't lose this fight, not like this. She had too much on the line.

She moved forward, scythe pulled back. Tri-Edge put up his claws, and he took the brunt of her attack. Twilight wouldn't let in though. She put everything she had in the slice. All her anger, her rage, her happiness, her sadness, her fear, her pain, her whole being. Her emotions poured out in a torrent, and Skeith acknowledged them. Their power grew, and grew, and with an almighty roar which came from Avatar and Epitaph User alike, they tore through the block and through Tri-Edge's form. Twilight turned and held her own Data Drain to the back of his head. "This is the end." She fired, and Tri-Edge let out an unearthly howl.

Twilight returned to her normal form, just as Tri-Edge returned to his. The expression on his face was that of disbelief and shock. He looked down at his hoof, and saw bits and pieces of himself falling apart. His azure coding showed through. He looked to Twilight one last time, before his data simply fella apart and disappeared. Twilight collapsed, and Rarity and AJ ran to help her up.

"That was the best darn fighting I've done ever seen, Twi!" AJ complimented, patting Twilight's back. Rarity nodded, and tilted her head to Spike. Twilight looked up to him. The little dragon turned away, unsure what to say.

"Twi.... I'm sorry for all I put you through. It's just... we've never had secrets, and I felt like I wasn't important enough to you. I felt alone. I mean, I'm the only dragon among a bunch of ponies, so I stand out a lot. But I just wanted to be seen like everypony else. Can... can you forgive me?"

Twilight dropped her head, then smiled at the little dragon. "Spike, there's nothing you need my forgiveness for. Now come on, let's get out of here." They all turned to go, when the lockers suddenly burst open, one by one. Twilight turned to investigate, when she heard a noise. Spike's eyes clouded over, and he moved towards the lockers. "Spike!" she called out frantically. Whatever was in those lockers, she didn't want him near.

Her voice seemed to break him form his reverie, as he turned to look back at her. His eyes focused. "Twi?" he called out. Then it happened, Black hands shot out from the lockers. Twilight watched in horror as they penetrated Spike's body, multiple times. Each hit felt as if it were hurting her. Spike spasmed, his body jerking back and forth. He looked at Twilight, his eyes completely black. He reached towards her, before screaming as AIDA poured from all over his body. The AIDA retreated back into the lockers, which once again locked themselves. Spike collapsed to the ground, still. Twilight could sense that this wasn't just his character falling. No, she could feel in her heart that her Spike, her cute little assistant, had fallen in the real world as well.

"SPIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIKE!!!

Prologue

Twilight was silently enjoying her copy of "The Unabridged History of Star Swirl the Bearded", when a knocking came to her door. She looked up from the book to the clock on the wall, and saw it was well past noon. It seemed that once again she had become enthralled in the alluring pull of the written word. She calmly made a dog-ear on the page, and walked down the stairs to the entrance of the library. "Who is it?" she asked politely before being bowled over by Pinkie Pie.

"Twilight, Twilight, Twilight!" Pinkie seemed to be very excited. She was literally bouncing off the walls screaming Twilight's name. The pink pony was like a bundle of energy that was going to explode at any moment. Twilight sighed, then used her magic to bring the hyper-active pony to a stop. "Twilight, Twilight, Twilight! What's your game address?" The pink pony looked at Twilight with bright eyes.

"Umm, what?" Twilight asked confused. She had no idea what Pinkie was talking about in the slightest. Game address? She didn't have any games of her own, and she was sure none of them had homes. Games couldn't have homes, seeing as they were inanimate objects. "Pinkie, what are you talking about? What's a 'game address', and why do you want mine?" Twilight leaped back as Pinkie somehow managed to break from her magic and give a loud gasp. It still confounded her how she was able to do stuff like that.

"YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT A GAME ADDRESS IS?" asked Pinkie raising her hoof to her mouth. "How could you not know? I mean, how do you invite friends to your party? Or do you invite friends to your party? Do you not like having a party? I mean, I know they're not like my parties, but they're still fun! And they're so helpful when you're low in level or are taking on bosses or wanna go to strong areas or-" Twilight cut off the pony before she could spout out more nonsense. Parties? Levels? Bosses? What in the world could she possibly mean by all this?

"I'm sorry Pinkie, but I have no idea what you're talking about. I've been in the library studying up for my yearly magic exam, and Celestia gave me leave on writing her letters. I don't even remember the last time I talked with Spike." Twilight dropped her head a little at the thought of neglecting her #1 assistant. Pinkie stared silently at Twilight, then walked out. Twilight simply stared, confounded at the whole ordeal. "What in the hay was that about?" Twilight shook her head, then put away her book so that she could find Spike.

It took Twilight a moment before she found the little purple dragon. He was sitting beside a bookshelf with a strange device on his head, and a different device in his hand. It all connected to a mysterious little box on the ground that was making a soft humming noise. When Twilight put her hoof against it, she could feel a whirring within, and heat coming from it. Spike was vigorously moving and pressing the device in his hands, and the device on his head kept him from noticing Twilight. Carefully tapping his shoulder, Twilight tried to get her young assistant's attention. Spike jumped, and shifted up the device on his head. "Twilight! Oh Twi, I'm so sorry! Did you need anything? I got so distracted with 'The World' that I forgot to help you study!" the dragon put the device back down on his head, and moved the one in his hands a bit more. After a few moments, he put it all down on the box and looked up at Twilight expectantly.

"Spike, what are these items? I've never seen anything like them before... And what is 'The World?'" Spike stared at Twilight with a mixture of shock and confusion. He motioned with his hand to the box and strange devices. Twilight looked at them once more, trying to determine how they functioned. Spike let out a small gasp and put his hands to his face.

"Of course! I forgot you haven't been around Ponyville lately! You don't know about the new game that's come out." Spike patted the box. "This is called a 'P-Box.' It's a new device that runs on electricity and lets you play the game, 'The World.'" Spike then motioned to the strange helmet-like device and the other thing. 'This is a 'Virtual Reality Helmet' and a 'Controller.' They let you see and play 'The World.' It's like you're actually there!"

Twilight took in the information with a slightly confused expression. The terms Spike was using were completely new to her, but they sounded interesting enough. "Well Spike, I'd love to give this game a try. It seems Pinkie already has, and really wants me to join her for a party." Spike's expression shifted to one of somepony who was trying hard not to laugh. "What? What's so funny?"

"Well Twi, I don't think Pinkie was inviting you to a party," Spike began to explain, "I think she wanted you to join her party, or her group on the game. Usually, players form groups so it's easier to play. Especially newer players. I've played with Pinkie. She's crazy good at it. Her character is one of the strongest there are!"

Twilight shook her head smiling. She really had missed quite a bit. She let out a smile sigh. "Ok, Spike, I think I'll give it a try after my exam. Maybe you could help me get started." Spike put his hand to his head in a salute showing he accepted. "That's my #1 assistant!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Twilight looked around slowly. She could hardly believe the world she was looking at wasn't real. The details were so intricate, she could see the different nicks in the stone flooring where different players had trotted through. She was currently standing in what looked like a pavilion, with a town down a long climb of stairs. A few players were around, and things Spike had called "NPCs." It was strange though, because she thought Spike had said he'd meet her in this area to better acquaint her with this game's mechanics. As she tried to find him, two players walked over to her. They were both ponies, one a stallion with a silver mane that covered his eyes and a thin sword, the other a mare with a purple mane and large hat that made her look a little silly. They smiled at her kindly. "New to 'The World?'" asked the stallion. Twilight found it quite interesting to hear the voice as if it was all around her. The Virtual Reality Helmet was quite an interesting invention indeed.

"Why yes, yes I am. This is my first time playing, and I was looking for my friend. Have you seen any dragons around here?" The mare tilted her head and put her hoof to her mouth. It really was quite difficult for Twilight to remember the pony wasn't exactly real. At least, this wasn't the actual pony. This game was confusing.

"Yeah, I think there was a dragon here. SpikeKnight, right?" the mare asked her friend. The stallion gave her a nod, "He went through the Chaos Gate with somepony with the screen name 'PinkieCupcakes.' I've heard she's a pro level."

Twilight let out a sigh. It seemed Spike had been dragged out to do something by Pinkie. It wasn't exactly a shock, but she was still disappointed. Now who would she get to show her how this game worked. Suddenly, an idea came to Twilight. "Would you two mind showing me how to play?' she asked the ponies. They gave each other a look, then nodded. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! you two are life savers!" The mare snickered slightly, then recomposed herself.

The stallion stepped forward a bit. "Ok then, here's your first lesson: forming a party. We're going to send you our game addresses; open the menu, go to 'party', and click our names. Then we'll be on the same party and can head to an area." Twilight followed the instructions, and was delighted to see the ponies health and magic points (what a silly concept) at the bottom of her screen. The stallion pointed to the strange portal behind her when she finished. "Second lesson: going to areas. That is a Chaos Gate. It teleports you from place to place. You enter keywords, and you can go to dungeons or fields. We're gonna go to Delta Crying River Dance. It's a pretty low-level place, and you should be able to get the hang of things."

When Twilight spoke the words, she saw a bright light, then she was standing in a field. She spun around quickly, trying to comprehend what was going on. "Wha-? Where are we? Weren't we just in a town?" She saw the two ponies laughing, then remembered that she'd been told they were going to teleport. Still, the warning couldn't prepare her for that massive change in scenery. She pouted, embarrassed she'd looked so silly. "Hmph! Can we get started on the lesson?"

Finally, the laughter stopped. "Sorry, sorry. It's just always funny seeing new players in their first areas. Anyways, this is a field. This field's mission is 'Get the treasure', which means we have to defeat all the monsters to open the door that leads to the treasure. In fact, there's a monster over there now!" The mare pointed to a large cat-like monster. Twilight thought cat-like, because it was red, had glowing eyes, and only barely resembled a cat. "Level 1 monster, nice and easy. Let's go practice combat!' The two ran to the monster, and Twilight followed, though she was less enthusiastic. Once they came into contact with the monster, a bright blue wall surrounded them.

"Ok newbie, here's the deal! That wall prevents outside interference from other monsters. Press the big button to do a normal attack, and hold it to charge a strong attack! Press the button beside it to block! This monster is all yours." Twilight, pressing her hoof to the button she couldn't see repeatedly, noticed her character attacking the monster and taking away chunks of its health. Soon, its health faded, and it disappeared. A victory screen appeared. "Good job! Keep it up, and you'll level up soon." Twilight felt herself blush. This game was a bit strange, and more than a little violent for her tastes, but she had to admit she saw the appeal. It was so different from normal life that it was hard not to be enthralled. Twilight spent the next few minutes (with the help of the two ponies) defeating the rest of the monsters. A sound like stone grinding against stone caught her attention.

"That's the last of them! Time to collect our reward." the mare said with a strange note in her voice. The trio made their way to the large stone building, and down several sets of stairs. They entered into a large chamber. The only noticeable features of the room were the chest, the Chaos Gate, the huge pit behind the chest, and the floating statue of Celestia and Luna above the pit. The ponies motioned for Twilight to take the treasure. She slowly cantered over, and opened it with a flourish. Inside was some new equipment she could use.

"Wow! Thank you two so much! How can I ever repay you-" she said cheerfully before taking a huge amount of damage. She collapsed, her character barely able to stand. She looked up, trying to comprehend what was happening. She thought all the monsters were defeated. What could have hurt her, and so badly in one hit? Then she saw. Her two teammates had their weapons drawn, and pointed towards her. Their expressions had warped from kindness to some kind of sick pleasure.

"Stupid newbie! Did you think we'd really just help a lowly player like you?" said the stallion, his blade gleaming cruelly in the light.

"We just wanted you to be all nice and cozy, so it'd be just that much more fun to PK you..." said the mare, as her large rotating-blade tore at the ground. The pair of them slowly stalked closer to Twilight, who drew her own weapons and tried to hold them up in protection. The mare moved quickly, breaking her block, and allowing the stallion to get a direct hit. Twilight's health was dangerously low. She didn't know what would happen if it completely fell. Her character was on the ground, and it looked to her as if she was barely conscious. The two ponies moved in for the finishing blow...

When somepony blew them both away. Both players disappeared into bursts of data, and Twilight was left alone with the mysterious pony. She could only see the silhouette, but she was sure it was an alicorn. The pony moved closer, and she held her breath. "Princess?!" she exclaimed. Her teacher looked down at her, a strange metal casing on her left leg. She held out her right to her student.

"Hello Twilight, my most faithful student. Welcome, to 'The World!'

Turning Up the Heat in the Arena

Twilight logged back in to "The World" the next morning after having a breakfast of ~~"Yug-Ohs!"~~ "Hay-Os" brand cereal. Putting on her VR Helmet, she was immediately greeted by a large bright message from the system admins.

'Greetings all players! The Omega Server Root Town, Lumina Cloth is no longer under maintenance. Arena facilities are reopened to all players. Come down and root for your favorite teams, or participate and try to become a new Palace Emperor! Title matches are held often, so check in regularly.'

The message disappeared, and Twilight found herself dumbfounded in front of Vinyl and Octavia. "Hey Twilight!" Vinyl said with her usual perkiness. "You saw your announcement, right? They reopened the server after you left yesterday. But get this: we managed to earn free tickets for the guild! So, wanna see the title match?" Twilight checked to see if she had received any messages from Raven. It didn't look like it, so she nodded her consent. "Awesome! This is going to rock so hard!"

"I will admit, it does seem like it'll be fun," Octavia said silently. The trio made their way to the the Omega root town, then up the stairs and towards the Demon Palace.

"I've never actually been to an arena match," Twilight admitted quietly as they made their way to the stands, "What are they like?"

"Whoa, really?!" Vinyl laughed. "To think, the legendary PKK has never been to an arena match. That's just cray-cray! Anyways, these are basically players fighting each other for glory. Most players go in teams of three, but occasionally you get some single players. Makes sense since only the team leader gets the title of 'Palace Emperor' and joins Icolo, the Emperors Guild." Twilight absorbed the information, then stored it away as the match was beginning. An announcer spoke from out of nowhere.

"Welcome Ladies and Gentlecolts to the Demon Palace Arena Title Match! Today's challenger, hoping to reclaim her title as Emperor of the Demon Palace, is the Twin Blader, Spitfire!"

Cheers echoed as Spitfire flew into the arena. She took a lap, waving her hoof to the crowd. Twilight watched as Octavia and Vinyl stomped their hooves in cheer along with the crowd, and joined herself. Finally, the crowd began to settle, and the announcer continued with his spiel.

"Now, defending her title as the reigning Emperor of the Demon Palace... Rainbow Dash!"

Twilight stood shocked as the crowd roared louder. Rainbow Dash teleported into the center of the arena, her demeanor calm. Twilight's heart nearly stopped at the thought of it. Rainbow Dash not gushing over attention? Something was up, and she wanted to know what. Spitfire stood still and drew her weapons, taking a battle stance. Rainbow Dash didn't bother drawing anything, simply watching with a somewhat glazed expression. The announcer gave a countdown for the beginning of the match.

"Three... Two... One... GO!"

Spitfire dashed forward with amazing speed, and Twilight was sure that the rainbow-colored mare would be overtaken, when the world seemed to slow down. Everything began to turn blue, and Twilight saw a strange pattern glow on Rainbow Dash. All sound faded, except from her.

"You're too weak to fill the void..."

An Avatar suddenly appeared, and Twilight shifted backwards. Rainbow Dash was able to summon an Avatar as well?! What was going on? Did the others know about this? She'd have to find out later. At the moment, Rainbow Dash's Avatar was sweeping its hand in a deadly arc, and scissored through the near standstill Spitfire. Slowly everything began to move at a normal pace, the graphics and noises returning as well. Spitfire was collapsed on the ground, apparently defeated. Twilight looked to Vinyl and Octavia. "Did you two see that?!"

"Yeah I saw that! Quickest match ever! Totally not even worth it. And what was that skill anyways? Rainbow Dash like, glowed, then Spitfire just collapsed. You ever see anything like that Tavi?"

Octavia put her hoof to her mouth in thought. "I can't say I have, Vinyl, but then again, she's on an entirely different level."

Twilight didn't say anything. Apparently, they hadn't seen Rainbow Dash release her Avatar, which meant that regular players couldn't see them. It also reinforced the fact that she wasn't a normal player. But how had Rainbow Dash been able to release her Avatar, and why did she use it in the arena? Twilight decided then that she'd have to have a little conversation with Rainbow Dash as she was leaving...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Rainbow Dash!" Twilight said, catching up to her. Rainbow Dash simply turned around, and smiled slightly.

"Ah, Twilight," she said almost as if in a dream, "How have you been? I haven't seen you in some time..." Twilight's jaw dropped both in the game and in the real world. Rainbow Dash was never this polite. Nor did she speak so calmly.

"What the hay is wrong with you? How do you have an Avatar? And more importantly, why are you using it in arena battles? Isn't that rather irresponsible?" Twilight shot questions like bullets, and was annoyed when Rainbow Dash simply snickered.

"Oh, so you could see my darling?" Rainbow dash cooed, then petted a small doll on her shoulder. It looked a lot like Fluttershy... "You know Twilight, only those with the power can see it in use. But you know what? Even if you can see mine, it doesn't matter. You're too weak. So what if I use it in tournament fights? They can't stop me any more than you. Besides, it helps fill the void." Rainbow Dash began to fly away, when Twilight bit her tail and yanked her back. Rainbow Dash's expression, though still somber, was more annoyed. "Anything else you need, bug?"

Twilight's eyes seemed to glow with anger. "Listen up, Dash: I don't know what's gotten into you, but with Celestia as my witness, I am going to beat it out of you. I hope you're not too attached to that throne, because I'm about to kick your sorry flank out of it!" Rainbow Dash snickered lightly, then began to fly away. Twilight huffed, then was bowled over by a filly-sized torpedo.

"Rainbow Dash, Rainbow Dash, Rainbow Dash!" shouted Scootaloo, following adoringly in Rainbow Dash's shadow. "That was another great match! I knew you'd win, because you're the awesomest most extreme pony there is! There's no way you could've lost" Scootaloo turned to face Twilight, a look of disgust on her face. "Nopony could beat you Rainbow Dash... nopony." Twilight turned and looked for Vinyl and Octavia. They were by the exit, chatting about something involving the matches. Twilight interrupted them.

"I want to enter the next tournament," she said adamantly. "Either of you wanna help?"

"I'm up for it," Vinyl said without hesitation. Twilight got the sense that she had wanted to enter one for some time, but was held back by something. She turned to look at Octavia.

"I'm... not one for fighting other players..." Octavia said softly. Her answer confirmed Twilight's suspicions that Vinyl couldn't enter previously.

"Well, we're gonna need a third, Twi," Vinyl said. "I can handle myself well in a fight since I'm a Blade Brandier, and you're pretty fast as an Adept Rouge with the Twin Blade job, but we're gonna either need a healer or a heavy hitter to balance us out."

A lump formed in Twilight's throat. She knew somepony to fill either position... and they were both unavailable. Fluttershy was a great Harvest Cleric would have been more than able to heal them during the battles; but of course, she was in a coma. And Spike, as an Edge Punisher, could deal massive amounts of damage to groups of enemies at once. But thanks to her performance, she doubted he'd so easily help her. She still felt a sting from her words.

"Do you know of any way to find some temporary help," Twilight asked. Vinyl scratched her head, deep in thought.

"Why not just post an ad?," Octavia asked. Vinyl rushed up and hugged her tightly, then gave her a quick kiss on the forehead.

"Tavi, I freaking love you!" Vinyl exclaimed. Octavia blushed hard, backing away and hyperventilating. Vinyl turned back to Twi, who was a little embarrassed herself. "We can just ask somepony to help us through the tournament! Offer a bit of cash, and we're set! So, what should we ask for: a healer, or a heavy-hitter?"

"Heavy-hitter," Twilight said quickly. If a Harvest Cleric joined their team, too many painful memories would distract her. Getting a heavy-hitter wouldn't be much better, but at least she'd be able to concentrate more. Vinyl informed Twilight that it would probably take a while before anypony replied, so Twilight decided to take a break from 'The World.' She logged off, then took off her VR Helmet. Things were getting so hectic in the game, it felt like she was living two lives, neither of which was much better than the other. She got up and went to the main section of the library, and looked for a book. A brief travel through a written world would surely help to cheer her up. She decided to try a book titled, "Poetry from Ponies Past." After looking at a few poems, a thought enters her head. She had heard that a specific poem in the book had some significance to the game. She turned through chapters until she came upon a poem titled "The Epitaph of Dusk." It read:

Yet to return, the shadowed one.
Who quests for the Dusk Dragon
Rumbles the Dark Hearth,
And Helba, Queen of the Dark,
has raised finally her army.
Apeiron, King of Light beckons.
At the base of the rainbow do they meet
Against the abominable Wave,
together they fight.
Alba's lake boils.
Light's great tree doth fall.
Power- now all to droplets turned
in the temple of Arche Koeln.
Returns to nothing,
this world of shadowless ones.
Never to return, the shadowed one,
Who quests for the Dusk Dragon.

Unknown where the Cursed Wave was born…
After the stars doth cross the heavens,
The sky in the East doth darken and air doth fill with mourning.
From the chosen land beyond the forest, a sign of the wave comes.
Riding the wake is Skeith, the Shadow of Death, to drown all that stands.
Mirage of Deceit, Innis, Betray all with the flawed image, and did aid the Wave.
And by the Power of Magus, a drop from the Wave doth reach the heavens, and creates a new Wave.
With the Wave, Fidchell, the power to tell the dark future, hope darkens, sadness and despair rule.
Gorre schemes when swallowed by the Cursed Wave.
Macha seduces with the sweet trap.
Wave reaches the Pinnacle, and escape none can. Tarvos still remains with more cruelty to punish and destroy.
And with the turbulent destruction after the Wave. Only a void remains. From deep within the void arrives Corbenik.
Perhaps then the Wave is just a beginning as well.

Shunning the field broken by Wave.
The shadowed girl whispers,
"Surely, I will return."
Alas, the truth unbeknownst.
Awaiting her at journey's end;
Eternal mourning for her land.

When the finger points to the
yonder moon,
The fool will look at the fingertip.

The whole cannot be changed.
We have already lost that chance.
Because the time left to us was short,
We were mistaken in our path.
But now do we realize,
We should change not the whole,
But the parts.

Wave soars and shrouds the eyes.
No means to fight an omnipresent force,
The shadowless ones just grieve.
Why must it be a Wave?
Divide, if it would just...
Then retaliate, we may.

Over the Keel Mountains,
Meets an ape with civilized speech.
The ape asks,
"What clings to you?
Bear it—you cannot.
Accept it—you cannot.
But hidden—it is from you.
Recite its name."

Like a frenzied beast that is driven.
An unseen wind of plague shrieks across the border.
Pandemonium, wailing, and stench of carnage fills the air.
There is no place to run. No hope of escape.
Those who are mourned will never return.
The hands of time cannot be turned back.

:The Keel Mountains traversed at last,
we met a dragon that spoke thus:
"Sheraton am I, who interprets the signs.
An answer to my question, give.
If you can, complete my role will be,
and I will leave this land.
Though equally it exists before everyone's eyes,
grasp it not one person can.
Tell me—what is it?"

Plaird of the Seven Sisters,
falling in love with a mortal,
Became a Shadowed One and was exiled from the Light.
Hence, her name came to be called Plaird the Fallen.
At her wanderings end,
she settled in seclusion in Arche Haokar.
However, those days may not last.
A reunion may come, or may not.
Plaird's form vanishes at the coming of the sign of the Wave.

Twilight finished the passage, and a strange sense of understanding washed through her. It was as if somehow, the poem was a loose tie that nearly bound something together. But it was just short. Reading on, Twilight discovered that the author of the poem had died before she could complete it. The thought was sad, since it was such a beautiful piece of literature. Twilight placed a bookmark at the beginning of the poem, and decided to read through it again later, when she saw it was dark outside. She'd burnt through the entire day. Her stomach growled, the sound akin to a wild chimera (and boy, did she know about chimeras). She made her way to the kitchen, and ate a small dandelion salad. She noticed that she'd have to restock on food soon. Oh, how time flew.

Her descent into sleep was a quick one, her dreams filled with thoughts of puppets and dragons, light and shadow, and a wave which washed away everything...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Twilight awoke to a rainy day. She looked at her calendar. They weren't scheduled rain for another two weeks. Thinking about it, she noticed that the weather had been rather chaotic as of late. Was Rainbow Dash at least keeping up with her duties as weather manager, or was she simply spending all her time on 'The World?'

She shook her head. She'd fix with Rainbow Dash soon enough. Having a breakfast of muffins and milk, Twilight entered 'The World,' only to notice that there had been a reply to the guild's request for a heavy hitter. Somepony with the screen name "Hot_Chicken" had asked for Twilight to meet with her alone at Delta Screaming Water Dream to discuss the details. She said she'd be waiting behind the stone building housing the treasure.

Quickly sending a message to Vinyl and Octavia, Twilight made her way to the area. The field was rather high in level, and Twilight took some time to fight any monsters she encountered on the way. After making her way through the field, she arrives at the stone building. She quickly rushes around and is shocked to see nopony there. A familiar laugh breezes through the air.

"Ah, Twilight Snarkle," Trixie said, slowly slinking her way from the other side of the building. Snips and Snails somehow come from the side she came from, effectively boxing her in. "Oh, how Trixie plans on enjoying this. Trixie is not only about to PK you, but Trixie is getting paid to!" Trixie laughed, as if this was some great joke, and Snips and Snails joined in. Trixie glared at them, shutting the two up, then began to approach Twilight. Twilight backed up into the building, her mind frantically searching for an answer, when another familiar voice called out.

"Leave Twilight alone ya bully!"

Spike, her wonderful assistant, appeared with his weapon drawn and pointed at Trixie. The mare took a tentative step back, but still stood her ground. "Oh what, is Trixie supposed to be afraid of a runt with a big sword and a PKK who has lost her power? Puh-leez!"

Spike smiled. "Oh, maybe not. But you see, Trixie, I'm with Moon Tree: and I brought two friends with me." Spike moved aside as two stallions appeared. One of them Twilight recalled meeting before. His name was Sakaki, and he was a lieutenant at Moon Tree who didn't approve of her PKK'ing. The other was a fiery looking pony, whom Twilight immediately had the urge to fight. One look in his eyes, and she could tell he felt the same.

"Cease and desist," said Sakaki. "If you attack this player, we at Moon Tree will consider it an attack on ourselves... and I'm sure that your guild master wouldn't approve of that."

Trixie scowled, then glared at Twilight. "We will settle this, Twilight Snarkle. In fact, Trixie is officially challenging your guild. Meet at the Kestrel @home. If you chicken out, then your guild will be destroyed." Trixie smiled smugly at Sakaki, and pranced off, with Snips and Snails prattling along after her. Spike looked to Sakaki, who simply shook his head.

"I am sorry, Spike, but there is nothing I can do to stop a formal guild challenge. Twilight will have to meet with the leader of Kestrel. Only she can stop the challenge; of course, she's unlikely to do such. More likely, she'll simply make it worse."

Spike looked to Twilight, and saw she was heading off. He moved quicker than his class should normally allow, and cut of her march. She looked down at him, her eyes hiding any emotion. " Twi, I know why you were here. I want to join your party as the third member. It'd be better to work with someone you know rather than a total stranger anyways, right?"

Twilight held her breath, and looked away. Spike was about to assume she'd refuse, when she nodded. "Alright, Spike, you can be our third. I'll invite you when we're getting ready for our match." She left the area before he could say any more.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Twilight, alone and with no fear in her heart, stood in the middle of the Kestrel @home, and @home so large it was given an actual area. Only guilds who exceeded a certain number limit were given such. The Kestrel @home was shaped like a canyon, with treacherous cliffs and spikes everywhere. PKs watched as Twilight climbed her way up to the plateau, and slowly hooved her way to the massive cloud and stone throne. Sitting upon it, with a wicked gleam in her eye, was the leader of Kestrel, Lightning Dust.

"The Terror of Friendship, here my domain," she said with a purr, "What a treat indeed! Oh, to think that you of all ponies would appear in front of a guild filled with members who despise you... I can't get over it. But, you're not here to visit. No, you're here to discuss the clan challenge that Trixie set." Lightning Dust looked over at Trixie, who was sitting beside throne with a fearful look in her eye. "Yes... rather funny how she simply set out such a challenge without permission. But I like her moxy. Reminds me of myself. And Canard has been an irritation anyways. So I'm allowing the challenge to go through."

Twilight listened intensely, keeping her eye behind her at all times. It seemed that a wall of players had formed behind her. Ponies, griffons, and dragons all looked with an intense gleam of delight. She really didn't have any allies here. She looked back to Lightning Dust. "Well, I accept the challenge. Shall we set the terms then?"

"Right to the point! I like it. How's about this: if you win, then we of Kestrel shall leave you alone. All of us." The last statement was aimed at Trixie, who flinched as if the words had actually physically cause her harm. "And if we win, your guild has to disband, and you have to join us." A few shocked gasps went through the crowd. Twilight was just as shocked.

"What? Join you? But... but why?!" she asked.

"Simple. You're strong. Even if you're somehow weaker than you were, the determination is still there. I can feel it coursing through you. No matter what you face, you tough it out and keep moving forward. Despite what you may think of us, we value strength. That is why we PK; we do it to test ourselves against the only thing which can grow stronger and stronger. Players are the greatest test of strength this game provides, because they constantly change. Don't you agree? After all, you're the pony who takes out PKs. Are you any different from us already? Isn't power what you seek?"

"I seek power, yes; but I am nothing like you!" Twilight was rattled. Lightning Dust's words struck close to home. She had to leave, and soon. "I'll agree to your terms, but only if you agree to leave my guild alone, as well as those who deal with us." Lightning Dust nodded, her smile never leaving her lips. She waved her hoof, and the wall behind Twilight dispersed. Twilight started walking off, when Lightning Dust made a final remark.

"Just so you know, this challenge will be settled in the arena. Trixie here already qualifies for the tournament. If you can't make it their, or you lose to her team, then we win. Good luck."

Twilight exited, then released a pent up breath. The meeting had exhausted her, both mentally and emotionally. She didn't think it would be so intense, or that words would carve into her so deeply. She suddenly had a moment of pity for Trixie: what was it like to have to deal with that kind of guild master all the time? She couldn't begin to imagine. She shook herself off, and invited Vinyl and Spike. When the two arrived, they headed to Lumina Cloth to register. Their first match began immediately.

Their first match was a breeze, since the other team only consisted of two Blade Brandiers and a Steam Gunner. Twilight and Vinyl took out the Brandiers, allowing Spike to handle the weaker Gunner. When the gunner was down, Spike used his area attacks to help finish off the other two. The group high-hooved and were teleported back into the arena lobby. "That was so totally rad!" Vinyl cheered. Twilight nodded, and Spike simply grinned.

"How many more matches before we qualify for the tournament?" Spike asked.

"About three if I'm not mistaken," Twilight said, "But I'll have to check-" She paused, because she had received a message from a mysterious player. It asked her to meet them in front of the Grand Hullz Cathedral, where Fluttershy had been PK'd. She read further, and saw that they wanted to discuss... Tri-Edge. She closed the message. "I'll be back... something I have to attend to. The next match is in an hour, right?" Vinyl nodded, and Twilight moved to leave. Spike walked beside her.

"Twilight, should I be worried?" Spike asked with a serious expression. Twilight shook her head.

"No, Spike, you shouldn't. I just have to check on something. Besides, I can handle myself." Twilight exited, then made her way to the Grand Hullz Cathedral. She opened the door, looking for the one who sent the message. "Where are you?!"

Music played from nowhere, and from the roof came crashing to the ground a pony covered in gold. The pony majestically threw her golden mane back, then looked to Twilight with gleaming golden eyes. When she spoke, the sound was as harmonic as a golden angel playing a golden harp on a golden couch on a golden cloud during a golden sunrise. Her might and majesty were unrivaled, and when she replied to Twilight's question, she simply said:

"Darn! My awesome entry! I just don't know what went wrong..."

Twilight watched the pony adjust herself so that she was sitting upright. Her crash entry had been impressive, but not exactly spectacular. "Ditzy?! What are you doing here?"

The golden armored mare stood up, and cleared her throat. "Twilight Sparkle, the Terror of Friendship!" she began powerfully. "I, who go by many titles such as the Bright Eyed Crusader, Ditzy the Destroyer, and the Golden Derp, have come to you in order to reveal that I have been gathering information on the mysterious PK, Tri-Edge, so as to boost my renown even further! And I tell you this, so that I may ask if you will be my ally in this brigade! Your legendary power is just what I need in this quest!"

Twilight took a moment to figure out what the hay was going on. Ditzy had apparently been searching for Tri-Edge, and had come looking for her to help. It was rather silly, but Twilight felt for the mare. She was nice in real life, so why not indulge her a little?

"Ok, 'Golden Derp,' I'll help you. Just contact me if you need me. You clearly are good enough to keep on the lookout without me. I need to get going back to the Arena anyways." Twilight left the bubbly pony to gush at her success, and made her way back to the arena. She was just in time.

Twilight's team won their next two matches, and they were all feeling ecstatic. Spike checked their next match, and his heart sunk. He rushed to Twilight. "Twi, Twi! Our next match is against Matsu!" Twilight tilted her head trying to figure out if that meant anything. "Matsu is the other pony you met when we stopped Trixie at that field. He's an Adept Rouge like you, except he picked different classes. He used to be a legendary PK, the Lord of Flames Matsu."

"How is there an ex-PK in Moon Tree?" Twilight wondered. "That guild hates PKs."

"He pledged to Sakaki that he'd stop using his Edge Punisher skills, since he used them as a PK. He hasn't broken it at all since he joined, and everypony respects him for it. He'll be tough to beat." Twilight had to admit, Spike had a point. Fighting a legendary PK wouldn't be easy, even if they restrained themselves. As she thought of ways for them to take on Matsu, a voice called out to her from the shadows. A voice so familiar it made her heart stop.

"Need some help, Twi'ly?"

She ran and dug her face in her brother's chest. Shining Armor looked down at her with a mask on his face. He laughed lightly and hugged her back. Spike and Vinyl snuck out, leaving the two to themselves. Twilight didn't really mind much; she was glad to talk to him alone.

"What are you doing here?" Twilight asked with tears in her eyes.

"Well," Shining Armor said, scratching his head, "I'm actually the old leader of Icolo, the guild of arena Emperors. I stick around and keep things up-to-par, and help keep things calm around here. What I was wondering was why you were here."

Twilight turned her eyes away. "Rainbow Dash... I need to fight her." Shining Armor simply nodded. "You're not worried?"

"Twi'ly, this is a game. Nopony is going to get hurt. Besides, sometimes friend shave to fight to solve their differences. A good spat can drive bad emotions away better than letting them linger in you." Twilight had to admit that her brother was pretty wise when he needed to be. And she needed somepony close to help her. "But you're not gonna reach her as you are. You're going to need to get back your old abilities. Yes, I know you got reset somehow. I do keep check of your activities little sister. In fact, I know about a job advancement quest in Mac Anu. Since your next two fights until tomorrow, why not take it tonight then get some rest?"

"That's a great idea! Thanks Shining Armor!" Twilight rushed out, leaving Shining Armor alone. From behind a curtain, Rarity appeared.

"Thank you, Shining. Twilight needed a push from somepony she trusted, and you're one of the few she can still rely on." Shining Armor looked at her darkly.

"Just know, I'm doing this to help my sister. If I thought for a second that your organization was putting her in more danger than she could handle, I'd finish you without a thought. My sister is one of the most important ponies in my life, and I love her with all my heart. Nothing will happen to her under my watch."

"We don't plan on it," Rarity said coolly, "And don't think that we don't love her too. I know we haven't been fair to her, but sometimes we have to hurt those we love to make them strong enough to face their destiny. Sometimes, sacrifices have to be made."

"That may be true," Shining Armor said, "But Twilight will not be that sacrifice." He walked away, and Rarity stood looking at a picture of Rainbow Dash on the wall. Her heart sank a little.

"Sacrifices have to be made... from all of us."