The wind was soft as the ponies walked around the Crystal Empire, smiles clear on their faces as they continued their lives. Sombra has fallen, and the Crystal Empire is brought to peace once again after a millennium. In the center, the battle scared castle stood, the balcony no longer existing, and pieces of the tower cracked from the impact of the previous fight. Within the castle, our heroes rested, the throne room as silent as the night. Twilight sat with her friends on the left side of the throne, as they rested or just sat in silence. On the throne was Cadence, her mane a little disheveled, but her coat and power had improved greatly. She no longer had the bags under her eyes, nor that pained look she held when the shield was up. Her coat shone bright as she smiled, her husband, Shining Armor holding her as they melting in each other's embrace. On the right side of the throne, the four humans layed. Cody rested on the steps, as he stared up at the ceiling. Alex sat next to him, his eyes were focused on something else. Zack, and Kevin. They rested next to each other on the floor, their headgear stripped off as well a few pieces of their armor, in hopes to create somewhat comfortable pillows. Kevin turned to the side, his eyes slowly fluttering open as he croaked a groan. Alex's eyes widened as he quickly got next to his friend, putting his hand on Kevin's shoulder.

" Easy there Kev. Take it slow." Alex said, Kevin opened his eyes as they adjusted to the light.

" Ugh, Jesus Christ what the hell?" Kevin groaned, rubbing his face as he tried to block out the light. Alex laughed, helping his friend up into a sitting position.

" How do you feel?" Alex asked. Kevin's voice was devoid of emotion as he rubbed his head.

" Like my head got rammed by a fucking train." He replied. Alex smirked. " What happened? Where am I?" He asked again. Alex looked up to Cody as he walked up, kneeling down next to his friend.

" We beat him, Kevin. We beat the King of all evil. The kingdom is safe, thanks to us." Alex said. he looked over to the girls, who were too busy checking each other to not really notice. " And most importantly them. We bought them enough time." He said. Kevin looked over to the girls, Twilight being checked on by Fluttershy, and Applejack and Rarity conversed, Pinkie and Rainbow doing their own thing. Kevin noticed someone lying next to him. Looking down, his eyes widened as he straightened up.

" Zack? I... I thought-" Kevin didn't finish his sentence. He looked up to Alex, a look of worry crossing his features. Alex sighed as he leaned back, switching from his kneeling position, and now sitting criss-cross.

" When we found you two, you were knocked out and lying on the ground. When we found Zack we..." Alex looked to Zack, the feeling of disbelief still rushing through his thoughts. " Well, let's just say that he's healed, and we're hoping he can come back from this." He said. Kevin looked at Zack as well, Cody standing up to stretch as he let him process the information, he was never really one for drama shit like this anyways. Kevin grunted as he bent his legs, resting his elbows on them as he continued to stare.

" How long have we been out?" He asked. Alex looked up at Cody, who was too busy checking his weapon as well as the kingdom.

" For about thirty minutes. With you waking up, maybe Zack isn't that very far." He said. Kevin was about to reply, but the sound of hoof steps echoed through the throne room. Kevin looked to where the girls were, only to see six pairs of eyes staring at him with worry.

" Kevin!!! Oh thank Celestia!!!" Fluttershy sobbed, crying into Kevin's shoulder as she hugged him as tight as her fragile body could. Kevin was still shocked from them running up, so he just sat there, watching each of their expressions. Rainbow still hovered in the air, her eyes showing uncertainty and a small hint of worry. Applejack was under her, holding her hat against her chest as she smiled with content. Pinkie smiled widely as she bounced in place. Rarity was trying to hold in her tears, sniffling as she held a hoof under her eye. he wrapped his arms around Fluttershy to return the hug, a sigh escaping him. Fluttershy released her grip as she retreated to her friends. He looked back up to the last pony. Twilight. She stood there, tears rolling down her cheeks as she hiccuped, wiping away the tears was a futile attempt to cover up. Kevin gave her a worried look as he scooted forward.

" Twilight... I... I'm sor-" Kevin was cut off, Twilight hugging him as well. She buried her head into the side of his neck as she sobbed. Kevin gently hugged her in return, looking up at the girls for some explanation. Out of them all, one caught his eye. His scaly green fins sticking out as he stared back. Spike smiled, giving him a thumbs up.

" She was worried that you wouldn't make it. I said she missed talking to you." Spike said, as he shrugged. Kevin chuckled lightly, before hugging with a little more force, gently cradling the pony. Twilight continued to sob as she held on.

" I-I-I thought you h-had... h-had." Twilight didn't finish her sentence as she pressed her head against his chest, being careful to not hurt him with her horn. " I was so worried. This is my fault, you and your fr-friends got h-hurt because of me." She said. The two other humans in the room walked up behind Kevin, Alex smiling as Cody shook his head with a smirk.

" It wasn't your fault Twilight, you have nothing to blame yourself for." Alex said, kneeling down on Kevin's left side. Twilight raised her head to Alex, tear stained cheeks and puffy eyes greeted him. The girls behind her moved up as well, giving her comfort.

" Yeah. If you want to blame anybody then blame this asshole, he's the one who recommended we get involved in the first place." Cody said, gesturing to Kevin, who shot him a glare.

" You and I both know how important they are to us Cody. They could be our chance, I couldn't risk it!" Kevin said. Alex chuckled patting him on the back.

" Still Kevin, next time maybe a better plan where we aren't so close to death?" He said. Kevin inhaled deeply, a small smile slowly appearing on his face.

" Alright. I'll take blame and improve next time. Maybe you should be leader." Kevin said.

" Huh yeah I'll think - nope, too much responsibility." Alex said, standing up and walking over to where Zack rested.

" Everything is alright Twilight. We are glad to have helped and we are glad that young your friends are unharmed, and that you have stopped Sombra." Kevin said, wiping a tear of Twilight's cheek, making her sigh as she lightly giggled.

" I will admit, you gave us quite the scare darling." Rarity said, walking up to Kevin as he leaned back with his hands on the ground, Twilight letting go of his shoulder, but promptly decided to stay in her seat. " Especially with, your friend over there." Rarity gestured to Zack as he lay there, the image of the massive pool of blood staining the pure crystal grounds, and his pale white skin replayed in her mind. Kevin looked back to Zack, his smile wading slightly.

" Yeah. But I believe he is gonna be fine." Kevin said. Applejack walked up, placing her hat back on her head.

" I gotta say partner, what you did out there, that saved a lot more lives than ya'll can imagine. This was a team effort, and you deserve some of the credit for doin' your part as well." She said. Kevin chuckled as he shook his head.

" Oh no please, helping you six after all you have given us is enough for me, I do not wish an audience with the whole kingdom." He said.

" Poor boy gets stage fright! Especially with a new species!" Cody said, as he was leaning on a window sill, watching the Empire. Kevin grunted in annoyance.

" that was at PAX! And the microphone wasn't working for the announcement so screw you!" He replied. The girls snickered while Cody laughed. Kevin stretched his arms as he was about to get up, but there was a problem. " Um Twilight?" Kevin said. Twilight looked up at Kevin, an innocent smile on her face.

" Yeah?" She asked, completely oblivious to what she was doing. Kevin cleared his throat.

" Can you um, you know." Kevin said, gesturing with his thumb as jabbed right. Twilight raised a brow, wondering what the hand motion meant and what he wanted her to do. He sighed as he gave her a deadpan stare.

" can you please get off my lap? My leg is starting to fall asleep." Kevin's eyes met hers, as he could see the gears turning. Then faster, then even more faster. Her eyes shot wide open, a bright pink blush appearing on her face, even through her fur, as she gasped.

" Oh! Uh right right! Sorry about that!" She said, quickly scrambling off. As she did, Twilight looked at the ground, too embarrassed to look up at Kevin as he stretched and groaned in satisfaction. Rolling his shoulders, Kevin stood in place, waiting for his body to get used to the situation. Sighing, he walked over to Zack and his gear, the girls and Twilight going back to their conversation while Cody joined Kevin. Kevin knelt down as he checked his armor. The padding was scratched in the chest area, a few scratches on the right side of his helmet. Where the crystal had hit him in the battle. As Kevin began to place his armor on, Cody stood next to him as he looked down at Zack.

" I'm glad both of you are alright." He said. Kevin finished pulling his equipment over his head, the armor fitting snug on his torso as he checked the pads. He noticed the medic bag was still on his belt, making him sigh as his muscles relaxed.

" We have you two to thank. I'm not sure what you two did that helped the kingdom, but I'm glad you two were there to finish the job." Kevin said, giving Cody a smile. Cody sighs, shaking his head before he rested a hand on Kevin's shoulder. Kevin raised a brow, but something in Cody's eyes made him worry.

" We need to have a talk when we get back. You understand?" Cody said. Kevin felt something in the pit of his stomach. His voice. Cody wasn't being friendly. He was demanding. Kevin had heard when Cody wanted something, his voice serious and no hint of joking was present. Most of the time he would use it to coax people into fearing him. Not like his physique wasn't enough already to intimidate people. Kevin slowed down his movement of putting on his equipment.

" Um... su-sure Cody. Yeah if you wan't to talk then yeah we will." Kevin said.He was about to resume but he didn't feel his grip loosen. Kevin looked back at Cody, and saw a glimpse of something. Anger. Not the friendly anger when one is pranked by their friends, a fake irritation before you laugh it off. No, this was something else. Like Kevin was a complete stranger.

" Just you Kevin. That's all." Cody's voice was quiet, but it was as loud as church bells ringing in Kevin's ears. No words left his mouth, for he could only nod in agreement. Cody released his grip, and from it, Kevin could feel himself come back to the world. The girl's conversation came back, replacing the subtle ringing in his ears, as well as his heartbeat.

" Kevin! Kevin!" Alex's voice shouted. Speeding back into the world, Kevin spun around to Alex as he knelt down next to Zack. Kevin's eyes widened, as Zack began to cough hysterically, bringing a hand up to his mouth. The girl's conversations died as they quickly looked to the noise with wide eyes. Cadence tried to get a better from her position on the throne, holding onto Shining Armor as he too observed Zack's actions. Zack coughed as he shifted to his side. His coughing subsided as he began to groan. His eyes fluttered open as he fought to stay up. Alex smiled as he helped his friend up. Zack groaned in annoyance as he rubbed his eyes with his arm, his mind in a total daze. The girls smiled, relieved that he was okay.

" Zack, are you okay? What do you see? How many feathers is raised?" Fluttershy said, raising her wing, bending some feathers so the ones that stood up were visible. Zack shook his head lightly, before observing the room with half lidded blue spheres.

" Ugh... Wha... What happened? Where am I?" Zack said. His mind began to process he was being held up, and his face seemed to show surprise. His eyes widened as he looked to his right, staring Kevin in the eyes. He quickly looked in front of him to find the girls, Cody standing next to them as he maintained his posture, but the red building up in his eyes was making it hard. Wiping his eyes, Cody chuckled.

" H-hey man. It's good to see you up and ki-kicking." Cody said. Zack looked confused at first, but his brain and body suddenly kicked into gear. He remembered where he was, what had happened in the fight. He quickly grabbed his chest, feeling around for his wound as he started to panic. Alex comforted his friend as he held him in a sitting position, Kevin kneeling down next to him.

" Hey hey relax it's okay, there's nothing." Kevin said, placing a hand on Zack's shoulder as he began to realize there was no puncture wound. He looked at his chest.

" B-but, I was stabbed, by a fucking crystal may I remind you! H-How?" He asked. Kevin looked up to Alex with a smile.

" When I was unconscious, Alex used my medic bag to quickly heal your wound, and you survived. The blood later went back into your body and your system began to work. I don't know how any of it works I know, but that's not the point. The point is, is that you're alive, and we're all grateful for it." Kevin said, his eyes getting a little blurry. Cody took the time to embrace Zack in a hug, to which his friend grunted in surprise. After a few seconds, Cody released, Zack smiling as he looked to Alex.

" I... I can't thank you enough man. I mean it." Zack struggled, his own eyes getting teary. Alex sighed, giving Zack a smirk.

" Hey man, we all got each other's backs, and we're going home in one piece, that includes you." He said. Zack chuckled, before looking back at his chest,

" You sure it's fully healed?' He asked. Kevin nodded in response.

" if it works like the ones in the game then yeah, you should be good to go." Kevin said. He stood up and was about to tell Zack to get his stuff on, but he stopped. He watched as Zack, with uncertainty in his eyes, slowly lifted up his shirt. The ponies gasped, some having blushes on their faces, but they all had wide eyes. Kevin did the same. Zack's chest showed clear signs of muscle, a perfect build for the ideal man. But that wasn't it. What Kevin saw, raised more questions, and alarms. Where the crystal had pierced his best friend's chest, there was a vertical scar, the pink stretched skin not as visible one would think, but with a keen eye, you could see the pierce. The scar went from two inches under his bellybutton up over it by four inches. The thing would have practically gutted him.

" I thought so. My chest felt weird." Zack said, tracing a finger across the scar. A blushing Twilight stepped up to Kevin, giving him a confused look as she tried to focus on the matter at hand/hoof.

" Wait, I thought you said it would fully heal him?" She said. Kevin looked to her, then back to the scar on his chest, before Zack pulled his shirt back on.

" That's just it. It should have fully healed him. When the person is fully healed there should be no problems for the personnel and they can continue combat." Kevin reasoned. Something clicked for Cody, ending the turmoil.

" It never said what would the physical healing would look like. Sure the person may be ready for combat, but it never says what the wound looks like." He said. Kevin realized what Cody was getting at. Of course they couldn't see what the damage would look like, they were in first person on a character they played in a game. Of course you're not gonna be able to see a bullet wound.

" Well if doesn't fully heal them, then what does it do?" Alex asked. Everyone began to think, Kevin throwing the medic bag down as he looked at it. Twilight walked up, her horn lighting up as she scanned the bag. After a few seconds of this, her horn blinked as it dissipated, and the glow seemed to gloss over her eyes for a brief second, before she gasped in shock.

" but that magic is only accessible by the highest tier mages in Equestria!" She said aloud. Kevin and his friends all raised a brow at this.

" Uh? A little insight Twilight? Please?" Alex asked. She cleared her throat, preparing herself for the impact.

" The magic that is harbored in this ' medic bag' you describe it as, has layers upon layers of healing magic, creating a healing tier magic that only trained mages under the training of Celestia's highest magic casters can create. The magic allows the process of cell division to increase drastically. You can practically regrow a hoof in a matter of seconds. But magic like these incredible healing spells upon spells can have complications. The magic stops when it believes the healer has been restored to full working order. I guess it must've stopped too early." She said. Everyone in the room was silent, Zack walking up to the bag as he stood next to it. Lifting up his shirt, he noticed that the scar wasn't healing, and that made him worry.

" So it thinks I'm fully healed?" He asked. All Twilight did was nod. Zack raised an eyebrow, before an idea popped in his head. He pulled out his knife, making the ponies and his friends go wide eyed. Taking off his glove, he placed the blade on the tip of his thumb. he gently glided the blade across his skin, the first sign of blood appearing. Pulling the blade back, he walked up to the bag. After getting up to a meter to the bag, the skin began to quickly retract back, like the cut had been reversed. The blood even began to go back into his body like Kevin said. The thumb fully healed, and it wasn't even four seconds. He lifted his shirt, but to his dismay, the scar was still there. Twilight gave him a worried look, but gave him a sheepish smile.

" I'm sorry Zack, but don't feel too bad! Scar's show your bravery at facing against the odds and coming out on top!" She said with enthusiasm. Everyone/pony looked at her, their eyes showing her that they completely did not buy it. She gave them a pout. " Well at least i'm trying to make him feel better!" She argued. Kevin shook his head before looking back to Zack.

" You okay man?" He asked.

...

....

.....

" Ugh. When I get back my mom is gonna fucking kill me."

Author's Note

Holy Hell it is Good to be Back!!!

Finally I have some breathing room to write and continue, and boy does it feel good to breath!!! Thank you all for being so patient, or maybe that's just you forgetting about this story ( lol ) but anyways, here is the new chapter and the plot shall thicken and continue. I can't thank you guys enough for the support and I do hope you all have had a good new year so far and be sure to take it easy and now what a wonderful community you have around you!!! Not gonna be spewing these babies out for the whole week, bu the waiting period I'm definitely gonna shorten. Well I'll see you all in the next chapter! AAAAAAaaaaand as always...

KEEP ON WRITING AND KEEP ON READING!!!