IV

"Oh, you can't help that," said the Cat: "we're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad."

Days had passed since the mysterious portal started manifesting. Security and surveillance had been maximized and the surrounding areas were evacuated. The Royal Guard decided not to disclose such information to the public in order to avoid panic, leading to them thinking it was only an experiment for a new weapon.

The portal was surrounded by a more reinforced fence with even more peacekeepers keeping guard. Tents, scientists, and equipmentgathered in great droves.

Evelyn Frost, as instructed by President Celestia,guarded the menacing anomaly. Along with her subordinates, she neither refused to look away from the portal nor let go of her spear that she wielded. She was tired of the sleepless nights she had to endure, but containing and guarding the threat was her first priority.

“Lieutenant Frost? Is there something bothering you?” a peacekeeper asked.

“It’s nothing, I’m just anxious,” Evelyn replied.

“Anxious? Why would you be anxious?” another peacekeeper asked. “There’s like fifty guards stationed in this area and another fifty in the surrounding areas.”

“As far as I know, we have the whole thing secured,” another peacekeeper added.

“But… this is Nightmare Moon we’re dealing with,” Evelyn said with angst. “President Celestia said she’s an even bigger threat than Sunset Shimmer was!”

“So what? Sunset Shimmer was powerful, but where is she now? Gone,” the peacekeeper proclaimed.

“There’s no confirmation if she was eliminated during the CHS incident,” Evelyn replied. “She could still be alive.”

The peacekeeper walked up to Evelyn and removed his helmet, revealing it to be Clyde. He placed his hand on Evelyn’s shoulder and gave her a smile.

“Now, do I look like I’m worried? I mean, do they sound like they’re worried?” Clyde asked as he pointed to the peacekeepers around him, “Look, you’re just exhausted. Maybe you should go for a walk and make sure everything around isn’t shady?”

Evelyn tried to refuse, but decided not to. She let out a sigh and nodded to Clyde as she placed her spear on her back. She saluted to Clyde with the latter doing the same as well. She then left the area, but remained anxious.

She passed by every empty block of the area and finally found herself on a busy street. It was already the dead of night and she was surprised at how crowded it was still. It was an unusual sight for her, due to her rarely leaving the Palace and spending most of her time in the library.

She could feel her head aching and her vision starting to fade. Exhausted and dehydrated, she headed towards a stand that sold juice. She got herself a drink and sat by a nearby fountain.

Evelyn took a sip of her drink and gazed at the sky. The whole horizon was clear and the shattered moon was visible. From such sight, she could remember the day it was destroyed by the same threat that is Nightmare Moon. She wished she could take a long break, but her duty was a priority.

“Evie?”

A familiar adolescent voice called out to her. She looked around her to see who it was, but couldn’t find him. Thinking she was hearing things, she decided to ignore it.

“Evie, down here.”

The voice called out to her again. She then looked down and saw a baby dragon holding bags of grocery.

“Spike? What are you doing here?” Evelyn asked to the dragon. “Shouldn’t you be with the princess?”

“President Celestia instructed me to buy her groceries,” Spike replied. “Besides, I should be the one asking you that. Shouldn’t you be at your station?”

“I’m scouting the area for strange occurrences. I’ve been guarding the portal for days now.” Evelyn chuckled as she rubbed the back of her head.

“I could tell, since you look like an exhausted cow.”

“Hey!”

Spike laughed as he sat next to Evelyn. The baby dragon reached in one of the bags and took out a sandwich, which he began to eat.

“How’s the princess?” Evelyn asked.

“Still locked in her room while ten guards her door,” Spike replied. “In other words: perfectly safe.”

“And the President?”

“Still hysteric and pacing around her office like it’s the end of the world.”

Evelyn sighed as she placed the now empty cup beside her.

“There are so many things happening at the same time. I’m drowning in angst,” Evelyn said softly.

“Do you need a back massage?” Spike suggested as his cheeks turned red.

“Hmm, I guess?” Evelyn raised a brow. “My back does feel like it’s about to give.”

“Leave it to me,” Spike proclaimed as he cracked both of knuckles.

Spike gave a perverted grin as Evelyn turned her back to him. He slowly placed both of his hands on her shoulder. The dragon could feel the girl’s soft skin through her tunic.

“IS THAT A DRAGON?!”

A boy wearing sunglasses suddenly appeared next to Spike, making the latter jump in surprise and hid behind Evelyn. It was none other than Treble Mix, whose face was close to the dragon.

“What the?!”Spike exclaimed.

“OH AND IT TALKS! Oh can you understand what I’m saying? Can you breathe fire? Does your tail grow back if I cut it? CAN I STICK THE TIP IN?” the strange boy asked obnoxiously.

“Evie, do you know this person?” Spike asked as Evelyn, who shook her head in confusion.

Treble noticed a certain symbol on Evelyn’s gloves; a Sun. The boy was soon delighted even more as he let out a fan boyish shriek.

“HOLY SKAGFUCK! You’re part of the peacekeepers!” Treble exclaimed in glee. “Can I have your autograph?! What’s it like living in the palace? CAN I HOLD YOUR SPEAR?!”

“Not right now, it’s not bad, and no, you cannot hold my spear,” Evelyn answered in one go. “Also, refrain from using such language.”

“You want me to put it in old English so it can penetrate your wizards cap? Alright… thou art-”

Suddenly, Treble was interrupted mid sentence when a bandaged hand was raised in front of him. Treble, Spike and Evelyn looked to their side and saw Zero Gravity, who once again had a confident smirk.

“My man, I’m going to ask you to stop bothering this poor lady,” Zero requested. “She looks like she had a rough day.”

“…And who is this?” Spike asked once more with a brow raised.

Evelyn groaned.“I have no clue.”

“Who am I, you ask? Very well, I shall tell you who the fine gentleman standing before you is!” Zero said.

Evelyn began to zone out from her current situation, ignoring everything. Her eyes then caught something from the ensuing crowd around her. A girl who was wearing a black and gray cat suit and had green hair that was tied into a curl and had peach skin. On her face was a black metallic mask that had a single, neon-pink lining glowing on her eye level. Behind her was a sheath that carried a katana. The mask covered everything except her mouth, making it hard for Evelyn to see who the person underneath it was.

The girl suspiciously looked around, and headed towards the direction where the portal was.

Zero clapped both of his hands and let out a big cough.

“I was the first born child of my mother White Star, and my father-”

He was then interrupted as Evelyn abruptly departed from the fountain, leaving Spike with Treble and a disappointed Zero.

“...Just the name would be fine…” Spike said to Zero.

“Fine… It’s Zero Gravity.”

Back at the palace, three girls including Rainbow Dash sat around a round table inside the office of President Celestia. One girl had pink hair, a brighter pink skin, and was wearing pink and light blue dress and small pink hat. The other girl had purple hair, white fair skin, and a fashionable black dress.

The purple haired girl looked over Dash and became disgusted at what she was wearing.

“What now, Rarity? Did I fart on you or something?” Dash said in annoyance while glaring at the girl named Rarity.

“Uh! Good heavens, that is disgusting!” Rarity complained. “I was referring to your clothing.”

“Oh you mean these? Awesome, right?” Dash said as she gestured her clothing and goggles.

“Totally!” the pink haired girl added.

“See? Even Pinkie Pie agrees,” Dash said as she pointed to the girl named Pinkie Pie. “Besides, have you imagined what it’s like to do parkour while wearing a dress?”

“Parkour? I’d rather stay here where I’m safe.” Rarity pouted as she crossed her hands.

“I’m the royal baker and party planner of the Palace!” Pinkie added.

“Whatever, I’m having fun myself as a matter of fact,” Dash said as she placed both of her feet on top of the table. “Living a free life outside where no one bosses you around, and what do you guys have? Small rooms guarded by fifty guards? Where’s the fun?”

“Say all you want, I feel absolutely fine living inside the walls of the Palace,” Rarity replied while flicking her hair.

Dash turned to Pinkie with a brow raised.

“And how about you, Pinkie? Are you always stuck in here along with her?” Dash said to her.

“Technically I am the party planner of the whole entire city,” Pinkie replied. “And yeah, I can go out of the palace… with three guards accompanying me.”

“Yuck.”

The doors to the room opened and walking in was Celestia along with a high ranking Peacekeeper. She walked up to the center seat and sat on it. She pressed a button on the table, which displayed a holographic panel. She pressed another button and was directed to a map that displayed a butterfly and apple symbol.

“Codename Honesty is currently secure but refused to leave her farm, while Kindness’s location is unknown,” the peacekeeper said.

“As long as my sister thinks all of the Elements are within the Palace, it will be fine,” Celestia replied.

The peacekeeper nodded and left the room. Celestia stood up and walked up to her glass window. She examined the shattered moon as it stabbed through the glass.

“Okay, why’d you bring me here?” Dash asked directly.

“I’ve gathered all of you here today for an important matter regarding the Elements and the impending doom,” Celestia said to the girls. “Tell me, do you know what power they possess?”

“The ability to spawn beautiful diamonds?”

“The ability to party whenever I please?”

“The ability to be AWESOME!”

“…Quite,” Celestia groaned. “Each one of you has a unique Meta corresponding to your Element. For example, you have inhuman speed, Rainbow Dash.”

“That’s my name, don’t wear it out.”

“But, that’s not all; Kindness, Honesty, Laughter, Generosity, Loyalty and Magic are simply names, call signs, or flashy names that you kids refer to nowadays,” Celestia explained. “They weren’t originally called the Elements of Harmony.”

“So you’re saying that, our abilities aren’t part of our Elements?” Rarity asked.

“Correct,” Celestia replied. “During the dark ages, six individuals known as the Pillars of the Old knew of the existence of magic. The six of them were the ones that balanced magic in our world, and successfully sealed it with their powers. You remember the Wondercolt Statue right?”

“Oh yeah, the statue that started it all,” Dash groaned.

“That statue was the source of all magic and was kept hidden for hundreds of years, but was eventually breached by Sunset Shimmer, who then extremely exposed magic to the whole world,” Celestia continued as she looked at Dash. “Now, the power you are holding are the Pillars; Pinkie Pie having the pillar of Hope, Rarity having the pillar of Beauty, and you having the pillar of Bravery.”

Pinkie giggled.“That sounds similar to me.”

“They are reflections of your own elements, all of which hold hidden powers… powers that you have yet to uncover.”

“Great, now what’s this about an impending doom?” Dash asked.

“From here on out, you are to remain inside the Palace until further notice,” Celestia commanded as she headed towards the door. “You three will be kept inside a room where you will be safe.”

“WHAT?! Are you kidding me?!”Dash complained. “You can’t lock me up!”

“I’m sorry, but I need you to be safe for the mean time,” Celestia sighed. “I wish I could say the same thing to Applejack and Fluttershy.”

“Safe? Safe from what?”

Evelyn discreetly followed the girl, keeping distance in order for her not to raise any suspicions. No doubt, the girl was heading for the portal. Evelyn kept on following her until the girl turned to an empty alley.

Evelyn hid in a corner and peeked over the alley. There, she saw the girl unsheathe the katana, revealing several Japanese markings engraved on the blade. The girl leaped unto a dumpster then jumped to a wall, using her sword to scale it. She soon disappeared on the rooftops, prompting Evelyn to reveal herself.

Evelyn smirked.Piece of cake.

Evelyn took out her spear and touched the ground with it. A bluish circle glow began to manifest on the ground and a cold mist started to surround her. Soon, ice began to appear on the circle and turning into a tower, elevating Evelyn to the roofs.

As the icy maiden step foot on the roof, she saw the masked girl in the distance near to where the portal was. Evelyn slowly paced towards the masked girl, with the latter examining the area of the portal.

“Miss, you’re under arrest for trespassing,” Evelyn commanded as she got near her. “Put your weapon down, or I will resort to violence.”

The masked girl slowly turned to Evelyn and simply glanced at her. The girl started speaking Japanese as she positioned herself into a battle stance. Evelyn simply sighed as she too did the same.

“…Violence it is,” Evelyn whispered.

The masked girl let out a battle scream and charged at Evelyn with her katana. She swung her katana to Evelyn, with the latter moving out of the way in time.

“This is Lieutenant Frost; we have a Code Red! We have an intruder on the rooftops! Guard the portal at all cost!” Evelyn shouted into her earpiece. “I repeat! Code Red!”

Evelyn swung her spear to the girl, but was easily blocked by her. The girl gave a counter attack and hit Evelyn on the left arm, wounding her in the process and rendering her left arm useless. The girl continued to attack Evelyn as she struggled to block every single strike.

Evelyn started shooting out ice projectiles towards the girl, but was easily blocked as she was slashing them. She looked behind her and saw that she was near the edge. The girl continued her barrage once more on Evelyn. She managed to dodge this and pointed her hand to the girl. Ice came out of her hands and hit the girl on her feet, immobilizing her.

Evelyn stood, breathing heavily. The other girl struggled within her icy prison while Evelyn glared at her.

“Lieutenant, are you hurt?” a voice came from her earpiece.

“J-Just a minor scratch,” Evelyn groaned in pain as she tended to her wound. “I have neutralized the intruder.”

“Copy that, sending reinforcements.”

A few seconds later, a number of peacekeepers surrounded the girl as the latter sheathed her katana. The peacekeepers aimed their guns towards her, prompting her to raise both of her hands.

“You have the right… to remain silent,” Evelyn said as she slowly walked towards the girl while still holding unto her wound.

The masked girl looked at her side. She let out a smile as she lowered her hands.

“Yeah… smile all you want,” one of the peacekeeper said. “Enjoy your last few seconds outside. You’ll be sleeping behind bars from now on.”

“Hakai,” the girl whispered.

Suddenly, a circular purple aura appeared below the girl, which the latter fell into. Out of their sights, the Peacekeepers began to look for the girl, only to find her with another girl that had pinkish skin on another rooftop.

The other girl wore a black hood that had holes that were keeping out her purple and light blue pigtails, a cloth mask that covered her eyes, a purple dudou, and black pants, and had wraps around her feet and hands.

The hooded girl began to do a circular motion with both of her hands.

Evelyn could see the girl chanting and looking straight at the portal, raising panic towards herself.

“QUICKLY, GET TO THE PORTAL!” Evelyn commanded.

“YES MA’AM!” the Peacekeepers said in unison.

Evelyn wasted no time and rushed towards the two intruders. She pointed her hand at them and began to shoot ice projectiles towards them. The projectiles were blocked by a force field that was being projected by the hooded girl.

Evelyn soon reached the two and began to strike the force field with her spear. Strike after strike, the spear bounced off of it and remained unscathed.

“Rise from your slumber; awaken Nightmare Moon once more,” the hooded girl chanted as she flicked her hand towards the portal.

A purple beam shot from the hooded girl’s hand. The beam headed towards the portal, overloading it as the glow of the portal began to intensify. Second after second, the glow grew brighter and eventually caused an explosion, damaging the equipment and destroying the fences that surrounded it.

After one final strike, Evelyn finally destroyed the force field. As she was about to strike the two girls, the hooded girl opened up another portal and disappeared from Evelyn’s sight.

“Bollocks,” Evelyn cursed.

Evelyn sighed as she slowly went to the edge to see what happened to the portal. She decided to deal with the two intruders later on, having the portal as her first priority.

As she stared from above, her expression turned into shock. Her eyes shrank and began to sweat in fear. Black mist shrouded the whole area, but the figure in the center was visible, laughing victoriously as the mist began to disperse. She had black armor that had moon insignias and dual blades that had an eerie blue aura.

“REJOICE! Your queen has finally returned!” Nightmare Moon proclaimed.

No doubt, it was who Evelyn feared it was: the dreaded Nightmare Moon.

Author's Note

- LOG 004 -
Evelyn's meta is the ability to generate ice at her will. This ability could also be used with her spear, enhancing it even further.

Treble's meta is forecast. He can predict incoming attacks or occurrences and successfully avoiding them. This works well with his unpredictable nature.

Time to start the first arc! Sorry for the long wait, school's being an absolute bitch.