The very earth trembled, seemingly in fear of the most recent terror to walk upon its surface: Tirek. The minotaur stood several stories high, his physical body unable to remain at its previous size with so much magic surging through him. The power he wielded was far greater than any being that had touched the surface of this world, as far as he knew. Even the power of four Alicorns was nothing against him, and now that magic was his as well. With a single stomp of his hoof, the very ground beneath him split open.
His rampage was interrupted by the purple Alicorn and her ‘friends’, however- they had returned, and with new magic, one changing their physical forms as well. Great beams of energy collided between them as the sun set, each fighting for dominance against the other. The sheer power radiating was enough to split the earth beneath them, creating gaping chasms where there was once stable ground.
But from these chasms spewed a miasma, a purple haze that lingered on Tirek’s hooves. Suddenly, the mist latched onto him, and he cried out in shock and pain. Whatever this was, it was doing something to him, something painful, something that tugged at his very life and ate away at what little soul he had left. But, even as he felt his spirit diminishing into nothing, he felt his power multiply.
The mane six were shaken from their battle when Tirek suddenly stopped attacking, and began to bellow out laughter. Then, to their shock, a purple something oozed into him, changing him. His skin became a viscous black liquid, his red fur changing to purple. His limbs grew spines and spikes, and his horns curved forwards, jutting in front of his face, which all but ceased to exist, his eyes becoming pools of shadow, his mouth a jagged, gaping hole. His hands grew longer and sharper, becoming claws, and his hooves became jagged talons. Fluttershy was visibly shaking, and the other elements were visibly frightened.
That changed, however, when a burst of bright yellow shards of energy pierced Tirek’s head from all angles, puncturing it in innumerable places. The injuries merely healed over, and a great, bellowing roar was his response. A figure walked forwards on two legs, sharply-angled shoes on his feet and gloves ending in giant golden rings on his hands. His fur was distinctly black, with red streaks running down his back and the top of the spikes sticking out the back of his head. The creature that was once Tirek charged, but his target seemingly disappeared before reappearing, his hand on a horn. A flash of yellow light burst out, and Tirek began to shrink. But he did not return to his original form- he shrank and shrank until he was the size of a pony. His horns were nubs, and he stood on all six limbs, his body resembling a lizard. With a final blow from this mysterious assailant, Tirek was dead, his magic drained, but not released.
Twilight and her friends released the energy within them, the Rainbow Power returning to the Tree of Harmony, before walking up to their mysterious helper.
“What happened? What did you do? Who are you? What are you?” asked the Alicorn. The creature regarded her for a moment before replying, his voice smooth with a hint of condescension.
“He held a great deal of power within him, and no control over it- with the Gaias’ battle nearing, our world was shattered once again.”
“Gaia? Battle? Shattered?!” replied Twilight, a hint of panic within her voice.
The black male rolled his eyes before walking off. After getting a certain distance away, the magic inside him was released, the power flying across the sky to its original owners. Then he began to search for something before finding it hiding inside a massive hoofprint; he delicately picked it up before walking back. It was a creature, red and white with tiny wings.
“The Gaias are two gods that exist within our world- one represents light, and the other darkness. Every thousand years, they wage war beneath the planet, fighting until they tire and once again fall asleep. However, if our planet is exposed to extremely large amounts of energy during the final decade before they awaken, they are awakened prematurely, and the Dark Gaia’s energy leaks out, transforming the one who released it, spawning monsters, and causing any without large reserves of Chaos Energy to fall into despair, depression, delirium, and rage. This being is the Light Gaia, stripped of his power. I am Shadow the Hedgehog, an artificial life form created to protect this world.”
Twilight looked ready to burst from excitement and questions and nerves, but Rainbow Dash put a hoof on her shoulder, and Rarity slung a spell in her face, causing the purple mare to slump down, unconscious. Shadow quirked his brow before smirking.
Twilight slowly awoke, reluctant to actually get up, her sheets feeling more comfortable than usual compounding her exhaustion. Then her mind caught up with her body and she shot up, franticly looking about. This was not her room; in fact, it looked like it was in the Crystal Empire. Was yesterday just a bad dream? Yes, that had to be it. Tirek didn’t attack, and the world-shattering disaster didn’t, either. Twilight supposed her desire for purpose caused her to dream up a fantasy, though that last bit was a bit strange. At least, that was what she figured before the being she had supposedly dreamed up walked into her room.
“You were beginning to descend into a manic state, so your friend knocked you unconscious. That was for the best; you would have been possessed by the Dark Gaia energy, and become far too energetic for your own good. You would have been buzzing about until dawn broke, leaving you exhausted. If we’re going to fix the world, you need to be rested.”
“And besides,” said the little red-and-white fairy Twilight remembered Shadow said was the Light Gaia, “you’d be too sleepy to eat! And breakfast is the most important meal of the day! Although I suppose it would be more ‘brunch’ by now. Either way, your friends won’t let me eat any more until you get up, and I’m hungry! By the way, I’m Chip! And the Light Gaia! Or at least, that’s what Shadow says I am. I can’t really remember anything.”
Twilight slowly blinked twice, the being flittering before her far too cheery. She may have been awake, but sleep spells combined with being magically drained had left her tired. She shoved the pillow over her face once again, groaning, before getting out of bed.
“Why do you even need my help? You defeated Tirek all on your own,” said Twilight.
“I can expertly manipulate Chaos Energy, of which your magic is one form. I was able to drain him of his power, and contain it thanks to these,” said Shadow, gesturing to the golden rings around his wrists. “They restrain my power to a manageable level. Without them, my power would quickly burn out, my life going with it.”
“That still doesn’t explain why you need my help,” said Twilight, doing her morning preparations.
“You and your friends are the most powerful beings on this world at the moment, save for myself. I can do many things, but the Dark Gaia Monsters can be difficult foes, and fixing this quickly requires multiple people, as well as technological expertise that I sadly have yet to develop.”
“And what, exactly, are we doing?”
“Fixing the world.”
