Chapters A Spark of Magic
Hey readers and writers of different fanfics, I’m Robsa990 and this is my very first fic. What actually inspired me to try writing one is Thunderhawk and his stories of ‘The 7th Element’. I’m more of an artist than a writer as I have created artwork for Thunderhawk’s stories. I’ve created a cover for my story to motivate me to write haha. Feel free to comment and share constructive criticism. MLP:FIM belongs to Hasbro.
Chapter 1: A Change of Scenery
I walk through the streets of Manehattan towards the train station. Not many ponies are up during this time of day; it is 5:30 AM, after all. I'm on my way to Ponyville so I can take a break from all the posh ponies in this town. I arrive at the Manehattan train station and I wait at the ticket booth.
“Good morning, Silver Spark! Off on that trip you’ve been planning for so long?” asks the station manager.
“Yes, yes I am, Ray. How much is the ticket?” I ask.
“That’ll be 20 bits.”
I levitate 20 bits out of my saddle bag, the bits encased in a silver glow; I set them down and slide them under the booth window. Ray gives me the ticket and I board the train. Levitating my grey saddle bag off of my back, I sit down on one of the side beds. Surprisingly no pony else is traveling to Ponyville today.
“Looks like I have this whole cart to myself!” I say in a happy tone. Opening my saddle bag, I levitate a navy blue book in front of me. ‘Astronomical Astronomer’s Almanac to all things Astronomy.’ These sorts of topics always interest me. The train starts moving and the train driver announces “Next stop Ponyville. Estimated travel time 2 hours”
This time I decide not to read because I’ve done that ever since I’ve lived in Manehattan. I gaze out the window at the fast paced scenery of mountains and grassland that stretch for miles. Because of the fast motion of the train, I start to feel a little motion sick, so I close the curtains with my magic and lie down on the bed. I close my eyes and I feel the vibrations of the train on my back as it travels along the tracks and I start to relax. Before I know it, I fade into a light sleep. I awake to the sound of the train’s wheels screeching to a stop.
“All passengers please make your way off the train and into Ponyville train station. Thank you for traveling with us today.”Announces the driver.
I quickly pack all my belongings into my saddle bag and levitate it onto my back. I step off the train and smell the fresh morning air in Ponyville. The scent of freshly baked goods fills the air. I look around trying to figure out where this wonderful smell is coming from. There, in the distance is a large colourful building which itself looks like it’s made of baked sweets.
The sign above the building reads 'Sugar Cube Corner'. A bell atop the door frame makes a chiming sound as I push the door open. The smell of baked sweets surrounds me in the bakery. Wooden tables and benches are setup alongside the walls. I approach the counter, and out of nowhere a pink blur shoots up at my face.
“Hi! Welcome to Sugar Cube Corner!” says a bouncing pink earth pony. Then all of a sudden she stops in mid-air, touches down back onto the wooden floor followed by a very long gasp. Then she zooms off out of the building making the door almost fall off its hinges.
“Well, that was interesting...” I mutter. From behind the counter appears a light blue pony with a pink swirly mane and tail.
“I’m Mrs. Cake and Welcome to Sugar Cube Corner!” She chuckles upon seeing my confused expression. “Oh, don’t mind Pinkie Pie. She’s just a little strange at times.”
“A little?” I say sarcastically. I look towards the food stands on top of the counter. There are cupcakes, muffins, cakes and cookies; all being of different colours and flavours of icing. “Well Mrs. Cake, I’d like to have a dozen chocolate chip cookies please!” I say, licking my lips.
“Coming right up! That’ll be 5 bits, please” She says. I levitate 5 bits from my saddle bag and place them on the counter. “Anything else?” She asks.
“No thanks, I’m good. I’ll enjoy these!” I reply, licking my lips once again.
“Have a nice day!” She says from behind me as I leave the store. I levitate my bag of cookies into my saddle bag. The sun is high in the sky and it places a warm glow over the citizens of Ponyville as I watch them go about their daily routines. Food stands, restaurants, and what looks like a large tree in the distance. As I get closer I read the sign 'Ponyville Public Library.’
“Is that a library in a tree? I have to check this out!” I say.
I trot up towards the library door and push it open. I walk inside and the door closes behind me. Hundreds of books situate themselves on all the wooden shelves of the hollow tree. A table in the middle of the room with a carved wooden head of a horse is placed on top. As I observe the library I notice a cyan Pegasus pony with a rainbow mane and tail sitting on a chair with her back facing me.
“Uh, hello there.” I say to the Pegasus.
“Huh?! Whoa!!” She exclaims in a raspy voice as she falls off her chair and lands with a thump. She stands up on all fours and looks at me blushing slightly. “You can’t just barge in here like that!” She snaps.
“Forgive me, but this is a public library, isn’t it?” I say to the cyan Pegasus, who’s now looking at my flank with a puzzled look. “Hellooo, any pony in there?’ Waving my hoof in front of her face. “I’m Silver Spark. Do you run the library?” She snaps out of it and looks back at me.
“Me? The one and only Rainbow Dash running a library? Hahahahah! No way! I’m just here to read the new editions of Daring Do is all! Nice to meet you, Silver Spark!” She looks at my flank again, quizzically. “What’s with your cutie mark? It looks just like my friend Twilight’s.” She asks.
I walk over to where she dropped her book, levitating it in front of me the cover reads ‘Daring Do: The Crypts of Horror’
“Who’s Twilight?” I ask her as I give her back the book.
“Twilight Sparkle runs the library here in Ponyville. Are you new here?” She asks
“Yes, I’ve just moved here about an hour ago from Manehattan.” I reply
“I’d like to show you around town sometime, but I’ve got a pretty busy schedule today so I’ll catch you later Silver” She says as she zooms out the door.
Thinking of what she just said about my cutie mark I decide to seek out this ‘Twilight Sparkle’.
“Hello? Is any pony here?” I call out, and after a few seconds I hear some pony reply.
“Coming!” I look to my left and see some pony making their way down a staircase. A purple unicorn with a stripe of indigo and pink running through her dark navy blue mane and tail approaches me. “Can I help you?” she asks.
“Hi, I’m Silver Spark. Are you Twilight Sparkle? The one who runs this library?” I question.
“I'm also Princess Celestia’s most faithful student!” She adds cheerfully. “And yes, I do run this library.” She answers my question. She starts to notice my cutie mark.
“Uhhh, Twilight?”
“Oh, sorry.” She says, blushing. “So Silver Spark, what can I help you with?” She asks me.
“Would you mind showing me around Ponyville? I just moved here from Manehattan about an hour ago.”
“Actually, I’d need to eat breakfast first, but I’d love to show you around.” She says.
“Oh, that reminds me!” Levitating my bag of chocolate chip cookies out from my saddle bag I place it on the table with the wooden horse head. I levitate one cookie out of the bag and munch down on it. “Want some Twilight? I insist.”
“I’d love some! Thank you Silver Spark!” She says with delight. I levitate another in front of her and she accepts it with her magic and bites into it. We share the rest of the cookies when Twilight notices a familiar looking book in my saddle bag. “What’s that in your saddle bag, Silver?”
“Oh, it’s just a book I decided to bring along on the train ride.” I use my magic to place the book down onto the table.
“Astronomical Astronomer’s Almanac to all things Astronomy! I used to have a copy of this book, but my number one assistant, Spike, accidentally sneezed on it.” She says, sighing.
“Did you throw it away just because it was sneezed on?” I asked.
She shook her head. “No silly! My assistant is a baby dragon; his sneeze incinerated the book’s pages.” She said with a laugh.
“Oh, hehehe. Now I get it. In that case, would you like to have my copy? I've already read through it several times.”
“Really!? Oh thank you, Silver! I haven’t been able to find a replacement copy!” She says excitedly as she levitates the book into an open space in the shelf where her previous copy had been.
“So, where is your number one assistant, Twilight?” I ask curiously.
“Spike? Oh, he’s in Canterlot right now on royal business.” She says as she trots over to the door. “Now, about that tour. Shall we get going?” She asks with a smile. I smile back to her and nod.
On my way to the door, I notice Twilight staring at my cutie mark again with a puzzled expression. I can't help but ask why she's interested in my cutie mark.
“Hey, Twilight? Would you mind telling me why you're so interested in my cutie mark?” I ask with a raised eyebrow.
“I-uh, well, it does look so much like mine, after all.” She gestures her head in the direction of her cutie mark. “I might write a letter to the princess about this.” She investigates my cutie mark again. “I can't help but feel there's something strange about your cutie mark.” She says, but then shakes her head and gets back on topic. “Anyway, I'll introduce you to my friends. You've already met Rainbow Dash. She's not much of a reader, but since she found the Daring Do series, she's been hooked on it.”
“Yeah, the way she sped out your library, I can tell she's an athletic pony. Not to mention her cutie mark.” I say, chuckling. We walked alongside each other until we arrived at an apple orchard.
“This is Sweet Apple Acres! My friend Applejack lives here. This is where the best tasting apples in all of Equestria are sold as well as the equally famous Sweet Apple Cider.” Twilight says proudly. We walk past the white arch gate when I spot an orange earth pony with a blonde mane wearing a light brown Stetson hat.
“Well, howdy there, Twilight! Who's the new colt?” She asks as she trots over to us.
Twilight introduces me. “Applejack, this is Silver Spark. He's from Manehattan, and he just moved to Ponyville today.”
Applejack approaches me and shakes my hoof vigorously. “Why, it's a pleasure makin' your acquaintance! Ah sure do like makin' new friends!” She says. Letting go of my hoof I greet her with a smile. “Y'all say yer from Manehattan? My Aunt and Uncle Orange live there, but I never liked it there. Too many posh ponies fer mah liking.”
“Funny you should say that because I moved out of Manehattan for the same reason.” I respond with a smile.
“Ah'd love to stay 'n chat, but I gotta get back ta work! It's nice meeting ya, Silver!”
Twilight and I say our farewells as we head off to our next destination towards the edge of the Everfree Forest.
“Fluttershy lives near the Everfree Forest, and she loves taking care of her animals. She's even convinced a cockatrice to turn me back from stone once.” Twilight says.
“Sounds like quite the ordeal, Twilight.” I say, amused, as we reach a small cottage. Twilight and I walk up to the door and she knocks on the wooden door.
“Fluttershy, are you home?” Twilight asks. No response. “Oh that's right, she's at the boutique today to drop off Opalescence, Rarity's pet cat. Lets go.”
I follow Twilight away from the edge of the Everfree Forest and back into the heart of Ponyville. “You see that fancy building over there? That's where my friend Rarity lives. She's a fashion fanatic”. We approach the purple door. “Rarity, is Fluttershy here? There's somepony I'd like you to meet.” She says knocking on the door. The door opens and a white unicorn with a curly well-styled purple mane and tail welcomes us in.
“Fluttershy, Twilight's brought a guest! Would you like to meet him?”Asks Rarity. I spot a nervous looking yellow pegasus mare with a long flowing pink tail and mane in the corner of the room. She nervously steps out to towards us.
“O-ok...” Fluttershy replies in a soft, quiet voice.
“Nice to meet you, Rarity and Fluttershy.” I nod at each of them respectively. “My name's Silver Spark, and I just moved here from Manehattan.” I say.
“You certainly don't look like you're from Manehattan.” Says Rarity as she scrutinizes my features.
“Thank you.” I say, taking that as a compliment with a smile. “I've never wanted to be like one of those posh ponies. It's just not my style.”
“Um...i-i-if you don't mind me saying, um, your cutie mark looks interesting...” Says Fluttershy from behind her pink mane.
“Yes, it is intriguing, isn't it?” Says Twilight. All three of them are now observing my cutie mark. I feel my cheeks starting to flare up due to this awkwardness, not to mention the attention my cutie mark's been getting.
“Um, girls? You can stop now.” They all stop staring immediately and all of their faces show a hint of red. “It's nice meeting you Rarity and Fluttershy.” I say. They both smile awkwardly. Rarity approaches Twilight and whispers something in her ear. Twilight's face lights up with a smile.
“Silver, lets go to Sugar Cube Corner to meet another friend of mine.” Says Twilight.
I follow Twilight and the others to Sugar Cube Corner. As we approach the sweet shop Twilight tells me to stand outside until she says to come in. Twilight, Rarity and Fluttershy all enter the shop closing the door behind them. A few seconds later, Twilight says, “Come in!” I open the door and to my surprise a pink blur shoots up from behind the counter.
“Surprise!” She yells as the lights switch on. Ponies from around Ponyville crowd the shop and different colours of balloons, streamers and other sorts of various party objects decorate the shop along with what looks like a cannon. “Hi, I'm Pinkie Pie, and I threw this party, just for you! Were you surprised? Were you? Were you? Huh? Huh? Huh?”She says as she bounces around me.
I chuckle with disbelief at the party pony's speed. “Very surprised! Well done, Pinkie.” I reply.
“You see, I saw you when you first entered the shop, and you were all 'hello' and I was like ::gasp:: remember? If I never saw you before, that means you're new! I know every pony and I mean every pony in Ponyville, you see?”
“This is the best welcome party I've ever been to, Pinkie Pie.” I say with a delightful smile.
“Oh, thank you, Sparky!” She replies. I'm greeted by Twilight, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash and Applejack as we sit around one of the wooden tables by the wall.
“Wow, you guys! All of this, just for me?” I ask.
“Of course, dear! After all, you are new here.” Rarity says.
I levitate a chocolate cupcake in front of me and start to eat it, when practically everyone in the room gasps. I look towards where every pony was looking to see Princess Celestia entering the bakery. Judging by the shocked look on her face something doesn't seem right.
“Twilight Sparkle, I need you and your friends to meet me in the library. At once!” She says in a harsh tone. A blinding flash of light occurs and she disappears immediately. Every pony starts to panic at the Princess's abnormal behaviour and arrival to the party.
“Every pony, join hooves! I'm teleporting us to the library!” Twilight says.
Confused and puzzled at what's happening and having no time to say anything, Twilight grabs my hoof.
"What's going o-" I'm interrupted as a blinding flash of light engulfs the 7 of us and the next second we're back in Twilight's library. We all look towards the Princess who's standing on the stairs.
“An old foe of mine has returned! Queen Chrysalis!” She says in a distraught voice.
We all gasp. I know exactly what she is talking about. The changling attack on Canterlot a few months back was led by the changeling queen, Chrysalis.
“She's weaker since the last time we encountered her at the royal wedding, but she has compensated for this by bringing along more changelings. They are attacking Canterlot as we speak!” I notice she isn't accompanied by her royal guards.
'But can't Shining Armor and Princess Cadence banish her like they did before?” Asks Rainbow Dash, alarmingly.
'They cannot!” She pauses, then looks down at the library's wooden floor.
“Not anymore...” Says the Princess, a tear falling from her eye.
Well guys, I hope you enjoyed the story and didn't find it too boring at the start. I'll start another chapter based on others' decisions on how this one went :) And Special Thanks to Thunderhawk7865 for editing the chapter!
Enjoy!
Chapter 2: A Hurried Approach
Twilight rushes towards the Princess and stands in front of her.
“What do you mean? What happened to them?” Twilight asks in a worried tone. Princess Celestia angles her head down to see Twilight in front of her, on the verge of tears. The rest of us walk towards where Twilight is standing to comfort her, in case bad news was to be heard. Princess Celestia had managed to calm herself down as she begins to re-tell the horrifying events.
*Hours Earlier*
Princess Celestia has just finished raising the sun. With a warm smile across her face she walks through two open double doors into a hallway leading to her throne room. Walking through the hallway, she gazes at the stained glass windows and then to the refraction of different coloured lights projected across the marble floor.
“Good morning” She says, greeting the two royal guards standing on either side of the red double doors. Both of the guards bow to her. Using her magic, she opens the double doors of her throne room. The rays of the sunlight shine through the clear windows, illuminating Celestia’s flowing mane. Suddenly, all of the windows shatter as familiar-looking creatures burst through them. The sudden event leaves Princess Celestia shocked and stunned. Celestia realizes that these creatures are, in fact, changelings. The entire throne room is now filled with changelings, both on the floor and buzzing in the air. The cackle of Queen Chrysalis reverberates through the throne room as Celestia finds herself standing face-to face with Queen Chrysalis.
“We meet again, Celestia,” Says Chrysalis. Princess Celestia tries to use her magic against her, but she realizes her magic is being prevented by two anti-magic rings on the base of her horn. She mustn’t have seen the changeling grunt who must have dropped them on her horn as it flew over her earlier.
“Chrysalis!? What is the meaning of this intrusion?” Says Celestia as she is held down by six changelings.
“Oh, I am so glad you asked, Princess! It’s very simple: revenge, of course! She cackles. “My previous ‘visit’ didn’t go as planned, remember?” Chrysalis says in her demonic voice. She turns to her subjects. “Bring them in!”
The changelings obey the command from their superior. Celestia couldn’t believe her eyes. Through a broken window, Princess Cadence and Shining Armor are being brought in by the changelings. Each tied together by ropes of green magical energy around their limbs. Both of their horns have an anti-magic ring attached. Princess Celestia can hear the sounds of struggle coming from them as they are placed on the red carpet.
“Let me show you something, Celestia: if anypony would try to interfere with my plan...” Chrysalis turns to face the struggling Cadence and Shining Armor. “This is what they’ll get!” She says as her horn glows a green aura. Two magical green beams of energy burst from Chrysalis’s horn and onto Cadence’s and Shining Armor’s horns. They both groan in pain and start to falter in their stance. The green beams disappear, and they both collapse on the ground, clearly unconscious. “Don’t worry Celestia; I didn’t kill them. I just absorbed their magical power to within an inch of their life, but they’ll die slowly,” She says, cackling. The horns of the changelings surrounding Cadence and Shining Armor light up with a green aura, producing a circle of green flames around both of them. Soon they both disappear beneath the floor. Princess Celestia, filled with rage, hits one of the changelings with the back of her hoof in the face, causing it to fall out the window. This loosens their hold on her which then gives her enough freedom to kick another out another broken window.
“You’ll pay for this, Chrysalis!” Shouts Celestia with anger in her voice.
“Oh, no, you’re mistaken. It is you who shall pay!” Says Chrysalis as her horn glows green again. Knowing what Chrysalis was about to cast, Celestia takes action. Just as Chrysalis fires her green beam of energy, Celestia tilts her head so that the base of her horn faces the beam. With a loud clatter, the beam of energy shatters both of the anti-magic rings on her horn. “What?! Impossible!” She snaps. Celestia concentrates on a spell, and with a blinding flash of light, she teleports into the heart of Canterlot. Using her Royal Canterlot Voice, she gives warning of Queen Chrysalis’s presence and orders for the guards to protect the citizens while she retrieves the bearers of the Elements of Harmony. As a shocked and puzzled Princess Luna arrives at the scene, Princess Celestia gives her the short story on what’s happened and places her second in command. Soon all of the guards are seamlessly pouring out of the castle and their stations fighting off hundreds of changelings surrounding the castle.
*The Present*
“I need you girls to wield the Elements of Harmony once again! I’ll have Spike set up a train to Canterlot and don’t worry he’s safe with me,” Says Princess Celestia, now turning to me. “Silver Spark, you are to assist the girls. They’ll need it. Now I must get back to Canterlot to help with the defenses.” I’m stunned to hear her say my name, how did she know my name?
“Princess, if I may ask, how did you know my name?” I ask with a quizzical look.
“From your cutie mark, of course,” She replies, and with that she teleports out of the library with another flash of light.
Puzzled and confused at what’s been happening, I look towards Twilight, who is now staring back at me along with the others, all shocked at how the Princess knew my name from just looking at my cutie mark.
“Umm, girls? We should get going, the Princess needs our help!” I say. They all nod.
“Let’s hurry to the train station…come on!” Twilight says. I follow Twilight and the others out of the library. The train station’s just a few minutes’ walk from here. “We need to hurry. According to what Princess Celestia described, my brother and Princess Cadence are in the caves beneath Canterlot.”
“There are caves beneath Canterlot?” Asks Rainbow Dash.
“Most ponies have forgotten that those caves even exist, Chrysalis used those caves to try to trap Cadence and me during her last attack,” Twilight responds. “We’re approaching the Ponyville train station.” In the distance, a docked train is visible.
“There’s the train. Come on!” I say as I increase the pace of my galloping. The seven of us arrive at the train station and run straight into the open cabin door. After I step inside, I rest against the cabin wall a bit to catch my breath. Pinkie Pie comes hopping through the door as if nothing was happening.
“I call top bunk!” She shouts as she springs up from the ground and lands on the top bed.
“Y’know, there is a ladder there, Pinkie Pie…” Applejack says dryly.
“I know, but this way is more fun!” Pinkie replies, giggling.
“This is no time for fun and games girls; this is serious! My brother and Cadence are in danger of dying!” Says a worried Twilight. I walk up to Twilight and put a reassuring hoof on her shoulder.
“Don’t worry, Twilight; nopony’s dying on my watch,” I say. “Besides, if Princess Cadence has been trapped down there before, she might’ve already gotten out with Shining Armor.”
“Yeah, you’re right. We should hope for the best. Thanks, Silver.” Twilight says as she embraces me in gratitude. The sudden jerk of the train starting to move sends Twilight and I tumbling to the floor atop each other. The both of us quickly get to our hooves and start to blush.
“Careful there, lovebirds!” Applejack says with a snicker. At that comment, everypony starts laughing. Once the laughter dies down, we each pick our spots on the train. Since three of the four sets of bunk beds were occupied, I took the bottom bunk of the fourth set. The girls start their chatter as I gaze out the window. The sun is almost touching the horizon, meaning the day is almost over. I go through today’s weird events in my head:
“Okay, I arrived in Ponyville this morning and met Pinkie Pie and Mrs. Cake at Sugar Cube Corner. Then I met Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle in the library. Twilight offered a tour and introduced me to her remaining friends: Applejack, Fluttershy, and Rarity. Pinkie threw a welcome party, during which Princess Celestia suddenly arrived and warned us of the return of Queen Chrysalis. Now we’re on our way to Canterlot and I’ve been ordered by the Princess herself to assist the girls in this ordeal. This has got to be THE most exciting day of my life!” My thoughts are interrupted by Twilight climbing onto my bed and sitting down next to me by the window.
“It’s weird, isn’t it? Being a new arrival to a town and having to be caught up in this mess,” She says as she gazes out the window.
“Are you kidding? This is the most eventful day of my life! Unlike in Manehattan where every day’s the same…” I reply. “Well, rarely there would be events like the Wonderbolts derby, but that gets held in Canterlot most of the time. Speaking of Canterlot, how long’s the ride until we arrive there?”
“About 4 hours usually,” She replies. “But since it’s an emergency arrangement, it could be quicker.”
With that, we decide to rest for the few hours we have left on the train. As I lie awake in my bunk, staring at the night sky, I think to myself, “Man, today was an eventful day, but eventful will be an understatement to describe what we’ll be in for later.”
I awake from a light slumber. The cabin is dark with only the moonlight shining through the windows and revealing the snoozing ponies in their beds. I try to get back to sleep and get as much rest as I can before we arrive. I start to feel cold, and I notice an open window to my left. I get out of bed, walk over to the window, and shut it. I slip back into my bed and sleep comes quicker this time. I awake again, as I hear a thump. I sit up as another thump follows, louder this time. They seem to be coming from…the roof? The noises wake Twilight up as she sits up in her bed below Rarity, who is still asleep with her sleeping mask on. I turn to Twilight as we hear another noise.
“Twilight, do you hear that?” I ask her. “It sounds like somepony or something is up on top of the train.” We both scramble out of bed.
“Maybe we should wake everypony up and see what’s going on,” says Twilight. I agree as I look down the cabin at the rest of Twilight’s friends. Twilight proceeds to try to wake Rarity up while I make my way across to where Applejack and Pinkie Pie are situated.
“Applejack, Pinkie Pie, you’ve got to wake up,” I say in a half-whisper. They both toss and turn until Applejack opens her eyes.
“What is it, Silver?” Applejack asks.
“I’ll explain later, wake up Pinkie Pie for me while I wake up Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy.” Applejack, who’s on the bottom bunk, prods the mattress beneath Pinkie Pie. I glance back to where Twilight is and see that she’s having a hard time waking Rarity up. I proceed towards the bottom bunk of Fluttershy who’s already starting to wake up. “Fluttershy, are you awake?” I ask in a soft light whisper. Opening her eyes, she looks up at me and squeaks, clearly startled. “It’s ok, it’s just me” I reassure her.
“Oh, goodness, you startled me” she replies. “What’s wrong, Silver?”
“I need you to fly up top to wake up Rainbow Dash; I’ll explain when we’re all awake.” As I walk over to Twilight, who’s still trying to wake up Rarity, Fluttershy walks up behind me and taps me on the shoulder.
“Um….Rainbow Dash is missing,” she says in her quiet voice.
“What!?” the rest of us say in unison. I light up my horn with an illumination spell and light up the area where Rainbow Dash was supposed to be sleeping. Sure enough, she wasn’t there. Suddenly, another thump sounds from the roof. At that moment Rarity finally wakes up.
“What’s so important that you just had to ruin my beauty sleep?” Rarity snaps.
“First of all, Twilight and I started hearing noises coming from the roof of the train, and second, we just found out Rainbow Dash is missing” I say to everypony. “The noises on the roof must be Rainbow; I’ll go check it out”
I position myself away from the group and start to cast a minor teleportation spell when Twilight trots towards me.
“I’m going with you” she says. In a flash of light we are both on top of the train. I immediately see Rainbow Dash feigning a fighting stance but she isn’t facing us.
“Rainbow Dash?” Twilight calls out. Rainbow Dash quickly spins around and charges for Twilight. Twilight flinches and gasps in surprise. Reacting quickly, I target Rainbow’s tail with a hold spell and she stops inches away from hitting Twilight. We both look at Rainbow Dash, but the thing that caught my eye was that her eyes were a tint of green and slightly serpentine looking. Then out of the corner of my eye I see another Rainbow Dash climbing up on the roof.
“Silver! Twilight! Th-that thing….it’s a changeling!” yells Rainbow Dash. Still holding the changeling with my spell, Twilight’s horn lights up and she blasts it with a purple beam, transforming it back into its original self. Twilight and I gasp at the presence of the changeling.
“What is a changeling doing all the way out here?” I ask Twilight.
“It’s a spy for Queen Chrysalis. She knows we’re coming!” she replies. “We have to dispose of it”. I cancel my hold spell on its tail as Twilight levitates it up with her magic.
“Twilight, wait!” yells Rainbow Dash flying towards us. Rainbow flies in a corkscrew motion and she executes a swift, hard kick to the changeling’s chest, causing it to let out a sharp shriek of pain.
“That’s for messing with me,” she says to the changeling. Twilight then levitates it over the edge of the moving train, dropping the changeling with her magic. A sickening crunch is heard as it hits the railway and then gets caught under the train’s wheels for the killing blow. I look back over the railway and spot a small pile of ash marking the end of the changeling.
“Let’s get back inside,” I say. Rainbow and Twilight both nod and grab hold of me as I cast my teleportation spell.
Now back inside of the train, everypony else gathers around us.“Are you three ok? What happened?” Fluttershy asks.
“We’re all fine Fluttershy except for the changeling,” I say.
“Changelings? I hate them! They can’t make me look right” retorts Pinkie Pie.
“Hold up now. There was a changeling up there? But we’re not even close to Canterlot yet,” says a surprised Applejack.
“I know, but my best guess is that changeling was a spy for Chrysalis,” Twilight says.
“Rainbow Dash, why were you trying to fight that thing on your own?” I ask her.
*Thirty minutes earlier*
The moon is still high in the sky as Rainbow Dash lies awake in her bed staring up at the ceiling. She rolls over to her side to stare out the window. Suddenly, a dark shadow rushes past the window making her gasp in surprise. She leans back from the window as the shadow rushes past again. She turns her head to look through the dull light of the cabin. Everypony else is still asleep. She quietly gets out from under the covers and makes her way down the bunk bed, being careful not to wake anypony. She walks over to a bigger window, unlatches it, and pushes it open quickly, making a gap big enough for her to fit through. Flying out of the window, she makes her way to the top of the train. Once on top, she starts looking around the landscape for the ‘shadow’ she’d seen earlier. A thump sounds as something lands behind her on the train. She turns around to see Fluttershy with a smile on her face.
“Fluttershy? What are you doing up here?” Rainbow says as she walks up to ‘Fluttershy’. ‘Fluttershy’ steps forward and advances on Rainbow Dash, her smile changing to a toothy sneer. Rainbow starts to back up “F-Fluttershy?” ‘Fluttershy’ leaps into the air, diving towards Rainbow Dash. Rainbow swiftly moves to the side as ‘Fluttershy’ hits the roof with a thud. “What’s gotten into you Fluttersh-“Rainbow is cut off as ‘Fluttershy’ transforms in front of her. In a swirl of green flames ‘Fluttershy’ is now ‘Rainbow Dash’. “A changeling!?” she exclaims as she feigns a fighting stance. She charges towards her doppelganger, it does the same. Rainbow attempts a swift uppercut, but her copy dodges and counterattacks, connecting a fast punch to Rainbow’s right wing. Rainbow gets knocked off balance and tumbles towards the edge of the train. The moving train only makes it harder to keep her from falling off as well as her temporarily disabled wing. Rainbow regains her balance and stands up. She knows she is near the edge and must keep herself from falling, but before she could react, her doppelganger rams into her which sends her sliding across the roof and off the edge. Luckily, her left hoof grabs onto a pole which is connected to the guard rails on the back of the train. She grabs the pole with her right hoof, strengthening her grip. She pulls herself back up to the edge of the roof when she spots Silver and Twilight. Silver has a magical hold on its tail as the changeling is thrashing about. Rainbow pulls herself back up onto the roof “Silver! Twilight! Th-that thing, it’s a changeling!” she shouts to them.
*The Present*
“I’m sorry, guys. I should’ve woken you all up before investigating, but I was bored, you know? I was so anxious in reaching Canterlot,” Rainbow says.
“You mentioned your injured wing. Is it alright?” asks Fluttershy. Rainbow Dash looks down towards her right wing, flares it up and folds it down again.
“Its fine; thanks for asking,” she says. Thinking back to the changeling encounter, I realise that we can tell changelings apart from the real thing by looking into their eyes in dark places; they will always appear to have slight serpentine eyes with a light green glow.
“Twilight, did you see the eyes of that changeling when it was in the form of Rainbow Dash?” I ask her.
“It’s a physical key difference in telling apart changelings from the real thing,” I say proudly.
“You might be on ta somethin’ there, Silver” says Applejack. Rarity starts walking back towards her bed.
“In the meantime, why don’t we all get some rest before we arrive in a couple of hours” suggests Rarity as she climbs into bed and puts her sleeping mask back on. We all agree and climb back into our respective beds. I lie down and stare up at the mattress above me.
“We haven’t even arrived at Canterlot yet and we’ve already encountered a changeling. The positive side is the fact that I’ve discovered a key difference that will aid us in the long run”. I close my eyes and fall asleep.
Hours later, I awake to the sound of the train screeching to a halt at the Canterlot train station. I look out of the window to see that it’s still dark; I spot a Canterlot clock tower in the distance. It reads ‘3:30.’ Everypony starts waking up as the cabin door slides open, and I see two royal guards enter. Their eyes are showing a glow of green in the dull light.
The Caves Beneath Canterlot
Upon seeing the ‘royal guards’, I notice 2 mistakes they’ve made. First, the royal guards usually wait outside of the train and they do not enter. The second mistake is their eyes of course, but they’re trying to act like royal guards, meaning they don’t know that we can see through their disguises, also meaning we can take them by surprise. I look to my left where Twilight is just starting to get up. I decide to lower my tone to speak with her.
“Hey, Twilight. Look. The eyes of those guards; they’re changelings. They don’t know that we can see through their disguises.” Twilight’s face had no signs of surprise or shock which means she’d expected this. “I know a spell that will temporarily disorient them but for it to work, you and the rest of the girls will have to shield your eyes.”
“Ok, but keep acting like you’re just waking up, I’ll go warn the girls by pretending to wake them up. If the changelings will keep their roles, they shouldn’t be suspicious of what I’m going to do. Oh, and wait for my signal.” Twilight says. I give a slight nod to Twilight as she starts to climb out of her bed. I watch the ‘guards’ intently in case they are to strike. They are both standing idly a few feet away from the beds of Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. Luckily they are not wielding their spears as they are too tall to fit inside the train. They are still wearing royal guard armour. If Twilight can use her spell to return them to normal, the armour should disappear. In the corner of my eye I see Twilight ‘waking’ the others up and warning them on what’s about to happen. After a few moments, the girls start climbing out of bed and I do too. I stand on all fours at the ready, awaiting Twilight’s signal whatever it was. Twilight turns to face the ‘guards’.
“Use your change spell on them Twilight” I bark. She nods, faces the incapacitated guards, and fires two purple beams of magic. Within a second, both the ‘guards’ are now their changeling selves. “Rainbow, Applejack, you know what to do!” I say to them.
“We’re on it, Silver!” Says Applejack.
“With pleasure!” Says Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash charges straight towards the guard on the left, who’s still unaware of what’s going on. With her back hooves, she kicks the changeling’s head back, causing an unhealthy snap of the neck. The changeling’s body disappears in a short burst of green flames and then into ashes. Applejack positions herself in front of the remaining changeling and executes a fast and strong buck to the chest, sending it through a window in a shower of glass.
“Woo! You go, girls!” Cheers Pinkie Pie.
“Y-yeah….woohoo…” Fluttershy says quietly.
“You showed those ruffians!” Rarity says.
“That’s a great spell you used on them Silver” Twilight says. I smile at her compliment.
“One of my finest…” I say. “We need to get moving; let’s go, everypony”. The sun is starting to rise, slowly lighting up the sky. I’m the first one to exit the train and step onto the cold pavement and the girls follow. I stop, frozen in my tracks just outside the train door and Twilight bumps into me. Hundreds, maybe even thousands of changelings are heading towards our direction from all over Canterlot. Within seconds, we were surrounded by changelings hovering in the air and on the ground. Then a familiar cackle fills the air, I turn around to see Chrysalis on top of the train. Twilight and her friends are startled at Chrysalis’s sudden appearance.
“Hahahahaha! Why if it isn’t the bearers of the elements of harmony. Oh, what’s this? A new addition?” Cackles Queen Chrysalis.
“Yeah! He’s going to help us destroy you!” Shouts Pinkie, not her usual self anymore.
“What have you done with Cadence and my brother?!” Twilight shouts.
“Oh? I’ve forgotten about them. Let’s see…. They’d probably be dead by now.” Chrysalis says, laughing. I can see Twilight’s temper sky rocketing as she starts to charge a spell. A purple beam of magic shoots from Twilight’s horn and directly at Chrysalis. But the beam just dissipates as it strikes her. I gasp and so does Twilight. “Hahahahah! You fool! I’m just as powerful as Celestia. Your pitiful magic can’t hurt me”.
My horn begins to spark as I start to charge a spell. “Oh no, you don’t!” Chrysalis’s horn lights up green and before I could react, the green beam strikes me.
“Aghhh!” I yell as I get thrown back. An excruciating burning pain overwhelms my body and I can hear Twilight and the others yelling my name. I manage to open one eye through the intense pain and I see five changelings start to surround me, my vision starts to fade and I slip out of consciousness....... My eyes shoot open as I take a deep breath. I’m lying on my side and I push myself up. My body feels weak and sore all over. I start to observe my surroundings, the light is very dull and reflected on what looks like shiny rocks on the walls of…..a cave? “This must be….the caves beneath Canterlot? Shining Armour and Cadence must be in here”. I light up my surrounding area with a luminescent spell to reveal a very spacious rocky cave with crystals growing on the walls along with tunnels branching out in different directions. “Heeeey!!!!!” I shout, the sound of my voice echoes as the soundwaves bounce around in the cave. I hear a light shuffle from behind me. I quickly turn around to face the wall of the cave. Then a muffled voice sounds from behind the wall.
“A-anypony….please help..” Says a mare’s voice. That voice, it sounds familiar.
“Cadence!?” I ask. I hear shuffles from behind the wall again.
“Please…..help” She replies. I observe the wall to make sure it’s not one of the main supports for the cave.
“Stand back, I’ll get you out!” I say as I charge a minor ballistic spell. I aim my horn at the wall and release the spell. The wall cracks and gives way, blasting a large chunk out of the wall. I cough a bit waiting for the dust to settle. I walk forward towards the hole in the wall and I take a look inside. I see 2 figures against the far wall of the small area, the dull light from the hole, lighting up a purple, pink and white tail. I approach the figures and suddenly one figure rushes towards me. Out of the darkness comes Princess Cadence, her mane dusty, ruffled and in tangles with tears in her eyes. She hugs me for a brief two seconds before speaking.
“Oh thank Celestia, you have to help us! Shining Armour’s unconscious!” She says very worriedly. I give a quick introduction.
“My name is Silver Spark; I was separated from Twilight and her friends not long ago. How long were you down here?”
“A little over 12 hours…” She replies. Walking towards Shining Armour reveals a shiny ring attached to the base of his horn. I look back at Cadence who has the same. I’ve seen those rings before; they’re used to prevent magic.
“Hold on Cadence, I know a spell that can remove those rings”. Cadence is thrilled to hear me say that.
“Oh, good! This ring is driving me nuts, not being able to use magic and all…” Cadence nods.
“If you could lower your head, that’d be great.” I say with a slight chuckle.
“Hehe oh, right.” She says as she lowers her head to my horn’s height. I channel a spell which is seen as a small beam of light from my horn to the ring. After a few seconds the ring starts to light up around the seams then the ring falls apart in tiny pieces as it hits the cave floor with a few clinks. I do the same for Shining who’s still unconscious by the looks of it. Cadence kneels down beside Shining and her horn begins to glow a light cyan blue. Her spell starts to give off a blue glow around Shining Armour as he starts to groan. The spell wears off and Shining holds a hoof to his head.
“Arrgghh…….are…..are we still down here? Hey…..how did you use magi-ahh” Shining as interrupted as Cadence pulls Shining in for a hug.
“I was so worried Shining, but we’re getting out of here. Thanks to Silver Spark for finding us and removing those dreadful rings.” Says Cadence. Shining is released from the hug, stands up and walks towards me.
“I must thank you Mr. Spark. If it weren’t for you, who knows what might have happened…” Says Shining.
“You’re very welcome, Shining, but there’s no time to lose! We have to get out of here. Twilight and her friends are in danger!” I hurriedly say. Cadence gallops back through the hole.
“Follow me” She says. Shining and I look at each other with a surprised look and then we nod. We follow Cadence, trailing behind her as she skilfully takes lefts and right through the caves. We stop as we come to a bigger clearing of the cave, only this time there‘s cart tracks that spiral down a huge hole, only there was no cart in sight.
“Nice one princess!” I cheer.
“That’s my Cadence!” Shining cheers as he hugs her.
“Thanks, but there’s still another ledge to get to…” She says as her horn powers up a spell. In another flash of light we teleport to the upper ledge Cadence was talking about, where we see light at the end of a tunnel.
“Tw- Twily?!” He says surprised. The group of six start to slow down to a trot. Shining excitedly gallops towards Twilight when I notice their eyes. Green glowing eyes.
“Aghh…” I groan as I’m slowly rolling to a stop. Suddenly the ground disappears beneath me. I quickly shoot my right hoof into the air and luckily catch the edge of the ledge. Cadence and Shining call my name and I hear them running towards me. I manage to lift my other hoof up to the ledge and attempt to pull myself up when a flash of light appears in front of me. The changeling disguised as Twilight looks down at me from the top of the ledge, with an evil smile across her face. Its horn lights up green and with a loud explosion and a ringing in my ears I feel myself falling.
“Noooooo!” Is all I hear from Cadence and Shining as I fall. Closing my eyes, I know the ground is approaching fast. All of a sudden I feel a floating sensation. I open my eyes to see I’m encased in a purple glow. I look to my left and I see…..
“Twilight?!” I say surprised. And with Twilight are her friends, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity and Rainbow Dash. I am slowly lowered to the ground at which point Twilight collapses to the ground and breathes heavily.
“Twilight!” We all say in unison as we surround her.
“Twilight, are you ok?” I ask. Through her breaths she manages to say
“Y-yeah, I’m fine……that spell…it…..it took a lot out of me, you know?” Twilight gets to her hooves and lunges towards me and embraces in a hug. “I’m glad you’re ok, Silver…” She says lightly. Her friends give out an ‘aww’ during this becoming moment. “Did you find Cadence and my brother? Are they ok?” She asks worriedly.
“Yes, they’re alive and well, Twilight. However, the last time I’ve seen them was before I fell. A group of changelings disguised as you six were waiting for us at the exit, they must’ve captured them. We must hurry.” I say. Rainbow hovers above the ground.
“I can’t wait to teach Chrysalis and her changelings a lesson! Come on everypony, let’s go!” Rainbow says.
