The Hardest Fight...

The next morning, Twilight awoke with a sickly feeling in her stomach. The emotions from yesterday's events had stuck with her all through the night. After getting out of bed, she went to the main hall where the princess was waiting for her.

"I read your report. This Maria character seems very troubled, but trustworthy nonetheless. At the very least, she didn't immediately attack you. It seems we learned a lot about the mirror as well. We might have never known multiverse theory existed at all if it wasn't for her."

"We would have sooner or later. If what she said about the theory of evolution is true, we will continue growing in intelligence and magical prowess until Equestria can no longer support our species, and even then, we may figure out how to carry on elsewhere."

"Are you ready to go back?"

Twilight nodded.

"I find it very odd that your form didn't change, but still, we can use that to our advantage. If you encounter these so-called clowns, you can cast a protection spell."

"Right."

"Be careful. From what you described, the situation on Earth is extremely dire."

"Copy that."

Twilight ended the conversation and teleported to Earth.

"Her grasp of tactics rivals that of our own guards. I underestimated her abilities..."

January 1st, 2001

"I need to figure out what happened. Before I search for Maria, I have to go to Americus."

Twilight looked to the sky.

"No point in trying to fly in this weather..."

After finding the path Maria had originally traveled from, Twilight walked for what seemed like hours. She reached an area crowded with buildings some time later.

"This must be it. These structures don't look like anything back home."

She stopped when a familiar smell hit her nose.

"Oh no..."

Twilight started teleporting from building to building. Sure enough, there were bodies everywhere. The blood was dry, indicating that they had been deceased for a decent amount of time. Twilight remembered something else.

"There was no blood on Maria, and her clothes didn't smell freshly washed or excessively sweaty. She was telling the truth..."

Upon this epiphany, she quickly began to track down her earthly partner. She teleported back to the path where she'd performed the healing spell. From there, she was able to track Maria's movements. With the residual magical energy from the spell still on Maria, she was able to teleport to the area where the dark-haired woman now resided.

When Twilight materialized, she found herself in a small room. She could hear water running.

"I guess she's taking a shower. I should probably wait here."

After a little while, Maria emerged from the bathroom in her normal clothes.

"You're here. I guess you weren't a hallucination after all."

"I went to Americus."

"Did you see them; the corpses?"

"...Yeah..."

"It's not easy. I know."

"I suspected you were lying yesterday, but after seeing the carnage, I figured out you were actually telling the truth."

"I don't blame you. Nobody would believe something like this could happen until it does."

"What's your role in all this?"

"If there's a functional police department, I turn the clowns in, but if there's not...Well..."

Maria pulled out two objects; one from each hoodie pocket.

"I recognize the knife, but what's that other thing?"

"It's a firearm. I can shoot from a long distance with it. I've been studying a little bit of martial arts since last night too."

"You have martial arts here?"

"Why? Do you?"

"Yes. We also have bows and arrows."

"So do we. Modern weapons are more convenient to carry though."

"So our weapons are outdated here..."

"Kind of, but they're still handy if you don't have anything else on hand."

"What kind of martial art are you studying?"

"Krav Maga. It's a fighting style developed by the Israel Defense Forces. It's one of the best martial arts styles for someone of my body type."

"Israel Defense Forces!?"

"Yeah. What's the matter?"

"I was told by an elder princess to join any warriors I could find here."

"I don't know how well that will work."

"Why?"

"The Israel Defense Forces were created to protect the country of Israel from other countries that would threaten it. The clown issue has nothing to do with politics, religion, or economics as far as I know. None of the survivors are sure why it's happening."

"Were there others who made it out of Americus?"

"No. I was the only one."

"Where are we now?"

"The next town over. I didn't stop to look at the name. Don't bother looking for anyone else, though. This place is just as deserted as Americus."

"No survivors here either?"

"Not one."

"What are we going to do?"

"You should go home. It's not safe here."

"But I thought you said we should stick together?"

"So you could get the information you needed."

"It's too late. I'm already in this for the long haul."

"Are you sure? There's still a chance to turn back."

"Not for me. I have to protect this place to ensure a better future for ponies everywhere."

"If that's what you feel is right, I won't stop you, but just know it won't be an easy road."

"I knew the moment I entered this world. It's up to us now."

"Okay. You've made your choice."

Maria put the knife back in her pocket and cocked her gun.

"It's time to move on from here."

"Alright."

Maria removed the object that was holding the door closed, and her and Twilight left. Neither of them knew how long of a night it would really be...