Apparently, There's Also a DS Version

A light snowfall descended over the streets of Ponyville. The streets had already been cleared of any snow that had fallen over the last few days and weeks, making it fairly easy to walk around town. At this time in the afternoon, Zero Volt was walking toward the library to meet his friends. Unfortunately, he wasn’t looking forward to meeting them there. A week earlier, he agreed to take them to visit a place that he had put behind him a long time ago, a place that he did not want to return to. However, they were all eager to go there, each for their own reasons, and only he was capable of bringing them there.

Strangely enough, the one most eager to go there was Fluttershy. One would’ve thought that Pinkie Pie would be the most eager, though she was certainly enthusiastic. After all, it wasn’t everyday that she had the chance to indulge in a near-limitless supply of sugary treats. However, he had hardly noticed any fauna the last time he had gone to that place, making Fluttershy’s interest all the more unusual. In fact, it was her idea for the eight of them, Spike included, to go to the Wisps' home world. Zero Volt realized that a few days ago, which is why he went directly to her to avoid going there.

“So you’re asking me if we can cancel our visit to the Wisps’ home world,” Fluttershy said.

“No, not necessarily,” Zero Volt said. “But since I’m the only one who doesn’t want to go, I figured I could leave you all there and come back a few hours later when everypony’s ready to go home.”

“Zero, you make it sound like you’re dropping us off at daycare,” she said. “But no, you’re not just dropping us off. You’re coming with us.”

“But why?”

“Because you need to be there, and because I’m, uh…” Fluttershy hesitated to finish her sentence. She looked away from him and nervously shuffled a hoof across the ground. After about ten seconds, she quickly murmured to a patiently waiting Zero Volt, “because I’m making you go.”

Zero Volt stared at her incredulously. “Fluttershy, I’m resistant to just about every method of persuasion you have, especially The Stare. You, on the other hoof, have been known to get frightened by your own reflection, and you’re making me go with all of you?”

“Th-That was ten years ago, and it hasn’t happened since,” Fluttershy said, looking visibly hurt. “And Rainbow Dash swore she’d never tell anypony. I never told anypony that she-”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! She didn’t tell me anything,” he said. “Twilight told me about it. She found out after veering off course while testing a mind reading spell.”

“Oh… then forget what I was about to say.”

“It’ll be like you never told me,” he deadpanned. “Anyway, like I said, you really can’t convince me to stay with the group, so the rest of you will just have to have fun without me.”

"B-but wait,” Fluttershy said, but could barely manage a whisper as Zero Volt turned to leave. She frantically tried to think of some way to change his mind. An idea finally hit her, and she placed her hoof to her muzzle and blew on it sharply. It didn't make much sound, at least not the kind of sound that either pony could hear, but it was enough to catch his attention and make him turn around. They heard the sound of small paws tapping the ground, and seconds later two puppies scampered in through the front door and stopped in front of her hooves. Zero Volt paled when he saw the two come in, and his breathing started to become faster and shallower. "Alright, if you won't listen to me, then maybe you'll listen to them."

“Fl-Fluttershy,” Zero Volt stammered. “What are you…”

“You have two choices, Zero,” Fluttershy interrupted, finally showing some assertiveness. “You can either come with us to the Wisps’ home world, or you can deal with these two.”

“I still can’t believe she did that,” Zero Volt said to himself. “And with puppies? Where did she even get that idea?”

He didn’t have much time to ponder Fluttershy’s choice of coercive methods before he arrived at the library. The others were already there, each putting the final touches on their preparations for the trip. Pinkie Pie had over a dozen bags of different shapes and sizes surrounding her. There was no question about what she wanted to do in the Wisps' home world, so Zero Volt reasoned that the bags were meant to carry as many sweets back to Equestria as she could. One by one, she stored each empty bag in one of the others. When she was done, every bag, including some saddle packs and suitcases, had all been stuffed into one little fanny pack.

“Pinkie, did you really just do that?” he said.

“Yeah, of course,” she said, placing the pack around her neck. “You don’t expect me to lug around one of those big suitcases around, do you?”

“It’s not the why that I’m concerned about. It’s really more the how.”

“Really, because I’d like to know why she’s bringing a shovel with her,” Rarity said.

“She’s planning to dig up some cake,” Zero Volt said. “Which is weird, because that’s what the Drill Wisp is for.”

“Oh yeah!” Pinkie chirped. “I guess I don’t really need this then.” She opened one of the windows and tossed the shovel out into the snow.”

“Sure, y’all just let that thing rust outside,” Applejack said in admonishment. She was only planning on finding out how their world seemed to be growing sweets, pastries, and confections, so she wasn’t bringing anything with her.

Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy hadn’t packed anything either. Fluttershy was going to communicate with and befriend the Wisps when she arrived, and Rainbow was planning on trying a few of the Wisp powers for herself.

As for Rarity, she didn’t know how the weather would differ from that of Ponyville, so she had packed some clothes for cold, hot, rainy, snowy, and any other type of weather she could think of. She was also bringing a sketchpad, in case any design ideas came to her. Everything she had was packed into a single suitcase, and a few of her friends remarked that she was actually traveling lighter than usual.

Finally, Twilight was busy ordering Spike to put together some of her own supplies. “I’m still going to need more parchment than that, Spike,” she said. “I want to learn everything about their world, and I mean everything. In fact, let’s pack another inkwell.”

“You do realize we’re only going to be there for a few hours, don’t you?” Spike said as he went to find more materials. “Besides, how do you know that place is going to be that much different from Equestria?”

“They have their own sun and moon, possibly their own day-night cycle, an ecosystem that appears to be based entirely around flora, another ecosystem that’s somehow based entirely around candy, a huge aquarium and a massive fleet of airships,” Twilight said.

“Half of those things were actually built by Nightmare when she tried to capture the Wisps,” Zero Volt said. “That ‘aquarium’ was actually the ocean, only with platforms and giant fish tanks built into it.”

“Does that mean there will be a beach we could go to?” Rarity asked.

“Maybe,” he said. “But those airships will be long gone when we get there. At best, you could try to do some stargazing.”

“Spike, pack a telescope!” Twilight said. “Who knows what planets and constellations the night sky has in that world? I also have to determine what satellites the planet has, its force of gravity…” Twilight continued to list the data and information she was hoping to find on the planet. Zero Volt stared at her as she rambled on before walking over to Spike.

“You think we should just leave her behind and leave her to her own devices when we get there?” he said.

“I’m not so sure,” Spike said. “She studies magic more than anything, and the closest thing they have to magic would practically turn Twilight’s horn into a hood ornament.”

“I’m not exactly sure how their home world is maintained, but I see your point.”

“Come on, Twilight,” Rainbow Dash said. “We’re all waiting on you.”

“Alright, alright,” Twilight said. “I’m almost ready.” She picked up several plastic bags and placed them in her saddle bag, but not before the other ponies noticed a biohazard symbol on each of them. “What? I’m going to collect some biological samples while I’m there.”

“Putting them all in biohazard bags seems kind of overkill,” Rainbow said.

“Rainbow, we have no idea what the organisms of that world would do if they were released into Equestria.”

“Yeah, Celestia knows what plagues I brought back from that world last year,” Zero Volt snarked.

“Is it too late to put him under quarantine?” Rarity asked.

“Yes, yes it is,” Twilight said. “Alright, I’m ready. Zero Volt, if you would.”

“Fine, let’s get this over with.” The eight of them gathered together along with their belongings. As soon as they were all ready, Zero Volt focused on their destination. The library around them vanished in a green flash, and when the flash of light faded away, they all found themselves surrounded by lush grasses, tall trees, and many wild, flowering plants. Scattered patches of clouds hung above them in the otherwise clear blue sky. Aside from Zero Volt, the seven of them stared in awe at the verdant, picturesque landscape around them.

“Incredible,” Applejack said. “Ah thought this place was beautiful before, but that movie the princesses showed us didn’t show it justice.”

“Yeah, and we saw that in HD,” Rainbow said.

“So, Rarity,” Fluttershy said, “spring-wear or summer-wear?”

“Definitely late spring,” Rarity said, pulling the appropriate hat out her suitcase.

“Does that mean you need the rest of your stuff taken back to Ponyville?” Zero Volt asked.

“Zero, don’t even think about it,” Fluttershy said.

“I’ve already thought about it, Fluttershy.”

“Alright, let’s begin!” Twilight said. “Rainbow Dash, fly up and see if you can manipulate those clouds up there. I also want you to help me calculate their density, as well as this world’s atmospheric pressure.”

“No offense, Twilight, but I didn’t come here to be your research assistant,” Rainbow said.

“Shhh,” Fluttershy whispered. “Does anypony else hear that?”

“Hear what?” Spike asked. The eight of them fell silent and listened. Before long, they started to hear chirping sounds coming from somewhere nearby. Zero Volt raised his hoof to quietly call the group’s attention and pointed toward their left. With an insincere salute from Rainbow Dash, they all headed in that direction. The chirping sounds became more audible as they went until the source of the sounds sprung out of the grasses.

Seven Wisps, each one a different color and shape, emerged from the grass and started floating around the ponies. The ponies, and dragon, gazed at each of the Wisps as they floated around and stopped in front of them.

“That didn’t take very long,” Pinkie Pie said.

“That’s because they always have their glee club here,” Zero Volt said.

“Really?!” she said. She opened her mouth and took a deep breath, but Zero Volt jammed his hood in her mouth to stop her from singing.

“No, they don't. I have no idea why they’re here.”

“Zero?” Fluttershy asked, pointing at one of the Wisps. “I don’t remember seeing this one before.”

Zero Volt walked over and examined the Wisp. This one was white in color and looked very similar to the pink Wisp, except with two small antennae on its head instead of spines. “He used to be Frenzy,” he said. “You know, the purple one? Now he’s Boost.” The white Wisp started glowing and did a back flip before flying toward him. Zero Volt held his hoof out, stopping the Wisp. “Not now.” Though a bit discouraged, the white Wisp started talking to him and briefly gestured toward the other ponies. “Yeah, those are my friends. From Ponyville. They’re here to pay a visit. Hope you don’t mind.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet all of you,” Fluttershy said. “Could show us around your world? My friends and I would really like to see it.” The white, yellow, and orange Wisps all moved in front of her and started communicating with her. “Oh.”

“What is it?” Twilight asked.

“There’s another one of them around here as well,” she said. Fluttershy turned her attention back to the Wisps. The orange one gave her a pleading look while the white one produced another series of squeaks. When they were finished, the orange Wisp added a few more chirps and pointed off in the distance. “Of course. We’d be happy to help you find him.”

“Big surprise,” Zero Volt said sarcastically. “You guys need help, again! Alright sure, that’s why we’re here, right? To handle all of your problems for you.” The blue Wisp made a few quiet chirps of its own. “Yeah, I’m angry. Suck it up. Everypony, let’s split up and search for this other Wisp. One team should check out this grassland while the other searches Sweet Mountain. If you guys are going to put up an amusement park, we might as well name your other tourist attraction.”

“Ooh ooh ooh!” Pinkie called out. “I call Sweet Mountain Team!”

“But Zero, didn’t they say that their friend was somewhere in the amusement park?” Fluttershy said.

“How would they know that for a fact? They’re not exactly doing a good job of keeping track of this place if a whole amusement park popped up underneath them.”

“But then why would an amusement park just appear in this world? Don’t you think that’s a little out of the ordinary?”

“I think it’s a lot out of the ordinary,” Zero Volt said. “I also think it could be a complete distraction. That other Wisp could just as easily be anywhere else in this world, so why not expand our search? We might as well enjoy ourselves while we’re here, right?”

A scowl formed on Fluttershy’s face after the last comment, and she struck him across the face with one of her hooves. Zero Volt stood still with his mouth agape, his muzzle now smarting after Fluttershy’s slap. He turned back to look at her and saw the anger in her eyes. “Shame on you,” she said harshly. “Just because you’re upset right now does not mean you can use us like that!” She turned to the rest of the group. “Come on, everypony.”

Fluttershy walked off in the direction that she had been pointed in, with the Wisps all flying along with her. One by one, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity all passed by Zero Volt to follow her as well. A few of them cast a quick glance in his direction while he stood there, completely speechless. As soon as they had all walked by him, he hung his head low to the ground. He cast a glum look in their direction before lifting his hooves and lethargically following them.

* * * * * * * * * *

Half an hour later, the entire group arrived at the amusement park that the Wisps had mentioned. Four Ferris wheels were already visible from where they were standing, and nearly every street they walked along was lined with various exotic plants. Several walkways were constructed high above the ground, leading in various directions. Fluttershy continued to lead the group, surrounded by and speaking to the Wisps. The others were following slightly behind her, all taking in the scenery around them, while Zero Volt continued to lag behind everyone else.

“How do y’all reckon we’re gonna find that other Wisp?” Applejack said. “This place is big.”

“Big and boring,” Pinkie Pie whined. “This is supposed to be an amusement park, but all I see are a bunch of Ferris wheels.”

“Now let’s not forget about the shopping malls here,” Rarity said, pointing out all of the stores that surrounded them.

“Nopony seems to be running any of these stores,” Twilight said. She decided to change the subject. “Could somepony tell me what happened between Zero Volt and Fluttershy? Why did she slap him?”

“Remember when she told him off for usin’ us?” Applejack said. “He knows that their little friend is somewhere ‘round here. That’s why he wanted us to split up and look elsewhere.”

“I don’t understand. He doesn’t want to help them?”

“That’s exactly right. He’s still mad at them, and since we all came here to enjoy ourselves, he used that as an excuse to get out of helpin’ those Wisps.”

“No,” Rainbow Dash said. She looked back at Zero Volt, who was still lagging behind and sulking. “He wouldn’t do that. I get that he’s angry, but he’s not like that.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Twilight said. “Volt is a decent pony. We’ve known him long enough to be able to say that, but he had some serious trust issues when he first came to Ponyville, and I don't think he's worked through any of them. I think he’s letting his anger and distrust overrule his conscience.”

Twilight turned back and gave him a disappointed look, but at the same time, she knew more than she was letting on. A few days ago, Zero Volt had agreed to let Twilight test a mind reading spell on him. While casting the spell, she allowed her focus to drift and managed to find his memories of his first day in Ponyville, as well as his confrontation with those four thugs.  Without his knowledge, much less his approval, she learned that he had considered leaving without freeing the Ponyvillians who had been trapped in those cells, knowing that it could have been days before anypony found them. Of course, they could have freed themselves within a few hours once their magic returned, or just one hour if they had some parchment for a letter to the princess. Nevertheless, the incident showed just how far Zero Volt was willing to take a grudge.

At the same time, Twilight’s probe into Zero Volt’s mind had told her that he wasn’t seeing a therapist, despite her recommending one about a year ago. She could have figured that out on her own; his trust issues would have certainly been brought to light during a therapy session. Unfortunately, psychological help sounded like exactly what Zero Volt needed, especially for his fear of dogs, which she was convinced was more than just a case of cynophobia.

“For once, I hope you’re wrong, Twilight,” Rarity said. “From what Fluttershy has told us, this isn’t like looking for a little foal lost in the marketplace. She mentioned that this Wisp has been acting strangely, and for Zero to be so callous at a time like this is just…”

“I know what you mean,” Pinkie Pie said. The ponies continued to walk through the streets, searching for the other Wisp. They passed a few benches that were lined up along the street when a violet object rushed by, flying behind a few buildings and lampposts. This did not go unnoticed by Pinkie, who quickly looked in the direction of that violet blur. “What was that?”

“What was what?” Rainbow asked.

“I just saw something over there a second ago.” Rainbow Dash flew over to the lampposts that Pinkie was pointing at and scanned the area. Everyone else, including Fluttershy and the Wisps, stopped and waited for her, but Rainbow didn’t see anything unusual around her. She ascended slightly to get a better view of their surroundings, but she still wasn’t finding anything.

Suddenly, Rainbow Dash noticed some movement on the other side of the street, among a group of shrubs. She quickly flew over to the spot and looked around. “I thought I saw something here,” she said. She searched among the tropical plants and lampposts, but whatever she had seen didn’t seem to be there anymore.

“Whatever it is can’t be too far,” Twilight said. “If we fan out from here, one of us should be able to find it.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Zero Volt said, pointing his hoof down one of the walkways in the area. When the other ponies looked at him, they realized that he was pointing at a small, violet creature floating over the walkway. “That missing Wisp you’re looking for is right there. You want him? Go get him!” He teleported onto the other walkway and galloped after the violet Wisp, who was now flying away from all of them. Most of the other ponies tried to follow on hoof, expecting the street to eventually connect to the walkway above, though Fluttershy quickly took flight and led the group of Wisps with her. Rainbow Dash was already in midflight, so she quickly switched to the other path and caught up with Zero Volt.

“For a while there, we thought you didn’t want to help,” she shouted to him.

“Take a closer look at that Wisp,” he shouted back. “This isn’t about them anymore.”

Rainbow took a closer look at the violet Wisp. This one had a fairly round head, and like the others, also had three limbs extending from the base of its head. However, this one didn’t seem to have any eyes, and an unpleasant, yet disturbingly familiar grin was spread across its face. After a few seconds, she remembered where she had seen this grin before. “No way! Her again?”

“I guess so, and from the looks of things, she’s almost sucked that one dry. Come on, we have to take her down.” The two of them continued their pursuit, with the rest of the group running along the street to keep up with them.

Pinkie Pie, of course, was bouncing with them while they galloped, but soon noticed a single metal rail off to the side of the walkway they were on. Rather than wondering why that rail was even there in the first place, she saw that it led up to the walkway that the violet Wisp was traveling over. Once she reached the rail, she made one final hop and landed on it. Switching to her front right hoof, she did a one-hooved hoofstand while grinding up the rail. “Wheeeeeeeee-Owie!” However, she forgot to jump off of the rail before it ended and fell off, tumbling on her back and onto her haunches. Zero Volt and Rainbow Dash were already ahead of her, so she quickly stood back up and bounced after them.

Eventually, the ponies and Wisps all arrived at a stream that ran through the park. Both paths continued on the other side, but each one had a gap in it placed just above the stream. The violet Wisp had no trouble floating across the stream, while Rainbow Dash and Zero Volt continued after it, the latter teleporting across while the former simply flew over. Pinkie Pie, who had almost caught up to her two friends, saw a few balloons rising from the gap in the walkway. She leapt on top of one of the balloons, somehow able to stand on top of it without falling, and used them as platforms to reach the other side.

Down below, Twilight used her magic to create a temporary bridge over the stream for herself. Applejack opted to jump across the gap, using her powerful legs to make it across in a single bound. The rest of Wisps also flew over with no problem, but Fluttershy lagged behind a bit to reach Rarity and give her a ride. Despite some difficulty due to the additional weight, she was able to make it to the other side and drop Rarity off, allowing both to continue the chase.

Before long, the walkway sloped down and merged with the street below. Once the paths converged, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Zero Volt found themselves at the front of the group. The two pegasi were using their wings to maintain speed, and dozens of tiny sparks were flowing from Zero Volt’s white streaks as he galloped. He appeared to be channeling his Shinespark ability, but instead of fully activating it, he only used it to raise his running speed.

The three of them were catching up to the violet Wisp, but before they could get any closer, a wall of black flames rose up ahead of them. The three leading ponies all stopped before any of them could run into the flames, but the rogue Wisp was already on the other side. The rest of the group finally caught up, but by then, the flames had circled around the Wisp, keeping the ponies away from it.

“Don’t you dare take another step,” a familiar voice spoke out. The flames surrounding the Wisp started to gather in front of it. Once the flames had clustered together, they died down, revealing the alicorn to whom the voice belonged. “What are you foals doing here?”

“N-Nightmare?” Fluttershy gasped.

“We could ask you the same thing,” Zero Volt said bitterly. “Don't you think this is getting a little old? I mean, what is this, the third time we've run into you?"

“Fifth by my count,” Twilight added. “And we know you’ve tried this before, so just give up the Wisp and we won’t be forced to harm you.”

“Why would I stop now?” Nightmare said, “After I’ve finally absorbed the power of one of the Wisps into myself. It only took me a few months this time.”

“Only a few months?” Zero Volt said derisively.

“Why of course. You must realize how difficult it is for a being such as myself to absorb their anti-magic power. After all, the small bit that you gained from each of them interferes with your other abilities, doesn’t it?”

“Still, all that prep time just for one of them?” he continued to mock. “What, you didn’t find anything with a shorter timetable?”

“Recall that I once waited a millennium for one of my plans to come to fruition,” Nightmare said. “I am a patient mare, and if this plan takes only a few years, then I can easily wait that long. Besides, how well do you think Equestria can defend itself against anti-magic? Maybe I should show you what I have in store for your kingdom. Void!”

The violet Wisp started glowing and immediately flew into Nightmare’s body. Once she absorbed the creature, Nightmare’s body was enveloped by a sphere of violet energy, which then started to suck in everything around it. Gusts of wind blew toward the sphere, carrying loose objects like trash cans, balloons and certain plants with them. Most of the ponies grabbed onto any secure objects they could find, with Applejack holding onto her hat as well. The Wisps weren’t as lucky, and many of them started to get pulled in. Twilight quickly grabbed each of them with her magic and tried to bring them back. She strained her magic, trying to the best of her ability to pull them to safety.However, the void created by Nightmare swelled and rapidly expanded. Neither the ponies nor the Wisps had any time to escape before the void consumed all of them and spread across the amusement park.

* * * * * * * * * *

Zero Volt woke up to the feeling of something poking at his muzzle. Upon opening his eyes, a large green blob took up most of his field of vision. His vision became clearer after a few seconds, revealing that the blob wasn’t actually large, just very close to his face. “Uh yeah, good morning to you too,” he muttered to the small creature. “Now stop poking me.”

The green Wisp backed away from him, allowing him some room to stand up and get his bearings. Zero Volt brought his hooves underneath him and slowly stood up, ignoring the soreness in his legs and joints. He was still in the amusement park, but when he got back on his hooves, he saw that it looked very different after Nightmare’s attack. The sky had become a deep violet, most of the benches and plants had been thrown about, and several fissures and gaps had formed in all of the nearby walkways.

“Looks like Nightmare’s attack did a lot of damage to this place,” he remarked. “More than that, it separated all of us.” He began to explore the amusement park, looking around at his surroundings while cantering down the walkway. The Wisp caught up to him and started following him.

“Where are we going?” the Wisp asked. Although it couldn't speak any pony languages, Zero Volt could understand the little creature’s chirps perfectly and had no problem translating them.

“I’m going to find my friends and take down Nightmare,” Zero Volt said.

“You wanna give me a little more detail than that?”

Zero Volt stopped for a moment and glared at the Wisp. “No. I don’t.” He began cantering again, with the Wisp anxiously following him.

* * * * * * * * * *

In another section of the amusement park, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were also trying to regroup with the others. Two wisps, the yellow and cyan one, were floating alongside Fluttershy, who was trying to keep the same pace as the faster flying Rainbow. Nearby were three massive Ferris wheels, two of which were less than a mile away, the third one looming over them as they flew by. Fluttershy grew anxious as she gazed up at the towering structure that cast its shadow over them.

“Rainbow Dash?” Fluttershy squeaked. “You don’t think these Ferris wheels are going to come to life at any minute and start attacking us, do you?”

“If they did, they’d probably go after Volt, knowing his luck with them,” Rainbow said. “Which reminds me, what are we going to do about him?”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m talking about his attitude this entire trip,” she said. She stopping flying and touched down on the ground, with Fluttershy doing the same. “He was about to ditch these little guys a while back when we started looking for that new one. That’s why you slapped him, right?” Fluttershy nodded to her. “Then why did we even come with us?”

“Um, actually…” Fluttershy murmured, but she was to quiet for Rainbow Dash to notice.

“I mean, if he didn’t want to deal with these Wisps that much, then he should’ve stayed behind.”

“Rainbow, I…”

“He could’ve saved us a lot of trouble, and nopony would’ve minded if he wasn’t here.”

“I told him that he had to come,” Fluttershy said, finding her voice in the middle of her friend’s rant. Rainbow Dash finally stopped talking and looked at her. Fluttershy glanced down for a second and nervously shifted her wings before explaining. “Zero asked me a few days ago whether or not he had to stay with us when we got here, and… I may have threatened him with these two little puppies if he didn’t-”

“You did what?!” Fluttershy flinched at Rainbow’s outburst. The two Wisps flew in front of her to protect her, but did little to deter Rainbow Dash when she angrily approached her. “Fluttershy, what is the matter with you?! What the hay made you think it was okay to mess with his fear like that?” Fluttershy continued to cringe as she backed away from Rainbow Dash. “Well? Spit it out already!”

“I-I had to do it,” she squeaked. “Zero needed to come back here, to talk things out with the Wisps.”

“For what? He made it perfectly clear that he didn’t want to speak with them.”

“That’s just it. Zero thinks that they used him and got rid of him when they didn’t need him anymore, but he has it all wrong.”

Rainbow blinked in response, somewhat surprised by what she was hearing. “How do you know that?”

“It was all during that movie that the princesses showed us,” Fluttershy said. “We all saw the same thing, so I thought maybe he’d pick up on it too.”

“So then you got something out of these guys that he didn’t?” Fluttershy nodded. “That still doesn’t make up for what you did. You know how he feels about dogs.”

“Maybe I went a little too far, but it can’t be that bad,” Fluttershy murmured back, but she didn’t find Rainbow’s reaction very reassuring. “Can it?”

Rainbow Dash sighed in frustration. “Remember that night when we all found out it? After we all got back home, I went over to his place to see how he was doing.”

“You never told us about that,” Fluttershy said. “So, how was he doing?”

“Not too good,” she said. “When I got to his place, he was having trouble sleeping. He spent the entire day around Applejack’s dog, so it was still gnawing at him even after he left Twilight’s, and… part of it might have been my fault too.”

“What do you mean?”

“Some stupid prank involving a dog costume after everypony left. I felt pretty bad about it, so I spent the night at his place and-”

“Wait, you slept with him?!”

“What? No, no, no, I didn’t sleep with him!” Rainbow said. “I just slept over at his place. We talked for a couple minutes, and when he was feeling better, we both went to sleep. Look, that’s not important right now. As soon as we trash Nightmare, you have to talk to Volt and call off your attack dogs. I don’t even know why you used them in the first place.”

“They’re not attack dogs, they’re just puppies,” Fluttershy said. “And I told you before. Zero had to come here to work things out, and I… I didn’t know how else to do that.”

“The one time you didn't think to ask politely,” Rainbow muttered in exasperation. “Now come on, we have to regroup with everypony.” She spread her wings and lifted off the ground again. Fluttershy watched as she flew off before giving a remorseful look to the two Wisps floating next to her. After a while, she finally lifted off the ground and followed Rainbow Dash.

* * * * * * * * * *

Elsewhere, Rarity and Twilight were walking through the amusement park, hoping to rendezvous with the rest of their friends. Twilight was anxiously scanning the area around them while Rarity trudged alongside her miserably. Spike was standing on Twilight’s back and helping her look around. Floating just above them were two Wisps, the white one and the blue one.

“How much further do we have to walk, Twilight?” Rarity whined. “It feels like we’ve been here for days.”

“Rarity, it’s only been half an hour,” Twilight said. “I know for a fact that you’ve been on longer walks than this.”

“Yes, but add that to the other half-hour we’ve spent wandering around and… actually you’re right,” she said. “This isn’t the longest we’ve ever had to travel. So why am I complaining about this now?”

“I’m a lot more worried about us right now.” Twilight tried to focus on casting a spell, but she didn’t seem to have any access to her magic, almost as if she didn't have any magic at all. “This is the longest I’ve ever gone without being able to use my magic. With Nightmare running loose somewhere in this park, we’re in a lot of danger if she finds us.”

“This must be what she meant when she talked about invading Equestria,” Spike said. “But we can still fight back, right? We can use these Wisps and their powers.”

“That might not be such a good idea,” Twilight said. “We still don’t know what the white one does, and the blue one is too dangerous to use with anypony around.”

“What do you mean?”

“Whenever Volt used it, it released a shockwave that demolished every building within a mile of him. If that shockwave can tear apart other buildings, imagine what it could do to a live pony.” Twilight looked up at the two Wisps and focused her attention on the white one. “For all we know, this one could be just as dangerous. Rrgh, why didn’t he use this one when he had the chance earlier?”

“Probably to spite them,” Rarity said. The white Wisp was in front of her, making a series of squeaks and gestures to try to communicate with her. Of course, she couldn’t interpret anything that the Wisp was trying to say. “I wish we could understand you, but unfortunately, we seem to have misplaced both of our translators.”

“Since we can’t just ask them, we might as well test it for ourselves,” Twilight said. “I was going to study this world, so I might as well start here. Rarity, stand back.” Twilight approached the white Wisp while Rarity and the blue Wisp backed away. “Now what word did Volt use with this one before?”

“Hmm. I believe it was boost,” Rarity said. At that moment, the white Wisp flew into her body. Rarity flinched when the Wisp flew in her, and a multicolored aura surrounded her hooves. As soon as its energy coursed through her, she took off, screaming uncontrollably. “Aaahhhhhh! Stop! Release me right now!” The white Wisp increased Rarity’s running speed immensely, and she found herself unable to slow down as she ran down the street.

Twilight spread her wings and flew after her, partly to prevent her research from running away, but mostly to make sure that Rarity was unharmed. However, Rarity already had a head start, and because of the white Wisp’s power, Twilight was having difficulty keeping up with her. Along the way, Rarity ran onto a ramp alongside the street and flew off of it. When Rarity opened her eyes and looked ahead, she realized that she was about to crash into the wall of a building. She closed her eyes and turned away in anticipation, but instead of colliding with the wall, she abruptly shot back in the other direction. Once her hooves touched down again, she slid on them, creating a braking sound until she finally came to a stop. The white Wisp emerged from her as soon as she stopped, and was met with a glare from Rarity.

“Next time, stop when I ask you to!” she scolded, causing the Wisp to wince. “Preferably before I crash into something!” She looked at as much of her body as she could, but to her surprise, she had emerged completely unscathed. She was especially surprised to look at her hooves and find that they hadn’t even been worn down. “On the bright side, you didn’t ruin my hooficure.” She then found a nearby window and checked her reflection in it. “And my mane is still immaculate as always.”

“Rarity, are you alright?” Spike asked. He and Twilight had finally managed to catch up to her, though the latter stopped in front of her and tried to catch her breath.

“Actually, yes,” she said. “Surprisingly enough, I managed to get out of that without so much as a scratch.”

“It looks like you completely reversed direction before you could hit that wall,” Twilight said. “On top of the increased velocity, I think I have a good idea of what the white Wisp does.”

“Unfortunately, it didn't let me slow down, so I don’t think I’ll be doing that again.”

“I could probably ask someone else to test it out instead,” Twilight said. “Which reminds me, we still have to find everypony.”

“That means more walking, right?” Twilight nodded. “Very well, let’s go.” Both ponies, as well as the two Wisps with them, turned a corner and continued down the road through the park.

* * * * * * * * * *

“No… no… no… For the last time, no!” Zero Volt shouted, finally losing patience with the green Wisp. The park had become increasingly difficult for him to traverse due to the damage caused to the walkways. Earlier on, he tried to teleport across a large gap, only to find out that his magic-based abilities were being suppressed. The green Wisp had suggested using its power to explore the area, but he stubbornly refused. “I can get around here without your help, so leave me alone.”

“You’re angry,” the green Wisp squeaked.

“Yeah, I’m angry,” he shot back. “That tends to happen when my ‘friends’ use me to solve their problems and then throw me out with the trash.”

“Really? Who was it?” Zero Volt stopped in his tracks and squinted back at the Wisp. “It couldn’t have been Fluttershy. I mean, she seems so nice.”

“It was you!” Zero Volt said with a facehoof. “All seven of you!”

“Huh? What did we do?” Zero Volt didn’t respond, though his eye started twitching as he stared at the creature. “Wait, you don’t mean last year, do you?”

“Yes! Last year! You spent the whole day and night egging me on and acting nice to me, and when I finally get rid of Nightmare for you, I wake up in the Everfree with the door slammed behind me.”

“No,” the green Wisp squeaked softly. “That’s not what happened at all.”

“Then enlighten me,” Zero Volt seethed.

“Zero, you had a little bit of our power with you after that night.” The Wisp flew up to him and ran one of its pods through his bangs. “And that monster was still alive. We thought you were going to go after it when you woke up.”

“Then why did I wake up alone in the middle of the forest? You couldn’t be bothered to say goodbye to me first?”

“There wasn’t enough time for that. You came to us through a hole that the monster made, and that hole was going to close up.” Zero Volt blinked at the Wisp, putting an end to the glare he was giving it. “We tried to wake you up, but I guess you were too tired after that night. We always felt bad about letting you go like that, but… I didn’t think you’d take it this hard.”

Zero Volt stood in silent thought. His mind slowly moved from one thought to another. First, he felt confused and uncertain. From there, he remembered old bitter feelings, and pangs of guilt spread through his chest while his ears flattened against his lowered head. After he realized that the green Wisp might have been telling the truth, he thought back to those first few days in Ponyville. The anger he felt, all the things he did to ones he thought he couldn’t trust, and his behavior during this visit to the Wisp’s home world, all motivated by a misunderstanding. He looked up slightly when a different thought crossed his mind. “I could’ve teleported back,” he said.

“Huh?”

“I can teleport between this world and mine,” Zero Volt said. “I could’ve just gone back to Equestria myself.”

“Oh. Oops.”

Zero Volt did a facehoof. “Do you know how much angst that could’ve saved me?” he asked.

“Angst doesn’t look good on you,” the Wisp said.

“Angst doesn’t look good on anypony,” he said. The two of them stayed silent for several seconds. Eventually, Zero Volt let out the biggest sigh he had ever held in his entire life. “I’m going to say this to the rest of you guys after this is all over, but… I’m sorry… for the way I’ve been acting today.” He placed a hoof on his head. “I’ll probably have it in better words then, but right now I’ve got a lot on my mind.” The green Wisp responded by floating above his head and gently resting on top of his mane. “Hey, what are you doing?” Zero Volt swayed his head in every direction, but the Wisp held on to him. “You know, I probably look ridiculous with you up there.”

“Heh, I know,” the green Wisp chirped.

Zero Volt smiled at the small creature, but then he remembered that Nightmare was still causing havoc in this world. Looking around, he noticed that the only walkway nearby was the one he was standing on, and his path was now cut off by a large gap in the walkway. Above him, he saw a few trails of small golden rings, each going in a different direction. “We’ve spent enough time here,” he said. “The sooner we rendezvous with everypony and take down Nightmare, the sooner things will go back to normal. Hover!” The green Wisp was briefly surprised before being abruptly pulled into Zero Volt, whose white bangs changed to green and whose body now emanated a green aura. He lifted off of the ground and floated over the walkway, toward one of the trails of rings.

* * * * * * * * * *

Pinkie Pie gave out a cold, scrutinizing stare ahead of her. Her head tilted in one direction as she stared ahead, and then tilted it in the other direction. After staring intently for almost a minute, Pinkie pulled on the corners of her mouth and stuck out her tongue. She made several more faces after the first one, each one no less absurd than the one before it.

The pink Wisp floated in front of Pinkie Pie, with two of its limbs folded in front of it. It stared at Pinkie, meeting her smile with an irritated squint. The Wisp turned away and glanced to the side, where Applejack and the orange Wisp looked on in perplexity. It motioned between the two earth ponies and made a few squeaks to the orange Wisp. The orange Wisp glanced toward Applejack for a second before flying toward Pinkie Pie. The pink Wisp responded by flying away from Pinkie Pie and toward Applejack.

“You’re no fun,” Pinkie said, her smile quickly shifting to a sad pout.

“Focus, Pinkie Pie,” Applejack said. “We didn’t come here ta have fun.”

“Actually, that’s exactly why we came here, remember?” Pinkie said. She jumped in front of the pink Wisp, almost pushing Applejack out of the way, and her typically wide grin reappeared over her face. “And I’m not giving up on you just yet. I’m sure you’re a cool, fun-loving little guy underneath that spiky shell, just like another pony I know. I just have to figure out what puts a smile on that face.” The pink Wisp continued to squint back at her.

“How’re yah gonna put a smile on the face of a little critter that doesn’t even have a mouth?” Applejack asked. Pinkie paused for a moment, but Applejack continued to speak. “Look, right now we’ve got more important things to worry about. Nightmare’s still runnin’ loose, and we’re all still lost in this park. Before yah start makin’ more friends, we need ta find the ones we’ve already got.”

A small frown appeared on Pinkie’s face, but she nodded and started to walk along with Applejack. The two didn’t get very far, however, before the walkway underneath them cracked and started to break apart. Pinkie Pie and Applejack lost their balance and stumbled about the walkway, which now shook underneath them. The center of the walkway fractured most severely, and as chunks of stone broke off, a violet sphere appeared underneath it, swallowing each broken piece. The violet sphere swelled, absorbing more of the walkway, and causing both earth ponies to fall off the edge.

Pinkie Pie screamed as she plummeted from the crumbling path above her. To her right, Applejack was also yelling, though not quite as hysterically as Pinkie, and looking down. Pinkie looked down as well, and though she could barely see anything on the ground below her, the two of them were falling toward a small building, apparently a security office. To her left, the pink and orange Wisps were flying alongside them, keeping up as they fell. “Rocket!” Pinkie grabbed onto Applejack with her forelegs before the orange Wisp flew into her. The two of them rolled into an upright position, and as soon as the orange Wisp’s energy radiated from Pinkie’s back hooves, the two of them shot upward. They soared past the broken walkway and reached a higher altitude before the Wisp separated from Pinkie. Applejack and Pinkie Pie slowed in their ascent until they finally fell again, landing near a reflecting pool at one of the highest areas of the park.

Applejack slowly began to get back up. As soon as she opened her eyes, she nudged Pinkie with her hoof and pointed in front of them. Both mares stared up at the large violet form that loomed over them. It looked very similar to the monstrosity that Nightmare turned into when Zero Volt first fought her, but instead of two arms, it had a long tail with the same sort of head at the end of it. Nightmare floated toward them until she was hovering above the courtyard, on the other side of the reflecting pool from Pinkie and Applejack. She aimed its tail at the two of them and opened the mouth attached to it.

The mouth on Nightmare’s tail started to gather energy for a second attack. However, it had only charged for a few seconds before a cyan beam of light pierced a section of the tail. The beam came to a stop near Pinkie Pie and Applejack, at which point Rainbow Dash emerged from it and separated from the cyan Wisp. “You two alright?” she asked, only to have Pinkie Pie hurl herself at her and give her a bear hug. “Yeah, I missed you too, Pinkie, now get off me.”

“Glad ta see your safe too, Rainbow Dash,” Applejack said. “Yah know where the others are?”

“We’re right here!” Twilight called out. She, Rarity, and Fluttershy ran toward them, bringing Spike and three of the other Wisps with them. She turned and glared at Nightmare.

“It looks like you fillies finally made it back to me,” Nightmare sneered.

“You’re not getting away with this, Nightmare,” Twilight said. “Not when we have you outnumbered.”

“I’ll be plenty outnumbered when I return to Equestria,” Nightmare countered. “Why would I worry about it now, especially with this Wisp’s power at my disposal? You must have realized its effects by now, and once I unleash it upon to Equestria, not even the royal pony sisters will be able to use their magic.”

“Neither will you,” Zero Volt said, catching the attention of everyone else. He stood directly behind Nightmare with the green Wisp floating right next to him.

“And neither will you,” Nightmare said. She aimed her tail at him and channeled the violet Wisp’s power. “What are you going to do without your own magic?”

“Spikes,” he said. From the other side of the reflecting pool, the pink Wisp flew away from the others, past Nightmare, and into Zero Volt. A pink aura formed around his body, and once it formed into a sphere, he started revving up the Wisp’s energy. Spikes projected out of the sphere and moved over its surface, making several revolutions each second. Seconds later, he shot across the ground and jumped into the smaller head on Nightmare’s tail. He revved up again, allowing the spikes to shear into the head before letting go and shooting across the tail. He then jumped off, separated from the Wisp and landed with the rest of his friends. “Hey girls.”

“Ah reckon you’re feelin’ better now?” Applejack said.

“More or less,” he said. “Got a few apologies to make, but there’s time for that later.” He reached into his mane and pulled out two small wires, each one with an earbud at the end of it. Placing an earbud in each hoof, he inserted them into his ears before noticing the bewildered expressions on his friends’ faces. “What? Every boss battle needs some good background music.” Most of them cocked an eyebrow at him while he looked back at Nightmare, who aimed her wounded tail at him. “Boost.” The white Wisp flew into his body. His mane didn’t change color, though a multicolored glow formed around his hooves and the green hue of his irises became less saturated.

Zero Volt galloped forward. Nightmare kept the end of her tail aimed at him and fired three spheres in his direction. He leapt over the first one, which hit the ground below him. The second one landed several feet ahead from him, and he made a sharp left turn in midair with the Wisp’s power. His hooves landed on the surface of the reflecting pool and he kept running, skimming the water’s surface as he went. He reached dry land and continued to dodge the voids shot at him, either by swerving or jumping.

Meanwhile, his friends watched the fight go on. Some of them looked worried, though a few seemed unimpressed. “Hold on a second,” Rainbow Dash said. “Why is he just running around her?” From where they stood, Zero Volt was, in fact, circling around Nightmare while she attacked.

“Maybe he’s looking for an opening before rushing her,” Spike said.

“Running around for two minutes before attacking?” Pinkie Pie mused. “That sounds oddly appropriate. Either that or chasing after her if she's running away.”

“Appropriate or not, this is taking too long,” Rainbow said. “Laser!” She absorbed the cyan Wisp, took a split second to focus on Nightmare, and instantly found herself on the other side of the terrace they were in. Nightmare winced at the beam of light that had shot through the back of her head. She turned around and faced the rest of the group, prompting Fluttershy to use the yellow Wisp to drill into the ground and out of harm’s way.

Nightmare aimed at the group of ponies and Wisps, but was blindsided again, this time by Zero Volt. Pinkie Pie jumped in as well using the pink Wisp. She trotted across much of the surface of Nightmare’s transformed body, breaking into an occasional hop while the spikes dug into Nightmare. Rainbow Dash made another pass with the cyan Wisp, followed by Fluttershy, who inadvertently resurfaced directly underneath Nightmare and drilled into the base of her body. After realizing where she had resurfaced, she grabbed the yellow Wisp and flew back to her friends.

Now becoming annoyed, Nightmare rose above the terrace and aimed down at them. The violet Wisp’s power surged through her tail as she created another void. Rather than toss it at them, she held on to it, allowing it to grow in size.

Zero Volt looked up at Nightmare, and then at the nearby Wisps. “Hover.” The streaks on his sides and a few of his bangs turned green. With both Hover and Boost active, he propelled himself off of the ground and kicked the back of Nightmare’s main head. He was tossed back by the impact, but wasted little time recovering and slammed into her tail. He continued to attack her, bouncing off after each strike only to deliver another one. Each attacked physically rattled Nightmare, and eventually, her tail was knocked into her own void.

Nightmare pulled back, but was unable to break free from the violet sphere. In fact, her tail was actually being pulled in even more. Despite her efforts to break free, the void was claiming more of her. The sphere expanded by a few inches, and she fought even harder against its pull. Instead, the trapped limb broke off near its base, falling into the void while Nightmare broke away. The violet Wisp emerged from the smoldering stub of her tail, and now that it was no longer being used by Nightmare, the once violet sky returned to its normal color.

Back on the ground, everyone watched as the sky returned to normal and the violet Wisp floated down toward them. Twilight and Rarity tested their horns, one of them conjuring a book while the other produced a paper-thin, almost transparent, yet reflective surface in front of her. Both were delighted to see their magic working again.

Their delight was short-lived, however, when Nightmare’s main head flew toward them. Without the violet Wisp, she attacked by lunging at them and snapping her jaws. Fluttershy flew back to get out of the way, with most of the Wisps following her. Rainbow Dash pulled Pinkie Pie away and Twilight teleported Spike, Rarity, and Applejack to safety. Nightmare thrashed about in an attempt to kill any of them. In her fury, she caught sight of Zero Volt standing by himself with the violet Wisp next to him. His mouth moved briefly, and though she was too far away to hear what he said, she saw the violet Wisp fly into him.

Zero Volt dropped to his knees. A violet haze rose from his hooves, as well as the white sections of his mane and coat. He felt a dull, throbbing pain in his head and his stomach, but at the same time, that pain and everything else he felt was growing more distant with each passing second. Unlike Frenzy, which made him feel a combination of hunger and bloodlust when it activated, Void was making him feel empty, as if everything around him and inside him was being swallowed up. His hearing became hazy, and when he looked up, his eyes registered little more than a blurred, violet picture of the environment around him.

Nightmare approached Zero Volt as he lay on his knees. She recalled the effect that Frenzy had on him, both before and after he used it. Right now, he was either struggling to tap into this Wisp’s power or he was rejecting it outright. Either way, she had an opportunity to kill him while he was weak and unguarded, and she decided to take it. Nightmare lunged at him with jaws extended, ready to crush him between them.

By the time Nightmare reached him, Zero Volt’s body was already engulfed by the violet Wisp’s energy. She collided with the violet sphere that formed around him. Every cubic inch of her that fell into it was dissolved, degraded by the Wisp’s tainted anti-magic, and just like the previous void, this one was also pulling her in. What separated this one from the previous one was that it was moving toward her as well, apparently led by whatever capacity for thought Zero Volt still had in this state. The void swallowed more and more of her, breaking down every piece of her transformed body.

Finally, the void consumed the last of Nightmare’s form. It swelled by a few inches before finally dissipating. In its wake, the violet Wisp emerged, now with a deep violet aura around its body. Zero Volt appeared in center of where the void once was before falling to the ground.

The other ponies and Wisps watched while Zero Volt attacked Nightmare with Void. As soon as it ended, and once he collapsed, Fluttershy ran over and knelt beside him. She found no physical injuries on him, but his whole body shuddered and he was holding his front hooves against his stomach. Fluttershy placed a hoof on his side, but the only reaction she received was a quiet, pained moan. Above her, the glow around the violet Wisp intensified and changed from violet to a bright red. As it glowed the small creature’s body began to change shape. Three eyes appeared on its head, whose shape now resembled a candle flame, only larger. Its limbs became thin and somewhat wavy, and its entire body changed from violet to red-orange.

The red Wisp floated down to Fluttershy and spun around her head. Despite her concern for Zero Volt, it caught her attention and she looked up at it. The Wisp stopped in front of her and made a few small squeaks. Fluttershy nodded to the small creature and stood up. Behind her, a black fog swirled over the ground and gathered in one spot. She turned around and glowered at it as it molded itself into an equine form and rematerialized into Nightmare. The red Wisp followed her as she walked in front of her, her glower now turning into The Stare. Nightmare flinched when she saw Fluttershy’s powerful glare directed up at her, but quickly regained her composure and stared back.

“An intimidating gaze, but nothing more,” Nightmare said. “I’ve seen enough of your thoughts, your emotions, and your fears through the phantom I made from you.” She grasped Fluttershy with her magic and lifted her up to eye-level. “There’s nothing behind that Stare, so don’t fool yourself into thinking that you can convince me otherwise.”

“Burst!” The red Wisp flew into Fluttershy, instantly breaking Nightmare’s telekinetic grip on her. Fluttershy caught herself with her wings, and her hooves, as well as her primaries, were enveloped in flames. She flapped her wings to stay aloft while staring down Nightmare, each wingbeat releasing a burst of flames from them. At the same time, fire began to circle around her. The flames gathered around Fluttershy as she brought herself to an upright position and crossed her forelegs over her chest. She spread her forelegs out, and the flames that had built up exploded outward. The blast threw Nightmare several back, setting her entire body on fire, and incinerating her before she could hit the ground.

The rest of the group ran over to Fluttershy. With Nightmare gone, the red Wisp flew out of her while she landed back on the ground, now panting after the battle. “That was awesome, Fluttershy,” Rainbow Dash said. She gave her a congratulatory shove which briefly knocked her off balance.

“Thank you, Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy said. “That took a lot out of me.”

Rarity looked around the park apprehensively, and then turned toward her friends. “Do you think Nightmare is finally gone?” she asked.

“Probably not,” Zero Volt groaned, still feeling the effects of Void. “This is the third spectacular death scene she’s had, and she managed to come back from the last two just fine.” He turned toward the group of Wisps. “Look, I uh…” He was interrupted when six of the Wisps huddled around him, though the green one chose not to join them. The white Wisp left the embrace and chattered to Zero Volt, making a lengthy series of chirps. “Sorry, I uh, didn’t quite get all that.” The green Wisp floated down to him and made its own chirps to him. “Oh, thanks.”

“So you’ve finally reconciled with them?” Twilight said.

“Yeah. Turns out the whole thing was just a big misunderstanding.”

“Déjà vu, huh?”

“So if Nightmare’s gone and you’re friends with them now, there’s only one thing left to do,” Pinkie Pie said. “Throw a party!”

Before anyone could respond to her, Spike belched out a scroll. He managed to catch the letter and unroll it. “My dearest Twilight Sparkle… depart for the Wisp’s home world… Nightmare has resurfaced…” Spike skimmed the letter silently, only reading out loud the crucial details before rolling up the scroll. “I guess this came a little late.”

“Dear Princess Celestia,” Zero Volt dictated. “We’re already here, it’s already taken care of, and we’ll be back to give you a recap later today.”

“A-Actually, why don’t I dictate the letter?” Twilight said, holding a quill and some parchment with her magic.

* * * * * * * * * *

Later that afternoon, the seven ponies, and Spike, were still in the Wisp’s home world. After Nightmare had been defeated, most of them returned to the grassy area they had first entered in. Celestia and Luna had sent a reply to Twilight’s letter agreeing to wait until they returned to give them a debriefing. Until then, most of the six young mares in the group set out to do what they had initially came to do. Pinkie took the yellow Wisp with her, promising to return it in the same condition that she borrowed it in. Rainbow Dash spent much of her time flying around before taking a few of the Wisps for a test drive. She found Hover to be both redundant and slow, though she was enjoying the use of Laser and Boost. Fluttershy spent time talking to some of the other Wisps, but after seeing Zero Volt sitting alone, she realized that she still had something else to do.

Zero Volt noticed when Fluttershy hovered next to him and sat down. Neither one said anything for a while, but eventually, Zero Volt was the first to speak. “You knew, didn’t you? That’s why you insisted on me being here.” Fluttershy nodded. “You know, if they had realized that I could teleport back to Equestria, they would’ve had time to give me a proper sendoff. Then again, a lot of what happened today could’ve been avoided if I’d been an adult about this whole thing.”

“What do you mean?”

“If I’d come back here and talked to them sooner, things would’ve been easier for all of us,” he said. “We would’ve reconciled sooner, I could’ve introduced you girls to them, and we could’ve agreed to visit every so often. And if we’d all been here sooner, we might’ve rooted out Nightmare before she could cause any real damage. Instead, I acted all passive-aggressive about it.”

“So if there’s one thing you learned from all of this…”

“Yeah.” Another tense, awkward silence fell over the two of them. Fluttershy knew what he was going to say next, and she waited for him to address it. “Fluttershy, we need to talk. About your dogs.”

“What about them?”

Zero Volt sighed. “I still get flashbacks of that dog attack, the one that happened in Baltimare. It’s not just once in a while either, but… every morning when I brush my coat over my stitches, or if I turn over in my sleep, or whenever somepony takes her dog out for a walk.” He paused for a moment to finish his thoughts. Fluttershy didn’t say anything, only silently encouraging him to continue. “It’s bad enough dealing with it on an everyday basis, even when my friends don’t add to it. Applejack’s been great about keeping me away from Winona whenever I’m around, and Celestia bless her for it, but… those puppies you used on me. I just need to know, did you really have to do that, just to get me to come here?”

“I… I didn’t think I had a choice,” Fluttershy said. “I didn’t think you’d believe me if I just told you. I saw how the Wisps acted toward you that day. They genuinely liked you, and they genuinely cared about you. I thought you would have realized that when we watched that movie, but I guess understanding their language isn’t the same as understanding them.”

“I would’ve listened to you,” he said, after another pause. “I mean, I would’ve found it hard to believe, but I still would’ve trusted you. You didn’t have to keep this from me. You didn’t have to use those dogs either.”

Fluttershy looked down in front of her. She knew that is wouldn’t be a pleasant conversation, but she hadn’t expected her conscience to weigh so heavily on her. She moved closer to him and extended her wing over his back. Zero Volt felt the contact and looked around to see Fluttershy’s wing drape over him. “Zero, you’re right. I shouldn’t have exploited your fear like that. I-I shouldn’t have exploited it at all.” Zero Volt nodded in acknowledgement. “You… you still trust me, don’t you?”

“Yeah, of course. You promise to keep those puppies away from me, right?”

Fluttershy nodded. “Cross my heart, hope to-”

“You can already fly,” Zero Volt said, a tiny smile forming on his face. Fluttershy returned the smile.

“Actually, I am a bit hungry right now,” she mused. “Do you think we can ask Pinkie Pie if she has any cupcakes?”

“Maybe later,” he said. “I kind of want to stay here for a while.” Fluttershy nodded again, and to two of them stayed in that spot. They looked around at the scenery, including their friends around them, as the day drifted by.